MsDiPesto Posted October 18, 2012 Posted October 18, 2012 In what is currently Gilt in the New York Palace Hotel, once occupied by Le Cirque (Madison Ave & 50th). There are to be three distinct sections; a formal dining room, a bar, and a bistro. Read about it here.
Gary Tanigawa Posted June 25, 2013 Posted June 25, 2013 Michel Richard Set to Open a New York Restaurant and Bakery: "Pomme Palais, the pastry shop, is scheduled to open in August. About a month later, Villard Michel Richard with its two dining rooms will be ready."
dcs Posted September 4, 2013 Posted September 4, 2013 There is a brief profile of Michel Richard in NYC in today's NY Times.
cheezepowder Posted October 10, 2013 Posted October 10, 2013 (edited) Huh. The menu for Villard seems like it's along the lines of Central (as opposed to Citronelle), but the prices are higher for similar sounding items. Lobster burger at Villard is $34 (versus Central at $30 according to this menu), Villard burger is $26 (versus $18), tuna burger is $27 (versus $21), fried chicken is $28 (versus $24). I wonder how the dishes are different between the two places. Source: New York Times Dining & Wine Michel Richard's new venture, set in three landmark rooms, will serve lobster pasta, and more restaurant openings. Read full article >> [This is exactly how I'm hoping to use the news feeds to everyone's benefit: Cheezepowder saw one that interested her, replied in the newsfeed forum, I saw her reply, and then moved it into the correct thread. Please feel free to comment on these news feeds as much as you'd like - they're good fodder for discussion. Don't worry about organization, or your replies getting lost in that forum - it's my responsibility to find them and put them in the right thread.] Edited October 10, 2013 by DonRocks
DonRocks Posted October 10, 2013 Posted October 10, 2013 People don't remember what Citronelle was like fifteen years ago. It was *nothing* like it was before it closed. Michel Richard completely changed his signature, every bit as much as an artist abandoning oil painting and switching over entirely to sculpture - in its waning years, Citronelle (especially the lounge menu) essentially became a proving ground for what was to become Central. In the 1990s, Michel was on the line, saucing (full reductions), expediting, and being in full command of what was a contemporary, but not ground-breaking contemporary, menu; people now only remember this tiny, late, ten-year slice of his career, but this is nothing more than a "late artistic period." I think it's somewhat sad that this ("this" being the visual whimsy that everyone knows him for) is the only thing he'll be remembered for because his career, taken in its entirety, was so, so much more. One thing's for sure: it pays the bills for him. 1
Guest rssFood Posted October 22, 2013 Posted October 22, 2013 Source: Grub Street New York Yep, a glass wine cube’s the centerpiece. Famed D.C.-based chef Michel Richard has returned to New York after 40 years, and this is one serious comeback. He’s overseeing three concepts inside the New York Palace hotel: the Bistro (110 seats), the Gallery (a 50-seat fine-dining area), and the Pomme Palais bakery. Jeffrey Beers designed the space, which includes extravagant elements like an art installation that will reveal portraits of Richard and Henry Villard, a glass wine cube in the center of the dining room, and photographs of classic movie stars in gold-leaf frames. (Could this be the most expensive ... Read full article >>
Joe H Posted January 13, 2014 Posted January 13, 2014 Source: Grub Street New York Villard Michel Richard New York's restaurant world is full of perpetually doomed "death zones," where the dreams of even the most diligent and talented chefs go to die. Usually, these cursed black-hole regions are located on marginal side streets, or in fusty, feng shui-challenged rooms, but sometimes the opposite is true. Take the famously ornate apartments of the old tycoon and journalist Henry Villard in the beautifully situated midtown Madison Avenue palazzo that bears his name. Sirio Maccioni used the Gilded Age McKim, Mead & White space as the setting for his elaborate ... Read full article >> Breathtaking verbiage from the New York Magazine review (two stars out of five): "Similar old-world treats are available in the 50-seat Gallery tasting room, although you may feel, as I did while dining alone one wintry evening, like you're the only passenger onboard an ancient ocean liner embarking from Nice, say, on one last cruise across the chilly Atlantic. The room was mostly deserted on my visits."
hungry prof Posted January 14, 2014 Posted January 14, 2014 Pete Wells for the New York Times: Ouch. "If soldiers had killed Escoffier's family in front of him and then forced him to make dinner, this [i.e., the veal cheek blanquette] is what he would have cooked," says Wells. Toward the end, Wells has an interesting comparison with Central. Wells was so confused after his "awful" meals at Villard MR that he felt compelled to visit DC and figure out whether Richard's reputation was wholly unjustified. Turns out Central was much better than what's being offered in New York.
Mark Dedrick Posted January 15, 2014 Posted January 15, 2014 He really hated his meals there. Wow. "The strangest thing about my dinner at Central was the fried chicken. It looked like the one at Villard, but it was terrific. The difference between them was like the difference between winning a medal for figure skating and falling through the ice."
lackadaisi Posted January 15, 2014 Posted January 15, 2014 I think this is the most disparaging review I've ever read. Quite the read!
MsDiPesto Posted January 15, 2014 Posted January 15, 2014 I read the NYT article as well. I do feel kinda smug in knowing that we in the DC area have a better (and less expensive) interpretation of Richard's craft than those on Manhattan Island. I can't stand that fusty dining room in the Villard, and the wine cube is so incongruous in that setting, I can't imagine what they were thinking.
hungry prof Posted January 15, 2014 Posted January 15, 2014 I think this is the most disparaging review I've ever read. Quite the read! I think I'll still take Wells' review of Guy Fieri's place over this one, but they're both jaw-dropping reviews. Wells has a gift for the takedown. . . 2
DonRocks Posted January 16, 2014 Posted January 16, 2014 My friends, if you knew how much Michel Richard was making per year from this contract, you would know he's crying all the way to the bank.
DonRocks Posted January 17, 2014 Posted January 17, 2014 I would like to cry today. How much? It's not for me to say the exact amount, but the figure I heard (from a reliable source) is enough so that it's worth any and all criticism he has to endure.
Waitman Posted January 17, 2014 Posted January 17, 2014 When i read the reiview, I was struck by the fact that I find a lot of the dishes mentioned pretty mediocre in the Washington location -- I'm looking at you, chicken nuggets and faux gras!
DonRocks Posted January 17, 2014 Posted January 17, 2014 When i read the reiview, I was struck by the fact that I find a lot of the dishes mentioned pretty mediocre in the Washington location -- I'm looking at you, chicken nuggets and faux gras! I have yet to finish more than a few bites of the faux gras. It's a cute name, but that's about as far as I can go.
DonRocks Posted May 30, 2014 Posted May 30, 2014 Source: Grub Street New York Michel Richard. The Gallery, the smaller of Michel Richard's restaurants at the Palace, has closed its wood-paneled doors for the season. In its place, the restaurant's website notes, is "the Courtyard at Villard," which is dedicated to "light fare and drinks" served outdoors. Over at Eater, Ryan Sutton points to a recent promotion of OpenTable bonus points and a free Dom Perignon giveaway to four-tops as a possible sign of distress behind the scenes. The opulent restaurants, which take cues from Richard's places in D.C., opened last October, with an abundance of fine china and haute fried chicken. ... Read full article >> A Logical Argument: Michel Richard's Gallery at NY Palace Hotel is closing for the summer season. The summer season is season #1 out of an infinite set of upcoming seasons. Therefore, we cannot infer what will happen to Gallery in future seasons. Cough, cough.
Keithstg Posted June 23, 2014 Posted June 23, 2014 I sat across from Chef Richard on the Acela last Thursday - had no idea that he was on Amtrak's "culinary team". At any rate, I would have preferred anything from the Gallery to the Jerk Chicken and cilantro rice I was served...
Keithstg Posted July 7, 2014 Posted July 7, 2014 Looks like Villard is also done now as well. Time will tell how the concepts are re-imagined, but it had to have been very difficult to execute a Central or Citronelle-esque menu in the Palace's operating environment.
DonRocks Posted February 17, 2015 Posted February 17, 2015 Looks like Villard is also done now as well. Time will tell how the concepts are re-imagined, but it had to have been very difficult to execute a Central or Citronelle-esque menu in the Palace's operating environment. Although Villard was never announced as closed, the New York Palace Hotel's website no longer lists it among their dining options. Pomme Palais, however, is still listed, has its own website, and remains attributed to Michel Richard.
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