Absolutely amazing food and great service. Was not difficult to get into on a Friday night which…read morewas so surprising. Seems like a lot of people were stopping by for drinks but the food was so good and shouldn't be overlooked. The chicken liver dish was so yummy. Wish the bread was sliced since it was kind of hard to cut but still was very yummy. The corn agnolotti was absolutely delicious. Amazing pasta and the dish was so good. Steak was also pretty good although it's not the best steak ever. The greens on the side were stringy and difficulty to eat. Chocolate cake with the hibiscus powder was very yummy and not too sweet or rich. Cocktails were also great and they had a very good wine menu as well. Would definitely recommend this restaurant.

Booked ahead for dinner with a friend and really liked this place! I tried:…read more + The bells at Trinity cocktail - excellent + Seeded Parker house roll - great + Chicken liver mousse - highlight #1 + Agnolotti - only miss, had a spice I didn't love + Bucatini - highlight #2 + kale salad - great + Bruleed rice pudding - great + Rhubarb choux bun - excellent Service was very good as well. They didn't rush us, which feels rare these days. Will be back for dinner and would try the brunch as well (need that cinnamon roll).

I was not expecting to be blown away given the variable reviews but remained optimistic because my…read morefriend had really enjoyed Estela a few years ago. The restaurant is oddly located in a shared residential building that requires walking up stairs to a small hallway which separates the residential part from the restaurant. We entered the small space and sat in the back in a small alcove that could fit 3 parties of two. We really loved every thing we ordered from the endive salad with the nutty, acidic cheesy concoction on fresh endive leafs to the expertly done pork chops with the bean salad. The beef tartare and ricotta dish were also top notch. We would've skipped the bread and butter olive dish if we had known the beef tartare came with bread and, which would have allowed us to try another item on the menu. But we are not fretting as we will definitely be back again. The not so great things do include the price and the ok desserts. There was a review about 12 yrs ago talking about how expensive the same items were but in comparison, the price had gone up substantially. The endives salad was 14 dollars and the ricotta was 24. Both are now 29 and 35 dollars respectively... I can't imagine how hard it is for restaurants to stay afloat with the increased costs but this increase does sound a lot adjusted for inflation. The desserts were trying to blend salty and sweet which was a good concept but we have such sweet tooth that we've had better panna cotta and chocolate cake before. But overall we were blown away by the dishes so still a 5/5 experience!

Overpriced and small portions…read more We ordered the ricotta dumplings and scallops. Both were good but were not worth the portion. I feel like they thinly sliced one scallop and wish they were a bit more generous. The atmosphere was nice and the service was attentive.

Apparently this is a wine bar but I had the best mushrooms I've ever had in my life here???…read more The wine was fabulous too - we ordered the chilled Rhône (which I will be purchasing for my home right after this). Do not skip the Arroz la Plancha - omg. I don't like mushrooms usually, but I was with some friends and I was open to ordering it this time and I am so happy we did!!!! The pasta was also delicious and my friends really enjoyed how smooth the beef tongue was. We made a reservation online about 3 weeks before. I was seated right away when I arrived! Great spot for date night or to catch up with a group of friends!

I really want to gatekeep this place but I'm not going to because everyone deserves a fantastic,…read moredelicious meal here at Demo. Started off with the scallop crudo with super fresh and tender scallop pieces with a good ratio of citrus notes and salt. The lengua tonnata exceeded my expectations!! Not only were the lengua pieces super tender and well seasoned, the tonnata sauce which was blended with tuna and anchovies was very creamy, smooth, and addicting without being overly rich. Paired with the caper berries, it was like umami heaven!! I don't usually rave about salads but their radicchio salad is something that I would order every time! If you like a creamy salad with textural complexity, this is it!! Drenched in their tahini sauce, the veggies itself were fresh, crunchy, and well-seasoned. The addition of the crispy crumble pieces, herbs, and pickled fennel added lots of contrasts. The crab casino was good too, but I felt like the guanciale stole the spotlight away from the crab. The arroz la plancha was another highlight of the night! The mushroom aroma greets you immediately and the cheese crusts were consistently crispy. I loved how it was super cheesy without being too moist or sauce-y. Lastly, the fluke was cooked nicely with a savory brown butter sauce that was complemented by the sweet onion flavor profile. They are also a wine bar with a great selection of options. I got myself a grenache rose that was delicious and paired well with the later dishes. My partner's selection of two white wines were also very crisp. For two people, they typically recommend 2 apps, 2 medium plates, and 1 entry to share. Next time I definitely wanted to try the cabbage and the lobster au poivre! Staff were friendly and food came quickly with appropriate timing between dishes. There is a bar section in the front with more sit-down tables and a counter top area in the back. We had an amazing time and excited to come back!!

I picked Chambers for my husband's birthday dinner primarily because of the exceptional wine…read moreprogram, but also because the food is supposed to be really good, too. It delivered on both fronts, but I really was blown away by the wine. The sheer quantity of available wines is really impressive, and the sommelier was able to recommend a rare wine that fit our interests (a fantastic, effervescent, creamy Txakoli that had lovely fruit and minerals). Later, I tried amazing ice cider. The food rundown: -Sesame pizza Bianca: complimentary bread! This was very good and quite sizable. The bottom is entirely encrusted with sesame. -Scallop crudo (rhubarb, shiso): very good and the plating was gorgeous. Meaty scallops with tangy and pungent flavors. -Snowdance chicken (spinach, sherry, thyme): Super tender, crispy-skinned chicken in a savory sherry sauce. -Sea bass (asparagus, hollandaise): I was surprised at how remarkably well this dish worked. The asparagus was so good with the rich, buttery sauce. Definitely a smaller portion, but the chicken was huge so it balanced out. -Potatoes with ramps: Yum. Served hashbrown-style and the ramps were added as little sauce dollops. I loved the space, and by that I mean the ambience and also the literal amount of space we had to ourselves. We got to stretch out in a roomy corner booth. The room featured a lot of exposed brick and grey and utilitarian ceilings, but it manages to be cozy all the same.

Chambers is a charming, intimate restaurant with a warm, compact dining room, an ample bar area,…read moreand even two chef's-kitchen bar seats that give the room a little extra theater. Unfortunately, the food never really lived up to the setting. The meal started with the scallops with sweet corn and espelette. They were fine, which ended up being one of the more positive assessments of the night. My father had the Peekytoe crab with peach and brioche, which was also okay. My mother had the Norwich Meadows carrots with yogurt and carrot-top pesto, and that was where the meal started feeling flat. Nothing was technically offensive, but there was very little excitement or depth to the plate. Portions were consistently small, which became harder to ignore as the meal went on. For mains, my father ordered the heritage pork sausage with shrimp, Jimmy Nardello peppers and cilantro. The dish only really came together when you got the sausage and pepper in the same bite, but there was very little of it, and on its own the sausage was not especially compelling. I ordered the Snowdance chicken with spinach, sherry and thyme, which is apparently one of the restaurant's signature dishes. My father and I switched halfway through because he liked the chicken more than I did. I found it surprisingly weak: essentially a pounded chicken preparation that was bland, average and nowhere near what I would expect from a signature entrée at this price. My mother had the housemade bucatini with zucchini, Tarentaise and mint. It was strange rather than satisfying, and none of us particularly liked it. Service was much better than the food. Our server was good, and the secondary service was even better. They did forget one of my father's drinks, but replaced it without issue. I still left 22% because the kitchen's problems were not the server's fault. Dessert finally produced the best dish of the night: the mascarpone with phyllo, cinnamon caramel and lemon pistachios. That was genuinely good. I then figured I would order the cheese because, at minimum, how badly can you mess up cheese? The answer was not badly, exactly, but absurdly. The "cheese and crackers" course was two small pieces of Appalachian cheese for the table. Two pieces. For three people. That pretty much captured the meal. The restaurant has obvious Gramercy Tavern DNA in its restraint, seasonal ingredients and minimalist plating, but this felt like a much less successful version of that philosophy. When this style works, simplicity feels precise and confident. Here, too often, it just felt sparse, underdeveloped and expensive. For three people, with appetizers, entrées, three cocktails, one glass of wine, dessert, cheese and tip, the total came to roughly $472. At that price, "fine" is not enough.

Easily the best meal I've had all year! A bestie and I went here in search of chocolate cake and we…read morefound something even better: each other. Haha, no just kidding, we found steak and rice pudding. And OH MAN were they dynamite. Everything I ate here knocked my socks off actually, including the bread and butter. We got the chicken liver and pork cause everybody claimed those were the best -- and they're VERY good, don't get me wrong -- but the major standouts for us were the Sungolds and zucchini, simple but delicious, and the wagyu bavette. Oh my gooooooood am I still dreaming about that wagyu. And then! The chocolate cake did not disappoint. It's fricking HUGE!!! And so delicious. But. BUT. the rice pudding was the sleeper hit. Holy #@$& have I never had rice pudding that delicious! I'm not even a huge rice pudding gal but this just knocked my socks off. Honestly would go back for the steak and the rice pudding alone. Amazing meal, extremely friendly staff, nice vibes, memorable night. Can't wait to go back.

Not bad, but egregiously overpriced…read more The mille-feuille was a rich and flaky pastry filled with some tomato and salty Moses sleeper cheese. The tomato had the job of cutting through all the richness with bright acidity, but it was kind of difficult to get them in a bite with the pastry and the cheese. I also probably could've used more of it overall to avoid the dish feeling a bit one note. The cake was not too sweet, but honestly pretty unremarkable. At least it's genuinely large - easily shareable between two or three people (meaning I took home two extra servings). This came to a whopping $77 after tax and tip, and I didn't even get wine. I'd also describe this as a very light meal - if you were hungry, you'd need at least one more dish. I'd skip this one.

A must try in NYC if you love seafood!…read more Penny's service, wine selection and overall presentation and taste of food is unparalleled at this price point. Great for date nights and intimate occasions ;)

Penny is a seafood lover's paradise. The Claud team's second act is a little more casual and pared…read moredown but is otherwise just as high quality and also all about the wine. The concept is also a little more fun, communal and interactive, as everyone sits at the bar and is looking directly at the culinary team at work for the meal, so you can watch the magic happen. Come for the raw bar, stay for all the rest. We came here at 8:15 on a Saturday night. Our seats were towards the back of the space, close to the majestic wine cellar. We each started with a glass of wine, a rose and a white. All of the wines served by the glass are sitting in a little wine station in the corner so it's served very promptly (as is everything -- A+ for service all around). We ended up sticking with wines by the glass for the evening though the martini, which is sake-based, looked fabulous as well. Food-wise, most plates are on the smaller side, which means you can easily sample a solid number of dishes from the menu. We stuck with mostly cold dishes, mainly because they called to us more but it's definitely the emphasis at Penny anyway. There were no wrong notes and we got an excellent variety of all that the sea has to offer. Eats, below: Ice Box (Oysters / Countnecks / Shrimp / Mussels / Crudo) This is what Penny has become known for and I see why. I often tend to go for some of the more dressed up dishes when I go out to eat, like crudos/tartares rather than straightforward raw bar, but this is special. The shrimp is as unbelievably great as advertised and the rest is excellent too. Lettuces + Horseradish I easily could've ordered another one of these. Salads can go either way at restaurants size-wise and I feel like they often end up being bigger portions than I'm expecting, but this was the opposite. Not like it was crazy small, I just loved it so much I could've had way more. The dressing and whatever it was dusted with was just sublime. Black Bass + Pickled Ramp We nearly skipped this but thankfully we knew better. Like the rest of the menu, simple and seemingly straightforward, but unbelievably fresh and melt-in-your-mouth good. Silky, light, served with a dollop of wasabi should you want to spice things up. Tuna Carpaccio On par with the bass and crudo in the ice box -- fresh, bright, impeccable quality. Squid + Marinated Beans I rarely go out of my way to eat beans but we were sitting less than a foot away from the beans used for this dish, saw them plated repeatedly, and they looked too good to pass up. This was definitely the surprise of the night for me, as I expected to love everything else we ordered while this was the one wild card. If you're looking for another warm/cooked dish, definitely consider it. The squid is delicious and the beans are some of the best I've ever had, which is a big statement coming from me. Halibut + Kohlrabi So simple yet so good. A beautifully cooked piece of fish topped with ribbons of kohlrabi. Both delicate and decadent and seriously impressed both of us.

I'll be short. Go anywhere else…read more The service was unfriendly and unhelpful. The food was funky and foul. The staff forgot to bring our drinks to the table when we ordered them at the bar (standing) after arriving for our reservation on time. Our waitress disappeared during our meal and we had to get the manager for our check. Not to mention she didn't replace our utensils from the appetizers with new, clean ones. My friend and I had to check multiple times online to make sure we were at the right place. "It can't be this bad, right?" Oh, it can.

Grabbed a same-day reservation for a Saturday night on the earlier side for 2 people. I tried:…read more + sardine with cucumber and Meyer lemon - great + comté tart with chanterelles and cherry tomatoes - delicious but super rich so would share among more people next time + Beef tartare with smoked mussels - great + Pluot with Romano beans - highlight #1 + Trout with pancetta and summer squash - highlight #2 + Bread and butter - highlight #3 + Gelato with sour cherries - great Overall really liked the food, but thought it was a little pricey for what it is. I prefer spots like Chambers, Demo, and Claud for similar vibes at better price points. 4.5 stars.

After a string of somewhat disappointing restaurant week dinners, Crown Shy's was truly worth it…read more My cousin and I came here to celebrate our early birthdays, and we got free mini cupcakes and free drinks. I had a great glass of wine that our excellent waiter (Paul) helped me pick. Paul was truly so helpful in answering our questions, and although he was busy, he was still attentive to our needs and very thoughtful. They definitely course out the meals here so just be aware - a 3 or 4 course meal is not a 1 hour experience but rather around 2 hours. It's well worth it though! The ambience is wonderful and it's fun to look into the open kitchen. As for the food, the pull-apart bread was so fluffy and the butter was amazing. For starters we split the tomato peach carpaccio and the salad. The salad dressing was so good and the tomato peach dish was fresh and the flavors worked well. For entrees we split the sungold pasta (meat on the side since I don't eat it!) and the eggplant lasagna. Both were excellent - I loved the creaminess of the lasagna and the brightness of the sungold pasta. For dessert we ordered both options, which were also excellent and very thoughtfully plated. I can definitely see why this place has a Michelin star - this is really a great dining experience and I look forward to my next meal here!

Yall I was truly blown away by this restaurant…read more The pistachio bread was life changing. First one was complementary but we bought another one bc it was that good. Every dish was SO flavorful. Snap pea salad was fantastic and we also got scallops and spicy tuna. Ricotta ravioli had a punch of flavor - insane. Katsu was fried perfectly with a delish sauce. Ended the meal w sticky toffee - it was $28. Not sure if it was worth the price but it was a staple. GO here!!!