Per Se or Gramercy Tavern

Thank you for your replies. As a result, we went to Per Se. I can honestly say it was the best meal of our lives. Before I describe our meal, I want to clarify that my girlfriend and I are not food snobs. Both of us consider ourselves "chowhounds", and we appreciate various types of cuisine ranging from real home cooking in places some people would consider “dives” to fine food in expensive restaurants. In addition, my girlfriend was recently working in Tokyo for almost a year and she raved about the high quality of food, as well as the service, in Tokyo restaurants. I visited her and experienced it for myself. While she was there, she was lucky enough to have dinner at the famous Park Hyatt hotel. After that dinner, she thought she would never experience anything better. After dinner at Per Se, she admits she was wrong. Per Se lived up to all the hype and more. My girlfriend and I didn't want the night to end. Here are some of the incredible highlights from the night…

- We arrived early (at approximately 8:30 PM for a 9:00 PM reservation), hoping to have a drink in the lounge while they prepared our table. As soon as we entered, the hostess said "Happy Birthday" to my girlfriend. My girlfriend was surprised that she knew it was her birthday. For me, this was expected.
- We sat in the lounge and each ordered a cocktail. As soon as we finished ordering, another hostess stopped by and said our table was ready and that they would bring the drinks to our table. Again, nothing out of the ordinary.
- We were seated. Our waiter arrived, said "Happy Birthday", asked what type of water we'd prefer, and confirmed that my girlfriend had a food allergy to shrimp. Again, their attention to detail was impeccable. I understand that the hostess knew that it was her birthday, but it quickly became apparent that the entire staff knew it was her birthday. He handed us our menu and went to get our water.
- We opened our menus and both of our mouths drop to the floor. The menus are personally prepared for us. Both of them say "Happy Birthday" with my girlfriend's name! We couldn't believe our eyes. This is the beginning of the outstanding evening.
- Our waiter came back and explained the menu (the tasting of vegetables versus the chef's tasting menu). My girlfriend mentioned to me that she was surprised that they didn't have lobster on the menu. I decided to ask the waiter. He said that he'd check in the back and if they had lobster, they'd put something together for us. I mentioned that I remembered hearing about a lobster course, and he quickly recalled the macaroni and cheese. Again, he said he'd check. At this point, he handed us the wine list. We ordered the chef's tasting menu.
- As I was looking over the wine list, they brought us some amuse bouche. Both of them, cheese puff pastries and miniature ice cream cones of salmon tartare with sweet red onion and crème fraîche, were wonderful and a perfect beginning to the meal ahead. The sommelier came over and asked if we had any questions. We asked for his recommendations. He recommended a half bottle of Hubert Lamy 2006 and a half bottle of the Marconi (?) 2002.
- Then the meal began. I can't remember all of the items on the menu, but here are the highlights. It started out with the Oysters and Pearls. After that, they added an additional course of Tuna Tartar. There was a foie gras or cauliflower option, halibut with black ink ravioli, quail, beef, and cheese courses. Obviously, I'm not doing these items justice. All I can say is everything on every plate "worked together". I never experienced food this good. And I doubt I ever will again. Oh, and they worked the macaroni and cheese (composed of butter-poached lobster, orzo folded with mascarpone and a creamy lobster broth, and a single, round Parmesan crisp) in the menu in place of sea scallops. It was great. Every dish was described perfectly by the servers. In addition, when we had questions about the food, the waiter gave us more details. It was fabulous. While I was eating my foie gras, the staff noticed that my girlfriend and I were discussing something and that I wasn't eating that quickly. Next thing I knew, they brought out a fresh piece of toasted brioche so that it would be warm with my foie gras. Oh yeah, and they offered us four types of bread with two choices of butter…and refilled the bread with each course.
- In addition, they paired the wines perfectly. The food enhanced the wine and the wine enhanced the food. Again, spectacular stuff.
- Then the desserts started coming. There was a peach sorbet and an option between peanut butter with chocolate mousse and a strawberry with pannecotta on a biscuit. We tried everything. When they brought over her dessert, there was a candle. As we ate dessert, my girlfriend had the best coffee of her life and I had a wonderful cup of chamomile tea. Then they added more desserts. A server came by and described 8 different types of chocolates that were handmade in-house. We tried the white chocolate and banana, the rocky road (dark chocolate and marshmallow), the orange and chocolate, the bourdon and chocolate, the raspberry and chocolate, the pecan and chocolate, the milk chocolate and ganache, and the dark chocolate and pistachio. We could have as many as we wanted. A couple at the table next to us had them boxed up to go.
- And then more desserts arrived, there were three types of truffles, dark chocolate with hazelnut, milk chocolate (with something that I can't remember) and white chocolate with coconut. In addition, there were hard candies, chocolate covered hazelnuts, butterscotch candies, and nougat candies…all made from scratch. At this point, we were stuffed and we asked if we could take a few items home. The waiter said he'd box up a sampling of each item. They also gave us a dessert to take away with us. I can't remember what it was exactly, but it had almonds, dark chocolate and came with something that was layered in filo. It sounded delicious at the time.
- As we were leaving (around 12:15 AM), we decided to look at the small private dining room that is located just off of the main dining room. A different server, one that we hadn't seen all night, asked us if we would like a tour of the kitchen. I was shocked! She brought us back to kitchen, and gave us a quick tour of the stations along the way. Then in the kitchen, she showed us where each course was prepared. In addition, there was a TV screen mounted in the corner of the ceiling that had a live feed of The French Laundry. They in turn have a video feed of Per Se. The staff was cleaning up the kitchen at this point. The server offered to show us the bakery and chocolate room in the back, but we declined.
- On our way out the door, our server gave us a bag containing our desserts. In addition, he had a folder with our menus so we could take them home. I think we left at approximately 12:30 AM, which meant we just had a four hour dinner.

My girlfriend and I haven't stopped talking about this meal. It seemed like a dream. Even when the bill came, which was ridiculous, I didn’t hesitate at the price. It was worth every penny. The quality of the food was outstanding and the staff was knowledgeable, funny, attentive, and comforting. We never want to eat again because we feel like nothing will compare to the food we just ate.

If you truly appreciate food and the entire dining experience (and can afford it), then Per Se is something that should not be missed. It was a birthday celebration that will never be forgotten…something that happens once in a lifetime.

Victor NYC in Manhattan

Per Se or Gramercy Tavern

My girlfriend's birthday is this Sunday. I have reservations at Gramercy Tavern on Saturday night and reservations at Per Se on Sunday night. Unfortunately, it's not within my budget to go to both places. Please help us decide. Thank you.

Victor NYC in Manhattan

Hell's Kitchen Indian food?

Is Desi Deli vegetarian only?

Victor NYC in Manhattan

Hell's Kitchen Indian food?

That is so sad. Looks like I'll have to make more trips to Murray Hill. Do you have any favorites over there?

Victor NYC in Manhattan