Celeste

Reviews

• LM

  Luis Martinez

  4 days ago
  5.0
  05/16/2026 Celeste The Service & The Place: After more than 20 years, on the Upper West Side, Celeste continues to amaze us. Today, our server was Roberto. He is dedicated to cater to all your needs. He was present and dedicated to our table. Thank you for such a special service. Celeste’s casual atmosphere reminded us of the Osteria or Italian Trattorias. You can choose from outdoor sitting or the main dining room. Ah, and please do not forget to bring “CASH.” Credit cards are not accepted. The Food: Its classic pasta dishes, pizzas and seafood delivers every time. We had the “Rigatoni alla Norma,” omg! It’s a blend of fried eggplant, mozzarella, ricotta cheeses, cherry tomatoes and a light tomato sauce. We also had “Pennette Mo’ Mo.” Penne pasta with diced fresh mozzarella and a light tomato sauce. To top it all off, the Catarina dessert, made of pistachio and dark chocolate, imported directly from Italy, was out of this world. Highly recommending Celeste for any occasion. “Eat deliciously"
• LM

  Lucia Martinez

  4 days ago
  5.0
  This restaurant is OMG😋😋 The food is amazing.. and Roberto the waiter his amazing too. He went above and beyond👠👠 Celeste on the Upper West Side is such a cozy and authentic spot with amazing Italian food and a warm atmosphere. Everything we ordered was delicious, fresh, and full of flavor. What really made the experience special was the outstanding service from Roberto — he was attentive, friendly, and made us feel so welcome from start to finish. You can tell he truly cares about the guests having a great experience. Highly recommend this neighborhood gem!
• YH

  Yuan Huang

  5 days ago
  2.0
  As someone who is extremely picky with pasta this place did not pass the bar. I got the Tagliatelle. Although the pasta is homemade the sauce is tasteless and the meat unseasoned. Even adding salt did not make it better. The parmesan comes in a plastic takeaway cup instead of being freshly grated. I wouldn’t wait in line here or even come here ever again. If you want Americanized Italian food you’d probably like it, but if you want real Italian food this isn’t the place. This place has great reviews because they offer free dessert if you leave a positive review. The service was 10/10 though!
• AR

  Abby Reing

  6 days ago
  3.0
  We dined at Celeste a few weeks ago, and I wanted to give an honest review (especially because on each table there is a sign offering free dessert for a 5-star review.) We were really excited to eat here after seeing tons of high reviews, but ended up being underwhelmed and disappointed by the food. The atmosphere was authentic and homey, and it was very busy that night with only a couple empty tables. The menu was promising and we ordered 2 appetizers and 2 entrees. The fennel salad was oily and under-salted/bland, and the mussels were also not very flavorful. I was excited for my spaghetti à la Vongole (spaghetti with clams), which is a dish I love to eat out and make at home. Unfortunately, it was not only under seasoned but the clams had not been properly purged and the entire dish had a sandy texture between my teeth. I had to return it to the kitchen, which I have done less times in my life than I can count on one hand. The redeeming quality of the restaurant was that the staff was sincerely apologetic and returned exceptional hospitality- making me another dish and offering limoncello on the house at the end of our meal. I don’t take that type of hospitality for granted and greatly appreciated the effort to make my experience better. It’s possible the chef was just having an off night, but I hope that this review can be received as constructive criticism to improve!
• LW

  Linda Walsh

  May 8, 2026
  3.0
  We were really excited to try Celeste after seeing how busy it always is, but unfortunately left feeling quite disappointed. The wait staff were lovely, attentive, and doing their best in a very crowded environment, so no complaints there at all. However, the overall experience and food quality did not live up to expectations. Before we had even entered and sat down, the owner/manager made sure payment was in cash, which felt a little uncomfortable and set an odd tone from the beginning. The tables are extremely small and packed tightly together, making the space feel cramped and not particularly enjoyable or relaxing. Most disappointing, though, was the food. Our pasta arrived cold, and overall the quality was very average. The pizza size was also underwhelming for the price. We had really hoped to find a great local coal-fired pizza and pasta spot, but unfortunately this wasn’t it for us. Honestly, I felt like I could have made a better pasta dish at home. Sadly, it’s not somewhere we’d return to, but we’ll keep searching for that standout Italian spot in the UWS.