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Instantly ranks as on the of the best meals I have experienced.
I ate at EMP prior to their change to a plant based menu and it was a pleasant experience, this recent visit however was something altogether, on a different level.
The space is gorgeous, the staff is delightful, the ambience is assured, high end yet relaxed. The food however is the star of the show. Each course was a thrill and often a surprise but never gimmicky. This is a restaurant which delivers great food and a great experience.
I find it interesting reading some of the less favourable reviews, clearly written by those who either have a grudge paying for such an experience (my advice is to stay home or hit the McDonalds two blocks away) or who simply don’t have experience of fine dining.
What I love about EMP is the passion and skill coming together which creates a wholly satisfying experience. Their pastry chef deserves kudos for the most delicious bread I have ever experienced - this far surpassss anything I have had in France and the only restaurant which would come a close second to EMP’s pastry delights is Steirreck in Vienna. Don’t just go for the bread allow yourself to be swept along a culinary experience which I will remember for a very long time.
I would highly recommend one of the two wine pairings on offer, we went with the ‘experimental’ pairing which accompanied each course effortlessly. Bravo to the sommelier for this generous and beautifully curated pairing.
This meal had me contemplating the question of whether a restaurant can be a work of art or can a chef be an artist? I don’t have the answer but that EMP has me contemplating the question shows what a high level they have achieved.
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Come hungry. The food is so good you want to finish every course, but there are 10!
We were here before they went Vegan, and it was excellent of course. Back for the Vegan 10-course tasting and it was excellent as well!
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When I decided to plan our wedding Anniversary in NYC.
The first restaurant i checked was Eleven Madison Park. Since I'm vegan, I crossed my fingers to secure a dinner reservation 30 days out. To my surprise, they had a 10pm time slot available, I picked that time slot right away and paid the money up front. I have to say, the experience my wife and I had from the plant base courses to the exceptional service was elegant and worth the price. Theirs no seitan to substitute any type of meat, every course including the the sun butter bread (kudos to the pastry chef) w/ nut butter spread topped with a black miso glazed was absolutely delicious. The onion tea and tart with truffles was magnificent. To have a fine dining experience that is plant base from a 3 star michelin restaurant to celebrate our wedding anniversary was absolutely an epic experience. We couldn't have chosen a better establishment. We will definitely make this restaurant a priority whenever we visit NYC.
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2.5-3 stars takes into account what was delivered for the
2.5-3 stars takes into account what was delivered for the price. I had heard people rave about this place before it went vegan and loved the owner's rationale for changing it. Individually, each dish in the winter menu (went 3/29) was delicately prepared with impressive technique and tasteful, unique ingredients, though higher in salt content than seemed necessary. The wine pairings went very well with the dishes. The bread texture was incredible (though flavor was salty), the turnip and white potato dish was the one big relief until dessert. The two small desserts were fantastic and the bright flavors were more than welcome. Together as a meal however, the salt accumulation was overpowering and decreasingly enjoyable. By the end, my tongue was nearly raw from all the salt and our tastebuds were pretty bored of mushrooms (and we love mushrooms). One dessert would have been nice as a palette cleanser mid-meal (though I'd rather have more ingredient variety and less salt overall as well). For the price, I was disappointed as we were really looking forward to it and it's rare to be able splurge on an experience like this. Overall, appreciate what the chef is doing here but would not recommend the winter menu.
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Outstanding experience.
The taste and textures of the food was incredible. I came here because this restaurant finds itself regularly as a three starred restaurant in the michelin guide and as one of 50 restaurants featured in San pellegrinos worlds 50 best restaurants. To be honest it is expensive and in my opinion not worth the money, however if cost was not a factor by all means come in and enjoy yourself.
I should have known this might not meet my expectations when the website says they moved to a vegan menu and blamed it on "climate change" Still, being ranked so highly over the years as one of the world's best restaurants, I gave it a chance. Well, while it's not bad, but you will bet better vegan dishes at True Food kitchen, at a far better price. This is definitely not worth the price, unless you like to overpay to feel good about being a good steward of the environment, but apparently there are plenty of people who think charging their Teslas doesn't pollute the environment, but cows do, who are willing to overpay for average vegan dishes. A disappointment. Wish I could have tried it back when the accolades were warranted.
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This is the kind of place I can only recommend if you 1.
Are down to drop some serious coin and 2. Truly love food, are delighted by pomp and presentation. Price aside--Eleven Madison Park is an experience. As a self proclaimed Meat Queen, I can honestly say that I've never been so satisfied with a meal that contained zero meat. All the dishes tasty and insanely presented. Went here for my buddy's bday and it was definitely a night we won't forget. The sommelier was particularly lovely, one of the highlights was for sure just talking to him, hearing him describe different wines / their history.
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I loved visiting Eleven Madison and truly enjoyed the
I loved visiting Eleven Madison and truly enjoyed the experience the most! We went for our anniversary dinner and were immediately greeted by the host who knew it was our anniversary too. I know the menu has changed since moving to all plant-based vegan and I'm vegetarian myself and enjoyed almost every dish but overall, the experience was EXCPETIONAL and so very unique and enjoyable.Out of the dishes, my favorites were the Onion tea to start (super delicious) King Oyster Mushrooms, the Turnip with white sweet potatoes and wasabi, and their warm, crisp bread!The servers and service was all impeccable and hands-down the best experience I've ever had at a restaurant. Our server answered all questions about all our wine selections and dishes and most of their food is locally sourced. They also give back to the local NYC communities which is amazing! I enjoyed almost every dish but I can see the food not appealing to all, especially meat lovers or those less adventurous. However, personally, it was a 5-star experience and we had the most memorable evening. We even left with a goodie bag that has a keepsake printout of our menu wishing us a happy anniversary and a homemade local granola.Love all the attention to the fine detail!!
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I have been here a back in 2018 before they became plant
I have been here a back in 2018 before they became plant based, and came back recently to try out the new menu. Both times had been amazing. Service was always great, nothing pretentious. We all know that Eleven Madison Park has mastered the omnivore dishes such as foie gras, lobster, and duck. But I did not know what to expect this time since they have gone completely plant based, and I was really impressed and surprised by the dishes and their presentation. The dinner consisted of many different kind of mushrooms, and you can see the creativity by the different preparation of it. A lot of dishes had Asian cuisine influence as well. The preparation and flavor of the dishes were really diverse. Even though everything was vegan there were smokiness, earthiness and deep umami flavor. It was also amazing to learn about new ingredients that I didn't know before such as Tonburi - a land caviar. The vegan croissant rolls were my favorite as they were light and fluffy and buttery, and the vegan sunflower butter that came with the croissants was creamy and rich. My friend also ordered Manhattan and the staff made the cocktail by our table with a Manhattan Cart, which was fun to watch. And of course, the wine list was incredible.
3/5 by
Amy D on 03/15/2022
After all i have heard about this restaurant I thought would be in for a treat. The dishes were nice, but i would expect more from a restaurants with all these rewards.
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I feel bad leaving a three star review - because of the
I feel bad leaving a three star review - because of the chef's incredible attention to detail, kindness to animals and charitable nature, as well as the restaurant staff's impeccable service, and lovely atmosphere - but boy was I disappointed in the food. I am definitely a carnivore, not vegan by any means, and I just couldn't appreciate the vegan dishes. I'm not a fan of tofu. I'm not a fan of the caviar-wanna be vegan substance we were served. Wasn't a fan of the celery root that tasted like a tamale. I recently went to per se and had delicious wagyu. Just before that went to Le Bernadin and had the most delicious fish dishes you can imagine. Sadly, I didn't enjoy any dish I had at Eleven Madison Park, except the bread. To me, the food was definitely not worth the price tag, and I wouldn't return unless the restaurant goes back to the pre-vegan days.
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Excellent service and amazing preparations.
I didn't know the restaurant was plant-based until I was seated at the table. The presentation was great, but some plates were a little too spicy or too onion-y. Still, overall it was worth the time.
A bit precious, but that comes with the territory. Those who live and work in NY, this is a spot that makes this city special. The strange thing is that while I recall the food being good, I remember more wait staff pouring the wine and cleaning the tip with their fingers. Not sure what that is, some sort an "organic" ritual? I don't know, but being used to the wine dribble being dealt with by a quick swipe of a napkin, I guess a new thing?Still love the place though. But philistine as I am, I remember the experience of going to this place than the actual food.
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I haven't been back in many many years;So this review is
I haven't been back in many many years;So this review is really old. However, my experience was phenomenal. Great service, drinks and food.But the attention to service was fabulous!
I dined at EMP a few days ago and I am still raving about the experience. There is a lot of thought in the crafting of the dishes, the ambiance, the kitchen vibe, and the flavors. I loved the exploration of textures and the camouflage of underrepresented plants in the tasting menu. Certain dishes were evocative of fish and meat, the tarts were absolute winners and the desserts were celestial. I even got a surprise nightcap, an herbal-infused cognac liqueur- absolutely exquisite. I skipped the wine pairing- in my experience, it can be distracting from the menu's protagonists. Truffle, the usual suspect, was featured through several dishes. The ceramic and wooden boxes gave a touch of elegance to the entire banquet. A delightful group of servers moved gracefully, in a circled choreography. The culinary experience is worthy of inspiring a future literary masterpiece. I felt I was in a scene from Proust's A la recherche du temps perdu. God bless Eleven Madison Park, its chef, and team members.
My boyfriend and I were visiting NYC last week and since we're passionate about food (we both worked in kitchen for a long time), we booked a dinner at Eleven. We got there with the highest expectations, given the 3 Michelin stars, the 2017's nomination as best restaurant in the world and (last but not least) the price.
I'll start with the service, which was inattentive (we've been served by I don't even remember how many waiters, almost one for every different dish, so we didn't have a continuity), and sometimes even rude, exception made for an Asian waitress and the kitchen staff, who've been very nice to us.
Regarding the kitchen, we found most of the dishes mediocre. The Pita and the King oyster mushrooms fried were greasy and heavy, two of the worst fried food I ate in my entire life. Some dishes were way over salted (the brown rice, for instance). The onion butter, just didn't make sense to us. The only two dishes we really appreciated were the pre-dessert and the dessert.
In conclusion, I would not recommend this place, unless you have 800$ to burn. I have been to several one star European restaurants that are far above Eleven.
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Uppity, pretentious, and extremely bland soulless food.
This place is like the hermes of luxury goods and everyone goes here for the brand. Hence, all the reviewers who constantly name drops, lmao. As if we care who/what/where you dined with that one time in France with your fancy wine. The other reviews here are just as obnoxious as the entire staff and honestly it only makes for a great social media or braggy experience at best. "Oh my boyfriend -insert random name here- took me to the BEST place to eat over priced duck. 5 stars". I have never in my life felt so underwhelmed and uncomfortable at a Michelin restaurant. I generally don't post anything if it's a fine experience but this restaurant in particular is just... way too tasteless. Honestly folks, I understand that this place was made to impress and make others jealous when you post your tiny dessert. But it is not a justifiable experience. Rather take my $1,500 and fly to bora bora to eat fresh caught lobster.
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I mean, just WOW! My husband took me here for my 30th
I mean, just WOW! My husband took me here for my 30th birthday and I was so impressed! We were greeted by the host who was very welcoming! They make sure they know you before you even enter the place. Every person we met inside the restaurant greeted me for my birthday! Everyone is just so nice! The service was also phenomenal! Let's talk food! Normally, at a place with tasting menus with multiple courses the food is not enough or is just that - for "tasting" but here, the food was actually filling and very much enough! I wont give away the menu exactly with pictures because I feel the surprise element behind every dish was the true essence of the experience. We had 3 courses of appetizers, 2 mains and 2 desserts and every course was more flavorful than the other. Each dish was super unique and just a burst of flavor in your mouth. I am totally in awe of the food here. They even gave us breakfast for the next day which kept taking me back there for days! (ofcourse I was devouring the breakfast for as long as I could!) They also gave me a special customized birthday chocolate! Overall, I would definitely recommend spending your special day with Eleven Madison! I will go again soon!
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After my experience with the customer service side of this
After my experience with the customer service side of this restaurant, I do NOT support them in the slightest. Yelp does not let me leave 0 stars...End result: Eleven Madison Park gleefully collects $1,400 from me while ultimately offering no option to refund or reschedule our reservation, despite Covid limiting our ability to travel (from out of state) or attend the reservation.A few weeks ago my friends and I made reservations. Having been vegetarian/vegan for nearly 10 years, we were very excited to try the menu. While it had received mixed reviews, including one scathing piece from the New York Times, we are generally very supportive of the mission to expand vegan cuising into the echelons of fine dining, and we were eager to see what they had to offer.Two of us were flying in from Seattle, WA and two from Austin, TX for a work conference in NYC. Unfortunately, 3 of our group caught Covid and were no longer allowed to fly or attend our reservation at the resaurant.I'm not sure where all of the earnings from this restaurant go, but I can promise you that they are not invested in advancing their customer service competencies and policies.They refused to fully refund our money, at best offering a 50%. They said l they could rebook the reservation once within the very next month as long as I knew my exact future reservation date. That wasn't the least bit helpful as it would require that the four of us immediately fly cross-country back to NYC, while hardly having had enough time to recover from Covid.I begged and pleaded over with them over multiple phone calls to give me a 12-month period to rebook (similar to many other establishments), or to issue a complete refund. Truthfully I would have settled for 6 months or even 3 monthsThey were intractible on all of these points.I asked them to see if they could fill from their waitlist. They said that the moment they would try to do that, I also be negating my option of rescheduling the reservation altogether.I asked them how likely they would be to be able to fill from their waitlist? They said they had no idea, and that it was really 100% on me to roll the dice.I asked if they would try to fill from the wait list, and if this didn't work, let me know so that I could make some attempt to reschedule. They refused, citing that it was not their job to make this kind of effort.They would not even offer enough flexibility to fill the original four-person reservation with 2x two-person reservations rather than 1x four-person reservation.Every step of the way they were obstinant and accommodating in only the most superficial sense.While restaurants like this can have a bit of a snobbish reputation, I'd really never directly experienced it myself -- on the contrary, I've found that similarly positioned restaurants prioritize the experience of the customer above their own operational conveneniences. Logically, they reason that this is a meaningful investment for anybody, and that they should step up to be accommodating in service of this virtue.Not Eleven Madison Park. I highly recommend that they get their heads out of their you know whats and get to work on building a customer service program commensurate with the prices they're pedaling.To affirm the end result: They have $1,400 from me, and I have no recourse to either obtain a refund or try their food.I guess I can take solace in knowing that the New York Times didn't think too much of the menu, but still I'd like to get my money back.Buyer beware.
This wasn't the experience we were expecting after spending the kind of money we spent. The man who checked us in seemed kind of racist. I guess they're not liking the increase in non-white folks with their transition to vegetables. The service felt very rushed. Wine pairing was ok. Wine from Greece was awful. The only good thing was food. It was innovative and delicious. With rest of the experience gone wrong, I'm not sure if it's worth it just for food.
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Lucky me!!! As a beyond generous thank you for helping me
Lucky me!!! As a beyond generous thank you for helping me get a job, a dear friend took me to Eleven Madison Park to celebrate. I had been to the old incarnations of Eleven Madison Park, even dating back to the Danny Meyer days, and the master piece theater of Daniel Hume. Fast forward to a post pandemic world, I became plant based and I was dying to try the new WFPB Eleven Mad. Now here's the positives... The service was unbelievable. So many plates, so many dishes, so much art and so much care in every dish. I LOVED this part of the meal. In a world where service has gone down the toilet, Eleven Madison is at the height of delivering incredible service and incredible artistry to plant based food. I am definitely going to bring back the boyfriend here who is WFPB, but I'm afraid those carnivores out there aren't going to see the incredible intricacy in creating these dishes and to the point of one of servers... He's not WFPB but its way more labor intensive than the former restaurant. I also don't know if it was the season. But our meal generally lacked color. It was a lot of beige and neutrals and less lively than I would like to see in a plant based meal. When the novelty wears off of trying Eleven Madison Park, I am keep my fingers crossed that people will still think that this restaurant deserves the crown of one of NY's few 3 Michelin stars.
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While the experience was extraordinary both times I've had
While the experience was extraordinary both times I've had the Eleven Madison Park tasting menus, both omnivore in 2012 and Plant Based in 2022, there is no doubt the food was more enjoying, interesting, and satisfying in this latest incarnation...and there was another pleasant surprise, too.What was consistently remarkable both times was the theater/pageantry. And they do a lot of fun things at the table, without it being too gimmicky--great example was the box they brought to the table to cook(?) the tofu in, right on our table. The table side Manhattan cocktail cart is another element I love. (The Brooklyn iterations of the Manhattans were awesome; I think I enjoyed the Brooklyn Heights more, but the Carroll Gardens was also outstanding.) Service was very good, but not great. Last night, everyone was super attentive without being overbearing. And very nice, with no elements of snootiness. But the descriptions of the food were confusing and I think bumbled in a few cases. I think the scripts need work and the presenters needed more practice. But this didn't take away much from the overall experience.The food was a major improvement over my previous visit. One of the things that stands out most about my previous visit was the duck, which was definitively below average for duck I have eaten previously...and I thought that was reflective of the food in general. It wasn't bad, it was just mediocre, and fell far below expectations for quality.Now I may be biased towards the new menu, because I enjoy vegetables more than the average person, and also more unusual preparations, but I simply thought the food was more flavorful. Any while I couldn't say necessarily more interesting--some of the old preps, like the tableside carrot tartare, were so fun--the food seemed elevated and more elegant. And there was something I had never tried before, Tonburi seeds, which were just incredible.Other highlights? Well, everything was really outstanding, but the Tofu, Tonburi, and Celery Root Tamale were all favorites. Easier to call out what didn't rise to the same level: the parsnip popsicle didn't work for me and the if anything was a disappointment, and felt like trying to hard, it was the bread and butter service...I was hoping for a fresh, crusty roll and some outstanding olive oil. Important to note that we left perfectly full too. Not stuffed, but not hungry. Though you could be stuffed if you ate faster; we were at our table about 4 and a half hours! We did see other people move through the menu more quickly.The other thing that seemed like an improvement, the aforementioned pleasant surprise, was the wine by the glass menu. On my last visit, I found the selections a little unapproachable, and the prices even more so! I thought the glasses were much more reasonable priced this time...it's nice not to feel gouged on wine when paying for a big ticket dinner. Whereas when I last went to EMP I had no intention of returning, I expect that I will go back probably in the next year; ideally to enjoy another season of the tasting menu!PS-I was a little apprehensive about Peter Wells' "Daniel Humm does strange things to vegetables" New York Times review. That absolutely wasn't the case last night.
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Let's start out with the best part of the restaurant.
THE SERVICE IS PHENOMENAL! I felt like an emperor being treated by the court eunuchs. If this was a service only review they would get five stars. The maître d' was very polite and helpful. The chef came out and explained the first course and the waiters explained everything else. They even gave us a gift bag with the menu and some granola. We paid $220 per person which is very fair for a three Michelin star. No alcohol, but the bar room seating is very nice. Molecular gastronomy lives up to its reputation and the food captured certain fallacies that are hard to replicate. There is a YouTube video where Eleven Madison advertises that they provided a dirty water hot dog to someone who asked for one. I did email the maître d' before we went there and asked for a bagel. They didn't provide it, but that could've been a one time thing. It isn't a big deal all things considered. What is a big deal is the vegan menu. The chef de cuisine boasts that they can provide three Michelin star quality with a vegan menu. Maybe for a vegan palate this is true, but for normal palates this is not. The taste of the seeds and truffles where very nice. But the potatoes left a lot to be desired. My friend said he could get better potatoes at McDonald's. This is slightly exaggerated, but molecular gastronomy should allow them to bring out the unami of the potatoes. Furthermore, the mushrooms over powered the flavors of the food and they should balance the flavors better. I feel going back to old menu, but allow them to have a five star review.
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The review is to their bar menu, so the experience could be
The review is to their bar menu, so the experience could be different than their full experience.The food was just ok and nothing that I'd like to try again. The steak was not cooked up to the standard of a 3-star restaurant.
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Outstanding, really, OUTSTANDING
More than fabulous food... When art, service, creativity and food craft a masterpiece
After living in 3 continents, 8 countries and traveling the world, and when you and your spouse are foodies it is not always easy to be surprised... But Daniel Humm and his team have created one of the best restaurant experiences in the world. The new vegan-based menu is truly special and the mix of flavors and textures made the experience absolutely pleasurable. The staff was attentive to every detail and everybody was focused in ensuring we had a fantastic anniversary dinner.... Thank you
4/5 by
Gilby on 01/07/2022
It is a difficult season for a vegetarian restaurant. Mushrooms, celery, root vegetables, beets ok but no salads, asparagus, tomatoes, peas, … what was memorable, the opening tea, the matsutake porridge and the dessert. The beets were nice, the celeriac and cabbage dish were to forget. It doesn’t come close to what Alain Passard does at l’Arpege but we went in Spring. Wine service was great. Don’t sit at the elevated space in the back it is a choreographed super highway of service people running up and down and it is quite frankly very annoying. For me I didn’t miss the meat nor fish but no longer three stars. We try again late Spring early Summer when vegetables at their best. Definitively deserves another chance.
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Amazing service and a personal touch but why is everything so in your face over seasoned?
Service was impeccable. But one word: salt. Having been to more than half of San Pellegrino world best restaurants; and in NYC alone to Daniel and Jean George, let alone Le Coucou, this restaurant was definitely on the black list of any self respecting cardiologist.