Openings

Bocca di Bacco Expands to the Upper East Side With 45 Sidewalk Seats

The original Bocca di Bacco.
The original Bocca di Bacco. Photo: Shanna Ravindra

Thomas Bifulco, who opened Bocca di Bacco with Enrico and Robert Malta and their chef Roberto Passon, tells us he’s striking out on his own and bringing the restaurant’s current chef, Crispin Medina, over to a new location (Passon now helms his own place, Aria). When the Upper East Side outpost of Bocca di Bacco opens in a few weeks at 1496 Second Avenue at 78th Street, it’ll boast 80 seats, plus 45 outside. The menu and decor will be the same, says Bifulco, but he’ll be adding lunch and brunch items like panini and frittatas. We’ll give you a look at the menu and the dining room closer to the opening date.

Bocca di Bacco Expands to the Upper East Side With 45 Sidewalk Seats