La Cava

Menu had an excellent selection, and the salad and entree were delicious. Server was very courteous and attentive, knowledgable about the menu items, and happy to make recommendations. Very nice dining experience. Small, crowded (quite busy) and a bit noisy, but fun and lively.

What an awful, awful place. I live in the neighborhood and made the mistake of dashing in as we ended a mini-vacation, looking for a place for dinner and desperate to find a bathroom. Without bothering to find out if we intended to dine there, the hostess wouldn’t let me use the bathroom, telling me it was only for patrons – something they have a legal right to enforce, but that I’ve not found people ungracious enough to enforce in over 30 years. Since my need was urgent, I had to use it anyway. On leaving, the belligerent owner not only confronted me, but actually followed me out to the street, literally got in my face and started shouting at me. When I told him to stop shouting at me, he became more hostile and threatening, shouting at me repeatedly “This is my house - I don’t need you.” Apparently, this place only extends its friendliness to those they know they’ll make a buck off of. I honestly don’t care if the food is sublime or wretched – there’s no excuse for such an appalling lack of civility or abusiveness to the general public from anyone, but especially a restaurateur once he thinks he’s not going to make money off you.