Best Restaurants for People Watching in New York

Great place, the service was very slow and they didn’t sing me happy birthday they just dropped the cake in my face and walked away, every other restaurant sings happy birthday except for them🤦🏾‍♂️🤦🏾‍♂️🤦🏾‍♂️🤦🏾‍♂️ nonesece, anyway the food made up for it. My family loved it when we weren’t waiting!

Delicious dinner at the Russian Tea Room! My husband had the sea bass and I had the scallops. The atmosphere is as romantic as it ever was. The prices are a bit high, but the food was wonderful and this is a special place. It’s a New York icon for a reason. On a side note, any negative reviews I’ve read were for tea. Despite the name, I don’t think this is really a tea place. Go for dinner, and you won’t be disappointed. All the dinner reviews were glowing.

We live around the corner and have been meaning to go here--Valentine's day felt like the perfect opportunity. Once you step in, you're transported away from the casual vibes of the Upper West Side and into an elegant fantasy that reminds you to treat yourself. Notable moments: The service here is perfect--our waitstaff were so kind, efficient, and helpful all the way through. They aren't stuffy and are, in fact, very human, but they provide that upscale service all the same. The food is gorgeous. The Valentine's prefixe was $75 a person. My partner got a plate of calamari as an app that was big enough to share, and the escarole salad I chose was lush and bountiful. Our pasta mains were well-portioned, not to mention al dente and seasoned to perfection. We also received two desserts for the pre-fixe price--both of which felt like gourmet iterations of homestyle favorites. It's kind of like this whole restaurant. The ambiance is relaxed yet upscale. My partner and I are by no means fancy people, and yet, we felt welcome! We saw people of all backgrounds and dresscodes come and go. There's a buzz of conversations around you, but it's not so loud that you can't have a conversation. The only slight discomfort we experienced was that our table was kind of wedged next to another table and the main hallway where the waistaff hung out--we assumed maybe they overbooked for the night and had to make new tables--but it was worth nothing more than a giggle and asmile once we realized. And hardly took away from the experience. Instead, it was a great vantage point for people watching and the perfect place for attentive service.

I go here regularly because the food is exceptional (not ordinary), it's not too loud, there are no tv screens, and I can have a relaxed conversation with my guest(s). Service is good. High ceilings give an airy feel. There are plenty of choices in the area, but this is my favorite place to eat.

Superb evening. Staff fantastic, food and drinks too drawer. Best part of our trip was the evening here. Thanks so much to all the staff there.