Kitchen Club Inc

08/18/08

We left after thirty minutes

by KJKsoho

Would love to tell you how the food was, but after waiting a half hour for a drink on a Saturday night, I decided to get up and leave instead. Too bad the service was so bad because I heard the food is good.

05/29/08

They "don't do" leftovers !!

by MB888

i had a nice dinner there, but when it came to taking my leftovers home the waiter said that they don't have any containers or bags. (?!) then he finally found a plastic container that he ceremoniously put on the table for me to do it myself ! geez. i work all day long for one meal where it's all about me... and he put me to work.

05/10/07

romantic and tasty

by tapsilog

i stumbled into Kitchen Club on a busy sunday afternoon with my mom & brother... what a great surprise! The scenery is charming and homey, the atmosphere very relaxed but still very sophisticated. The brunch menu was creative and delicious---asian traditional flavors meets french cafe? In any case, my boyfriend and i were in the neighborhood last evening and popped in again for supper. Wow- i didn't realize how romantic the place could be on a warm early summer evening! The owner herself seated us- charming, very professional. Chibi, her fabulous diva dog, kept watch on the dining room, even sat next to us for a bit. Our server was knowledgeable about the menu and offered delicious wine pairings for our amazing, carefully prepared entrees (lamb tenderloin & miso cod, that is). Everything was so fresh, so beautifully simple. We were relaxed, happy, satisfied and walked out of the place holding hands. Take your loved one, now. Run.

01/24/07

Great food but rude service

by smart40

The Kitchen Club didn't have our reservation when we arrived. They somehow managed to get us in after parading us around the restaurant, through the kitchen, etc. They seated us at the worst table right by the door with a very cold draft. There WAS a space heater which did help some. The waitress spilled red wine on my white coat. She made a lot of effort to get the stain out, but nobody offered to clean my coat or compensate me in any way. They even told me what kind of stain remover I could buy myself. After they gave us the dessert menus and we said we didn't want anything, the obviously relieved waitress said it was better that way because they had another reservation and we needed to be out soon anyway. I do have to say that the food was excellent, but after that treatment, I would not go back.

12/11/06

Our large party had a great time

by mdash

I recently booked a family dinner for 8 at The Kitchen Club, and we had such a lovely evening I felt compelled to write in to counter some of the other reviews. The wait staff were friendly, and were happy to seat us early even though the rest of the party hadn't arrived yet. The dumplings were delicious and disappeared in a flash. The entrees were perfectly cooked, paired with interesting flavors in the sides (filet mignon side was especially good), and portioned appropriately for fine dining. If you want to stuff yourself with big plates of inexpensive food (and there's nothing wrong with that), this is not the place.

As for Marja, the owner, she called me personally to confirm the reservation and discuss the menu, stopped by our table througout the evening, telling jokes and whisking away empty wine bottles, and gave us some sake on the house. She has been in the neighborhood for some 15 years, long before it was hipster wonderland. How often do you see a restaurant owner?or anyone, for that matter?who clearly cares so much about her business and is so passionate about what she does? Chibi was unobrusive, didn't go in the kitchen, and is there because he adores his owner. In a city where people carry their dogs in designer handbags everywhere they go, his presence is not so strange.

I understand that all this may not be everyone's cup of tea, but if you are concerned, I'd suggest stopping by when the restaurant is not busy and seeing if you can meet Marja and check out the menu. You'll know if The Kitchen Club is for you. I hope it is?it was a unique and wonderful experience for us.

• Pros: Delicious and interesting food, personal touch, unique

Editorial Review

by Contributor

European and Japanese fusion restaurant in Soho serving more than 20 different sakes.

07/31/06

As always, a wonderful experience!

by jsscunning

My partner and I have been "members" of The Kitchen Club for almost three years and even today it continues to surprise us with wonderful new dishes and that remarkable romantic feeling we felt on our very first visit one evening in late September. Tonight we even managed to sit at the same table with a perfect view of the original St. Patricks Cathedral. The service was wonderful and well paced. And of course, there is Chibi, those in the know will know who I am talking about.(Ask where is Chibi?) everything on the menu is delicious especially, Marja's(the owner) dumplings. Anybody looking to spend a leisurely evening with friends and loved ones, join The Kitchen Club, still taking new "members" even after 15 years since it all started.

• Pros: Romantic setting, delicious food
• Cons: You can't take Chibi home with you!

04/26/06

HORRIBLE SERVICE & overpriced food

by newyork2007

Food took so long & doesn't worth for the high price. Service bad, waitress never come back check on us and charged us 20% service charge for 4 party people just because she think we are tourist. She was mean when we asked her about the service charge she included in the bill. DON'T WAIST MONEY TO GO EAT AT THIS PLACE. BAD and HORRIBLE!!!!

• Cons: TERRIBLE service, Overpriced, bad staffs

04/03/06

HORRIBLE SERVICE!

by rblockner

I arrived at the restaurant on time for my reservation at 7:30pm on Saturday April 1st. The restaurant was not full but the host wanted to seat us in the back dark bar room. When asked why we couldn't sit in the front room, which was not full, he said I just can't sorry. He was extremely rude and when I asked to see the manager he stalled. So, we went to Public around the corner and had a great meal instead! If you like being treated badly go to this restaurant, otherwise don't bother!

12/07/05

lackadaisical service and overpriced food

by bowerymarc

My date and I made last dinner service. That's no excuse to be ignored by the server, but she forgot my wine, our water, never came by to check on us, and couldn't even bother to bring our check (the owner did).

Menu items are well thought out - the head chef really knows ingredients. Unfortunately staff was lacking.

Pumpkin soup was foamy - lacking the depth expected from winter soup.

Shrimp&spinach dumplings came out stone cold. Crab cakes were tasty but greasy - fryer temp was off.

Salmon with orange sauce was an excellent recipe, but the grill master charred the salmon skin - instead of crunchy goodness I got a mouth full of bitter charcoal.

Japanese dinner box was decent but unspectacular - especially disappointing was the pickled meat (pork? chicken?) - tasteless and undefined. The chicken teriyaki was very tasty.

Overall - overpriced given the spotty quality.

• Pros: good menu
• Cons: terrible service, incompetent prep., overpriced