Patsy's

There is a reason Patsy’s on W. 56 Street was Frank Sinatra’s favorite restaurant. And there is also a reason why a lot of other celebrities eat there on a regular basis. We figured we would spend at least part of our last night in NYC attempting to find those reasons.


We found at least three reasons - atmosphere, service and wonderful Italian food. And take it from someone who is a connoisseur of good eating – this is as good as it gets.

Patsy’s was founded in 1945 by Pasquale (Patsy) Scognamillo. Patsy was the original chef and there have been only two others in the history of this famous restaurant. Patsy's son Joe (pictured here with my wife)was the second chef. And Sal, who was not there when we were there, is the third chef. Sal is Joe's son - the grandson of Patsy. Sal is known as the Executive Chef of Patsy’s and appears on a regular basis on the morning national TV talk shows in NYC.


Joe treated us like royalty. Not only did he explain to us the history of his restaurant but he told us about his friendship with Frank Sinatra. Joe wears a lapel pin that belonged to Sinatra. But you would have thought we were the celebrities. I got a glimpse of why people rave about the service at this place. The service starts at the top.


And then there was our waiter from Croatia. Branko took his time helping us order so we could taste all the famous delicious dishes. He also gave us a geography lesson about Croatia and even drew a map as to its horseshoe shape located in South – Central Europe. When you feel like a waiter has become your friend when you finish your meal, you can safely say he served you beyond your expectations. Branko also gave us some inside information about some of the celebrities that eat there. We found that some choose to enter the restaurant at the main entrance and eat in the main dining area and some choose to come in a private entrance and eat privately. Branko told us one of his favorite customers is Rush Limbaugh and he told us Rush is a great guy and treats him wonderfully.

As we started to leave, Branko gave each of the ladies a gift bag that included a jar of Patsy’s famous sauce. I suppose he does that for all his customers but we kinda felt like he did it just for us. As we were leaving the restaurant I was surprised at all the other folks eating and enjoying their meal.

Funny thing because Branko had me convinced we were the only ones there.