Eat Out!

Recession or no recession, now's the time to eat out at fancy restaurants. Thanks to the tanking economy, NYC Restaurant Week has been extended through the end of July. (Earlier this year restaurant week was a month long.)

I do not claim to be a gastronome,* but I love restaurant week. The main reason for my appreciation is that, for the duration of this promotion, I feel as though the world of dining out becomes a level playing field. Many of the participating restaurants are normally so pretentious that I would be too intimidated to even stand outside their door and read their menus. (Most of which don't have an entree for less than $45, if the price is listed at all.)

*Ironically this was the word of the day according to the elevator in my building - consult a dictionary if you're perplexed.

While I can barely pronounce half the food items used as garnishes, I am not deterred from ordering at these establishments during restaurant week. Any Joe-Shmo can go to Opentable* and make reservations at a 5 star restaurant. (Note to male readers - this is the perfect opportunity to impress a woman by taking her on an actual ::gasp:: date.)

*Sidenote: Opentable IPO'd earlier this year, being one of a handful of companies that went public in the first half of 2009. Averaging $30 a share, it's not a bad investment**

**Follow up on sidenote: I am in no way qualified to be giving investment advice.

Anyway, I don't participate in restaurant week the way a normal (translation: classy) metropolitan would. The way it works is simple: a 3 course dinner costs $35. The catch being, this price does not include alcohol or gratuity, which poses a huge red flag. It's easy to spend at least double that on booze alone, so approach these restaurants with caution. If a regularly priced entree is no less than $45, you can bet your ass they won't serve a bottle of wine for less than $50.

Skirting this issue is quite easy in the big apple... if you have a well-laid plan:

First, browse the restaurants that interest you. (A full list is available in the link above.) Make sure that they have seating availability after 7:30pm. Make reservations at several places of varying cuisines. (As long as you are sure to call and cancel you won't get blacklisted by Opentable). I'd recommend Mexican, Asian-Fusion, and New American. Try to pick restaurants in the same vicinity.

Now the fun part....

Look up Drink Deals in the same neighborhood as your restaurants. For those of you who thought happy hour was only a Thursday night phenomenon, think again. You can find drink specials anywhere in Manhattan for any night of the week. As soon as you get out of work, go to the bar, grab a few 2-for-1 cocktails, work up an appetite, and then decide which cuisine you're in the mood for. You'll be glad you made three different reservations after you've downed 4 margaritas and are craving Mexican food like a pregnant woman. Make sure you cancel with the other two restaurants and make your merry way to dinner!

When you arrive at dinner with a buzz, fear not! The prix fix menus for restaurant week usually only have 3 or 4 options for each course. Settle in, enjoy the ambiance, order a cocktail and try your hardest to keep it together if you've already had too much to drink.

Bon appétit!