WEST VILLAGE, MANHATTAN
Via Carota
Jody Williams and Rita Sodi's Grove Street trattoria, where a green salad became famous.
Via Carota is what happens when two of the Village's most respected chefs — Jody Williams and Rita Sodi, partners in life and work — open the trattoria they actually want to eat in. Since 2014 the Grove Street room has run on rough wood tables, copper pans, and a menu of Italian vegetable cookery that made a plain green salad, the insalata verde, into one of the most talked-about dishes in the city.
The restaurant still welcomes walk-ins, which means a wait, and the wait is part of the evening: you put your name down, take a drink nearby, and come back to a table that feels earned. Go at an off hour if you can. The svizzerina — a loosely packed chopped steak — and whatever vegetables are in season are the reliable core of the meal.
Editor’s tip
Put your name down early, order the insalata verde without debating it, and let the kitchen's vegetables carry the meal.
Make an evening of it — beautiful stops nearby
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Editorial draft — core details last reviewed October 12, 2026. Confirm practical details with the official site before you go.