Per Se — Restaurant in New York

This is a difficult review to write as we were last here over 10 years ago and remembered the excellent experience. We also visited the French Laundry in 2016 with a similarly excellent experience. Celebrating our 29th anniversary together with friends from Los Angeles who were also celebrating their 29th anniversary, the 4 of us hoped to share a special evening. Maybe our expectations were too high, but there were no dishes that stood out. The menu included their signature "Oysters and Pearls" a staple at the West and East locales. Montauk fluke was over seasoned and slightly overdone. Quail breast was almost "mushy" and may have been better if prepared with Moulard duck. The wagyu was good, maybe it was sous vide, but almost any A5 will be pretty good. The service was uncoordinated and awkward, with servers that seemed to be high school interns who could not explain the dishes (was that a lobster "Galette" that tasted like a crispy pan-fried shrimp cake...ummm, I'll find out for you?) As native-born New Yorkers who have experienced NY fine dining at places like the Quilted Giraffe, Monrachet, La Cote Basque, Chanterelle, etc., we had hoped for a 2023 version of a future NY classic. We ordered cappuccinos that came with a "hole" in the center of the crema top, no fleur de lys design (yikes, have we become old and staid-or should appearance be relevant?). Our server said that it was because the coffee was the "star", not the appearance. We could not understand the tall gentleman who brought us a dish describing it in a strange monotone that we didn't comprehend as he towered over us. Maybe we visited too soon after their October reopening, but the evening just "felt" very awkward, disjointed and hastily arranged. The silverware replaced after each course was at times placed haphazardly. During the dessert course, we asked for hot water as the tea was too strong for our friends. They brought another pot of tea to our table and when we brought this up, we could hear a loud conversation from the back of the house. The pinnacle, in our opinion, of awkwardness, occurred at the end of dinner when we were presented with our check for about $2600 without wine. All of us are only occasional, light drinkers. Our server told us that the staff only earned approximately $18-$20/hour and that even though service was already included, "any additional gratituity would be appreciated". We would have happily been charged a minimum 20% to 25% service charge as opposed to being asked for additional gratuity after the bill was presented. No complaints with the additional supplemental charges for the wagyu or anything else, but please let me know in advance. We felt almost blindsided like the first time we saw the local Starbucks payment screen with additional gratuity balloons. Totally out of place at any restaurant, much less a Michelin rated one. Perception is reality and having recently enjoyed some great food and great service at La Pavilion and Gabriel Kreuther (excellent service, they even recognized that I was left-handed and adjusted the silverware accordingly!), Per Se was a disappointment on this special evening where we chose to spend our special occasion. Times change and not always...

An opinionated New Yorker changes her mind. Who needs another Per Se review? Between the 3 Michelin Stars, the Grandes Tables du Monde etc, it has plenty of accolades. My husband and I took our 18 year-old food-loving son as a celebration- I went in with low expectations as I had been there twice over 15 years ago, and found it fusty and corporate. It did not seem like a place NYers would ever go, or if they did it would be when taken by a business account. Well, I felt compelled to write this review because the restaurant has changed so much for the better. We had the Evolution menu which highlights some of Chef Keller's classic dishes (and like the much-copied salmon cornet, and the oysters and pearls, they are classics because they are delicious) as well as newer dishes. The food was fantastic, plated perfectly, but what I want to call out is the following.

There is a JOY and EXUBERANCE now that I did not remember. It is fun to eat there, and while you would not go in ripped jeans, it does not feel overly formal - Everyone smiles. Truffles are grated with abandon. I am a fan of hedonism, and you get it in spades. You will eat and drink too much, and be happy.

A small error was made in one of my husband's dishes. After a profuse apology, an extra course was brought with a LOT of 2 kinds of caviar, perfect coin-sized blini and all the traditional accoutrements of a caviar service. It was unnecessary, but oh so delightful and appreciated. Errors will always happen in restaurants - It is how a restaurant recovers from the error that makes it stand out. This was an exceptional thing for the restaurant to do.

I don't like restaurants that make me feel like I am lucky to be eating there and I also don't like feeling like I am being kowtowed to. Ick. The service at Per Se is so professional and on-point, but SO WARM. We are not famous, and we don't show on on Page 6 and we were treated like we were the most important guests that night. I want to call out 2 people in particular. Luis Garcia was a perfect somm. Of course any somm here is going to have the requisite knowledge, but I know a bit about wine; I am the kind of person who reviews the list at length in advance, have many ideas about what to order and I like a somm who engages with me, which he did at length. We drank fabulously. I think he would be equally good at advising someone who was clueless about wine with grace and without making the person feel bad. That, to me, is what great wine service is. Jaime Brito was our captain, and I think he was as responsible as the kitchen for our wonderful experience. He was omnipresent, directed a great team of servers like the Maestro of a top orchestra. A very hard job and he made it seem effortless and fun. His natural warmth and gift for hospitality are unparalleled in NY fine dining. We were too full and exhausted for petits-fours so he sent us home with 2 boxes of chocolates, 3 boxes of shortbread cookies, and because my son does not like chocolate, a box of homemade gummy bears. I love a party favor.

Thank you to everyone there who gave my family such a...

We came to Per Se with high expectations because of its reputation and three Michelin stars! The experience was not terrible, but it also didn’t live up to what I thought it would be and really don't understand how they have three of these stars when not one plate stood out to us that was amazing. I have been to many one Michelin star restaurants that were soooo much better!

Arrival The night started off on the wrong foot with the jacket requirement. The website said jackets were “highly recommended” and not mandatory at all, but I wasn’t allowed in without one. Their website also says nothing about required long sleeve either. I had to wear a loaner jacket that was too big, baggy and uncomfortable even though I was in a very nice short sleeve button up shirt. The jacket got in the way while eating, and the sleeves ended up getting messy. I was already dressed in slacks and a button-up, so this felt unnecessary and frustrating. It also didn't make the food taste any better.

Food The food was the biggest disappointment. Several dishes were overcooked (sea bass and quail) and many needed more seasoning or better balance as they were just ehh. The plates looked nice but didn’t really stand out at all. Most of us at the table didn’t finish everything, not because we were full, but because the flavors just weren’t there and they never asked us how we liked the plates, just if we were done so they could clear them all together. That being said I will say everything felt fresh and high quality, just lacked flavor and seasoning and texture as well.

Dessert was similar. There were a lot of options which was nice and they looked good, but most of them were missing something. Often one flavor overpowered the rest, so they weren’t enjoyable to finish even though we could have.

Service The service was fine overall, though not very personal, they were attentive and gave us plates and cleared plates all at once which I guess was nice. The highlight of the night was Christian, who wasn’t even our main waiter, but he was the most helpful and welcoming person we interacted with. The dining room is nice, and the view is great, but there are plenty of other places in the city where you can get that view and better food as well.

It was also very nice of them to have showed us the kitchen while leaving the the little desserts and cookies to go as well. It's a nice touch with all the advertised items and the to go short read cookies were actually really good, so that was a plus. But didn't find that out till the next morning.

Overall I’ve been to many Michelin-starred restaurants and expected more from one that holds three stars by Thomas Keller. Per Se wasn’t a bad experience, but it wasn’t memorable either. It didn’t feel worth the extremely high cost or the level of praise it often gets. We could have been to 3-5 one-Michelin star restaurants with much more enjoyable food. Because of this visit, I’ve taken The French Laundry off my list, since I don’t think I’d want to repeat the same kind of experience with the large price tag...