The Consulate UWS — Restaurant in New York

UPDATE: I spoke at length with the management, who were extremely apologetic, gracious, and accommodating. I respected them for taking full responsibility for the difficult situation and appreciated their efforts to clear up the miscommunications, sincerely apologize, and make it up to us. Thank you, Ivan, for personally inviting my mother and I back to the restaurant, and providing us a wonderful dining and social experience. The Consulate has definitely won us back. My advice is - if you truly require a service dog, speak with management when making the reservation and right before you go to the restaurant, so you receive the appropriate accommodations.

I made reservations at the Upper West Side location for a holiday dinner tonight. When I made the reservation earlier in the day, I informed the representative that my mother had a small registered service dog (a Diabetic alert dog, with a state ID) and inquired whether we may bring her into the restaurant with us because my mother requires her service while eating. He informed me that it was permissible. I, being familiar with the layout of the restaurant after having been there many times, explained that we keep the dog in a carriage and asked him whether we would be able to fit at a table, given that the restaurant is usually packed and busy and the tables are very close to each other. He said that he would find a table where we would be able to fit, so we made the reservation.

Upon arrival in the evening, the hostess strongly told us that we were not permitted to sit in the restaurant with our dog and insisted that we must sit outside, saying that it was a policy enforced by management. She also insisted that the representative earlier in the day told me that we must sit outside (going so far as to say that she was standing right next him when he told me that) and kept referring to the dog as an “emotional support dog,” despite multiple polite corrections and explanations from us. When she tried to sit us outside, we found it dark and chilly, which was not appropriate for my elderly disabled mother. We decided to leave and seek dining elsewhere. The hostess was very rude, shut down all attempts for conversation, and passive aggressively kept saying to us “good evening, happy thanksgiving” while my mother was exiting the restaurant and explaining the situation to the confused wait staff.

While I do not work in the restaurant business, my understanding is that the hostess should not have been rude to us and should have called over a manager to consult with us. The situation was entirely mismanaged, inappropriate, and unprofessional. The experience would have ruined our holiday evening, had we not been able to make a reservation at the location on West 56th. I spoke at length with the management at the West 56th location, who were surprised to hear about the treatment and “policy” at the UWS location and kindly accommodated us.

I noticed that a similar complaint was also brought up on yelp recently. If this continues to be the policy and treatment, I do not recommend this location for disabled/elderly people who require service animals. Management/owners, please do better to support your...

Surprised this place came so highly rated. Wish it was better since I live around the corner. Brought my girlfriend here for her birthday and we were both unfortunately disappointed. Was turned off immediately bc the waitress was obviously trying to pad the bill. Hate when they do this! Pushing everything from double portions of tartare to expensive drinks, main courses and additional side dishes. We opted for the single portion of tartare. Both thought it was flavorless. We were going to get a bottle of wine but my girlfriend knows her wine and said everything is overpriced. She ordered one of their specialty tequila drinks instead, although also overpriced. Looked fancy but Tasted like it had no booze in it! For dinner, she ordered the skate. DO NOT order this dish!! We both thought the fish was stringy and weird tasting. She is too nice to complain and didn't send it back. Hers came with a side of spinach that was drenched in butter, which neither of us also cared for. I had the Bronzino, which was actually tasty. Problem was it had quite a few small bones and it came with nothing on the side. Her fish came with spinach and mine nothing?? Of course the waitress stressed the point that we needed to order an overpriced side. So we ordered the broccolini, which was a small, flavorless portion of a few stalks and a whole bunch of hard stems. Had to cover it in salt, pepper and pepper flakes and it was still lousy. 15$ extra for a side dish with zero flavor that should have been included! Overall, overpriced and unimpressive! Do yourself a favor and walk literally 50 feet to Osteria Cotta (btw 84/85th). Great Italian restaurant with fabulous apps, drinks, service and Bronzino that will be half as expensive and thoroughly...

A european style bistro, ideal restaurant for any occasion: a Sunday brunch, a night for fancy cocktails, a dinner celebration or lets feel we are in Paris dinner. The holiday light decorations twinkled and the Christmas tree as the showstopper in the middle of the restaurant. The decorations amplified my Christmas feels despite it's the 28th of December. The staff were top notch and worked well together, bringing the dining experience to the next level. For appetizers, I got the bowl of mussels, perfectly steamed and the sauce, delicious to sip like a bowl of soup. I paired my starter with the Nathalie cocktail, a refreshing, balanced drink, garnished with pomegranate seeds. My dining partner had the Oui Mademoiselle cocktail, liquor mixed with berry puree, topped with a pine leaf as decor. These cocktails were fantastic and worth every sip. The weather called for French onion soup and to overfill the cup with gooey Gruyere cheese, yes please. My main course was the Steak Frites, made medium, the meat soft, not chewy. The steak was topped with peppercorn sauce, a distinctive flavor and a delicious dipping sauce for my crispy french fries. My dining partner had the short rib cavatelli made al dente, not too soft or overcooked. The braised short rib was fork-tender and the ricotta added a bit of sweetness to the dish. We paired our main dish with red wine, suggested by the waiter. To complete the meal, My dining partner and I shared the lava cake with rich, warm chocolate filling, that came with vanilla ice cream and berries, the perfect palate cleanser. Thank you to The Consulate management for an amazing dinner experience,...