La Pecora Bianca is set to open its second Upper West Side restaurant on Monday, October 19, moving into a space that once housed a longtime neighborhood favorite near Lincoln Center. The new restaurant, called La Pecora Bianca Lincoln Square, will span two floors and bring the Italian group's house-made pasta and Amalfi Coast feel to a corner of the neighborhood that has watched the space sit in transition for months.
Owner Mark Barak confirmed the opening date, according to I Love the Upper West Side, which reports the restaurant is taking over the former Rosa Mexicano space at 62nd Street and Columbus Avenue, near Lincoln Center. A separate account from Eater New York places the project at 61 Columbus Avenue, in the same Rosa Mexicano space across from Lincoln Center — the two outlets differ slightly on the exact street number. Per the same account from I Love the Upper West Side, the restaurant is described as taking on a laid-back Amalfi Coast feel across its two floors.
A Big Bet, But How Big?
I Love the Upper West Side describes Lincoln Square as the group's largest and most ambitious location yet. That claim runs into a wrinkle elsewhere: La Pecora Bianca's own listing on Culinary Agents identifies the Bryant Park location as its largest, with more than 200 seats. Either way, Lincoln Square joins a rapid buildout for the Italian restaurant group, which the same report notes currently lists seven Manhattan locations.
The menu for Lincoln Square had not been published as of the latest report, so diners won't know exactly what's on offer until doors open Monday. What is known comes from the broader La Pecora Bianca playbook: every pasta is made in-house daily, the article notes, including a signature rigatoni vodka, gramigna, and tagliatelle bolognese, with gluten-free pasta available on request and burrata addable to any pasta order.
Familiar Dishes, Familiar Vibe
Beyond the pasta, the group's established menu features modern takes on classic Italian fare, including whipped ricotta with truffle honey, beef and pork meatballs, and tiramisu for two. The drinks program leans into an aperitivo-hour inspiration, with spritzes, negronis, and the restaurant's own La Pecora Rosa organic rosé rounding out the bar. A Facebook post from LaPecoraBiancaMidtown teased the opening, promising “easy Amalfi vibes, and overflowing Spritzes and Rigatoni” for the fall debut.
Lincoln Square marks the group's second Upper West Side outpost, following its first location at 359 Columbus Avenue at 77th Street, which opened in 2022. Plans for the Lincoln Square project were first reported in June 2024, when Barak presented them to Community Board 7's Business & Consumer Issues Committee, whose members unanimously supported his plans at the time.
Part Of A Bigger Expansion Push
Lincoln Square is just one piece of a broader expansion for La Pecora Bianca. The company is also planning a Theater District location at 1633 Broadway between West 50th and West 51st streets, with 175 indoor seats and 125 outdoor seats, according to Eater New York. That outlet also reports each new location is designed with unique dishes and a more maximalist design approach, including Neapolitan pizza and homemade pastas layered into the concept.
Barak is also moving beyond New York for the first time, with Eater New York reporting a location planned for Coral Gables, Florida, in fall 2026 — the group's first restaurant outside the city. Separately, Barak is planning to open an 11,300-square-foot restaurant called Giulietta inside the MetLife Building at 200 Park Avenue in late January, per the same Eater report.
