missypie, it's been a while but I have eaten at Becco twice. When there were four of us the antipasta platter was clearly double the size it was when there were two of us. Things were counted out the same -- so many pieces of each item for each person.

And for the record, while two of us may have gotten off the subject and a little carried away, I'd never say that Becco is "terrible". In fact, as a pre or post theatre meal that is convenient in location, organized to get you in and out in time, and reasonably priced, it isn't bad at all. There are many places I'd prefer, but I didn't mean to suggest it is a "bad" restaurant with my comments using that word generally.

Interesting, NeoPatrick. Someone else described what their party of 6 got and it was exactly what the two of us got when we ate there (same portion size.) Sounds like the other group should have spoken up.

I am not going to get into this discussion, but will point out that the Zagat guide (I agree not the be all and end all, but an indicator of local opinion, including my own) gives Tavern on the Green a dismal 15 for food. Personally I don't know anyone who would ever choose to eat there unless they were attending some kind of convention or other event. I find it hard to believe that it is rated as the favorite special occasion venue in the city.

Becco is an all-you-can-eat pasta place. Never a good indicator of quality.

There is an Olive Garden in Manhattan on Sixth Avenue in the 20s. I cannot imagine who eats there. Most of those chain places do not last long in NYC.

In all fairness to Becco, no, it's not gourmet dining, but it is certainly above a mediocre rating. And, its $21.95 pasta special is still one of the best bargains in midtown.....regardless of what size serving of antipasto you get!

Oy vey. I just have to weigh in here. I am very much a foodie and love fine dining and the whole experience revolving around it. I also live in NYC and have eaten in every single top rated restaurant we have. HOWEVER, not every dinner every night can be an event for us. There are nights that we are rushing from work to get to the theater and dash in the first place that has an empty table, or we are just miserably exhausted and want some food. Or someone else has been in charge of the reservation and we end up wherever they have chosen--and do so with a positive attitude. So, even though we have excellent taste (smiling here), we do eat in what many would consider to be 2nd rate (and sometimes 3rd rate) restaurants pretty often. Sometimes we are pleasantly surprised and end up going back again, other times we say yuck and that is it. We are not often completely disappointed, and I can count on two hands how many meals we have had that have been just awful (Rao's is one of them). Sometimes average is not a bad thing.

Great point, bugswife. I always say there is a difference between "destination" dining and just eating. And the latter isn't always that bad. Even tourists with very discerning taste while in New York may want to venture off by taxi a night or two to a "destination" restaurant, but I'm tired of trying to explain to a handful of NYC locals why it is silly for someone staying two blocks away from a theatre to go 80 blocks for dinner every night when some nights it's just easier, more convenient, and still quite good to eat at a place that's only a few steps from both their hotel and their theatre.

Incidentally, according to "some" you'd think that all tourists when they travel have lousy taste and don't care about good food. How very ludicrous. I'm wondering what exempts New Yorkers from that same scenario when they travel -- and they become tourists in other cities. Do they suddenly become like the tourists to NYC coming from San Francisco, Boston, Chicago, or wherever -- suddenly throwing their taste buds away and settling for mediocre food like "all the other tourists"? What would make anyone think that a person with particular food tastes at home, suddenly changes when he travels?

And as to who would eat at that Olive Garden mentioned above? -- the same type person who would eat at an Olive Garden in Chicago, or Miami, or any other city in the US. Do you honestly think people in other cities only eat at Olive Garden because it's the "best they have"? How silly. No, some people LOVE Olive Garden -- that's their right and privilege. The idea that it is a "mediocre" restaurant therefore only tourists would go there is the idea that I've been arguing against here.

I have been to an Olive Garden twice. The first time was when they first came to town. We tried it and were disappointed. The second time was many many years later. Our family of 5 had just been to a movie. It was late. Olive Garden was about a block away. We were famished, the breadsticks were hot, the salad was crisp and we really enjoyed it. I agree that sometimes a restaurant is a destination or the event of the night; other times you're hungry, it's convenient, and lots of restaurants are just fine.

The whole thought of Olive Garden makes me laugh because I live with someone who has been dying to try the place for ages. I have told him that I will treat him when I find another of the two for one coupons that they publish in the newspaper once in awhile!!

I agree that a tourist who is bound for the theatre or other event may be condemned to eating in a less-than-wonderful place due to convenience. Personally, with very few exceptions (Le Bernadin!!) I tend to steer clear of the theatre district, and the entire midtown area, for dining.

I shun places that I think will be mediocre. I would rather eat dinner in a Chinatown dive if their food is great, than in an Olive Garden! Or a Becco. I can cook better food at home. But hotel tourists do not have that option.

Here are some places that I enjoyed in the last few weeks:

Ouest
Little Owl
Bar Blanc
Shanghai Tide, Flushing
Amazing 66, Mott Street
Allen and Delancey
Casa Mono
Omai

I have to argee with Patrick. I used to live in Chelsea and worked on 7th Ave.

Auduchamp, I think I read here that you live on the LES. Correct?

Let me tell you that my co-workers and I frequently had lunch or quick after-work dinners at many TS chains--including Beef Steak Charlie's and TGI Friday's.

To say that New Yorkers don't eat at places like Olive Garden is ridiculous. Do you know how many people from Hoboken, Jersey City, Long Island work in Midtown????

The vast majority of these people can't afford to eat lunch at Sea Grill everyday.

Living on the LES, you may be out of the loop. Just walk up 6th Ave (at 51st) and look at all the office workers eating at Heartland Brewery.

Thingorjus

Manhattan is not the easiest place to get around. We have successfully negotiated the subway systems in Paris, London and Barcelona (not speaking the language in two of those three places), but were repeatedly confounded by the NYC subway system....sure they were rookie mistakes we made, but here's my point. If you've bought theatre tickets for the family, it is of great comfort to arrive at your destination with plenty of time, eat dinner nearby, then walk to the theatre. If you live there, or visit New Yokr often, you might be very comfortable eating in another neighborhood, then zipping to the theatre just in time for the show. However, eating in the theatre district adds a level of security and convenience for many tourists.

First, Tom42 please check the chronology. I posted and then Neo weighed in.

Now where to begin.

I only eat at expensive restaurants maybe four times a year and two of those are during Restaurant Week. I am not speaking of expensive places.

I too have been to Pizzeria Uno and TGIF's for an office this or that, and it is plain old dreadful. Same thing for Tavern, where it was corporate function, the food was almost inedible.

So NY'ers do go there but because of convenience not because of great food. So it a tourist is here why should they go there?

And if you think Olive Garden where the food is older than the kids who prepare it is better than a neighborhood Italian joint? Please, please, then go there but do not send a tourist becuase there are hundreds that are better.

There is a place in the neighborhood called the Coffee Shop on Union Square. It had a reputation for attracting models and glamoratti, it is disgusting and once closed by the board of health but is is packed at lunch and on weekends. Why is it still crowded? Horomones, i guess, but not in the food.

I have a dear friend who worked for the Food Channel but lives out of state. When she had 2nd Ave chopped liver and the siganture dish at Cacio e pepe. Both tastes were too strong for her.

I am speaking of the hundreds of ethnic and inexpensive reaturants that I do not see when traveling the country. If you are not exposed to them, how to do you know about them.

When I visit other cities I always ask a local to direct me to resaturants. It is their city, not mine. They know better than I do.

The citiies I have visited the most are LA and San Francisco. Our office was two blocks from Boulevard, considered one of the best in SF. It was middling. I often thought the Chinese food was better there, but it far superior now in Monterrey Park, CA and Flushing Queens. The Italian food in SF is long been romanticized and is over rated. My favorite place is an Afgahni restaurant in North Breach called Helmond. I have not found a place in NYC to match that.
That is the type of place in NYC that should be recommended, a unique, realtively inexpensive, and grratifying experience.

The fact that you call SF's Boulevard "middling" and say that the Italian food in SF is "overrated" (which restaurants, I wonder?) speaks volumes. I understand a lot better now. Thanks for clarifying your opinions.

Lived in Chelsea and dined at Beefsteak Charlie's and TGIF Fridays???? Come on...you are just teasing us and you know it..you would not be caught dead in those places with your Goyard tote bags! Where the heck is Beefsteak Charlie's in Chelsea????? Puh-leese!!!!

The same people who eat their lunch at Macdonald's patronize those places...there are always going to be some who do not care about what they put in their mouths.

Um, if you re-read my post ekscrunchy, you will see that I wrote TS--Times Square Area.

Many of my co-workers and I would go to Beefsteak Charlie's--near the Ed Sullivan Theatre--for their salad bar (which we all loved because we had to stay THIN to keep our jobs). :)

Aduchamp, I never wrote that Olive Garden was as good as a neighborhood Italian on the LES. However, I don't think chain restaurant food is always disgusting. It all depends what you order. I have had some good sandwiches at TGI Friday.

I grew up eating Marmite on toast and prawn salad sarnies from Little Chef.

I can eat anything if I wash it down with gin.

Thingorjus

And although I'm a bit embarrassed to mention it, not long ago I did stop at MacDonald's -- for a very late lunch, when I felt I was nearing diabetic coma! I had a "new" grilled chicken salad that was crisp and very fresh field greens with a fair amount of arugula. The chicken breast was grilled and sliced -- very moist and very tasty. The salad dressing was Paul Newman's in a package, but quite good. As I sat there and ate it, I couldn't help but think that I've had much worse salads in nice restaurants for three or four times the price. In fact, they could do one of those "hidden camera" tests, put this salad on a nice plate in a fancy restaurant, and I'm willing to bet most of the customers would have raved about how good it was -- for an expensive price.
Now if I went back and got another I'm not sure how good it would be. And I'm also pretty well convinced it wasn't just my hunger that made me think it was that good.

Well, Patrick, I ADORE Oreo Cookie McFlurries from McDonald's.

I will never forget the Oreo Cookie McFlurry I had whilst riding the Star Ferry from Hung Hom to the HK side of Victoria Harbour. It is like Proust's madeleine for me.

Thin

Patrick and Thin,
You both should try the Shake shack in Madison Square Park. Its only open during the warmer months.
http://shakeshack.com/index.html

Thanks andrew, but perhaps you missed my "near diabetic coma" remark above. Clearly one of those things would put me into one!
Besides, I really don't care for sweets anyway, but the other "half" of us LOVES them so we just may have to make a journey to Shake Shack in June. Does is match Island Burgers and Shakes?

I like Shake Shack and have been there many times. It is nice to sit under the trees for lunch, then go buy some Lime/Basil/Mandarin candles at Jo Malone in the Flat Iron Building. :)

If I have enough enery after that, I go into Fishes Eddy for some lovely glasses.

Thin

They are talking about keeping Shake Shack open all year. I guess you will get a blanket with every burger in January.

Thing-Anybody who eats Marmite gets two votes in a food discussion simply based on survival. The Olive Garden comments were directed at one in particular except Darden.

And I have eaten at Boulevard maybe 5 or six times. The staff also looks like the Boys of Brazil, each born within 15 minutes of each other.