Joanna Trattoria is the restaurant on Upper West Side in Manhattan owned by Joe Germanotta, Lady Gaga's dad. In recent news, Gaga gained 25 pounds, crediting it to her dad's restaurant.
Gaga said to radio host Elvis Duran, "I love eating pasta and pizza. I'm a New York Italian girl. That's why I have been staying out of New York. My father opened a restaurant. It's so amazing"
The restaurant opened early February this year, helmed by chef Art Smith, who has cooked for President Obama and Oprah Winfrey and who runs restaurants in Chicago, Washington D.C., Palo Alto and Atlanta.
"I'm so proud of my parents!" tweeted Gaga on the day the West 68th Street restaurant opened. "Tonight their restaurant opens in NY. Joanne Trattoria. My dad built with his two hands, mommy decorated."
Perhaps this publicity is the boost that the restaurant desperately needs. Or maybe it needs a new chef and recipes. A quick search on Yelp turns up less-than-average reviews:
Not even Lady Gaga can save this place--Joanne's is all about mediocre food not worthy of the price. Don't get me wrong; the food was not terrible...just not memorable enough and thus, not worth ever going back. The food was bland at times; value for money was poor; dishes lacked creativity (this is a big one); and the space was cramped. My $38 Osso Buco was dry (it is supposed to fall off the bone) and my husband's Vegetarian lasagna was small (compared to the price), under seasoned, and boring. Service was generally good, but irrelevant when the food being served is just OKAY. I still have faith in Joanne's and think they can do better if they can admit to themselves that things need to be reworked.
Madison B. (New York, NY)
My gf was absolutely stoked about coming here for dinner and planned it at least 6 months prior to coming out here. The restaurant itself was nicely decorated and cute. The food was just ok nothing spectacular but for my entree to come out an hour after my appetizer was just place ridiculous....and the service was a bit slow...never again!
Allison T. (San Francisco, CA)
Of course my friends and I solely went here to say we went to Gaga's parents restaurant. The inside was very cold so we ended up sitting on the patio. The food was moderate to over priced and the serving sizes were small. The food was nothing special. We ordered Mac and Cheese that was very greasy. We also ordered a side salad and side meatballs again nothing was too exciting. We decided to get dessert and were again disappointed. You could buy a better tiramisu at the store. Same with the cannoli. Would not recommend the restaurant nor will I be back.
Kristin M. (Washington DC)
