By Seth Fera-Schanes

New York City can offer its residents and tourists just about every type of cuisine found throughout the world.  This is very much a restaurant city and well suited for all dining situations from a business lunch to a casual first date and of course special occasions.

I would place Colicchio and Sons under the special category.  Located at 85 10th Avenue (between 15th and 16th streets) it is within the Meatpacking district, across the street from Chelsea Market and on the same block as Del Posto (Chef Mario Batali) and Morimoto (Chef Masaharu Morimoto.) Overhead is the Highline and 100 feet away is the Hudson River.  Basically, this is a cool area to be with a lot of great options for activities to do before or after dinner.

If you were to break Colicchio and Sons down into three categories: food, service and atmosphere, they would rank high on all three.  As good as the food was, a real stand out was the service.  The team effort, pacing of the meal (you never felt rushed) and knowledge of the menu was very impressive.  I am big on customer service and this was some of the best around.  A lot of the menu was seasonal and used ingredients from the region.  One of my favorite items from the night was a butter poached Long Island Blue Point Oyster with ramp foam and breadcrumbs.

The next time you are in the city and would like to try a high end restaurant (high end means you will be paying a premium) I would definitely recommend this one.

Butter Poached Long Island Oyster with Ramp Foam and Breadcrumb