I must have walked past Cafe Fiorello on the Upper West Side a hundred times, each one of them thinking: “Eh, seems like a has-been.” But one Saturday evening — Saturday, mind you! — when we found ourselves without a reservation before a trip to the opera, and they had a table ready and waiting, we decided to give it a try. We were so very pleasantly surprised. Seems like a place you’d want to order carefully — we stuck with apps and a pizza — but I would definitely recommed it for a sidewalk pre-theater dinner near Lincoln Center.
They sat us right down, under a heat lamp, and we enjoyed our first al fresco meal of 2014.
We ordered from the antipasti menu: farro with tomato and olive, roasted hen of the woods mushrooms and brussels sprouts wiht pancetta.
It was practically enough for a meal, and all of it delicoius.
Also, the fired artichoke hearts. Outrageously good!
And a thin-crust margarita pizza to share.
The best in the world? No, but mighty fine, considering the view:
And best of all, just a 2-minute walk to our theater. 
The 411 on Cafe Fiorello: 1900 Broadway, between West 63rd and 64th, Manhattan. 212-595-5330.
