Tommy Lasagna

Last night I was invited to dinner at Tommy Lasagna to try their new gluten free menu with other gluten free bloggers in New York City.  Erin of Gluten-Free Fun and Gluten-Free Globetrotter organized the event.  Also at the table were Carolyn, Candice, Katie, Kristen, Mike, Molly, and Judith (our token gluten eating blogger).  It was really fun to have dinner with these people in real life because I know many of them from their blogs and twitter but had only met a few in person.  In addition to her blog, Katie has a tumblr that makes me laugh/cry all the time.

Tommy Lasagna opened a few years ago but their gluten free menu is new.  So new that we were among the first to try it.  Tommy graciously offered us six courses of amazing food and all the gluten free booze we wanted.  We ate so much that I think most of us waddled out of the restaurant.  All in the name of research, of course.

To start we had gluten free focaccia with olive oil.  For a first course we had Mango Shrimp with a Fennel Slaw.  Next was Ceviche.  Third we were able to try the Green Market Lasagna and the Bolognese Lasagna.  Fourth we had fresh Fettuccine with Lobster and Papperdelle with Bolognese.  Fifth we tried the Cioppino and Veal Involtini.  To finish we had Cheesecake and Flourless Chocolate Cake.  Not only were there six courses, but most courses involved two samplings.  I'm still full thinking about this meal.

Everything was amazing.  My favorite was the Bolognese Lasagna.  It is a lasagna restaurant after all.  The veggie lasagna was also really good and you could taste the freshness of the vegetables that Tommy gets from the Union Square farmer's market.  Lobster pasta?  Yum.  Unless, of course, you are allergic to shellfish, which some of the people at the table were. Tommy was really accommodating though, and for those folks he brought out a Caprese Salad instead of the Mango Shrimp, Pear Salad instead of Ceviche, pasta with Vodka sauce instead of Lobster, and Crispy Chicken over Hash Browns and Shaved Brussels Sprouts instead of the Cioppino.  They confirmed these things were excellent as well.

I honestly really liked everything I had.  I hardly ever eat veal, but stuffed with spinach, asparagus, and fresh mozzarella it was really good.  The focaccia was a good start to the meal and the desserts were heavenly.  I wish I had more room to eat them.  Don’t worry though guys, I was still able to eat all the cheesecake.

Not only was the food really good, but Tommy really “gets” the whole gluten free thing.  We talked for a while about the different flours he uses, how all the gluten free pasta is made on a separate pasta maker first thing in the morning when everything in the kitchen is clean, and training his staff to fully understand the issues of cross contamination.  I felt completely confident I was eating safely at Tommy Lasagna and will definitely be back.

Thank you so much for making this happen Tommy.  You have a lot of happy new customers.