Emilio Ballato's Secret Menu

"Every frequent restaurant goer wants to feel like an insider at our favorite spots or at otherwise buzzy places where snagging a table is something of a jockey sport. At Ballato’s, the more than half-century-old red sauce Italian institution in Manhattan’s Lower East Side, the latter means being plugged into the secret menu and knowing that these are dishes to request. Regulars, Anthony says, still turn to Ballato’s musts such as the supersized chicken parmesan and linguine vongole but gravitate more toward this lesser-known repertoire." - Shivani Vora