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Restaurants in New York
We are going to celebrate my sister's 21st birthday, looking for some great restaurants. We will be staying at the Palace on Madison Ave. What are some great places to eat around there. What are the new "it" restaurants. Any type of cuisine or budget is fine. Some fun places will be nice.
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What is your budget per person?
For the new 'it' restaurants, be prepared to shell out an average of $100 per person minimum in Midtown. |
My budget is $75-100 per person. I would also like some good budget restarants also, every meal doesn't have to be expensive.
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The 21 Club is a classic place to celebrate a 21st birthday. It's within a short walk of the Palace.
The "it" restaurants that would be closest to the Palace are BLT Steak on 57 st. or the Lever House on Park & 53 st. TAO is considered trendy (Asian) on east 58 st. and would probably be the most "fun." David Burke & Donatella is another trendy place with very good food. THE places in midtown right now are all in the Time Warner building at Columbus Circle- Per Se, Cafe Gray, Asiate in the Mandarin Oriental, Stone Rose... |
Please, for the love of all things holy, do not celebrate a 21st birthday at a restaurant near the Palace (midtown). So lame. If you're looking for "fun," you must go downtown. Two great options: L'Orange Bleue and Hue. The Park is another option, as is Chez Es Saada. Havana Village has a room in the back that you might be able to reserve. Amazing Sangria! www.lorangebleue.com www.huenyc.com www.theparknyc.com www.chezessaada.com www.havanavillagenyc.com Please, downtown. It's her 21st birthday, for heaven's sake. Good luck & Enjoy! (The restaurants listed by mclaurie are all wonderful, particularly Miss Arpaia's new offering, but none are even close to appropriate for a 21st b-day celebration, in my opinion of course.) |
Aw Gekko, I love 21 Club!
You have to admit that the food is better than it has been in years and it's a classic NYC thing to do. Old New Yorkish. Remember, at one time, 21 Club was the hip funky new thing to do. Besides, you never know what power player you'll run into while there! Suggestion 21 isn't like sending someone to Tavern On The Green or The Rainbow Room for the food. |
I'd recommend any of Steve Hanson's restaurants.... you can view all the menus online at www.brguestrestaurants.com they're all reasonably priced, have a cool/fun atmosphere, and great drinks. Vento is cool and has great Italian food.... Dos Caminos has great Mexican food... Ruby Foos is family-style Asian.... Blue Water and Blue Fin have great seafood. You can't go wrong at any of them.
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With all due respect, Gekko has been ranting here for a couple of years about how there are no good restaurants midtown and no one in their right mind should eat there. So obviously he hasn't himself in a couple years. When one's mind is made up, it's hard to change. But a lot can happen in an area in two years; it's hard to imagine all those critics and award givers are wrong about their assessment of some of the midtown restaurants.
For noise, hip, and fun -- it is hard to beat Tao anywhere else in New York. It's not a dining destination, it's one huge 21st birthday party every night! Drinks at the Monkey Bar are fun. I haven't been, but I thought BLT Steak was one of the IT restaurants now. |
I like 21 Club as well; my Dad insists on it when he's in town (reminds him of the good 'ole days).
But we're talking about a <b>21st birthday</b>, a right of passage that should be undertaken at an <i>appropriate</i> venue. And, as an aside, there are plenty of midtown restaurants that I enjoy and frequent on a regular basis (several are listed by mclaurie, for example), but I find that people who suggest midtown eateries only know midtown eateries (and/or they are "of a certain age"). For "younger" people looking for a fun/hip atmosphere, midtown just isn't it. Sorry. |
"For "younger" people looking for a fun/hip atmosphere, midtown just isn't it. Sorry."
Really, Gekko? Have you considered posting a message to that effect outside TAO to let all those mobs of young people know they are lost and don't really belong there? |
Of course there are exceptions to every "rule," but Tao is not one of them (that is, if you're looking for a "new 'it'" restaurant as naj is).
I enjoyed my first meal at Tao in the Fall of 2000. My friends from Florida certainly still enjoy it however, and I imagine are indicative of the "mob" to which you refer. |
The OP asked for "it" - not classic NY. So I agree that it is best to hop a cab and head downtown. Trendy right now - Spice Market, Kittichai, Matsuri, Employees Only, and any place in the Meatpacking District. Agree with the Steve Hanson recs too - not the most daring food in NY, but fun atmosphere, hip, well executed. Some more economic choices - Tia Pol, Republic, Schiller's. If you give me a better idea of what types of food/atmosphere you are looking for, I can give you more specific recs.
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While I agree that the Meatpacking District is hip & trendy (I have an office one block from Pastis), it doesn't strike me as appropriate for a 21st birthday party.
In my opinion, having celebrated many 21st b-days in the city, the key is fun. A social, open atmosphere like L'Orange Bleue, with the outgoing staff and dancing-on-your-chair attitude, is perfect. |
I see your point, Gekko, about the MD, and I think a lot depends on how sophisticated the 21-year-old is. For truly "it" (though not actually trendy anymore, as the true trendsetters fled the MD as soon as the hordes closed in) I'd still go with Meatpacking. That said, my 20-year-old sister was actually quite uncomfortable when I took her to Level V this summer. At 21, my palate wasn't particularly sophisticated, and I think my 21st bday was actually more about the booze and fun and feeling glamorous. So on that note I'd recommend Dos Caminos, Sala, Chez es Saada, or Son Cubano.
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Exactly.
Of course, a lot depends on the size of the party as well. Will naj be seeking a private room, or will he just need a four-top? The smaller the party, the more important the festive atmosphere. While I enjoy the B R Guest restaurants (and still lament the closing of Coconut Grill), they strike me as too, well, <i>normal</i> (with the exception of Ruby Foo's perhaps). They're definitely very "corporate," and naj can do better for a special occasion. After all, it's New York! |
I've gotta step in and defend Gekko's recommendations. 21 Club for a "hip" 21st birthday? I'm not sure that's the best recommendation. As for Dos Caminos and the rest, those are great restaurants if you live in Dallas, but not in NYC. I certainly mean no offense, but there are so many incredible, interesting, hip, non-chain/corporate restaurants that are MUCH more worth your time, ESPECIALLY for a 21st birthday!
Here are some good food blogs that cover NYC that might help: http://www.gothamist.com/archives/food/ http://www.andreastrong.com/ http://www.mouthfulsfood.com/forums/ http://www.thefoodsection.com http://www.gastropoda.com/ At all costs, though, aim for below 23rd Street. After the birthday, check out Midtown. |
For a fun celebration, I'd suggest The Flute, which is a fun champagne restaurant/bar and VERY trendy and there are 2 now, one just off 7th Ave in the upper 40's and one in the Flatiron Distrist, near 5th and 23rd.
They have a website with menu. We were there not long ago for a celebration and the food and choices of champagene were wonderful. Have a GREAT time. |
The website for The Flute is www.flutebar.com. Hope this helps.
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I'm glad to hear that the meatpacking district has done a turn around in the last year, and hopefully Pastis as well? I was very surprised just over a year ago with this comment about one of my favorites -- Pastis!!
Author: Gekko Date: 01/12/2004, 08:51 pm Message: Balthazar & certainly Pastis are both yesterday's news. Balthazar's food is still excellent, however; Pastis is a waste of time and good money. If you're interested in trendy places, consider something on the Lower East Side. |
Pastis was the first "in" spot to open, a long time ago, before the area itself was hot. Now Pastis is definitely an also-ran, old news, a tourist destination.
Vento, One Little West 12th, Spice Market -- the new kids on the block that are already showing their age. |
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