Best Authentic Restaurants in Mt. Vernon

I wanted to try Cazbar for a long time, but then during Covid, sadly, it closed. I was thrilled to see the restaurant had reopened, and I wasn’t disappointed in the very least. The food, the service ambience were all excellent. The belly dancer couldn’t have been more lovely and very entertaining. What a delight!

When we arrived, our immediate reaction was “little divey place”. The entrance is very unassuming giving off the impression of a small, family owned type of place. Do not judge a restaurant by its front door! Once you get past the hostess podium, the restaurant opens into this large beautiful room, with a nice level of mood lighting and tables sufficiently spaced that you did feel like you were in a bad NYC pop up. We also arrived early due to a concert, so at first, the place was fairly quiet, but as the evening progressed, the place was still quiet enough to easily carry on a conversation. The wine list is not lengthy, but has some very nice wines at typical restaurant price, both bottle and glass. My Montepulciano was very good for $12 a glass. The menu includes a good number of appetizers to choose from ranging from a charcuterie board to a number of salads. The in restaurant made pastas were plentiful and creative, including a Veal stuffed pasta with pancetta and spinach that was amazing and very flavorful, as well as several chicken and fish dishes. There was also a series of specials ranging from carpaccio to pumpkin pasta, which my wife enjoyed greatly. The prices aren’t cheap, but they are in line with a city restaurant serving high end food and wine. If you want Olive Garden, go there. This is better. Oh, and the tiramisu was to die for! Service was excellent and attentive. From the hostess who was very friendly and made sure we were comfortable to our waiter and staff who made sure we were able to make our 6:30 concert without being pushy or rushed. Sotto can be a place for families but not little ones. Dress is business casual ( it had snowed when we went there so I was in a dark pair of jeans, which was acceptable. Not a t-shirt/shorts kind of place. A good place for a business dinner as well, but not sure I’d recommend it for an office party. Overall, Sotto Soprano gets two thumbs up and definitely a revisit!

The food was delicious and reminded me of a wonderful taste from visiting the Middle East! The staff were very courteous and the ambiance was perfect for celebrating my wife’s birthday! Thank you! We can’t wait to come again!

Excellent food in a casual yet bistro-elegant setting.

Everything was great. The naan was a bit soggy but otherwise we loved the food and and the restaurant. Mango lassi was fabulous