Somewhere between the cobblestone charm of Greenwich Village and the salt-kissed harbors of Long Island’s Gold Coast, an Italian dining institution quietly planted its flag on Northern Boulevard over two decades ago. Il Mulino New York’s Long Island outpost in Roslyn is not merely a satellite of Manhattan’s most celebrated Italian restaurant — it is an argument, rendered in hand-rolled pasta and dry-aged beef, that the suburbs deserve the same uncompromising culinary seriousness once reserved for the city. For anyone who has ever driven Route 25A past the historic grist mills and duck ponds of Roslyn village, only to stumble upon this elegant dining room glowing against the Northern Boulevard corridor, the discovery carries the weight of revelation. As Peter from The Heritage Diner — a man who has spent a quarter-century feeding the North Shore from behind a griddle in Mount Sinai — I can tell you that restaurants of this caliber do not simply survive in suburban markets. They endure only when the philosophy behind them is as sturdy as the foundation beneath them, a principle I recognize from my own work hand-stitching English bridle leather briefcases at Marcellino NY. In both the kitchen and the workshop, the unseen details define the masterpiece.
From the Abruzzo to West Third Street: The Founding Story
The Il Mulino narrative begins not on Long Island but in the mountain villages of Abruzzo, a rugged region of central Italy where rustic cuisine is built on a few unshakable principles: the freshest possible local ingredients, time-honored techniques, and the belief that simplicity is not the absence of sophistication but its highest expression. Brothers Fernando and Gino Masci, both trained as cooks aboard Italian passenger ships, immigrated to North America and, after stints in Canada and Europe, settled in New York in the late 1970s (WBP Stars, 2021). Unable to find what they considered authentic Abruzzese cooking anywhere in the city, they opened their own restaurant on West Third Street in Greenwich Village in 1981 (Resy, 2024).
The original Il Mulino was tiny — a cramped dining room with exposed brick walls and seats packed so closely together that neighboring tables could practically share a bread basket. But what it lacked in square footage, it compensated for in culinary conviction. Zagat would go on to rate Il Mulino as Manhattan’s number one Italian restaurant for decades running, praising what the guide called an establishment where every dish qualifies as a masterpiece (IMNY.com, 2025). The restaurant became a magnet for everyone from Wall Street power brokers to presidents — Bill Clinton and Barack Obama famously shut down the entire Village location for a private dinner in 2009 (Resy, 2024). Harvey Keitel, Elvis Costello, and Diana Krall have all been spotted amid the parmesan and bruschetta. The Masci brothers eventually sold their stake, and new ownership under Chairman Jerry Katzoff expanded the brand into a global enterprise while maintaining the original’s culinary DNA (Leaders Magazine, 2021).
Chef Michele Mazza: A Neapolitan Life in the Kitchen
If Il Mulino’s soul was forged in the Abruzzo, its modern palate was shaped by a man from the shadow of Vesuvius. Executive Chef Michele Mazza was born and raised in Torre del Greco, a coastal village nestled between Naples and the volcano, where his family operated restaurants and bakeries (ChefMazza.com, 2024). His culinary education began at age eight, helping his mother prepare meals for high-profile Neapolitan catering clients, and by fifteen he had enrolled in formal culinary school in southern Italy. After graduation, Mazza spent a decade working aboard a prestigious Italian coastal liner, completing 130-day circumnavigations that exposed him to global ingredients, techniques, and palates (Leaders Magazine, 2016).
In 1980, Mazza immigrated to the United States and opened his own restaurants on Long Island’s North Shore. Most notable was Classico Restaurant in Roslyn, where he presided for twenty-five years — a tenure that mirrors the very longevity I understand from running The Heritage Diner. When the Il Mulino team sought to expand beyond Manhattan, they approached Mazza about converting one of his restaurant spaces into the brand’s first suburban outpost. The Roslyn location was born from that partnership, and Mazza has served as Corporate Executive Chef since 2003, overseeing the brand’s expansion to more than seventeen locations worldwide, from Las Vegas and Miami to Tokyo and Macau (NYC Wine & Food Festival, 2024). His philosophy remains unchanged across decades and continents: food is comfort and history, and both must be present on every plate.
The Roslyn Location: Where Manhattan Meets the North Shore
Il Mulino New York’s Long Island restaurant occupies 1042 Northern Boulevard in Roslyn, a village that has been welcoming travelers since George Washington himself passed through in 1790 during his tour of Long Island. Roslyn’s historic district — listed on the National Register of Historic Places since 1987 — contains over eighty pre-Civil War structures within a single square mile, and the village maintains a walkable downtown anchored by Old Northern Boulevard with its boutiques, galleries, and restaurants (Wikipedia, 2025). The poet William Cullen Bryant made his home at nearby Cedarmere, and the Nassau County Museum of Art sits on the former Frick Estate just minutes away. It is, in short, exactly the kind of community where a restaurant built on tradition, provenance, and meticulous craft belongs.
The Roslyn outpost has operated for more than twenty years, and in 2023 it underwent a remarkable renovation that breathed contemporary energy into the space without sacrificing its classic soul. The redesign introduced rounded leather booths, arched mirrors, sparkling chandeliers, and a warmer, lighter color palette — a harmonious blend of modern aesthetics and timeless Italian elegance (FSR Magazine, 2023). The restaurant celebrated its renewal with a “Pasta-Cutting Ceremony” on September 14, 2023, a characteristically Italian twist on the ribbon-cutting tradition. Two significant private dining spaces were added: a sophisticated new alcove accommodating up to thirty guests, and “The Vintage Room,” a basement-level event space accessible via a stairway lined floor-to-ceiling with wine bottles. General Manager Alis Omeragic has described the Vintage Room as blending the elegant ambience of New York City dining with the scenic beauty of Long Island’s North Shore (Meetings + Events Magazine, 2023). The space can host up to eighty guests in configurations ranging from plated dinners to cocktail receptions.
The Menu: Abruzzese Tradition with Neapolitan Finesse
Dining at Il Mulino Roslyn begins before the menu even opens. In the grand tradition of the Greenwich Village original, complimentary antipasti arrive unbidden — chunks of aged Parmigiano-Reggiano, crispy fried zucchini, bruschetta piled high on a long platter, and garlic bread — a generous opening salvo that sets the tone for the evening. The gesture is as much philosophical as it is gastronomic: it communicates that abundance and generosity are not afterthoughts here but foundational principles.
The menu itself is a curated journey through the Italian peninsula, with Chef Mazza’s Neapolitan sensibility layered over the Abruzzese backbone that has defined Il Mulino since 1981. Signature dishes include the Veal Chop, a bone-in monument to proper butchering and high-heat execution; the Chicken Parmigiana, which earned the restaurant the 2024 Best Chicken Parmigiana on Long Island award from Greater Long Island Foodies; the dry-aged New York Strip with pizzaiola sauce; and the Capellini Il Mulino — a tangle of angel-hair pasta with wild mushrooms, pancetta, sweet peas, vodka cream sauce, and black truffle that has achieved near-legendary status among regulars (Yelp, 2024). The Bronzino, filleted tableside with only olive oil and sea salt, has been called by more than one reviewer the finest they have encountered anywhere in the world. Porcini mushroom-stuffed potato gnocchi with cherry tomato shallot sauce and pecorino romano represent Chef Mazza’s gift for elevating humble ingredients into something approaching the sublime.
The wine program matches the culinary ambition, drawing from Italy’s great regional estates and offering a range that complements everything from a light antipasto course to a full-bodied secondi. A full bar with classic cocktails rounds out the beverage offerings. Sunday Brunch, served noon to three, offers both traditional American brunch fare and Italian specialties alongside signature cocktails, while the Sunday Supper Menu provides a curated weekly experience of seasonal and signature dishes designed for gathering with family and friends. The weekday prix fixe lunch — thirty-five dollars per person, Monday through Friday, noon to three — represents one of the most compelling fine dining values on the North Shore.
Service, Community, and the Art of Hospitality
In my experience running The Heritage Diner for twenty-five years, I have learned that the difference between a restaurant that lasts and one that does not is rarely the food alone. It is the invisible architecture of service — the way a guest feels remembered, anticipated, and cared for — that transforms a dining room into a destination. Il Mulino Roslyn understands this at a molecular level. The waitstaff is trained in the old European tradition of career hospitality: these are not temporary employees passing through but professionals who view their work as a vocation. Jerry Katzoff, the brand’s chairman, has emphasized that Il Mulino invests heavily in professional development and compensates its staff accordingly, creating a culture where servers remain for decades (Leaders Magazine, 2021).
The Roslyn location is also deeply embedded in its community. The restaurant serves as a member of the Roslyn Chamber of Commerce and has supported local initiatives including the Roslyn Estates 5K Run/Walk for Charity. It functions as a premier destination for private events — birthdays, anniversaries, engagements, corporate functions, and client presentations — with dedicated event coordination available through events@imny.com. Chef Mazza himself embodies the community spirit, serving as a board member of Italians Feed America, a nonprofit dedicated to hunger relief, and hosting cooking classes that share his four decades of culinary knowledge with anyone willing to learn (ItaliansFeedAmerica.org, 2024).
This kind of institutional generosity resonates with me as both a restaurateur and a craftsman. At Marcellino NY, when I hand-saddle stitch an English bridle leather briefcase for a client — whether it is a trial attorney, a surgeon, or Tilman Fertitta — I am not simply producing an object. I am participating in a relationship that extends beyond the transaction. Il Mulino operates by the same code. The complimentary antipasti, the career waitstaff, the willingness to prepare off-menu dishes upon request — these are not marketing strategies. They are expressions of a philosophy that treats hospitality as an end in itself, not a means to profit.
The Il Mulino Empire and the Roslyn Distinction
What began on West Third Street in 1981 has grown into a culinary empire spanning more than seventeen locations across the United States and the globe, including outposts in Las Vegas, Miami, Orlando, Boca Raton, Atlantic City, Nashville, San Juan, Macau, and Tokyo. The brand has also spawned two distinct sub-concepts: Trattoria Il Mulino, a more casual interpretation, and Il Mulino Prime, the brand’s first steakhouse concept, located in SoHo. In Manhattan alone, the brand maintains four locations — the original Downtown on West Third Street, Uptown on East 60th Street between Park and Madison, and in Tribeca on Greenwich Street (ILoveNY.com, 2025).
Yet the Roslyn location occupies a unique position within this constellation. It is the only Long Island outpost, and its North Shore setting gives it a character distinct from both the Manhattan flagships and the resort-adjacent locations in Florida and Las Vegas. The post-renovation dining room feels simultaneously metropolitan and intimate — sophisticated enough for a closing dinner after a major real estate transaction (something Paola and I, as we prepare to launch Maison Pawli in 2026, deeply appreciate in a restaurant) yet warm enough for a multi-generational Sunday supper. The addition of The Vintage Room and the private dining alcove have positioned the Roslyn location as a serious contender for Long Island’s most elegant event venue, capable of hosting everything from corporate retreats to wedding rehearsal dinners.
The restaurant also participates in the brand’s licensing expansion, which seeks partnerships with hotel owners and hospitality groups to bring the Il Mulino experience to new markets. This strategic growth, guided by Chef Mazza’s consistent culinary vision, ensures that the quality benchmark set on West Third Street four decades ago is maintained at every touchpoint — including, and perhaps especially, on Northern Boulevard in Roslyn.
A Living Standard on the North Shore
Restaurants do not survive for over two decades in the suburbs by coasting on a Manhattan pedigree. The North Shore dining landscape is sophisticated, competitive, and unforgiving — a stretch of Route 25A that runs from Cold Spring Harbor through Huntington, Northport, and out to Port Jefferson is lined with establishments fighting for the attention of discerning diners who know the difference between competence and excellence. Il Mulino Roslyn has not merely survived this gauntlet; it has set the standard against which other fine Italian dining on Long Island is measured.
The reasons are the same ones that have sustained The Heritage Diner for a quarter-century in Mount Sinai, that keep clients returning to Marcellino NY for bespoke briefcases, and that will anchor Maison Pawli’s boutique real estate philosophy when we launch next year: an absolute refusal to compromise on the unseen details. The quality of the olive oil. The provenance of the veal. The training of the staff. The weight of the linen. These are the elements that separate an institution from an imitation, and Il Mulino Roslyn has been getting them right, quietly and consistently, for more than twenty years on a stretch of Northern Boulevard where George Washington once rode and where the Abruzzo, somehow, feels like home.
Contact Information
Il Mulino New York — Long Island 1042 Northern Boulevard, Roslyn, NY 11576 Phone: (516) 621-1870 Website: imny.com/location/long-island Events: events@imny.com Reservations: OpenTable
Hours: Monday–Thursday: 12:00 PM – 3:00 PM (Lunch) | 4:00 PM – 10:00 PM (Dinner) Friday: 12:00 PM – 3:00 PM (Lunch) | 4:00 PM – 11:00 PM (Dinner) Saturday: 4:00 PM – 11:00 PM (Dinner) Sunday: 12:00 PM – 3:00 PM (Brunch) | 4:00 PM – 9:00 PM (Dinner)
Prix Fixe Lunch: $35/person, Monday–Friday, Noon–3:00 PM Sunday Brunch: $42/person, Noon–3:00 PM
Delivery & Takeout: Available via Uber Eats, Seamless, Grubhub, and DoorDash Valet Parking: Available Private Events: The Vintage Room (up to 80 guests) and Private Dining Alcove (up to 30 guests)
