Address: | 75 9th Ave, New York, NY 10011, USA |
Phone: | +1 212-989-6699 |
Site: | buddakannyc.com |
Rating: | 4.4 |
Working: | 5PM–12AM 5:30–11PM 5:30PM–12AM 5:30PM–12AM 5PM–1AM 5PM–1AM 5–11PM |
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Ken Cohen
I need to preface this review with first letting everyone know that I have not actually been to this restaurant. This review is based on an experience my wife had at Buddakan after dining there with a large group and it points out the lack of knowledge of the staff rather than quality of food. My wife is allergic to mushrooms. She is very good at notifying the servers of this allergy when we go out to dinner, particularly if we are in a "shared plate" setting. In this case, she immediately notified the server of her mushroom allergy before being served. They pointed to 2 different types of spring rolls on the menu and told her she could eat one type, but not the other. Another member of the staff came out later on and told her the same thing. They specifically told her it was safe to eat the spring rolls she had in front of her. So she ate them. After she had already eaten one, a third member of the staff came out and said "Are you the one with the mushroom allergy, because you cannot eat that they are made with mushroom truffle oil" At this point it was obviously way too late. My wife wound up paying for a meal that ruined her entire night. She chipped in for her part of the bill and had to go back to her hotel room while everyone else enjoyed a night out for a bachelorette party. On the bright side, ingesting the mushrooms only caused her to projectile vomit all night and she did not have to be rushed to the hospital. The ignorance of the staff at Buddakan is inexcusable. Not one, but 2 members of the staff assured her that the food was not made with mushrooms. She spent a lot of money on a meal that made her sick and ruined the rest of her night. She contacted the restaurant and explained the situation. Michele E. got back to her and told her she would call her to discuss the situation. That was on March 28th. Today is April 7th and nobody has called back. They obviously do not care about the fact that they could have killed her. At the very least we would like to have our money refunded to us which is something they should have offered to do immediately. Instead they chose to ignore her. So here I am on Google voicing my concerns. Think twice about eating here, particularly if you have a food allergy because the staff has no idea what ingredients go into their food. It makes me wonder how many vegetarians have unknowingly ingested meat in this establishment after being told the food did not have meat in it. They could very easily kill someone with a peanut allergy as well. The outcome of this situation could have been a lot worse, and very well can be for someone else in the future who is not so lucky. Complete and total FAIL.
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Daniel Wagner
We came to NYC for my brother-in-laws birthday and this was our one big dinner for him. If you are willing to spend a lot on dinner and you love Asian food, you wont be disappointed. I recommend wearing something nice. I was in khakis and a button up with no tie and I felt just a little under dressed. This is a nice place. When you first walk into the dark entrance youll see the host stand with a coat check just behind it. Then theres a lounge area with a fully stocked bar for pre-dinner drinks while you wait(and there will be a wait)! Like I said ... This is a nice place. The service was great... almost too great. The hostess was leading us to our table in a very proper, almost robotic fashion. At one point she slowed down at a doorway to her left and looked like she was going to turn for not more than a half a second and then realized she needed to keep going strait. She turned to me, did a quick half-bow gesture and said "My apologies." without making eye contact. I still think she may have been a robot. If she was, in fact, a robot then kudos to Buddakan for a very life-like hostess robot! They do a family style dining. This was new to all four of us but if I understand it correctly, this is how it goes: Appetizer Order one per two people Rice Order one per two people Main dish Order one per each person Dessert One per two people Even though each person orders a main dish, everyone shares it. They will put an empty plate in front of each person and then they present the first persons main dish. Once everyone shares that dish and its finished, theyll present the second dish and so on. I mention this because we didnt fully understand this and ended up getting two of the same main dish. The food was pretty spectacular! One of our dishes was the filet and it was perfectly cooked and had that melt-in-your-mouth quality that all good filets have. The black dragon chicken was very flavorful and very juicy. If you have a special occasion and dont mind throwing down a couple hundred dollars (our total bill for 4 people was in the $300 range) then you should definitely try this!
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Jeffrey Liu
Buddakan NYC 75 9th Ave New York, NY 10011 b/t Avenue Of The Americas & 5th Ave Meatpacking District, Chelsea My friend picked the spot, since they were from out of town. Glad they got a reservation. On a Sunday night we were looking at 45min-1hr for a table. They offered bar seating but at this kind of place you didnt want to be at the bar. Its nice and we wanted to enjoy our meal in a comfortable seating area. The noise level is pretty loud, but manageable just dont sit at the end or you wont be able hear everyone at the table. Waiters were very polite and accommodating. They suggested good choices for us. We got the short rib dumplings, short rib scallion pancake, lobster egg rolls, wild mushroom chowfun, grilled whole seabass. I have to say this was a fancy spot, and pricey, we did 4 dishes amount 4 people which was just right with some wine. Came out to 50 a head roughly before tip. I have to say the flavoring of food was satisfying. Some of the dishes I felt I knew how they would taste surprised me. It was packed with different fragrances and flavors. The sea bass I felt like I could still taste the Smoked Apple grill on my tongue still. We didnt stop and also got dessert! Dessert as Coconut Mousse mango creme, thai basil, puffed rice Maple Bread Pudding maple creme caramel, peanut ice cream Chocolate Pistachio Cremos cherries, cocoa nibs, pistachio ice cream Everything was really on point, I wish I had more room to eat it all, but had to spot eating after reaching beyond full. Worth a try, the decor is beautiful, maybe a little confusing to navigate once downstairs and trying to find the bathrooms. Dont expect it to be quiet, but enjoy a good time. The time at the restaurant was a bit slower paced, but enjoyable with good company and conversation. As always check the pictures and my instagram @Jliueats / LcrazyaznL
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Mathieu Farina
We went there for the 30th birthday of my girlfriend and we really liked it. As you are about to spend quite a lot of money here, this is our full detailed review. Food: a-maz-ing asian food, modern and really tasty. We went for the Dumpling tasting for 2 as starter which was great. Then we shared the scallops with chorizo and mushroom and the lobster rice as a side. Go for the scallops but forget about the rice, nothing really interesting. For dessert: Three chocolate cake and cremosso pistachio were both awesome. Place: kind of noisy-dark-trendy place in an asian-like decor. We like that kind of places but it might be a problem for some of you. Price: we spent around $200 for our meal and a bottle of wine. I think the experience is worth the price. Service: hopefully Kristy was in charge of our table! She has been amazing from A to Z. She was very helpful in the selection of the menu, giving us time to chose and tips on the desserts. Thank you Kristy ! "hopefully" because the people in charge of bringing the dishes didnt care about us at all, explaining the dishes was just a pain for them, they gave me the birthday cake of my girlfriend without asking or reading the name on the plate... Service unworthy of the place. Still a very good experience in a modern asian restaurant: 4 stars for us.