Craft

I give it a 4 star rating because of the great service and the high end décor. Their crispy bacon was the best dish I had. It was nothing like bacon, more like Chinese roasted pork the oil of which has been completely drained, leaving you the pure fat and tender meat. It was so so delicious!
Their foie gras was too salty, and their braised soft shell crab was so bad that we had to send it back.
On the good side, they did not skimp on the alcohol in my cocktail. Sweet!

Best dinner of our lives-​thus far. Definitely get the braised short ribs! Service wonderful and in a great location!

Went here for friends birthday. Was really looking forward to it as i am a huge Top Chef fan. However, from drinks to dessert, the meal was average. There were a few highlights but doesnt make up for the lows.
Highs: black widow drink, cavatelli appetizer, black molten dessert
Lows: all other drinks, wines, all entrees. Meal was ~$ 150 per person.
We ordered a few apps and the cavatelli was amazing. The octopus was very tough. My local greek place does it much better. The bacon (pork belly) was very chewy and skin not crisp. The fish entrees were overcooked and dry. My friend and i ordered the steak for 2. It was 8 small pieces. Precut. Very dry and flavorless. I have had better steak almost anywhere else. My one friend did like his duck entrée and other friend did like the chicken entrée. For dessert, doughnuts were okay. Chocolate molten cake was delicious. The drinks were not that good, only good one was black widow. The wines are way way overpriced in my opinion.

I’ve been wanting to go to Craft for a few years and finally had the chance. This was one of the best meals we’ve had. Full Stop. Every note was hit just right — from the service (special shout out to Charlene) to the timing, to the flavor combinations to the attention to detail in the dining room.
Everything was spectacular — Food highlights would be the braised halibut and braised short ribs (both melt in your mouth), potato gratin (oh, yes, bring on the fat!) and the sugar & spice donuts with fudge and banana caramel dipping sauces (no additional explanation needed). The fact that Craft is not, like many recent arrivals on the foodie scene, trying too hard to be clever was refreshing and relaxing. At the same time, the creativity and focus on quality are palpable, and the kitchen delivered top notch results.
Drink highlight number one: the «Persia,» a vodka, pomegranate, lemon, mint delight.
Drink highlight number two: Ca De Noci 2013 Sottobosco (sparkling Rose), a perfect, refreshing way to start the meal.
Drink highlight number three: Sandhi Santa 2013 Barbara chardonnay, a perfectly balanced new age CA chardonnary
The dining room is understated but warm and classy without feeling at all stuffy. My partner and I felt right at home. There were older men in suits, young professional out for an evening, and next to us was a tattooed couple young child. The staff was equally friendly and attentive to each.
A wonderful experience all around.

Came here yesterday for a dinner date. The food was so subpar. Now before I get into the food let me say that the service was ASTOUNDING. From the sweet host that let us know when our table was ready (which we turned down because we were already comfy at the bar) to the amazing bartenders (one of them I believe was name Juan. He was phenomenal and a delight) to the busser that escorted me like a gentleman to the slightly hard to find ladies room. The service was top notch.
Now on to the food (which has no implication on the service whatsoever. They cant help that the food was sh*t that night). The gnochhi was soggy and came in a watery unflavorful cheese sauce that was so unappealing, it actually made me nauseous eating it.
The fiddlehead ferns were slightly burnt and had a bitter taste to them. Had to push those aside as well.
They were out of the henwood mushrooms which was SO disappointing but the bartender (Juan?) gave us the option of an assortment of the other three shrooms. The mushrooms were DELICIOUS. However, they were doused in soooo much oil, it was unbelievable. My stomach still somewhat aches from all the oil — still scarfed them down.
The braised kale was ridiculously over salted. My mouth was burning from how much salt was in it. I couldn’t eat more than two bites.
The mushroom risotto was okay. It wasn’t bad. It wasn’t good. It was simply average, but for a restaurant that is as hyped as this one, I need way more than average.
My date had the dead bird, I mean Amish chicken dish, and seemed to enjoy it, although he didn’t finish it.
Lastly, I told the bartender that I was vegan and he said no problem they would make all the food vegan but there was def some cheese in the dishes. It is vital for servers and bartenders especially at more top notch establishments to know the difference between vegan cuisine and vegetarian cuisine.
I think this place is a very meat focused restaurant and so when it comes to veggies they dont know what to do with it so they dump in oil, salt, butter, and cheese and pray for the best instead of treating the sides delicately and taking the time to fully season them well and bring out the veggies natural earthy flavors.
Would definitely not recommend this place to a vegan.

Beautiful restaurant. Great atmosphere. Attentive and knowledgable staff. Great cocktails. Rich and decadent dishes. Everything was tasty but some were a bit too heavy for my preference. Be careful not to over order!

I had dinner at Craft last night with two friends after going to the theater. This was an «event» for all of us, given that we had all come into NYC from out of town.
The restaurant’s aesthetic is very well-​defined, with light fixtures showing up as illustrations on the menus and a clean, spare ambiance going on. It feels well-​to-​do without being stuffy or snobby. The design of the left-​hand wall feels a little strange; my friend described it as sitting next to a giant pineapple.
The service was very friendly and helpful when it came to navigating the menu, but our guy left us alone a smidge too long between telling us about the menu and taking our order. Anywhere else this wouldn’t even be noticeable so it isn’t a big knock. One of us was a vegan and was able to get half-​orders of the vegetable dishes, which was really appreciated.
I had the Persia cocktail (vodka, pomegranate, lemon and mint), which was very refreshing. Another friend got the agave-​ginger mocktail and enjoyed it. The water and bread service was impeccable and we went through two bread baskets before we cut ourselves off.
The amuse bouche for two of us was a pea soup shooter with a small slice of swordfish, which was quite tasty. My vegan friend had a small salad-​like amuse bouche on a serving spoon. For dinner, my vegan friend ordered fingerling potatoes, kale and hen of the woods mushrooms. He said everything was delicious. I had the Wagyu bavette, medium rare, and then shared the gnocchi with my other friend, who had the short ribs with carrots and onions. The bavette was delicious, unaccompanied by anything else and allowed to speak for itself. The highlight, though, was the gnocchi. Not mushy, not too firm, almost like creamy marshmallow potatoes. We were too full for dessert but were given small bites of blondies and fruits, as well as lemon muffins on the way out.
My biggest piece of advice here is to share sides and don’t let your eyes get bigger than your stomach. I wondered if we should have ordered two plates of gnocchi when they set the plate down, and we barely finished the one. The looks of the dishes are deceiving and they are all more filling than it first appears.
Everything was delicious but at the end of the day I’m not sure the prices, which are fairly high for completely a la carte items, are worth it. It’s definitely worth going at least once as an experience, and you will get great food and service. I’m just left with a little bit of unfulfilled je né sais quoi.

Great experience!!! Huge Tom Colicchio fan! Been waiting a long time to have this wonderful experience. The service was amazing! We had the 55 Day Dry-​Aged Striploin for 2 with asparagus and gratin potatoes. The potatoes were good but a bit on the salty side. The striploin was delicious but a bit rough. Overall a great ambiance and meal!

Went here for my 30^th birthday– had a great time. Got the short ribs, which I’d say were above average. We started with a veggie plate with the hen of the woods mushrooms, which were the highlight. Cocktails were great.

Super disappointing. I’d been a huge fan of TC’s and wanted to try his restaurants. As a vegetarian, it’s not worth the time. Turn, walk around the corner, and find any other restaurant.

I am a HUGE Top Chef/​Tom Collicchio fan; quite frankly a celeb chef junkie. A trip to NYC to come to Craft was actually part of my Christmas present this year from my fiancé and I was ecstatic.
However, NEVER have I ever left a restaurant so disappointed in my entire life. Let’s start by saying the food was absolutely delicious. I highly recommend the beet salad and the gnocchi as a side. However, my fiancé and I were blatantly ignored by our server (gray haired man with beard – I want to say his name is Ed). I watched as he joked with the older couple seated to my right and checked in with the couple seated to my left but LITERALLY spoke to us twice; once to take our order and once to grab our credit card from us at the end. When you are spending an upwards of $ 300+ for a meal, you expect to be treated the same as anyone else. I worked in a restaurant before and would’ve totally understood if the server was in the weeds, but seeing how he continuously was catering to the two tables around us, I know that was not the case. I personally felt like lack of attention had something to do with our age; two 20-​somethings couldn’t possibly spend as much money as these other people, right? Thankfully his «assistant» of sorts was extremely attentive; filling our glasses, removing our empty dishes promptly, delivering our food and making sure we had anything we needed. I wish our entire tip could have gone to him.
I am giving this 2 stars, which is quite generous considering the poor taste I had in my mouth upon leaving. The food was excellent but I’ve never felt more out of place than I did at Craft– and I shouldn’t have felt that way. Our money is just as good as anyone else’s.

Craft– what a great spot! The décor was a little odd, but we fully enjoyed our meal and great service. We had some wine by the glass, and the bread to start was delicious!
We ordered the scallops, duck, gnocchi (best) and the hen of the woods mushrooms. Overall, a very scrumptious meal. The scallops were light and perfectly cooked, and the duck was very tender. The gnocchi were great as well!
Highly recommend for a cozy evening and yummy food!

Ok, call me crazy but I would have expected exceptional food instead of something inedible. Yes, you read correctly. A $ 45 piece of Monkfish ruined by a sauce so salty that one bite left me with dry mouth for the entire evening. It’s a shame that Tom couldn’t have tasted this dish himself since I am sure he would have sent it back. I was astonished that the kitchen could have allowed such a mishap.
As for the other food, it was just ok. The short ribs. Nothing special. The cauliflower though ok was drenched in butter. The amuse bouche — raw venison — was really not very good. The only decent dish was the burratta, prosciutto and delicata squash appetizer. Which I really liked.
Though they took the fish and cauliflower off the bill and we recognize this as the correct thing to do, we will never go back to Craft. This isn’t a neighborhood diner that you can forgive and forget such a mistake. This is a very expensive restaurant that should be phenomenal. There are too many great restaurants in NYC to waste any additional time and money.

I came here for my birthday. Located in Midtown Manhattan this place is owned by Tom Caliccio, one of the judges on Top Chef.
I was prepared to have my mouth wowed here.
We have see actions at 7pm and we arrived 10 minutes early. They seated us right away even though they were busy.
This is a totally dress up place, so I had my teen wear a button down shirt.
We orders the rotisserie chicken, steak and the gnocchi. All superb dishes that wow!
I received a cheesecake with a candle plus a personalized and dated Menu to take home to remember the night. Service was great.
I would come again:)

This flagship restaurant by Tom Colicchio. The pleasant warm calm interior is inviting. The staff is well trained. The food is I guess rustic comfort food and a nice selection of wine for those connoisseurs of it.
We went for lunch on this day. The menu had a variety of salads to start, soups and main dishes. The salad portions were pretty large but then how much does a bag of arugula cost wholesale was very good. Well seasoned and a refreshing starter. I decided upon the rib eye sandwich. The sandwich’s crispy shell probably was toasted with a stick of butter on each side. The meat was warm nicely seasoned. It sat on top of a red cabbage slaw which I wasn’t a fan off but I get it. It offset the buttery bread with a more tart crunchy element.
It was a pleasant meal. Very civilized meal. Very refined meal but kind of boring.

Quintessential fine dining experience. Eclectic yet approachable menu that expands and contracts seasonally. Some of the most professional staff in New York City and certainly some of the best management one could ever wish for serving up excellence night after night.
Few places sustain momentum in this market, as most diners would agree.
Craft has developed the secret recipe to ensure current and future food innovations continue to grace your family’s palate.
They just do it right.

When dining out in NYC, one has an almost infinite number of options; so much so, that the decision of where to go, in itself, can be laden with stress and even a mediocre experience, especially of the more expensive variety, can lead to instant buyers’ remorse.
I’m pleased to announce that my quest for the perfect NYC dining experience is over as Craft has answered my call. Though I’ve been before, and always enjoyed myself, the experience I had last night was nothing short of magical.
I’d be remiss if I didn’t first highlight and praise the service. From the moment I called to make a reservation I was floored not only with the caliber and high standards of the service, but with its personalized human aspect. I mentioned that my wife and I were celebrating our anniversary (and, calling day of, I’d completely neglected to make a reservation), not only were they accommodating but were overtly welcoming and unlike other similarly priced establishments, I didn’t feel that I was doing them a favor by patronizing them, but rather, as it should be, the other way around.
Upon arrival, my wet coat, umbrella, and bag were swiftly removed, I was bid happy anniversary and was seated even though I’d arrived almost 20 minutes early and my wife was still en route. I was perfectly happy and prepared to wait at the bar, but they insisted.
The table reserved for us couldn’t have been better. A corner booth, with cushions and adjacent banquet seating, far removed from other diners: it was like a commercial for what a romantic evening should look like.
Our team of servers were attentive, alert, kind, always available and never intrusive, which is, in itself, an art form.
Our menus were personalized with our names and an anniversary wish – after the meal was over, they presented us with a rolled and sealed copy as a memento.
Each dish was better than the last and coursed out in a gentle pace that was much appreciated.
The food was incredible – outstanding even but what really floored me was the service. When dining out, one pays for an experience above all else and though our bill was pricey, the experience was worth every penny.
If you want a night out where you are pampered like a sultan and fed like a king, then please visit Craft. If you don’t want these things, then by all means continue to spin the restaurant roulette wheel where you’ll be most likely to overpay for mediocrity. Anyone in the market for an NYC dining experience that does not consider Craft, is at the least a bit silly and at the most certifiably insane.
I can safely say that last night was one of the best dining experiences I’ve had in my life and rather than feeling guilty about the money we spent, I am instead searching for an excuse to go back. Soon.

Ah, my 1,500^th Unilocal review, and it happens to be Craft. Craft Bar was my first date with my fiancé years ago, so Craft holds a special place in my heart. (It’s a smart move guys. Be sure of the girl first before you spend your hard earned money at the real Craft ridiculously high prices. I’m okay with it taking 5 years for me to get here. Seriously.)
So it deserves this special number review, along with their gnocchi.
Their small plate of gnocchi has made my top 10 dishes of NYC list. Now that’s a very hard list to make, as after 1,500 reviews I had trouble really coming up with 10 must-​have-​before-​you-​die dishes in this city.
So why only 3 stars? My dish.
My bad luck of always ordering the worst dish at the table strikes again. I even asked the waiter for his opinion and he steered me towards the monkfish.
I’ve never had monkfish, nor will I ever again. This $ 36 dish was barely edible. If I weren’t trying to be less critical/​picky, I would have returned it. Like at Betony with the tile fish.
Lesson learned the expensive way: stop ordering strange sounding fish.
My acting that I enjoyed my dish clearly wasn’t working, as my fiancé tried it, and by the look on his face I knew I could stop my performance, as he thought the dish tasted as strange/​weird/​not fresh as well.
So I kept picking at his short ribs, which were overly expensive for such a small portion. But they were very tender and good, not the best we have had, but good. The sauce was rich with flavor delicious. He put the sauce on my fish to try to help, to no avail.
So many reviews talk about huge portions. I know I’m a big eater, but really these portions were small! (a blessing though with that monkfish).
Hens of woods mushrooms — had these before and they were incredible somewhere else. This side dish was just average in flavor with too much oil.
Nice décor, good bread and service (they even did something very special for my birthday and gave it to me to bring home to save, I won’t mention it so you birthday people can be surprised too!).
Chocolate dessert was average.
The other best part besides the gnocchi side was the take home apple cider muffin. The best apple cider muffin on the planet.
I woke up sick the next day. Was it the not-​fresh monkfish? Perhaps. I thought of telling Craft they really need to re-​think that dish. But instead I let it go. Forever remembering that side dish of gnocchi, the birthday surprise the waiter gave me, and that apple cider muffin.
If you learned anything from my 1,500^th review, please don’t order the monkfish. Perhaps if nobody ever orders it, it will swim away!

This rating is honestly mostly about ambience and service. Don’t get me wrong, the food was great, but for the price and city, it had damn well better be.
The food we got was well done and perfectly executed, from the perfectly soft yet crisp beet salad to the sautéed shitakes, to the medium rare American wagyu (which actually did come to the table a hair on the cooler side, half way through and it seemed luke warm). But it lacked creativity and sophistication outside of the corn Brule dessert, which was amazing with a roasted peach and berries on top.
But for the lack of unique pop in the food, the ambience and service were exquisite. A beautiful blend of modern, but warm and cozy, the place just oozes sophistication and charm. From the steam punk looking 2 story wine rack in the middle, to the natural look ceiling light eminating an identical warm glow as the candles on the table, and both shimmering reflections at you off of the brushed copper accent wall, to the sturdy hand crafted wooden tables, it just feels good to be in there.
Top it off with the helpful and attentive staff and it was a thoroughly enjoyable evening.

Food: Great
Service: Excellent
Ambience: Good
Came here for a work related happy hour and dinner and they lived up to the hype.
I honestly do not have nothing bad to say about the place other than I can not say what distinguishes them from the numerous great eateries in the area.
The food really great and the service matched the outstanding food.
I will be back for sure

If the roasted fois gras is not heaven I dont know what is …