Café Boulud

Cafe Boulud had some of the best food I have had in a long time. My black bass was extraordinary, served with pureed leeks, crispy potatoes, and red wine sauce. My husband was equally enthusiastic about his duck dish and lobster ravioli. We also had two fabulous chocolate desserts.My only disappointment was that the atmosphere was, in fact, closer to a cafe than an elegant restaurant. I could not understand why the restaurant was set up, so the wait staff had to fight through the people waiting to get into the serving area.But the food was so good I would come here again.

We went to Cafe Boulud to celebrate my mommy's birthday and it was a good experience. When walking into this restaurant, in the middle is the hostess, to the left is the bar area with small tables and to the right is the main dining room. We opted for the a la carte menu rather than the pre-fixe. We were seated in the right dining room. It is a beautiful room with many tables. Hubby initially thought the tables were so close and too tight together. I was ok with the layout until we started hearing consistent coughing from two tables away from us, which made hubby very annoyed. Obviously if you are sick, please do not go to a restaurant! Number one rule! Either way, the service was very attentive and the dishes were delicately prepared. We ordered the Veloute de champignon (which is actually a deliciously thick mushroom soup), asparagus, and scallops. All of these apps were so delicious and started us on the right foot. We then ordered for our mains, the canard, baked sea bass (which came recommended by our server) and the veal milanaise. We all enjoyed the food very much. Since we were celebrating a birthday, I was hoping they would give a dessert on the house or extra chocolates, unfortunately it was only a happy birthday signage on the already ordered dessert (molten chocolate cake) and a candle. The main snafu came when our server specifically asked if there were any allergies, and my hubby is allergic to kiwi and still they served a little after dessert pastry WITH kiwi! I was astonished! For a michelin restaurant, we were surprised that they would not remember to notify the kitchen of something like this! However, overall the service was attentive, food was on point, room and restaurant was beautiful (with the exception of the consistently coughing man and kitchen's disregard for allergy).

Cafe Boulud has an air modest pretentiousness that everyone should experience a few times a year. You walk in through the front doors and immediately, you feel like you're in a Parisian cafe. We were quickly seated to our table and the staff was attentive enough. We had the QUICHE AUX LÉGUMES DE SAISON, FETTUCCINI AUX COURGETTES, HANGER STEAK, CROQUE MADAME, and CAFÉ BOULUD PANCAKES. We had no complaints with the food except for the pancakes. Everything else was prepared expertly as expected.We had to send the pancakes back because we felt it wasn't cooked right, it was very gummy. They gave us a new one which was slightly better. The outside of the pancake was fluffy but was again gummy towards the middle. It wasn't much of an issue since we were able to return the pancakes...they were accommodating.I took off 2 stars because of the inconsistent service which was disappointing and surprising for a Michelin rated restaurant. My wife wasn't asked if she'd like a coffee refill, they did not clear our tables when we were clearly finished, they did not comb our table for crumbs like they did with other patrons, and other things which should be in their "Fine Dining 101" handbook.The food in general was good. And the pancakes CAN be overlooked but the pancake failure stood out more because of service failure. Perhaps we were looked down on but that's just conjecture. It's unlikely I will come back again and for anyone who reads this, heed my experience as YMMV.

Certainly one of New York's best! If you are looking for a calm but exceptional experience this could be the place. Menu is impressive and the resultant experience is upscale and close to perfect. Try this off Park Avenue venue if you are weary of hyperbole and would like to see how a quiet but lovely experience will make you want to keep it a secret.

One of the prettiest dining rooms is the setting for an amazing 4 course meal, served by warm, welcoming staff members who effortlessly see to everything you could possibly want. Food was almost impossible to describe - as good as it gets.

Wow ! What can I say. Totally blown away by the meal I just had. Service was top notch. Started off with the sweetbread appetizer then had the short rib and steak for main. The steak was cooked perfectly. The sweetbreads are probably the best I have ever had . Didn't take many pictures was so impressed with the food. Would highly recommend . The lobster dish was also outstanding. A+++++

I used to love cafe Boulud a lot before COVID - for their amazing viennoiserie at Brunch and thoughtful touch to classic French dishes generally.So I was excited to come here for brunch after they reopened. I was very disappointed by the small portion and mediocre flavor of each dish. You could get better food with bigger portion at most brunch restaurants in NYC. The ambience was noisy, tables so close to each other that I could hear everything that the other tables were talking about... I remember pre-COVID, even when the restaurant was full I could still enjoy some quiet moments at my table. Only good thing left is probably the service.Will not come back.

I am a huge Daniel Boulud fan so I was very excited to try cafe Boulud in UES when it opened in late dec/ early Jan. We secured a late brunch reservation on a rainy Sunday. The interior is elegant with fun pops of color so as to make it approachable and family friendly despite feeling like fine dining. Overall, the food was relatively delicious. I can say though that being a brand new restaurant they are still working out the kinks in service. Apps: the mushroom veloute was savory and delicious. The pomegranate hamachi crudo was a fun take on a super common app item that seems to be trending in 2023/2024. I appreciated the attempt at a change of pace. I was informed that the chicory salad had extremely nice flavors. Entrees: I like to aim for a sweet and savory option at brunch if I can. I split the pancakes and the carbonara with my brunch mate and I absolutely loved the combo. Make sure to top your pancake bite with the caramelized bananas or the blueberries (I didn't love the ricotta topping). Desserts: I loved the tart tatin! The apples were 95% of the desert with only a light layer of a flaky pastry base. My dining mates also enjoyed their deserts. Overall I would like to return for the dinner service in a few months. At times we were waiting then we were rushed and the servers seemed to be struggling with some info on the menu when our table asked a few questions. As they close for 1-2 hours before dinner, as a lot of restaurants do, we struggled to find service to close us out etc. All to be expected as it gets up and running. The only other thing I found odd personally is the juxtaposition of the fine dining spect meets family friendly. It does seem like the place many UES families might come for a family brunch, which I would keep in mind if I were looking for an adults only brunch.

All I need is champagne and fromage . In a beautiful room with superb & friendly attendants

Was looking forward to an extravagant birthday dinner here at Cafe Boulud, but extremely disappointed with the entire experience. The service was absolutely horrible. Servers and bus staff seem to come and adjust things on the table every few minutes but do not refill drinks other than water and are very inattentive. I would highly recommend not visiting this restaurant despite what good reviews you may hear, they are likely out of date with the actual service and environment of the restaurant. Some of the staff seemed friendly, but overall the service was extremely slow. As a family who has worked in the food service industry for years, we can be understanding of situations which may take time to resolve in this industry, however the lack of service was blatant and ultimately frustrating. The food not nearly good enough to make up for sub par service.