Atmosphere review insights for New York, United States, Restaurants

- A drip coffee set us back $9 - We paid $15 dollars for a side of roasted potatoes, despite the menu saying $10… we received less than one whole potato cut up into 3 pieces - An automatic 20% service was added despite the team being unorganised and rude. (Policy states automatic gratuity is only added for parties of 5+, we were a booking of 2) - For the Christmas Pre-fixe menu and one hot drink each, we paid $200+ each. - Absolutely no Christmas decorations which was poor considering all of the other diners were there for the (Christmas) Pre-fixe Perhaps this restaurant was just out of my financial league, so this review is for the average New Yorkers and tourists: save yourself the cheque, it won’t be hard to find somewhere just as good for 1/3 of the price.

2 stars are solely for the food and atmosphere. The place looks beautiful and the food is great for what you pay for. The male cashier that was taking my order was incredibly rude. It was my first time here as I just stopped inside to grab an iced drink. I asked the cashier if they had regular iced coffee, he looked at me and said only cold brew. That's fine. I instead asked to get an iced sweet tea. He gave me a dirty look and said the sugar is over there (in a small vestibule right by the doorway.) As I was taking out my card to pay he sighed, tapped on the card reader, and walked off. I chose not to tip due to his behavior, he muttered "great..." while rolling his eyes. While it's a nice place indoors, wouldn't be back for the service alone.

After dining at Gran Morsi, I emailed them to let them know I had lost my wallet (I tried phone first but they didn't answer), and they helpfully replied that they had found it, and I was able to pick it up at their restaurant. However, when I emailed them to ask for my wallet back they added me to their spam email list. I have made VERY CLEAR that I would like to be removed and I continue to receive spam from them! If Gran Morsi is reading this, take me off your spam mailing list! Take everyone else off it too while you're at it. (Also, I strongly disliked the food. Better than spam, though.) I took a star off "atmosphere" because the damaged brick wall with a bunch of screw holes in it was kinda ugly.

A bunch of friends and I went out to Winfield's as it was the venue at which Buffalo-based band "BlueShift" would be playing their next show as a part of St. Patrick's Day weekend. With two members of the band in tow, we grabbed a large table and ordered our drinks. The beer selection was ample, and being an Irish bar, the majority of their offered brews, fittingly, were of Irish creation. Be ready to spend if you are going to be selective about your beers, but for those that are less picky about taste and more about price, they have great specials on domestics on the daily. Either way, you will not be disappointed. However, the show-stealer was most certainly the food. Aiming for the healthier side, I ordered the warm mushroom salad, and I can say with honesty that this was simply the freshest salad I've ever had the pleasure to taste. The earthiness of the mushrooms blended perfectly with the bitterness of the field greens. Topped with a homemade vinaigrette dressing, capers, and even more fresh veggies, it is perfect for a light meal jam-packed with an assortment of flavors that will leave you raving. Of course, we did share with each other at the table, and I was able to sample their beef burger (with homemade tomato relish that is just delectably tangy). Also, I did try a bite of the lamb burger, as well - I was just taken aback at the blend of flavors. Either choice would be a winner, in my book. The atmosphere was laid back, and the wait staff and bartenders come and grab a seat with you to shoot the breeze, and they are happy to let you know that the recipes in use, at times, stretch back generations! They are all about customer feedback and the quality of the food that they serve. Winfield's aims to please. I hope to see this pub on "Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives" in the near future, as they have the gourmet comfort food schtick totally down, and I do mean that in the best way possible! It is not very often that I go to a restaurant where I feel this strongly about the food I've been served - you can bet, Winfield's Pub is an establishment worthy of your dollar... and most especially, your appetite!

A family group of nine of us arrived at McPartlan's Corner on a weekday evening without a reservation. Didn't matter--they don't take reservations. A plaque on the wall says, "If you have a reservation, your [sic] in the wrong place." The wait staff had a table set up and ready for us in thirty seconds. I wouldn't try our trick on a Friday night when the line for seats invariably stretches out the door. McPartlan's is a family Irish tavern that's been around since 1955. There's none of that faux-Irish stuff that marks the Irish pubs that have sprung up almost everywhere. A framed map of Ireland and a framed poster of Irish castles are enough to hint at the Irish tradition. The dining room features plain wood tables and booths, with paper placemats advertising local businesses. A mirror along one wall makes it feel a little bigger. Another dining room to the back handles the overflow or special occasions. Off to one side is a well-frequented bar in knotty pine. A few generic landscape paintings adorn the wall. A nice selection of American, Canadian, and Irish beer is on tap at very low prices. The fish platter is what has made McPartlan's famous, a huge piece of lightly battered haddock, served with a choice of potato and a huge mound of slaw. They bring unending baskets of bread and crackers to the table to fill out the meal. McPartlan's has a quirk of serving their fish with the skin on. Most patrons appear to eat the whole fish, skin and all. I'm picky and eat around the skin. The fish is superb. Seafood lovers also can choose from shrimp, scallops, and oysters. Another tradition is the sandwiches. Several in my family are partial to something called beef on weck, thinly sliced roast beef piled high on a salty Kimmelweck roll, also served with a choice of side dish. My wife likes the fried bologna sandwich with sautéed onions. The menu also includes steak, pork chops, liver and onions, and lots more. The Tuesday specials included corned beef and cabbage, and bean soup made with corned beef. Our server Sue was friendly and conversational, taking special note of the accents of some from our family who were visiting from Oklahoma. Drink refills and extra bread came quickly. On this visit I saved room for dessert, one of the nicest banana cream pies I have ever had. The coffee was rich and robust. As Sue refilled my cup without asking, she said, "I just made a fresh pot so you have to have a refill." In an era of cookie-cutter restaurants, McPartlan's Corner is a one-of-a-kind restaurant not to be missed. It belongs on your bucket list.

According to my friend, this place is supposed to be amazing. Therefore, It was added to my culinary exploration of Buffalo. Needless to say, it was a disappointment. The interior of the restaurant is very interesting, with a rough brick almost underground basement feel. I got a chance to really examine my surroundings because the service was extremely slow. We ordered the stuffed mushroom and warm artichoke dip for appetizers. These were both okay, but not exceptional. The big surprise was my salad. I ordered the salad with beets, mushrooms, fennel, and Gorgonzola. When I received it, I was hard pressed to find any of these ingredients besides the lettuce and beets. For my $10, I was presented with an appetizer plate with a quarter size lump of cheese, maybe one mushroom (I couldn’t find it), and non existent fennel. It was late, I was tired and hungry, so I ate it, I paid for it, but I won’t repeat this experience. I left hungry, and angry at the price.

We had a 5:00 reservation and planned to have a relaxed dinner before our 7:30 show at Shea’s, but the experience didn’t go as expected. To start, one person in our group never received the drink they ordered. It wasn’t delayed, it just never came. Our order wasn’t taken until around 5:40, and the food didn’t start coming out until about 6:50. Waiting nearly two hours for food, especially with a set schedule for a show, made the evening feel rushed and stressful instead of enjoyable. What made it more frustrating was watching smaller tables seated after us order and receive their food before we did. At one point around 6:50, we spoke to a couple who had a 5:30 reservation and they had already finished their meal and paid, while we were just getting our food. We were a group of 11, and there is an automatic 20% gratuity added for larger parties. It’s hard not to wonder if that played a role in the level of service we received. When the food finally arrived, we had very little time to actually eat before needing to leave. The check came around 7:15, giving us just enough time to quickly finish up and get to the theater. Thankfully, Shea’s is right across the street, because otherwise we would have been late. We were told the delay was because the chicken pot pie took longer to cook. After that, the server mentioned that the chef was offering dessert to make up for the wait, which was appreciated, but we didn’t have time to stay for it due to the show. Lastly, there was an issue with the menu. We were given menus that listed lower prices and were labeled as dinner menus, so there was no indication they were incorrect. However, when we received the bill, we were charged higher prices than what was shown. It turns out we had been given lunch menus at our 5:00 dinner reservation, and this wasn’t explained to us at any point. Overall, the long wait, missing drink, rushed timing, and pricing confusion made for a frustrating experience.

Review rating: 1.0

We’ve been coming Tao twice a year when we visit NY for work, this will be last. This place no longer caters to good quality food, waited 45 mins for ‘duck’ rice, basically had no duck in it, tiny little cubes and some shrimp. One glass of wine and 2 cocktails later we knew it was time to go - $205. Its a bit of a joke. Service horrible, food horrible, generally a downbeat vibe and Tao is definitely getting worse. Far better places in NY to spend your money

Review rating: 1.0

- A drip coffee set us back $9 - We paid $15 dollars for a side of roasted potatoes, despite the menu saying $10… we received less than one whole potato cut up into 3 pieces - An automatic 20% service was added despite the team being unorganised and rude. (Policy states automatic gratuity is only added for parties of 5+, we were a booking of 2) - For the Christmas Pre-fixe menu and one hot drink each, we paid $200+ each. - Absolutely no Christmas decorations which was poor considering all of the other diners were there for the (Christmas) Pre-fixe Perhaps this restaurant was just out of my financial league, so this review is for the average New Yorkers and tourists: save yourself the cheque, it won’t be hard to find somewhere just as good for 1/3 of the price.

Signal: 0.0%

2 stars are solely for the food and atmosphere. The place looks beautiful and the food is great for what you pay for. The male cashier that was taking my order was incredibly rude. It was my first time here as I just stopped inside to grab an iced drink. I asked the cashier if they had regular iced coffee, he looked at me and said only cold brew. That's fine. I instead asked to get an iced sweet tea. He gave me a dirty look and said the sugar is over there (in a small vestibule right by the doorway.) As I was taking out my card to pay he sighed, tapped on the card reader, and walked off. I chose not to tip due to his behavior, he muttered "great..." while rolling his eyes. While it's a nice place indoors, wouldn't be back for the service alone.

Signal: 0.0%

After dining at Gran Morsi, I emailed them to let them know I had lost my wallet (I tried phone first but they didn't answer), and they helpfully replied that they had found it, and I was able to pick it up at their restaurant. However, when I emailed them to ask for my wallet back they added me to their spam email list. I have made VERY CLEAR that I would like to be removed and I continue to receive spam from them! If Gran Morsi is reading this, take me off your spam mailing list! Take everyone else off it too while you're at it. (Also, I strongly disliked the food. Better than spam, though.) I took a star off "atmosphere" because the damaged brick wall with a bunch of screw holes in it was kinda ugly.

Signal: 0.0%