Edward N.
Yelp
I always walk by this restaurant, but never had the chance to try it. My wife and I were treating a friend out to dinner for her birthday and found Central Park Bistro had last-minute reservations. We were seated in a very comfortable booth in the back of the restaurant. Our friend was late, so we ordered some cocktails, and appetizers to snack on while we wait. The waiter actually let us put in our entire order before our friend arrived, and he would send the check into the kitchen when we were done with appetizers.
The service here is impeccable. Our waiter entertained us while we waited for our friend, and checked on us often. I always like to order extra entrees and appetizers so that we can sample more food. After I ordered 3 appetizers, 3 appetizers, a pizza, and 4 entrees, our waiter stopped me and said "too much." Hahaha. A waiter has never stopped me and told me I'm ordering too much food before. I took his suggestion and canceled the pizza for now, and we can come back and order it after our entrees if we're still hungry. Ultimately we did order the pizza too, and it was delicious.
The octopus salad featured a lot of tender warm octopus. You should eat this while it's still warm for the best flavor. It's complimented well with all the fresh herbs and veggies. The beef tartare was another good appetizer; it was well seasoned with nice acidity. The order of crab cakes comes two per order, but the waiter had them cut in half for us so we don't have to fight over it. All the proteins were excellent; cooked to a perfect medium rare as requested, and super tender. The halibut was moist and flakey. Nothing disappointed.
The food quality for the dishes we ordered was really good. Everything was well seasoned, with good textures, and flavors. With the level of service and food that we had, I'm surprised that this was not fine dining. I'm going to add this restaurant to my regular rotation!