Orchard Restaurant

(212) 353-3570

162 Orchard St
New York, NY 10002 40.7211 -73.9886

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Neighborhoods: Lower East Side, Downtown

THEORCHARDNY.COM

Price:

$$$$

Last updated 10.17.11

Category:

Restaurants

Payment Methods:

American Express, Visa, MasterCard

Restaurant Special Features:

Date Spot

Cuisine:

Traditional American, Italian

Editor's Tips

What People Are Saying About Orchard Restaurant

Featured Review

Erin Behan

Contributor

The Scene – The restaurant takes its decor cues from the Lower East Side's clubby metamorphoses. A front bar in hues of orange and brown doubles as a waiting area for the spare, modern dining room. Attentive servers handle tables of dressed-up clubbers and subdued older couples with equal grace. – – The Food – Start with a thin flatbread--the chanterelle mushroom is a heavenly mix of creamy polenta, savory mushroom puree--while perusing the menu influenced, but certainly not restrained, by Italy. Diners can construct a table-sharing first course of tuna tartare,…

Editor's Tips

The Extras:
Don't know where to go out after dinner? Check out this Lower East Side nightlife guide.
ambiance
100.0% positive
  1. “It's romantic, good place for conversation, I don't think you can go wrong with this restaurant.”
  2. “Good food in an unexpected location”
  3. “The design of the Orchard is masterly done to create a warm and inviting ambience.”
  4. “Calm, spacious, lovely decor, together with attentive but not intrusive service (& good wine suggestions) and uniformly excellent food, make us look forward to making another "long LES trek"soon.”
  5. “Modern romantic place”
  6. “The food is good, the atmosphere nice, but there isn't anything really notable about this restaurant.”
  7. “This cozy little restaurant on Orchard is packed come date night Friday and Sat.”
  8. “The tuna tartar is amazing, as is the ambience and service.”
  9. “beautiful decor, stellar service, excellent wine selections, and a meal that we could have gotten at the corner kebab joint for several hundred dollars less.”
  10. “Surprisingly great atmosphere, especially considering there are no windows.”
  11. “The decor was beautiful, the service was impeccable and my meal was perfectly prepared (I had the bass) - although my friend's pasta with tomato and avocado was a little al dente.”
drinks
100.0% positive
  1. “We went around the corner, got two bottles of wine, and had a fabulous dinner.”
  2. “Top that off with two delicious bottles of wine and it made for a perfect night.”
  3. “wait to go back every Sunday to eat the delicious food and bring my own wine!”
  4. “also had an amazing waiter who suggested their blood-orange soda drink (delicious!)”
  5. “Calm, spacious, lovely decor, together with attentive but not intrusive service (& good wine suggestions) and uniformly excellent food, make us look forward to making another "long LES trek"soon.”
  6. “beautiful decor, stellar service, excellent wine selections, and a meal that we could have gotten at the corner kebab joint for several hundred dollars less.”
  7. “Our waiter provided great service with attentive details to table space (which can be cramped), pace of our dishes coming out and time between wine refills.”
food quality
98.28000068664551% positive
  1. “... entrees (lamb) outstanding.”
  2. “The restuarant is well designed and the food was quite amazing!”
  3. “We started with the lobster empanadas and drunken goat cheese salad which were both great.”
  4. “excellent food - small portions on the entrees, but somehow we left completely stuffed.”
  5. “... flatbreads (steak tartare) were great”
  6. “wait to go back every Sunday to eat the delicious food and bring my own wine!”
  7. “Our waiter provided great service with attentive details to table space (which can be cramped), pace of our dishes coming out and time between wine refills.”
  8. “also had an amazing waiter who suggested their blood-orange soda drink (delicious!)”
  9. “It came with a little tomato and buffalo mozzarella salad which was tasty, I just wish there had been something a little more consistent.”
  10. “The food is good, the atmosphere nice, but there isn't anything really notable about this restaurant.”
  11. “The decor was beautiful, the service was impeccable and my meal was perfectly prepared (I had the bass) - although my friend's pasta with tomato and avocado was a little al dente.”
  12. “The food is simply amazing.”
  13. “The beef shortrib flatbread was decent.”
  14. “beautiful decor, stellar service, excellent wine selections, and a meal that we could have gotten at the corner kebab joint for several hundred dollars less.”
  15. “prettiest room, and still good food”
  16. “Calm, spacious, lovely decor, together with attentive but not intrusive service (& good wine suggestions) and uniformly excellent food, make us look forward to making another "long LES trek"soon.”
  17. “was skeptical but the cheese option was really yummy.”
  18. “good service, and great food with a little modern flair,”
  19. “We next shared the lobster empanadas (fried pockets stuffed with lobster served with corn on the cob--the corn was wierd and unneccesary) and the crispy rock shrimp salad (super dressing!)”
  20. “The food was GREAT!”
  21. “would recommend dishes but I bet that everything on the menu is great.”
  22. “My husband, our friend, and I shared the most delicious dinner I've had in a long time at The Orchard last night.”
  23. “Good food in an unexpected location”
  24. “For our main course, my friend had the mushroom ravioli which was SO good, and I had a delicious, huge, tender steak.”
  25. “The servers were very helpful but left us to relax and enjoy our food.”
  26. “Enjoyed a delicious dinner here recently with a friend.”
  27. “Top that off with two delicious bottles of wine and it made for a perfect night.”
  28. “This restaurant is a breathe of fresh air!”
  29. “The food was delicious.”
menu variety
100.0% positive
  1. “Robiola is my favorite cheese so I was excited to see it on a menu.”
  2. “beautiful decor, stellar service, excellent wine selections, and a meal that we could have gotten at the corner kebab joint for several hundred dollars less.”
  3. “would recommend dishes but I bet that everything on the menu is great.”
overall
100.0% positive
  1. “Overall The Orchard is our new favorite restaurant in the Lower East Side and it looks like it will stay our favorite for a long while.”
  2. “best new restaurant”
  3. “It's romantic, good place for conversation, I don't think you can go wrong with this restaurant.”
  4. “had initially chosen this place hoping we could BYOB, but now, without the cost-effective dining out option, this place went from a great deal to just another good place in NYC.”
return potential
100.0% positive
  1. “wait to go back every Sunday to eat the delicious food and bring my own wine!”
  2. “But my whole experience was amazing and I will definitely be back again.”
service
100.0% positive
  1. “also had an amazing waiter who suggested their blood-orange soda drink (delicious!)”
  2. “Props to James, the friendly and personable bartender who is a real good sport.”
  3. “Our waiter provided great service with attentive details to table space (which can be cramped), pace of our dishes coming out and time between wine refills.”
  4. “Beautiful dining room, great staff”
  5. “Service was very helpful and friendly.”
  6. “Calm, spacious, lovely decor, together with attentive but not intrusive service (& good wine suggestions) and uniformly excellent food, make us look forward to making another "long LES trek"soon.”
  7. “good service, and great food with a little modern flair,”
  8. “... just very friendly and polished service.”
  9. “The servers were very helpful but left us to relax and enjoy our food.”
  10. “The decor was beautiful, the service was impeccable and my meal was perfectly prepared (I had the bass) - although my friend's pasta with tomato and avocado was a little al dente.”
  11. “The wait staff is friendly, helpful, and attentive.”
  12. “The waiter was helpful and friendly, especially when my friend changed her order after the appetizers.”
  13. “The tuna tartar is amazing, as is the ambience and service.”
  14. “beautiful decor, stellar service, excellent wine selections, and a meal that we could have gotten at the corner kebab joint for several hundred dollars less.”
value
80.0% positive
  1. “For our main course, my friend had the mushroom ravioli which was SO good, and I had a delicious, huge, tender steak.”
  2. “beautiful decor, stellar service, excellent wine selections, and a meal that we could have gotten at the corner kebab joint for several hundred dollars less.”
  3. “But for $12, the flatbread is a little overpriced for the neighborhood (6 small squares).”
  4. “Portions were perfect (not too small, not too huge).”
  5. “excellent food - small portions on the entrees, but somehow we left completely stuffed.”
wait time
100.0% positive
  1. “Overall The Orchard is our new favorite restaurant in the Lower East Side and it looks like it will stay our favorite for a long while.”
  2. “Calm, spacious, lovely decor, together with attentive but not intrusive service (& good wine suggestions) and uniformly excellent food, make us look forward to making another "long LES trek"soon.”
  3. “My husband, our friend, and I shared the most delicious dinner I've had in a long time at The Orchard last night.”
5 Star Rating: Highly Recommended

12/14/08

prettiest room, and still good food

by wilford at Citysearch

heard alot about this place, and it seems to be all true,

was kinda quiet there on wed, night, but it just added to a nice dinner,

good service, and great food with a little modern flair,

  • Pros: food, lighting
5 Star Rating: Highly Recommended

10/29/08

New Sunday BYOB!!! :)

by lucyloo121212 at Citysearch

Ate here Sunday and it was BYOB..Wonderful touch with the economy right now!! The food was GREAT!!!! Service was GREAT!!! Can?t wait to go back every Sunday to eat the delicious food and bring my own wine!!!!

4 Star Rating: Recommended

12/16/07

Good food in an unexpected location

by punky21 at Citysearch

I went to dinner with three of my girlfriends on a Friday night and had an above-average dinner for less than $50. In my opinion, this is not super expensive but not cheap either. We each had one or two drinks (beer, wine and liquor drinks), an entree, shared two appetizers and shared one dessert. The waiter was helpful and friendly, especially when my friend changed her order after the appetizers.

Special notes about the food -- the flatbreads are an interesting part of the menu. I was skeptical but the cheese option was really yummy. It had lots of garlic so that always makes it yummy! The steak wraps were small, wrapped in lettuce and, in general, just ok so I wouldn't recommend them. The Orchard Salad was nothing special but hiit the spot. I had the butternut squash Agnolli (which is like something between ravioli and tortellini) and was really really yummy! I would definitely recommend that.

  • Pros: location, ambience
3 Star Rating: Average

12/09/07

?

by andyportico at Citysearch

beautiful decor, stellar service, excellent wine selections, and a meal that we could have gotten at the corner kebab joint for several hundred dollars less...

  • Pros: service, wine list, ambience
  • Cons: food, poor value
5 Star Rating: Highly Recommended

10/22/07

Bring your own wine?

by lschomp at Citysearch

When I went to this place it was waiting for it's liquor license (maybe still is?), so it was BYOB with no cockage fee. Food's great, smokey and unique. Surprisingly great atmosphere, especially considering there are no windows. It's romantic, good place for conversation, I don't think you can go wrong with this restaurant.

The Details on Orchard Restaurant

Place Categories:

  • great italian food
  • great stellar service
  • good place
  • overpriced flatbreads
  • nice delicious dinner
  • highly recommend little restaurant
  • helpful wait staff
  • helpful waiter
  • all exceedingly flavorful lobster empanadas
  • very nice drunken goat cheese salad
  • helpful servers
  • personable bartender
  • amazing whole experience
  • inviting ambience
  • nice atmosphere
  • beautiful decor
  • great fine italian dining
  • amber lighting
  • really yummy cheese option
  • delicious bottles
  • amazing tuna tartar
  • beautiful meal
  • good mushroom ravioli
  • delicious tender steak
  • decent beef shortrib flatbread