Battello is located on Washington Boulevard on the Newport Yacht Club Pier, close to the Westin, Doubletree, and Courtyard Marriott hotels, as well as the Newport Centre Mall. The restaurant is located at the end of the pier overlooking the boats moored on the Hudson River. Limited parking is available on the pier, although you must share space with boat owners. Using public transportation, you can arrive on Light Rail or at the Newport PATH station.
On the day that we dined, the open-air patio contained the most desirable tables. An awning covers the patio; however, it is open at the sides for airflow. The outdoor patio contains tables in varying sizes (for parties of two to parties of six+) as well as a small bar. The interior of the restaurant contains another longer bar, along with additional seating at high-top tables, booths, and regular tables. The spacious, high-ceilinged interior is reminiscent of a boathouse, decorated with nautical elements and surrounded on three sides with tall windows. A private room is located at the rear of the restaurant away from the boat slips. Therefore, the event space does not enjoy the same view as the regular restaurant. Bathrooms are located up a flight of stairs on the second floor. The black and silver sparkly shoe wallpaper in the ladies room was cute!
Battello is well staffed with many servers, as well as bussers who fill water glasses and remove plates. The management has trained their staff properly. For example, when a server refills a drink, he does not simply take your glass away in his hand. Instead, he places the glass on a tray to remove it. Staff replaces silverware with each course, regardless of whether a guest used it.
The executive chef at Battello is Ryan DePersio, who has worked at Bouley Bakery, Judson Grill, Vong, and Jean-Georges, as well as for a one-star Michelin Parisienne restaurant La Brasserie and two-star Florence restaurant Enoteca Pinchiorri. Chef de Cuisine Dave Viana previously worked at Mesa Grill and Eleven Madison Park, as well as in Portugal alongside a two-star Michelin chef. The restaurant group includes Battello, The Turtle Club (in Hoboken), Fascino (in Montclair), and Nico (in Newark).
The brunch menu is extensive, offering both breakfast and lunch items. Even if guests choose to dine at Battello at 10:30 am, they can order lunch items, which we find desirable because we are not breakfast / pancake / egg fans. We shared calamari with a red sauce as an appetizer. (The menu stated that the sauce was a tomato-fennel compote, but it seemed like plain marinara sauce to us.) The breading was tasty and somewhat unique (sort of like panko), and the portion was enormous: it was hearty enough for four people to share, which left us feeling overwhelmed. Next, we ordered two sandwiches: one short rib and fontina panini and one hamburger, both accompanied by a choice of parmesan fries (served in a tiny silver bucket accompanied by an even smaller dish of ketchup) or a green side salad. For dessert, we shared a dark chocolate and peanut butter torte (a round, flat cake filled with warm caramel), accompanied by popcorn ice cream, caramel popcorn pieces, peanut butter powder, and cocoa powder. Not only was the dessert dish delicious, but the deconstructed presentation was impressive! (Another attractive plating that we observed was the beet salad, with red and golden beets, strawberries, and goat cheese.)
We enjoyed our brunch at Battello. The view was beautiful, the food was tasty, and the service was excellent. We would return!
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