Per Se

[riboflavinjoe]

okay, so the 250 price tag, does it include the service already (and tax, i doubt it)? i'm going in 10 days, and i'm very excited, but i'd like to have the price tag right in order to budget for the rest of the trip.

[docsconz]

It does include service, but not tax or beverages beyond tap water. I'm not sure if coffee is included.

[riboflavinjoe]

thanks, doc! we'll report back in a few weeks. can you get a vegetable tasting and a non-veg tasting at the same table?

[docsconz]

I don't see why not. They tend to be very accommodating.

[oakapple]

okay, so the 250 price tag, does it include the service already (and tax, i doubt it)?  i'm going in 10 days, and i'm very excited, but i'd like to have the price tag right in order to budget for the rest of the trip.

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It includes service, but not tax. All other items (e.g., the wine list) also include service, but not tax.

[kretch]

RE: wine flight.

In mid-June, the only wine pairing they offered us was @$175, not $250.

They were extremely generous, topping off our glasses at appropriate intervals throughout each course. They left us the balance of several bottles towards which we had indicated -- quietly and not so quietly -- a particular preference. A member of our party who quietly showed an indifference to our cheese course was quickly provided with both a new plate, after he was asked about his cheese preferences, and a new paired wine to accompany it.

Bottom line: We were a party of five, four of us got the foie supp @$30 and one person got the Wagyu supp @$75 (huge mistake IMO; it was offered against the Eslysian Fields' lamb, which was, for me, the standout plate of the evening.) After splitting everything evenly five ways, it came out to $503 per person. (Food $1445, wine $875, tax $195. Service included.)

Here's what we got for $175, 6/16/07, in Per Se's words:

Pierre Gimonnet, Champagne, Blanc de Blancs, Cuis, 1er Cru, France MV

Zilliken, Riesling, "Ockfener Bockstein," Kabinett, Saar, Germany 2001

&

Bert Simon, Riesling, "Serrig Wurzberg," Goldkapsel, Auslese, Mosel, Germany 1989

Colin-Deleger, Chassagne-Montrachet, "En Remilly," 1er Cru, Burgundy, France 2001

Walter Hansel, Pinot Noir, "Cuvee Alyce," Russian River Valley, California 2004

Camigliano, Brunello di Montalcino, Italy 2001

Chateau Montrose, Saint-Estephe, France 1999

Domaine du Viking, Vouvray, "Tendre," Loire Valley, France 2004

Jorge Ordonez & Co., Moscatel, "#1," Malaga, Spain 2005

Cossart Gordon, Madeira, Bual, 10 year MV

Edited August 20, 2007 by kretch (log)

[hardiemarc]

Thanks oakapple, am booked in next week and $150 was pretty much what i had in mind..Will let you know how I get on!

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I recently snagged a reservation for October 7th. Did you find the process difficult? For the first half-hour I tried calling and was unable to get through to the reservation line. After I finally got through to the reservation line I had to wait another ten minutes. I thought that I was doomed for disappointment but I was able to get a 5:45 reservation for two (pretty hard to get, so I am told). Has anyone else had this sort of experience?

[oakapple]

Thanks oakapple, am booked in next week and $150 was pretty much what i had in mind..Will let you know how I get on!

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I recently snagged a reservation for October 7th. Did you find the process difficult? For the first half-hour I tried calling and was unable to get through to the reservation line. After I finally got through to the reservation line I had to wait another ten minutes. I thought that I was doomed for disappointment but I was able to get a 5:45 reservation for two (pretty hard to get, so I am told). Has anyone else had this sort of experience?

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I have a reservation for the 2nd weekend in September. My experience was similar, but I don't believe I had to redial for quite as long as you did. But yes, I was redialing for about 15 minutes, and then was on hold for probably another 10-15 minutes. Fortunately, the appointed day for calling (2 months in advance) was a non-work day. I even got a reasonably civilized time (around 7:00 p.m.), rather than the dreaded 5:45.

[riboflavinjoe]

we had reservations about 20 minutes after the phone lines opened. we got it for 545. while 545 is a bit early, any reservation at per se is one i will gladly take. looking forward to it!

[babern38]

Any idea of the cost of the standard wine pairing? And am I correct in understanding that the price someone quotes me will include service?

Thanks.

[oakapple]

Any idea of the cost of the standard wine pairing?  And am I correct in understanding that the price someone quotes me will include service? 

Thanks.

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Just read a few posts upthread. About $175pp seems to be the going rate, and it does include service.

[IrishAdventurer]

Hello ladies and gentlemen, glad to see a thread discussing Per Se, even if it is in the context of rising prices. My wife and I ate there last November, and I knew then, at 27 years of age, I'm unlikely to have a meal better than it for the rest of my life (unless I get reservations for El Bulli sometime!).

It was $220 per person when we were there, extras and wine brought our bill up to about $860, and I'd spend it again tomorrow if I had the chance. I know it's a lot of money, but some of the dishes were just mindboggling...anyone had the Snickers Bar there?

We had that Gimenet Blanc de Blancs champagne too, it's wonderful, and I had a glass of that '89 Bert Simon Riesling with a foie gras terrine course, it was lovely.

Edit to add: I wasn't aware of a wine pairing option. We had the champagne to start, I had the dessert Riesling with the foie, and we had a bottle of red and a bottle of white for the other courses. Two full bottles of wine might sound excessive to American palates, but it seemed a good idea at the time, and what we had was superb.

I agree about the lobster though: while I liked it, and don't mind seafood with bite, I did think it was a bit chewy.

But the overall experience, from the service, ambience, dramatic view over Central Park in the rain, was absolutely magical. People here couldn't believe we could spend that much on a meal, but I told them: go, and if you don't enjoy it, I'll pay for it myself. I'd say that to anyone.

Edited August 24, 2007 by IrishAdventurer (log)

[kretch]

Me three on the lobster. Was underwhelmed.

[Shmily]

we had reservations about 20 minutes after the phone lines opened.  we got it for 545.  while 545 is a bit early, any reservation at per se is one i will gladly take.  looking forward to it!

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Have a wonderful evening....We have used your method of calling and eaten at Per Se three times...we are not drinkers and had only 1 glass each...which I must say was handled beautifully...if they do not suggest it, ask for a tour of the kitchen after your meal..it is super...and a real treat...in fact I have little but wonderful things to report...we read the threads about Per Se before going and they got us even more excited...

[ulterior epicure]

Digging through my back-issues of Gourmet Magazine, I stumbled upon this, from the September, 2004 11th Annual Restaurant Issue (pg. 159).

Under the heading "More Splurge-Worthy Restaurants" in a side box:

New York - Per Se

Located in the new Time Warner Center, Thomas Keller's glamorous new restaurant offers choice views of Central Park as well as a $150 nine-course extravaganza that may include Keller's piece de resistance, butter-poached lobster.

I believe the price tag is now up to $250 for the tasting, sans wine?? I got in last year when it was at the $210 mark.

[Jesikka]

Digging through my back-issues of Gourmet Magazine, I stumbled upon this, from the September, 2004 11th Annual Restaurant Issue (pg. 159).

Under the heading "More Splurge-Worthy Restaurants" in a side box:

New York - Per Se

Located in the new Time Warner Center, Thomas Keller's glamorous new restaurant offers choice views of Central Park as well as a $150 nine-course extravaganza that may include Keller's piece de resistance, butter-poached lobster.

I believe the price tag is now up to $250 for the tasting, sans wine?? I got in last year when it was at the $210 mark.

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And not just with the price tag. Between per se and ad hoc, TK has opened up the opportunity for a myriad of bad latin restaurant names. Perhaps ab irato for Jeffrey Chodorow? Or the next branch of spotted pig, "ad astra per alia porci?" Res ipsa loquitor for a confident restauranteur?

Not to get off topic though. The price increases at per se have been enormous, but I think it's proof of what the market can bear. They're booked all the time. I feel pretty certain they could increase the price tag another $50 and not see a signifcant drop in demand.

[Nathan]

It includes service now. so the price increase (I think it's $225 now) is more like $30.

[Fat Guy]

It's $250 now but does include service, which would have brought a $150 bill up to $180. So that's a $70 increase, or 38.9%. That's significant, though still a good value for what you get at Per Se. We'd also have to know if the meal you get today is the same as the one you got for $180 or if it is enhanced somehow -- I'm not sure I know anybody who has dined at Pe Se enough times over time to rule on that with authority.

[daisy17]

Res ipsa loquitor for a confident restauranteur?

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Fantastic.

[ulterior epicure]

And not just with the price tag.  Between per se and ad hoc, TK has opened up the opportunity for a myriad of bad latin restaurant names.  Perhaps ab irato for Jeffrey Chodorow? Or the next branch of spotted pig, "ad astra per alia porci?" Res ipsa loquitor for a confident restauranteur?

I won't venture to offer what restaurateur might open caveat emptor next...

[Fat Guy]

For the definitive topic on making fun of Thomas Keller's silly restaurant names, please see the "Caveat Emptor" topic here.

[oakapple]

It's worth noting that when Per Se opened, there was a 7-course option that was $135, I believe. Only the 9-course options are offered now.

From the beginning, Per Se has taken reservations two months to the day in advance. Those reservations were invariably gone within an hour of when the reservations line opened at 10:00 a.m. every day. As FG noted at the time, if you're charging $150 and selling out instantly, then in economic terms you're charging too little.

Even at its significantly higher price Per Se is still sold out most of the time.

Edited August 31, 2007 by oakapple (log)

[Fat Guy]

I think at $300 or even $350 the place would still be selling out at dinnertime, but that Thomas Keller doesn't believe in pricing himself that far out of reach. Personally, if that's indeed his goal, I'd like to see him push his dinner prices as high as the market can bear, and at the same time lower his lunch prices to $150 or perhaps even offer a less elaborate lunch in the $100 range. This would be a more effective way of allowing middle class people to dine at Per Se without committing $550 minimum (assuming tap water and no extras) to the venture for a two-top.

[ulterior epicure]

If I'm not mistaken, when the service was first made compris, the price increased from $150 to $210 - and that was just a few months before my visit early last year. So, in a year, the price of the food has increased somewhere in the neighborhood of $35, as FG, I think, pointed out a little earlier. He does make a good point - I wonder if changes in products accounts for that change.

[oakapple]

If I'm not mistaken, when the service was first made compris, the price increased from $150 to $210 - and that was just a few months before my visit early last year.  So, in a year, the price of the food has increased somewhere in the neighborhood of $35, as FG, I think, pointed out a little earlier.

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Actually, the 9-course tasting menu started out at $150 before tip/tax, and was raised to $175 before tip/tax. Then it was raised to $210 including tip (amounts to 20%). I believe the current price is $225 or $250.