Sascha: Mediocrity Be Thy Name
I’ve posted this review to Citysearch, but they initially rejected it because I described the restaurant’s staff as acting so stiff that they might have had poles up their you-know-whats. Apparently, that was too explicit for the Edwardian keepers of Citysearch. Here’s the review, in case they decide not to publish even the toned-down version:
Sascha
55 Gansevoort St
New York, NY 10014
SERVICE: stuffy and weird. The front desk sends you to a hostess who sends you to a waiter, etc. Everyone acts like central casting version of Edwardian butlers: cold and condescending. AND YET, for all this pretense, there’s no tablecloth and I noticed that the silver (plated silver, I suppose) was peeling off the coffee urn! And this was but a few weeks after the opening!
WINE LIST: how about 1 or 2 bottles or glasses priced for someone who doesn’t want to spend $60? Most good restaurants have at least one $25 bottle. Not here. The only cheap bottle on the menu is a half-bottle.
FOOD: completely mediocre. The bread is great, but it’s not enough to carry the rest of the meal. The main courses are surprisingly bland given owner Sascha Lyon’s reputation. The ribs are fatty and tough, the pasta dish I had was covered in far too much mozarella (it had to be taken off and cut up into pieces, and cutting it was like cutting a steak) and the dish was pretty tasteless. The deserts are overdone (too rich, too thick…they dull the palate) and lack subtlety.
For the quality, everything is overpriced. Close your eyes and pay attention to your tongue, and clearly we’re talking Applebys, folks.
