Posted by Katherine St Asaph on 01/25/2012 at 12:02 PM News

The Popdust Files: lady gaga, new york city, restaurants

Let’s get a few things straight right off the bat: Lady Gaga neither owns or runs Joanne Trattoria, the restaurant her parents started on 68th St. in New York City’s Upper West Side–near where she grew up. Nor is it named after her–Joanne’s one of Gaga’s middle names, but her father named the restaurant after his sister Joanne, who died of lupus at age 19. That said, it’s still Gaga-relevant and thus relevant to us; the singer hosted her New Year’s Eve party there, and chef Art Smith showed up to help her cook on her Thanksgiving special.

If you’re more interested in the food than in Lady Gaga–in which case we’re awfully curious how your Web-trawling habits brought you here–The Daily Meal was there and offers a quite glowing review. (The food’s Southern/Italian, as opposed to southern Italian, which means dishes like bread pudding are on the menu as well as Italian fare; entrees cost $25-30, which could have been a lot higher considering NYC pricing, location and the names at work here.)

But if you’re more interested in Lady Gaga, the restaurant itself might not 100% satisfy–Gaga’s parents said they want to somehow keep the place low-key, which means no star memorabilia and not much Gaga bigging-up. They said they’re even unsure of whether to put a picture of Gaga even in her Stefani days. More pertinent and concerning are some quotes from The New York Times, the source of the previous anecdotes. Are they trying to eat her, or just pun her to death?

Gaga’s father: “She just generates a lot of sizzle.”
Art Smith: “We have to share her. Just like everybody else.”