I look forward to eating at this wonderful restaurant again! I've eaten here twice, and the food and service do not disappoint. Chef Seeger's food is perfection!
1
That is the most ridiculous plate of food I have ever seen. And: "An open pea pod stretched across the rim of a shot glass." Sexy. But, still, that is the most ridiculous plate of food I have ever seen.
3
I think it looks lovely.
"Each time it poured, customers canceled their reservations so they wouldn’t have to get wet running from the lot to the front door."
Has umbrella technology not made its way to Atlanta? This restaurant doesn't particular appeal to me but I can't fault the guy for not wanting to cook for people who can't manage to avoid being rained on without help.
Has umbrella technology not made its way to Atlanta? This restaurant doesn't particular appeal to me but I can't fault the guy for not wanting to cook for people who can't manage to avoid being rained on without help.
14
Ouch, LOL.
1
If we are discussing the tendency for a gifted chef to have a confident attitude, or even an exuberant attitude, then perhaps this is a separate idea for an editorial. That said, regardless of my past experiences with Chef Seeger's food, which were all very enjoyable, my experience at Gunter Seeger NY was absolutely magical. His food was a new touch on an an experienced chef's talents. It was an evening build around the best ingredients that were barely touched in a way that lifted up the food and highlighted the purity and quality of the product. This is not unlike Le Bernardin for that matter, just perhaps a bit more modern and fresh.
I'm sure Christiane Lauterbach will attest to the loss we all suffered in Atlanta when lost the fine dining experiences embodied by Chef Seeger and Joel Antunes. Her reviews of Seeger were always at the top of her scale. She reviewed his food, not his bravado.
Critics now place a value on dining and proclaim a certain level of luxury as prohibitive. I'm not convinced that you can put a price on an evening as magical as Arpege or L'Ambroisie. An experience of a lifetime is priceless. And yet to open a new restaurant in New York largely on your own, and serve the quality of food Chef Seeger serves, unfortunately dictates a high price tag. This kind of experience isn't value driven.
Once all the fine dining is gone, I hope there is something left for you guys to write about.
As for me, I'm just happy to have had the experience.
I'm sure Christiane Lauterbach will attest to the loss we all suffered in Atlanta when lost the fine dining experiences embodied by Chef Seeger and Joel Antunes. Her reviews of Seeger were always at the top of her scale. She reviewed his food, not his bravado.
Critics now place a value on dining and proclaim a certain level of luxury as prohibitive. I'm not convinced that you can put a price on an evening as magical as Arpege or L'Ambroisie. An experience of a lifetime is priceless. And yet to open a new restaurant in New York largely on your own, and serve the quality of food Chef Seeger serves, unfortunately dictates a high price tag. This kind of experience isn't value driven.
Once all the fine dining is gone, I hope there is something left for you guys to write about.
As for me, I'm just happy to have had the experience.
6
I think you're confusing the idea of good value with "bargain." You write that "this kind of experience isn't value driven" — but nobody is suggesting that the experience should be a bargain. Mr. Wells considers value, as when he states that "it isn’t quite easy enough to keep you from wondering just what you’re getting for the money.'
5
I've had the pleasure of dining with Gunter Seeger since his days at the Atlanta Ritz Carlton in the 1990s. Once again, his nuanced understanding of bringing out the best in his ingredients is on display. We've paid far more for less satisfying meals at other fine dining restaurants in NYC. Gunter is a perfectionist in the best sense of the word. "Perfect" was the word my partner used when we finished our amazing meal. I have a shellfish allergy, and frequently the substitute dish offered is an afterthought; not at Gunter's.
My "replacement" course was incredible, just like the rest of the meal. There was no "lecture about culinary trends", nor is Gunter's food trendy in any way. Regarding all the comments about "German food", Gunter Seeger's is not a German restaurant and does not make that claim. Perhaps the people posting should read the review again.
We look forward to our next visit.
My "replacement" course was incredible, just like the rest of the meal. There was no "lecture about culinary trends", nor is Gunter's food trendy in any way. Regarding all the comments about "German food", Gunter Seeger's is not a German restaurant and does not make that claim. Perhaps the people posting should read the review again.
We look forward to our next visit.
2
This sounds like a parody of a fancy, self-serious "New American" restaurant. I'd rather have some good old fashioned German food at one fourth the price.
I'd like to eat a nice meal and not feel like I'm being lectured about culinary trends.
I'd like to eat a nice meal and not feel like I'm being lectured about culinary trends.
5
My husband and I ate at Seeger's in Atlanta a handful of times back in the day. Having dabbled in cooking, we could really appreciate the level of skill and technique that was required to make each course - a level that we could never even dream of achieving ourselves, which is one of the reasons to try to experience a restaurant like that. Each meal was amazingly tasty and full of surprises. His new NYC restaurant seems like it offers that same type of surprise and innovation. Definitely sounds like it would be worth the trip if you are able.
4
For $185 I can buy a used car.
10
Haha, yes, you could, but for $185 I'd rather eat than drive.
5
For $185 I want a back on that bench.
9
... or see a Broadway show or get two Yankees tickets. So what?
5
Great, just what the NY dining scene needs: another pretentious temple of gastronomy presided over by an autocratic, humorless chef dispensing a series of overwrought, minuscule nibbles at heart-stopping prices. Puh-leese. What did Orwell say in his "Down and Out in London and Paris? "The price one pays for a plate of food is in direct proportion to the number of fingers that passed over it," or something like that.
18
Right on!
Imagine - a good chef who wants a meal to be enjoyable and even fun!
But this is NYC and there are plenty of people who will patronize this place because it's "the thing to do".
A fool and his money are soon parted...
Imagine - a good chef who wants a meal to be enjoyable and even fun!
But this is NYC and there are plenty of people who will patronize this place because it's "the thing to do".
A fool and his money are soon parted...
2
With the possible exception of Eric Ripert, Gunter Seeger is hands down the best fine dining chef in America. As noted, his pretensions are sometimes off putting but always more than worth it. I have eaten at Gunter Seeger twice and can't wait to return. Seeger is an artist...with everything good and bad that comes with it.
11
Oh My. What a leap from whatever else is going on in NYC. The problem we have!
Someone should do a Dollar Per Pound (Ounce?) take on the aggregated but paltry plates of food, no matter how glorious or precious, or tasty, or tasteful. Do you get a coupon for a slice of pizza as you exit the said restaurant? I could use a slice, or two, or three on some days, after such a dining "experience."
Someone should do a Dollar Per Pound (Ounce?) take on the aggregated but paltry plates of food, no matter how glorious or precious, or tasty, or tasteful. Do you get a coupon for a slice of pizza as you exit the said restaurant? I could use a slice, or two, or three on some days, after such a dining "experience."
6
The food sounds incredible, very pure and focused. The room sounds like it could use a few more fabrics but I'm sure that's something to fix easily. Many restaurants in NYC have noise problems. Hoping to go soon.
3
Looks like Mr. Seeger had the three star review in his glove, and he dropped it. Reminds me of the 2007 Mets. if Mr. Wells did a poor job of convincing me to eat there, the slideshow has me tempted to make a reservation. The plates are beautiful.
17
For anyone who would like an enjoyable experience of German food at a small fraction of this price, may I suggest Jagerhaus Biergarten, in Whitestone Queens, also a chef-owned restaurant, where one can enjoy grapefruit-accented beer plus many other varieties, a lovely German white for $27/bottle, excellent herring in mustard sauce, Hungarian goulash to die for, and giant pretzels imported from Munich. And much more. There is an outdoor beer garden, a simple but comfortable indoor dining space, and friendly service at a higher level than you would expect.
16
This makes me miss the late Kenny Shopsin, who did things his way, and whose legendary (and documented) antics belonged in the West Village.
Alas, this place represents the "new" Village -- ten times more expensive and losing its charm quickly.
Alas, this place represents the "new" Village -- ten times more expensive and losing its charm quickly.
5
If you miss Kenny very dearly, you can go visit him in his restaurant Shopsins on Essex Street. Before you mourn the death of old Manhattan, it would be wise to confirm that it is, in fact, dead.
40
Kenny Shopsin is still alive and Shopsins is still open when the Essex Market is open.
6
kenny ain't dead
14
Simply put, Seeger's in Atlanta was done in by Gunter Seeger's incredible arrogance and narcissism. We tried Seeger's on two occasions; once entertaining out-of-town guests who, after being subjected to Gunter's haughtily minimalist creations, admitted to us the next day that they had ordered room service once they got back to their hotel room to satiate their hunger. On our second visit he charged our group $120 in corkage fees to open two bottles of rare wine that we had brought with us (Pre-approved by "Chef" of course). He had the audacity to ask if he might have a glass of our cabernet and when we obligingly agreed he promptly poured what one could only term a pour and a half and then, right before our eyes, walked across the small dining room and offered it to one of his regulars.
Seeger's fell into that category of "Once, shame on you, twice shame on me" and I predict that Gunter Seeger NY will come to the same ignominious end that Seeger's Atlanta did.