Times Square, NYE, and Chain Restaurants
 

If you are willing to spend upwards of $800 to eat in a chain restaurant on NYE in Times Square, you can come to my house, for an all you can eat dinner, funny hats, champagne, and I will throw in a pair of jammies for $350 a person.


http://nypost.com/2015/12/27/chain-r...ium=SocialFlow

It's the same every year.

Hotel rooms at the Marriott Marquis with any view of the ball drop are in excess of $2500 for the night.

On the other hand how much is it worth to be able to sit, versus stand, for 7 hours or more - and have access to a bathroom.

Warren, but you can't see Times Square from Orchard Street.

I once met a very nice young couple from Israel sitting on the Rockie Steps of the Philadelphia Museum of Art who told me that dining at the Olive Garden in TS was one of the highlights of their trip to America.

Thin

Understandable, since he probably was accustomed to Jewish food.

Vincenzo

I know someone who was Italian who moved to Florida and wanted to go to Olive Garden. There are in Witness Protection now.

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It is true you can see Times Square from Orchard Street, but can get cheap underwear in Times Square? I mean underwear that has never been worn before.

Who knew Olive Garden could dumb down their menu and pull their unlimited breadsticks of the table.

I any city, but especially NYC, I am always amazed that anyone will choose Olive Garden (or Friday's, Red Lobster, Bubba Gump Shrimp Company). I am not a fan of our chain restaurants and every city has great local restaurants, big and small, inexpensive and high end....i know others enjoy these places, they are popular. I just don't think the food quality is good. I also would never spend NYE in Times Square( usually asleep by midnight anyway)!

We call it the garlic garden.

Key West is the best for NYE. Three drops, Bourbon St bar, Sloppy Joe's bar or wench at Schooner wharf. Take your pick, they are all good. Great entertainment and you can wear flip flops.

Just to be clear. . . for $350 we get dinner jammies and the opportunity to see IMDonehere's balls drop? And clean underwear?

Inaka-You got it, even though, they are rice balls.

I like Red Lobster's cheddar bay biscuits.

I also like OG's tiramisu, chicken flatbread and Ravioli di Portabello.

I am amazed that anyone would care what I eat.

Thin

I'm always amazed that anyone cares where someone else chooses to eat.

The chain restaurants are filled with tourists and locals feel bad that they're settling for chains when so many excellent local restaurants are only a block or two away.

The people who are feigning amazement, often comment on the actions of others. Please provide a personal list of acceptable topics to offer advice and to comment, so we may all benefit in the future.

Of course, on these boards, no one ever recommends restaurants or tells people how to save money or a better way to enjoy their trip.
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I think the biggest mistake people make who visit NY is ignoring the varieties of food and cuisines available. I would say only about 10-15% of the people who ask for advice here go beyond what they know or feel comfortable with.

Thus to spend hundreds of dollars on dreck, is appalling.

<i> I would say only about 10-15% of the people who ask for advice here go beyond what they know or feel comfortable with.</i>

And how have you determined that to be the case?

Oxgirl

I hired Ernst & Young to do a confidential survey of the Fodor's NY boards from 1624 to present.

Snort. Of course.

I have never heard an Ox snort on the NY Board before.

I started answering questions about NY on the old AOL Board and have been doing this for over 15 years. My 10-15% is probably a generous number and based on an honest assessment.

I know how that must rankle some.

It's Obx, not Ox. You've made that "mistake" before when someone questions you. Presumably b/c it's easier to call someone a name than it is to substantiate a ridiculous and unverifiable claim.

Last word to word you. You know you won't be able resist.

all hail the obnoxious oxgirl

let the balls drop

"Thus to spend hundreds of dollars on dreck, is appalling."

One person's dreck is another person's delight! Guess everyone should get ImDonehere's approval before spending their own money on whatever they choose to dine on. What's appalling is someone who thinks everyone must bow down to their opinion.

Please Gmoney take the whole family to OG for NYE, it will leave tables open in other restaurants for people who appreciate real food. You have money in your name, so it should not be a problem and it will cost a few G's.

So if you nothing to add besides ad hominem attacks, see you at the salad bar.

Weren't you a bouncer at a salad bar?

Olive Garden doesn't have a salad bar.


Thin

At first, I thought the Olive Garden price was absurd.

Open bar 5 hours
DJ
Food
Private section outside to view ball dropping

Suddenly, $400 pp sounds reasonable to be in Times Square on New Years Eve.

http://nypost.com/2015/12/29/those-4...-selling-fast/

"Eejots!" as an old friend of mine at the Cedar Tavern used to say.

Fra,

Fra, we used to say that too. And in the old neighborhood we also said zay gezunt, which literally means good health but in reality meant, good luck with that (and leave me out of it).

On telly last nite it was reported that Ruby Tuesdays is charging $1600 so OG is a bargain w/ or w/o the bread sticks!!

I agree with others that we don't all have the same taste (Thank God), and it seems kind of silly for anyone to tell others where they shouldn't want to eat.

But I think someone is missing the bigger picture here. People are NOT really paying all those huge bucks to EAT at Olive Garden or Ruby Tuesday -- they are paying for the privilege of having a place right in the heart of the ball dropping action -- along with warmth, and a bathroom they can use. As I understand it, it is nearly impossible to enter the "actual area" later in the evening, but people eating at these restaurants have special access.

Perhaps the OP has a suggestion of a more wonderful, local restaurant that is within a block or two of the ball drop that is much cheaper that will also allow you to spend the evening and go in and out to use a bathroom, and wait for the event rather than being out in the crowd and cold. If so I think it would be nice to give that recommendation, but just because someone doesn't understand the idea of wanting to be in Times Square for New Year's Eve, that doesn't mean he should be insulting people's taste for where they eat -- which really has nothing to do with this issue at all.

"Please Gmoney take the whole family to OG for NYE"

No IMD, I will take my money and go to whatever place I wish to go to whether it meets your approval or not.

Giving recommendations on places you like is great, talking down to people who choose to go to places you don't like is just being a pompous ass!

Hey, knock yourself out and spend whatever you want, as noted it will leave tables in the better and cheaper restaurants open.

I think it would be cheaper to bring your own Port-A-San with a window so you can have a place to sit as well.

Again you miss the point, IMDonehere -- for some of us it isn't what WE want to do or what WE will do -- it's simply understanding that not everyone else is required to have the same taste WE have or make the same choices we make -- something I doubt you'll ever understand.

I personally NEVER want to spend New Year's Eve in Times Square, but I'm open minded enough to understand that for some it may be a life dream or at least a wonderful fantasy -- and I have no reason to put them down for having that dream. Obviously if they are different from you, then you must put them down for not being as smart as you are. Whatever.

"I think it would be cheaper to bring your own Port-A-San with a window so you can have a place to sit as well."

In the first place you couldn't pay me to spend NYE anywhere near Times Square. But as Neo says, if that's what you want to do great, hope you have a great experience.

In the second place, thanks for re-enforcing the pompous ass comment!

You are right it is pompous to warn people about spending ridiculous sums of money for garbage. How dare I. So please send money to Nigerian princes and the people who call and say you owe money to the IRS.

And on your way out of town, please stop for one of my $25 hot dogs and $35 pretzels, because the view is stunning!!

Neo, you are in the neighborhood all the time, you must have recommendations.

As for Gmnoney and Oxlady, do you have any recommendations or are just ad hominem attacks. I know Time Out has NY for children, I think you will find information and friends there.

No IMD, I have no recommendations and I wish that's all you had. Unfortunately you had to add your pompous condescending opinion about people who simply choose to eat the food they like. It is rude people like you who give New Yorkers a bad name. If you indeed know of a place in NY for children then you should proceed there as quickly as possible and maybe learn some manners.

But I doubt that is possible at this point.

"Neo, you are in the neighborhood all the time, you must have recommendations."

Yes, I see a lot of theatre so I am in the immedediate area a lot, but what does that have to do with finding any restaurant that's NOT going to charge an arm and a leg for New Year's Eve in Times Square? I sincerely doubt there are any. What's your point? Oh, I guess you don't have one. But you seemed to be the one who thought the listed places were garbage, so why don't YOU have a suggestion of something better? At least one?

The issue is that hardly any of these restaurants have a view of the ball drop - Bubba Gump's is a little better since it is on a corner on the second floor and has very big windows.

The better restaurants will typically have no view at all.

And I don't know that you can go in and out of these restaurants. In previous years they were not allowed to have room set aside on the sidewalk out front - just if someone could squeeze out the door into the mob and then squeeze back in.

Before spending that kind of money - obviously for the view, seat and bathroom - not food - I would be sure that a view is actually possible.

Sometimes there are no viable alternatives. Do you want to be robbed at knife point or gun point?

If someone cannot live without paying a small fortune to see the ball drop and eat crappy food sobeit. But I don't understand why so many people take a warning as a personal affront. I do, but that is another matter.

On December 31, 1973, I was sitting around with the man who is now my husband, his sister, who was one of my college roommates, and another of our roommates trying to figure out what to do. We had two or three suggestions and everyone wrote down their choice on a piece of paper and threw it into the pile. Alan, who is now my husband, counted the votes. Times Square won. Turns out he didn't vote, and he counted the votes to cover that up.

So he drove us to Times Square around 11:00 and we parked on Tenth Avenue and 43rd Street, or some place like that. We made our way to where we could see the ball drop and counted down and jumped up and down and kissed and shouted or something. It was fun.

I later learned my father was in the same crowd, but we didn't see him.

Those were the days.