Queens Tribune

176-61 Union Turnpike, Fresh Meadows
(718) 591-7901
CUISINE: Italian
HOURS: 11 a.m. to 11 p.m., 7 days
CREDIT CARDS: All major
PARKING: Valet/street

Across Union Turnpike from Barnes & Noble in Fresh Meadows, in an area long-considered to be the haunt of the wayward St. John’s student, a new family restaurant is taking hold and drawing a crowd.

Sabatino’s pizzeria and restaurant was buzzing with excitement Saturday night. Couples out for a date, families taking a break from the kitchen and even one birthday party all converged on the new eatery, brought to you by the people behind Gino’s on Springfield Boulevard in Bayside.

But check your notions of pizzeria at the door when you come in – they may have a huge oven and a counter in the front, but Sabatino’s is a real restaurant, with great service, an inspired menu and plenty of choices to bring you back again and again.

We started our night simply, with French Onion Soup (a special) and the Monte Bianco salad. The soup was one of the best I’ve had outside a French restaurant – just the right balance of vegetables to broth. The salad, which was a bed of arugula topped with avocado, Parmesan and goat cheese with a light vinaigrette, was fantastic.

We passed on the hot and cold appetizers, though some sounded intriguing, such as the Mussels Mediterranean and the Stracciatella soup.

Instead, we moved right on to our main courses – Pollo Cardenale and Tagliatelle Verde. The tagliatelle, which is a broad noodle – like fettuccini – came in a creamy Sicilian pesto sauce with peas, fava beans and asparagus. The chicken was boneless breasts covered with a thin layer of eggplant and then topped with fresh mozzarella and roasted red pepper strips. It was delicious, and came with fresh, crisp green beans and a potato duchesse, which is a whipped potato that is squeezed through a pastry bag and then browned – yummy. And I have to say, it was a pleasure to see that rather than add pasta automatically to a meat dish, Sabatino’s offers a healthy vegetable option.

Since I didn’t have to worry about the extra empty calories from the pasta, I had no problem packing a few extra ones on from the dessert menu. The Torta Della Nonna (Grandma’s Cake) was a warm apple cake served with vanilla ice cream and plated with strawberries and cream. Another delicious one was the Mangia E Bevi, vanilla and chocolate ice cream with peaches, strawberries and cream in a fruit sauce with pirouline cookies sticking out.

One note needs to be made about Sabatino’s – it has not forgotten its pizza roots. From the Buffalo Chicken to the regular Margherita, the pizza looked and smelled divine. Enjoy!