Could anyone suggest any restaurants near the New York Helmsley Hotel at E. 42nd & 3rd Ave? Both casual and more upscale. We will be in New York at the end of February and will be taking clients out for dinner. Thanks for any help you can give us. Also, anyone stayed at this hotel, it's our first time there.

A couple of more places, both with an emphasis on seafood, are Dock's, at 3d Ave and 40th St. (also good for Sunday brunch) and Tropica, in the Met Life building. There is also the dining concourse at Grand Central Terminal, which is a sort of food court made up of non-chain restaurants that are outposts of well-known Manhattan restaurants, serving everything from caviar to pizza. The seating is mostly communal food court-style, but with a pleasant atmosphere and good food. There is a good gourmet market in the station, as well. There are two upscale places in Grand Central, a mediterranean place called Metrazur, which has had mixed reviews, and Michal Jordan'd the Steakhouse, which despite the celebrity name is not a theme restaurant and gets excellent reviews. There is a very swanky place for drinks in Grand Central called the Campbell Apartment. The upscale places in GCT could be good for a client dinner because they have a dramatic view of the beautifully restored main hall. As far as other upscale places, you will be near a couple of good steakhouses, Smith & Wollensky (and its less expensive grill) at49th and 3d Ave., and Sparks, on 46th near 3d. If you're really trying to stick within this neighborhood, you could look up the by-neighorhood listings on www.zagat.com for starters. Unfortunately, it's not the most culinarily exciting area--but if you're willing to travel north or west, you'll have umpteen choices.

Bonnie,
I worked around the corner from the Helmsley for 15 years. Most of our clients were housed there. A very nice hotel, centrally located. Don't worry. Any coffee shop in the area is definitely woth it's worth in breakfast. Any Chinese restaurant up & down 2nd Avenue is worth it's weight in gold. Have fun

My compliments, Caitlin. You did a good job of listing the choices in that area. There's not much to add!

We stayed there in November and that was the first time I'd stayed there in about 12 years. It's okay but the decor hasn't changed since the last time I stayed there so don't expect much.
We had dinner at Metrazur in Grand Central one night and found the food good(not earth shattering, but good)and the ambiance was great! Cafe Centro next to Grand Central is a big, brasserie type place that has good food and service.

Tuscan Steak has recently opened across Third from Dock's @ 40th Street. Would possibly require advance reservations. The food is actually pretty good and the space is very dramatic.

Bonnie, I second Docks, took a client there last week and it was very good. There is also a large and excellent restaurant right on 42nd across from the Hyatt, name starts with a C, I think it is Cipriani's. Good atmosphere and good food.

My office is at 2nd and 42nd so I stop at the Au Bon Pain everymorning for tea and muffins, highly recommended and of course there is a Starbucks around the corner at 3rd and 41st.

You will find that area very convenient and easy to get around. The #104 and 42 bus goes right by the hotel and will connect you to the theatre district. There are usually cabs right at the hotel if you need one. There are a few shops on 42nd so if you forget something everything will be close at hand.

Have a great time while you are here.

Not sure how you feel about Japanese food, but there are two wonderful restaurants right near there -- Hapon and Sushi Yasuda. You can go to both casually dressed, but both would be a good place to take clients. Sushi Yasuda is a more "zen" kind of experience, with beautiful simple design and wonderful, unique sushi. Hapon is just tasty.

In addition to those mentioned already, you should consider some of these nearby restaurants. For good italian: Osteria Laguna, just across the street from the hotel; and Belluno, on Lex between 39th and 40th Streets. For american food Pershing Square, on 42nd Street under the Park Avenue viaduct, across from Grand Central; also, Icon in the W Hotel at 39th and Lex (The W Hotel has a good bar too). Across from the W Hotel, on 39th, is Chamelon, which serves Pacific Rim food.

The Cipriani on 42nd across from the Hyatt is operated as a party space, it's the Bowrey Savings Bank building and a grand space, but as far as I know, not open regularly for meals.

Thank you to all of you that took the time to respond to my posting. You are
amazing. We look forward to trying your suggestions and just wish we could try all of them.

Hi Bonnie,
I am staying at the NY Helmsey hotel next weekend and got an excellent rate of $129 through Quickbook hotel booking service (www.quickbook.com). I called the hotel directly and was quoted a much higher rate. I've used Quickbook 5 or 6 times before and they are completely legitimate and trustworthy. Furthermore, they don't require payment in advance like some hotel discounters. You pay the hotel at the end of the stay as if you had booked directly with the hotel.

Thank you Stephen for that wonderful illegal commercial. And what role do you play with that fine organization?

Actually we booked the NY Helmsley because other posters had suggested that they had gotten the best hotel rates from quickbook so I checked it out
and it was true. Not trying to do a commercial endorsement but I appreciated the information that was passed on thru Travel Talk (as always).