The absolute best dining experience I've ever had. The staff was unbelievably kind and friendly. Gave us champagne, flowers, and personalized menus for our anniversary. Was also some of the best food I've had in years. Evan and his crew do an amazing job making the guests feel comfortable and happy. Also they're very reasonably priced

I must say the service I received at Cucina 8 1/2 was excellent from start to finish!! The details I requested for my birthday was perfect on my arrival!!! Then there’s the chef who is absolutely amazing and cares about the guest experience! For his service to the guests I only hope he’s paid what he deserves. Our waiter was attentive and worked well with the chef to ensure we were happy and satisfied with their service. I definitely would recommend that you give this beautiful restaurant a try.

Great great great! Highly recommend! Been in this place like 3 times minimum already and won’t stop coming! Their menu has a variety of dishes even for the most picky eaters! Food is sooo delicious & presentation is just so gorgeous that u can’t leave without taking a picture of your entire dinner! Stuff is super attentive & will go out of their way to help! Special thanks to manager Liz who made our time spent there unforgettable! Will come back again & again!

Delicious comfort food, every employee here was so accommodating. Making it a mission everyone is taken care of. This restaurant is flexible with the atmosphere, when we walked in Nicki Minaj was playing and then the music switched later in the night.

Thoroughly enjoyed my time at Cucina 8 1/2! The atmosphere and ambiance elevated the entire tone of my evening. The staff was welcoming, prompt, and even provided excellent recommendations. I would definitely return to Cucina in the future. Liz provided the best service and went above and beyond during my visit!!

I always enjoy coming here for dinner. The food is always 10/10 (especially the appetizers), the staff are very friendly and welcoming, and the ambiance is always spot on. The manager is also very attentive and ensures that everything is perfect! I would highly recommend Cucina for a date night or for anyone looking for a get together with some friends! Thanks Jake and team for always taking care of me! 💜

The 4.2 rating does not give the restaurant no justice, the food, service and the atmosphere is amazing! we were looking for a Italian restaurant in the area and every place was fas fully booked and luckily found this restaurant. Everything in the menu is authentic Italian food that is fresh, quality ingredients and delicious. Our waitress was attentive and nice. We also got to meet the manager Liz who was so accommodating and sweet. Will definitely come back!

Amazing place! I just celebrated my wedding anniversary in Cucina 8 1/2. Despite having an uninvited guest (my baby), the staff made the night special. The atmosphere was exceptional, and the food was delicious.

Had the best dining fun time! Atmosphere is delightful, and food and cocktails are so finely crafted 🤤 They have live beautiful music on Thursday. Staff is so kind and attentive. Definitely one of my favorite restaurant experience in NYC 😌

Wow this place is amazing!! This was the best dining experience I have ever had. The staff were so exceptional and friendly. We got the table side ceaser salad, which was beyond delicious. All of the entrees were excellent 10/10 and the desert. If you want an awesome experience with amazing food I would suggest coming here. It was my birthday and they treated me like royalty!

Nothing really special about this place other than the nice calm atmosphere. There was a pianist playing Christmas music when I went, which was really nice. But the food was extremely mid. The best part was the foccacia appetizer with butter and hot honey. The lemon pasta was good but I would've personally preferred a little less lemon, it was overpowering any other flavor. The best part was the dessert and but the pie crust was a little bitter. I didn't like the taste of the steak, but the texture was GREAT, crusty outside and juicy inside. Overall, I wouldn't come here again.

Amazing food and service. The restaurant called ahead because of our wedding anniversary and printed our names on the back of the menu. We had Rose petals on the table and received a rose afterwards. Delani our server was friendly to us. I highly recommend coming here. Make sure you try the zucchini chips.

Cucina provided a great Christmas Day dinner for our family. They had the prefixed menu for 88 bucks each and the selections were plentiful. We had the chicken, meatballs, rigatoni and chicken parm along with the friends, chicken gelato and chaos cake for dessert. The server was outstanding and attentive to my 7years olds needs and dietary restrictions. I would love to come back and try their main menu!

After seeing the restaurant on Instagram, I already knew I wanted to try the tableside trio; their special of Caesar salad, pasta, and chicken parmesan served tableside, but first drinks (obviously). I started with the Pooch, a cocktail with vodka, lychee and St. Germain. It was delicious. My friend ordered the smoked old fashioned. It was served covered and smoke comes out when you uncover it. He loved his drink as well. We were already off to a great start. We placed our order for the tableside trio for $69 and the polpo alla griglia (aka grilled octopus). Each dish ordered separately costs way more in total, so it's better to get the special if you want to try them all. The salad was prepared in front of us. The grilled octopus was delicious as well. . The second part of the trio was the spaghetti al limone (aka lemon spaghetti). I personally wasn't crazy about. It was tasty for what it was, but the lemon just wasn't my favorite, but it is good. It's an acquired taste. The third and last part of the trio was the chicken parmesan. Chicken parm used to be one of my favorite dishes when I was younger. This one was definitely one of the best I've had. Again, the fresh ingredients are prevalent. The fresh cheese and sauce were delicious and the chicken was juicy. The second part of the trio was the spaghetti al limone (aka lemon spaghetti). Eddie loved it. I personally wasn't crazy about.. It's an acquired taste. The third and last part of the trio was the chicken parmesan. Chicken parm used to be one of my favorite dishes when I was younger. This one was definitely one of the best I've had. The fresh cheese and sauce were delicious and the chicken was juicy. Again, the fresh ingredients are prevalent. We obviously had to end with dessert. I ordered a cappuccino and Eddie got an espresso. Eddie was excited to get the zeppoles and I was intrigued by the pistachio tiramisu. In between courses they brought out chocolate biscotti and fried cheese. They add the powdered sugar to the zeppoles at the table which is fun. They were just okay though. Very light and airy, not greasy and thick like the ones you have at a street fair. I like those better. The pistachio tiramisu was delicious though. Overall, the meal was delicious, albeit expensive. The bill was over $400. Granted, we ordered a lot of food and drinks. Could definitely go and get the tableside trio with a cocktail each and spend way less money and still be very satisfied. I recommend going to Cucina 8 1/2.

Absolutely amazing service and delicious authentic Italian food! I loved how they freshly prepare and serve the food in front of you. Makes it even more special!

Lovely upscale Italian restaurant. Walking in is a nice experience with the descent down a beautiful staircase. We had incredible service and ate incredible food (I had the amatriciana). Perfectly al dente and flavorful. Plus, just look at this decanter! Where do you see that? It was a great and memorable dinner.

I’ve always love coming here. Especially on there Sax Wednesdays and Torch Thursdays. I couldn’t ask for a better experience. They have amazing mock tails and cater to your needs🫶

Went for lunch and we all had a very good meal. Their prix fixe lunch offering is broad and the portions were generous and most importantly, very tasty. The sherbet for dessert was a perfect topper. Of course the full menu was available and we'll likely return. Took advantage of the comfortable outdoor seating which offers shaded tables and tables with umbrellas and the down stairs space is quite spectacular and surely makes for a great setting for dining as well.

My fiancé and I hosted our engagement dinner here at Cucina with family and friends. Everything was PERFECT! The staff were so friendly and professional, the managers were super accommodating, the restaurant itself is beautiful, and the food was so tasty. My compliments to the chef! Joanne helped us plan this exciting event and Marco was such a huge help! Thank you Cucina for such a beautiful evening. We will be returning soon. If I could give more than 5 stars, I would!

The best ravioli I’ve ever had! This is a great spot for modern Italian classics in midtown with fun atmosphere and good staff. During my most recent visit one of my party inquired about whether any pasta came alongside the chicken parmesan dish (it doesn’t) and, without being asked, our waiter provided a side of pasta to complete the meal for him. Highly recommend!

I was there several times when it was a french restaurant, and now it was my first time after they became Italian. It did not disappoint. The place is tastefully designed (but they removed Matisse which was here before), not too crowded but not empty either (Wednesday evening), a pleasant bar scene. The service was really amazing - Aida and Mike did a brilliant job navigating our food and wine choices and were very much on point. The food was really great: tuna tartar, Cesar salad (made in front of you), roasted bellpeppers and the homemade bread were awesome. Pasta di limone was delicious but on a richer side than i expected, may be i will be back for it in winter. The limonchella based cocktails was surprisingly refreshing without being too sweet. Overall, a great place to go for a dress up date or a business dinner.

Went there with my friend during lunch time. Inside is very cozy looks beautiful, specially if you want to go out for a romantic date. The branzino was cooked perfectly with a little citrus garnish, came with a very unique fennel on top i could feel there was a faint sweet cinnamon touch in there. The sorbets- Gelato they gave us were extraordinarily good, very refreshing pineapple, white peach was yummy and the last flavor that left me dumbfounded im still unsure of the real flavor, i believe it was pear with a little rosemary great combination.

Had a really lovely experience here for a birthday celebration. Kind of mindblowing it was only half full as the food was fantastic, service incredible. Knowledge of the wine list by the sommoliere, management came and greeted, and we were given a lovely desert wine as a birthday gift on the house. The egg yolk raviopla is indulgent in the best way. Can't reccomend enough for a special meal!

Food was great. So was the service. A little pricey but what can you expect from a midtown location. The decor is, in my opinion, a little outdated looking, like something a high end restaurant would have looked like out of the Mad men era. If you want great food and service and don't mind spending a few $$$, I recommend this place

Amazing ambiance, beautiful place to hang out and grab a drink (or a couple) and get some appetizers. I will definitely come back for a meal. Great place for drinks and appetizers. It’s classy, loungie, feels upscale. Good date spot! Thank you for your great service!

Food is very good, and it's a pretty space. But the $24 cocktails were just so so, and the service was poor and borderline rude, which is disappointing because the prices are on the high side. (Interestingly, we overheard another family complaining about the service as we were leaving the restaurant).

Came around 3 so the dining room was not open. Sat at the lounge. The food was really good- the NY strip was cooked at the perfect temperature (I asked for medium so some pink inside) - very tender and juicy. Would definitely come again.

I used to come here frequently when it was Brasserie 81/2. It’s really good corporate food and is definitely worth the visit. This is my first time coming to the new version owned by the same restaurant group. I had the restaurant week menu and it was a tremendous value. The large portion of meatballs were great and I was happy that the perfectly cooked branzino was a lighter portion. The pistachio tiramisu was a nice end to the meal. The smoked old fashioned was amazing and I highly recommend it. They charge a surcharge for using a credit card!!! Bush league move

The environment is really nice. We ordered a few things: Lamb pizza, the concept is really cool, but the meat was dry. Meatballs were very good, the ricotta delicious. Pasta was boring, the sauce flavor was the same as bought one, not one fresh. Chicken Parmesan was the worst. Almost $40 for fried chicken stacked with a bought sauce. Staff was friendly though. They give a complementary Parmesan chips, which was spot one. And biscotti on the end.

My girlfriend and I stumbled upon this place randomly. The food was incredible. Everything is superior at Cucinas. I got the spaghetti limone and I will never have pasta like that again in my life. My girlfriend got the chicken parm with spaghetti. The atmosphere is so elegant and intimate.

I thought long before deciding on how many stars I should give the restaurant... There was a huge difference between 2 very important items: The food and the service... Let's start with the service, if you can even call it that, as there was absolutely none.... Terrible terrible service. The server did not know if they can make a pasta with a cream base or olive oil or butter... She had 0 knowledge of Italian food, except for what was on the menu, exactly as the menu says.... It took the kitchen about an hour and 15 minutes to get us the food... Half of our drinks didn't arrive until we had to remind the server that we ordered it... And on top of it all, they charge a fee of almost $6 for using a credit card as a payment method!!! And when we asked the server if they actually charge it, she said no. It's later on appeared charged!!! So that was one of the worst services I've experienced in the past years.... BUT The food was just delightful.... When we eventually received it, it was made perfectly, with amazing tastes. No doubt one of the best Italian kitchens I've ever visited.... Every single one of the dishes, even the plane Margarita Pizza, was just a pleasure each bite..... So, to conclude, I decided the quality of the food triumphed the terrible service experience... So go there, without a doubt, just make sure you arrive with a lot of patience, self entertainment, and not starving..... Bon appetit (I know it's French, but I have no idea what the Italian expression is 😂)

Out for our first date night in quite some time due to work commitments and school amongst other things. We were totally blown away with top notch service, outstanding drinks, and an amazing dinner menu. We highly recommend dining at Cucina 8 1/2, you will be sure to have a memorable dining experience!

Great atmosphere, service and food! Love the upscale Italian restaurant vibe and they even have live music at night. The staff is extremely friendly and want to make sure you’re taken care of. The food was also great, they have fantastic restaurant week deals!

I had a late Valentine's Day dinner here on February 17th at 8:00 pm. When my girlfriend and I got there we were shown to our table and Elizabeth came over and introduced herself she was incredibly kind to us all night coming over starting conversations, checking it, and more. She also made the dessert portion of our meal extremely special as well. Upon leaving she took our used sparklers that she put on our desserts to make them special (which was very nice and meant a lot) after taking the old sparklers she came back out to our table and gave us two new ones, two roses, and two small Moscato bottles. She made our night very special, we will definitely be coming back. Thank you guys for the great Valentine's Day dinner! The chefs did amazing everything tasted amazing.