|
LOCATION 764 10th Ave Corner of 52nd St, Hell's Kitchen |
CUISINE Italian-Asian Fusion Italian roots, Asian soul |
DINNER HOURS 4:30pm to 10pm Monday through Sunday |
PRESS Forbes, TimeOut, Noms, W42nd Featured nationally |
There are restaurants in New York City that are good. There are restaurants that are interesting. And there are restaurants that are both at the same time, where the cooking is technically excellent and the concept is genuinely original and the experience of eating there is different from anything else you have done in the city recently.
Sesamo is the third kind. It sits at the corner of 10th Avenue and 52nd Street in Hell's Kitchen, and it serves Italian-Asian fusion food that has been covered by Forbes, TimeOut New York, Noms Magazine, and W42nd for one simple reason: the food is very, very good, and nobody else is making it quite like this.
This is the complete guide to Sesamo. The story behind it, the food, the drinks, the occasions it works for, and everything you need to know before you walk through the door.
Table of Contents
The Story Behind Sesamo
|
THE SESAMO STORY Italian Roots. Asian Soul. A Hell's Kitchen Original. |
|
Sabrina Gao left Beijing 25 years ago with two suitcases and one dream. She settled in New York, fell deeply in love with Italian food and wine, and eventually built a restaurant that carries both her Chinese heritage and that love in every dish. The name Sesamo means sesame seeds in Italian, one of the few ingredients found in virtually every food culture in the world. In One Thousand and One Nights, the phrase Open Sesame reveals a cave of treasures. The name carries both meanings intentionally: universality and discovery. Chef Nikita runs the kitchen with the same commitment: every dish built from scratch, every pasta rolled fresh, every braise given the hours it needs, every Asian ingredient chosen because it belongs there and earns its place. Sabrina curates the wine list and leads the Wine Dinner Series. The combination has earned the restaurant coverage in Forbes, TimeOut New York, Noms Magazine, and W42nd. |
What Sesamo Actually Is: The Concept Explained
Sesamo is not a restaurant that picked two cuisines and combined their most recognizable elements. It is a restaurant built on the observation that Italian and Asian cooking share deep structural similarities: both traditions are built on time, patience, umami, and the philosophy of transforming humble ingredients through technique.
The Italian tradition is in the technique: hand-rolled pasta made daily, slow braises that run overnight, the mantecatura finish on the risotto, the soffritto base that begins every sauce. The Asian tradition is in the flavor: tamarind for acid, miso for depth, XO sauce for concentrated umami, Szechuan chili crisp for heat that builds slowly, Thai basil and lemongrass for aromatic complexity.
The dishes that result from this approach are not Italian with Asian garnishes. They are new dishes that belong to both traditions equally and could not have existed in either one alone.
|
Italian roots. Asian soul. The phrase on the Sesamo website is not a tagline. It is a description of how the kitchen actually works, dish by dish. |
The Full Menu: Every Service Format
Sesamo offers more formats than most restaurants of its size. Here is the complete picture:
|
SERVICE |
WHEN / FORMAT |
WHAT TO KNOW |
|
Menu format |
A la carte, all services |
Seasonal rotation, vegetarian and gluten-free options |
|
Dinner |
Monday through Sunday, 4:30pm-10pm |
Full kitchen: pasta, mains, appetizers, desserts |
|
Brunch |
Saturday and Sunday, 11:30am-3pm |
French toast, carbonara, eggs Benedict, bottomless drinks |
|
Lunch |
Friday only, 11:30am-3pm |
Lighter menu, same kitchen quality |
|
Aperitif Hour |
Sunday-Thursday, 4pm-7pm |
Bar snacks, cocktail specials, natural wine by the glass |
|
Bar menu |
Available every evening |
Small plates, bar classics, full wine and cocktail list |
|
Theater Prix Fixe |
$60 per person, 3 courses |
Available every dinner service, paced for show schedules |
|
Wine Dinner |
$160 per person, 5 courses + pairing |
Led by Sabrina Gao; watch Resy events for next date |
|
Online order |
Via Toast / Sesamo website |
Takeout available for select menu items |
The Six Dishes You Must Order
The menu rotates seasonally, but these dishes anchor the Sesamo experience. Some of them are fixtures; others appear in different seasonal forms. Ask your server if any have shifted form since this was written. The kitchen will tell you what is worth ordering that night.
|
Order this first, every time Lardo-Stuffed Dumplings Paper-thin dumpling skin, cured Italian fatback, soy-balsamic dipping sauce. This dish defines the restaurant's identity more than anything else on the menu. Three bites and you understand exactly what Sesamo is. |
The signature pasta Tamarind Bolognese Overnight-braised beef, tamarind, miso, hand-rolled pasta. The dish people tell their friends about after their first visit. Rich, complex, and completely original. Order it. |
When it's on the menu Beef Tartare Premium tenderloin, soy sauce-cured egg yolk, Sullivan Street Bakery sourdough. The soy cure on the yolk is a signature Sesamo detail that elevates this above every other tartare in the neighborhood. |
|
For the heat seekers Szechuan Pasta Hand-rolled noodles, Szechuan chili crisp, aged parmesan. The heat builds slowly, the parmesan holds it together, and the noodle carries the whole conversation. The only dish of its kind in NYC. |
The gentle proof of concept Thai Basil Lemongrass Risotto Creamy Italian risotto with Southeast Asian aromatics. If you are uncertain about the concept, start here. This dish is warm, accessible, and perfectly executed. It will make you understand why this restaurant exists. |
The patient dish XO Sauce Slow Braise Slow-braised meats finished with XO sauce over hand-rolled pasta. Hours of Italian braising technique, then XO sauce to add the layered umami that only a long curing process can produce. Order it when you want the full kitchen experience. |
The Drinks: Wine, Cocktails, and the Aperitif Hour
Sabrina Gao's wine program is built around the same Italian-Asian flavor logic as the food. The list leans natural and low-intervention, with a heavy emphasis on Italian producers, particularly from Piedmont, Campania, and Sicily. There are always interesting by-the-glass pours that rotate, and the sommelier-led Wine Dinner Series gives guests a chance to taste wine the way Sabrina thinks about it: paired from the dish outward, not the wine inward.
The cocktail program applies the same dual-tradition thinking: yuzu and shiso alongside Campari, Italian amaro, and housemade infusions. The Aperitif Hour from 4pm to 7pm Sunday through Thursday is where the bar program is most accessible, with reduced pricing on cocktails and bar snacks from the kitchen.
- For wine: Tell the bar team or your server what you are ordering and ask for a pairing. Sabrina's recommendations, even relayed through staff, are consistently right for the food.
- For cocktails: Order what you are in the mood for and describe it. The bar team builds to your preference. If uncertain, ask for the amaro flight during Aperitif Hour.
- For non-drinkers: The non-alcoholic pairing options are listed on the menu. Ask your server about what the kitchen recommends for each course.
Every Occasion Sesamo Works For
The restaurant is small enough to feel intimate and flexible enough to serve almost any evening purpose. Here is the full map:
|
OCCASION |
HOW TO BOOK |
WHAT TO KNOW |
|
Date night |
Book dining room on Resy |
Low light, intimate seating, full menu |
|
Pre-Broadway |
Arrive by 5pm, mention curtain time |
$60 Theater Prix Fixe, 3 courses timed for show |
|
Birthday dinner |
Note it in Resy comments |
Team acknowledges it; custom requests via email |
|
Solo evening |
Walk-in at bar, no reservation |
Full menu, guided by bar team, no awkward solo table |
|
After-work drinks |
Aperitif Hour Sun-Thu 4-7pm |
Cocktail specials, bar snacks, walk-in only |
|
Family visit |
Book dining room on Resy |
Comfortable, elegant, flexible for mixed tastes |
|
Private event |
Email contact@sesamorestaurant.com |
Private room ~30, full buyout ~100, custom menu |
|
Wine dinner |
Book through Resy events page |
$160/person, 5 courses + pairing, led by Sabrina Gao |
|
Pre-MSG event |
Arrive 90 min before event |
18-min walk or 5-min cab to Madison Square Garden |
What First-Timers Get Wrong (and How to Get It Right)
Every restaurant has a version of itself that is better than the default experience most first-timers get. Here is how to access it:
|
TIP 01 START WITH THE LARDO DUMPLINGS No matter what else you plan to order, begin with the lardo-stuffed dumplings. They are the fastest way to understand what this kitchen is doing and why it is different from every other restaurant in the neighborhood. |
|
TIP 02 LET THE WINE LIST SURPRISE YOU Sabrina Gao's wine program is not a standard restaurant list. It leans natural, leans Italian, and leans toward producers you have not encountered before. Ask for a recommendation with your main course. You will not be steered wrong. |
|
TIP 03 SIT AT THE BAR IF YOU ARE SOLO Walk-in seating at the bar requires no reservation and comes with the full menu. The bar team knows the kitchen and will guide you through the meal. Solo dining at Sesamo is one of the better solo dining experiences in Midtown Manhattan. |
|
TIP 04 ARRIVE EARLY ON A WEEKNIGHT Aperitif Hour runs Sunday through Thursday from 4pm to 7pm. Arriving at 4:30pm means cocktail specials, guaranteed bar seating, and time to ease into the evening before the dining room fills. The Sesamo evening is better when it is unhurried. |
|
TIP 05 TELL YOUR SERVER YOUR SITUATION Going to a Broadway show afterward? It is your birthday? You have a dietary restriction? You want the kitchen's recommendation rather than the menu? Tell your server when you sit down. The team at Sesamo pays attention and responds to what you actually need. |
The Press on Sesamo
Critical coverage is not why Sesamo is worth visiting. But it confirms that the restaurant is genuinely excellent rather than locally popular for reasons of convenience or novelty:
- Forbes covered Sesamo with the observation that the Italian-Asian food 'works wonders,' calling the combination genuine rather than gimmicky.
- TimeOut New York included Sesamo in its editorial coverage of the city's most interesting dining.
- Noms Magazine named Sesamo among the best Midtown restaurants in New York City.
- W42nd highlighted Sesamo as a standout in the Hell's Kitchen dining scene.
These publications have seen every combination of Italian and Asian cooking attempted in New York. Their consistent interest in Sesamo reflects the fact that what Chef Nikita and Sabrina Gao have built is genuinely different and genuinely good.
Getting to Sesamo
- Address: 764 10th Avenue at 52nd Street, Hell's Kitchen, New York, NY 10019
- Subway: A/C/E to 42nd Street Port Authority (8-min walk); C/E to 50th Street (5-min walk); 1 to 50th Street (6-min walk)
- From Times Square: 10-minute walk west on 52nd Street
- From Broadway theaters: 12-minute walk to most theater doors
- From Madison Square Garden: 18-minute walk or 5-minute cab south on 8th/9th Avenue
- From NJ via Lincoln Tunnel: 3 blocks from the tunnel exit on 10th Avenue
|
Sesamo at a glance: 764 10th Avenue at 52nd Street, Hell's Kitchen. Dinner Mon-Sun 4:30-10pm. Brunch Sat-Sun 11:30am-3pm. Aperitif Hour Sun-Thu 4-7pm. Walk-ins welcome at the bar. Book dining room on Resy. Private events: contact@sesamorestaurant.com. Phone: (212) 265-2755. |
Come and Eat
The best way to understand Sesamo is to eat there. This guide has given you the context, the dishes to order, the occasions it works for, and the story behind it. What it cannot give you is the specific experience of sitting at the bar with a yuzu cocktail, watching the kitchen work through the pass, and tasting the lardo dumplings for the first time.
That experience is at 764 10th Avenue, available every night of the week from 4:30pm to 10pm. Walk in at the bar or book on Resy. Tell them it is your first time. Let the kitchen take it from there.
|
Reserve Your Table at Sesamo 764 10th Avenue at 52nd Street, Hell's Kitchen, New York, NY 10019 | (212) 265-2755 Dinner Mon-Sun 4:30pm-10pm | Brunch Sat-Sun 11:30am-3pm | Aperitif Hour Sun-Thu 4-7pm | Book on Resy | Walk-ins welcome |
Plan your visit: Reserve a table at Sesamo, Italian-Asian fusion at 764 10th Avenue in Hell’s Kitchen, NYC. Discover more at sesamorestaurant.com.
Seeing a show nearby? Sesamo is a two-minute walk from MCC Theater — see our guide to restaurants near MCC Theater.
