NY theater district restaurant
 

I am looking for great restaurant that is within an easy walk of the Gershwin Theater. It needs to be open on Mondays and serve dinner early enough to make a 7PM curtain without rushing. One with a good fish selection would be great for DW. We have reservations the night before at The Leopard at Des Artistes so would rather not do Italian again, but will if it is a truly nice place.

Six blocks away, you might try Marseille http://www.marseillenyc.com

I wouldn't say great, but very good.

We just went to Marseilles for brunch on Saturday! I felt like I was back in Paris.

http://esca-nyc.com/ little far west but known for seafood.

I really enjoy Toloache, creative Mexican cuisine, right off 8th on 50th St. http://toloachenyc.com/mobile/menus.html

Last time I was there we split a cerviche and the Tumbada, it was excellent.

ESCA
MILOS
OCEANA

Those would be the best three for fish and seafood. By far. Budget needs to be pretty generous.

We usually stay on 44th and go to Marseille nearby, but this trip we stayed up on 54th and went to Taboon at 52nd and 10th. We like Marseille, but Taboon was very good and different. Had a great sea bass dish (everything was very good), their Branzino is also supposed to be excellent.

Ate at Taboon a few weeks ago, and loved it.

These are some excellent suggestions and I need to follow through. One person I know also suggested the Azalea restaurant. Has anyone eaten there?

YOU asked for GREAT restaurants, with fish, and the three I gave you are certainly the best. If you want to move toa higherprice point and walk a few more blocks, you can also consider MAREA and LE BERNARDIN. Both need to booked weeks in advance.

I have never heard of Azalea. And you said you were not lookingn for Italian.

The ones I gave you here and above are some of our city's best.

ekscrunchy, I very much appreciate your suggestions in both posts as I do the suggestions of all who responded. I have checked all of your suggestions as I have all of the suggestions received. Price is really no object for this occasion as I want our entire extended weekend to be special.

Some of my considerations in addition to those that I originally posted have come as I think of the logistics of getting to the theater in ample time for a 7PM curtain without feeling rushed. If the weather is nice, i.e., no rain or snow, we certainly do not mind a longer walk, in fact we would enjoy one, but if the weather is not, then we would have to take a taxi from some of these restaurants to the theater and my experiences in getting a taxi on a weekday at that time of day have never been good. In addition, we want to get an early enough reservation to account for time to be seated, ordering and to be able to linger over our dinner without having to sprint to the theater and that means in most cases a reservation before 5, particularly since a good restaurant takes its time in preparing your order properly. I asked about the Azalea simply because the menu looks good for pescatarian gluten free DW, it has very good online reviews and is only yards from the Gershwin. That is why I asked if anyone on this forum had experience with this place since I value personal recommendation from people that I trust such as yourself more than anonymous online reviews.

I see from your profile that you live in both Manhattan and Long Island's North Fork so you would know. My closest cousin also lives in both the North SHORE of LI and Manhattan - a coincidence. I myself am a Native NYer, went to HS and graduate school in Manhattan but have not lived in the city since 1968 although I often visit - once a NYer, always a NYer no matter where you find yourself.

basingstoke.... since it's such an early curtain is there any chance you could dine after the show.? In any event, be prepared for terrible traffic... Manhattan has become ridiculous. I hope you find something nice within walking distance. -:)

Take the subway.

That would not work both in terms of time and station placement. And I am not putting down the subway. I have spent just about every day for 13 years doing just that. I actually spent a couple of years teaching blind people to use the subway.

Gwendolyn, all of the suggestions are in comfortable walking distance depending on the weather. And that is what am concerned about. I think I will make a reservation in one of restaurants that was suggested and a second at the Azalea cancelling one of them when I have a good idea of what the weather would be.

I did just what I mentioned above. DW looked at the menus of the ones chosen and is happy with either one.

This is a big deal long weekend as it is our 50th anniversary (of the civil part of our wedding). Dinner the evening before our theater night is at The Leopard at des Artistes as mentioned. We plan to visit the Metropolitan Museum of Art the day following the theater - it has been years since DW has been there and she is looking forward to that. Lunch before leaving NY will likely be at the Neue Gallery.

I neglected to thank all of you for your suggestions all of which are now on our list of places to dine in NY.

And thanks to you, as well, for all your informative comments over the years!
Figures that you are a New Yorker!!!

Just a quick note to also suggest Blue Fin in the "W" hotel. It is at 47th and Broadway. Been many times - great seafood and usually pretty quick service.

We are back and I want to thank you all for your suggestions - all were tempting. I did what I mentioned upthread and made reservations at both the Soju Bistro and the Azalea. The Soju for its Parisian ambiance since Paris is one of the places we visited on our honeymoon, and the Azalea because it was close to the Gershwin in case of inclement weather, e.g., rain or snow. Both had acceptable menus and good reviews. Since the day before our reservations the weather forecast was "iffy" we canceled the Soju. Arriving at the Azalea I was surprised at how close it is to the Gershwin - it is in the same building complex as the theater, just steps away from the doors. Entering the restaurant we were immediately greeted and seated. The ambiance is quite nice, dark wood and Georgia O'Keefe flower pictures adorning the walls.

Our server Giovani introduced himself, gave us the menus asked for our drink orders and recited the daily specials. We spent some time looking over the menu - it had quite a few dishes that looked promising and asked Giovani to describe several and if he had any favorites. He recommended the Spigola which is a sea bass, and the Risotto of the day which featured parmesan, sausage and shaved dried portobello mushroom flavored with truffles. We asked if the risotto could be made without the sausage for DW and he said "of course" we also substituted the accompanying vegetable to one that DW preferred - also cheerfully accommodated.
He also offered to bring extra plates so that we could split each entree if we liked. A very thoughtful touch. The risotto came and was served in a huge parmesan wheel hollowed out in the center - striking. The hot risotto melts the parmesan which infuses the risotto in turn. The dried mushroom was then shaved onto the risotto at the table. Giovani spooned the risotto into plates, one for each of us. It was delicious. Two items I like to order at new Italian restaurants are risotto or gnocchi because these are dishes that are often not done well and for me are a measure of the restaurant. At the Azalea, it was perfect, and delicious. As was the Spigola, which was perfectly cooked and seasoned, probably the best of its type that I have had.

At dinner we struck up a conversation with the couple at the adjoining table, newly arrived from Ireland for their first NY visit - they were delightful people and we gave them some tips for their visit. They ordered the Spigola as well and also said it was perfect.

Altogether, the Azalea was a great choice. Our food was excellent, service was impeccable - cheerful and attentive without being intrusive, and the ambiance lovely. Its proximity to the theater was a plus since we did not feel rushed at all.



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