DutchMuse

Its considered a generous gesture to offer a taste to the sommelier working that night. Not necessary but a good gesture. I usually tip generously (25%ish) for the privilege of byob....esp if they're waiving corkage.

Having eaten there twice last week, I can attest that the desserts are differently better than they were before under the prior pastry chef in support of what you say.

The mananger is who you should talk to in order to reserve this. Its a small, informal restaurant.

I had two tasting menus there this week and I can say that Chef Humm is just about as talented as a pastry chef as he is a chef of the savory dishes. The dessert at the second tasting menu was especially strong. My guests at the table kept talking about it; very impressive. I think they're well on the way though at searching for someone.

I don't know many gay guys - or "foodie" guys for that matter (straight or gay) - who are big steak house types. Bruni seems to be an exception. On my part - I think that steakhouses are annoyingly expensive - boring - and predictable. Robyn ← He's no exception at least for the 'gay guy' part. Myself, my partner, and tons of my (gay) friends are steak house afficianados.

I was wondering the same thing. I kept re-reading the prior post and reply to figure it out and still can't.

Yep; says it all.

Right; and if you have that type of treatment, it doesn't mirror what most customers experience. I'm sure many of us have special relationships with some restaurants, but one can't just patronize those places. To me, an experience like that (e.g. 'comped" etc.) doesn't count in terms of how good I feel a restaurant is.

Let me modify my adjective: Probably "disappointing" is a better and more accurate word than bad.

The comparison with Spice Market is quite apt.

Not sure its fair to say they "lured" Nicole Kaplan from EMP; I think she and EMP agreed to part ways and she was out looking for a job. As for Del Posto getting the rave reviews, I just don't understand it. I've heard some people who I respect say they've had wonderful meals there. I've heard other people say their meals were a disaster. The latter comports with my own experience, but I assume they get it 'right' at least some of the time, especially for people they know are VIP's. All I can say is the two times I was there, the servers were shockingly uninformed, the sommelier said she was "just learning" (a direct quote) and recommended a $200+ wine because "I've tried that one and I know its good," and the food at best, forgettable. How can a place so inconsistent as this get two Michelin stars? I don't know, but I can at least speak for my own experience. As to why it has no openings on Open Table, part of that is that its in MePa and indeed is a tourist draw. I could name 5 other restaurants in the area that are packed every night and I bet most here wouldn't consider them great restaurants.

I called AMEX and got the answer. Its bigapplebbq.org. Also the website for the whole thing.

Your experience comports with what I experienced in the main dining room. Tourist trap.

Can't wait to go. Anybody know how to get the AMEX VIP tickets?

There are three times in recent memory, and for 2 of the three, I definitely would have wanted it called to my attention as it was due to alcohol or jet lag. The third, definitely bad service, I would have preferred it not be confronted. To wit: 1) A few years ago, I took a group of people out to a very good sushi restaurant and we had lots of sushi and sake--there were many of us and we had magnum size bottles of sake. I guess I had more than I thought, and when I left the tip--with a large check--I left 2% instead of 20% as I had intended. I was a regular at the restaurant, and out on the sidewalk while waiting for a taxi, the server (who I knew by name because of my regular visits) came out and asked if everything was satisfactory. I said that it was more than satisfactory; it was wonderful. He commented that he asked because of the small tip. I immediately realized what I had done, and feeling so bad, went back and left a hefty tip. I really appreciated it being brought to my attention and would have been horrified if not given the chance to rectify it. 2) Recently, I flew home from France and had a terrific taxi driver--a young guy who was going to travel through Europe and was driving a taxi to raise money. A wonderful conversation; I complimented him on the great conversation and even mentioned I bet he got more tips than most because of his great people skills. When we arrived at my building, I thought I had given him a $10 tip, but in reality (because I was so foggy due to jet lag--no alcohol this time LOL) it was $1. He said nothing, but in the elevator on the way to my floor my heart stopped when I suddenly re-did the math and realized what I had done. Too bad I didn't get his medallion number--I had no way to rectify the situation. I've wished many times he had politely called it to my attention and I still feel terrible about it. 3) Recently, at a fashionable Italian pizza type restaurant in NYC, the service was SO BAD (about everything that could go wrong with service, did), that we gave about an 8% tip intentionally. The server obviously knew there was a problem; my intent was to make a statement based upon the gratuity. In this case, I would have explained it had he asked, but I was just as happy to exit without any confrontation or explanation.

I am a real fan of the direction Danny Meyer is taking in his restaurants--kudos to him for beefing them up and he's hit a home run with EMP and doing great with The Modern. That said, I went to GT a month or so ago and just didn't 'get it.' I thought it was a fine enough meal, but not really remarkable or memorable. It was fine; but so are a lot of other places in town. Also, where were the staff? The GM was gone, the wine director was gone, and the chef was out. How could all 3 key people be away on a Thursday evening, prime time? Anyway.....I had no complaints but it, to me, hit no real highs and the dishes were certainly simple and pure but I can do simple and pure at home. I really wanted to leave feeling excited and I just didn't.

Consensus seems to be that the trick to ordering a great meal here is ordering the dishes they do best. Given that we're now in April, 2007, can regulars update me on the "key" dishes to sample here? What they do best? I have researched the older thread on this but would welcome an update.

Thanks for the reports! My experiences really match yours, too.....thanks again for posting. To me, Chef Humm is absolutely one of the finest chefs in NYC.

Its on eater.

PS I keep hearing rumours that nothing is going to happen re Alain Ducasse in NY. Just 'underground gossip' from my European sources, and may be 100% incorrect, but I'm certain there's nothing imminent.

WOW, I had not looked at the actual "PR firm press release" until FG mentioned it. Yes...Berry Bros & Rudd is perhaps the most established of the London wine merchants. They have nothing to do with PR---they are comparable to Sherry Lehman or even Zachys except they've been a London establishment for generations. This is recycled stuff they got from some press release as FG says, probably back last September. Nothing new here.

American Express Centurion had an ad from Keller once about this...the answer? $25K

Exactly. If its a chef of a good/very good to outstanding restaurant in Europe or a gifted chef in NY, for example (like Daniel Humm), then I really enjoy a brief chat, either before or after the meal. If its the head cook at my neighborhood diner or whatever, thanks but not necessary. :-)

(Here I'm talking about fine dining places). This is done all too infrequently in the USA. In Europe, it is much more common to see, and kind of refreshing. Few chefs at great places do it here. In NY, I can think of Daniel Humm at EMP and Daniel Boulud at Daniel but off hand, can't think of others. Maybe sometimes Floyd Cordoz at Tabla but only occasionally.

I believe there is normally a $10/bottle corkage fee (at least that's my recollection) but in this instance they didn't charge a corkage fee. We ended up tipping an extra $10 for the server and $10 for the assistant. They have a perfetly fine list. More new world than old world; certainly a better list than Lugar's. But we brought a 1996 Lynch Bages that wasn't on the list.