Restaurant Serenade

Too many mishaps, even if it was a Saturday evening. We choose Serenade as a special place to entertain an important client. My wife and I arrived, checked in with the hostess, who acknowledged our reservation, and we were taken to the table. When the client arrived they were told we hadn't arrived yet and they were asked to wait at the bar....it took a ten uncomfortable minutes to figure that out. When seated, I was immediately presented with a drink menu and wine list (cool). It took about 20-minutes for the wine stewardess to turn up, she knew nothing of our wine and then it took another 5-minutes for the Sommelier to show up. Basically we were seated for nearly 30-minutes before the wine arrived. The first four glasses were poured and I immediately asked for a second bottle to be opened and aired. The sommelier confirmed the instruction. There was no service other then delivering food! During our appetizers and even through the main course no one ever asked how things were and no one ever turned up to refill our empty wine glasses. The water boys kept the $14/bottle water flowing; however. The first bottle of wine was poured and finished before the main course arrived. Fortunately, the sommelier was standing at the next table engaged in a friendly chat with regulars. I had to call out to him to get his attention as he left their table. I asked for our second bottle and ""he forgot"". When the second bottle was poured, everyone was finishing their meal. We paid for the second bottle but no one at the table really touched it. That was a total waste and nothing but poor service is to blame. Of the four meals, one was the Filet Mignon. Admittedly our guest asked for her steak well done, but even I, as an avid cook, would never have served what came out of the kitchen. The steak was about 5-minutes beyond well done and a minute away from 'leather'. Not to mention that it was sooooo loud that we had to speak at noisy-bar level to converse Not only didn't we impress our guests, but at $600 for 4-people. It was a total waste. more

Serenade?s ?stimulus? special is a great way to sample what the restaurant has to offer. Monday through Friday the restaurant offers a lunch special ($25) and a three course dinner special ($35). The three course dinner menu has two selections for each course. Our favorites during a recent Friday dinner were the cauliflower and porcini mushroom soup, braised short ribs, and a chocolate biscuit with vanilla ice cream. The portions are a bit smaller, but they are equally well prepared. As always, service was great. If you are looking for a nice and relatively inexpensive night out, try Serenade?s stimulus special on a Friday night! Pros: Great value for a fabulously prepared meal Cons: Surprisingly loud and hectic for a Friday night more

Simply the best restaurant in the area, on a level with any fine dining establishment in Manhattan. The fare is unique and prepared with care, using fresh ingredients and wonderful combinations. The wines are fabulous, and the wine steward has a flair for finding the perfect wine for anyone's tastes. Everytime I've gone to Serenade the service has been outstanding. Don't miss the bread, especially the biscuits! Pros: elegant, fresh food more

This restaurant has gone down hill over the years. It used to be excellent, then hit or miss w/various dishes, now it's just bad. We only went back to use up a gift card. We sat at the bar and ordered several appetizers. My endive salad was good, but both of our crabcake dishes were greasy, cold and flavorless. My husband ordered shrimp which was bland, and thai chicken, which he said was good, but ALLL of our food was cold. It was 6pm on a Sat night and there was virtually no one there. I thought about telling the bartender, but no one bothered to ask how our food was, and by then I was irritated by yet another mediocre at best experience for very high prices. If I get another gift card for this place, I will give it away. Pros: hmmmm Cons: food and very expensive more

I frequently dine out in Manhattan and decided to Pros: Food was adequate Cons: BROKEN DISHES more