Meatball Madness was a hot ticket at this year's New York City Wine & Food Festival, as evidenced by the sold-out tickets and by the long line stretching far down Mercer Street. We understand; after all, who doesn't love meatballs? Particularly when they're being made by New York's hottest chefs. With our discerning meatball palates on high alert, we wove our way through the crowd of food-lovers and Food Network lovers alike (Giada De Laurentiis was the evening's host, and Guy Fieri made an appearance), sampling all sorts of meat- (and meatless!) balls. More

Of the many pastas on the menu at Osteria Morini, the Cappelletti ($18) are my favorite. More

At Osteria Morini, a quenelle of pure white mascarpone cream finishes off the Pear Tart ($11) on the dessert menu. It's not just any old pear tart, mind you More

A one-question Italian food pop quiz: What's the difference between an osteria, a trattoria, and a ristorante? The answer can be found at the end of this review. But we've found ourselves unable to care at Osteria Morini, the new restaurant of prodigiously talented Italian chef-restaurateur Michael White (he of the unfortunate, decidedly un-Italian, white bread-y surname). More