A High End Trattoria Just Opened Inside a Baller Garden District Mansion

Altamura, the hotly-anticipated and long-awaited high end trattoria from the Manhattanjack team has opened in the Garden District's historic Magnolia Mansion. Early reports from Ian McNulty and Todd Price both note that the restaurant is on the mansion's first floor (ie. basement level) with a Mid Century Modern vibe including a grand piano for live music. The mansion rocks a patio and veranda with Columns-style grandeur for cocktails.

The menu isn't cheap at this osso buco hotspot though, with pastas in the $20 range and entrees hitting at $30+, but the American Italian dishes— which pay homage to owner Jack Petronella's family hometown of Altamura in southern Italy— do sound incredible, per McNulty:

There's fried mozzarella spiedini, rolled with bread and skewered and served with anchovy lemon caper sauce; tortellini en brodo; chicken and veal prepared a la picatta or Marsala or saltimbocca style... clams casino (broiled on the half shell), Nantucket scallops over risotto and Maine lobster in spicy red sauce.

Petronella, who has a history in resort management, is actually running the entire mansion— it boasts 14 guest rooms and is currently owned by retired pro boxer Fouad Zeton — with plans for further renovations ($55k has already been put toward a massive landscaping overhaul) and hopes of making this a major destination for al fresco drinking and dining.

Status: Certified open at 2127 Prytania Street for dinner Mon & Wed-Thurs, 5 p.m. to 10 p.m. Fri-Sat, 5 p.m. to 11 p.m. Happy hour at 4 p.m. Sunday brunch, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.