Rocco Steakhouse in NoMad, NYC — I Just Want To Eat! |Food blogger|NYC|NJ |Best Restaurants|Reviews|Recipes (2024)

Please note that the meal was complimentary. However, the opinions expressed in my blog are 100% my own!

It seems that the Financial health of the City is measured by the number of steakhouses. Well, I guess that it is true and, considering the number of steakhouses that opened in the few years, we would think we are beyond a recovery. The last one I discovered is Rocco Steakhouse, located North of Madison Square Park: a classic American steakhouse, opened 7 months ago, that is named after of one of the owners, Rocco Trotta, who, with Pete Pjetrovic and Jeff Kolenovic, succeeded in creating an inviting space with a menu, crafted by Executive Chef Johnny Jevric. It is definitely not your old school steakhouse, with heavy decor and low light: it was bright and I was glad that the noise level was acceptable, allowing us to have a nice conversation while indulging.

There are in fact three areas in Rocco Steakhouse: the bar, the main dining room and the back dining room that is also used for private parties, both rooms having a 130 persons capacity.

Menu wise, you will find some of the standard items of a steakhouse menu, but definitely, the attention is on the meat that is dry-aged for 30 days.

We started off our meal with some appetizers. Jodi went for the arugula, apple and pear salad, topped with shaved parmesan, a perfect choice for the health conscious, especially considering what my choices were...I went for the crab cake, as well as a slice of Canadian bacon!

The crab cake was good, although I though it was slightly salty. But the best part was definitely the bacon for me: it was a thick slice that was delightfully fatty, with some crispiness and smokiness, making this dish a guilty pleasure.

I ate the bacon with some house steak sauce that was pretty good, being a bit sweet. In fact, I tried the sauce with some of the bread that came at the beginning of the meal and really enjoyed it.

Then came our steaks. Jodi went for her usual cut: a filet mignon.

On my side, I went for my favorite: the ribeye. They have a tomahawk, that is a ribeye the size of my ribcage, but it would have been too much for a single person...

Both pieces of meat were perfectly cooked: medium for Jodi and medium rare for me. They had a nice char, were tender and juicy, with the ribeye being deliciously fatty.

For sides, we decided to try their lobster mac and cheese, that was fantastic: the waiter told us that they use 5 different kinds of cheese. Well, it was definitely the right balance cheese / macaroni and even Jodi, who does not like lobster, loved it.

The second side was their signature fries that are in fact homemade potato chips.

They were large, perfectly cooked all the way through, not greasy and crispy. In fact, I should use the same sentence for the onion rings. The only regret with these sides is that they did not come with a blue cheese sauce that would have been perfect with them.

I should mention that with my steak, I got a glass of pinot noir, a Meiomi 2014 from California.

Last was dessert that I tasted with a decaf espresso (yes, decaf: considering the amount of coffee I ingest a day, I'd better have a decaf in the evening...).

As Rocco Steakhouse is an Italian steakhouse, we decided to try their tiramisu that was very good, creamy, with the lady fingers perfectly soaked.

We also tried the pecan pie that had a nice buttery taste. However, I wonder if they did not pop it in the microwave few seconds because the pecans were a bit soft. Besides that, it was perfect.

Both desserts were served with a nice schlag that is whipped cream, perfect to counteract anything too sweet (no need in this case).