Hi Guys,

I'm travelling to NYC from Ireland next February with my girlfriend. I'm wondering is it possible to have a dining experience for two in a private area of a restaurant? Preferably for brunch?

Thanks for your help.

Do I sense an engagement about to happen?

Sorry, I have no suggestion for you, though.

I'm not aware of any place that has a private room for 2. There are a lot of places with private rooms - some of them small - but not that small. I would think you would have to guarantee a minimum amount that would be a lot for 2 people.

You might want to try a place with table with a view and book one a table in a corner. Just be prepared for real winter weather- possibly quite a bit of snow and temps of zero - farenheit - not centigrade at night.

How about room service in your hotel?

I suggest a restaurant named Cibo's located at 767 2nd Avenue at East 41st Street. It's a lovely restaurant offering very good food that includes Mediterranean choices. The dining room to the right has a few booths with curtains that untie giving guests privacy. Don't think diner because I mentioned booths. It's nothing like that. (212)681-1616. Ask for Bist.
Website at cibonyc.com

I'm not aware of a single restaurant that offers a private dining room for 2. You'd have to pay for the use of a room that seats 10 or more, and that might be prohibitively expensive.

Asiate at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel does have some botths set off in semi-private alcoves. Perhaps that would do? There are certainly restaurants that offer a more private experience than others.

If you have a large budget, you can check out the Skybox at Daniel, the small room at Per Se, and Picholine. Artisanal has a Cheese Cave, I believe, that two people can request.
Mind you, all but the last are very pricey restaurants.

Kingaling,

Here is one I found: http://philipmarie.com/the-wine-room...-for-only-two/

Restaurant is Philip Marie but it has a private room for 2 in their wine cellar! Sounds like fun and romantic as well.

http://le-bernardin.com/private-dini...lons-bernardin

says they can subdivide rooms into different configurations, worth a look see.

http://www.barbutonyc.com/private_parties.html

Not sure any of these would be what u are looking for. Good luck.

Thanks for your ideas everybody. The wine cellar looks great, but I think I'd prefer somewhere with a city view. I don't plan on spending big enough to pay for the skybox.

Maybe the booth idea might be better, hopefully somewhere reasonably private, possibly roof top?? Am I asking to much?

Thanks for the ideas, keep them coming.

If you can manage to reserve a window table at Asiate on the 35th Floor of the Mandarin Oriental, which overlooks Columbus Circle, Central Park and a good part of the rest of Manhattan, you'll have a great view. It's a difficult reservation, but, if you explain your circumstances, they might be inclined to accommodate you. The food and service, not to mention the view, are outstanding.

Incidentally, Asiate offers brunch from noon to 2 p.m. on weekdays and from 11:45 a.m. to 2 p.m. on weekends. Reservations are absolutely imperative. You might want to call or e-mail ahead to find out when their reservation book opens, then reserve as soon as possible. Also consider using opentable.com.

I think room service is the perfect solution. Get a nice room with a view.

Roof top places in NY will not be open in Feb - you would freeze.

There are several places with high floor views from the mundane (top of the Marriott Marquis - to the sublime: Per Se). Not sure of all of them but if you look at menupages.com, opentable.com or zagats that might be one of the categories you can search for (perhaps under "view" if not top of the building.

A private room for 2 with city view??? Get a hotel room with a view and order room service.

regarding reserving a window view table at Asiate. Let me tell you my story.

A couple of years ago we planned a nice lunch for the two of us there. We called about two months in advance. We were told "there is NO way we can guarantee a window table, but we will do our best". They suggested we make the reservation for when the restaurant opens and be a little early. So we did. But what we didn't know was that for that day there was a rather large business luncheon, and the table had been rearranged, with the group blocking the window views. So we were given a banguette table -- you know the kind you get in NYC, lined up on a bench, with people on each side of you. We asked if there was a more "private" table, but there were none due to the rearranging of the room. Admittedly it was more spacious than most, but our very expensive (and frankly quite good, but hardly memorable) lunch was a pretty major disappointment.

When a place can't guarantee you'll get a window table, you take your chances. If a window table or a very private one is IMPORTANT, then you probably need to seek elsewhere, or be willing to give up on that requirement if it doesn't happen.

I don't think that any NYC restaurant will guarantee a window view, unfortuately. Whenever I request a particular table, or a certain type of table (corner, booth, window, etc), I get the standard response--the same one as you received: "We will do our best, but cannot guarantee."

Maybe River Cafe would be a good option. It should be fully operational by next year, and it's widely considered to be one of the most romantic places in NYC.

Very romantic, quite good food - and it was fixed price menu - so no surprises. But do look at menupages.com to see the menus and prices for any restaurant. And remember that on top of the price quoted there is 8+% tax and 20% tip.

Rivercafe.com is already serving for private meals. By Feb. I'd imagine it will be open to the public. Won't be private but lovely spot.

Gaonnuri is a newish Korean rstaurant with outstanding views. It's not all that well known so while not private, I wouldn't think it will be crowded. http://www.gaonnurinyc.com/

Here's another idea, many of the newer hotels have rooftop bars, most of which are not open during the day. If you haven't already booked a hotel, pick one with a rooftop bar and arrange to be allowed up for the view. Pop your question and then go elsewhere for brunch. The Strand hotel is one such. http://www.arkrestaurants.com/mobile/robert.php

One hotel rooftop that is open for weekend brunch is at the Kimberly.