Reservation time for pre- and post- theatre?

Old Jul 17th, 2006, 09:03 PM
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Reservation time for pre- and post- theatre?

I've done my best to search for ideas for where to eat in NYC either before or after our Thursday evening show. (I think that, since we'll still be on west coast time, we should just grab something light beforehand and have a nice dinner after).

Lots of great suggestions out there that I'm trying to narrow down. But here's a question I haven't found the answer to...

What time do I make the reservation for? I have no idea how much time to allow if we eat before the show, or how long getting out of the show takes if we're going to eat after.
Help PLEASE!
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Old Jul 17th, 2006, 10:13 PM
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You can almost always find the running time of the show on Playbill.com Then, figure out how long it will take to get from the theater to your dining destination.

We prefer dinner after the show, as it tends to be more chaotic pre-show. If you do dine pre-show, make the earliest reservation possible to allow plenty of time for dinner, getting your check and paying, then getting to the theater and to your seat.
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Old Jul 17th, 2006, 10:25 PM
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Thanks, djkbooks, I'll check on running times. But help me out with this -- Besides travel time to the resturant, how much time do I allow for getting out of the theatre and will the walk to dinner take longer because of all the theatre crowds?

(I guess I should explain that I live in a small town where reservations are NEVER required, and when I go into LA for an event it's usually something like a concert or a Dodger game, where I'm leaving the venue along with thousands of people.)
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Old Jul 18th, 2006, 01:01 AM
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If you are dining pre-theatre, you would want to make a reservation at a restaurant reasonably near the theatre so that you can walk in 10 minutes or so. If you go to a restaurant that does pre-theatre meals (and many do) they are very experienced in getting you in and out in time. Mention when you make a booking that you have theatre tickets and they will recommend a time. I would say 6 or 6:30 pm is fine unless you have a very large party, or are so far away that you have to take a taxi to get to the theatre. Mention again when you are seated that you are going to a show to remind them that you need to keep things moving. There is a "restaurant row" on West 46th Street with has about a dozen very good restaurants (some of my favorites are below) that are all within an easy walking distance of most theatres. Many of these have set menus for pre-theatre which are good value, check their websites.

IMO if you want to have a meal at a restaurant at a remote location like way downtown, then go AFTER the play so you can relax and enjoy it and not worry about getting a taxi or subway uptown in time. When you make a booking for an after theatre meal, depending on the restaurant's location, plan it for 20-30 minutes after the show's scheduled end, but explain to the restaurant that you are coming from a theater and that they should hold the table for you. If you give them a cell phone number in any event, they should not have any issue with this. You can also call them if you are really delayed in traffic or something.

In my experience, there are no appreciably larger crowds on the streets for the theatres, so don't worry about having to work you way through extra crowds; this is NYC, so the streets are always somewhat crowded but completely manageable. The only big crowd you might encounter is right in front of a theatre itself as people are going in, but really this is nothing to plan around. In 30 years of going from dinner to theater or vice versa, I have never been late because of a crowd in the street or in front of a theatre.... If you have to cross Times Square you might allow yourself a little extra time because there are number of lights and there could be some crowds here. If you are there at Christmas there are more crowds than at any other time, but again perfectly manageable. The theatre district is spread out enough that there are not 40,000 people on one street all trying to get into or out of the theatres. There might be 2-3 theatres at most on one street, each holding a few thousand people each.

After the show, if you are in a very large theatre or have seats which are several flights up, it could take 10 minutes or a bit longer for you to be able to get physically out of the theatre, otherwise it will take maybe 5 minutes. It is nothing at all like existing from a sports stadium, its more like existing from your high school auditorium.

After the show, you again will have some crowds on the street, but the only issue there, IMO is trying to get a taxi. If you can walk to a subway or better yet, walk to your restaurant you will have no problem. If you need to get a taxi, try walking a few blocks away from the theatre in either direction to the nearest major cross avenue which goes in the direction you need to go (i.e. 8th Ave goes one way only, uptown) and hailing one there.

If you can tell us the theatre you are going to, and the restaurants you are considering, many here could give you a very concise idea of travel time on foot or by subway (by taxi is a crap shoot kind of with traffic, but could give a rough idea).
On "restaurant row" (46th Street), two favourites are:
Barbetta
21 West 46th Street
(Between 8th and 9th Ave)
Tel: 212-246-9171
www.barbettarestaurant.com

Italian. Prix fixe pre-theatre dinner at about $50. They have a courtyard garden which is lovely in summer, plus several other nice dining rooms.

Orso
22 West 46th Street.
(Between 8th and 9th Ave)
Tel: 212- 489-7212
Italian, including some nouvelle cuisine.


Other favorites within walking distance of the theatre district:

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

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

They offer prix fixe pre-theatre dinner at about $45.


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

Good but further afield:

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

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.

Asia de Cuba
237 Madison Avenue (between 37th and 38th St)
tel: 212-7267755

Fusion Asian and Cuban (sounds weird but isn't). They have large portions, so a few appetizers and a few entrees shared by all will be plenty of food. Desserts are enormous.


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Old Jul 18th, 2006, 02:49 AM
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Some restaurants (like Joe Allen's) will ask you what show you're seeing since THEY know the running times and you just show up.

I agree for eating before the show 6-6:30 rezzie for an 8 pm curtain. For after, some shows are 2 hrs., others 2 1/2.

The theaters are mostly in the west 40s with a few in the low 50s. So I would probably pick different restaurants for a show on say west 44 st. than one on 51 st.

If you plan to eat after the show, you really don't have to stay in the theater district although it's usually very hard to find a taxi after the shows break.
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Old Jul 18th, 2006, 06:20 AM
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Excellent advice given above regarding pre-show dining. I would add that post-show reservations are a bit more lax. We have been late (within reason - 15 minutes) for our reservation with no difficulty. NY restaurants are not so strict that they give away tables if one is 5 minutes late. However, you can not abuse this courtesy by dawdling. We have also phoned our restaurant while enroute to assure them that we are indeed coming but having difficulty with traffic. Suggest you program the restaurant phone number into your cell phone.
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Old Jul 18th, 2006, 06:31 AM
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Since there are literally dozens (hundreds?) of restaurants within walking distance of the theater district, how about giving us an idea about how much you want to spend and what type(s) of food you prefer.
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Old Jul 18th, 2006, 06:38 AM
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Skip the pre show snack altogether and just eat a late lunch.
 
Old Jul 18th, 2006, 07:10 AM
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sart29, thanks for asking this. I am traveling to NYC in late August and am also planning a pre-theater meal on a Sat. evening, staying at the Muse on 46th btwn 6th and 7th, close to restaurant row, and seeing a play at the Hirschfield theater after dinner. Will have a vegetarian (no meat or seafood) 13 yr old w/me, so italian is good.
So I am interested in the restaurant row recommendations. Barbetta looks nice but maybe a little too fancy. Will look at Orso. I'll be watching any other suggestions.

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Old Jul 18th, 2006, 07:12 AM
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emd, how much do you want to spend?
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Old Jul 18th, 2006, 07:52 AM
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Thanks so much everyone, that's exactly the kind of info I needed.

I know we plan to stay in the theatre district for dinner. Haven't decided where yet. I had narrowed it down to a top 8 based on info from these boards. I printed menus from menupages.com for those and gave them to DH. His assignment is to come up with a top three and then I'll see about reservations.

Cicerone, you've given me some new reccomendations, so I'll have to check out menus and see if I need to replace some of those in my husband's stack before he gets to them this evening.
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Old Jul 18th, 2006, 09:03 AM
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Your reservation time depends on how leisurely you want to dine. I don't like to rush. So, I try to allow 2 hours to eat. For a 8PM show I try to have dinner at 5:30 which then gives you 1/2 hour to walk to the theater, get to seats, etc. That being said, many restaurants don't open until 6, so in that case I go at that time.
Here is link to one of my favorites in the theater district.
http://www.autoutvabien.com/index.html
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Old Jul 18th, 2006, 09:13 AM
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Howard, about $50 a person (for salad and entree), plus add on a bottle of wine as a friend who lives in Brooklyn is joining us for dinner. My daughter gets by well on a few appetizers and salad and may not need an entree, if there are vegetarian appetizers available.
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Old Jul 18th, 2006, 09:16 AM
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p.s. We went to Becco on our last trip and were not too happy; food was heavy and the pretheater service was not good. Maybe it was an off night, as I know it gets good reviews.
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Old Jul 18th, 2006, 09:22 AM
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See a matinee and enjoy dinner at a normal hour.

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Old Jul 18th, 2006, 01:14 PM
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emd, for that price, I'd recommend two excellent Italian restaurants on West 46th: Orso and Lattanzi.
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Old Jul 18th, 2006, 01:21 PM
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Thanks, Howard, I will check them out.
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Old Jul 19th, 2006, 04:18 AM
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Thanks to both Cicerone and Howard for the Orso recommendation. It should be perfect for us as vegetarian will be able to have appetizers and one of the small pizzas, and rest of the menu looks great for us. So looking forward to it.

Sart29, have you decided to dine after theater then? We just can't eat a big meal after 10 pm (esp. in August heat after a long full day out), so we will have good breakfast and then early dinner.
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Old Jul 19th, 2006, 02:28 PM
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We decided to go ahead and eat before the show. Even though that will feel like the middle of the afternoon, I don't want to bed with a heavy meal on my stomach, so we made reservations for Becco at 6, and then we'll hit Swizz for chocolate fondue after the show.

I really appreciate all the help with this country bumpkin's first trip to New York. I'm firming up a few more things and then I'll post an itinerary for comments.
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