Celebrate Thanksgiving in Rudolph Valentino's Mansion
Valentino's on the Green, the Bayside, New York (Queens) home of Rudolph Valentino, the legendary silent film star, will celebrate Thanksgiving with a special prix fixe menu on November 25th.
The three-course prix fix menu will include a choice of appetizer (such as pumpkin and butternut squash soup) and a choice of entree (ranging from traditional turkey and sausage stuffing to stuffed loin of pork, sliced fliet mignon and homemade ravioli). Dessert choices include a pumpkin-ricotta cheesecake and New York state apple and cranberry crisp. The cost is $44.50 per person. The Italian restaurant will also offer a children's menu that includes dessert and a choice of entrees ranging from penne pasta to turkey with mashed potatoes and chicken fingers. The children's menu is priced at $19.50.
The mansion, which is located in Bayside, Queens, has undergone a multi-million dollar, interior and exterior restoration. With a golf course view, flanked by an elegant patio, garden, and pond, the 170-seat ground floor a la carte restaurant features the Fiorello Room a dining room tribute to another former resident, the late New York Mayor Fiorello LaGuardia. The restaurant's Valentino Room is a red velvet and mahogany-rich hideaway, which includes a bar and grand fireplace. A wine wall with the restaurant's world-class selection gracefully separates the two larger ground level spaces. The second floor of the mansion features a 230-seat banquet space with floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the Throgs Neck Bridge and Little Neck Bay and offers a behind-the-scenes bridal suite that was once the bedroom of Valentino himself.
Chef and Partner Don Pintabona brings an unparalleled artisanship to the new restaurant, which opened its doors in September, and with the influence of an icon, creates a seamless blend of modern and classic tastes. Prior to opening Valentino's, Pintabona launched several successful eateries, among them the Tribeca Grill with Robert De Niro. Heading up the kitchen with Pintabona will be Queens native Chef James "Jimmy" Canora, previously with the Tribeca Grill and Delmonico's, who brings many fine dining accolades to the Valentino's table. Pastry Chef Lauren Ragone, also from Queens, most recently held the same position at Manhattan's prestigious Hotel Plaza Athenee. Wine Director Don Castaldo comes to Valentino's having worked at Crabtree's Kittle House, San Domenico, Blue Hill at Stone Barn, Alain Ducasse, and other acclaimed eateries.
The on‐site Shared Table Farm garden will provide produce for the restaurant, while the in‐house butchery will supply the finest cuts of meat. In addition, plans are in the works to implement groundbreaking, fully sustainable, aquaponic/hydroponic, horticultural technology at Valentino's in the near future.
Reservations can be made online or by calling (718) 352-2300. The restaurant is located at 201-10 Cross Island Parkway, Bayside, New York.
