The Dating Renaissance: Date Night: Mr. K's - Midtown East, Manhattan, NY

Her Take: Ahh, Summer Restaurant Week. Another week to indulge in $38 per person goodness. This time we went to Mr. K's on Lexington Ave and 51st street. We had looked up a bunch of places to go and Mr. K's menu and ambiance really got us. Ergo, reservation for 2 at 6:30 p.m. on Thursday the 31st of July. Nicky and I agreed to meet straight after work and we did just that, we came out of the subway station at the same time it was perfect! We must have been on the same train and just not seen each other. It was 5 to 6, we were early, so we walked around the block and then decided to go in. In we went through the revolving door and into a beautiful, luxurious, grand restaurant! It was a vision of Pink art-deco elegance. The hostess was very nice and showed us to our table set with gold cutlery, wine glasses with "Mr. K's" etched on them, chopsticks placed neatly on a gold stand and a velvet armchair each! I felt like royalty; so elegant! Speaking of our seats, the waiter pulls them out for you and then pushes you in. And soon after, our waiter came back with an orchid corsage for me! :) :) The lighting was dim and the ceilings very high; it offered a very romantic feel.
We took a look at their Restaurant Week menu and we instantly knew what to order. We each got a Grey Goose and sprite; our drinks came with "Mr. K's" stirrers. Nicky ordered the Chicken Corn soup and I the Hot & Sour Soup, for entree Nicky got the Empress Beef and I the Basil Ginger Chicken and for dessert Nicky got the Vanilla Ice Cream and I the fruit medley with sorbet on top!
Before they bring out your food, they give you a hot towel to clean your hands with and they place it on a gold rectangular dish!
Let me tell you that the way they present everything to you is just exquisite, with so much detail and care. Our soups came out and they were beautifully presented, you have to see for yourself (see photos) They came in a gold stand with the soup in the middle covered and a tea-light candle under it to keep it warm. So NICE! And not only was presentation excellent, the food was too! My soup was deliciously smooth with just the right amount of "hot" and Nicky's was the prefect combination of chicken and corn. In between courses, they bring you a perfectly sized taste of Lemon Sorbet to cleanse your palate. This was the best lemon ice I have ever had, it was so creamy and it tasted like lemonade. Our entrees came along with our sides of Lo Mein and Fried Rice. My Basil Ginger chicken was excellent, and the ginger glaze was amazing, very basil-y but I really enjoyed it, the taste was so yummy. Nicky's Empress beef was so tender and nicely cooked, the sauce was flavorful and yum!! Both of our portions were a very nice size! Finally, our desserts, mmm my fruit medley was so fresh and refreshing after that meal, and sorbet on top (i couldn't tell if it was mango or pineapple) was SO DELICIOUS and was the perfect topping to the grape, pineapple and melon medley. With our check they brought over two chocolates in a (you guessed it) gold dish! :)
Our dinner was impeccable and the service was incredible. You can really tell that Mr. K's is an upscale, top notch restaurant. The atmosphere, amazing food, friendly staff and great service make Mr. K's a world of it's own. I HIGHLY recommend Mr. K's to all of you! Just be aware that it is a bit pricey, but remember, you get what you pay for!

His Take: Restaurant Week, back in action! If you missed our last post on Restaurant Week, I will give you a little recap, but you should really go read it because Bann was one of my favorite places! Anywho, this time Summer Restaurant Week is where something like 300 restaurants participate in a special for $25 lunches per person or $38 dinners per person. Naturally Ariana and I do the dinners! The dinners consist of an appetizer each, an entrée each, and a dessert each, all selected off a smaller menu that the restaurant provides, drinks not included. Side note, do not know why they call it Restaurant Week, considering it lasts three weeks, but hey all the better for us!

OK, on to Mr. K’s, the restaurant of choice. Ariana and I did our research again on the Restaurant Week website trying to find the best place to go, look at a bunch of menus and places and settled on Mr. K, and let me tell you right from the jump, I am glad we did. We looked up photos of Mr. K’s and the place looked beautiful and elegant. Ariana and I made a reservation on Open Table for 6:30, and naturally we arrived early. We walked in and were seated at a beautifully set up table for two. First thing that caught my eye were the chairs. They were this big, I guess, arm chairs that were so soft and cushioned. Really comfortable to sit in and enjoy this dinner to come. Next thing I, well we, really liked was the table set up. The table was dimly lit, with a light centered on the middle of the table, from UNDER the table. Cool ambiance, but it gets better, in front of us was a Mr. K’s engraved stone that was there as a place setting and our chop sticks and spoons were being help on a little golden server for us. A + on the presentation, the place is perfectly set up to take a date. Please excuse the not so clear pictures, we did not want to be super obnoxious and have the flash go off every 5 seconds, but were working on taking better photos for you guys!

Now the food! The best part and probably the only reason you are reading this blog. For appetizers, I started with a Chicken and Corn soup, which is exactly what it sounds like. The soup was excellent, and again right up to Mr. K’s standards of presentation, it came in a little gold goblet with a candle underneath, and the lovely waiter took the top off my soup for me. Thanks guys! The soup was so tasty and the broth was excellent! Ariana got a hot and sour soup, and her reaction seemed to be the same as mine, DELICIOUS! Next up I ordered the Empress Beef, which is a cool name for beef and broccoli. Not your run of the mill beef and broccoli, this was easily the best beef and broccoli I had ever had. The beef was so tender and sliced perfectly. Mmmm mmmm mmm, very very good, plus it came with a side of fried rice in another one of those golden goblets. It’s like a little golden ball with the gift of food! Ariana ordered the basil ginger chicken, which I tasted and was also very good. For dessert I got a scoop of vanilla ice cream, can’t really mess that up and Ariana got a fruit cup, which she loved. We ordered a cocktail each with dinner, sat, ate, and drank.

Mr. K’s, the place looks great and tasted equally as great. I am glad we settled on this place, especially during restaurant week, as their normal menu seemed a bit pricey! Although for the delicious food I would not mind paying anyway. The staff here were all very nice and Mr. K’s gets a great review all across the board. Hopefully one day I will return to Mr. K’s for some delicious Chinese food, because their menu was like a book, there was plenty to order and try! If you like Chinese food, and want more of an upscale delicious place, Mr. K’s is the place for you!