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Contemporary Italian Cuisine In An Elegant Atmosphere Guy
Anthony’s Buon Appetito can be found on the Corner of Jerusalem Avenue and
Powell Avenue in Merrick. The
restaurant is easily accessible by either the Southern State Parkway or Bellmore
Ave. As you drive down Jerusalem
Avenue, you will notice a contemporary stucco-styled building with purple
awnings and plenty of windows. Patrons
can enter the restaurant through a door located on Powell Avenue.
An ample amount of parking can be found behind the building. Guy
Anthony’s Buon Appetito is co-owned and operated by Guy Bolognese and Anthony
"AJ" Orlich.
Guy proved to be a hands-on proprietor as he worked the bar the evening of our
visit. AJ is also the executive chef at Guy Anthony’s.
Both gentlemen succeed in serving fine contemporary Italian cuisine in an
elegant atmosphere.
Guy
Anthony’s is more than just a restaurant, off-site catering and full-scale
party planning services are also available.
The restaurant is open for private parties on Saturday and Sunday
afternoons until 5pm for groups of less than 70.
Lunch can be enjoyed by patrons Tuesday through Friday, and dinner is
served Tuesday through Sunday with entertainment every Thursday and every other
Friday. Every Thursday evening Guy
Anthony’s has live music for customers to enjoy, which was a pianist and
singer the Thursday night we visited. Upon
entering Guy Anthony’s you encounter the bar, which separates you from the
open ended kitchen. While taking in
the restaurant as a whole one cannot help but notice the dedication to the color
purple. The awnings outside reflect
the color of choice for the interior decor of Guy Anthony’s.
The walls are sponge painted a deep relaxing purple tone, while the seat
cushions are also color coordinated. As
mentioned earlier, patrons have an excellent view of the immaculate kitchen,
wide open behind the bar. We
enjoyed watching the staff hard at work behind the scenes in the kitchen.
The
restaurant creates a contemporary setting with wrought iron spiral lamps that
hang from the ceiling and walls. A
variety gold framed mirrors on each wall provide a stylish twist of
embellishment. High ceilings
assist in producing an airy open space for the dining area, with large wrap
around windows that capture the light of day or the twilight of night. The
wait staff wore dark purple button up shirts with black pants; coordinating well
with their surroundings. They clearly helped one another throughout the dining room and provided
excellent service with a smile to each table.
We constantly saw wait staff members making sure patrons were satisfied. A
black basket full of assorted artisan breads (below left) was immediately
brought to our table. The three
varieties of bread were pomodoro bread, garlic squash bread, and parmesan bread
sticks. All of which were
delicious. The pomodoro bread
tasted like pizza without the cheese. The
garlic squash bread had the slightest hint of squash with a nice overture of
garlic. The tasty parmesan bread
sticks were also served warm.
From
behind the bar, Guy fixed up a batch of delicious French Martinis (above right)
for our table. A smooth and fruity
blend of Chambord, vanilla vodka and pineapple juice created this refreshing
beverage. We
tried the Country Salad (below left) with tossed mescaline greens, craisens,
mandarin oranges, gorgonzola, and diced walnuts covered in honey mustard
vinaigrette – an excellent blend of ingredients.
The honey mustard vinaigrette was a different approach and had a nice
finish. This salad was filling, so
be sure to save room for the entrée.
The
Hot Antipasto platter (above right) contained mozzarella en carrozza, shrimp
scampi, and whole baked clams. The
mozzarella was snuggled deep within the carriage of breading surrounding it.
The shrimp was fresh and full of lemon seasoning.
The baked clams were obviously very fresh and well seasoned. This
appetizer will satisfy with variety and flavor. We
then sampled Stuffed Button Mushrooms (below left).
This stuffed appetizer is often served in Portobello mushrooms.
The romano and leek stuffed mushrooms were nicely seasoned with cheese on
top and presented in a pool of pesto
sauce. This would be an excellent starter to get your appetite peaked.
Our
fourth appetizer is a frequent special at Guy Anthony’s, Asian Style Calamari
(above right). While often
available as a special, regulars know it can be secretly requested any evening.
A nice aroma came from the tangy sweet and sour calamari.
There was a slightly spicy kick to the finish; definitely a pleasant
departure from the traditional preparation of this seafood.
This would be a great choice to share among friends. Our
first entree of the evening was Guy Anthony’s Grilled Salmon (below left),
which was a special that evening. The
salmon was served over sautéed baby spinach alongside crabmeat ravioli in a
burre blanc sauce. The outer edges
of the plate were garnished with diced red peppers, which added to the vibrant
colors of this plate. The
collective flavors of this dish were fabulous as was the beautifully artistic
grill marks that only added to the superb presentation.
Cannelloni
(above right) stuffed with veal and spinach in light cream sauce was served as
our second entrée. This is one of
the most popular dishes at Guy Anthony’s.
The dish was eye appealing as shown in the photo.
The veal stuffing was delicious, and all flavors came together nicely.
The top was baked just so it was slightly crunchy.
This entrée would be a hearty option for anyone.
Our
last entrée of the night was the Veal Sorrentino with Gnocchi (above).
This combination of veal, eggplant, prosciutto and mozzarella in a
marsala sauce was quite enjoyable. The
veal was thinly sliced and wonderfully delectable. When
it came time for dessert, we noticed a variety of traditional options. There
were two desserts we tasted that we highly recommend. First their Homemade
Tiramisu (below left) was quite the perfect little ending to any meal. This
Tiramisu was an outstanding combination of well-balanced flavors with superb
fluffiness. However,
the star of the show was the Warmed Chocolate Devine Cake (below right). Just as
the name suggests it was a heavenly creation. Picture a cookie crumb crust
beneath vanilla and chocolate mousse with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.
Guy
and AJ serve up a great combination of fine food, excellent service and live
music. If you want to watch the
staff hard at work in the kitchen, and dining room for that matter, take a trip
to Guy Anthony’s Buon Appetito in Merrick.
You will be provided with outstanding service and fantastic dining
options. Guy Anthony’s Buon
Appetito’s menu as well as off-premise catering information can be accessed
online at their website. They also offer a Lite Cuisine section containing options with less
than 450 calories for the health conscious.
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