Aquarelle NYC — Restaurant in New York

Disappointing Experience Despite High Expectations…

I was drawn in by the positive reviews, but unfortunately my experience didn't match up to them. While the restaurant compensated with several comped items, the overall service was quite poor.

Service Issues:

Confusing number of staff attending to our table Duty manager had a peculiar style and often seemed like he wasn't listening Two wait staff appeared to be under training, which was noticeable Poor attention to detail (we ordered half dozen oysters but received a dozen – not so bad for us, I know)

Menu & Beverage Problems:

Two white wine selections were unavailable "because it's Tuesday" (it would have been helpful to know about missing menu items upfront, we also had issues with some missing cocktail ingredients for their curated drinks list too) Received room temperature white wine initially, with staff claiming they had none refrigerated (despite a large wine cellar downstairs..) Served a warm martini during what was supposed to be a complimentary round of drinks

Food Quality:

Salt baked branzino: Small portion and over-seasoned (seemed more for the fire show and instagram than the dish quality!) Tomahawk steak: Overcooked (ordered medium) but it was a good size for sharing Side orders: Tiny portions except for the truffle fries, which were actually quite good Seafood tower: Okay but poor value for money Seafood Risotto: small but tasty, even if a bit too al dente Small bites: The bright spot - fried calamari, shrimp kataifi, and crab cakes were largely pretty good Cocktails: Mediocre overall

Overall Impression:

This was meant to be a celebration dinner for our sales team's mid-year success, but it turned into what felt like an odd social experiment. The restaurant has potential, but the execution was lacking, especially as the place was super quiet and only about 20% occupied. Running a restaurant is tough, but the fundamentals weren't there. We managed to see the humor in the situation by the end of it but we won’t be returning any time soon.

I hope others have a better experience and that the team can improve. There's potential here, but significant work is needed on service consistency and...

Overrated and disappointing. For the price, you simply don’t get your money’s worth here.

We were a party of five and came to celebrate a deae friend’s birthday ( both of us seafood lovers) but the experience was frustrating from start to finish...

Service: Very slow. It took nearly 30 minutes for our mains to arrive. Later in the evening, around 10 p.m., the staff suddenly became impatient and started clearing our table without asking, they even took my friend’s lobster while we were still eating, they really didn't even ask if we want our plates be taken away. At the end they didn't ask if we need anything like desert. It wasn't nice at all.

Safety & Facilities: The bathroom lock is one of those cheap latches that dont secure properly. When I put force, the latch cut my finger. Not what you’d expect from a “high-end” resturant. I couldn’t prpperly type for a week afterward 😠

Food & Portions: We ordered two of their signature salt-baked fish dishes. Fiest, it took forever to arrive, and when the waiter cracked open the salt, hot salt splashed on me. The portion was tiny (barely 4 oe 5 oz of fish from a whole branzinno) Most of it got stuck to the salt. The ceviche was served in a cocktail glass and was the smallest I’ve ever seen. Flavor-wise, it was fine, but nothing special. Waste & Flavor: The salt-bake presentation looks fancy but is extremely wasteful as I said most of it was stuck to the salt. The fish itself was bland and under-seasoned — if you like spice or bold flavor, this isn’t the place for you. When the chef asked about our experience, I mentioned the small portions. Instead of listening, he defensively compared prices with another restaurant. That was the final straw... we left disappointed and won’t...

Read before going Recently opened Restaurant has potential but needs more time to figure out front of house. Check it out but like in 2 months.

It’s a shame because most of the food we tried was pretty good. Salt baked branzino good, snapper good, raw bar items also good. The pasta was mid should pass and stick with fish and raw bar

The service was all over the place. Our waitress looked brand new and overwhelmed I felt a little bad for her. But the hostess also messed up our table which was supposed to be in the dining room but instead offered us a table in the bar area. Water and utensils were missing for a few people and required us to ask for them more than 30 mins into service. We actually had to ask the bartender for water at one point because our waitress wasn’t around. We went periods of 25-30 mins without seeing our waitress at all. Our empty cocktail glasses were just left there until the mains were served. It took her a long time to take our drink and food orders so it was 65mins into service before we had our first bite. Which is crazy since our first items were all raw bar. It also took 28 mins to open/serve us a bottle of wine which is probably the longest I’ve ever seen. We ended up talking to the manager to provide feedback, he was empathetic and listened but also did nothing to try and make our experience any better.

The atmosphere and vibe were pretty cool with a nautical theme. A good looking restaurant. Careful the bathroom doors are tricky one of us almost got locked in one and the other couldn’t lock the door at all lol.

Verdict: would maybe try again in a couple months once they iron out their operations but would not recommend going right...