L'Impero
45 Tudor City Place (between 42nd & 43rd)

I had eated at L'Impero a few years ago and thought it was a very nice place -- unusual dishes with a flare. As this is my friend's last meal in New York before heading back to Blighty, I thought, why not this place. Tudor City, for those who have never been up to this oasis in the middle of Manhattan, is a lovely if not odd place -- great views are aplenty.

They took awhile to set the table up, as this restaurant is busy on a bad day. After a drink, we moved over into the dining room. With a nice bottle of red, we embarked on a nice dinner. I enjoyed the grilled octopus for a starter. It was done very well, and the uncut tentacles give it more texture than others who do it chopped. My friend enjoyed his order of sweetbreads.

For the main course, I stuck to a pasta -- the malloreddus with crab, tomatoes and sea urchin. I wanted a lighter dinner as I've been eating too much with my mate's visit, and this was lighter than I expected. It was not bad, but it was rather lacking in the main ingredients -- especially compared to how my Mario Batali personally lobbed into my dish at Esca once. My friend enjoyed the roast guinea hen, and from all indications it was nice.

We ended up ordering all the cheese for a long after-dinner session, as we had to polish off the second bottle of wine anyway. So a good evening ended up a nice note. By now, the restaurant was nearly empty -- so we took that as a sign to head out.

L'Impero is a nicely-designed restaurant using space quite effectively, with divisions that almost created separate rooms within the main dining area. The bar has a different feel as well, and it really created the feeling of an oasis within the oasis that is Tudor City. I like this place, it's safe and interesting in every aspect. L'Impero is certainly a better bet than their other Midtown offer, Alto.

And don't go directly there by cab, you lazy gits. Take the walk up the stairs, it's a refreshing way to get there and get the sense of how isolating this place is.

Food: B
Atmosphere: B
For Lone Diners: B- (*)