U.S. Travel
New York City Restaurants
Tao ****

42 East 58th Street
(bet Park & Madison Aves)
212-888-2288

Cuisine: Asian/Fusion

Description & Atmosphere
Tao's is one of the most dramatic restaurants in Manhattan — it's also the largest and most popular Asian restaurant in New York City.

Over the years, Tao's has been frequented by such celebrities as Tom Cruise, Nicole Kidman, Robert DeNiro, Sir Anthony Hopkins, Ricky Martin...to name a few. Carrie and the girls from "Sex in the City" used to hang out drinking Cosmos together at Tao's fun lively bar. And speaking of Cosmos...the ones at Tao's are amazing — and big!

Once a balconied movie theater, today Tao's has the feel of a spacious Asian temple. It's focal point is a giant 16-ft. Buddha and a reflecting pool filled with Japanese carp (photo below).

The Buddha is visible from all three dining levels — Tao seats up to 300 people. The restaurant features an intimate Sushi Bar on the main level and a second bar upstairs. Decor throughout the restaurant features Chinese, Thai and Japanese influences.

Lighting is subdued and noise levels are quite high — the music is loud, though not obnoxious. We don't recommend you come here for intimate conversation.

Dining with groups of three or more may get you better seating options — seating for two downstairs faces the bar (photo below) and upstairs seating is against the far wall, so only one of you will get to look out onto the room. However, if it's "just the two of you", it's still well worth the dining experience.

Food
Food is sensational — a combo of Chinese and Japanese that is meant to be shared. To get the most bang for your buck, we suggest you order a combination of Small and Large Plates so that you can sample a wider selection of tastes.

Standouts include the Thai Stuffed Shrimp with Garlic, Lime and Thai Chili Sauce, the Lobster Wontons with Shiitake Ginger Broth, and the Bamboo-Steamed Chicken and Water Chestnut Dumplings — all incredible. Miso-Glazed Chilean Sea Bass with Wok Vegetables (photo above) is light and flavorful and the Tao Lo Mein with Roast Pork is a great accompaniment (photo right).

Signature dishes include Kobe Beef and the Grilled Kobe Ribeye — we haven't tried either of these yet...guess it's a good excuse to visit Tao's again on our next trip to NYC!

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