My New York: Midtown, Red Eye Grill on Valentine’s Day

NYC is associated with romantic movies. The backdrop of the night-lights and intimate restaurants are enough to set sparks flying no matter what you do. When it comes to Valentine’s Day, the case is even more so. Pat and I set off to explore one of our favorite steakhouses famous in New York for its Banana Cream Pie, Red Eye Grill. 

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For this special day, Pat and I decided to treat ourselves to an abundance of good food at one of his favorite steakhouses—Red Eye Grill. Pat and his family have been coming to Red Eye Grill located at the corner of 57^th and 7^th Avenue every year, making it a staple steakhouse for us. 8PM reservation made and we were off to celebrate a day of love with what Pat and I love to do best—EAT.

Enter and you will find a small niche with love-seats to your right were people can enjoy the music coming from the piano bar. Live music is sung and played all night long. The woman was singing classics such as Alicia Keys and Jason Mraz, perfect music for a modern yet romantic setting. If you know me, I am a sucker for live music. Especially when it’s piano or jazz. The singers voice was so incredible people proceeded to sit by the bar and listen to her sing after dinner. The bar is packed with people grabbing drinks and chit chatting before being seated. If your table isn’t ready and they have you wait for more than 5 minutes, they proceed to serve you complimentary champagne to start your evening.

Our seats were ready within minutes of us arriving, so we did not get to enjoy the complimentary champagne this year. The year prior we were placed in the front of the restaurant on a roundtable facing the windows. It was a very quiet and intimate seating area, but closer to the music, which made it a little bit louder. This year, they seated us in the back of the restaurant, so the music was less loud.

Pat and I decided to dress fancy for the occasion. I wore a long sleeve gold dress with my favorite purse, my leather flap tassel bag. I used to wear a lot of handbags, but with all the stuff I used to stuff into it, I felt like I was becoming lopsided from all the weight! That’s when I decided to switch to comfortable and trendy backpacks. The smaller the size, the cuter and trendier it looks. It’s similar to the my pink frosted backpack from my Treat Yourself To A Sweet Moment In NYC outing. Bagail has a ton of cute and affordable iterations of this PU backpack for girls available. If you are interested in purchasing this backpack or a similar one, you cant get it on Bagail.com at 10% off with SVADORE’s special coupon code: BAGAIL90.

Pat orders a bottle of 2015 Dreaming Tree Pinot Noir, light-to-medium, complex and with a smooth finish. In my opinion, wines are subjective. There is no such thing as a good or bad wine and it really does depend on people’s tastes. Unlike many Pinot Noir’s this one is on the lighter side, which is probably why it appealed to my tastes. Believe it or not, this wine is actually from Dave Matthews’ very own California Vineyard! And yes, I am talking about Dave Matthews the singer.

After making a brief toast to Valentine’s Day and a wonderful dinner out together, we called the waiter order. It was approaching 8:15PM and we were starving! They have a Prix-Fixe menu, which really gives you a bang for your buck. $49.50, and you get a starter, a main, and dessert. That is quite a bargain seeing as a Filet Mignon alone is $48. But when you order the prix fixe, you get that and much more! I went with the prix fixe while Pat ordered individually.

For starters we ordered the Calamari. It had a Red Eye Grill spin to it and was served with slices of lime and a spicy yuzu aioli dip rather than the typical marinara sauce. For those who do not know, yuzu aioli is pretty spicy and has a wasabi like kick to it. So I stuck with my lime, while Pat enjoyed the dip. Not too crunchy and not too fried, the calamari was the perfect palate opener before our main meal. They could have been a bit more crunchy, but maybe it’s healthier this way..? The appetizer was brought out accompanied by 3 slices of their rosemary focaccia (a common Italian dish back in my hometown).

When at Red Eye Grill, you have to order the steak. For my main meal, I had the Filet Mignon cooked medium since Pat and I don’t make Filet Mignon at home as often as we might a Rib Eye or New York Strip. The portion was perfect, about the size of my hand, juicy, tender, and perfectly cooked and just oh so heavenly! It came with a side of fries with what seemed like a dab of truffle oil to me. Just delicious!

Pat had the Three-Bone Short Rib Steak Barolo braised over a bed of mashed potatoes. His meat was even tenderer then mine. It slid off the bones with such ease and melted in your mouth upon contact. What makes the short rib so special is that it’s braised in a great Italian red such as Barolo or Merlot. The result is a full-flavored meat that shreds easily. We ordered a side of sautéed spinach as well to add some healthy greens to our hearty meal.

After eating as much as we could but still leaving approx. 4% of space in our stomach, we went for our favorite part of dinner…dessert! Every time we are at Red Eye Grill, Pat orders their famous Banana Cream Pie (and I’m not kidding when I say it’s famous, it’s considered one of New York’s best BCP’s). I have to say, it is to die for. I have been on a banana kick in the last month or so as well, so his choice of Banana Cream Pie is spot on. I on the other hand ordered the highly recommended Tiramisu. I ordered it skeptically. Being Italian I have an idea of what real Tiramisu tastes like and wasn’t sure what to expect, maybe an Americanized version? I was completely wrong. You could taste the espresso coffee poured into the dessert and sinking into the drenched savoiardi or ladyfingers as it blended seamlessly with the creamy texture of the Tiramisu. Buonissimo! Pat’s Banana Cream Pie was stellar as per usual and enough to feed 2 of us. Chunks of cold, but not too cold, banana smothered by light custard like crème patisserie topped with homemade whipped cream and shredded chocolate bits. The bottom is a thin layer of graham cracker crunchy and sturdy enough to hold the weight of the pie. If there is one thing you have to order when at Red Eye Grill, it is the Banana Cream Pie. Now if only they could invent a Banana Pudding Tiramisu….? I would totally eat that.

If you are looking for a fancy and romantic night out with good food, live music, good wine and amazing desserts you have come to the right place. Red Eye Grill offers all of that and more in the heart of Midtown Manhattan just steps away from Broadway, Radio City Hall and Lincoln Center. It is perfect for a post-theatre drink or pre-theater dinner, whatever the case or celebration, it is not to be missed when in New York!

Disclosure: This is a sponsored post for Bagail. All opinions remain my own and I was in no way influenced by the company.

• Red Eye Grill 890 7th Ave, New York, NY 10106; (212) 541-9000

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