Le Caprice

This restaurant is in the Pierre Hotel on 5^th ave, easy to find.
The decoration is dark and heavy, with a lot of black and no harmony, well… not cozy at all.
Hostess very friendly — quickly checked-​in our coats and seated us.
Server was sharp getting the orders and the drinks came out right away.
Came for the Restaurant Week menu and had the Mackarell as an appetizer — very strong fishy flavor, there could have been something to match /​balance that flavor and smell — not pleasant. The risotto was OK, the nuts were unnecessary and not adding up. Dessert was good and bold in flavors. Wine list is disappointing. The martini I had was good.
For the location, price and fame, the overall experience was poor.
No wonder it closed.

Great french cuisine. Nice and quite restaurant.

Me and my boyfriend went to Le Caprice on their closing night last Saturday. The place is really nice, the staff is attentive and the manager is awesome! She even took pictures of us in the hotel lobby :) the food was great too. Would love to see what they do with the place when they reopen.

My husband and I enjoyed a wonderful meal at Le Caprice in London and we were looking forward to enjoying a similar experience at their NYC location. Sorry to report that the food was a total disappointment! Very salty!!! It was impossible to know whether we were eating duck or fillet of sole as they both tasted like potato chips — all salt, no flavor. I actually felt that they both tasted a bit off — as in spoiled and that the salt was used to mask the lack of freshness. Please save your money and don’t go here! We dined here on a Thursday night, at 7:00, and we were one of three parties. I had walked by at lunch and they were very busy. Maybe it is a lunch place for chic folks from Barney’s who perhaps dine on expresso and vodka and skip the food.

I had the restaurant week lunch today at Le Caprice. What a disaster! Where do I start?!! Let’s first say the thing I liked best about this restaurant is its revolving front door. No really, there is something about its design which caught my eye. So very lovely. Sorry to say the food or service was not quite as lovely. The service was slow and I think I must have been served by everyone in the restaurant (5 or 6 waiters) by the time the meal was over. All were mostly nice but why so many. And there were very few guests. Now finally to the food. I totally agree with one of the other reviews
when they said they could have had this meal at home. I go one step further. I could have made this meal and I can’t even cook –and it would have been better than this. It was diner at best (no offense to wonderful diners everywhere). The only good thing was the salad starter. As for the dessert, OMG. I have been known to order every dessert on the menu and eat them all myself. Today for the very first time I left part of my dessert behind. What was that chocolate??? As with my fellow reviewer the ice cream saved the day here. What surprised me most of all about this restaurant is how anyone here could give it more than 2 stars. There are so many good restaurants in this city. Why O why would anyone pay this money to eat
in this one. Find yourself a good diner and save yourself the money. O! And let me mention what one staff member said, when I asked why the dessert was taking so long, it is being baked fresh so it takes time (?!). She said this in an arrogant way and when the dessert arrived there is no way that was just out of the oven. While I understand that this was just one meal, on one day of this restaurant’s life. I am very surprised that, being this was restaurant week, Le Caprice would not have put its best face forward. I, for one, would never go back after today. Maybe it’s time the revolving door stopped revolving at Le Caprice.

I went to Le Caprice at the Pierre a few days ago. I was having one of my fav NYC days. Horse carriage ride through Central Park, lunch at the Le Caprice, browsing the silver collection on the seventh floor at Bergdorf and crossing the street to the men’s store for a cocktail.
Le Caprice is undeniably hip young and cool. It’s where I drag this downtown culture vulture ass uptown for some swank realness. This last time I had the boar ragu and it was totally delicious. Rich and warm for a crisp (winter’s?) day.
I think the staff is beautiful attentive and kind. Yeah, maybe a little relaxed for uptown east, but hey, that’s what it’s there for.
From what I understand Le Caprice is based in London and THERE it is a swinging hotspot for hipsters looking for good food and a modern cool atmosphere. I wouldn’t know myself. I’ve never been to London, but I love the interpretation here. I also love that there is a place on the UES that I can go to and feel cozy and at home.
It’s also actually REALLY reasonable… About the same if not less than you would pay for lunch somewhere like the Spotted Pig or Little Owl downtown.
I think it’s great.

Restaurant Week Review:
RW is a good value at Le Caprice, with their prix fixe providing good portions and similar dishes to their normal menu at a very different price. However, I was not thrilled with what I ordered.
APP: The winter vegetable salad was a light start to the meal, but the vinaigrette tasted like it had a lot of dried herbs and not as many fresh ones.
ENTREE: The salmon had an excellent sear on the skin side and, while all of the orders were cooked to the same temperature, had a nice moisture level. The lentils with lemon confit gave a unique, tangy bite that the dish needed to elevate its intrigue.
DESSERT: Dessert was where the meal really fell flat. The pear and blackberry crisp had undercooked fruit that just kind of sat in the ramekin and was not bound together by anything. The crisp topping was not crisp, and there was no tangy element that I always hope for with berries.
SETTING: The ambiance is really cool– quite posh. Right when I walked in, someone accidentally turned the dimmer lights all the way down so only candlelight was illuminating the restaurant. A manager ran up to the front and a few f-​bombs were dropped before the lights were returned to normal and I was seated. I didn’t mind, but careful around the customers, folks! It’s just a light switch. Other than that high-​tension incident, all of the staff were very nice.
All in all, it was a decent meal but not one that I will remember, nor one that I will come back for again.

Loved it! The Art deco décor, made me feel like I was in a posh train car! My date and I sat at the bar, which had very comfortable seating. We had a cheese plate and some delicious cocktails. The bartender was attentive and a lovely, young woman named Courtney, made us feel famous! I was concerned because hotel restaurants on the east side, can be stuffy. But this was quite the opposite. It was my first time and will not be my last!

I absolutely love the atmosphere! Great place for date night cocktails. I always get «scent of a woman.» The tartare is phenomenal. Every time I go here the staff is always so nice and attentive. The bar tenders are super friendly but don’t overdo it. The management always checks in to make sure everyone is having a great experience. Definitely one of my NYC favs!

If you haven’t had the iced Scandinavian berries with hot white chocolate sauce, you should… I mean, it’s fruit!

Excellent food & service. Team was very polite & hospitable. My husband & I took the Brunch «Prix Fixe» menu which was a three meal course for $ 29/​person. DELICIOUS! DELICIOUS! DELICIOUS! We loved evth. especially appetizer: the Goat cheese onion tart, Entrée: ckicken, & dessert: Lime & lemon grass brulee and the apple pie. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!

Jean Geroges or Daniel this is NOT.
Service is fine, décor is what you would expect from an UES Hotel restaurant — stuffy and uninspired.
Food was a big disappointment, we went in looking for a light take on solid seasonal English dishes, yet what we got was a forced and borderline unpleasant food.
The wild boar ragu was great — very flavorful, but the Butternut squash risotto was bland with no texture. Shepherd’s pie was edible, but the Steak and Kidney pudding was one of the most repulsive things I’ve ever tasted. The chef tries too hard to modernize good old British dishes by taking out the flavorful heartiness and modernizing with a gimmick, like rubbery potato casing on the pudding or an overly intense sauce. The sides of cauliflower and spinach were univentful as well.
Where the food failed the desert and the wine selection definitely compensated.
The whole meal left us feeling dissatisfied, I don’t remember the last time I had a meal in New York, where not only nothing stood out or surprised, but some dishes made you wonder whether you can spit it into a napkin. The restaurants in this price range should not serve mediocre food like this.
On a side note — this was an early Sunday dinner and while the restaurant was absolutely empty and we had reservations, we were seated by the bar/​server area, leaving us to listen to waiters gossipping and idling in the corner. As the restaurant filled up they still stubbornly proceeded to seat people in this one area leaving the main dining area empty. So not only we had to enjoy being cramped between 15 other people for no apparent reason, but to also watch and smell their fish being cleaned right in front of us, while attempting to eat desert.

The food here is phenomenal. I splashed out and got the Thai Based Sea Bass. It was simply put one of the most delicious sea food entrees I have ever tried. Plump, fresh, accompanied by a great sauce; tender. Can seafood be tender? Well, this was.
I also had a bite of the fish special (dover I think) served with bernaise sauce. This was EVEN better and hands down made me reinterpret my previously dour opinion of British food; those folks can cook!
The crowd was a bit on the older side, so dont show up expecting a young, hip vibe. Which is a good thing sometimes. Apparently they also fired the piano player, so that much anticipated dining accoutrement was missing. However, I loved the décor of the place, it was sort of art deco chic. Superb meal!

I’ve eaten here a few times the my opinion is pretty constant. It’s not that I’m not a fan of the restaurant because I am but the reason for my 3* rating is because they just try too hard. It’s a bit too contrived in every way from the menu, décor and staff. None of it feels natural. The mushrooms on toast to start is delicious and the tuna with curried lentils as a main is also very good. However, the staff come across disingenuous and impolite, take my most recent visit when a friend was running late and the host wouldn’t show him to the table because he didn’t know the exact name of the reservation. It’s small things like this which can make or break my opinion of a place and unfortunately for Le Caprice, they just don’t have all of their ducks in a row for it to be a stellar restaurant.

Note: this review is for breakfast.
Breakfast at this spot in the Pierre Hotel is superb, but also so rich and decadent you will not need another meal for the rest of the day. Walking into Le Caprice, you feel like you are being whisked back in time to an art-​deco era restaurant. Everything has a black and white color scheme, with lots of silver included in the mix.
There is plenty of space between tables (rare in New York City), making this the perfect spot for quiet breakfast conversation over coffee. On any given morning, you’ll hear multiple languages spoken here, and the calming space encourages lingering over your always-​full coffee cup. The service here is seamless and excellent, with servers going to great lengths to make sure patrons are taken care of.
The baked goods here – croissants, muffins, danishes – are rich, buttery, and flaky. I ordered the Eggs Arlington – Eggs Benedict with smoked salmon instead of ham! The eggs were perfectly done, with a generous cap of creamy hollandaise, and the smoked salmon was rich and fresh without being too salty. Indeed, breakfast at Caprice is about classic dishes done well… no suprises here, just excellent food, terrific service, and a prime location.

I totally love this food. Me, my fiancé, his mom and her boyfriend all went out on a double date and we enjoyed the food. It was fresh, quick, the service was great, they also let us stay as long as we wanted. It’s expensive but we went out for restaurant week so it costed less. Try the LOBSTER LINGINI! And the Honey coombe ice cream! it’s delicious.

Locating one block away from the apple store on fifth avenue, this is the area that I normally will not dine at. But that’s the beauty of restaurant week, indulging the food that you normally can not afford.
First of all, a big nod for the service. We are three young girls dressing in t-​shirt and jeans, walking into a restaurant filled with people dressed in Prada, Gucci, and Armani, but we did not get treated differently, and even got the back «VIP» table.
Prosciutto with melon for appetizer. Love prosciutto, love melon, together… needs a little getting used to. Cod for entrée, pretty fresh cod, pretty good flavor, pretty… pretty presentation, but overall, not a dish will be remembered. Dessert was the perfect ending to the whole dining experience. Honeycomb ice cream that had caramel bits mixed in, with hot chocolate on the top. Can I have a «yummy»!!!
After all the restaurant week menu I have tried, Le Caprice’s food is probably the closest to their regular menu food standard, which is how it is supposed to be.

Well prepared food, very «old school» mixology in a luxury fifth avenue hotel. Not sure what I had expected (since I knew the old Pierre very well) but it just seemed to be for a certain clientele. Give the place a try, maybe you will find a hidden gem on Fifth avenue.

Snuggled in the long room alongside the lobby of the Pierre Hotel, Le Caprice is a significant improvement on what was once the Café Pierre where the waiters were white gloved, the ambience proudly stuffy.
Le Caprice, contrary to what you’ve been told by critics ignorant of its heritage, just ain’t like that. Yes, there’s a piano. The room no longer resembles the interior (if there is such a thing) of a wedding cake: décor is clean, modernist black and white. A long bar, comfortably set for dining (reservable) extends along the left-​hand side of the room. There are tables opposite and in the rear. Servers are young for the most part, polished, and cosmopolitan (French, English, Hispanic, American). The wine-​list is medium-​sized and very well priced considering the location. House champagnes — Henriot — check in at less than $ 20 a flute, and there’s a selection of half liter carafes as well as wines by the glass. I started with some bubbly and ordered the octopus carpaccio. This was one of the specials, indicated as such by ostensibly being handwritten in the menu’s margin.
The slices of tentacle were thin without being paper-​thin, and correctly tender. Presented in an appetizing tangle — a more pretentious kitchen would have created a decorative mosaic — they were dressed with chives, scallions, cilantro and an oil with the mildest hint of chili. Refreshing. I could swear the bread is the same they serve in London, very crisp-​crusted.
Chef Fergus Henderson of St John has smoked haddock in his repertoire. So indeed does Michael Hartnell of London’s The Ivy who has opened the kitchen here at Le Caprice New York. Smoked haddock (known to the Scots as «finnan haddie») is a British classic, the flaky white fish often paired with a soft egg and mashed potatoes. Hartnell pulls off a spectacularly sophisticated version, blending the haddock and potato as the filling of a crisp tartlet.
Poached quail’s eggs are mentioned on the menu, and one expects to find them dumped on top of the tart. Not at all; they are concealed within. Cutting into the tart causes the yolks to pop — once, twice, thrice — saucing the dish as you eat. It’s an amusing effect, as well as flavorful.
Since New York is inhospitable to wild game dishes, meat options are less adventurous than they might be in London. A burger, a couple of steaks, a chop — I urge Hartnell to add his ham hock to the menu. I ate the chopped steak, rare as requested. I can take or leave onion rings generally, but it the steak was served with good examples of the genre. More remarkable, the bucket of fries, impeccably prepared — crisp and tasty even as they cooled down (there are more than enough for one person). Pleasing too the Lujan de Cuyo Malbec, one of the least costly wines on the list ($ 43 the bottle, $ 29 the carafe), smooth, bacony, and highly drinkable with red meat.
I filled up on cheese. A handwritten special was Stilton from Colston Basset, served with fruit cake. I went for the plate instead as it boasted three of my favorites. Shropshire Blue is a pleasing, orange-​tinged alternative to Stilton. Caerphilly, another classic, is a crumbly cow’s milk cheese, at first mild then slightly acidic on the palate. Berkswell is a modern invention, a hard sheep’s milk, buttery and subtle. And what surprising value: $ 14 for this loaded board of imported cheeses for which I’d expect to pay $ 29 per lb at retail (reality check: Murray’s will charge you almost $ 40 per lb for the Berkswell).
Indeed, not unlike its London siblings — those allegedly «high society» haunts — Le Caprice New York is a value proposition overall. Nine garnished entrées between $ 22 and $ 30 (yes, steaks are more expensive), $ 8 sides, and over twenty bottles (my count) under $ 50, you can eat and drink well here without lurching far into three figures. Downtown prices, believe it or not.
I understand that the very existence of the Upper East Side, its hotels and their restaurants is a red rag to many New York bulls, and I understand why. I doubt even that I’ve dislodged any prejudices, although I hope I’ve alleviated some ignorance. For myself, I’ll continue to cherish this very good import.

My Fulton Fish Market hours are tough. I go to work at 1am until 9am Monday — Friday. One of the good things about working this graveyard shift is that I can occasionally snag reservations that are cancelled on
at the wee hours of the morning while most people are sound asleep. This was the case on how my Friday 7:30 table for two at the new Le Caprice fell right in my lap. Just like 2009 was the year of the «revival» restaurant, 2010 is shaping up to be the year of the resurgent «le grand» hotel restaurant scene. It’s happening all over town from April Bloomfield’s white hot The Bresling, at The Ace Hotel to Danny Meyer’s Italian gem, Maialino, at the Gramercy Park Hotel to David Chang’s forthcoming Franco-​Vietnamese subterranean venture, Ma Peche, in the Chambers Hotel. Upon arriving in the lobby, I met the host whom I happily remember from his tenure at Graydon Carter’s Monkey Bar. I sat at the long-​stretching dining bar and ordered myself a Golden Cadillac. Surprisingly, they did not carry Crème De Cacao in stock. So instead, I went with a Whiskey Sour which was prepared nice and tart. A few minutes later my snobby foodie «wannabe» dining partner Marie joined me and we were promptly seated in a luxurious black leather half-​moon banquette in the very rear of the restaurant where we could stretch out and take in the whole scene. Located adjacent the palatial Pierre Hotel, now operated by The Taj Group, the brasserie was designed to mimic its famous sibling restaurant, the original Le Caprice in Piccadilly, London. Decked in stunningly retro onyx and white Art Deco style, the brasserie is decked with vintage iconic photography from famed English snapshot artist David Bailey. The low-​ceilinged mirrored room evokes images of the First Class restaurant/​lounge on the Queen Mary. The walls sport Tihany-​inspired cylindrical lighting and shell-​shaped sconces. The signature dining bar is the hot seat in the London location, but I’m thinking the Upper East Side elders would not compete for said stools. Leave them be to the young jetsetters. The menu is overseen by The Ivy veteran Michael Hartnell. It is mostly haute Continental dishes and some English favorites like fish and chips and sticky toffee pudding. The wine list is mostly on the pricey side, but there are a few affordable reliable selections such as a $ 40 Cotes Du Rhone Seguret 2004 Red and a $ 45 Bourgogne Aligote 2007 White. Wines by the glass range from $ 7-​$ 17. Amid the background soundtrack of English accents and piano music, we ordered our appetizers. I started with the Nantucket Bay Scallops with Sunchoke Purée and Trompettes ($ 24). These little gems were served in faux scallop shells and they tasted rich and opulent. Marie had the Octopus Carpaccio with Scallions, Chiles, and Cilantro ($ 20). In Adam Platt’s review, his wife proclaimed this dish to be «the best thing she’s ever tasted». Now, with all due respect to Mrs. Platt, I’m sure in her journeys thru the restaurant world, she must have tasted another dish better than this octopus. Nevertheless, I will concede that it was definitely one of the better octopi I have sampled. Still a little hungry after my starter, I decided to add on an additional course of the Sautéed Foie Gras with Caramelised Apples ($ 26). As foie gras goes, it was barely middle of the road, but even mediocre foie is always a welcome treat. For the main event, «Clueless Marie» chose the Long Island Duck Breast with Endive Tart Tartine ($ 32) and enjoyed it. My far more seasoned palate found her duck albeit flavorful, yet well overcooked to a solid, sad medium. My Cod Fillet with Braised Coco Beans and Chorizo ($ 30) needed a bit of salt and pepper to offset some blandness. Fortunately, the fillet was prepared nicely with a proper flakiness. We found the service to be very attentive and prompt at the start of the evening, but as time passed and the room filled up with primetime guests, our table faded away into the hazy background. Our banquette began to resemble a Saks window display as the staff strolled by obliviously leaving us to our devices. I really had to almost wave my arms to get someone’s attention. After raising smoke signals, we corralled our server and ordered the Chocolate Pudding Soufflé ($ 12) for dessert… well, sort of. It was not pudding or a soufflé. A soufflé comes baked and served inside a ramequin. This dessert was honestly just a decent molten chocolate cake on a plate highlighted by crème fraiche that paired deliciously with the gooey chocolate. One star for the cuisine, two for the swanky décor. It’s a good thing I could expense this dinner because Marie turned out to be a complete «ditz» with no class who, in the course of one evening, dropped enough «F-​Bombs» to make even Tony Soprano wince. I hope she gets hit in the head with a Titleist Pro V1 for tainting what was, otherwise, a pleasant dining experience. Dinner for two with wine, extra appetizer, tax, and tip was $ 220.