Big Lame. This place will be gone in a matter of months. Let's start with the stupid ropes and the multiple front people. What is the angle? Why do you need security for an empty restaurant at 630 in Yorkville? It's like the owners went to LA once and are trying to replicate.
We went at 630 because we were told it was fully booked. When we left at 830 the place was basically empty...on a sat night. They didn't have a single full seating. They had the thick velvet drapes at the front but then had no coverings on the other windows, so it felt like you were in a night club for the staff meeting. So lame. The extra light made it easy to see how they had cobbled together the design. Mixing different looks. The benches at the front didn't even match.
The crowd was sparse. A couple of families bringing star wars fans. A couple of tourists. Our table was trying to have a fun meal before a concert...we thought it would be a great place to kick off a sat night out, but in the end spent most of the meal balking at the lack of confidence the place had. It was like you were seeing the 'pilot' and they were hoping to be 'picked up' - like they were trying it on for size but it didn't fit.
I ordered a dirty martini. Was told 'we literally don't have the ingredients for that' and 'we only work with fresh ingredients so no olives' which is code for 'we are contrived and uptight and lame.' I then tried to order the first cocktail on their menu and it was 'sold out'. Ick. The wine list was a farce. First the waitress awkwardly tries to push some wine on us telling us it is 'on special'. Then there is a tiny selection of whites. All over priced and no sauv blanc under 90$. Give me a break.
The food was pretty good. Carrots and beets especially. Not sure how the food and the theme go together. Agree identity crisis. Small portions. Left hungry. Wait staff could hardly explain the menu. Oh and give me a break with the foam- it isn't 2005 anymore! So clumsy and the front of house manager was more worried about napkins than the lack of good wine.
Most annoying, other than the total lack of vibe, was the constant peeping from passer by. How does that work? You go to all the effort to pretend your place is exclusive and then you then every passer by pop their head in to 'check it out'. So lame.
It takes more than a theme and some spray painted figurines to make a concept restaurant work. I would bet the partners on this never fully agreed on the vision and will be closing soon. I will give two stars because they were trying on service and some of the food was tasty and that location is cursed so I feel bed that they even opened there.