NYC restaurant week, ever had a good meal?

So NYC restaurant week is coming up and I've been thinking. Of all the places I've been during restaurant week, there've only been a handful that I actually liked. Montrachet (which seems to be under permanent renovation) & Mercer Kitchen are about it. Brasserie LCB (now closed) was ok. Its predecessor La Cote Basque was blah. The best thing about Nougatine was the receptionist who was one of the most beautiful women I've seen in real life. And etc. . .

Perhaps these restaurants are best without this "special" week.

I have dined in many restaurants' both RW and regular menus. Some of them phoned it in during RW, they served smaller portion, lesser food, rushed service. But Danny Meyer's restaurants - Modern, GT, Tabla, USC, EMP,... - are consistently good during RW.

Many offer regular prix fixe lunches and dinners not much more expensive than RW menus, so pick the the most expensive ones. Go for the Michelin-starred restaurants. Make reservations before the RW list is announced. Many non-RW restaurants have better value and reservations are easier to make during RW; Dovetail Sunday Suppa is one of the best, if not the best, bargain in town.

l hate going to restaurants. They have too many people in them and l always tend to get bored after being there for 5 minutes. l hope to never attend another restaurant ever again.

Originally Posted by von Rothbart

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Dovetail Sunday Suppa is one of the best, if not the best, bargain in town.

I've been meaning to try it, especially since I live a couple blocks away. However, I try not to eat big meals at night.

I find that going to a higher end place will yield some dissapointment...long waits, full rooms and lesser, albeit not bad food. Realistically, for $20/$30 a head you are not going to get a $100 pp meal. You will get a meal easily worth $30 in a place yo otherwise might not try.

I had a good lunch at Thalasa (sp?) 2 years back. Three courses, oysters, a small but tasty piece of a Greek fish, name escapes me but very firm, very fresh and a Greek pastry dessert, all served prof. in a beautiful restaurant. I also went to Blue Smoke for dinner off of Park in the high teens...food was good, portions were ridiculous, so much I could not fiish even 1/2 of my BBQ platter of some kind...dessert was the best part, buttermilk ice cream over a strawberry rhubarb cobbler. Overall RW is a good idea...its up to the individual restauarant to choose how to go about it...cutting corners will not fly...better to have limited options prepared well than to make customers think you are doing them a favor.

I hate restaurant week.

Originally Posted by gdl203

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I hate restaurant week.

Consider dining in. Try it, you may even like it.

Originally Posted by whacked

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Consider dining in. Try it, you may even like it.

No - we still eat out, but we avoid the circus of restaurant week. Besides, we moved two days ago and are still unpacking our pans and cutlery...

Originally Posted by gdl203

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No - we still eat out, but we avoid the circus of restaurant week.

There're still plenty of non-RW restaurants to go around and they are usually easier to make reservations during RW.

Originally Posted by von Rothbart

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There're still plenty of non-RW restaurants to go around and they are usually easier to make reservations during RW.

Yes - that's what I meant - we go to non-participating restaurants

Originally Posted by gdl203

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I hate restaurant week.

Originally Posted by gdl203

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No - we still eat out, but we avoid the circus of restaurant week.


There's a Manhattan-centric elitism vibe to it. "Oh no, the riffraff B&T crowds are invading our turfs."

I enjoy fine dining, but my only complaint is that I always go home hungry. So I ordered 2 sets of Restaurant Week special menus last time, 2 appetizers (salad & soup) followed by 2 entrees (one fish and one meat) and 2 desserts for $70. Cheaper and more food than the 5-course tasting menu. Call it ghetto tasting menu if you will, but I went home satisfied.

Originally Posted by mussel

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There's a Manhattan-centric elitism vibe to it. "Oh no, the riffraff B&T crowds are invading our turfs."
Absolutely not in my case. I simply think that the restaurants get over-crowded during that week and that they offer sub-par menus/food to make the low price work for them. I have no interest in going to good restaurants and be served mediocre food - which has been my experience at every restaurant week

Originally Posted by gdl203

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Absolutely not in my case. I simply think that the restaurants get over-crowded during that week and that they offer sub-par menus/food to make the low price work for them. I have no interest in going to good restaurants and be served mediocre food - which has been my experience at every restaurant week


I completely agree. I have no idea why people go so crazy about restaurant week, because that's all it is -- restaurants serving a limited choice menu for a low price. If I'm going to try a place, I'd rather pay what I must to try whatever I want. I made the mistake of going to a restaurant participating in RW because of friends, and I ended up just ordering off the non-RW menu because nothing of the RW selections seemed appetizing.

I always laugh when people go into places that are normally $100pp, eat for $40, and come away not feeling like they had the real experience

Originally Posted by bigbadbuff

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I always laugh when people go into places that are normally $100pp, eat for $40, and come away not feeling like they had the real experience

No offense but I'm not sure you have any experience of what is discussed above. Otherwise, you wouldn't make that comment. I'm happy to eat for $20 per head just like I'm OK spending 10x that for something worth it.

What generally happens during restaurant week in NYC is that the best restaurants who participate offer a different menu, very limited and the food served is mediocre by these restaurants' standards.

It all makes sense because they still have very high fixed costs and I'm pretty sure it's not worth it for them to go bankrupt just because of the benefit to be on the RW list...

But, if the above makes you "laugh", then be my guest - better than cry