Lunch at Rockefeller Center

Looking for a great place to have lunch in New York City? Why not try the Rock Center Café at Rockefeller Center? Located on the North side of Rockefeller Center’s skating rink, in the summer this stylish, casual dining establishment offers outdoor tables as well. You get a great view of the famous fountain, and the food is fantastic.

My family and I visited the Café on a hot sunny day a couple weeks ago during our vacation in July, and were really impressed by the quality of the food and service – as well as the iconic location. They have an extensive lunch menu that showcases the creativity of their chefs, and although the main courses will set you back at least $25, they are worth every penny.

I was incredibly impressed by their Shrimp Chop Salad, which was chock full of fresh, delicious shrimp. It also featured some great fusion flavours with apples, pineapple, red peppers, scallions and cashews enhanced by a spicy Sesame dressing – and some super delicious wonton. 

My husband thoroughly enjoyed his Chilled Maine Lobster served on a bed of Roast Corn Salad with Mimosa Vinaigrette. The quality of the seafood at the Rock Café is really exceptional. 

Our son had the Open Faced Sliced Steak Sandwich, the Chef’s Special on Thursdays. Served with sweet onions in a delicate horseradish sauce on a crispy baguette, it was accompanied by some seriously amazing homemade truffled rosemary fries. There was a yummy Béarnaise Aïoli for dipping – luckily my son is good at sharing! 

I would say that the steak on this sandwich is served very rare indeed, and I don’t think my son would have minded it being cooked slightly more to medium – but it didn’t seem to hamper his enjoyment of the dish that much, and I’m sure if you asked they would cook it more thoroughly for you.

As we rarely drink alcohol mid-day we just had Diet Coke to drink, but had my husband and I fancied a glass of wine there was an extensive wine list as well as a great selection of cocktails on offer.

The atmosphere is great, as the umbrella’d tables allow you to feel a sense of privacy yet still very much a part of things in this buzzing New York venue. If the weather isn’t as good for you as it was for us or if you visit later in the year, there are plenty of tables inside as well. There was a pretty good mix of locals and tourists alike dining the day we were there, which is usually a good recommendation as well. We would definitely go back as I felt the food was outstanding, and what better place to be on a sunny afternoon in New York City than right at the heart of things on 5th Avenue at the iconic Rockefeller Centre?

The Rock Centre Café offers breakfast, lunch and dinner seven days a week, and brunch on Saturday and Sunday.  The 21st Century Housewife has not been paid for this post, and we paid for our own lunch – I just like to share great places to eat!

The Best Waldorf Salad in New York City

Admittedly I have not tried every Waldorf Salad in New York, so this title is just a tiny bit subjective. It should in fact read, The Best Waldorf Salad I Have Tasted So Far in New York City. But this sounds pretty cumbersome, and considering I have visited New York several times, and eaten a great deal of Waldorf Salad in a number of places, I think I am qualified to bestow my own little award. The funny thing is, my favourite Waldorf Salad hails from a rather unusual place.

As many people already know, the Waldorf Salad was invented by Oscar Tschirky, the maitre d'hotel at the Waldorf Hotel (the first incarnation of the iconic Waldorf Astoria Hotel) sometime in the late 1800's. It originally consisted of celery, apples, grapes and sometimes even pineapple dressed with mayonnaise. Walnuts did not form a part of it until sometime later. Although we stay at The Waldorf Astoria quite regularly and I have tasted the wonderful Waldorf Salad at Oscar's restaurant, named in honour of this salad's inventor, many times, I don't think it is the best in New York City. I do love the candied walnuts they use in their version of this salad entirely too much and it is absolutely scrumptious, but on the whole, I cannot bestow it with the title of favourite.

In fact, I believe that the best Waldorf Salad you can get in New York City hails from a restaurant on the 5th floor of a department store that has been around even longer than the Waldorf Astoria - Lord and Taylor, at 5th Avenue and 39th Street.  Founded in 1826, it was the first major store on 5th Avenue. Sarabeth's Kitchen opened a branch of their restaurant there in 1998, and it is there that I believe you can find the very best Waldorf Salad in New York City. I am so convinced of this, I go back there every time we visit New York without fail for a taste of my favourite.

The apples in the Waldorf Salad at Sarabeth's in Lord and Taylor are just a garnish, and the salad is composed of much more lettuce - the light Bibb variety - than the original version was said to be. It also contains thinly sliced celery, and lots of grapes, alongside a healthy serving of walnuts and bite size pieces of tender chicken breast. Instead of traditional mayonnaise, the dressing is a creamy chive variety which gives the salad a lovely light flavour. It is ambrosial.

I've not yet tried to replicate Sarabeth's Waldorf Salad at home, but when I do I will definitely share the recipe. In the meantime, Sarabeth's are very generous about sharing many of their other delicious recipes on their website, so do click here to go and have a look.



The 21st Century Housewife has not been paid for this post.