Dining al Fresco at Bar Primi

Dining al fresco in New York has such a short season so when it does come around, we all try to take advantage of it as much as we can.  We kicked off the season of outdoor dining with Bar Primi in East Village back at the start of summer.

The easy and approachable setting of Bar Primi made it ideal for popping by casually for a catch-up dinner with girlfriends on a Friday night.  Dinner started with an order of stuffed meatballs in a light tomato sauce.

Deliciously light but I could have used a little more cheesy filling inside the tender meatballs.

Pasta is the star here so we decided to share a trio from both the traditional and the seasonal menu.

Lamb amatriciana hugged strands of thick toothsome bucatini.  The rich sauce was topped with light snow cap of cheese.  Deliciously rich and heartwarming, this is definitely a standby classic that should be ordered for those in the meaty pasta mood.

For the seafood lovers, the squid ink campanelle was a perfect bowl.  We loved every bite of the briny bowl of pasta coated with crab and garlic crema.  Just a few slivers of fresno for a kick every now and then, this bowl reminds me of summer at its best.

Finally, we rounded out the pasta selection with an orechiette from the traditional section.  For the summer, these were tossed with salsiccia, spring peas and slivers of pickled shallots for a bite.  These were lighter than we expected, a new surprise.

And just so we got our greens, an order of spicy broccolini with ricotta salata and spicy bread crumbs.

Of course we couldn’t end our meal without a little bit of sweets.  After three bowls of hearty pastas, only the light airy tiramisu would do.  This traditional slice of tiramisu was just what I needed to close our a lovely meal dining on the sidewalk of East Village on a brisk summer evening with friends.

Bar Primi | 325 Bowery, New York, NY 10003 | http://barprimi.com/