Reviews
Four places to powerlunch right now.
YOU WON'T LIKELY catch Bruno Wall standing in line at Ask for Luigi or Nat Bosa accepting a 5:45 Tuesday reservation for Kissa Tanto because that’s all that’s available. The powerful have a different set of requirements when selecting their restaurants: service, discretion, convenience and, yes, good food. Want to make like a mogul for your next lunch meeting? Here’s a cheat sheet on how to close the big (dining) deal.
HY’S
THE PROSPECTUS As beautifully old-school as it gets: dim light, cold cocktails (even at lunch) and red meat. Where Don Draper would celebrate the Mccann merger. POWER PATRON Jimmy Pattison OFF-THE-MENU DISH A custom-cut—go big or go home—dry-aged rib steak. POWER TABLE The private room to the right as you walk in has seen a lifetime of over-the-top celebration dinners. CLOSING-THE-DEAL BOTTLE Harlan Cabernet Napa Valley 2012 for $3,000.
GIARDINO
THE PROSPECTUS The classic yellow house has been replaced with a blend of modern and classical Italian just a few doors away, but Umberto Menghi still has a Rolodex of power that any other restaurateur would kill for, plus a swank new contemporary room to boot. POWER PATRONS Peter Brown, Frank Giustra OFF-THE-MENU DISH Venetian calf’s liver; Alba truffles on risotto in season (Oct. to Nov.). POWER TABLE In the summer, it’s the round one on the patio; in the winter, the tables under the Venetian light. CLOSING-THE-DEAL BOTTLE How does a magnum of 1976 Taittinger sound, hotshot? $980.