East of Eighth

You get off the A C or E train and it's Eighth Avenue and 23rd Street. "Why am I standing at this horrible intersection?" Because just a few doors east on the south side of 23rd Street you enter an inviting garden, a handsomely crafted wood bar, and you say "Respite!" But that's far from all there is. In summer there is a very large garden restaurant. In winter -- any season really -- there are two of the most beautiful rooms in Manhattan. They're in metallic colors, copper, brush aluminum, bronze. Corner uplights, sconce lighting and tea lights. Banquet seating. Minimalist design. Thirty foot ceilings. Very tall floral arrangements and an old-fahioned bar, possibly a relic, that must span fifty feet in length. The best made drinks in town and they have everything. Oh, yes, the food. Wonderful New American cuisine and mixed up Mexican/Tahitian food. Famous sweet potato spread comes with warm, very fresh bread. NO MUSIC. Ever so quiet. Staff in crisp black and white, and everyone knows what they're doing. You'd expect to pay a fortune for this woudn't you? It's EAST OF EIGHTH! Hah! It's crummy out there; they wouldn't dare overcharge you. Actually, the menu is moderate. If you want the best (huge) sirloin burger with lovely potatoes it's ten bucks. Dirty Martinis are very calming -- if you don't eat the giant olives. This is the living room I will never have in my entire life. I love this place.

Went with a friend to East of 8th tempted by the good reviews here and the early bird special, which at $17 for 3 courses seemed like a good deal. We got a nice bread basket with 4 kinds of breads and 2 spreads. We shared the crab cake -- a falafel sized ball which was crisp on the outside but mushy inside -- and the duck liver pate which was kind of chewy. One of my pork chops was tender, the other somewhat dry, accompanied by a nice-enough cinnamon-laced tomato sauce, nicely firm vegetables, and an ok slice of cornbread "pudding" -- more like a cake. We both had the flourless chocolate cake which turned out to be a thin layer of cake rolled around a way too sweet (barely coffee) cream. The overall effect was a diner which was attempting to go upscale. The $17 was an ok deal but I would definitely not pay the upper teen dinner prices for the main courses; there are plenty of much better places in this price range.

Went with a party of 12, they accommodated us with out any problems (considering we were late). The server was excellent but a little on the quite side. All of our meals were excellent and very well priced. I look forward to my next meal at this restaurant!

This place is a great place any time. Always good food. Always good service. If you get a chance, you should see Topher who sometimes hosts...Markadam and Gloria are great too.

I brought friends in from out of town, they were super impressed with this neighborhood restaurant. Truly delicious and interesting menu. Definitely not the same old, same old. The price...cannot be beat. I would recommend it for sure.

This restaurant had a GREAT prix fixed menu for dinner including a Appettizer an entree and a desert for $17. The food was great, fresh homemade salads, great crab cakes, unique presentation and an amazing taste. Unfortunately the service is a little slow and took us about 20 minutes to get the waittress and another 20 just for the check, if your looking for great food at reasonable prices this place is the place to go.. They have a GORGEOUS back area that is outside to sit in with a little garden and fountain.... nice on a summers evening..

Food is consistently good, but there seems to be a disconnect with their take out service- have received attitude on the phone from different order takers in the past. Making for a rather unpleasant experience-we would order from them more frequently but for this experience.