Bull & Bear Steakhouse
301 Park Avenue (at 49th Street; at the Waldorf-Astoria)

I had planned to meet a friend for a later-than-usual dinner at the usually-trustworthy steakhouse at the Waldorf-Astoria because of my previous positive experiences there. Before I moved to New York, I often stayed at the Waldorf and enjoyed the fare at Bull & Bear. I was not prepared for last night's experience.

First of all, due to some pipe issue, one of the other restaurants in the hotel was closed -- making Bull & Bear more busy than it should be. It was borderline chaotic. After being seated, it took the staff more than 10 minutes to get my drink order (while I waited for my friend). And took another 10 minutes to get a wine list after the menu was delivered. This was a bad start...

I had wanted to enjoy a nice prime rib -- it being one of the specialties of the house. I was shocked when they told me they ran out of prime rib and a few other dishes...huh? It's 8pm! Goodness... I ended up with a ribeye and we shared asparagus and spinach. I didn't dare for a raw starter seeing how chaotic things were...

The steak itself was fine, though overcooked. The food was nice enough, but the service was horrible and slow. There seems to be complete chaos in the restaurant that evening and it was out of everyone's control. And I noticed that they bumped all the prices up significantly and nothing was under $40 anymore (well, with the types of bonuses that people got in December, I'm not surprised...ugh...).

The place boasts a nice environment and is a solid steakhouse; the design is nice and relaxing, and the table lambs are not burdened by power chords (see my review of La Grenouille to see what I mean). But on this night, it was just too chaotic, and that was very disappointing that a hotel restaurant can't cope with the situation.

Food: B+
Atmosphere: B
For Lone Diners: C+ (*)