Food Long Island Restaurant’s Eat Weekend Things To Do Cooking

Its about 1:30 am and I just got home from Tavern On The Green. Located in the heart of New York City’s Central Park, Tavern On The Green is a restaurant that is always talked about and had been one of the place I’ve always wanted to try. This week they offered a special Restaurant Week prix fixe menu featuring an appetizer, entree, and dessert. We (a total party of eight) were able to get a reservation for 8:00 pm on a friday with only about a weeks notice. We arrived about 5 minutes past our reservation time and were greeted by the doorman and then proceeded  to the main entrance area where we checked our coat.

The decor inside ranged from exposed beams, rustic and for lack of a better word “Tavern Like” to mirrored hallways and giant brass roosters. There were many windows areas that were nice to gaze out of. Through the window we could see a wedding reception taking place which i guess wouldn’t have been to bad but we could also hear the music in the background during dinner. I have nothing against the Michael Jackson but “Beat It” Is not really what I prefer to hear when i go to “nice” restaurant for dinner. The overall ambience was a little noisy especial with bigger receptions going on in other rooms.  Our waiter was nice, but nothing great. He didn’t tell us his name, didn’t really explain to us any specials, just past out the menus and explained there was a Restaurant Week menu available and a quick display of the wine list. No small talk, no recommendations. There was also a photographer that came around and took a picture of our  group and tried to sell it to us in a matted frame for $20 each. That should just be against the law. When you go to Disney World that is completely acceptable, when your paying NY city prices for food its just a bit to tourist.

The Food was okay, but nothing great. As an appetizer I had a mushroom ravioli with green peas. The ravioli was a bit thin but the mushroom taste and texture was good but not memorable. I also had a chance to taste the black bean and chorizo soup which bascially tasted like black beans with a slight spice of chorizo here and there. The presentation of the soup was nice though the waiter brought it in a nice silver container and poured it out into the bowl for each guest. As an entree I choose a herb and bread crumb crusted piece of chicken with french style green beans and risotto cooked in a vegetable stock. I liked the risotto the chicken was a very decent sized portion and almost tough to finish. It tasted okay but could have been seasoned a little heavier. For dessert I choose chocolate cake with fresh berries and raspberry sauce. The berries tasted very fresh and the chocolate cake was very light and airy. This was favorite course out of three. 

Looking back the experience was not a bad but not extraordinary. At many times the service and food seemed more like attending a wedding then a fine eating establishment.   I tend to like salt and the dishes seemed slightly under seasoned to my taste. There was nothing here I tasted that I would go back for. I would consider dining there again but only in early summer or fall if there was available seating out doors in the surrounding areas. 

If you go… Go to go and say you have went but don’s set high expectations for the food or service.