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I waited sometime before writing about Minetta Tavern. It was seven visits actually. And each time it got better and better and better. I was not surprised though. But to read all those unfortunate reviews from the tragically and constantly disappointed who seem to think otherwise left me very empty. These must be the people that wear sweat suits when they take a flight; or more accurately complain about just about everything when they get into a restaurant that is popular. Keith McNally is the greatest restaurant owner in this city because of his impeccable consistency. Unlike most of the horrible owners in the restaurant business, McNally seems to be not only a super business man but a decent and respected boss who takes care of the loyal and hard working. Riad Nasr and Lee Hanson, his CO Owners in Minetta Tavern are two of Gothams greatest and most consistent, and they cook, night after night, and they work and they dont have branches in Vegas, Miami, Nassau, or Moscow. They made Balthazar the greatest neighborhood restaruant on planet earth. Here! Here! Most restaurants in this city look to take advantage of you, Minetta Tavern certainly does not. The food is excellent. When you walk in off the street you are transported to a New York we would all love to live in but can only dream about. Its a special place and thats why the high bar. Make me feel special, not ripped off, and let me leave feeling I really had a special night. Thats Minetta Tavern. The design is sublime, the staff professional and attentive, and the food is outstanding. There is a reason that Balthazar, Pastis, Morandi, and Schillers are so good. They are always consistent and one feels good after leaving, unlike numerous high profile restaurants in this city.. Go McNally, I'm ready to run you for Congress. COCO

Reservation got us by the clipboard guy (really?) and we were seated promptly. Server was busy but cool. Other guests were way to proud to be there. Food was a step above a diner, seriously.

I was so excited when Minetta Tavern opened up. Its right around the corner from home and we were thrilled that it could become our neighborhood spot. We can dream, can't we? We were absolutely shocked at the poor service and quality of the food. I ordered the NY Strip (i.e., the one that helped earn this restaurant three stars from the NY Times' Frank Bruni)...not only did it take an unacceptably long time to come out of the kitchen, it couldn't have been lousier. Quite possibly the worst cut of meat I've ever had in terms of quality and excessive fat content, completely nuked (as opposed to appropriately charred) on the outside, flavorless on the inside. Although the waiter recognized that the steak was unacceptable and attempted to remedy the situation, the management intervened, replaced the waiter who was serving us(?!?!?), assured us that there was nothing wrong with the steak (actually citing that this was the 3-star steak -are you kidding me??), refused to replace it and, after some more arguing, only granting a substitute from the "late night" selections. This was such an upsetting experience especially after such high hopes. And don't get me started on the crowd. Wannabes and then some...such an atmosphere killer. People come here to be seen, not for the quality of the food, I assure you.

8:45pm reservation. They sat us at 9:45pm. No apology. Tomato salad was disappointing. Heirlooms were mealy and overdressed. Avocado mousseline tasted like lime juice. I also found a large piece of clear plastic under one of the tomatoes. Brought it to the attention of the server...no apology. Crepinette de Porc was overseasoned and not a hint of truffle. Sauce was too smokey and the chanterelles tasted like they had been soaking in lemon juice. Skipped dessert in order to avoid another tragedy. Parisian steak house or New York Tavern it is not. Searsucker suit heaven and scenester central indeed. Save yourself the embarrassment of someone seeing you walk in or out of the place...

Top quality ingredients and simple preparation combined resulted in a wonderful dinner from start to finish. The special beet salad was surprisingly even better than the lobster salad which was delicious as well. The steak and veal chop were superb....perfectly charred on the outside and juicey on the inside. The chocolate souffle was the perfect ending to this meal. Our waiter, Damon, was very professional, knowledgable and attentive without overdoing it. I'd say it's back to basics....top quality ingredients, expert cooking and outstanding service.

Recently, I was invited to dinner at Minetta Tavern by a certain gentleman, who I’ve bumped into a few times around the city. We’ll call him Mr. Niceguy. You know the type; he’s ambiguously “older”, absurdly short, has chronic halitosis (and is a bit of close-talker to boot, which makes him nearly impossible to bear), but he is also the absolute nicest foodie on the planet. Generous to a fault, always ready with a compliment or a clever quip about the latest cocktail craze, Mr. Niceguy is just that, a nice guy…not my next love affair. But, a week ago, when Mr. Niceguy asked me out to dinner at Minetta Tavern, I couldn’t say no. I like to think of myself as a nice girl, and hey, Bruni just gave 3 starts to Keith McNally’s most recent foray into trendy comfort food. Mr. Niceguy doesn’t drink red wine, and so our meal began when we were forced to order our vino by the glass, something akin to heresy for the sommelier on the floor that night. The minute I informed said sommelier we’d be ordering individually, “We have very different tastes…you understand,” it was clear that he didn’t. I literally watched the enthusiasm drip out of his smile like a slow leak in a flat tire, and this was only the beginning of the evening. We decided to skip the much-lauded Black Label Burger and instead each had a Tavern Steak (a New York strip, served bloody, as requested), potatoes Anna (buttery and delicious) and two glasses of wine (me, a California Zin; he, an Austrian Riesling…with steak!). That’s when I knew that, even if he weren’t so goddamn nice, it could never work. White wine with steak is a deal-breaker for me, and Rieslings, well let’s just say I didn’t like grape juice as a kid, and I still don’t. All in all, Minetta Tavern reminded me of a poor man’s Waverly Inn; the food was solid, the crowd was über trendy, the décor was Old New York revived, the atmosphere was brilliantly alive, but the bill was a hell of a lot cheaper. I told Mr. Niceguy, and he agreed. He suggested I blog about it (which I did, I thanked him for dinner and told him I’d best head straight home to start writing. He responded, “Nice.” -Kimberly Belle

In short, very crowded and very loud. The menu is sort of brief and not terribly interesting. I am trying to figure out how Bruni decided this was worth three stars. My fish was cooked reasonably well but no better than any 1 or 2 star restaurant. The best part of dinner was watching a hapless drunk at the bar fall flat on her ass!!