I’ve enjoyed Benoit in midtown a few times. They used to have a Cinq à Sept happy hour menu when I was there a couple years ago.
Many thanks to all for your suggestions. They ended up having the Restaurant Week 3-course at Marseilles (branzino, natch) and lunch at Benoit, both of which they enjoyed. The weather was bit inclement, but they stayed athlete Algonquin and got a wonderful upgrade to the suite where Noel Coward lived for a time. A great time.
Something weird – NYC seems to have related concrete with tile at street crossings, so it as very slippery. What prompted the choice of tile - the trial lawyers assn.?
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great choices! do they have the original round table at the Algonquin?
I think the tile at the intersections may help legally blind people detect an intersection with their stick. We have tile or a textured surface at major intersections in Toronto, as well.
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No Round Table. The bar and restaurant are being renovated
And we have textured intersections in Dc, and on the track edges of the Metro stations – but concrete, not slick tiles.
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The breakfasts and dinners have been mediocre when I’ve dined at the restaurant inside the Algonquin. The drinks are expensive for what they are- better cocktails are found elsewhere in midtown for the same prices.
I do like the space, and the resident cat, and the hotel rooms. When the Algonquin added a resort fee, some time ago, they started offering a $25 credit daily towards meals or drinks at their restaurant/bar when it was open. The last time I was there, I decided I’d rather just get a breakfast than use the credit. I think I had ordered an $18 breakfast sandwich and a coffee, and the coffee was a pot for $8 or something like that. Another time, I used the credit, and ordered a $20 salad with a soda , and the soda was $6 or $7.
I’ve stayed at the Algonquin 3 or 4 times over the past 15 years. They often have really reasonable rates on long weekends.
Thanks again to all for their recommendations. I did a blog post on Marseille, and included a mention of your help to give the onion sone publicity. See https://johntannersbbqblog.wordpress.com/2022/02/25/marseille-new-york-new-york/
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Reading your review, I saw that you included that your wife and daughter also went to Benoit. It’s a favorite of ours. Been there many times, most often for lunch. Glad they enjoyed it as well as Marseille which we’ve been to but not nearly as often as Benoit.
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Nice that you did that. I’m a big fan of Marseille myself. I’ve not been there in two years, for obvious reasons (although I was tempted by their outdoor seating when the weather was warmer), but ate there frequently in the decade before (and infrequently before I had an apartment relatively nearby), and have hosted parties there. The food was always good, and very often excellent. I still remember with relish some particularly garlicky escargot from around 2010, and an introduction to eau de vie from an even earlier time. Their burger has always been solid.
Plus, it’s such a gracious room.
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I’ve never been to the one in NYC, only Paris, but I do love it.
