New York City: Gotham Bar and Grill (April 2005)

My spouse and I dined at Gotham Bar and Grill for dinner in April 2005. We stayed nearby at the Ramada New Yorker, which was awful, in contrast to our meal at Gotham, which was great. The restaurant was decorated with huge vases of blooming cherry blossoms. Gotham Bar and Grill is a New American restaurant located in Greenwich Village. It opened in 1984, and is owned by American chef Alfred Portale, one of the founders of New American cuisine, who is also its chef. He arrived at the restaurant in 1985. The menu consists of dishes that are New American cuisine, such as grilled rack of lamb, Maine lobster, mushroom risotto, roast squab, and garlic mashed potatoes. The modern, expansive restaurant is chic, located in the multi-level loft space of a former warehouse, with high soaring ceilings, tall floor-to-ceiling windows, and with pieces of parachute cloth billowing around its chandeliers. The restaurant's art collection has its own curator. The restaurant serves over 400 diners a day. In 1993, restaurant critic Gael Greene wrote that it was her favorite restaurant. Bryan Miller of The New York Times gave it three stars in 1985, Molly O’Neill of the Times gave it three stars in 1993, Ruth Reichl of the Times gave it three stars in 1996, and Sam Sifton of the Times awarded it three stars in 2011.