Since I was visiting Ithaca for the first time I was excited about eating at Moosewood -- I was introduced to their cookbook 40 years ago! I went with a friend for lunch, and it was past the lunch rush, but still a fairly good number of tables eating. It took a long time to catch the attention of a host in order to be seated. Once we were seated after at least 10 minutes with no acknowledgment, we just left and had a great Mexican lunch down the street. The lunch menu seemed very limited, to the point where I didn't really get upset about not eating there. I can't comment on the food, but the service was just awful. read more

Wonderful food and staff. I bought the Moosewood Cookbook in the mid 1970s and have wanted to visit the restaurant eventually. I finally got there in October of 2022. It was warm enough to sit in the patio area. After lunch, I explored beautiful Ithaca, the home of Cornell University. read more

Moosewood Restaurant - Waiting for lunch on the patio of Moosewood Restaurant - New American Near Me - Ithaca, New York

We had lunch here a few weeks ago, and enjoyed the food. Portions are pretty big and food was tasty. I like how the food did not feel heavy like usual restaurant food nowadays. I made a reservation through Resy and there was an option where I added it was our anniversary, thinking nothing of it. Towards the end of our lunch, our server asked us if we wanted a free dessert to celebrate our anniversary. I thought that was sweet and thoughtful, and a nice added touch. read more

The famous "Moosewood". More like "Losewood". Where do I begin... I've never actually seen chickens with their heads cut off but I can tell you that the servers were a close representation (and this place was NOT BUSY). Hovering over tables waiting for people to leave is not a GOOD LOOK. Breaking glasses like it's a Greek wedding. Just dissaray like it's the final meal before a nuclear holocaust. Now onto the food... If you look up "lackluster" in the Webster dictionary, you'll see a big photo of Moosewood Restaurant next to it. The homemade penne artichoke pasta dish had...ZERO artichokes . I made better meals at 3am as a 17 yr old drunk college freshman with a fridge full of cold pasta and parmesan cheese. Tossing frozen peas over the top really did give it that grandma's home cooked meal vibe though. The red Thai cashew curry was more bland than drywall. The potatoes (in curry btw ) were harder than medical entrance exams. Also missing were roasted cauliflower and spinach (which were main components). Tip for incoming customers: They have peanut butter and jelly sandwiches on the kids menu. It might be your saving grace here. The pre meal house salad was fine. read more

Moosewood Restaurant - Frozen peas Mac and Cheese Kids Cuisine - New American Near Me - Ithaca, New York

There's a reason that this is the quintessential vegetarian restaurant.... it's absolutely fantastic! The setting and the service are wonderful.... but (of course) the food steals the show. I had one of the evening specials: black eyed peas with tomatoes and onions over brown rice with shredded local cheddar. It was served with a side salad. The salad was fresh with a nice choice of greens, cucumbers, grape tomatoes, and shredded carrots. I chose the garlic feta dressing which was strong and flavorful. My dining companions chose the lemon tahini and the spinach basil dressings.... and I had a taste of each to compare.... and they were all fantastic. My entree was hearty and tasty with a wonderful blend of fresh and hearty flavors and textures. The portion size was generous. When veggie food is this delicious, meat is not at all missed. For dessert we shared the (original) brownie with a side of local vanilla ice cream. It was a perfect ending to a wonderful meal. And.... in case you were wondering.... I bought the biggest cookbook. So now I can enjoy more yummy veggie meals at home. Yay! read more

I eat meat, but I'm not a jerk about eating vegan or vegetarian dishes. My wife eats mostly vegan and really wanted to try Moosewood, so we went. The bean soup was fantastic and so was the curry dish I had. But, plot twist, they also have an amazing cocktail program and the apple dessert with chocolate ice cream was a great way to close it all out. Service was amazing too. Everyone was super friendly. read more

I can't say anything good about my dinner on Saturday night. Came here with my husband with a reservation and sat outside. Waited over 45 minutes for the worlds smallest cheese board to come out. After another 30 minutes, we received the mushroom pasta which was over cooked, cold and was made with portabellos not shiitake and oyster as described on the menu. During the excessive wait times our waitress never checked in or offered to refill drinks. The management was running around the restaurant constantly and looked like the most miserable souls. When our mains came out, I told our waitress we were unhappy with the wait, our food was cold and we wanted refills. She replied "oh I'm sorry" and only came back to give the bill. Nothing was done to improve the experience. Would never go back or recommend to anyone. read more

World -Famous and worth a visit A tad pricey, but most places in Ithaca are. The food is always good, with vegans and vegetarians always happy. The avocado toast is superb read more

Yummy soups, and full menu great for the vegetarian. My friend loves it here so when we went to Ithaca for a weekend, we had to stop for her. We made a reservation in advance because there was a show at the State Theatre so we anticipated the places around Ithaca to book up quickly. That meant we had to get there early so it ended up being a meal between lunch and dinner. Go for the soup and the specials - they're all great seasonal renditions of meals with a vegetable savory slant. I really enjoyed the butternut squash soup they had available when we were there. Rich and velvety with a good balance of flavor and earthiness. The zucchini fritters are also worth trying as well as the sweet potato quinoa burger. We also shared dessert because who can resist chocolate cake. The space has a casual cafe vibe. A good stop if you've never been and are dining with people with dietary preferences as they cater their recipes to vegans, vegetarians, and gluten free folks. read more

I just wished they would open early on Sunday I observed after driving some 50 mile to arrive a bit early a number of folks heading to the Moosewood found it open at 10:30am Sunday the just walked next door ... well it was my first experience after all i am an owner of their cookbook that I owe my skills to... I fell in love there... had a baby...and wanted another of there... carrot cake pancakes... it brought the rabbit out of me thus down the hole I jumped...WELL WORTH THE WAIT every thing was good....feeling for those "folks instant gratification folks" who missed out a such wholesome experience... read more

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I can't even begin to tell you how bad the service was. It took over an hour for the bread to arrive. We had three young children with us and it took an hour and 40 minutes to bring them a bowl of pasta. When we finally asked to see a manager she offered a weak apology saying that we had a large party. It was 10 people. They've been in business for 45 years. If they can't handle a party that size then don't take the reservation. After all that, did they offer a dessert - no. Did they comp part of our dinner - NO! The help is all young and inexperienced. They are living off their cookbooks reputation. Anywhere else they'd be out of business. All in all a complete waste of time and money. read more

Sadly, this institution banks on its fame and as others have noted, falls flat on customer service. I ordered a dish with portabello mushrooms that contained no mushrooms. The server was told by the kitchen that the mushrooms were cut very small. This was strange since all the other veggies were in 1 to 2 inch chunks. In other words, they couldn't be bothered to make sure that a dish actually contains the ingredients listed on the menu. The manager also couldn't be bothered to discuss it either, just comped the dish in absentia. Oh well. 2 stars. read more

I went here with high hopes based on what some friends told us. Unfortunately, this restaurant didn't meet our expectations. The server seemed like she was annoyed was annoyed she even had to be there. The food wasn't bad, but we found multiple hairs in one of the dishes. When we pointed it out, we didn't even get an apology, she simply asked if we would like it to be remade. Unfortunately, we won't be returning. read more

I have never had a bad experience here and the food was delicious! I had the spicy curry, house salad and a delicious ginger drink. Service was wonderful and the meal was amazing as always. Wish I lived closer to go more often, but always enjoy. read more

Moosewood Restaurant - Moosewood's Classic Ginger Tea - New American Near Me - Ithaca, New York

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As a longtime vegetarian I've been wanting to try this legendary place for a while. It met and exceeded expectations! The indoor and outdoor seating were lovely, simple, clean looks. Menu was so fun - since everything was vegetarian and some vegan options too. The lasagna I had was delicious- large enough to bring some home for next day's lunch! Others had the curry, the Moroccan stew (super yummy!) and the black bean burgers. Everyone enjoyed their dishes even the meat eaters:) service was so friendly and prompt. Will for sure be a repeat diner! read more

good food in a legendary restaurant. the importance of this place and its cookbooks to the popularization of vegetarianism in the US is hard to overstate. five stars doesn't do it justice read more

Made a reservation for dinner at the Moosewood and had a wonderful dinner with my daughter. The hostess was warm and friendly and so was the vibe of the restaurant. Their drink menu is extensive and fun. My daughter loves trying new drinks and ordered a golden milk cold with a shot of espresso. I ordered a cocktail called something like Fallen rose. It was fantastic.. Hendricks gin and Prosecco with a cardamom and rose sugar cube. Dinner was delicious. Both our dinners started with a beautiful fresh salad. House made dressings were scrumptious. My daughter had the watermelon strawberry vinaigrette and I had the creamy spinach basil.. our server told me it used to be called the goddess dressing. I had the salmon special with wild rice and perfectly cooked and seasoned green beans. I was happy to see a fish dish even though it is a primarily vegetarian place. After walking around all day at Cornell I was feeling like I needed something a little more protein rich. My daughter ordered the bamboo rice stuffed eggplant with sesame kale. My fish was perfectly cooked and although my daughters entree was delicious it lacked another texture besides soft. She said she was missing some crunch. I loved her kale and she loved my green beans so we shared half and half and the beans gave her the crunch she was missing. My daughter ordered a beet- raspberry shrub with her meal and it was yummy. For dessert we shared a vegan chocolate cake and I had a hot house made chai and my daughter ordered a matcha latte. The cake was rich and moist and the icing was just the right amount to balance the cake. It had 2 slices of orange on top and chocolate and orange is one of my favorite combos. House made chai did not disappoint, spicy and creamy. I got mine with whole milk and my daughter does not do dairy and her drinks were made with almond milk and oat milk. I highly recommend!!! If I ever get back Ithaca I would go again. read more

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This restaurant, once a destination, deserves a negative, far less than one star rating. Our party of 10 had a reservation. They were unaware. We were the first in line at the door at 5. It took two hours until we were served and all of the other tables around us were served and gone before we ate. The waiter could not deliver on initial drink orders. And when requested again, overcharged. The waiter was arrogant, disconnected, incompetent and untrained. Food arrived spottily. Some was good. Some was inedible and overcooked. Dare we beg for water?????? It took two hours to complete our meal and many were in a rush because we had a later engagement. One small bit of redemption: a portion of our meal was comped, which was the right thing to do, but the bad taste will remain for a long time. Moosewood is rotten at the core and had best remedy their issues or they will cease to exist. Not kidding or exaggerating. The new owners better figure out how to run a restaurant. read more

Underwhelming experience. As a organic gardener who loves good vegetarian cuisine, I found the food to be mediocre compared to the farm to table experience that I expected from such a famous restaurant. The service was friendly, but also underwhelming. The server knew nothing about the short list of wines on the menu. read more

We were on a road trip and received a recommendation. We did not have a reservation, but they were able to seat us at a small table outside. My sister and I eat vegan and we're able to choose delicious options. My BIL will eat meat, and says that he enjoyed his food. At the end we chose two vegan safe dessert options that were quite good. All in all I recommend this restaurant. read more

Truly delicious, exciting, fresh dishes. Friendly service, wonderful place! Very unusual and creative dishes. read more

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The food was really good but the service was not. We waited over an hour to get our appetizers. 75 minutes after ordering our food we finally got our starters!! They forgot about us for sure. read more

Moosewood is, for me, pretty much just about the food, with less regard to everything else. Having had both good and bad experiences here in the past, I've learned to just roll with the unknowns and how to minimize the worst of those. First unknown: The menu. You won't know until a few hours before you arrive what will be on the lunch or dinner menu. Sometimes it will be several things of interest to you, sometimes little. Second unknown: The crowd. If you have the time, you really need to go early and put your name in, otherwise you may have quite a lot of time to kill waiting for your table, and that gets progressively worse if your party is more than 6 people (I learned that the hard way many years ago on a night when the temperature was 90 degrees). Third unknown: The wait staff. Some are very personable, some are efficient yet succinct. For example, last night, our bus boy was chattier than our waitress. She did nothing wrong, she just wasn't talkative. I've noticed a lot of reviews tend to be influenced by your server. Fourth unknown: Salt. Keep in mind, Moosewood is about healthy options, and that will generally mean low sodium. I'm all for that. But just a sparing amount of salt can have a profound effect on the taste of your meal. That has been for me, most evident in the soups. I do indeed want a low-sodium broth or base for my soup, but sometimes it can be a little more bland than expected. I think, though, I'd still rather be in control of that by adding just a little after it's served. But that's all I'd ever do. A lot of my favorite dishes from Moosewood use fantastic spice combinations, and for those I would not want to tamper. I don't feel the need to eat at Moosewood every time I'm in Ithaca. There's many more great restaurants at which to dine. I do, however, want to appreciate their cooking, and I can do that just as easily - most of the time - at home. read more

Moosewood..the restaurant definitely has a name that evokes a certain sense of romance. Obviously, you won't find any moose here, because as you know this restaurant specializes in mostly vegetarian and Pascetarian cuisine. It's famous from the cookbooks you see sold around the States, but does it live up to the hype? I went here for a birthday dinner with my girlfriend and some family and we had a great time. We ordered a round of appetizers (quinoa with some beans and salmon spread with some bread). I also ordered some freshly squeezed juice and my girlfriend and mom both ordered some tea. The appetizers came out pretty fast and were enjoyable, the presentation was nice, but nothing was too special. As the restaurants menu changes everyday, you generally only get about 4 options of entrees to choose from. This is, in a way, a good thing because it makes the process of deciding a lot easier. I ordered the vegetable stew, while my mom ordered the salmon and my girlfriend ordered this mushroom dish. Each one of our entrees was delicious, although the mushroom dish was a little too salty for both of our tastes. For dessert, we had the Chocolate Mousse and it was delicious. The waitress also didn't charge my girlfriend for it as it was her birthday, which was nice. The bill came to a little over $100 for 4 people, with 2 appetizers, 4 entrees, 1 juice and 2 teas. Definitely reasonable. This place isn't going to wow your face off if you're expecting something glamorous and extraordinary from reading the cookbooks, but the food IS healthy, tasty and the service is good enough. The decor is pleasant, although part of the restaurant feels like a gift shop of sorts. Definitely worth checking out once, especially if you're looking for some tasty healthy dining options. read more

We were in Ithaca for four days and we ate all our meals at Moosewood. Well, that's not completely true. Since we were in town for the Cornell reunion, all our meals were included except lunch (and we missed a breakfast so we did hit up Collegetown Bagels), but still all our meals OUT were at Moosewood. Disappointingly the kids' menu was dumbed down. I would have liked to have seen smaller versions of selections from the regular menu. Instead of going with the kids' menu, our twin 6-year-olds shared our food, and between the four of us we shared three entrees - the perfect amount of food. Everyone really liked the butternut squash and kale latkes with maple crema. The black beans with quinoa cake and a fried egg were so popular at our table that we ordered it again the next day. The salmon burger was possibly my kids' favorite, though it was the least favorite of my husband and me. It was your basic salmon burger. The husband thought it was a little fishy. It came with apple fennel slaw which was just okay. The other entrees came with a house salad. I found all the dressings to be lacking, especially the lemon tahini. On my second visit I discovered the best of the batch: creamy spinach basil. The next day the tofu sausage lasagna was one of the specials. It was very very good. On the other hand, the chickpea burger was the worst of all the entrees we tried over the two days. We attempted to cut it into fourths and it just fell apart. It was just kind of mushy and unremarkable. My husband ordered the cucumber cooler made from cuke, mint, and simple syrup and it was the only one real clunker of the first day. Only the kids liked the cucumber cooler. It sat untouched and the server never asked about it. The host stand was also empty for a significant amount of time on this first visit. I ordered the chai, which (I think) was fragrant of vanilla, clove, and orange. We liked it enough we ordered it again our second visit. We also capped one of our meals with the fudge brownie. Despite being billed as their "most popular dessert since '73" it was not that special. read more

This has been on my restaurant bucket list for decades and it did not disappoint. Everything was fresh and delicious. I wish I lived closer. read more

Moosewood has been around even in the dark ages when I was in college. Highly vaunted, it was a trail blazer in its time and with the local/sustainable/organic movement in its prime, this institution, with all of their highly touted cookbooks, it should be a guru leading the upstarts in the way of vegetarian enlightenment. How I wish it were different. And it's not because our meals were horrible. It's just that, given it's reputation, locale and student clientele, it could be so much better. We were in beautiful Ithaca for the college tour and a cousin who is an undergrad here suggested coming here to which we happily agreed, after we were assured that there was salmon on the menu to make our carnivorous man-cub happy. The first sign that something was amiss was the gift store that you had to go through even before you were seated. Museums do this before you get to see the dinosaurs. Little did I expect, this was portentous. The appetizers we got sounded like basic fare: a hummus plate and a garden salsa with chips platter. Both were good, but could have been revelatory given the price. The salsa and hummus were fresh enough, but the tortilla chips might have been from a big bag. The entrees were similar: a bit pedestrian sounding but with plenty of room for imagination and craft to lift it out of the ordinary. My garden vegetable ragu was hearty, but not any different from what I could make in my own kitchen with spare ingredients. No flair of deft preparation . No spark of an unusual herb. Just vegetable soup. Not salty, thankfully, but not memorable either. My wife got the phyllo rolled burrito. Again, memory escapes me on how it tasted. My daughter loved the vegetarian lasagna, and just like everything else, it was good, but for where we were, it could have been more creative. My son's salmon was a overdone and a little dry. Sauce was forgettable. Dessert fared better with the chocolate cake wonderfully moist and packed a high cocoa punch that was delightful. If only the restaurant would take its lead from the dessert makers, then I think Moosewood can return to its former well deserved pedestal. For now, it has rolled down the Slope and can't get back up. Kind of like a dinosaur. read more

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Great service, bland food. Why can't a 40-year-anniversary-celebrating once-ground-breaking vegetarian-focused kitchen do better? It just kills me, because so many places achieve deep interesting flavors from local-farm-sourced veg. My first visit, the Moosewood is a large bright open restaurant with friendly staff and quick service. The menu offered interesting veg and fish choices for very reasonable prices at lunch, also many local beers on tap like Bacchus red rye. Starter salads are included with lunch entrees, basil ranch dressing was very good but greens were pretty boring, just green lettuce, plus cucumber slices and grape tomatoes. Fairly, uh, garden variety. I found their Caribbean vegetarian stew to be utterly bland. The menu promised chilies, cilantro, peanuts *and* jerk seasoning so I was ready for a real treat! Sadly it arrived luke warm temperature and of the aforementioned seasonings there was no trace. Just to make sure I had the daughter try it for heat and she concurred, nada zip zero. C'mon guys, Caribbean jerk should make even me sweat, I like heat! And squash, potato and tofu need help, don't be scared of spices. Better luck with the daughter's sweet potato Italian-style casserole which was yummy tomato sauce plus parmesan and mozzarella cheeses, served plenty hot, it vanished before I could get a proper taste! Place was packed for the Friday noon rush, all three dining rooms busy, but still easy to have a conversation despite the bustle. At least three-quarters of the diners were women, seemed unusual to see so few guys but there it is. I will confess my knowledge of the place also stems from a MW cookbook that a housemate long ago cooked from often, so now finally I've connected those dots :) Just wish the back of the house could keep up with the friendly and efficient front of the house. read more

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Our reservation for 5 was at 7:30 pm - we were served at 9 pm. It took the waitress 15 minutes to come to our table, and when she did, she did not bring us water despite the heat as we were eating outside. We had to ask for water. She brought the water and then took our drink orders. It took another 10 minutes to get our lemonade and hard cider. It took another 10 minutes for my son's Bloody Mary to arrive. We ordered appetizers. The appetizers were served 45 minutes after we arrived. After an hour went by and our salads had not arrived we inquired. The salads eventually arrived but they forgot my son's fruit cup. His cup of fruit arrived shortly thereafter. After waiting forever for the entrees we again inquired. We were offered bread. We explained that we wanted the entree not bread. They asked us if we would prefer to leave, which we declined because we had driven from Wisconsin and we were tired and hungry. We were assured that the food would be brought out in 5 minutes. The entrees took another 12 minutes and the waitress spilled hot butter into my son's lap. She was very apologetic but it added to our frustration. They gave us a measly 10% off the bill and a brownie. Any reputable restaurant would have offered a more significant % off even some that would have comped the entire meal. The waitstaff had the most apathetic demeanor. They were not rude but could have cared less. Too bad Hals Deli closed... read more

I went on a day trip to Ithaca and I was so excited to try Moosewood! My boyfriend and I got the same dish and we loved every bite! We both had a vegetarian jambalaya and I also had a lavender lemonade. I think I loved my drink as much as my dinner! Everything was flavorful and fresh and our server was really fun to talk to which just made our whole evening better. We will definitely be back on our next trip to Ithaca! read more

In Ithaca checking out colleges with my vegetarian son, so we had check out Moosewood. We definitely were not disappointed. It was a perfect night for dinner on the patio. The service was awesome...well timed and attentive without being overly so. We all enjoyed the food. We started with the fresh guacamole and the cheese appetizers. Delish. For our meals, my daughter gave the honey dijon salmon 2 thumbs up; my son gave the tofu walnut burger his stamp of approval; the hubby enjoyed the spicy tofu stir fry but would have preferred it spicier and my kale-olive pesto pasta with tomatoes was pretty darn tasty. I had to add a little salt, but that's way better than the alternative! Also, the Finger Lakes wine selection was nice and the hub enjoyed his beer flight. Go there for some yummy, fresh food with lots of wonderful vegetarian options! read more

Even as a Canadian growing up in the Maritime provinces, I had heard of the Moosewood, although to be honest, I thought it was just a cookbook and not an actual restaurant lol My wife knew that it was a restaurant and thanks (again) to the Yelp app we discovered it quickly and found it to be a great lunch spot when we arrived hungry in Ithaca. The only bad news about the Moosewood is that they have a daily hiatus between 3:00 and 5:30 when they switch over from the lunch menu to the dinner menu. We arrived a little after 3:00 and, disappointed that we were too late for lunch and too early for dinner, had to settle for much more limited bar menu (we actually had to sit in the bar area, the dining area was closed). Despite our initial disappointment that we had arrived during their downtime, we were happy with our choices from the bar menu. We figured our best bet was to get a soup and salad then share. The creamy, savoury potato and gruyere soup with fresh baked bread hit all the right notes. It was rich, bursting with hearty new potato flavour and sharp gruyere like you would enjoy in a good fondue. The fresh baked bread was warm and inviting, with fresh butter. I was unsure whether the soup would be substantial enough on its own, so I helped myself to the great salad. The house salad was brimming with fresh, crisp veggies and lettuce. I can't say enough about the miso ginger dressing (the bartender recommended it, good call) - it was zesty, silky and the perfect compliment to the freshness of the salad. The perfect complement to the soup. A fair trade iced latte (with organic cane syrup) with our lunch was perfect as well. Prices seemed reasonable for what we ordered. On our way out we picked up a Moosewood draft glass and a fridge magnet lol We love being tourists when we are on the road! We will definitely make another visit to Ithaca and time it so that we can enjoy either the full lunch or dinner menu. Enjoy it if you go! read more

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I haven't been to the Moosewood Restaurant in years. We lucked out, when we arrived they had a small table for two and could fit us in right then. I'd recommend making a reservation though. The food was as great as I'd remembered too. We had everything prepared vegan style and shared the Mediterranean salad with sides of the Ginger Miso and the Lemon Tahini dressings. We also ordered the Eggplant Marsala and the Thai Cashew Curry. We even shared a bottle of Ithaca Ginger Beer, which was terrific! We finished off dinner with a slice of the decadent vegan Chocolate Cake and Earl Gray tea. Everything was delicious and served promptly, even for a busy Friday night. If you're a vegetarian or vegan, the Moosewood should be on your list of restaurants to visit in Ithaca. read more

My wife made me go as a pilgrimage since we've been vegans back when Moosewood was one of the only vegetarian cookbooks around. It was much bigger of a restaurant than I expected which was very cool and the service was good. It's in an old school "mall" developed from an old high school, so it's appropriately funky. I forgot, though that while vegetarian innovators Moosewood was NOT known for their vegan options and that was completely true when I went. They had 2-3 entrees that could be vegan most of them involved eggplant though, so that was a hard no from me. I, literally, settled on the only other option, a sweet potato and beans wrap. It was tasty and filling and included a simple vinegary cabbage slaw. BUT it was supremely underwhelming. Like, real basic overall. My punk rock friend, Brandon made a much more delicious vegan meal at his house the next night for me and he's not a chef or anything. The chocolate cake was moist and tasty but also basic. So, go to Moosewood with low expectations and they will probably be met, moreso if you are an omnivore or especially cheese-loving. read more

I'm kind of surprised by the poor reviews on here, but maybe I've lucked out in my experiences. My family and I went to Moosewood when I first moved to Syracuse a few years ago, and last week my friend and I (both vegetarian) trekked down in a rainstorm for dinner. Everything was excellent. I got the Macedonian ratatouille, a lavender-lemoncello lemonade, and the cheesecake with apricots. I loved the ratatouille and was impressed with the cocktail (I find a lot of drinks like this are too weak/sweet). I was interested in trying one of the vegan desserts but couldn't pass up a cheesecake with an oat/pecan crust, which was waaaay better than a soggy graham cracker crust. I was also impressed that two meals, two cocktails, and two desserts came out to $60. It was definitely worth the trip. I'm also a fan of the cookbooks, although maybe that's not super relevant. read more

Moosewood Restaurant - Macedonian ratatouille + lavender-lemoncello lemonade - New American Near Me - Ithaca, New York

Maybe I'm just spoiled by the abundance of vegetarian/vegan options in NYC, but I felt my experience at Moosewood was subpar. The red pepper bisque starter and blackberry ricotta cake were the highlights of the meal, and they were mediocre at best (well the cake was pretty good, but it also came with mounds of whipped cream). For mains, we had the vegetarian feijoada (I'm sorry, but this is a blasphemy. Don't try to "vegetarianize" a traditionally meat-based dish; the only things this and a normal feijoada had in common were the beans) and egg bake, which was basically a quiche that had brussels sprouts, potatoes, and cheese. Both were disappointing and tasted like something I could've made at home. read more

Moosewood Restaurant - Blackberry ricotta cake - New American Near Me - Ithaca, New York

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I was a little nervous after reading some of the reviews, but we had a great experience! Our pastas were delicious, as was my cocktail, and service was great! A little bit of a wait for the food, but good food takes time. read more

My wife and I visited Moosewood on our honeymoon - and it was also a great stop to pick up cookbooks, etc. for our families - both of which are fans of the place. The folks working there were all very nice, definitely a laid back atmosphere and not too fancy so wearing jeans and a t-shirt is no problem if you're feelig casual. Our server was very friendly, but service in general seemed a bit of a free for all, perhaps they tip share? Anyhow, the wine was good, and the food was very good as well - not phenomenal, but very good and worth taking home the leftovers. We'd been told that the food quality and selection will vary slightly due to the fact that the place is chef owned - a whole bunch of chefs actually (not sure of the actual #, something like a dozen or so). I find this to be very cool and interesting, and the variation in the food styles and presentations keeps things interesting I'm sure. Overall a good experience and something that you almost have to do when you're in Ithaca, especially if you're a vegetarian - I don't believe there was any fish or otherwise available the night we visited. read more

Moosewood Restaurant - Moosewood at night - New American Near Me - Ithaca, New York

Came to town for a family event a few months ago. We have the cookbooks but had never eaten here before. They were able to seat our large group of 14 and the server and food were awesome. If I ever make it back up to Ithaca we will definitely be back! read more

My daughter and I tried this out last night. She got morocccan veggie dish served over coscous. It was very sweet and the coscous was very bland and dry. I got a szechuan-spicy stir fry served over quinoa with tofu. Very little sauce so very little seasoning, not very tasty. The tofu had a weird aftertaste and I shoved most of it to the side. Neither of us ate much of our entree. No comment from the catatonic waiter about the amount of food left from our respective meals. Dessert was delicious! She had cheesecake with gingered plums on the top, I found it a little tart but she loved it. I had banana cake with cream cheese icing, and while ordinary looking it was to die for tastewise. Also a very good cup of coffee. A couple of things: we both drank water with dinner, and the total was $53, which I think is a little high for such a meal. Also, I felt everyone there was a bit pretentious. The receptionist kept us standing in the lobby waiting to be seated even though the restaurant was virtually empty on a Wednesday night. We were forced to sit at a tiny, shaky table even though there were plenty of larger tables available. I even saw her have an argument with a couple that came in later because the woman insisted on a larger table. She got it. And our waiter was slow on service, acted like he may have been stoned, and frankly needed a hair net. I will probably be forced to go back because daughter thinks shes a vegetarian. But she can't make me look forward to it! read more

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