Orsay — Restaurant in New York

Ambiance (3/5): We were seated on the main dining floor with tables that were a tad too small and the tight alongside other tables. Luckily, there was no one seated next to us, but it still felt like the tables made us feel like sardines in a room. The decorations are lovely and make the place feel fancy and ready to wine and dine you. It is dimly lit and voice levels moderate. It was a great date spot! Service (5/5): We were seated immediately when we walked in on a random weekday. The waiter was extremely courteous and explained the menu recommendations when asked. He noticed that I was bothered by the wobbly table, he came over and gave us a wedge (which unfortunately still did not do the trick) Food: Escargot (6pc) (4/5): The escargot was pre-scooped from its shell and was dredged in a buttery garlic and parsley sauce that was very rich and flavorful. The escargot was cooked right with a soft bite. The pieces were rather small. The bread that came with it was impossibly crispy! I wish there was enough bounce in the bread to dip into the sauce. Luckily we had a side of brioche from another app to dip instead. Foie Gras (3/5): I know their guests have often enjoyed this dish but it was very very rich and lacked any flavor. The cherry compote and toasted hazelnuts helped to accompany the bite, but did not hit the mark for me. For the price point, we felt we couldn’t waste it despite really only eating one of the slices. Aile De Raie Sauvage (3/5): This was my first time having skatewing! There was absolutely no fishy taste it and had a lovely outer crisp to the sections of the fish. The whole presentation looked lovely with the splash emulsion sauce on the side! Overall, I felt like the dish was good but the taste was just meh. The sides of the baby turnips and bok choy felt disjointed with the overall dish. Paillard De Filet De Bœuf Au Cognac (4/5): The tenderloin was indeed very tender. The gravy sauce smothered the filet and provided a nice juicy bite! Portion sizes were appropriate. I enjoyed this dish the most in the evening. Profiteroles (cream puff) (5/5): I loved the dessert drizzled with chocolate and the vanilla ice cream inside was a great way to end the meal. Unfortunately, the food here did not meet expectations of French food I’ve had other restaurants. While I enjoyed my dining experience, I do not see...

Came here for the first time to try out their monday night special: Prime rib. Experience was quite disappointing.

We arrived at 530pm. We ordered 2 orders of the prime rib, both to be made Rare. They initially brought us two steaks and claimed they were both rare. However, what showed up was one steak about medium and the second one about medium-well. They were not fooling anyone. The medium-well piece was also the end piece. We confronted the manager that the steak was definitely not rare as ordered. An endpiece can almost never be rare in principle. As per the butcher who cut the steak, they said they must cut the prime rib slab in order from the end piece start, and cut towards the middle regardless what temperature the patron is ordering. They stated we were the first person ordering the prime rib that evening so we get those first two pieces starting from the end.

I have NEVER heard of this being a case for a steak serving establishment that we get no choice for the temperature of the steak. I'm not sure if this is the truth or were they just looking for the sucker that didn't know what proper steak is supposed to look like.

If they can't honor the steak rare or medium-rare, they should state that right before ordering or upon arrival of the dish. They brought us two overcooked steaks and if we didnt speak up they would just leave it which i find unprincipled. The management did come by to apologize that the whole prime rib slab was more over cooked than usual Mondays. However, the tone of the apology was a bit defensive. At that point they recommended us to order something else. However, we already got settled at the table with an infant so we did not want to leave midist of dinner time for the sake of our infants sleep/feed schedule. The conclusion is we had to succumb to eating overcooked steak.

This place is also not stroller infant friendly. They would only seat us outdoors away from the main restaurant or the corner seat near the bar.

The prime rib was supposed to come out on a cart and the steak is supposed to be cut in front of you. However, we did not get to see it given the outdoor seating we were forced to sit in.

BOTTOM LINE: I would not recommend the prime rib if you are particular about how your steak...

I had to debate with myself; was this a 2–star or 3-star experience?

Well, first of all, Orsay is on the Upper East Side, not a part of town known for it’s plethora of dining opportunities. So it deserves to be forgiven to some degree for not understanding how to cook food and provide table service.

But at $27 for a poorly executed hamburger, one needs to wonder if the people patronizing this restaurant are too lazy to go someplace further away or simply enjoy the abuse of eating here?

My medium rare burger came out well-done. After searching for a server to point out the kitchen’s error, the usual “how is everything?” server check-in that would be normal in even a Times Square tourist trap being much too much to expect from this poor example of fine-dining, I finally got out of my seat to flag down a server. They flagged down another server.

After showing this staff member the dark brown meat in the center of the burger, he went off to get the manager. After explaining for the third time what the issue was, the manager appropriately apologized and approved a replacement burger. This was also really strange; why does the server need to bring a manger over to get permission to fix kitchen mistakes?

By this time, my two friends had finished their meals. Mind you, we had all started eating at the same time, but the process of solving for Orsay’s very average kitchen was dragged out by a lack of attention and responsiveness from the front-of-house.

The new burger arrived, this one rare with a soaking wet bun. Of course, no one came to ask if it was alright this time, or to offer a coffee for the inconvenience. I didn’t dare complain about a second miss, as at this point I really just wanted to walk out of Orsay for the last time. With tax and tip, which I regret to confess I left at 18%, my meal came to over $40. For a hamburger and tap water. The poor value for money here is second in New York only to the deal the Dutch forced on the Lenape people in the early 1620s in buying Manhattan.

No, I wouldn’t recommend you eating here. Save the money on this over-priced mediocre eatery and take an Uber in any direction. You’ll find a better option within a few blocks, even if you end up at...