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This was a pathetic experience mainly because of what happened in the end. received my bill and when i added a 12% tip, the waiter came back and told me that it is mandatory to give atleast 20% tip in NYC. I was like, what the hell. Who are they to tell me how much to tip and becides, if it is mandatory, why don't they include it in the bill itself. Now i wouldn't have minded giving the 20% tip myself but for the service which was pthetic in the first place.. there were delibrate delays and to get as simple a thing as a diet coke, we had to remind the waiter atleast 4 times..now wat do u make of it...

We were staying in the neighborhood at a different hotel, but found the Martinique to be above average in just about all respects. Food was good, breakfast was breakfast, but not very expensive; dinner was nice, had plenty to eat on all accounts. Being from out of town we have a tendency to talk to the wait staff - - we found them friendly, helpful, and as a repeat customer, they even went out of their way to accommodate us. Not a great experience, but certainly better than a lot of places I've been to, and certainly above average. Especially considering some of my past experiences in NYC.

Had breakfast, Norwegian Eggs Benedict with smoked salmon. It was delicious. Server was cheerful and attentive. Price was very reasonable.

My first time in the city and just what I expected.Everything was pricey and the people were jerks but at least I was prepared....had a great hamburger at the bar and it was very good but that was probably beneath a majority of the patrons there.

I'm so glad I had peanuts in my room. The Martinique restaurant was almost empty, and we wanted to spend the last evening in NYC with nice food, nice wine and deserts. My youngest one (she is not a kid ) wanted to check out the desert menu before sitting down and went in to ask for the menu to be sure there was something she would like to have…… The waiter led us to a table in the bar, not to a table in the restaurant. I did complain but we settled for the bar table and went home early. The head waiter sent his servers to ask if I ( not the whole family ) would like to have something to drink for free..(because of the table) No thank you, I’m absolutely able to cover my own expenses. He could have come over to the table himself, not sending a server..if he really wanted to make a difference. I had a chicken sandwich which was so dry it must have survived at least two wars, before it must have been forgotten on the stove. I will not recommend that chicken to anyone, but it is now gone in the trash. I'm so glad I had peanuts in my room. NYC March 24 2011. Erik Bergh,

Stumbled in from Penn Station/Broadway and were served quickly with 3/4 of room full. We both started with the Frend onion soup which was one of the best I've had. I had the salmon which also was very good. Reasonable prices too. Would go back.

Food: The dishes were actually quite lovely. This is not fine dining but it is a more than average quality meal. Atmosphere: We were seated by the window as you first come in. The establishment has an upper floor which looks to be furnished in a more elegant fashion than the bar room floor on street level. The tables and arrangement were nothing to rant or rave about. To be fair, it was late afternoon and I have heard tell of some decent live music in the evenings. Value: Cafe Martinique's prices jump all over the place as of May of 2010. Value is difficult to weigh as an individual trait because, really, it is the summation of the other three traits that determines it's qualities. This place suffers from two real problems that are absolutely fundamentals of the restaurant business and hold it back considerably. While I gave the food quality a generous score, the price of the items seems a bit high. The beer was ridiculous at $6.00 a glass given my mundane, domestic choice of Sam Adams. Adding insult to injury, their menu did not include beer selection or price listings, making it a nasty surprise to discover two pulls from the tap cost almost as much as my light meal. The second, and far more important aspect is the service quality. Service: This is where Cafe Martinique falls flat on it's face. I am a patient person when it comes to wait times, especially when I am on holiday. I see no reason to rush a chef in their craft and frankly, do not like to be rushed when I am trying to enjoy a leisurely afternoon in America's most prominent city. Good thing, too, because wait we did. We waited for drink orders. We waited for food orders. We waited for service, for busing, for refills; dear god we even waited for the check! This was not a busy time, either. We were one party of 5 in a smallish cafe only currently serving one other two person party. Had this been lunch or prime dinner hours, I would have been satisfied. When we inquired as to how certain dishes were prepared, we were actually met with attitude by our first server. (there were several) He began mumbling something in another language before putting on a false smile. We could not get the drink order out in a timely fashion as our other server decided to take each order, and deliver it, individually. In a place where a mandatory %18 gratuity is added to your bill, I expect a good deal more from service. Tipping is supposed to be a sign of satisfaction. I cannot recommend this place.