Oceana Restaurant   

We had lunch this afternoon at the restaurant and were surprisingly disappointed as previous visits were flawless. The welcome was somewhat brusque, and the meal was only fair. I thought part of the purpose of "restaurant week" was to introduce new people to your establishment. The lunch was certainly spare, but, in addition, not that interesting. We had the sahimi, boring, the bass, also boring, and the pineapple mousse, so-so. There were only 2 choices as you had run out of swordfish. I also thought asking for the dessert choice at the same time as the rest of the meal was very unclassy.

I came to Oceana with my parents and my boyfriend for a nice pre-theatre dinner. To be honest, the show was supposed to be the highlight of the evening, however, all we talked about for the rest of the night was how great the meal was. We arrived slightly late due to traffic. We had called ahead and the girl on the phone was very pleasant, assuring us that it would be "no problem" and we would still be able to have a lovely meal and get to the theatre on time. We were seated promptly by a very warm and friendly host who also assured us that he would personally guarantee we would get to the show. Our waiter, Ben, was superb. He recommended several wines and helped us to choose a Portugese wine we had never heard of that was wonderful. The head waiter, Rashid was equally attentive, describing in detail every menu item and answering all our questions. I had chestnut and lobster soup for appetizer and snapper for entree. Both were wonderful. The best was the grapefruit cake for dessert WOW! We never felt rushed or hurried and we were out by 7:30pm just as the host promised.

This is perhaps the finest restaurant in New York! I had dinner there this week...twice! And have never eaten better. The menu has changed a little for the season: sumptuous Diver scallops wrapped around an ingenious jelly of either basil or tomato...so summer! The tuna tartare is so different here, too! Frozen horseradish on top of diced perfect tuna mixed with diced balsamic vinegar jelly...genius! Main courses too - espresso coated halibut (I read about it in New York magazine, which made me come in!)! Desserts are TO DIE for! Again, best in New York! The most different creme brulee ever, in a pastry crust, with layers of custard and a surprise huckleberry syrup inside! I took notes, which is why I remember so much. We had superb wines, exemplary service...this is my new, most favorite restaurant ever! Thanks, Oceana. I'll be back.