Gramercy Tavern - New American restaurant in New York - 42 E 20th St, USA

My family and I came here for my brother’s birthday after making a reservation weeks in advance. When you make the reservation, make sure you’re choosing the right menu because the front of the Tavern serves their more casual fare whereas the back rooms host their tasting menu. We had the tasting menu - a 5 course menu. Each course had 2 dishes you could choose from: one that’s meat based and one that’s vegetarian. We also opted for the seafood starter tray which had the best shrimp I’ve ever had. My favorites of the menu were the squid ink pasta with lobster and the sea bass which had an Asian flavor profile that was both delicate and bold in flavor. Delicious! Shout out to Caroline who was a fantastic server that night and made our experience so fun! The place was clean and had a very casual vibe which I loved because I get annoyed by the pretentious vibe of fine dining restaurants. The staff were all professional and friendly. My only issue is that the place is so large and open that if you’re a group of 5 or more and are seated at a large table, the place gets a lot of echo, which makes it hard to have quiet conversations with the whole table. But, it’s great for intimate tables for 2 people who are seated close to each other. I absolutely plan to come back and try the vegetarian options of their tasting menu.

I read all about Danny M. Had big expectations of this place and booked the best dining experience. Let me start with service: impeccable. Wine list? Endless. Loved the atmosphere. The food, however, was OK. Good in fact, nothing wrong, but did not impress. None of the dishes will be memorable to us. The service, certainly will.

I went to this restaurant to see my best friend who flew in from California. Wanted a special evening to spend time with her and celebrate milestones while enjoying good food and drinks. We did not have a reservation but were seated promptly after arriving in the main dining room. Michael and Kumar were our server. The entire staff was kind and helpful. My friend and I both got the prix fixed seasonal menu where I opted for the morning glory cocktail and she, the wine pairing. Food was served at a comfortable and fluid pace. In total, my friend and I tried 10 dishes. The wines paired with the menu was perfect and explanations were thorough. Food was delicious! By the end of the evening, we were given apple crumble bread as to go goodies. The bread, even after two days, was still flavorful, moist and delicious.

Came here for a birthday dinner and had an amazing experience! Upon entry, the staff were extremely kind and the decor was warm and inviting, decorated to mimic the fall foliage. They had an extensive wine and drinks list, but we opted for cocktails instead. The bar was able to make me a White Negroni that was spot on. The 6-course menu was simple but delicious, and everything was well prepared (a few minor plating issues but easily overlooked). My favorite was the duck; the most tender I’ve had this year and the skin was thin and crispy. We ended the night with the birthday dessert and espressos. Overall great experience, and would certainly come back in a different season to see how the restaurant decor and menu changes. Highly recommend.

GREAT experience: great location, very nice deco but mostly and impeccable service for a superbe meal. Must try. Bonus: they gave us a small cake when we left « here’s your breakfast for tomorrow ». It was the best soft and crunchy apple bread ever. So the great experience was extended 🤩

Great food, cheerful atmosphere and good wines! We dined in the casual part of this restaurant and shared some dishes among the two of us. All food was well prepared and tasty, especially the Tavern Burger, which came with a medium grilled beef patty and a fluffy bun. Even as a smashburger enthusiast, I have to say this is, hands down, a delicious burger! We took advantage of the fine dining wine list, and the selection is really good, and while there are certainly no bargains the overall pricing seems rather friedly. A nice bottle of champagne was the choice for the evening.

If you are going for restaurant week do yourself a favor and order the duck, which is extra but so worth it. We added the seafood platter to start, and also wine pairing, which was phenomenal. Seafood Starter: the oysters 🦪 with caviar, clams with tiny mushrooms, fluke, and shrimp were all so good. It was like having a little piece of the ocean in your mouth. I grew up eating the freshest seafood and this made my heart so happy. Appetizers: I already loved arctic char, but never had it in a tartar before and it was of course melt in your mouth. Lumache was generous, perfectly al dente, and the red shrimp with the bisque was on point. The potato leek soup was just okay and made me glad I was not the one who ordered it. It was unexpectedly thin and missing some flavor. Entree: The Duck, that was really good. It was melt in your mouth and flavorful. The additional supplement is worth it. Chicken was good, but could be better. The onion rings that came with it tasted a bit more like over-used frying oil. Hanger steak looked beautiful but it’s hanger steak and not filet mignon, so it was a little chewy. I never really ordered that before so not sure what to compare it with, but I did not expect a chewy steak. Dessert: I really want to know where they get the blue cheese from. Everything in the cheese platter was great, including the quince butter and the bread. Lemon tart was delicious, the chocolate cream pie, and the apple tart was special. All very homey. Wine: Albariño from Portugal (so it’s Alvarinho) was delicious. We already like Albariño and this one was an upgrade to the usual one. Beaujolais with cherry notes that I personally liked a lot, and a dessert wine that tasted like a good ice wine. All really good to me. Service: could not be better, with our dishes coming to the table at the same time, attentive but nor overbearing servers, and it was a pleasure to talk to the sommelier🍷 There was also complimentary bread, which was very much enjoyed and some tiny bites of a fruit with crispy cute stuff on it that we all liked. They have a cookbook that I haven’t tried any recipes from but so far has been entertaining to check out. It was really hard for me to decide how many stars to give, being that the chicken, the steak, and the soup were not as good as everything else, but the service was really great and a highlight. Part of our party had been to Gramercy Tavern before and agree that those dishes were not par with previous experiences and that was a bit disappointing. I’m inclined to think that it is because of restaurant week but that should not be the case. I would still love to go back and give it another chance.

Absolutely no doubt for 5 stars for everything. We did the 4 course tasting menu for lunch and every single thing was perfection. Firstly, getting reservations was relatively easy given it was holiday season. We were even able to call and move our slot to a time that wasn't shown on resy. We were running late (as usual nyc traffic) and everyone was courteous and accommodated a late lunch. I'm vegetarian and my husband is not, so here's what we got for the seasonal 4 course menu. 1. Beet and chicory starter for both 2. Bass for husband, squash and chicory for me 3. Duck for husband, butternut squash fritters for me 4. Hazelnut tart for both Everything was made to perfection. The sauces were the star in all dishes enhancing the flavors just right. Best of all - warm potato rolls and butter. So amazing we got it twice!