wd-50

came last night for 2 tasting menus def. not worth it. food was interesting, some highs and lows definitely...but as a whole, totally mediocre. hamachi was great, as was lamb belly. pizza pebbles tasted like combos, but with a worse texture, don't know how they managed that...service was indifferent, and when dropping $450 on dinner for two, they really need to kick it up a notch. no amuse bouche, charged for coffee at the end of the meal...not cool. the a la carte dishes that were passing by our table looked beautiful, though....we kinda felt penalized for ordering the tasting menu waitstaff made it seem like we were lucky to be eating there no sense of hospitality whatsoever. interesting food, but be prepared for some serious misses. for the cash that you'll spend here, you could have a seriously great meal somewhere else, without all the gimmicks...

I confess. I went to WD-50 expecting something special, so perhaps that's why my disappointment is so great. The space is OK - spartan but passable. And the service is quite good. But you go to WD-50 expecting extraordinary food and it was my experience that the food was really just rather ordinary. A plate of "bread" - which was basically paper-thin sheets of sesame... something - was placed on our table. Imagine eating crispy paper with sesame seeds. OK, now you know what this stuff tastes like. For appetizers, I had the corned duck, which tasted like a roast beef on rye. Not bad, but 3 bites of a sandwich for $14? Whatever. My girlfriend had the fried quail which tasted like... well, like a McNugget, really. So that's $16 for 2 McNuggets. I'm noticing a trend here. I had the lamb loin, which was a bit bland. The potato noodles was basically hard flavorless potato in the shape of linguine. This is a perfect example of the addage "Just because you can make something doesn't mean that you should...." And the pretzel consumme? It tasted like beef broth. The mustard crumbs were interesting and added some flavor and texture to what was otherwise a bland dish. My girlfriend had the duck breast and, while it was tender, it was relatively flavorless. The other accompanying items on the plate were equally bland. I had the cherry covered chocolate, which tasted like a cherry flavored condom wrapped around some chocolate mousse. OK, maybe that's a bit harsh but the dish was rather unsatisfying. My girlfriend had the pistashio ice cream, which was accompanied by some sort of crispy, candylike coating and a white log of something similar to oreo filling. I guess what it comes down to that I wanted an inventive, satisfying meal and this wasn't it. My girlfriend and I left disappointed and, to be quite honest, hungry. I don't expect to go to a nice restaurant and have food piled on my plate like a chain restaurant, but I also don't think I should spend $200 and then have to go to get a snack.

I came here with a lot of high hopes and for the most part WD came through. The food is very good and really different. I had the Tasting Menu and on this particular night, they had a "white beer ice cream" that was really unusual and delicious. The place is a bit expensive, but well worth the unusual combinations and unique flavors the chef presented. Service was great, very friendly.

We are seasoned eaters and have lived and eaten in NYC for 14 years. I have been to Moto in Chicago, where Homaro Cantu practices very successful advanced food technology. (lasers, dripping food, foam, pizza soup, donut soup etc) So, we were excited to try Wd-50. It did not compare. The food was tepid when served, and the flavors, unlike Moto, were sacrificed in favor of unusual preparation. The dishes were 'pointy' with flavors not well integrated. One of the dishes actually tasted like dog food. I should say that we are not picky eaters but even I would not eat that dish. One dish in particular was exceptional. It involved fried eggs Benedict where the Benedict potion was a fried, exploding cube and the egg yolk was a gel. It was delicious. Though, it too should have been served warmer. The pastry chef is brilliant. We enjoyed nearly every desert. The wines were well paired but the cocktails were mediocre except for 'the PH' which was a delicious tart raspberry concoction. The staff was friendly but nothing to write home about. Overall, for the bill ($1300 for six people- tasting menus-) it was -really- not worth it. If you are interested in futuristic food try Moto in Chicago. It is what this genre of food is supposed to be. They make it a truly fun event and the flavors are fantastic and innovative. Even the menu was edible at Moto. I am also told that Alinea (also in Chicago) is fantastic in this same way as well. Sorry, guys. A little more attention to the 'food ' part and less to the gimmick factor is sorely needed.

It's definitely worth a try if you have the money. The three courses I had were small, but just enough that I don't feel hungry or full. Service was really nice. We asked if we could meet chef Wylie and the kitchen, so at the end of the meal, the Maître d' gave us a brief description on what each station does. It was an experience!

I came here for dinner with my sister....and ALL I can say is: do NOT expect anything traditional...BE open-minded and your experience here will be A LOT better! The food here is DEF unconventional and futuristic (if you could describe food like that). My sister and I got the duck appetizer....we tasted more duck than some of the other ingredients. However, the entrees were A LOT better than the appetizer. I got the scallops which were pretty good. I have never had anything like this broth before...it had a smoky flavor and was quite good! My sister got the black cod...very different flavors and textures but still good! Our fav part of the dining experience were the desserts: I got the fried butterscotch...good but my sister got the yuzu custard. It was SO delicious...reminded us of key lime...looked and seemed like it would have a more "solid" texture when eatting...but was more like a light mousse...VERY good! Overall, as long as you are open-minded to the experience, this is an interesting dining/food experience.

I generally do not write reviews online about anything whatsoever, but this place was so awful that I feel obligated to let people know. We had a reservation for 3, and as soon as I walked in the door (I was the first to arrive), I stood there for at least five minutes before anyone even acknowledged my existence. A server looked at me like I was crazy for standing there. It would have been understandable if the place was packed and they didn't have time to get to me immediately, but the place was pretty slow. When the hostess finally came to speak to me, I gave her my name for the reservation and she told me to wait for the rest of my party. Fine. When we sat down, the waiter was rude and had absolutely no personality. He seemed bothered when I asked him to recommend wine. Isn't that his job? Despite the terrible service, I had not given up on the place yet, since I had read some great reviews about the food. Well, I was beyond disappointed. The dishes all LOOKED beautiful (be prepared to see other diners taking pictures of their food) but it all tasted inedible. I ordered the lamb, which was basically four small chunks of gristle floating in a tasteless brown liquid with some noodles that tasted like dirty dishwater. My two friends hated their meal, too. Horrible service. Disgusting (and overpriced) food. Please don't waste your time at this place. Get a slice of pizza instead.