The Modern

12/05/09

Wonderful dining experience!

by lcrobe at Citysearch

I have been here on a few occasions and each time has been top-notch. I first dined here for Valentines Day and truly enjoyed every aspect of my dining experience. The food is uniformly good, plated beautifully, the service is impeccable, and tables with views of the garden are to die for! I highly recommend the tasting menu with the wine pairings. It is worth every cent!

• Pros: Excellent food, service and ambiance
• Cons: None

11/15/08

Yessss Yesss... JAMES BEARD N ALLL!

by GluttoNoire at Citysearch

Absouletely fabulous interior place... does MoMa proud. The courses are long in the main dining room and Gentlemen please wear a jacket unless you want to end up wearing one of theirs..

The bar room (the only part of the restaurant that has a "a la carte" menu) has very innovative and well balanced food, all small plates. yes its upscale, i really dont mind paying well 4 decent food that this city sometimes confuses with "HYPE".

What i do mind is the vagrant snobbery with a dash or racism !! I dined at both the dining room and the bar room. The first time I thought i was being over sensitive and that I should check the chips on my shoulder. however the third time around had me fuming. Did not expect this from one of Mr.Meyer's place's.

BTW: the bar room/bar is quite free of such upityness! + really great cocktails.

• Pros: great place for a proper dinner/lunch
• Cons: I found the dining room managers a bit snobby .. not the servers/ect

11/02/08

Great Bar Dining

by Bluefoot at Citysearch

have been dining at The Modern since they opened, have been a huge fan of the food and ability to have a quality meal on the way home from work and not commit to a table. have always enjoyed all my meals and I've probably had everything more than once easily, my only 'complaint' is that it's prices in the Bar Room (cocktails and food) have steadily increased, you will spend a nearly $30 for one drink and a soup before tip and tax..unfortunate

10/23/08

Romantic Dinner

by scoottncl at Citysearch

Okay, I just had the best date EVER at Modern , so perhaps my review is a bit biased.....but suffice it to say that the ambiance is amazing, the service impeccable, the rabbit terrine and the beef tenderloin will melt in your mouth, and the wine...well, the wine flowed.....

I'd be hard pressed to come up with a better place for a romantic first date dinner. We'll definitely be going out again.

10/03/08

Best restaurant meal ever

by ariadnammr at Citysearch

I came with high expectations and they were exceeded, something that doesn't usually happen. The food was perfect, lovely to look at , beautifully presented, cooked exactly right, delicious. Stuck to the cod with chorizo and the duck breast which have been recommended multiple times by other reviewers; good choices. The duck was sliced at table. They bring over all sorts of other fun things while you're eating: little appetizers, an amuse bouch, a palate cleanser, all wonderfully delicious and fun to receive. If you want to make your three course meal into a four course meal, get the excellent cheese plate as a dessert course, because wonderful sweet things appear after with the coffee. Their chocolates are really special. The sommelier arrived at the table knowing what we had ordered and already with a few suggestions in mind. The service was paced perfectly and was very professional. I usually don't write reviews, but did want to for this restaurant. Enjoy!

• Pros: Everything.
• Cons:  The wine list is for the most part scary; 48 pages and most very pricey. Take advantage of the sommelier!

08/12/08

One of our favorites

by mecnyc at Citysearch

My partner and I have been here on several occasions--with the parents, friends from in town and visitors--and we have never been disappointed. The food is always delicious, inventive, and well-executed. The service is well-paced for a relaxing dinner--generally what one wants from a place like this. The wines by the glass are a cut above. Though the dining room looks out over the MOMA sculpture garden, it is true that one doesn't get a great view at night, which is a shame. I find the seating to be very comfortable, and the decor of the room simple and modern, in keeping with the location

• Pros: food, goodies (amuse bouche, petit fours)
• Cons: can be loud

06/26/08

Great service!

by MalibuNicole at Citysearch

Absolutely delicious. The main dining room is nice especially by the window. The service was excellent and it takes a lot to impress me.

• Pros: Service, Service, Service
• Cons: It's in New York

02/18/08

Slow service

by xtiffysweetzx at Citysearch

So I came here recently with 2 other friends and found the service to be amazingly slow. It took the waitress forever to come to our table and take our order. It also took about 2.5 hours for a 4 course meal!!! Ive has 8 courses done in 3 hours. The food here was ok, nothing special. I wouldn't come back here again.

• Pros: nice ambience
• Cons: service, service, slow service

02/10/08

Very disappointing

by chanstein at Citysearch

My boyfriend went to The Modern to celebrate our 1 year anniversary since we had heard great things about the place. When we arrived, we were seated at 10pm for our 9:30 reservation. That was fine since it was Friday night. We followed the hostess to the restaurant and were happy to get out of the noisy bar area but we were not impressed with the main dining area. It felt like that we were being seated in an office space since that is what you saw - the office buildings around you. Yes, there is a garden but you can't see it because it's too dark. We were then seated at a table in the back surrounded by 4 tables that stared directly onto us. To add to the office effect, the seating was unremarkable with swiveling office-like chairs. When we sat down, we got the full effect of the place - dark but not in a romantic way, more grey and uninviting. The only effort in decor was really just 2 flower arrangements in the center of the room. Other than that the table clothes were drab white and grey with a small flower and candle. People were being seated while place settings were still being set. The worst part though was that the whole meal was eaten while shivering because it was so cold! In any case, the last thing I will say about our seating is that we were brought through the whole restaurant to be seated next to the back entrance of the noisy bar area, near the kichen and the bathrooms. Therefore, we paid to be seated in the quiet dining area to be seated basically with the noise of the fellow bar folk.

On to the food. We had to ask for the menus and still had to wait 10 minutes for them. The petits amuses bouches were less than spectacular and the soup just warm enough to momentarily ward off our chill. The appetizer of escargot potato galette was ok. My boyfriend's squab and foie gras was delicious but my beef filet ordered medium rare was more medium with a stringy consistency.

Overall a very non-memorable and disappointing dining experience.

• Pros: Squab and foie gras entree
• Cons: no ambience, noisy bar, mediocre service

07/12/07

never a disappointment

by katarinanyc at Citysearch

I've been here about 20 times now and it's still remains as one of my favorites. I especially love dining at the bar if it's not too crowded. The bartenders are professional, friendly, and efficient. Their drink menu changes often enough that there is always something new and interesting to try. The wines are carefully chosen and the cocktails original. The food is always up to par. If you're dining in the main dining room, the menu is entirely different. I highly recommend the tasting menu. Their wine list is extensive and the somelliers are very helpful in choosing the right wines to suit your food. I could go on and on... I have nothing but good things to say about The Modern.

• Pros: food, service, ambience, decor, wines
• Cons: n/a