Tony Moran's

Restaurant Review

Anecdotes & Analysis

Tony Moran is the last member of his family still operating a restaurant. His place is the end of the line for the cuisine created by Tony's father, Diamond Jim Moran, one of the most colorful and popular restaurateurs in the 1940s and 1950s. The restaurant is in the top floor of the Absinthe House bar, and is classy-looking in an old style. The menu is brief, simple, and a touch expensive, but it's worth checking out because of the presence of a number of old Moran family dishes. Although the menu tries mightily to impress you (the copy is so rococo you could build grottoes out of it), you've really missed the point of you pass up the angel hair pasta with the original, gigantic and superbly light meatballs. The other house specialty, fettuccine Alfredo, is also among the best. The remainder of the menu sets no standards, but is good enough to keep you happy. As for service, this is one of those restaurants where it's a very good idea to let it be known that you're a local.

Backstory

Tony Moran is the last member of his family still operating a restaurant. His place is the end of the line for the cuisine created by Tony's father, Diamond Jim Moran, one of the most colorful and popular restaurateurs in the 1940s and 1950s. The restaurant is in the top floor of the Absinthe House bar, and is classy-looking in an old style. The menu is brief, simple, and a touch expensive, but it's worth checking out because of the presence of a number of old Moran family dishes. Although the menu tries mightily to impress you (the copy is so rococo you could build grottoes out of it), you've really missed the point of you pass up the angel hair pasta with the original, gigantic and superbly light meatballs. The other house specialty, fettuccine Alfredo, is also among the best. The remainder of the menu sets no standards, but is good enough to keep you happy. As for service, this is one of those restaurants where it's a very good idea to let it be known that you're a local.