Yahoo Finance Elite Eats: The Restaurants Where Only Millionaires Reserve Tables
Hard-to-snag reservations have become a hot topic among the media lately. The New Yorker, Grub Street, The Infatuation, Esquire, Gothamist, The Wall Street Journal, and more have weighed in on why getting a table seems so particularly challenging these days. As Esquire put it, snagging a seat feels like a game of “luck, impeccable timing, patience, persistence, or finding a loophole.” Thanks to the rise of sites like Appointment Trader, it can feel like humans and bots are in hand-to-hand combat over reservations on apps like OpenTable and Resy. In seconds, they battle it out for tables at spots like Tatiana — a Gothamist reporter spent a month trying and failing to get a table there.
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The high-pressure environment means that these days getting a plate of spicy rigatoni vodka at Carbone, creamed spinach at 4 Charles Prime Rib, or a Don Angie lasagna is an event worthy of an Instagram post. While those reservations are incredibly hard to get, they may not be the toughest tables in the city at all.
Tasting Table took a look at some of the most exclusive restaurants in New York. It’s an impressive list of private clubs, members-only dining rooms, and restaurants atop apartment buildings on the city’s Billionaire’s Row that even the most well-heeled customers may find hard to snag.
Rao’s
The list kicks off with Rao’s, the nearly 130-year old East Harlem Italian restaurant that is the white whale of New York reservations for many food lovers. It’s next to impossible to get into Rao’s — partially because it only has 10 or so tables, but also because those tables are mostly reserved for guests who have “table rights” for life. Folks can grab a seat at the bar and hope a regular invites them to join them at the table. However, they may have better luck getting a reservation at outposts in Los Angeles or Miami (or just grabbing a bottle of Rao’s sauce at the grocery store and making their famed pasta at home).
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10 Cubed
Central Park Tower is the tallest residential building in the world, but it still has to compete with its neighbors on New York’s Billionaires’ Row (a.k.a. Central Park South). To make its mark, the building has carved out space on the 100th floor for the world’s highest private residential club: 10 Cubed, which includes a grand ballroom, cigar lounge, bar and restaurant. There, residents enjoy not only 360-degree city views of the city, but menus created by Michelin-starred chefs Alfred Portale, Laurent Tourondel and Gabriel Kreuther. The chefs are tasked with creating rotating seasonal menus and custom dishes. All you have to do to try the dishes is move into the building (or convince a friend to do so).
Doubles Club
Tucked inside the Sherry-Netherlander hotel, the Doubles Club traces its roots back to “a marvelous Russian called Serge Obelensky and an Englishman called Cecil Beaton” who turned the hotel’s basement into a hot spot. Now, the old New York spot offers events like “Jeans and Jackets Summer Buffet,” clam bakes and junior mixers. To dine there these days requires a membership, and they aren’t just give out to anyone — membership requires sponsorship by another member as well as an interview. While prices aren’t given out on the website, according to Tasting Table, “As of 2015, it could apparently cost up to $8,250” to join up.
220 Central Park South
Building amenities don’t get more luxe than this: 220 Central Park South invited world-famous chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten to open a 54-seat residents-only restaurant in its hallowed halls. It’s a secretive spot, but reservations are reportedly available on Resy, however you’ll need a lot of luck finding one.
The Core Club
To gain access to the restaurants tucked inside the building on 56th and Fifth Avenue, you either need to be a member of The Core Club or be invited by one. It reportedly costs up to $100,000 a year to join, but once in, guests can enjoy its plush interiors and culinary offerings from chef Michele Brogioni of Armani Ristorante fame. There are in fact three restaurants to choose from: 555, a rooftop restaurant; Leo’s Speakeasy; and The Culinary Lab, a 17-seat space where diners can try the wares of a rotating cast of guest chefs from Michelin-starred restaurants.
Tiro A Segno
Buried in the maze of Greenwich Village, New York’s Tiro A Segno is the nation’s oldest Italian heritage organization — and home to a members-only restaurant. If you do manage to snag a reservation, be aware that there is a strict dress code for men and women and “sneakers, deck shoes, casual sport shoes and jeans, are never considered appropriate dress attire.” There’s also a gun range, per The New York Post. To try either the food or the firing range, would-be members would need to make it through the vetting process and, according to The New York Post, pony up around $5,000 a year.
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This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: Elite Eats: The Restaurants Where Only Millionaires Reserve Tables
