Nestled in the heart of Manhattan West, Ci Siamo, which opened in October 2012, is only a few months old. Serving up Italian-inspired dishes, Ci Siamo offers a slightly upscale, but welcoming feel to its patrons. Reservations are often hard to come by and we ended up eating at 5pm just because it was the only time slot I could snag!

When we arrived for our early bird reservation, we were seated immediately and offered the drink and food menu. So many of their cocktails sounded so good, we had such a hard time picking. After some deliberation, we opted to split two of their appetizers between the four of us: the Cast Iron Focaccia with tomato conserva and Caramelized Onion Torta with balsamic and pecorino toscana.

The Onion Torta was sweet, savory, and super rich. I would 100% recommend this dish, but make sure you split it! The Focaccia was good, but I usually prefer my focaccia with my goodies folded in, so this one felt a little on the bland side.

For our main, X and I opted to split their special of the day, a 41-Day Dry-Aged Ribeye with celery salt and rosemary infused olive oil. This ribeye was juicy, tender, and had the most amazing deep crust. It was a bit pricey, topping at $170, but it was a delicious piece of beef.

For dessert, I decided to be a little piggy and order my own. Our waiter had recommended their Lemon Torta with olive oil and merengue, which sounded absolutely perfect after a giant savory steak. The Lemon Torta was perfect. It was light, refreshing, and just the right amount of tart. I can certainly see why this is their most popular dessert.

X opted for the Chocolate Budino with espresso zabaglione, which was super smooth and just the right amount of bitter from the espresso.

We had an absolutely fantastic dinner at Ci Siamo. We were seated at 5pm and did not leave until well after 7:45pm. The entire time, we never felt rushed and our waiter was personable and super helpful whenever we asked for his recommendation. If you’re looking for a spot to have a birthday dinner or a special celebration, I would definitely recommend Ci Siamo!