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El Quinto Pino

Critics' Pick

401 W. 24th St., New York, NY 10011
at Ninth Ave. See Map | Subway Directions Hopstop Popup
212-206-6900 Send to Phone

Price Range: $-$$
Reader Rating:
7.5 out of 10

2 Reviews | Write a Review
Cuisine: Spanish/Tapas

Photo by Jay Hanna for New York Magazine

Map

Rate & Review

Hours

Sun-Thu, 5pm-midnight; Fri-Sat, 5pm-1am

Nearby Subway Stops

C, E at 23rd St.

Prices

$3-$15

Payment Methods

American Express, MasterCard, Visa

Special Features

Dine at the Bar
Hot Spot
Reservations Not Required

Alcohol

Beer and Wine Only

Reservations

Not Accepted

Profile

El Quinto Pino honors Spanish tradition by offering some foods, like olives and anchovies, virtually untouched. But elsewhere, chef Alexandra Raij and her chef de cuisine, Amorette Casaus, personalize the fare with unexpected flourishes. Five tender shrimp float in a pungent garlic sauce that’s infiltrated with ginger. The meaty bite in a chickpea-and-spinach stew comes from pimentón. And instead of gazpacho, Raij offers its so-called cousin, salmorejo, a creamy tomato emulsion with bits of hard-boiled egg and chorizo. Sea-urchin roe is big in Asturias but not like this: inserted into a skinny length of ficelle, slicked with butter and Korean mustard oil, then pressed in the Easy-Bake-Oven-size kitchen behind the bar. It comes, like the menu’s other streamlined sandwiches (serrano ham and a pulled-chicken-pork-and-morcilla concoction) tucked into a waxed-paper bag like a Shackburger. — Rob Patronite and Robin Raisfeld

Extra

In addition to beer and wine, El Quinto Pino also serves specialty frozen cocktails.

Note
Try to station yourself at a bar stool in front of the chalkboard food menu, which might be the best seat in the 26-seat house.

Ideal Meal

“Noche de ronda,” fried eggplant, uni panini, fried cod, chickpea stew, casadielles (fried ravioli with walnuts and honey).

Reader Ratings

7.5

Go for the uni, not to sit down

food_is_amazing from 10019 | Posted on 3/11/08

Overall Reader Rating: 7 (Recommended)


Food:	6
Service:	7

Décor:	7

Value:	8

This place is packed, even on a Tuesday night. And, of course, it is tiny; if you are not interested in feeling up your fellow diners, best stay home. All of that said, the uni panini was warm, spicy, unusual, addictive...Read More

excellent, cozy snack-and-drinks place

shawly from 10025 | Posted on 12/6/07

Overall Reader Rating: 8 (Recommended)


Food:	8
Service:	10

Décor:	10

Value:	7

Sure, the place is tiny, and yes, the menu only has about 8 dishes. But this place is lovely. We had salt-cod fritters (which are pretty much just glorified fish sticks, but deliciously so) and chick pea stew -- both were...Read More