Area Daily: Scuderia, Italian Restaurant in New York, NY

When and why did going out to get fed and watered become so serious? Luckily, spring has sprung a new place to eat, drink and be very merry – Italian style, and at a deliciously friendly price point to boot. Ciao, ciao Scuderia, a modern day American interpretation of an Italian trattoria, serving simple Italian comfort food in a casual, fun, and relaxed setting in the heart of Manhattan’s Greenwich Village.

The Italian word scuderia dates back in history when it was originally used to refer to a place where racing horses were kept and trained. Today, the term’s meaning has broadened and the word is often used in place of the word team (as in Scuderia Ferrari, Ferrari’s Formula 1 racing team). The four owners of Scuderia – one of whom, Fabrizio Sotti of Sotti Records, happens to own a Scuderia Ferrari among other notable “toys” for car enthusiasts – form a dynamic partnership and agreed the name was a fitting description for their first venture working together as a team.

Silvano Marchetto, the team leader and fellow Ferrari fanatic, has become a Greenwich Village icon over the three decades since he opened Da Silvano on a bleak and much less visited Sixth Avenue. Now as the neighborhood continues to blossom, he’s happily crossed the street with his daughter Leyla, Fabrizio (a longtime friend and Da Silvano fan who, when not playing with cars, plays extraordinary guitar with a fifth album due out this summer), and Allessandro Bandini – who’s the one (with the ponytail) to make friends with at the door if you want to become one of their especially well-taken care of regulars…and of course you should. Because eating should be fun, with or without the Ferrari.