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(please click on the images below
to see a bigger version of them).
So, I was looking forward to a relaxing Saturday, when I got
a call from Rachel. "The Russian Tea Room is closing...tomorrow!
We have to go before they close forever!" Since we'd talked
about going, I felt it my "duty" to pull it together
and head on in. She called a few friends, and ended up getting
her friend Dean to join in. Since I live in Central NJ, It'd
take me an hour or so to get in, once I was ready to leave. No
biggie, but I was fighting off some sort of cold.
Anyhow, on the way, I got a call from her and she indicated
that she couldn't get anyone on the phone, so our best bet would
be to go there and hope for the best. I picked up Dean, and then
Rachel, and off we went. The Russian Tea Room is literally right next door to Carnagie
Hall (and we all know how to get there ;-) Luck was on our side
- we got there just in time, because they wouldn't take evening
reservations, and we got THE LAST brunch reservation for Saturday.
I'd never been, and let me tell you, the place alone was worth
the visit. We were seated on the ground floor, andthere are several
other floors to see. More on this later.
Since Dean and I had never been there, we let Rachel order
for us. She picked a good variety of items from the menu. From
what I remember, there were Blinis (pancakes with Sour Cream
and a small spoonful of caviar), Oysters, Smoked Salmon, something
else that consisted of a set of thin pancake layers with eggs
and salmon inside, an interesting broth with some beef and veal
dumplings (Pulima, I think), a warm borscht that really impressed
me, and a very pleasant Chicken Kiev. Of course, I've forgotten
to mention the martinis, all of which were quite nice, although
I had a preference for their pineapple martini (what can I say,
I have a big sweet tooth ;-). I think I remembered everything
that we had for brunch, and then there was dinner...
Our waiter was very good, and also very fortunate. His last
job was working at Windows on the World, which, and you might
know, was in the World Trade Center. He was not working on that
that day. Interesting guy, and he came from Bangladesh. He rolled
the blinis for us, cut the Chicken Kiev for us so we wouldn't
get squirted, and generally talked up a storm about the place.
Rachel's original intent was for us to go for dinner, but
we took what we could get. We took our time at Lunch, and easily
extended our stay until the 5PM dinner seating. Our waiter was
ending his shift, so he had to close out the bill before he left.
He was a pretty damn good, and Rachel, who was treating Dean
and me, tipped him heavily. He was a pretty damn good, and Rachel,
who was treating Dean and me, tipped him heavily.
Fortunately, they weren't in any rush to kick us out. Our
waiter passed us off to the next waiter, and Rachel ordered what
she had wanted for us in the first place - A Taste of Russia
(I think that's what it's called on the menu), which is a sampler
of many different things, none of which I can remember. The unfortunate
part was that the food was rather rich, and I could not eat anything
else. Rachel and Dean took a crack at it, but we ended up having
them wrap it up for us for later. At one point, the chef strolled
through, and we gave him our compliments. The meal was incredibly
good. I'm still thinking of those dumplings. Mmmm-mmm-mmmmm.
The booths we were
in were made of this supersoft red leather. Quite pleasant to
sit in. My position in the booth was such that I faced the bar.
There were a lot of people there, ones who couldn't get a table,
but had to be there for one last day. It was funny, because as
we were eating, several couples at the end of the bar were eyeing
our table with these sad looks on their faces. The good news
is that some of them got to order food at the bar, and a lot
of trays were delivered there over the several hours we were
there.
All the while, Rachel is asking if we can go upstairs. From
what I've seen and heard, the upstairs dining rooms are lavish
above and beyond anything else out there. Try as she might, we
were unable to get permission. The manager came by to see if
everything was alright, and we said yes. We also asked him if
we could even just sneak a peek upstairs, and he told us they
were packing things up, and they weren't allowing anyone up.
They even locked down the elevator so that it wouldn't go up
there. At one point, I made my way to the stairs to see if I
could slip past the banisters they'd put up, but I heard voices
at the top of the stairs, so I chickened out.
Oh well, I tried. In the end, I managed to snap some pictures
of the pictures they had of the upstairs - you'll see them below.
They're taken at an angle, so as not to get the reflection of
the flash of my camera. Rachel told me that the bear
you see is actually a fishtank with goldfish inside. It's juggling
large Fabrege' eggs, and turns on the pedestal. I wish I could
have seen it in person. I guess I'll have to settle for these
pictures instead.
Downstairs, there was a good
collection of "regularly-sized" eggs, and quite
a few of them. Quite impressive.
Eventually, it was time to leave. I didn't want to go, but
I was not feeling well. We'd also eaten a lot of rich foods,
and I think I wasn't alone in wanting to take a nap.
On the way back to the car, we spotted this little Fiat
500. It is smaller than the original Austin Mini, and right
as I was taking this shot, this group of people jumped in front
of my camera. Fortunately, I was quicker on the draw, and got
the shot.
We dropped Dean off, and ended up with tickets to see Austin
Powers in GoldMember. Quite funny, overall. As I was leaving
NYC, I turned on the radio for traffic info, and heard several
stories about the closing of the Russian Tea Room, and how it
would be next to impossible to get seated on their last day,
Sunday. I feel privileged that I had the chance to go. Thank
you Rachel for opportunity! |
