Gargiulo's Friendsgiving Dinner in Coney Island Since 1907

Gargiulo's, at 2911 West 15th Street in Coney Island, has been feeding Brooklyn families since 1907, and it is built for the kind of Friendsgiving dinner where the table is long and the plates keep coming. The dining room menu notes that a 20% gratuity is added for tables of 12 or more, so a group of 11 avoids it and a group of 14 should plan for it. After dinner, tables of eight or fewer can try their luck at La Tombola, the restaurant's bingo-style game.

The restaurant's history page says Gargiulo's began in Coney Island in 1907 as a small family-owned restaurant founded by the Gargiulo family, starting on Mermaid Avenue before it moved. In 1965 brothers Michael, Nino and Victor Russo acquired it, bringing recipes from Sorrento. In the late 1970s a favorable review from New York Times critic Mimi Sheraton put it back on the city's map, and the restaurant's own history page now counts more than 119 years since its founding.

The scale of the place is part of the appeal for a group. The private events page lists the Marble Room for up to 400 guests, the Waterfall Room for 100 to 140, the Sorrento Room for 25 to 40 and a Board Room for up to 25. That range means a Friendsgiving can start as a table of ten in the main room and, in a later year, move upstairs without changing restaurants.

The 2026 dining room menu lists Baked Clams at $19.50, the dish most tables order first. Calamari, fried or racanati style, is $25, and one plate covers four people as a starter. Penne Pasqualina is $25 and Fettuccine Verdi alla Gargiulo is $26, both portioned generously enough that two people can split one when the table is ordering several dishes.

The Zuppa di Pesce at $52 is the showpiece, a big bowl of seafood in tomato broth that plays the role of the holiday centerpiece at a seafood-loving table. Beef Braciola at $34 is the meat dish to pair with it, and Chicken Parmigiana at $26.50 is the safe order for the friend who wants something familiar. An honest call: skip ordering a pasta per person, because the portions are large and the table will run out of room long before the dessert course.

La Tombola is the detail that makes Gargiulo's different from other Brooklyn red-sauce rooms. The menu invites tables of eight or fewer to try their luck after dinner, which turns the end of a Friendsgiving into a game rather than a scramble for the check. For larger groups, the trade-off is clear: the 20% gratuity applies at 12 or more, and the game is for tables of eight or fewer, so a party of eight gets both a lower bill and a turn at the game.

Reservations are taken on OpenTable for regular tables. For a Friendsgiving of 25 or more, the Board Room or the Sorrento Room is the better choice, since both keep the group together in one space, and the events team publishes a 2026 events brochure with menus for private parties. Ask about the brochure when you call, especially if the group wants a set menu with a fixed price per person.

Gargiulo's is open Monday 12 pm to 9:30 pm, closed Tuesday, open Wednesday and Thursday 12 pm to 9:30 pm, Friday and Saturday 12 pm to 10:30 pm, and Sunday 12 pm to 9 pm. Do not plan a Tuesday Friendsgiving here, since the restaurant is closed that day. A Sunday lunch is the easiest large booking of the week, and it leaves daylight for a walk on the Boardwalk afterward.

The D, F, N and Q trains all end at Coney Island–Stillwell Avenue, a short walk from the restaurant, which makes Gargiulo's reachable from most of the city on one train. The ride from Manhattan takes about an hour, so friends coming from uptown should leave early. Driving is easier here than in most of the city, and many groups arrive by car from other parts of Brooklyn and Staten Island.

Late November is the quiet season in Coney Island, and that is a good thing for a group. Walk a few blocks south to the Riegelmann Boardwalk, where the beach is empty and the wind off the Atlantic clears the head before a big Italian dinner. The rides at Luna Park on Surf Avenue are shut for the off-season, but the Wonder Wheel and the Cyclone still make a good backdrop for a group photo.

After dinner, walk along Surf Avenue back toward Stillwell Avenue for the train. The neighborhood is quiet at night outside summer, so stay in a group on the way back. The empty boardwalk under the streetlights is one of the more memorable sights in the city on a cold night, and it is worth five minutes before the ride home.

The room itself fits a celebration. The main dining hall has the feel of a classic Brooklyn banquet house, with generations of families marking communions, birthdays and weddings in the same space, and the staff are used to large, noisy tables. A Friendsgiving here feels less like a reservation and more like being folded into a long-running neighborhood tradition.

Plan B for a group that cannot get a table on a weekend: a weekday dinner on Wednesday or Thursday is far easier to book and just as festive in the main room. If the group outgrows the dining room, the events team can move the party into one of the smaller private rooms on the same date.

Gargiulo's, 2911 West 15th Street, Brooklyn, NY 11224, in Coney Island. Monday 12 pm to 9:30 pm, closed Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday 12 pm to 9:30 pm, Friday and Saturday 12 pm to 10:30 pm, Sunday 12 pm to 9 pm. A 20% gratuity is added for tables of 12 or more. Zuppa di Pesce $52, Baked Clams $19.50, Chicken Parmigiana $26.50.