Eleven Madison Park

05/12/2008 Posted by theonlyvic

The room is beautiful, the wine list is excellent, unusual and relatively affordable, the bartender made a killer Bloody Mary (almost worth the $14 price tag), but I finished my meal utterly bewildered as to what type of restaurant Eleven Madison Park intends to be and why anyone judges it as successful in whatever it is doing. With truly haute haute cuisine prices, one expects superior service and exquisite food. Instead, the service was both confused and inept, if somewhat friendly. Our first course arrived before we had been given bread, condiments or, oddly, silverware -- all of which we had to ask for. The 25 minute wait between appetizer and main course was ridiculous. No one came over to move the table when an inside diner wanted to get up, no one folded the napkins of those absent from the table, no one asked if we wanted more bread and no one offered to refill our coffee. At $98 prix fixe, the service should be impeccable, not something that would be inadequate at a diner. Thought the food would compensate, but it was no more than ok. The amuse bouche of a dry, salty gougere came across like a Cheez Doodle compared with the delectable ones at Per Se. Soup and appetizer were good, not great. The entree I had, combining beef tenderloin and beef cheek was better, with the tenderloin perfectly cooked and the cheek meltingly soft, if a tad cloying. Vegetable accompaniments were no more than little smears on the plate. My chocolate desert was nothing special, extremely difficult to cut and featured only a dab (how I longed for as much as a smear) of the salted caramel cited on the menu. There have to be far better ways to drop $300 on a meal for two. Might have rated this average had the charge been, say $40/person or below, but the disconnect between expectation and reality drops my review from average to below average.

Pros: Beautiful room, great wine list, super cocktails

Cons: Inept, unfocused service, merely so-so food, a swindle at those prices

04/07/2008 Posted by dr378

The service is truly outstanding. There were two of us dining, and perhaps 10-15 different people attended to us over the course of our dinner. Our servers took good care of us, yet were never too obtrusive. The food is very good and definitely worth the splurge as this is not a cheap place. The little extra touches are what make the experience that much more enjoyable. To start, they provide a delicious assortment of complimentary mini appetizers, bread and pastry puffs. After dessert, they present a complimentary selection of pastries. All were delicious. Extensive wine list and very knowledgable, friendly sommelier. All in all, a wonderful dining experience to celebrate an anniversary, or just for an elegant night out. There are intimate romantic tables available in the back room and along the side banquets. Be sure to request a quieter table if that is your preference, as the center of the restaurant caters to larger groups and could be a little loud if you are seated there.

Pros: service, food, elegant high end decor

Cons: can be pricey so be prepared for the bill

0 out of 1 people found this review helpful

02/16/2008 Posted by amichelle23

Attended on Valentine's Day with the prix-fixe menu. Food was nauseating but service was excellent. Been to many wonderful restaurants in NYC not sure why this is a 5 star restaurant. Maybe the full menu is better? Will never return. Wine was good, but not the food...

Pros: Service

Cons: Food

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful

01/29/2008 Posted by leejuyun

I had a three course lunch with a glass of wine and it was beautiful. Everything is artistically presented with a perfect balance of flavors. It took about 10-15 minutes between courses but was so good that I can't complain. The portion is small compared to usual American sizes but after three courses, it felt just right.

01/17/2008 Posted by richie888

I had remember when I had dinner there about 4 years ago and left satisfied. My snapper entree was smaller than my palm. I ask the server if the rest was coming. he said no. Im not a big eater but the having 5 bites of my fish, it was all gone. All gone. I guess that is a big minus if you really into the food.

12/02/2007 Posted by georgiahy

My husband just started working here and from all that he tells me that goes into the food preparation and the professionalism of the kitchen, I can't wait to check it out! G

07/20/2007 Posted by nickd717

Danny Meyer knows what's up. This place is DECENT (and I don't mean "decent" as in so-so, I mean "DECENT" as in GOOD - notice the capitalization). The service is excellent and very well orchestrated. As someone who used to work the night shift at a 24-hour small town diner, I was very impressed. A far cry from how we used to haphazardly serve up chicken fingers and jalapeno poppers to the sloppy drunkards that frequented that place. Atmosphere is also very nice - modern and very spacious considering that they'll charge you $1000/month to rent out a closet in this city. The food is top-of-the-line. You really can't go wrong with the menu there. They also bring out a bunch of freebies: hors d'oeuvres, soup, second desserts, etc. Even unlimited bread - GOOD bread. Now for the drawbacks. First of all, it's expensive. You already knew that. If you're loaded, don't worry about it. But I deal in SUBPRIME mortgages (OUCH!) so it put a solid dent in my already thin wallet. $82 for 3 courses, $96 for 4 courses, and expect to pay up for drinks as well. My recommendation however is to GET THE FOUR COURSE MEAL. The portions are TINY! Even with the freebies, you're not going to stuff yourself. But get over it, cheese hog, you don't need those extra pounds anyway. Get the four courser and you'll go home satisfied but not stuffed. So, overall, great food and excellent service, but you might end up as a subprimer when you can't pay your mortgage after EMP hits you up for $300 or so.

Pros: Awesome food, service, and atmosphere...and of course the FREEBIES!

Cons: Expensive, small portions

07/02/2007 Posted by tbrax

We had a thoroughly enjoyable meal here recently. The food was excellent; I highly recommend both the suckling pig and the lamb. The service was perhaps a bit overly solicitous but generally very nice, and the pacing of the meal felt sedate, but not too slow. Some of the flourishes are perhaps a bit too precious (spooning out quenelles of salt and pepper was over the top and silly), but the food is prepared with obvious attention to detail. I would hate to be a prep cook here because of all the tiny piece work, but it certainly looked great on the plate! Prices are in line with what similar restaurants charge, and of course the dining room itself is lovely.

Pros: Ambiance, attention to detail

06/23/2007 Posted by nycmatildagirl

this is one of my favorite restaurants in manhattan! not only is their menu always impressive, but their service always rocks. the food has been consistently amazing and their ambience/decor/flower arrangement make the dining experience unique. you really do get treated like a celebrity or a royal crown at eleven madison.

Pros: food, service, ambience, everything

Cons: none

06/14/2007 Posted by hbrown11

Recently went to 11 Madison, first time since chef Daniel Humm took over the kitchen. As usual, the service and ambiance of the restaurant are incredible. The food was equally outstanding - the gnocci and scallops are great apps, for main courses we had the suckling pig and loup de mer. Both excellent. This restaurant is a perfect choice for fine dining, special occassions, etc. Highly recommended.

Pros: Food, service, decor

Cons: None