The Cayuga Room
6 East 44th Street (at the Cornell Club, between Madison & Park)

A good friend of mine had suggested dining at the Cornell Club last weekend, as three of my former alumni friends are all celebrating birthdays. I was not very keen on going to a club of my former university, but nevertheless, agreed -- as it was three-birthdays-in-one.

The bar downstairs seems to be chaotic with the bartender not understanding much. After moving to the dining room upstairs -- which has the feel of a hotel restaurant (this is a hotel too) -- it was strange for awhile. The place, on a Friday evening, was totally empty. And the waiter did not know some of the basic single malt scotches...bad start...

By the time everyone arrived through traffic it was running late. Nevertheless, after my oversized scotch (after they figured things out, my "double" order came as a quadruple!), we ordered. The wine list was pretty lame for a club, but doable. The food looked standard hotell-ish, but turned out to be better than most hotels.

For a starter I had the oysters amagansett, which was pretty standard. Nice presentation with the 3 shells, but the taste was pretty ordinary. The main course was the duck breast, which was done medium. It was excellent, one of the better duck breasts I've had in New York. I was rather surprised and it was a good experience.

My table shared a few desserts, but I didn't add too much to this meal. We parted soon as it was a humid and hot evening and we all had very busy Saturdays, so...

I rather not be nostalgic about my uni days, so I doubt this is a place I would go unless prodded. But it's not too bad, considering how easy it would be to get a table here...

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