Getting a table at New York’s famous restaurants is tough but worth the effort

THE CELEBRITY APPROACH to dining was invented in the Big Apple. I recall the time I was waiting in line at the fashionable Café des Artistes with fellow journalist Andrew Cockburn during the 1980 US presidential campaign. The people in front of us were brusquely told that no table existed for them either today or ever, judging by the attitude of the receptionist. She then reluctantly glanced towards us and a smile vanquished her sternness. “Mr Cockburn! How wonderful to see you again! Now, let’s get you a great space.”

Swiveling around she spotted a table and plonked us at it. When I asked Andrew what was going on – especially since we didn’t even have a reservation – he laughed. A few days earlier, he had dined at the same restaurant with the former governor of California, Jerry Brown. The irritatingly New Age Brown – fondly recalled for his affair with singer Linda Ronstadt – was briefly a Democratic Party presidential candidate, and that was enough for celebrity dust to anoint Andrew. Well, at least for a week or so.

Given New Yorkers’ obsession with being seen at fashionable eating establishments, it is impossible to even get on the waiting list for lunch at the Gramercy Tavern. This is no aberration, as the Gramercy Tavern and its younger sister, the Union Square Café, trade places annually in the Zagat guide for most popular restaurant in New York. Fortunately Rowley Leigh, of London’s Café Anglais, was able to wangle us a Friday lunch reservation. I had wanted to visit the Gramercy ever since I heard that my hero, the late Jean-Claude Vrinat of Taillevent, the greatest restaurant in Paris, was a huge fan. He had chosen Gramercy Tavern over Manhattan’s famed French establishments to hold a gala charity dinner. As Colman Andrews, restaurant columnist of Gourmet magazine reminded me, this was no coincidence: “You don’t go to the Gramercy Tavern or Taillevent to be shocked or dazzled, you go for dependable, comfortable, high quality.”

And, yes, the Gramercy pulls it off. Everything exudes American country-style good taste, from the murals, rural antiques and the massive exposed beams. And then there is the food and the wine ...

I have never had a more exquisitely fresh lemon risotto with celery and clams, while the braised shoulder of lamb had oozy charm countered with the crunchiness of bok choy. There is a brilliant Corton 99 for little more than HK$750. They actually have La Tache 02 for one third of its market price. Okay, spare me the hate mail ... I know it’s a crime to drink great Burgundy so young, and not everyone wants to drop $8,000 for a bottle of wine.

Despite its A-list clientele, the Gramercy is not a pricey hangout (lunch for two was around $1,500) and it exudes an appealing comfort and non-flashy quality. It’s the restaurant I yearn to return to more than any other.

We also found time to do some serious hobnobbing in New York, which was quite a revelation. Our first stop was the Century Club (or Association, as members will hastily correct you), the Big Apple’s equivalent of London’s famed Garrick Club and White’s Club combined. Okay, it is a tad on the formal side, but here I witnessed the sort of good manners you will be hard pressed to find in any of the posh private clubs in London’s St James’s.

I was going for a drink with an old friend, Kevin Buckley, who was Newsweek’s bureau chief in Saigon during the Vietnam War. The Century offers classic club cuisine in the form of a generous buffet. But the pleasures of the Century aren’t found at the buffet table. The cosy country-manor ambience in the center of a frenetic metropolis is the reason to visit this rustic establishment. 

The next morning we had breakfast at the Harvard Club, which takes up an entire city block, with a dining room nearly the size of Grand Central Station. It may be hard to gate-crash the Harvard Club, but if you manage it – or better still, know a member – you’ll find the best breakfast in Manhattan. Try the light and fluffy ham and cheese omelette, full-bodied and frothy cappuccino and freshly squeezed orange juice with a sweet sharpness. Because this is a club, the prices don’t appear on the menu, but rest assured, they verge on the right side of reasonable.

Two other lunches stand out. The first was at A Voce in the Flatiron district, the creation of Marlon Abela, a Lebanese oenophile who also owns the Greenhouse in London. Don’t be put off with the appearance: it’s a cavernous space, with leather-topped tables, swivel chairs and questionable Modernist furniture and d?cor. The food is along the lines of the London’s renowned River Café – bold north Italian peasant cuisine. Our starter was charred toast with olive oil, garlic and ricotta, which was the essence of simplicity but still a delight. Then it was octopus with olives, peppers and pieces of bruschetta. It was basic, but with intense flavors.

Marlon is obsessed with fine wine, owning the greatest private cellar in Britain. Nearly half of what is on offer here is less than $600 a bottle, with a glass of an amazing Brunello (Tenuta Silvio Nardi 2000) a mere $100. 

The second standout lunch was at Da Nico in Little Italy, reputed to be a favored hangout of New York’s Mafioso bosses and former New York mayor Rudy Giuliani, although not necessarily at the same table. Sitting in the rear garden, we were served huge portions of gnocchi with pesto and whole Maine lobsters with spicy sauce and tagliolini. Each dish was large enough for two greedy people and the bill with wine came to around $900.

The main reason foreigners fly into New York is for the bargain shopping – I returned with some awesome Togiharu knives from Korin – thanks to the relatively low US dollar. But the food is also worth the trip, and you don’t have to carry it home.