pasta in a yurt: finally securing a reservation at lilia nyc

One of my many New Year’s goals is taking better advantage of being in NYC. And for me, that means really being careful when I spend money eating out. Namely, more spontaneously making reservations, less spontaneously buying grocery store sushi. So, I started to kick that off with seeking out a reservation to Lilia, which, if you have ever attempted to get a reservation here, know that it is near impossible. Unless you can’t sleep at 2 am on a Saturday night and a reservation for 4 pm on Monday randomly opens up.

It also turns out I had made a reservation for their yurts, which to be honest, I had no idea what that entailed. It turns out, Lilia has basically commandeered the area in front of the restaurant and added literal yurts. Very Williamsburg of them to do so.

The yurts themselves are very cozy, and well-decorated. They also come with blankets, with the more blankets and hand warmers on request, both of which were much needed on one of the coldest days of this winter.

To start, we got the salad with little gem, italian vinaigrette, pecorino, and breadcrumbs. I really liked how the crunchiness of the breadcrumbs went with the acidic vinaigrette and the pecorino cheese, although I do wish they cut up the little gem lettuce. I never quite understand why they just leave it whole like that. Confusing in my opinion.

We also ordered cacio e pepe fritelle, which are basically savory doughnuts. They were so, so good. They had a crispy, cheesy, peppery, salty exterior, and super gooey, almost creamy interior that had a striking resemblance to the taste of cacio e pepe sauce.

amazing, stunning. never been done before.

Next, it was time for the reason we came here. Specifically, pasta. The first pasta we ordered was the sheep’s milk agnolotti, with dried tomato and honey. It was very very good, and the dried tomato was unexpectedly tasty addition.

We also ordered the spaghetti with parmesan, lemon, and pine nuts. A very simple dish, but perfect for trying not to freeze to death. The toasted nuts, creamy, cheesy sauce, and the perfectly cooked, chewy spaghetti, which was extremely filling and rich and comforting. The only complaint I have is that the lemon flavor only came through at the beginning.

The last pasta we ordered was the mafaldini with pink peppercorn, and parmigiano. I think this was probably my least favorite out of the three pastas, as it was honestly just okay. The pink peppercorn flavor was very mild, and overall, this tasted just like a cheesy, peppery pasta, which is honestly, nothing to complain about.

By this point, we were stuffed, but we got the black bass with salsa verde and roasted potatoes. And while I had to take most of it to good, this was probably one of the best pieces of cooked fish I’ve ever tasted. The fish was perfectly cooked, and the white, mild fish went really well with the acidic sauce, as well as the roasted, slightly crisp potatoes. All in all, a perfectly composed and cooked dish.

For dessert, we got the olive oil cake with honey whipped cream, and grappa-soaked blood orange. The cake itself had a nice crust, but also a perfectly baked interior that wasn’t too light or dense. The cake was very rich with olive oil flavor, but also was not heavy at all, especially when paired with the gently-sweetened honey whipped cream, and the bright, sugary blood orange. A perfect end to an almost-perfect meal.

I would definitely come back, especially to try the yurt again, albeit on a maybe slightly warmer day. I really enjoyed how they took traditional ingredients and flavors and put a creative spin on them, and I definitely want to come back and do some more exploring more of their pasta section. Hopefully I’ll manage to finagle another reservation someday.