Sparks Steak House
“I don't generally like filet mignon (I am much more of a ribeye gal) but I had to try the filet here since they are known for it.”
“I had a much better time here and a better steak than Peter Luger's.
I will definitely be back!”
“For those mafia freaks out there, Sparks was also the site where Paul Castellano was gunned down in the 80's.
See!”
Sparks Steak House
Takes Reservations: Yes
Accepts Credit Cards: Yes
Bike Parking: Yes
Wheelchair Accessible: Yes
Good for Groups: Yes
Has TV: Yes
Waiter Service: Yes
PokéStop Nearby: Yes
Price range.
$$$$ Price range Above $61
8 reviews
Rate and write a review Cancel reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.
This is one of those landmark famous Steakhouse in New York City that has been around since 1966. A great place to have a business get together for a celebration, meeting or just because you can. The old style steakhouse décor has not change much from its inception, but an update might change its historical appeal. The steaks are always huge and excellent and they do have a good selection of fish on the menu as well. Their service team is very experienced and attentive. Most importantly, they have an excellent wine list for wine lovers like myself.
Sparks has been around forever and is a NYC institution. I've dined here on a few occasions. This review is based on my most recent visit.
The restaurant is huge and has several large private rooms available. Upon walking in you're transported back to the old days (long before I even existed). The staff wears tuxedos. The walls are adorned with their many accolades and awards that they've accumulated throughout their existence. They also have an expansive cigar selection by the bar. This is great, as I love a cigar after a large meal.
I was greeted by the host as soon as I checked in and my reservation was honored.
Once seated at the table a team of waiters swarmed us with bread, water and menus. The menu is still the same as when they first opened ages ago.
Once the waiter came, he went over the menu as well as the specials and he recommended some wines. We ordered a couple glasses of wine.
When it came time to order the waiter tried to control the selections. What I mean by this, is that when we placed our order the waiter was like "You don't want that. You should get this instead." This is the biggest thing that grinds my gears while eating out. When the waiter realized that he wasnt going to get anywhere he backed off. We ordered the buffalo mozzarella to start with. For entrees we went with the prime sirloin (which is what they're known for), along with the sliced steak with peppers and mushrooms. For sides we went with broccoli and mushroom caps.
The staff was great with checking back in and making sure that we didn't need anything.
The appetizer came out quickly. The buffalo mozzarella was awesome as was the tomato. Both exceptionally fresh. The balsamic vinegar was of a great quality. It's all about the details after all right? We thoroughly enjoyed this dish.
Do you want to know how old school Sparks is? It's so old school that they roll your food out to your table on carts!
The sirloin was cut super thick and it was served at a perfect temperature of medium rare. It was also well seasoned. I'm not a sirloin guy, but decided to get this since this is what they're most famous for. To be honest it was just alright. In hindsight, I should've ordered the veal chop or filet. The steak was so huge that I couldn't even finish it, which is rare for me.
The sliced steak with the peppers and mushrooms was much better. The feedback that I received was that the peppers were sauteed nicely as we're the mushrooms. This dish was enjoyed.
I'm not a mushroom guy, so I didn't indulge, but I heard that the mushroom caps were delicious.
The broccoli was well broccoli. You can't screw that up lol!
We were stuffed at the conclusion of the meal, so we forewent dessert.
All in all I think that you have to come here to experience this institution and to see what the old days were like. In my opinion I think that there are better options for steak in the city, such as Del Frisco's and The Palm. With that being said, due to its long standing history Sparks warrants a visit a least once. Insert mic drop here!
I went here for lunch. We were seated quickly and everyone was very polite. I don't drink but i noticed the massive wine selection. My friend had the lamb chops which I tried and they were great. I had the steak with mushrooms. The steak could have been a bit bigger but was delicious and prepared very well. It was among the best I have had in nyc. It is worth going here and I will probably go again. The environment was a bit stuffy but that can be expected and the artwork on the walls was great. They also have seafood such as shrimp. I recommend going here at least once . Food came out quickly and we were even offered complimentary coffee. The price was as expected for a top steakhouse in nyc
When my husband and I planned our trip to NYC, we agreed that one of our stops had to be the famous Sparks Steak House.
When we arrived, we were greeted immediately by the maitre'd. After checking in our coats, we were seated right away. Within a few minutes, we were given warm rolls and water. Shortly after, our waiter arrived. He was very knowledgeable about the menu and was able to answer my question about one of the menu items.
For my meal, I had the Steak Fromage. It is a sirloin topped with roquefort cheese (which is a blue cheese). It was cooked just the way I like it (rare) and was absolutely delicious.
Keep in mind, the menu is a la carte. But, they have good appetizers and sides that are worth ordering to go with your steak. I highly recommend the mushroom caps. They were nice and warm, with melted butter covering them. Mmm!
For the wine connoisseur: Sparks has what is probably the biggest wine list you've ever seen. It is 3 (large) pages long! You can also order a cocktail from the bar if wine isn't your thing.
We definitely plan to return to New York in the future, and will eat here again, for sure.
So, I survived my first visit to the famous Sparks Steakhouse. Famous for their steaks and their mob shootings (although they would say technically the shooting was outside of the restaurant near the street/curb). For those who don't know what I'm talking about – Google it "Mob boss assassination in 1985 at Sparks Steakhouse". Besides the occasional look over my shoulder to check my back for an approaching Joe Pesci, I was enjoying the massive filet mignon, various side items and the red wine (which was really good – I think it was a Krugers Cabernet). I will return!
If you find yourself in New York and are looking for a good steak, look no further. My wife and I stopped here for several reasons. First we wanted to eat at a well known steakhouse in New York. Also, we are true crime buffs. This was the location of a mob hit in 1985. But back to the food…. I would suggest making reservations either by phone or online.
We arrived and immediately were greeted by the maitre'd. He directed us to the coat check to deposit our coats.
Once seated at our table it wasn't long before we were served waters. We were then asked if we were ready to order drinks shortly after.
Our waiter was a nice gentleman from Texas. He asked if we had any questions about the menu. We were ready to order, as the menu is very well put together. If you are a wine connoisseur, their wine list is very extensive.
There was a short wait once we ordered. But they did a great job of asking if we wanted additional warm rolls.
When the steaks arrived, I was impressed by the size of them. For $54 you get an impressive filet mignon. The steaks were beautifully prepared, and awesomely tender.
This place reminds of old fashioned historical dining. I mean it must have been super popular in the 80s based on the decor and design. This place is meant for what crowds it draws here, midtown finance guys, loud obnoxious crowds of after work dinners, groups of people trying to sell other groups of people stuff. I was in the last category when I came here. It was really hard to hear the selling of the goods with a table of loud obnoxious sitting right next to us.
Overall the food is just ok. There are some things that are moderately good. I didn't eat anything that made me want to overindulge in the goodness of taste. Things were too bland.
If you are looking for green things here forget about it. They brought out a salad mostly composed of shredded iceberg. That alone was sad. The tomatoes are in large supply here however so if you like the fruit you could eat tons of it. The portions are large and in charge. My filet lasted me 3 days. Not as good after day 3 but it was still there in a large enough hunk that I felt I had to eat it!
We had a selection of items for appetizing including this tomato salad, mozzarella and tomatoes, breaded fried clams, and large shrimp. The best out of these was the mozzarella but it was on a scale of gross to omg amazing it was right smack in the middle.
The filet mignon like I mentioned above was a beast of a filet. I couldn't eat more than a 3rd of it by the time it got to me.
I enjoyed the home fries the most out of anything I ate in this restaurant.
In short: Big steak, home fries.
So I admit that I absolutely picked this restaurant because of the fact that Paul Castellano was murdered outside of it. It also got mainly good reviews and came highly recommended by a family member.
First impressions: the atmosphere was way stuffier than I had imagined. I felt like I had to whisper the whole time and suspected they judged me pretty hard when I asked if they had a cocktail list (they do not. just a VERY extensive wine list.) I liked the old world decor and the classy service – waiters in tuxes, etc. I'm not the type of person who usually cares enough to even comment on service, unless it's especially horrific or unusually fantastic. Definitely the latter here; everyone was extremely polite and gracious.
The food was fifty fifty. I ordered the lobster tails and broiled shrimp, which were delicious, but my boyfriend's steak was essentially an inedible lump of charcoal. I ended up paying for his meal because I felt so bad for him after being the one who picked this restaurant. I'd like to give them the benefit of the doubt and assume this was an off day for them, because… they're a steakhouse. That can't possibly be how they serve their incredibly expensive steak to everyone.
They charged $2 at the end for checking our coats, which I thought was weird. Overall, just an alright experience for the $200+ we dropped there.