Service review insights for New York, United States, Restaurants

"Not worth $1,000 for two people. The food was underwhelming—overly salty, sour, and too sweet. The staff was unprofessional, which was surprising for a Michelin-starred restaurant. This was the first time I’ve experienced such poor service at this level. I don’t drink alcohol or enjoy mocktails, so I simply asked if they had a mocktail list (not a pairing menu). The server said no and didn’t offer a beverage menu. Only later did I discover they had a tea selection, but I had to ask for the menu myself. It felt like she didn’t know how to properly handle guests. The chefs were serving dishes, and one of them seemed visibly angry. While I don’t expect excessive friendliness, his demeanor was unsettling. Overall, I didn’t enjoy the meal and am genuinely surprised this restaurant holds two Michelin stars.

$12 for a Tito's and soda. Insulting is an understatement. Heard lots of great things about this place, but I have no idea what they were talking about. The place is small, with uncomfortable chairs and way overpriced drinks. The menu is pathetically small and overpriced. Additionally they had a "security guard" at the door, which was very off putting. Never ever going to spend another penny here. Move on to places that actually care

$21 on 8 small, quarter size sushi pieces. The fish is bloody, tough, and low quality. Leaves look yellowed and inedible, plating inevitably looked empty. Taste was bland and uninspired. Service was not great, felt as if I was being rushed out despite being the only customer in the whole restaurant. Pretty restaurant though.

Had a dinner in Delmonicos for New Year's Eve with my wife. I'd heard great things and the food did not disappoint. One of the best steaks I've had. It was expensive, which I expected and was happy to pay. The only thing is that the waiters seemed to be very amateur. They mixed up my dessert and our wine orders, spilled half a glass of champagne all over our table when trying to refill a glass, and routinely yanked away our plates as soon as they thought we had finished (even if we were still chewing!). None of this was a deal breaker but I was a bit peeved when they automatically added 20% service to our bill, given the sup par service we received.

"Are we at Per Se or are we at Applebee's?" This was the question on our minds as we ate dinner. Buyer beware - do not come to Per Se if you are expecting a refined and elegant dining experience. Per Se has no expected standards of attire and behavior being enforced confirmed by its own maitre d Alex Pimentel. This failure of the purported three Michelin star institution greatly reduced the quality and enjoyment of our experience and was far below what we have experienced in the past at Per Se or other three Michelin star restaurants. One table in our direct view had two very old men with two teenaged-looking girls. One girl was wearing sweatpants, a crop top, and flip flops. The other girl was wearing a sweatshirt and sneakers. One of the old men had a little black puppy with him and Per Se allowed the puppy to run around the floor of the dining room throughout the dinner. Another table next to us was obnoxiously loud throughout the evening, taking over the space and taking away from everyone else's enjoyment. It was clear from the circus around us that Per Se has no standards for guest attire or behavior and does not care about guest experience at all. When I wrote to the restaurant after our dinner to share our feedback, the maitre d Alex Pimentel asked me to call him to talk. After playing phone tag a couple times, we were finally able to connect. Alex began the phone conversation by flippantly stating "I understand you had a problem with some guests who weren't dressed as nicely as you would have liked?" Wow. This is the guy they put in charge of guest relations? What a great attitude for the job. Alex ended up wasting 20 minutes of my time by making up excuses for every single aspect of our underwhelming dining experience. According to Alex: 1) Per Se does not have a dress code for women, only for men. Women can apparently dine in a string bikini and flip flops. Alex says: "Per Se gets people from all walks of life and unfortunately we really only enforce a dress code for men." 2) Alex said the old men were hotel guests and that they were dining with their "nieces or daughters." I told him that we could not care less where the old men were lodging or the nature of their relationship with the teenaged girls, but that the young women should at the very least not be wearing sweatpants, crop tops, flip flops, sweatshirts, and sneakers. Alex once again reiterated that there is no dress code for women. 3) Alex could not come up with an excuse for the puppy running around. 4) Alex said that if we were disappointed at any point in the evening with our experience, the burden was on us to try to create the experience we want. Alex said we should have complained about the other guests (all seated within earshot) and we may have been reseated space permitting. So a three Michelin star restaurant is putting the onus on its guests to create a fine dining experience. Why would it be on guests to make sure Per Se enforces basic standards of attire and behavior of other guests? When Per Se allows a circus in its dining room, Per Se is not going after a three Michelin star experience. When the maitre d tells guests that it is actually their burden and responsibility to create a pleasant and enjoyable experience, there is something terribly wrong with the training and culture at Per Se. 5) Food: lobster was extremely chewy like bubblegum. The chicken was bland and a bit rubbery. Loved the crispy skin on the bass. Lamb was just lamb, but on the tougher side. The wagyu was unremarkable. Black truffle pasta was delicious with a generous shaving of truffles. 6) Service: star is for Maris who was fantastic and we appreciated her excellent service and professionalism. Maris seemed to be the only one we encountered at Per Se who was aware that the restaurant is supposed to provide a three Michelin star experience. The wine pairing was $350 and the sommelier was perfunctory and inattentive. Alex concluded our phone conversation with an underwhelming, "well in the future please reach out to me to coordinate your next visit to Per Se." He didn't even offer a genuine apology without excuses or any gesture of good will from the restaurant. Will we be coming back to Per Se after this experience and Alex's response to our feedback? As Randy Jackson once eloquently stated, "Yeah that's gonna be a no from me, dawg."

"Great once we got our table. One tip - if you’re asking people to wait for their table don’t stick them in a corridor where they’re in the way and can’t get a drink. It’s not the fault of paying customers that they’re on time but you’re not!"

I feel sorry for the few employees working at this store. They work very hard, but on busy days, the food doesn't come out on time. How is it possible that I have to waste my lunch break waiting for a meal? I waited for over 40 minutes, and no one was willing to give me a refund—and they hadn't even started making the food yet. It happened to me twice. I trusted you. Thanks for making me waste my lunch break and my time. Now I got go back to work with hungry!

Review rating: 1.0

Experience in a 2-star restaurant in New York – Dinner on March 15 We dined at this 2-star restaurant on Sunday evening, March 15, on the occasion of our wedding anniversary. As soon as we arrived, we were surprised by the very cold temperature of the room: the air conditioning was on in the middle of winter, which made the moment uncomfortable. Unfortunately, the service fell far short of what you would expect from a 2-star hotel. Indeed, the Rank Chief left the room mid-duty; we were told that this was due to the excessive cost of keeping all staff in the room all evening — a very surprising situation in this type of facility. Moreover, at no time during the meal did anyone come to ensure that everything was going well at our table. As for the course of the dinner, we felt as if we were being pushed towards the exit: from the pre-dessert, a waiter started tidying up the room, which created some discomfort. At the time of payment, we were accompanied by a very kind young woman, speaking perfectly French, to whom we shared our comments. However, the manager present at his side had no word towards us, which we perceived as contempt. In terms of hygiene and details: • The truffle service on the risotto shocked us: the waiter handled the truffle for several tables without gloves. It is essential to serve the truffle with gloves, which has not been respected here. • The toilets were dirty and a lamp was missing, making the lighting insufficient. Another disappointing point: no nice dishes to accompany the dishes (except the dish around the egg). Always the same cutlery, pretty low-end. However, dishes are fully part of the gastronomic experience expected at this level. Regarding the attention paid to our special occasion, my husband had asked when booking a rose to mark our wedding anniversary. He was denied this, but a hand-drawn card had been placed on the table, a gesture we appreciated. Finally, it is important to note that the dinner itself was good, despite the numerous service deficiencies. Conclusion: An overall disappointing experience due to a service clearly not up to the standards of a 2-star restaurant, despite quality cuisine.

Review rating: 4.0

"Not worth $1,000 for two people. The food was underwhelming—overly salty, sour, and too sweet. The staff was unprofessional, which was surprising for a Michelin-starred restaurant. This was the first time I’ve experienced such poor service at this level. I don’t drink alcohol or enjoy mocktails, so I simply asked if they had a mocktail list (not a pairing menu). The server said no and didn’t offer a beverage menu. Only later did I discover they had a tea selection, but I had to ask for the menu myself. It felt like she didn’t know how to properly handle guests. The chefs were serving dishes, and one of them seemed visibly angry. While I don’t expect excessive friendliness, his demeanor was unsettling. Overall, I didn’t enjoy the meal and am genuinely surprised this restaurant holds two Michelin stars.

Signal: 0.0%

$12 for a Tito's and soda. Insulting is an understatement. Heard lots of great things about this place, but I have no idea what they were talking about. The place is small, with uncomfortable chairs and way overpriced drinks. The menu is pathetically small and overpriced. Additionally they had a "security guard" at the door, which was very off putting. Never ever going to spend another penny here. Move on to places that actually care

Signal: 0.0%

$21 on 8 small, quarter size sushi pieces. The fish is bloody, tough, and low quality. Leaves look yellowed and inedible, plating inevitably looked empty. Taste was bland and uninspired. Service was not great, felt as if I was being rushed out despite being the only customer in the whole restaurant. Pretty restaurant though.

Signal: 0.0%