A food writer once warned that nostalgia is a risky thing for a restaurant to rely on: “It can get people in the door, but a restaurant has to be good as a restaurant, not just a set piece.” True enough. But in Manhattan, where roughly 6,400 restaurants compete for diners across just 22 square miles, even getting people in the door is no small achievement. If a familiar name can help, why not use it? Lately, several New York eateries have bet that it can. Once-iconic establishments are making headlines again by refurbishing and reopening. No stranger to nostalgia myself, I was curious to see whether the refreshed dining rooms, new kitchen teams and revised menus could match those of the original incarnations.

Babbo

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In 1998, Mario Batali’s Babbo opened and quickly became the hottest table in town. But in 2017, allegations of his misconduct cooled its popularity. Now with new ownership, the Greenwich Village restaurant reopened after an eight-month closure for renovations. The central staircase and classic rock soundtrack remain, as does Batali’s culinary imprint. At the helm is his former protégé, Michelin-starred chef Mark Ladner, who nods to the past with a few Batali dishes while introducing many of his own, notably the 100-layer lasagna. We saw it plated at the room’s center service table and delivered by the toque-topped Ladner himself. On the restaurant’s 10th day open, the dining room blasted Lynyrd Skynyrd and buzzed with eager patrons. Service was already a smooth operation. The meal began with rustic bread and a luscious lava-salt-sprinkled dip of mascarpone and Sicilian olive oil. The 49-day Thai-spiced minestrone was delicious. We also fell hard for the crispy-skinned dorade fillet, nearly plate-size and brightened by an herbaceous salsa verde. The “Sicilian lifeguard-style” calamari, pairing squid with similarly shaped calamarata pasta, was a playful Batali throwback. Bathed in a piquant red sauce, it was a reminder of the best of Babbo.