Not what I would usually expect from Mr. Boulud. The ambiance at the bar was beautiful with the glass sculptures and the view but food fell short . The first misstep was a small table against a workstation that had us sitting awkwardly side by side. They moved us very graciously to a new table. The appetizer of tuna was good but nothing that blew me away and the entree of beef was tough and the garniture of potatoes galette and minuscule broccolini were all over salted . My dining partner had the paella as the appetizer that she liked but her beef dish was also over salted. The manager apologized with extra desserts that were delicious but not where I love to put all my calories for the evening! The best part was the adorable sommelier Micheala who suggested a fabulous wine I understand the minimalist approach to dining but felt it was done on the cheap with their choice of linens , table lamp and flowers . The service was attentive . But at these prices one should not expect anything less. The last straw was a visit to the ladies room and noticed the aluminum foot pedal trash can . Very tacky . I am not usually so critical of an establishment but being a real foodie it made me analyze every aspect of this "fine " dinning experience. What pains me even more is I have a reservation for lunch in July with an out of town friend that has been looking forward to dining here. Last night's experience has left me flummoxed ! What has happened to fine dining? Sincerely, Camilla G read more

The service was great. The food was good. However there was a hair in my dessert - gross! They replaced the dessert and sent an extra to the table. Ambiance was ok, The dining room decor was done nicely with ample space, but it was very quiet (Especially for a Saturday night in NYC). It is not somewhere I would go again. read more

Like all of Michelin, Le Pavillon once again provided excellent service and artistic presentable dishes, in addition , the quality of every one of them was beyond any words to describe. The seating and environment are also the great touch. That makes me feel the dining experience indeed worth every penny that I paid for! Bravo!!! read more

Not to mention it was good. I highly recommend it when you want to eat with good people. Meanwhile, the langustin was really fantastic and the oyster chowder was savory. read more

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Manager is obnoxious and snarky. Daniel Boulud is so much better than this and can employee the best. Why employee such a rude, unprofessional manager? Your restaurant cannot possibly survive with him at the helm. Drinks are completely overpriced ($80 plus) and poorly prepared (still water rather than sparkling water). Drinks were sent back several times and still delivered incorrectly. Then charged for every drink regardless of the mistakes. I cannot believe that any patron would accept the rudeness and average food as fine dining. Many options in New York. I would avoid this place. read more

Had a decent lunch here on February 1, 2022. At $95 for a three-course lunch, probably not good value for money, though. The Vanderbilt Salad starter was quite good; the Maine Lobster Salad ($8 surcharge) was good, pretty plain, reasonable portion, with some lettuce and a little dressing. Most disappointing in terms of portion size was the dessert. I love desserts, and if a dessert disappoints, it colors my whole opinion of the experience, coming as it does at the end of the meal. The Black Current Mont Blanc sounded so good -- and it was good. However, it should have been at least three times the size. (I've tried to upload a photo, but it's too large. Ironic: dessert too small, photo too large.) Bread basket was very good. Service was excellent. The restaurant is new, attractive, and comfortable. Ideal for good conversation. It was nice to see a side view of Grand Central Station from my seat. As a Manhattanite from another neighborhood -- the Upper West Side -- I love traveling around my borough for good meals at nice restaurants. But I suspect Le Pavillon will appeal mostly to Midtown East expense account diners, and perhaps to after work meals for those who work nearby. read more

This is an advise to the front receptionist Richelle , in hopes that she can improve her attitude towards guest. 5 steps for dealing with angry customers In addition to practicing empathy, there are a few other tactics you may want to try when interacting with a rude customer. Let them vent Repeat what they told you Empathize Use the right channel Communicate next steps Let them vent (for a while) They're angry. They want to tell you why. So let them. When a customer complains, you should listen-don't interrupt. Instead, interject occasional active listening terms like "Okay" and "I see" to show you're paying attention. This is your customer's time to express how they're feeling, so let them vent. At least, at first. If this is your second (or third) touchpoint, it may make the customer angrier to have to keep explaining themselves over and over again. Making sure you have the right context for the conversation will help you know how to respond. Repeat what they just told you When you restate what someone just said, it makes them feel heard. This is all part of active listening: you're not listening to respond, you're listening to understand. When you repeat what they said, use their name-it makes them feel like they're being treated as a human being. Choose your words carefully here-you don't want to make things worse by using loaded language. You just want to state the facts. For example: "Josie, what I'm hearing you say is your shirt arrived with a hole on the front, and you're upset about it. Is that right?" By asking the customer to confirm what you've heard, you're asking them to agree with you on something. That can go a long way in diffusing tension, and put you on the right track to resolving the issue. Empathize even if you don't agree Don't see your customer as an adversary-because they aren't. By empathizing, you are stepping out of the line of fire to stand next to them. Think about how you'd feel in the customer's shoes. Would you be angry if you'd been on hold for an hour? Probably. It's not your fault, but you can help fix the situation by seeing why they feel that way, even if you don't agree with it. You can use empathy statements like, "I'm so sorry. Being put on hold for an hour would make me mad, too." Not only does this help you make a connection, it can help hot tempers cool off. Get the conversation to the right channel When a conversation gets heated, it may need to move to another channel. For example, an intense social media or text conversation may de-escalate if it's moved to the phone. Likewise, a raging phone call might simmer down if it becomes a video call. At Zendesk, we often try to engage with upset customers over video. The medium makes it easier for agents to analyze the customer's body language and visual cues. It also makes it harder for customers to be angry. Instead of shouting at some voice on the other end of the line, they're looking at another human being. Communicate next steps (and follow through on them) If you can't resolve an issue right away, it's crucial you reassure a frustrated customer that you will get to the root cause and find a solution. Clearly explain the next steps you'll take: Walk customers through a roadmap that lays out what you'll do right away, what will happen after that, and when they can expect a resolution. For example, you might need to schedule a next-day appointment with a product manager to fully troubleshoot an issue. Set up the meeting, then tell the customer to expect a follow-up email 24 hours after the appointment to ensure everything went well. Every customer interaction is unique, but they often follow the same pattern. Similarly, while personalized support is key to great customer service, you can often use customizable templates as a starting point for conversations. read more

Dined here for the third time last night. The service was absolutely impeccable! The room is gorgeous! The menu, which changes regularly, had so much potential but just didn't hit the mark this time. The new dishes are reaching too far and feel over composed. The octopus bouillabaisse was delicious but my partner's spaghetti appetizer just had too many things going on which refused to let any ingredient really shine. I chose the hen for my main, but it was so salty I really couldn't eat it. I took it home not to waste it and will add it to a new dish to make it work. My partner's beef was tasty but cooked under the temperature he requested. Dessert was ok. The citron was bright and tasty but over garnished with too much candied citrus zest/peels. The coffee dessert was delicious. The staff continued to check on us and ask if there was anything else they could get us to replace things not up to standard, but we just didn't want to be wasteful and it was late. I really do love this restaurant, but last night did not meet expectations, especially for the price point. read more

Outstanding. Can I give more than 5 stars? As a native New Yorker I am still happily surprised by new dining discoveries. Daniel's newest incarnation, Le Pavillon, is a splendid new dining destination for the 21st Century,  and a soaring gift to midtown. The space?  An improbable balance between the sky high bar and intimate dining room, between casual and formal, between striking architecture and lush botanica - equally conducive for business, and family celebrations (and just steps to GCT), and romance. The food?  A delectable three course perfection, combined with (reasonably priced) wine choices. (Don't be shy to ask for a sugar free desert option--the staff isvery accommodating). Speaking of staff--divine! kind, courteous and genuinely attentive, wonderfully diverse (representing 48 countries), and  fluent in the language of the finest restaurant experiences. A special 'thank you' to Karim and Nancy, and Daniel (himself!) for welcoming us and treating us like royalty. Leith and Rick read more

Amazing lunch. Provençal style cooking. Fancy, but not heavy. Highly recommended. 2, 3 and 6 course price fix menu for lunch.

The food was underwhelming and for the price point not worth at all. The pasta with crab starter was salty and heavy, the chicken main course was OK, nothing special, the soufflé style root vegetable accompaniment was salty and inedible, the Vanderbilt salad was overly acidic from the vinaigrette. The only good thing about the dishes was the truffle pommes d'or garniture: however, there was no truffle flavour. The dessert was outstanding, though: the noisette was the only highlight of the meal and my sincere compliments to the pastry chef. The dinner courses, I am sure the original recipes from Chef Boulud are not what the executive chef currently executes. More effort on the quality control of the dishes in terms of balance of flavours, should be executed. And for the prices asked should absolutely not happen. Also we were not offered a basket of breads with butter. I also saw on a side table, a sommelier tasting wine and spitting in a bucket: absolutely unacceptable to happen in the dining hall. The positives for the restaurant are the decor, the ambience and the service: these were really excellent. read more

We were really looking forward to our dinner at Le Pavillon but unfortunately it was very disappointing. We know portions can be small at restaurants like this but in this case they were really small. The oysters and crab pasta appetizers were good but not great. The fish entree was cold and the beef was dry and overcooked. Considering the price for our dinner was nearly $1,000 for 4 people it was a huge disappointment. There are much better restaurants in New York for much lower prices. read more

I came here with one of my girlfriends last week. Although the room is stunningly gorgeous and the food fantastic, the service was super slow. It's unfortunate because our server was truly wonderful and professional and provided excellent context and guidance around the menu; he simply seemed stretched. For example, while my friend and I arrived at table, my friend had a glass of wine from the bar. I had finished my drink at the bar and had nothing to drink when we were seated. It took a full 15 minutes for someone to come over and ask how we were doing. I had to speak up and ask for a drink. I can't remember this ever happening to me anywhere. Without going into extensive detail, we had an 8:00 reservation and didn't leave the restaurant until 10:30. We had the 3 course prix fixe menu, no coffee or after dinner drinks. I don't mind a slowly paced meal and lingering a bit after dinner but this was too much. It just seemed to take forever to get to the next phase of the meal. I understand that restaurants are perpetually short staffed these days but a restaurant of this caliber shouldn't leave someone waiting 15 minutes to order a glass of wine or take so long to take your food order. I don't blame our server, rather think the management should have the restaurant staffed more appropriately or scale back on tables. read more

Ambiance was absolutely incredible. The interior was beautifully decorated and the views of the Chrysler building were spectacular. The food, on the other hand, was not so great. There was nothing memorable about the food and some of the flavors in the dishes clashed or lacked flavor. Finally, worst of all were the wine pours, which were at least half the size of any normal wine pour. For reference, I dined at Jean-Georges the night before, and their wines by the glass were almost double the size of the pour here. read more

Amazing, i can see why they got their Michelin star, their six course menu, make sure you go hungry because they are pretty good size mini meals. read more

Le Pavillon is the pinnacle of fine dining in Manhattan right now. The room is beautiful, the service was extremely attentive and the food was absolutely outstanding. The kabocha squash soup was one of the finest soups of my life. The octopus was cooked perfectly and the peas with basil pistou was delectable. The swordfish was unlike anything I've ever witnessed and cooked perfectly. It was tender beyond imagination and the eggplant, montegrato sauce created an incredible balance of complimentary flavors. The scallops with the bigarade sauce were also a standout in terms of both taste and presentation. My only complaint was that Chef obliterated my 2022 resolution to reduce carbs, because I needed four servings from the bread basket in order to guarantee that not a single drop of any of the finely crafted sauces went to waste. Even though the restaurant scene has changed considerably during the pandemic, I applaud Chef Boulud for creating this oasis of culinary excellence in moribund midtown area. read more

Amazing food from bread basket to dessert. Service was excellent. Warm, friendly and super efficient. I had a delicious absinthe champagne cocktail. My friend and I each had the 3-course price fixe lunch ($95) and each dish was perfect. Grilled octopus appetizer, sword fish main and halibut main, chocolate noisette dessert. We were ready to move in! Beautiful garden like atmosphere provided a serene respite from the bustle of Grand Central. Put this one on the top if your list. read more

I really wanted to give this restaurant 6 stars, but I can't. Even after meeting Daniel Boulud this evening, I am saddened to say that even 3 stars is generous. I am a lifelong New Yorker who has eaten at all of the top restaurants in nyc and this was just disappointing. There was a palpable desperation in the air this past winter for human contact. There was also a extraordinary amount of tolerance. 3 things on the menu- sure. I'll take my drinks outside in 35 degrees- sure. You don't have Tito's, Smirnoff is fine- sure. But now this is June and pre- covid expectations are back, esp when you arrive at DB's new restaurant and it's $200/250 pp. I went to dinner with a group this evening, including my parents who were celebrating their 49th wedding anniversary. Being with folks of that certain age group, we naturally showed up 30 minutes early, made our presence known and sat down at the bar for a drink. As we pursued the menu, we felt drops of water on our faces and arms- gross- the AC vents were leaking- sure, no problem, we move by the windows only to be greeted by the same problem. 2 drinks later and well over an hour after our arrival (after checking in with the hostess several times, no one coming over to us to apologize for the 45 min delay), our table is ready and I go to pay the bar bill. On top of the expense of the Rye that my guests picked out, they charged us an extra "over charge" $8 to make a Manhattan ($25 for the rye and $8 extra to make a drink from it). Uh, okay, I guess a $33 Manhattan is steep, but I'm sure the dinner is worth it. We sat down for dinner and no one appeared. After waving over staff two times, we finally were provided w menus and water (I guess I really am lucky to be here and I'm being reminded of that). 15 mins into reading the menu, my guests and I are freezing. When we asked if they could adjust the fans, we were told that we could go sit in the lounge/bar (dripping water); we politely declined thinking that the blowers of cold air couldn't get worse. Allergies were noted at the beginning of the meal including my mother's allergy to eggplant. We were assured that no eggplant was in any of the dishes that we had ordered. Okay. We ordered the grilled oysters (yummy) and the octopus to start. Both were delicious, but even coming from someone who loves salt- they were both salty dishes. We had a side of the soft shell crab that was fantastic, but the sauce was like dipping the crab into the ocean. For the mains we had lobster and scallops. With 3 side dishes- a zucchini dish as was described to us, mushrooms, and a potato dish. I peered into the zucchini dish as my mother started scooping and noticed - eggplant- uh oh- I quickly stopped her. That could have been a disaster. Thankfully I caught it and the mains (aside from extreme sodium) were Solid dishes. As we put on our jackets, pashminas and consumed warmed beverages (and lots of water to quench the thirst from sodium), we began to wonder if we should skip dessert. After the beginning of our evening moved so slowly, our waiters attempted to clear our plates prematurely 3 times. The hostess came over to apologize for the extreme cold and a waiter told us that the cold was because of the trees and the ecosystem that they had to maintain inside of the restaurant (seriously?) and offered us drinks with dessert given our experience. The few bites of dessert were good (we declined the drinks so that we could leave ), but do you think that they could have picked up my dad's club soda on the house after declining dessert cocktails? Amateur moves. Nor did anyone even place a candle in my parents' desert- esp after all of the above- classless. DB might have physically been at the restaurant, but there appeared to be no oversight. Staff was disorganized, no attention to detail (my mom's severe allergy to eggplant!!), slow and not an experience of a 5 star restaurant, or chef. After having been open more than a month, the "kinks" as they put it should have been worked out. My 8 year old niece could have organized this evening better. This is inexcusable with such prices and expectations. It saddens me to tell you of such an experience, but let's hope that they can get their act together (or at least lighten up on the sodium). read more

The decor was lovely and the service was impeccable but my praise stops there. My food was just atrocious. The soup was tepid and my meat was too tough to cut. I would recommend they worry less about plating and more about getting a more appropriate cut of meat from their purveyor. A filet mignon or waygu would have done the trick. read more

The food is great but the experience isn't worth the price, which was $220 a person in our case (with just a glass or so of wine per person). My friend arrived 5 minutes early for a 5:30 reservation -- the only time we could get -- and was told she couldn't be seated until the entire party (of three) arrived. Not at all correct, not friendly, not welcoming, not customer-focused. The staff was attentive and friendly, and there are a LOT of staff, but the entire meal was rushed. We felt very much like we were on a timer and they were going to get us out of there whenever it suited them. A $220 meal should last 2-3 hours, but ours was over in under 2 hours. The food was delicious, but the whole package is not there. (And although I understood the $185 supplement for caviar, I absolutely couldn't believe they wanted an $8 supplement for the lobster. Talk about being nickel-and-dimed.) read more

My second visit was disappointing due to the disinterested and unnecessarily arrogant service by both hostesses and waiters. Not what you'd expect from a DB restaurant. Also, the quality of the food has dropped which is unfortunate, since my first six months ago was quite enjoyable. No need to come again! read more

The ambiance was incredible and the staff was lovely, but the food could have been better, especially for the high price point. So many dishes had gluten in them, incl. fish, which is strange given it's 2021 in New York City, so it was much harder to order than any similar restaurant I can think of. The Grill is definitely better in all respects than this place. read more

It was truly a wonderful experience. The restaurant had a beautiful garden behind the seating area with olive trees along a walk path. The ambiance was warm & inviting. The staff was well trained, professional, friendly, & courteous willing to do what it takes to make your dining experience the best that it could be. The food lived up to my expectations from Daniel Boulud who is a NY top chef. read more

Went for a birthday celebration tonight. We were two vegetarians. Everything was amazing. The ambience, food, service, acoustics- everything! read more

Wife and I had dinner there last night and got food poisoning. Called the restaurant to mention how we were up all night, didn't seem to care...disappointing when u spend $500 on dinner. read more

Our second time dining at Le Pavilion and we were not disappointed! What impresses us most is that despite the tremendous attention to detail and skill that goes into the food preparation, presentation & service, we as diners do not feel any tension. We have dined at other fine restaurants and we could feel the tension from the servers and other staff. The experience is very relaxing which is a testament to management & staff. read more

We had a great experience the food was amazing. We do the tasting menu every time we go there but my biggest disappointment has been the dessert course every time . The desserts don't match the savory courses at all , I would expect much more a little more complexity and refined desserts than just a mousse presented in a fancy way. read more

I was happy to see a quick response from the restaurant and I immediately sent my contact info to the author both by direct email and by messaging through Yelp, but did not get a response to either method. I now fear that what I took to be genuine concern was just an empty promise made in an effort to mitigate the negatives in my review. Sigh. read more

Celebrated a special occasion and had dinner at Le Pavilion...it was such a fabulous meal..we went back for lunch two weeks later...Daniel Boulud is spot on...not only is the food delicious, but the presentation is beautifu..wait staff is extremely attentive..and yes, Covid safe..hostess actually looked at our vax cards...matching our name to the reservation on the computer...tables well spaced. From appetizer to the coffee (probably the best I've had...wish I knew what they used) a great dining experience. Looking forward to our next visit read more

Every course was gorgeous and delicious. Service impeccable. Chef visited room and graciously posed for photos in beautiful dining garden space. Small bar evokes center-of-the-NYC-universe landmarked Four Seasons. Boulud's Patrick O'Connell pal's devotion to taste presentation beauty merits equivalent Michelin stars. Superb. read more

First, the food here is very good. We sampled a pasta dish, the bass and the beef plus four appetizers. All very tasty, although the grilled avocado seemed a bit of a miss, a little bland. The room is attractive but also very bland. If it were not for the beautiful trees, you would think you were in your grandma's dining room. The wine list is excellent and our waiter was more than happy/competent to make good suggestions. The service was a bit off - not particularly warm and friendly and not particularly prompt. We had to ask what had happened to our order twice. At the end of the day, I give this only three stars because of the value proposition. Very good food, although not the most amazing; good but not excellent service; a room that is a little lacking in ambience - all bearing a price tag with tax and tip of $500 for four people for LUNCH, and only two of those people had a glass of wine. I know this is Michelin starred and I know Daniel Boulud is the definition of a celebrity chef, but at this price point I was expecting a little more, maybe fun, beauty, solicitude? read more