Swyft Restaurant

I hate doing this because it makes it harder for me to book a reservation in the future. Game Theory in action. The service was perfect. The cocktails, excellent and exciting. The food, truly inspired. That's all I will say. The rest is to your imagination. Don't book, don't go, cause I don't want any trouble next time I want to book a rez. (which to be honest is soon. The food is so good.)

It's hard to imagine a pizza so perfect, so exquisite, so delicious a couple hours north of NYC. But here it is. Fluffy crust may be the star, expertly charred and airy, perfect in every way. But, then there's the sleeper tomato sauce, comprised of milled San Marzano tomatoes and/or the Calabrian chili oil that comes on some pies, but they'll gladly add it if you want. Yes, do. But, the other things on the menu, particularly the chicken at night is just not to be missed. It's a beguiling smoked, charred mix of a half or full bird. It, as well as the smoked sauce accompaniment, haunt my dreams. Burger, double patty with cheese. Yes. Fries. Awesome. Salad with lettuce that actually tastes like something. Nice beer list. Good selection of wine, with a focus on Italian. A nice selection of special whisky and even some good amaro (my favorite) means a good bar experience. I don't know the owners personally, but they seem to have attracted a good set of complement, friendly staff. Run, don't walk, here but just don't get in the way of my next reservation

This place has gone down hill! The food was good but atmosphere was very uncomfortable due to the fact that the manager was miserable and the staff was stressed. Memorial Day weekend is busy for every restaurant so I don’t think that’s a good enough excuse to be off putting. It makes customers feel uncomfortable and unwanted when everyone looks upset and overwhelmed. I realize that every restaurant is understaffed right now, but not every restaurant is uncomfortable to eat at. If you don’t have enough staff, maybe you should close a portion of patio seating, or even the whole thing! This is the first time my husband and I have eaten here this year (11th time overall) and it appears that there’s new management or something. We ate here Last Memorial Day weekend and greatly enjoyed the food & service. It’s sad to see a lack of customer appreciation and an unenthusiastic staff. I do NOT recommend eating at this establishment until they get their act together.

I had read so many good things about the ingredients in the pizza was some of the best around: best sauce from Italy, locally fermented flour for the dough, fresh pulled cheese, that I had to make the trek to taste the pizza! The restaurant itself is nicely renovated so kudos for fixing it up. The bar is very appealing, albeit small, yet causal and cozy. The staff is very friendly and accommodating, and the cocktails are superb. Back to the pizza. I have personally reviewed 100's of pizzas throughout the states, and this pizza was just OK. If you are going to use a wood fired oven, make sure that you have good char on the bottom of the pizza, not just the top. The ingredients are not bad, but not anything that extraordinary especially after all the work that goes into fermenting the dough, pulling the cheese etc... Go back to the basics, and get good flour from Naples, add some flavor to your sauce and make it extraordinary - a little garlic goes a long way. Add some salt and olive oil to the dough, cook the pizza longer, and voila you will have a very good pizza. Try experimenting with the basics and good luck as practice makes the best pizzaiolos!