L'Amico

The story

Crafted with passion, served with love

A Love Letter to Italian Cooking, Written in Fire

Named for the Italian word for "friend," L'Amico is Chef Laurent Tourondel's homage to Italian-American cooking, set inside the Kimpton Hotel Eventi on Avenue of the Americas in Chelsea. The name signals the intention: this is a place built for return visits, for long meals shared over good wine, for the kind of hospitality that doesn't announce itself.

Two large copper-clad, wood-burning ovens anchor the kitchen and define everything that comes out of it. Neapolitan-style pizzas arrive blistered and charred at the edges — Mozzarella di Bufala with San Marzano tomatoes, White Mushroom with truffle paste and taleggio, Sopressata Piccante with Sicilian oregano. Pastas are made in-house and rolled fresh daily: Cappellacci filled with veal and prosciutto, braised morels and English peas; Seafood Agnolotti packed with Maine lobster, jumbo lump crabmeat and bay scallops. The seasonal menu moves with the market — spring herbs, summer branzino, winter braises — and weekly specials keep even regulars discovering something new.

The Chef Behind the Kitchen

Chef Laurent Tourondel grew up in Auvergne, France, shaped by long Sunday meals and a grandmother who cooked Italian food with patience no culinary school can replicate. He trained at Saint Vincent École de Cuisine, served as personal chef to the admiral of the French Navy, and earned three New York Times stars at Cello before launching the BLT restaurant group in 2004. BLT Fish earned a Michelin Star; Bon Appétit named him Restaurateur of the Year; Food & Wine counted him among its 10 Best New Chefs. Three cookbooks followed.

At L'Amico, that accumulated experience shows up as apparent simplicity — a perfectly charred pizza, a piece of fish cooked exactly right, a hand-rolled pasta that tastes like it took no effort at all. Nothing on the plate is accidental.

The Room, the Wine, the Details

The dining room is generous without being overwhelming: warm lighting, an open kitchen that makes the fire visible, and service that works equally well for a business lunch or a long celebratory dinner. Sidewalk seating is available when the season allows.

The wine program earned Wine Spectator's Best of Award of Excellence, and the list backs that recognition up — over 800 Italian-forward selections, with a sommelier on hand to guide the choice. The cocktail program is thoughtfully crafted and always evolving.

As an Italian restaurant in Midtown Manhattan, L'Amico draws locals and visitors alike — steps from Penn Station and Madison Square Garden, yet unhurried enough to make you forget both.