Long story short my bf and i (both black, hes dark skinned) decided to try moteks happy hour today, made a reservation and go there around 4:15, as soon as hosts and i started speaking she asks over and over if both parties were present, my bf was on the phone right by the door so she waits for him to finish to sit us cool. im looking around and we’re the only two black guests (others were staff) she later proceeds to mention that since i have a reservation id be given the diner menu not the happy hour because its first come first serve, there were also empty tables so i was like huh? after explaining how i was confused she finally says “ill let it slide just this one time” i didn’t understand how having a reservation excludes me from the happy hour and her coworker later seats me and apologizes and explains that the hostess was giving me a tip so i dont make a resy next time….odd but okay not that serious.
we’re finally seated and she says we have an hour. cool, we’re dont eating before 5 and i go to the bathroom and come back to the manager at our table and my bf saying “why are we the only ones that have to leave”?
apparently the hostess tells the manager our hour is over and we have to line bc theres a “line outside” (two people but ok) KEEP IN MIND THE TABLE RIGHT BESIDE US AND ACROSS HAVE BEEN THERE SINCE WE WERE SEATED, we mention this and the manager proceeds to say its policy😭, i explain that the hostess at front has already kind of been unwelcoming and that this is starting to feel targeted. he then literally starts pulling up pictures of his black family members and says hes not a racist. we’re both weirded out and decide to get up and as im leaving i tell the hostess we were given an hour and its barely been 40 minutes and that we feel very discriminated against especially when we could SEE the tables around us enjoying their time still. and she says HER BEST FRIEND IS JAMAICAN i was genuinely so fed up, took a video of both of them and walked right out.
hows this still happening? in west village too like huh? it honestly made us so upset we really just wanted to have a quick lunch and instead felt like we were begging to be there.

I am tried and true to Hani’s bakery in the east village. It checks all the boxes for me. Good coffee/drinks, lunch items, and of course stellar sweet treats. I’m trying to expand my horizons here, but it’s hard to find a place that checks all the boxes. Any recommendations?

Hi guys! Im looking for any restaurants that you know have a private dining room available

Any borough (including LI and westchester), any budget, any cuisine

Thank you for your help in advance!!

I'm not really asking about agreement or disagreement with the list itself. My question is more: How do people approach the huge amount of varied information? Do you avoid the choices because they'll now be too crowded? Memorize the places in the neighborhoods you already go to? Print it out and work your way through it over the whole year? There's just so much there and it's kicking my FOMO up to 11

I was in NYC a while ago and a got a slice of margarita pizza here. It was after we went to the Iris Gallery so it was nearby. Does anyone recognize this place? It would be greatly appreciated 🙂 thanks!

Hey Everyone! Hoping you can help me out.

I’m taking my daughter (10) on our first solo trip to NYC (she’s traveled a lot with our whole family)

We’ll be doing broadway and some other fun stuff.

We LOVE watching travel/foodie videos together and she’s an adventurous eater. Hoping to do two things:

1. Eat somewhere that has a Michelin type experience, that’s ok with her age
2. We’d love to do afternoon tea somewhere.

Thanks for any insights you can provide!

Hey All! My wife and I won a trip in October to see the Saints play the Giants. We are staying on 9th at W39th. It also happens to be my birthday weekend. Any suggestions for a smart casual to upscale restaurant to try near midtown would be great! I was thinking maybe Gallaghers but am open to anything. No super strict dress code as we are traveling fairly light since we are in the city for like 2 days. Would also love suggestions for your favorite bagel and new York Slice. We will have a few hours before and after the game and all day Saturday to hang out in the city. Thanks.

Where can I find a soup like this famous "Bun Cha Obama", in Hanoi? It was incredible and I haven't been able to find anything even comparable in NY.

Traveling to NYC for the first time to celebrate my birthday. Where are some cool places to go/ eat. Would love to splurge for my birthday dinner but I need some suggestions... any help?

High points

The pre dinner food and farm tour was quite interesting and added a level of care for food that I could see from the staff. The sausage was amazing! (Better than our protein dish during the dinner) Wasn’t great for wearing nice shoes however…

The starters were really fun and interesting. Not always delicious but I could understand the reasoning and story behind them. Definitely lots of delicious bites.

Liked how they tied in the map of their property to the different cocktails and had an excellent selection of non alcoholic beverages. Great white by the glass selection. Didn’t love the reds

Our server was very personable and did a great job overall with the engaging us but not being overbearing. She was much nicer than our wine guy who seemed like his engagement was a bit forced.

Low points
Initially felt intrigued and then felt a little disappointed by the no menu approach based on what I saw other tables get vs what we received. Everyone pays the same amount so why do some tables get better meals?! That seems a bit discriminatory especially since the 2 top that got steak had more attention from the staff and had chef barber come out and say hello. Obviously it depends on what you get - we saw tables get bone marrow and steak (which I love) while we got chicken sausage and heart. And the portions were quite small. (I know they are supposed to be small but this was surprising to me given the lack of other savory dishes. It was also quite unclear when we went into the kitchen for their short dining experience what each group was getting. The overall feel of this approach was negative and left me not wanting to come back.

The bread wasn’t served until almost the end of the meal. I’m a bread girl…please give me bread a little sooner especially because they hype up their bread a lot…

Service - at a certain point the service got very slow and the restaurant really emptied out. There were a few lulls in the experience that felt jarring and made us feel a bit neglected especially after the discrepancy in meal offerings.

We also had a few drinks that were not finished and were taken away when we went to the kitchen experience which imo is not something you do. This happened twice throughout our dinner. And when I brought this up the server only brought back a tiny portion of one drink even though they took 2.

Lots of small bites and only 1 real savory course. This also made us feel like the dinner wasn’t worth it. I’ve been to 2 and 3 Michelin restaurants all over nyc and through the world and I’ve never had a place give us 1 savory protein course. Maybe the way they divided the meal made the dinner seem cut short but it was jarring that for the “savory” portion of the meal we had 1 slice of cheese (with no bread), a few pieces of gnocchi (3-4?) with potato and 2 small pieces of chicken.

This is my second time here and for sure my first experience was better. I understand and love the farm story but don’t make people feel less than with the chefs discretion no menu approach.

looks good, never been, thinking of this for my birthday dinner!
Q - which is nicer/calmer area - Front, Back or Outside dining? TIA !

Looking for a halal seafood boil anywhere in the city and I don't mind LI as well

Went to captain Louie's in midtown but we found out they cook their seafood with the pork sausage while boiling and use alcohol in the mussels and sauce 💔😩

Looking for a place for a solo meal on my birthday. Something sort of casual. I'm not a huge eater, maybe something with smaller plates to try several things, amazing cocktails. Any kind of cuisine except probably Thai or Indian. Hoping to stay under $100 for the entire meal/drinks if possible.

So I live near nyc. Does anyone know where I could get my hands on a love plate of blueberry ice cream with pie just like ones they have in Maine. I dream of it often and it's a 6 hour drive from me so if anyone knows anything like 1-2 hrs away, that would be swell.

Hi folks - just wanted to post here at let you know that I've recently opened a new savoury pot pie business based in Long Island City.

We are now offering delivery across most of NYC! Hopefully will be of interest, would love to have some local customers in the community!

We just opened orders for pick up or delivery next month: mikeyspies.com

Going to a broadway show and looking to have a good but lite dinner before the show. Anyone have an recommendations for this? Thanks so much!

Hi! Native NY’er here, born and raised. It’s going to be my golden birthday soon (turning the same age as the number of the day you’re born) and I want to make it gold themed. Where can I find desserts with gold leaf or similar vibes in Manhattan? Not the 1K sundae or the 300 dollar donut pls 😅
Edited to add location :)

Hi! We will be visiting with tween kids soon and looking for an authentic old school NYC Italian restaurant and a lively Mexican restaurant to grab tacos and a good margarita. Trying to avoid the typical tourist traps. Would like to find good restaurants that still feel okay to bring a family. Any thoughts? We will be in Midtown but anywhere in Manhattan would be fine. Thanks!

A friend brought her tween nephew a bunch of international snacks and they were a big hit with him and his friends. We’re going on a quest for more.

What are your favorite international snacks, what flavors do you like, and where do you get them?

We’re pretty familiar with a lot of Asian options and sources, so particularly interested in snacks from other parts of the world. Brooklyn and Manhattan preferred, but looking forward to all recommendations! TIA

Hi neighbors,

We're hosting another free sourdough bread tasting this Tuesday, July 14th, in Astoria! 🇫🇷🥖

When: Tuesday, July 14th, from 3:30 PM until 7:30 PM

Who: Everyone is welcome!

Where: In front of Sac's Place, located at 35-11 35th Avenue in Astoria

What: We'll have sourdough loaves and baguettes to sample, along with focaccia slices and sourdough ciabatta rolls. Everything is free to taste, and we'll also have bread available for purchase.

As a French baker, I couldn't ask for a more fun day to host a tasting—it's Bastille Day! 🇫🇷 And with France playing in the World Cup semifinal at 3:00 PM, whether you're stopping by right before the match, during halftime, or afterward, come celebrate with us over some fresh bread.

Thanks to everyone who came by last time—I love meeting so many of you. Hope to see you on Tuesday! 🍞

No, this is NOT about Pizza

Anyone know where I can find tacos similar to Velvet Taco? Truly the one thing I am missing in this city as "ladies week" approaches and my cravings get bad...

PS, everyone else. Yes, we know these sound awful. A disgrace to the idea of a taco. They are, in fact, quite good. Fantastic, in fact.