Sparks Steak House is 60 years old this year. It is also where, in 1985, one of the most famous events in the history of organised crime happened right on the footpath outside.
I love learning about organised crime and the history of old New York, so when we booked dinner at Sparks Steak House, I did a lot of reading first.
## A steakhouse that is 60 years old
Sparks opened in 1966, so this year it is celebrating its 60th anniversary. There was a gold sticker on the menu to prove it. It was started by two brothers, and inside it still looks like old New York: dark wood, white tablecloths, paintings in gold frames and waiters in waistcoats.
## What happened outside in 1985
Sparks is also famous for something that happened right outside its front door.
In the 1980s, New York had several Mafia "families". These were criminal organisations that made money through crime, and they had strict rules about who was in charge. The boss of the biggest one, the Gambino family, was a man called Paul Castellano.
On the evening of 16 December 1985, Castellano and his driver, Thomas Bilotti, were shot and killed as they arrived at Sparks for dinner. The attack was planned by John Gotti, a member of the same family who wanted to take over. Within weeks, Gotti was the new boss.
## Why it still matters
It was a big shock, because it broke the Mafia's own rules about attacking a boss. It also made Gotti famous. He wore expensive suits, smiled for cameras and was nicknamed "the Teflon Don", because charges against him kept failing to stick.
That did not last. The FBI secretly recorded his conversations, and one of his own closest men agreed to give evidence against him. In 1992 Gotti was found guilty, including of ordering the killings outside Sparks, and he spent the rest of his life in prison.
I think that is the most interesting part. Organised crime can look powerful and glamorous in films, but in real life it is mostly careful detective work, recordings and witnesses that bring it down.
## And then, dinner
Standing on that footpath in the rain was strange, because now it is just a busy Midtown street with people walking past. Inside, it was warm and loud and friendly, and my steak was enormous.
Sixty years of New York history, a bit of Mafia history, and a very good dinner.