The NY Times had an article, about NYC restaurants “breaking” the $45.00 barrier for entrees. it seems to me that $30…00 was the “barrier”, just a few years ago! When will it hit $100.00? look-I have no quarrel with rich people-but what on earth justifies these sky high prices? And, we are talking (typically) about a steak or piece of fish-salads, potatoes, veggies, etc. are all extra! So, NYC dopers-are these p[laces worth it? The last time I was in NYC (last Sept.) myself and a friend had a marvellous lunch in little Italy-it came to $34.00 for the two of us! or is this a sign that the rich are getting TOO rich?
My friend and I were celebrating his new promotion, while I was in Chicago. We had $48 (iirc) steaks. That was just the steak, no sides. Then again, they were double porterhouses. Like Scrubs, we have our own version of Steak!
I heard a commentary on the radio on Sunday (NPR, Weekend Edition) featuring a woman who just wrote a book Talking with my Mouth Full, Crabcakes, bundt cakes, and other kitchen stuff (title may be slightly off). She commented on the fact that her generation (she’s in her mid 50’s) went through a time when the weren’t interested in domesticity, but now they’ve come to appreciate food, and want Farmer’s Markets, and Farmhouse cheeses, and a wide variety of specialty products. I wonder if that’s part of what is driving higher entree prices, the idea of having something so special and unique.
Or maybe it isn’t. Certainly I wouldn’t pay $45 for an entree. But I’m not a Baby Boomer, and I’m not rich.
If true, it just reinforces my opinion that there is nothing in NYC that I care about. At all. I used to harbor fantasies about eating my way acroos the city, but if those are the prices, forget it.
Just judging by average inflation over the past 100 years or so, it’ll be about 20 years.
And I think I’m a bit confused. I’ve never eaten in a restaurant where the entree didn’t include some sides. Things like salad, dessert and apetizers were separate, but the entrees are all “meat on a starch with vegetable something-or-other.” Are there actually places where they just bring out a plate with the meat?
I’ve eaten at nice but not spectacular restaurants that have $20-30 entrees. So $45 doesn’t seem like a huge leap to me, especially if it’s a famous chef or a choice cut of meat.
It won’t matter if it hits $100. By the time it’s even close to that, only the celebrities and rich people will be left in New York. Everybody else will have moved to North Carolina.
You say that like it’s a bad thing.
I don’t care whether you go to New York, but it’s silly not to do so because the prices of some entrees at some restaurants is over $40. Lots of other places have great food for little money. Last week, in fact, a guy from Queens won an award for the best street food (Sammy’s Halal on 73rd Street and Broadway in Jackson Heights, Queens).
North Carolina is very nice. Being priced out of a place I want to live is not.
Of course the factual answer to the question is:
When the market will bear it.
If they could charge $100 for an entree today, and still have a packed dining room nightly and long waiting lists, they would do it in a heartbeat.
The cost of eating out, when adjusted for inflation, has actually been steadily dropping. Food is getting cheaper if anything. Whats probably affecting New York is the increasing cost of rents rather than the cost of getting a slab of protein onto your plate.
Plenty of places have single dishes that cost more than $45. Theres a whole passel of uber burgers who compete with each other for the most expensive burger in the world. Gordon Ramsey in London has a white truffle pizza which costs around USD$100 IIRC.
You guys (and not just walrus) need to get out more. $45 a steak, and yes, only steak is pretty common. Every top steak house in the country has a piece of meat approaching that range. It’s called an ala carte menu (well, everything on the menu is ala carte).
However, I will say that the common price for steak is around $28-$32 (I’ll just $30 avg). And, the market will bear it. I took my gf to Chicago once, and I couldn’t even get a reservation 6 weeks in advance (but this is more due to this conspiracy theory that my friend has, one of the few theories I’m willing to believe much less entertain).
Wait, what? You can get into Charlie Trotters or Everest with less than a weeks notice at almost any time. I can’t believe there’s a resturant with that kind of waiting list.
This past Friday I was at a place that wanted $15 for burger and fries.
Now, prices don’t translate very well from one country to another, so I’ll rewind to '85. I was fresh off the plane in Chiago as an exchange student. My room mate thought we should celebrate my arrival and we did so, at the Hyatt Regency. Lunch was $80 for the two of us, including tips.
A while ago, my ex-gf and I went to a medium priced, but still fancy place in Stockholm. Drinks, sallad, main course, a bottle of wine, espresso and cognac for two people ran to $300 excluding tips. It was nice and my employer paid for half of it ( by voucher, as a bonus), but we still felt a bit cheated. It was very, very good. But had I paid for it all by myself, it would’ve felt way to pricey.
In short - there is no normal price. Main courses will be @ $100 when there are enough people willing to pay that amount. Paying $15 for half a pound of burger, made from freshly ground (prime) beef, with English Cheddar, in a whole grain bun, and real, home made (never frozen) fries, might be a bargain. Five bucks for a Big Mac, fries and a Shake might let you feel cheated. IOW - it all depends on the situation and location.
Huh. I go out to eat all the time, and in Santa Barbara, which has a vast supply of restaurants. And I’ve never seen a menu where the majority of the entrees didn’t come with sides.
I rarely go to steak houses. Perhaps it’s more common there.
This is the difference between a high-end steakhouse and a high-end regular restaurant. In a traditional steakhouse (think Sparks, Smith & Wollensky, Mortons, etc.) you will typically pick out your steak without any sides or add-ons(and they have a wide range of cuts and sizes), and separately order a baked potato, creamed spinach or other side dishes. In most other regular restaurants, the entrees will typically be meat/fish accompanied vegetables/starches.
On the other hand, many of the extremely high end restaurant will give you a choice only between either a prix fixe menu, where you will get to select among several options for each of three or four courses at a fixed price or a tasting menu where you get seven or more small courses selected by the chef, again for a fixed price. It isn’t unusual to have the prix fixe menu at $80-100 and the tasting menu at $120-150 at some of the best restaurants in the city.
Yep. I ate at one this weekend. I think my steak (just a small one) was about $35, but you could pay as much as $90 at this restaurant and all the sides are extra. But, damn, was it good!! I tend to always order a real small steak at such restuarants just because the aps and sides are so good that I like to try a bunch. Usually, a group of 5 or 6 can easily get by with 3 sides-- they tend to be pretty big.
I did just that but from further northeast of New York.
Today for lunch at “What’s Cookin’?”, two miles from my office, I had two good-sized slabs of liver, smothered in onion gravy, with corn and green beans for $4.95. Iced tea cost $1.50 extra (free refills), all plus 7% sales tax and a $2 tip. Friday I had two baked chicken breasts, with field peas and collards, same place, same price. Tomorrow they’ll have moussaka, stuffed grape leaves and banana pudding, ditto. I don’t know what steak costs as I do not eat it.
I turned my house heat on last Wednesday after a month of being between a/c and heat.
COME ON DOWN!
Thanks, Billdo. I’ve heard of the prix fixe vs. tasting menu split for fancy restaurants, but have never been to such a place. And I can understand the reason for steak houses not including extraneous food now that you explain it.
Think of the (recent achieved) Michelin 3 Star restaurant in Napa-- The French Laundry. Not that I’m biased towards CA establishments or anything. 