I tripped over Cafe Luce when looking for someplace to meet a friend passing through town. She was traveling from Cape Cod to Florida and staying on Sutton Place. With a limited amount of time, the midtown location was necessary.

Cafe Luce is a small Italian cafe on East 53. The owner, Michelle, opened the smaller space during COVID, according to her brother Joseph, our server. When next door became available, she purchased it, doubling the space.

Don’t miss their perfectly prepared octopus tentacle ($21) — tender, charred and moist — with a small roasted red pepper and lettuce salad. I’d return just for that. It paired well with a glass of Podere Castorani Cadetto, Abruzzo, Italy 2017 ($16), especially knowing red sauce was next.

At Cafe Luce, you select one of their housemade sauces, then pick a housemade pasta. We chose the arrabbiata, a spicy tomato sauce, and fusilli, a variety to capture the sauce in its ridges. Perfect match.

Our final shared dish was their pollo capriccioso, chicken topped with fresh arugula and chunks of mozzarella drizzled with balsamic with linguine (our selection) in marinara sauce ($31). I’d skip that. Our chicken was a bit dry, the menu-stated fresh tomatoes missing and the pasta sauce bland.

I highly recommend a visit; skipping that chicken dish.

Cafe Luce
231 – 235 E 53rd St,
New York, NY 10022
(646) 590-2777
cafelucenyc.com