Pre Theatre New York: Hairspray
 

We are going to see Hairspray Mar 17th 8pm showing. First time to a broadway play with my 16yr daughter and husband. Would like a suggestion for dinner before the performance since after might be to late for us. We love Italian or maybe American grill food(?).

Any suggestions would be very helpful. What time would the performance be done for an 8 pm showing?

There are many to choose from in the area including Becco, Orso and Lattanzi, all on Restaurant Row in the theater district (West 46th between 8th & 9th Avenues). How much did you want to spend?

For a terrific, upscale experience within walking distance - you could try Judson Grill - 152 W. 52nd St. bet. 6th & 7th - (www.judsongrill.com) Wonderful food, market driven, great service about $50 per person . As with most of the midtown restaurants, they will ask if you're going to a show, or you just tell your waiter - they will get you "out on time". Oh - I just realized - Mar. 17 is St. Patricks day . . . midtown is particularly packed on that day, reserve now and leave plenty of time to get any where . . .

sorry - misread your question - the show runs 2 hours and 40 minutes . . . includes an intermission

For price I wasn't really sure, somthing that won't be leaving us why did I spend so much for this!
We have to pick up the tickets at the box office on the day of the performace since I couldn't get them mailed to me(from Canada). So a place that we could eat, get our tickets and not be too rushed.
Pls keep the suggestions coming.....

Your response doesn't really help narrow down the price question! How about dollar range?

Sorry HowardR, I wasn't sure what to post. New York prices are entirley different than where I live in Ontario.
How about the three us for under $200.
No wine included in that price.

Caffe Cielo- 8th ave. bet. 52 & 53 - good not great pasta, nice space, reasonable - around 35 per person. Thalia - really good new American on 8th ave and 50th ( around 45 per person) Aqua Pazza pricey but delicious Italian 52nd bet. 5th and 6th.

I guess $200 for the 3 of us is too low, is $300 more acceptable? We want it to be a memorable night for my daughters 16th birthday! She loves thin crust pizza and pasta.

Hairspray is at the Neil Simon theatre which is on West 52nd street, between Broadway and Eight Ave. There are numerous restaurants in this area. Some of my favourite restaurants in the area are as follows. The first four offer pre-theatre dinners, the others may as well, you should check. Also check websites for sample menus and prices:

1. Barbetta
21 West 46th Street
212-246-9179
barbettarestaurant.com

Italian. Prix fixe pre-theatre dinner at about $55. They have a courtyard garden which is lovely in summer, plus several other nice dining rooms.

2. Orso
22 West 46th Street.
Tel: (212) 489-7212
http://www.orsorestaurant.com/ny/orsnyinfo.htm

Italian, including some nouvelle cuisine. A New York favourite.

3. Rene Pujol
21 West 51st Street (between 8th and 9th Ave)
212-246-3023
www.renepujol.com

Great French food in a lovely atmosphere. They offer prix fixe pre-theatre dinner at about $45.

4 ..Café Un Deux Trois
123 West 44th St
(Between 6th Ave & Broadway)
Tel: 212-354-4148
www.cafeundeuxtrois.biz/pages/831018/index.htm

Lively French bistro, some American menu items as well.

5. Sea Grill
19 West 49th Street, New York
(5th Ave at Rockefeller Center)
Tel: (212) 246-9201

Primarily seafood. Has great views of skaters on the rink, as the restaurant is adjacent to the rink

6. A good choice a bit further downtown (below Times Square)

Bryant Park Grill
behind the Public Library/Bryant Park
25 W. 40th St. (bet. 5th & 6th Aves.)
Tel: 212-840-6500
www.bryantpark.org/amenities/dining.php

American cuisine. You can eat indoors or outdoors (covered and heated) A great place for lunch or dinner.

7. For some "Sex and the City" Atmosphere further uptown

Tao
42 East 58th Street
(Between Park and Madison)
Tel: 212-888-2288.
www.taorestaurant.com

Fusion Aisan food and good music, great ambience with the giant Buddha overseeing all. Try all their different martinis.

The website for the theatre is http://www.neilsimon-theater.com/boxoffice.html. According to their website, you have to pick up the tickets an hour before the performance, which will kind of be a pain for you if you are trying to have dinner. Would it be possible for them to be mailed to your hotel? You might want to call the theatre to see if you can arrange to pick them up in the afternoon or the day before.

BOX OFFICE : (212) 757-8646
Opening hours
Mon - Sat: 10:00am - 8:00pm | Sunday: 12:00pm - 5:00pm

What about Sardis? It is famous for the hundreds of caricatures on its walls. The service and food are excellent with a prix fixe of $45 for dinner. And the location can't be beat.
www.sardis.com
I agree with mp - wherever you go, get reservations soon.

Now the followup question: Are you quoting American $$ or Canadian $$?
You can do fine for $300 in Canadian currency! Actually, you can have a choice at the $210 (Canadian) figure as well.
For the the higher price, I would recommend these two Italian restaurants: the aforementioned Orso on West 46th or Remi on West 53st, between 6th & 7th.
For the lower price, there's Becco, also on West 46th, which features an all-you-can-eat pasta special (three pastas each evening) for $21.95.

Quoting American $$. I think I am stuck picking up tickets a hour before the preformance so somewhere closer to theatre would be a wise choice. Are Orso, Becco or Barbetta within walking distance?
Judson Grill and Aqua Pazza I will check out also, walking distance?

First of all, based on my experience, I don't think you have to pick up the tickets exactly an hour before performance time. Think about it! Anyway, just stop there before you go to dinner. Orso, Becco and Barbetta are within walking distance--a little over 6 blocks, which is a little over a quarter mile.
If you're talking American dollars, than $210 can go a long way at most of the suggested restaurants. You should be able to keep within that budget at Orso, which I would recommend over the other two. (PS: You might have the added bonus of seeing a celebrity or two dining there.)

All the restaurants I suggested are within a 5-7 minute walk of the theatre . . . within 10 minutes is Beacon - 25 w. 56th which has GREAT wood fired thin crust pizz appetizers and wonderful New American food. I'm pretty sure they have a pre-theatre menu - check them out on opentable.com
Aqua pazza might not work for you - very seafood oriented . . .

HowardR: Just hung up with the Neil Simon box office and I can pick up tickets on the day of the performance. When I ordered with ticketmaster the unfriendly agent insisted only a hour before. Thanks again.
I will look at menu for Orso and make reservations since it might be busy.
Cicerone: I have printed you ideas also and will use them since we will be there for 4 nights. I see you also mentioned Orso.

Does anyone have any great sports bar suggestions. Both my husband and daughter are hockey fans. I've heard of ESPN?

mp: I just read your post on Beacon for thin crust pizza, I will also add that on my list since my daughter loves pizza. Have you heard of Grimaldi's pizzeria? We want to walk brooklyn bridge an heard this is great for pizza

Just one last suggestion, try Trattoria dell'Arte on 7th Ave at 56th St. It's a 3 minute walk to the Neil Simon theater, and is a great place for people watching, often celebs. Yor daughter will love the interior design. Last time I was there, Brooke Shields and Isaac Mizrahi were lunching.

The deserts at Orso are really out of this world, and huge, so do share. If you make a reservation for your daughter's birthday, you might ask if they can do a special deser for her.

wow MadisonV everyone's hawking choices for you - lots of good suggestions - Trattoria Dell'Arte is a fun place, too ( I think the food's better than Orso, but tha't just my opinion) Yes - the pizza at Grimaldi's is good - and walking over the bridge is great - Grimaldis is a little bit tricky to find walking off the bridge - you have to walking down a stairway that is a little creepy, but it's really ok -- let me think about directions . . . I hope the weather co-operates - if it does, definitely walk to the pier (about a block or so from grimaldis) and get ice cream at the Brooklyn Ice Cream Factory and watch the boats on the river. You can even take the NY Water Taxi back to Manhattan - a fun ride (but more expensive than the subway)