Lenox Lounge

12/05/09

worst treatment i've ever experienced at a restaurant

by staghorn at Citysearch

Horrifying. I never make reviews, let alone bad ones. But I have to after last night. I was really excited to be going after living in Brooklyn for about a decade and not having been. My excitement soon turned to disgust after how poorly my friend and I were treated. We were there with members of the band. They treated the band also as though they were a huge inconvenience..One waitress was extremely rude to a member of the band when he would politely ask about the status of his food, which took 2 hours! Only half of the back area was full. They were understaffed. Everyone who worked there had mad faces and seemed miserable. My friend and I ordered drinks and food, (paying full price). The food took forever. And after being told it was ok to bring drinks from the front that we'd previously paid for, they charged us an additional $ 32 drink minimum. When trying to talk to them about it, they avoided us. The real kicker though was speaking to the upmost unprofessional caddy manager. Where did they get this woman??! I have worked in many restaurants and this manager doesn't understand the purpose of her position. The only way she can get away with such unprovoked, offensive and unaccommodating behavior is that the place is epic and isn't going to go under no matter how she acts? SAD. The legends would be heart broken if they saw the state of that place.

07/18/09

Nice jazz venue but PRICEY

by yippee at Citysearch

I've never been to the Lenox Lounge until the other day, but I can't imagine it was always this pricey...in HARLEM? Maybe they're trying to take advantage of the recent yuppification of Harlem, and jack up their prices?

Their website says that there's a $20 "cover", plus a $16 "drink minimum". That means that whether you want to drink or NOT, you must pay $36 to listen to a set of music. But wait, it gets better...! They also AUTOMATICALLY add an 18% gratuity to your bill! My friends and I only ordered DRINKS....no food...so what the hell is an 18% gratuity for DRINKS?! Most folks tip $1 per drink, so instead of the waitress getting a $4 tip for our drinks, she got $8.50 dollars.

When I said something about it to the waitress her reply was "well it says it on our menus" and she also said this is "standard practice at other venues". Well I didn't see it stated anywhere on the drink menu..or at least it wasn't very prominent, and who inspects a menu anyway for the fine print? I've heard of restaurants automatically adding in the tip for DINNER parties of SIX or more, but never for just drinks. I know you get ripped off at comedy clubs where they pull all this "minimum" B.S. and overcharge you, and at many supper/music clubs as well. I didnt' realize the Lenox also apparently fell into this camp?

I think this is very sleazy on the Lounge's part. Why not just be straight up and say "if you want to come listen to jazz, the charge is $39 per person" (cover, drink minimum plus gratuity)?

While I was very disappointed in their sleazy pricing policy, I have to say the venue itself was just perfect. The size of the place, the layout, the art deco decor....all very charming.

• Pros: Perfect size, good bands, nice ambiance
• Cons: Price

05/07/09

Live in New York? Go Somewhere Else

by kampalasean at Citysearch

Went for "Happy Hour," but it wasn't until the bill came that we discovered that the sign advertising "$3 beers and $4 wines" did not apply to any of the actual beers and wines that we ordered. Service was slow, they ran out of everything and then we were left with a massive bill full of accounting tricks (came to about $12 a drink even during "Happy Hour")

If you are looking for a Harlem experience more power to you, I'd recommend St. Nick's Pub or The Shrine instead. Harlem is generally not a cheap night out, though you never get watered down drinks and the scene is legit. Still, a night out shouldn't be a night of wresting with the waiters and the bill. Lenox Lounge is probably too used to serving tourists.

• Pros: Cool Atmosphere, Decent Jazz
• Cons: Bill Tricks, Bad Service High Prices