NYC: Dinner at Etcetera, Etcetera: A Review.
 

Tony and I returned from NYC. Had a great time – trip report to follow soon, but I did want to write about our dinner at Etcetera, Etcetera:

Four of us (friends Kim and Steve flew in from Vermont to spend time with us in NYC) dined on 5/11/08 after seeing Spamalot, which we really enjoyed and laughed our heads off. The show was at 7pm and we were out the door and heading to Etc. by about 9:10pm.

The restaurant is decorated in a contemporary design in blues, greys, and orange colors, with recessed lights, which, surprisingly I liked. As you enter the restaurant, the bar catches your eye, as all of the liquor bottles are backlit along one wall on several shelves. Along that same wall are tables, which are set close together…a little too close in my opinion. In fact, when I returned from the restroom and squeezed by, I actually pulled the tablecloth from the next table and a couple of the dishes and utensils crashed to the floor. The tables along the wall seats about 30 people, while the other tables in the middle of the room seats about 20.

When we arrived, we were immediately seated. The restaurant was only 1/3rd full. In reading reviews of this restaurant, several others stated the place could be very noisy. Being only 1/3rd full, it wasn’t noisy at all.

The waiters were attentive and kept our wine glasses filled. We ended up ordering 3 bottles of wine. After taking our order, we were given fresh-baked foccacia bread and semolina bread, along with a delicious olive tapenade.

I started with the grilled baby octopus (5) served with fennel, bell peppers, green asparagus and citrus. The flavors of the citrus dressing went well with the octopus and vegetables. For my entrée, I had the pappardelle w/rabbit ragout. The dish was not overly rich, but I couldn’t finish it! The pasta was perfectly cooked and the rabbit quite tender. Tony had the selection of sliced Italian cured meats (a meal in itself) followed by the excellent grilled skirt steak with sautéed spinach in garlic and olive oil. He also ordered a side dish of eggplant parmesan, which he said was the best he had in a restaurant. Other dishes that were served: Parma prosciutto over melon w/grilled dates wrapped in pancetta; a puff pastry purse with vegetables; Veal, raisin and amaretto filled ravioli; a roasted chicken dish with a combination of broccoli-rabe and spinach sautéed in garlic and olive oil.

Three of us ordered desserts and we were served a small plate of various cookies. The desserts were small but the right size after an excellent meal.

Our total bill came to about $325; however, $120 was spent on three bottles of wine. At first I thought the wine was very expensive; however, a glass of wine (and house wine for that matter) in NYC can range from $9 to $15, so dividing the $120, we averaged $10 per glass; and about $50 per person for the food.

All in all, it was a wonderful evening in a great restaurant. I would recommend this place to those that want to dine post-theatre (only a 5 minute walk from the Shubert theatre) or anytime – just be sure to make reservations. I used the opentable.com web site for my reservations.

I’ll get to my trip journal in the next day or two, along with some photos! Time to go sit on the deck and have a glass of wine. It was a 5-hour drive home!

Monica ((F))
http://www.pileggiphotography.com

Hooray. I started to panic when I saw your title, since I think I'm the one who mentioned this place to you, even though I haven't been there yet.

I've already booked there for our first night in NYC, June 1, and may return for after theatre another night during the month.

Incidentally, I have since discovered that it is on the restaurant.com plan, where you buy a $25 certificate for $10. Saving $15 on a meal is always welcome in my book. And it's also a 1000 point Open Table restaurant for some times.

About pulling off some dishes trying to get into the table -- been there and done that. I just hate those long lines of tables with only a few inches between each one -- New York seating, I call it. I realize space is expensive and at a premium in New York -- but it's just so "uncomfortable" and so "public" as well -- dining with your neighbors.

Patrick and Monica - restaurant tables close together is the REAL reasons NYers stay so thin . . .

Thanks for your report - this place has never been on my radar, but maybe we'll try it next time we need to dine in the theatre district . . .

mp, it's fairly new and off the beaten path as it's on 44th between 8th and 9th where you wouldn't normally see it. It's a sister restaurant to the popular Vice Versa.

Yeah - I see it gets a 20 in Zagat . . . . not that that means all that much . ..

Yes NeoPatrick, you were the one that told me about this place so I booked it. We were all very pleased, along with the seeing Spamalot - great evening!!

The restaurant could remove one table along the wall and add it to the center area of the dining room to avoid any dish crashes.


mp, what's the rating scale for zagat? You mention this place gets a 20.

Monica ((F))

there are 3 categories, food, service and decor, all get a rating, from 0 to 30 - the highest food rating in NYC is 28 in the 2008 survey . . for Daniel, Le Bernardin, Sushi Yasuda, Per Se, Jean Georges, Peter Luger and Bouley. I'm not sure what the lowest food rating is, but Outback Steakhouse chain gets a 14 . . .

Zagat is pretty controversial, lotsa of discussion about 'stuffing the ballot box' and methodology and why some restaurants are popular, but not good . ..

My family has a theory - that a 20 in NYC is equal to a 22 up to 27 pretty much anywhere else . . . with a few exceptions, of course . .

mp, I agree particularly with that last statement. Competition is so fierce in NYC, that I know I eat at many restaurants in other cities that get a 22 or higher than wouldn't get above 17 or 18 in the NYC Zagat's. Who does the ratings for Zagat's? Basically anyone who wants to. You can go online and participate in their surveys in exchange for free guides. Nevertheless, I think it's pretty amazing how I generally seem to agree with the overall ratings there.

MP,
Great points on your Zagat theory in NYC.
The only Zagat number I have problems with lately is Bouley as its a 28 food. Its hardly a 28, maybe a 25 at best.

yeah, in terms of voting, when my son was 10 or 11 he was fascinated by statistics and excited by the idea of rankings . . . we eat out at least once a week, and he's always been into food, too - so . . . he went online and voted in the zagat surveys several years in a row. His favorite restaurant was Beacon in midtown. Not that there's anything wrong with that - he spent a lot of time thinking and judging and he's actually pretty sophisticated but . . . still. ANYONE can vote many times.

This had a downside, of course. By the time he was 12 he wanted his birthday dinner at Le Bernardin. He loved it . . . sigh. We think he's in for a big shock when he goes away to school . . .

Andrew, I agree with your Bouley criticism - and my husband and son had lunch upstairs at Bouley on Saturday - the first thing they said was, "overrated!"

Monica...

Thanks for the review. I'll be in NYC over Memorial Day weekend and have tickets for Boeing Boeing on Saturday night. (as well as Altar Boyz mantinee...that's our show day!).

Since we don't like having dinner too early I may see if there are any open reservations for that night at Etcetera, Etcetera.

Thank you, Monica, for your very good restaurant review. It is always a pleasure to read you reports.

Thingorjus

Thin,
Can you make it to the NYC GTG on June 13th?

Thanks for the rating explanation. It's all subjective. The four of us really enjoyed our meal. I'd go back and order the grilled skirt steak!

LowCountryIslander, I’d like to hear how you liked Boeing Boeing. There are so many good shows in NYC. I almost booked a second one – November – but decided not too. Too much to see and do in NYC. Our dinner reservations were for 9:30pm and it was good timing from getting out of the theatre to the restaurant.

Thingorjus, glad you enjoyed the review. :) I’ve started my trip report and will get the first day posted today.

Monica ((F))

Monica, I'm confused about your mathematics concerning the cost of the wine. You say it was $40 a bottle, factoring down to $10 a glass. That means you only got four glasses from bottle? How big were those wine glasses?

Monica,

I will do a trip report and include comments on Boeing Boeing.

Several months ago I signed up at Playbill.com and each week I get several emails with ticket discounts. Boeing Boeing was one of those emails about 2 months ago. The description looked good and I liked the cast and figured I would give it a shot. It's been years since I've seen a Broadway show and I'm really looking forward to it, plus the discount ticket pirce was enticing!

I read a review of opening night and it got petty nice praise. I'll let you know what I think! :)

Isn't a standard pour 6 ozs? If so, then there are just over 4 glasses in a 750 ml bottle. I guess some higher end places may do 5 oz pours.

Brian, you could be right. It just seems to me that we get more than 4 glasses when ordering a bottle.

Hi Howard,

I had only done a quick figuring using 6 ounces per glass. A bottle of wine is 25 ounces, so you could get five 5-ounce glasses out of a bottle, or $8 per glass. :)

Monica ((F))

Zagat's is excellent for phone numbers and general indications. It is heavily weighted by those who dine at the more exppensive places, as evidenced by their most popular list.

What I find curious is that on the Zagat's NY Market Gudie, there are very places under 20. This is where NY'ers spend there daily dollars and in the restaurant guide there are many under 20.

On chowhound for example, I would say 50% of the posters have no clue what they are talking about. These is probably true for Zagat's as well. Thus the good and the bad will be skewed.

I'm heading into NYC this weekend to see Boeing Boeing with DH, so I, too, will post my comments.

Saw Boeing, Boeing from the front row on Saturday night. VERY cute and funny. A bit over the top but I loved it.

add another who really enjoyed
Boeing Boeing.