NEW ROCHELLE, NY (October 8, 2025) — A recent Forbes magazine review by critic John Mariani highlights Da Giorgio Calabrese Kitchen, a 46-seat gem in New Rochelle, where chef-owner Giorgio Giacinto blends traditional Italian-American fare with inventive Calabrian dishes.
Located at 77 Quaker Ridge Road in a modest shopping strip, Da Giorgio has been a local favorite for 20 years, serving dinner Wednesday through Sunday. Mariani praises Giacinto’s ability to cater to conservative diners with familiar offerings while delighting 40% of his guests with bold, regional specialties inspired by his Calabrian heritage. Born in the Bronx, Giacinto brings a personal touch to his bustling trattoria, where every seat is often filled.
The menu, as Mariani notes, doesn’t fully reveal Giacinto’s culinary creativity. When dining with friends, Mariani entrusted Giacinto to craft a unique meal, resulting in dishes rarely found elsewhere. Standouts included crispy soft-shell crabs fried with garlic slivers and topped with jalapeño, and a striking prosciutto di Parma display draped over a dowel, paired with imported smoked burrata, Parmigiano, olives, soppressata, and peppers.
Among the appetizers, Mariani highlights a refined Calabrian octopus carpaccio mosaic with tangy dressing and crushed taralli breadsticks for texture. A seared calamari salad with chicory and ginger-lime dressing also impressed. Giacinto’s eggplant rollatine, a lighter take on the Italian-American classic, features salted eggplant dipped in flour and egg, rolled with ricotta, spinach, and Parmesan, then baked with a restrained amount of tomato sauce.
The rigatoni da Giorgio showcases Giacinto’s precision with pasta, cooked to a perfect chew. The dish features flash-seared filet mignon, zucchini, cognac, demi-glaze, heavy cream, truffle zest, and Parmigiano, embodying his generous style. Mariani describes it as “a terrific example” of Giacinto’s approach.
“Chicken Grandma,” a creative spin on chicken Parmigiano, features a flattened 10-inch chicken cutlet, pan-fried, topped with house-made mozzarella, baked, and finished with pesto, tomato sauce, and rigatoni in vodka sauce. While visually stunning, Mariani notes it falls short of its individual components’ promise.
Dessert also shines with ingenuity, featuring stracciatella gelato drizzled with Sicilian orange olive oil, crumbled amaretto cookie, and sea salt.
Pasta dishes range from $19 to $26, while main courses cost $25 to $37. Mariani celebrates Da Giorgio’s small-scale charm, noting, “When it comes to very personalized cooking, small is almost always better, and Giacinto’s little dining room has all the bustle and good feelings of a true trattoria.”
For reservations, contact Da Giorgio at 914-235-2727.
This article was drafted with the aid of Grok, an AI tool by xAI, under the direction and editing of Robert Cox to ensure accuracy and adherence to journalistic standards.