The Eat Up New York Crew was recently invited to try The Chester midtown location for lunch, which is the sister restaurant to The Chester located in trendy meatpacking district. Set inside/next to The Hilton Garden hotel, The Chester midtown location is incredibly spacious and has a lovely interior and great looking bar area. With The Chester midtown being in such a central location, and its quiet atmosphere, it would be an ideal spot for a classy business lunch. I’ve read that dinner is quite the opposite, with a bumping crowd all night.

The Chester Midtown Cocktails

The cocktail menu at The Chester midtown is quite impressive, with an eclectic list of drinks, each sounding more unique and exotic than the next. With names like Hellfire cocktail, The West Side, The Saw Dust, and The Penicillin, I can guarantee you’ll have a hard time choosing just one. Interestingly enough, each drink comes with its own NYC history lesson. For example, the infamous Hellfire cocktail is based on the fabulous gathering place, in the meatpacking district, that was known for forbidden underground parties many years ago. Be sure to ask your server for the history behind your cocktail.

Bring on the Food

Meredith and I decided to start our meal, at the Chester midtown, with a half dozen oysters. They were fresh, light, and kept us satisfied until the rest of our food came. For my main, I went with the Orange Fennel Salad. Though made with simple ingredients like watercress, dried cranberries, and pepitas, this salad turned out to be one of the best salads I’ve ever had. It was quite refreshing and for a salad it was quite large and filling.

Meredith went with The Fried Chicken. She thoroughly enjoyed the Sweet Tea Brine, which she said was unique and brought out a really nice flavor. Even one of the pieces included was a boneless breast, giving her all the more reason to clean her plate.

We shared the Charred Cauliflower, which was another favorite. The lemon zest added a wonderful complexity to it.

To finish off the meal, at the Chester midtown, we went for the German Chocolate cake.

In the future, I will definitely go for dinner to see how the ambience compares to lunch. And to be honest, I can’t stop thinking about that salad and if I can possibly recreate it on my own, but until then, I’ll be sure to head back for round two. For reservations and more information, check out The Chester midtown online.