Picholine

For the first time in my life, I feel compelled to write a restaurant review. I took my mom to Picholine the week before Christmas. We were greeted very cordially and seated immediately. The interior is warm and classically elegant. The wait staff was friendly, efficient and knowledgeable without being pretensious. The food was exceptional. I had venison loin that was the best piece of meat I've ever eaten. My mom pronounced the same verdict over her beef ribeye. The cheese cart was outstanding. Only the salad left a bit to be desired, although, to be fair, this is strictly in comparison to the rest of the meal: compared to the universe of restaurant salads, the salad at Picholine is better than average.
I assume because our reservations were for 5:45, the staff asked if we had theatre tickets and, if so, our curtain time. We did, indeed, have theatre tickets, and made our show in plenty of time. The pacing of the meal was quick but not in any way rushed, just as we wished. Both my mom and I left Picholine feeling satisfied and grateful for such an enjoyable dining experience.

So we decided to go to Picholine one fine evening. All dressed up and ready to experience what they have to offer.
I will be brief and to the point fellows.

Service: Fantastic (couldn't be better) not snobbish at all but friendly & professional.

Ambiance: Cozy

Food: Tasty & well presented

Price: Expensive but I would pay it for the value & experience.

We ate a lot but didn't feel overly full. Just great:-)

It would be a great place for bring your high class client or if you want to impress a chick or I must say "a lady" perhaps;-)

We came here for dinner. The place is very pleasing to the eye. The service is top-notch. The waiter knew my name. The napkins were replaced as soon as one got up from his seat. The staff knew every ingredient in every dish. The service is also seamless. The food is delicious. The mushroom tempura and "tomato water" pre-appetizer was excellent. The gazpacho was incredibly complicated and interesting, yet very tasty. The scallops were close to perfect, though perhaps not as tender as they could be. The tuna on the other hand was perhaps the most tender I've ever had. The rabbit was quite interesting and also very tender. Overall, the food was tasty, though not always perfect. However, what makes this restaurant so amazing is that everything is presented and cooked in such a way as to make the whole meal a celebration. That is rare in New York. This is a truly a special occasion place, and in my opinion one of the top restaurants in this city.

A table for six. Everyone was greatly impressed by the food and service (wish I had reserved the wine room though). Everything was cooked to perfection and each course delivered en masse by the waitstaff. Although the wine list is very good (a bit pricey, but not outrageous), I really appreciate a fine dining establishment that enthusiastically accepts outside wines for a corkage fee. We brought 4 bottles of wine (which on their list would have cost approximately $2500 - our price substantially lower) and only paid $50/bottle corkage (I would have paid double that). For our two reds they decanted them and gave us the proper new stemware for each bottle. The cheese cart is not as extensive as I thought it would be, but what they lack in sheer depth of choices they instead make up for by focusing on quality. We tried 7 different cheeses and were loving each. I can't remember the time I last went out to dine with a group of foodies where almost every morsel from every course was consumed on every plate. Live in LA and enjoy Spago, La Cachette, etc., but will gladly revisit Picholine on my next trip back East.

We were not offered the tasting menu because per the waiter our reservations were too early (5:30) and they don't offer the tasting until 8PM (as he offered it to the next table at 6PM). Were they afraid we had theatre tickets and couldn't spend the time? Well, we didn't and they never asked. To the waiter's credit he gave me a fourth course for $10. The venison was excellent although I've noticed in restaurants of this calibre that no matter how you ask that the meat be done, it will always be delivered per the chef's "suggestion" which is medium rare. The rest of the food was pretty forgettable. The service was more polite than Chanterelle but I still got the feeling that they did not care about us one whit. They really did have quite a snooty attitude
and I would not return to see if I was mistaken the first time. Of course, Picholine just turned up in New York Magazine's list of places to eat in 2008!