The Grand Tier — Restaurant in New York

I really wanted to enjoy this restaurant ....but unfortunately I am NOT a FAN. I planned a special outing with my daughter to include Dinner and a Ballet. I made the reservation and even called to push the time back 30 minutes to avoid being late. We arrived on time and were seated promptly and were pleased that both the hostess and wait staff realized we had tickets for the 8:00 ballet. We opted not to do the Prix Fixe since neither of us are big eaters. We both ordered a First Course and opted to share a second course since we both wanted dessert. Our food came quickly and then everything went downhill. We received our soup and entree in a timely manner and were pleased that we had gotten our first two courses 50 minutes before curtain call....we requested additional bread when they brought the meal which we never received, as a matter of fact we were never approached by another waiter for 40 minutes. No one asked us about our meal or even filled our water glasses the entire time. After repeatedly trying to flag our waiter, ten minutes before curtain call we had to flag down a random waiter and request someone to bring our check, we were told it would come in just a few minutes. I informed them that we did not have a few minutes and that the service was very unsatisfactory. It is amazing what type of service you receive when you stand up and start putting on your coat. Our waiter told us that someone was supposed to be helping him although we never saw an assitant at any of his other tables. I do not want to play the race or gender card however we were two African American females sitting immediately adjacent to the wait station. He walked past us more than a dozen times with a water pitcher and servicing tables immediately around us but never made eye contact with us. Not a pleasant experience or what you would expect from a restaurant of this...

My wife and I attended the Grand Tier restaurant for pre-opera dinner 2 days ago. My 1-star rating is based not on the food, which was tasty, but rather on the service, which was incredibly poor for a high end restaurant. We weren’t at our table for more than 2 minutes before the waiter asked if we wanted some wine, which is unacceptable. He was back again just a few minutes later, to see if we had decided on the 3-course dinner and spirits. It seemed like he was just trying to rush us through, and we had to send him away again. Even before receiving a glass of wine or the first course, we developed a negative impression of what was supposed to be a memorable experience. Yes, many waiters were bustling about, but there was absolutely no personal engagement by anyone throughout. The human experience was cold, impersonal, business-like, and felt very rushed. An “in-and-out” mentality. Our 3 course meal with a glass of wine each, coffee and payment of the bill was done in 1.5 hours, even though our seats for the opera were steps away, and there were still 30 minutes to go. There was hardly any time between courses, and overall our one and only experience at the Grand Tier was a very disappointing one. For a high end restaurant, an unequivocal failing grade. During our 5 day stay in New York we dined at several restaurants, all of them way less expensive than this one, and in terms of friendliness of staff, we would rate the Grand Tier staff at the very bottom, by far. My suggestion to the manager is to open the restaurant doors at 6:00 rather 6:30. This would give pre-concert diners up to 2.5 hours to enjoy a very relaxing, 3 course meal. I don’t think that’s too much to ask, given the price point for the food and the cost of the opera tickets. And please be more personable. Show us that you care about more than...

Ate here with my daughter before the opera. We were given a table at the rear and I had a view of the kitchen doors, though the place was not full. Meal was good. Not great. Very small portions. I am not a big eater so actually I was quite full, but I suspect some would leave hungry.

Pros: Loved getting dessert at the intermission which gave us a chance to digest during the first act. No need to remind them that you need to make a performance time, since everyone is doing the same, and no concerns about making the curtain since you're already there. Attractive room, (though mainly all I saw was the kitchen doors.)

Cons: over $200 (with tip) for 2 with one prix fixe meal, 2 appetizers (in sequence, for me), coffee and one glass of wine . Service was good though not particularly friendly. The place has pretensions of grandeur without actually being able to deliver at the service end. I might return if I was going to have agita about missing the curtain, but overall I think there are many better...