Inside the Celeb-Loved Italian Restaurant Where Taylor Swift and Blake Lively Had a Girls Night

Emilio’s Ballato is an institution of Italian comfort food in New York City

New York City is known for its red sauce restaurants but few are as universally loved as Emilio’s Ballato.

The Italian restaurant first opened its doors in 1956 under John Ballato. In 1991, Emilio Vitolo Sr. purchased the spot from Sal Anthony, who’d bought it from Ballato. Emilio Sr. took over the kitchen and started serving up dishes from Naples.

These days, Emilio Sr.’s son, Anthony Vitolo leads the kitchen as the executive chef, while Emilio Sr. can be spotted sitting at his favorite table outside the restaurant greeting regulars and newcomers to Emilio’s Ballato. His two other sons Mario and Emilio Jr. (who previously dated Katie Holmes) also run the family business.

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Though its been visited by stars like George Clooney and Barack Obama, most recently, the NoLIta restaurant hosted a girls night with Taylor Swift, Sophie Turner, Brittany Mahomes, Blake Lively and Blake's older sister Robyn, among others.

“They dined in a private room. Everyone had a blast," a source tells PEOPLE. "They all got along and were just laughing all night over drinks and delicious food."

The group sat in a back room of the restaurant for over four hours, with Mahomes staying till 1 a.m., and Swift leaving shortly after around 1:30 a.m.

The walls of the restaurant are lined with photographs of the Vitolo family smiling with celebrities and politicians, including Denzel Washington, Justin Bieber, and Rihanna.

But the hot spot isn't just known for its star-studded clientele — it's beloved for their classic Italian-American dishes like pasta with red sauce and bone-in veal parmigiana.

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The menu is kept simple with four main sections, “antipasti,” “insalata e zuppe,” “secondi” and “pasta.” There are familiar dishes like caprese, calamari pasta e fagioli and caesar salad to start, while still having options for a more adventurous eater, like grilled octopus and tripe cooked in tomato sauce.

Chef Anthony detailed how he makes their signature veal parmigiana in a 2018 video for First We Feast.

"In New York City, it's a must," he said of the show-stopping dish.

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The pastas stay classic with choices like linguine with clams, spaghetti and meatballs, ricotta filled ravioli and a bolognese. If something is not on the menu, chef Anthony is known to consider special requests.

The restaurant doesn’t take any reservations, so it’s walk-in only to get a table. Some people choose to arrive early in hopes of quickly snagging a table, but otherwise you may have to wait in a line before dining in.

The business is growing too. Anthony is working on Fort Lauderdale restaurant, Vitolos, opening soon, and Emilio Jr. also runs a speakeasy called Da Milio next to the New York restaurant.

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