Al Di La Trattoria

Before moving to the neighborhood, my impression of Park Slope was basically brownstones, Prospect Park, and Al Di La. As a college student, I once schlepped all the way here with my then boyfriend and his family just to go to this restaurant.

So as you can imagine, I was exultant to return here and had pretty high hopes. I won't say that my hopes were dashed because the food is still very, very good, but the service has been severely downgraded since the pandemic.

They are now doing contactless service, which for us meant that there was only one server working the entire restaurant when we went for lunch. It was a frustrating experience for both us and I felt bad for the poor woman who had to juggle everything on her own.

We came at lunch on a Friday, and it was fairly empty. We scanned the QR code to see the menu and were able to put in our order on our own phones (payment, tip and all). Just as we arrived and sat outside, another party of two also sat down right after us. About 15 minutes later, I noticed that they got served their water and coffee before we'd even gotten our water, and this was in 80 degree heat! I was pretty annoyed. What made it an even weirder experience was that I had already tipped (and there's no way to retract/reduce that). All that said, I did feel awful for the server - she needed more help.

Food came out in take out boxes which was also weird. They either assume you'll have leftovers or ran out of dishware?

Polenta is still fantastic.

Ambiance was excellent. Cozy and charming. Food was excellent. The service was outstanding . We will recommend this wonderful restaurant to our family and friends

The tagliatelle ragu ($18)is to die for. This alone is worth the trek out to Brooklyn. This pasta was one of the best pastas I've had in NYC. The sauce was extremely rich, almost creamy from the cheese, which is rare for a red sauce. The noodles were fresh and perfectly cooked. This dish deserves 5 stars.

My boyfriend ordered the black spaghetti with octopus confit ($21). We both didn't enjoy this as much. The sauce tasted like it came out of a can and there was not much depth ti the flavor. The octopus itself was okay. This dish deserves 3 stars.

Overall, the ambiance here is very cozy and romantic and the service was great. Would definitely recommend the tagliatelle, it is a must order here.

The best Italian restaurant in park slope by a mile! Prices aren't extremely high and it is a very cozy atmosphere, perfect for a date night!

Most authentic and delicious Italian trattoria in Brooklyn! Quaint, cozy and perfect in every way.

There is a certain charm to Al Di La, a little neighborhood Italian restaurant at the corner of Carroll Street and 5th Avenue in Park Slope, Brooklyn, NY. It seems so long ago that this Park Slope neighborhood was reborn in the 1990's bringing a restaurant revival to Brooklyn before the arrival of the Barclay's Center. I miss the simple days of weekend strolls in Brooklyn, NY when one just wanted to find a good meal, or an independent coffee alternative to Starbuck's. I had the spaghetti vongole--a wonderful little dish with a little red pepper spice, and lots of garlic. The bread was good with fresh butter, and some old Brooklyn-style furniture creating an atmosphere you cannot find in Manhattan or in the many new millennial restaurants. Al Di La is a throwback to neighborhood Italian restaurants that you can never have enough of. I look forward to my next visit to Al Di La!

The food was excellent. The young chicken was juicy, tender, and perfectly cooked; and the mashed yukons were incredibly buttery, soft, and full of flavor. The tagliatelle Ragu was delicious, too. Only giving it 4 stars because their "to-go" setup is a little odd. I went there for a nice date, and instead I got served in to-go containers because they're currently only serving on their roadway seating area. I hope they open their indoor place soon, looking forward to coming back.

Salty (and cold, which was the restaurant temperature) are the two adjectives I'm thinking of right now.

With a line outside the door even before it opened at 5 PM, I was initially very excited to eat here for a family and friends' Valentine's Day dinner.

ANTIPASTI (before the meal, appetizers)
The mussels were okay, and in the serving bowl there was bread at the bottom. However, this was soggy, moist bread that was drenched in salty and overdressed water.
PRIMI (mostly pasta)
We got the clam spaghetti and black spaghetti. The former was too salty, but the latter was alright.
SECONDI (mostly meats)
The Galletta Alla Diavola (chicken) came with mashed Yukon gold potatoes, which were good, but most potato dishes I've eaten in my lifetime were good. Chicken itself was decent, though the sauce it was sitting in went from an interesting lemony zest to the already familiar flavor of salt. It also came with a small pile of unusual vegetables which resemble pasta. Also too salty.
CONTORNI (side dish)
We only ordered Crushed Yukon Gold potatoes. Good as expected because potato dish.

I like that they have special dishes, like Risotto of the Day--this was pretty good too--and Fish of the Day.

There was some miscommunication today. I specifically told the waiter we wanted two of the chicken dish and instead they only gave us one. They said they would bring us one as soon as possible, but it took about 25 minutes for it to come. At least the waiters are nice?

This Park Slope is very nice and the interior of the restaurant is not bad (the typical dim lighting though), but I would not come here again--and it's not because of the price.

Al Di La was one of those places I'd pass by everyday on my way to work and always caught my attention. I finally paid a visit today and I'm glad I did.
The restaurant wasn't too full, despite being a lunch hour, so that was pleasant; we were also seated right away. The servers were attentive and nice, and have nothing negative to say about them. The food was really tasty! I ordered the tagliatelle ragu and it was exactly what I wanted to eat. It was almost like a comfort food for me and I that's exactly what I wanted. My husband ordered the pork sandwich and he really liked it. The only downside was that they had the brunch menu at that time, and it didn't have too many options. Luckily we liked what we got.
This place has a homey-vibe and it's definitely no frills! I loved it, and I will surely come back at a different time so I can see/try a dish from the "whole menu".

Brunch review:
I wish we could brunch at Al Di La weekly.

I had the Uova Affogate, eggs in a tomato sauce with Fontina and Parmigiano. It's delicious, but it's also so heavy. Definitely a comfort food breakfast! The fontina is such a great choice because it brings more flavor than a mozzarella, and the sauce is simple, mainly just tomato and heat not basil or oregano heavy. There's nothing wrong with the dish, but I really wanted something to cut the heaviness and especially the acid of the tomato, maybe a green in the dish or a light side salad? It is very good though!

We split the fritters, Ricotta donuts with jam and whipped cream. These are perfect! They're not to sweet, and packed with mouthwatering flavor. The dough is seasoned (maybe allspice?) and has citrus rind mixed in, grated finely but a major part of the flavor profile. The whip isn't sweet at all, it was a perfect "breakfast dessert"!

Brandon got the crispy polenta cakes, which was good! The eggs were cooked perfectly, the spinach was delicious as was the bacon, so good. He mentioned that he would have liked the cakes to be a little crispier and that they could have benefitted from some more fat, but again very delicious!