Went to Cesar the week before thanksgiving. At the risk of sounding like a broken record on this sub regarding this restaurant, both the negative and positive reports are pretty accurate from my experience at the counter.
We enjoyed every dish, there were no misses and no hits either. The classic uni toast and vanilla souffle were divine although, I doubt I would do the truffle sup again +$220- at least not on this dish. The sake/wine pairing was pretty bad and lacked any form of complimentary qualities with the dishes they were paired with. The pours were an absolute joke, I would guess <2oz per glass and no top ups or mention on the number of dishes paired with each pour. Service was surgical with the exception of the gentleman pouring our wines who was very personable, besides the fact that he didn't know squat about the beverages he was serving. Dish descriptions were comically bad as most were mentioned as 2-3 ingredients all the while we kept finding other stuff in the dishes. No menu print to take home or parting gifts, so another bleh moment. César didn't interact with us at all even though he shaved truffles on several other customers dishes. We saw him schmoozing with a table of clearly VIP clientelle for a while.
All in all, the food was good, drinks were bad, service was mostly fine, and we hated the lighting which felt like an OR in a hospital. Value was pure shit (see the $220 alba truffle add-on (I got an identical sup at Aska for more truffles at a $120 price point)). While they weren't pushy with all the extras they definitely made a "mistake" thinking we wanted the A4. This is one of the weakest ** I have ever been to and imo is not deserving of a second star. No regrets visiting but definitely no lasting memories to be had.
by alexveriotti
4 Comments
No regrets visiting? If I spent that much for your experience it would be one of the bigger regrets of my life
Consistency is going to keep them from that third star,
I think. I had a tremendous experience there and want to go back asap, but too many people have too many bad experiences. At this price point, somewhere shouldn’t have that many off nights
The food pics look exceptional, but yeah, not interested in a single one of those wine pairings
I went around the same time as you. I liked the food more, no misses for sure (some dishes fantastic), but it did feel like it was missing something, maybe because we didn’t get any of the supplements. Aska was a much more well-rounded experience, so I’d sooner go back there.
I also agree that the lack of transparency about the menu is annoying. My favorite meals have always had more detailed descriptions and conversations about the food. Feels like they’re tailoring César to a less foodie crowd. It’s a small thing, but not giving a take-home menu at this price point is kind of ridiculous—not encountered that before. I emailed afterward and they sent me a pdf.