Two weeks ago, I took five of my closest friends to Ricarda’s for a comped dining experience and let me tell you, we had quite the sensational evening. I don’t know if you could tell from my outfit but I was going with a very Tony Montana style look and it seemed to match the interior very well. The restaurant’s decor has this 1940’s NYC vibe to it with black and white tiles; it was chic but not too boujee.

Our beautiful server started us off with some classic cocktails where I had ordered the Ricarda’s Manhattan since I legit thought I was a character from Goodfellas. The drink was perfect; not too sweet, not too sour. Other drinks devoured by my ruthless friends included Skinos Old Fashion and the ladies all-time fave, the Amaretto Sour.

While our bodies absorbed our heavily (good heavy) alcoholic drinks, we drooled over the food choices and almost had a fight amongst us deciding what we should order. In efforts to contain the situation, I put all the responsibility on our server and allowed her to pick what we wanted and boy, we made the right decision. 10 seconds into her pitch, we were all sold.

The first dish came out, 20 seconds later next dish, and next thing you know, we have five dishes on the table. However, key pictures needed to be taken prior to feasting (courtesy to my bestie, Christina Shmidt)! Once the picture taking process was over, the food was devoured within minutes. My favorites at this first stage of eating would probably go to the Veal Carpaccio and the Candied Walnut Salad. They were both light and rich in a not-too-rich way.

What happened next you won’t believe. They brought out 5 extra dishes of “appetizers” which I was quite sure we didn’t order but my friends forced me to not say anything so we could eat it. And that my friend, we did. We ate it all. In specific, this is where they accidentally brought extra Salmon & Tuna Crudo and Foie Gras. I told you my friends are ruthless.

It doesn’t stop there, more share dishes kept coming and coming, including; Octopus Salad, Charcuterie Platter, Ravioli, Prawn and Saffron Risotto, Orbetello Flatbread and Baked Feta Souffle. I’d have to say my favorite out of this bunch was the Ravioli and the Risotto… Saffron was such a clever touch (and I appreciate it because its the main ingredient used in Persian dishes).

We thought we were done. I mean, my stomach was like “Hey bro, I’m full… time to stop… thank you” but we couldn’t stop since they now served us a Whole Roasted Rack of Ontario Lamb!! It would be extremely rude for us not to eat and so, out of respect, we demolished the lamb with pride.

Trust me, this does have a sweet ending. The epic dessert medley makes its way onto our table and without a moment of doubt, we all attack. The medley included: Beet Goat Cheesecake, Milk Chocolate Pavlova, Pistachio & White Chocolate Gift Box, and Warm Brioche Pudding. We collectively favored the Brioche but thoroughly enjoyed all of the sweets.

The experience we had was glorious and we felt like royalty. Thank you so much, Ricarda’s. We will be back.