The Musket Room

“As a New Zealand inspired restaurant, there were plenty of NZ wines on the list which I'm always a fan of.”

“The quail is one of their classic dishes and two drumsticks come out with cherries, bread sauce and roasted onions.”

“My bf got the red deer, which I sampled – it came with little dots of marshmallowy tasting meringue and green pea sauce.”

The Musket Room

Takes Reservations: Yes
Accepts Credit Cards: Yes
Good for Groups: Yes
Coat Check: Yes
Waiter Service: Yes

Price range.

$$$ Price range $31-60

8 reviews

  1. The Musket Room is a really interesting place.  I had high hopes for the experience.  My friend and I made reservations for 9:45 on a Saturday evening.  I got there first.  My phone was dead and the hostess immediately helped me charge it AND sat me, even though my friend wasn't there yet.  She was really great.  

    While I was waiting, the building NEXT to the restaurant caught on fire and the restaurant filled with smoke.  I thought it was a little uncomfortable / weird how no one working there acknowledged that this was happening…

    When my friend arrived, we ordered some wine and our meals.  Our server was spot on with his recommendations and the food was EXCELLENT, but the portions were unbelievably small.  I am a tiny person, and I left STARVING.  They offered to refill our bread order twice but never actually did.  Womp.

    My friend and I split two appetizers, an entree, and a dessert.  We ordered the scallops, the quail, and the cod.  They were all INCREDIBLE but ultra tiny.  The scallops were served with curry and cauliflower.  They were excellent – but there were only two of them.  $15.  The quail was slightly bigger – it was served with blackberry and roasted onion.  We both absolutely loved this dish.  $16.

    For an entree we got the cod which was served with pomegranate and brussels.  For an entree, I found this to be small as well, and it was $32.  

    For dessert we got the dish our server recommended, which was the maluka honey with milk, walnut, and little pear croutons.  We didn't love this but it was an interesting dish.  Reminded me of a panna cotta.  $13.

    All in all, the food was 5 stars, but the portions were just too small.  I can appreciate quality food and understand that it comes with a price tag, but for the number of dishes we got and how small of a person I am, I don't think it's acceptable to leave a restaurant hungry, especially when your total bill clocks in at over $100.  Although I would love to try the other items on the menu, I'm not sure my wallet can handle it.

  2. I gotta say, this was the best dining experience I have had in recent days.  Everything worked out perfectly.  My wife and I made a last minute reservation here because they had a spot at 9:15pm of the christmas eve.  This place is located around SoHo, right across Manhattan Portage Flagship store (which is another favorite store of mine).  The interior was very rustic, and seemed like they utilized an existing interior from before, but I thought it was pretty nice.  Really liked the rustic brick wall.

    We were seated on a corner of the front room (there is a back room with more dining tables).  Asked for virgin mojito, which was limey and good, but I would have liked it a little better if the drink had more mojito flavor.  They had fresh baked bread, sourdough, rye and cheddar brioche.  I asked for brioche and rye, and it came with cream cheese.  Bread was very soft, and tasted really good.

    For the first course we ordered veal sweetbread and scallop with wasabi sauce.  The scallop was amazing in that chopped pieces of scallop mingled perfectly with wasabi, and made a very unique flavor.  Veal sweetbread with huckleberry sauce and fried green leaves were very well balanced, too.

    We ordered lamb tenderloin and duck breast for entree and both of them were amazing, but in different context.  First lamb was cooked to perfection itself.  Chef also basically got rid of the strong smell of lamb but left the aroma which stimulated your nostril perfectly with the flavor.  As for the duck, it was medium rare cooked, and it worked perfectly with the sauce.  The only thing is that it would have been even better for me if the turnip was a little softer.

    For dessert we ordered cheese plate which came with some bread chips, huckleberry sauce and quince spread.  I really liked the balance.  Then the milk dessert, looking like pana cotta, was a great way to end our very satisfying dining experience.

    Bottom line.  This place definitely should get more credit than they do now.  I will definitely come back in the future.

  3. New Zealand food? Why the hell not! I saw a lot of great reviews on yelp and I know they earned a Michelin star in 2015 and 2016 and they certainly deserve it so that's why I chose this for my wife's birthday dinner. We were both glad I did.

    Her b-day was on a Sunday night so it was quiet here, but the space is intimate and relaxing without any pretentiousness. The hostess was nice and sat us right away. Our server, Allison was fantastic, friendly and asked us if we had any questions. We started with a couple cocktails, both absolutely Delicious. Mine was the rye one and the wife's a cucumber drink that was outstanding and refreshing.

    For the meal! Anyone that says portions are small has never been to fine dining, they are usual portions and plenty for an average person if you go with the flow of the menu. I ordered the mushroom soup, duck and chocolate roll in total. The wife got scallops, cod and the carrot cake. Because I don't eat seafood we didn't opt for the tasting menu. The mushroom soup was fantastic, not to mushroom-y, a great balance of truffle, buttermilk and shitake 'shrooms. The duck, holy crap the duck, cooked PERFECT and each part of the dish was heaven the kale was amazing..kale?! Yeah the kale was one of my favorite parts. The carrot puree, everything jived perfect and I cleaned my plate. The desserts were both unbelievably delectable and perfectly balanced. My wife also loved hers equally. I also loved the mini macaroons with the check.

    I also have to mention the bread before hand, get the chedder brioche…game changing! After our first round we were asked if we wanted another, I of course said yes. When asked if we wanted a 3rd one, we declined, only because we didn't want to seem like goobers. I would have eaten 10 more of those things in truth.

    Overall the prices are very reasonable for this type of experience. From service, drinks to food everything was a 5 on my list. I hope to be back here again for sure!

  4. We booked The Musket Room for my best friend's birthday as I had read it offered one of the best tasting menus in New York City. The people on the phone was really nice and understanding when we phoned up a few times to push back the time – latest booking available is 9:30pm.

    As I had been eating all my meals out on this trip, we opted for the six course menu instead of the 10. We started with a Sad times. The ant man is not showing on this flight! – South Island Sling and Triple As. Our amuse bouche was a goats cheese foam over beetroot and crisped rye cubes – I just love cheese in a foam form and the crispy croutons and soft beets gave it an interesting texture. We went for some lovely homemade sourdough and brioche that was served with whipped butter and crisped herbs when we were offered. The first starter was oysters with radish foam and chive oil which was awesomely served in a bowl of pebbles and dry ice! It was soooooo cool! The oysters were really fresh and the flavours well balanced. The second starter was the BEST potato soup I have EVER tasted. First, it is served with chive oil and salmon roe in a bowl and a bridge of crispy bacon carrying a piece of the sweetest razor clam and the waiter pours this really creamy potato soup into the bowl at the table. The soup is velvety smooth and there is not one single grainy but in there! I have no idea how they did it! The combination of the soup and the roe was a flavour party in my mouth! I'd recommend ordering this of the a la carte menu! The first main was half a crispy quail – mini drum stick and wing included – that has a bit of five spice flavour served with cute little sweet roasted onions. The second main was also a firm favourite – the Berkshire pork which was a cube of roast pork belly confit and slices of beautiful smoked pork loin with kale, clementine segments and al dente cauliflower. The park was perfectly done and the textures were really beautiful. Our first dessert was a passion fruit sorbet served with crispy meringue and passion fruit purée. The second dessert was the chocolate brownie that was toppled with a salt caramel marshmallow and chocolate ganache, served with milk sorbet and mandarin jellies. I didn't think I would be fussed about dessert as I would not have gone for these options but both were really nice and neither was overly sweet.

    The atmosphere of the restaurant is really casual and a bit noisier than I expected because it has a bar in the main restaurant, but it was so relaxing and the staff were brilliant. I would highly recommend it as its really a fantastic tasting menu and it's not too pricey!

  5. The Musket Room is an excellent spot for private events. I coordinated a group dinner for their back room and I found their customer service, space, food, and drinks to all tbe excellent. They are a bit pricey (they have a very high minimum charge) for private events, but we found it to be worth it for what we got. The food is all interestingly prepared and presented (small-ish portions but that is the general trend everywhere nowadays) and the drinks, beer, and wine selection is amazing.

  6. Half of the point of because of the service- not saying they are not good, but comparing to other Michelin star restaurants, they are not good enough. Another half was because of the drinks- reasonable price but not tasty at all…

    We were excited to check this one out, it's always been on the list but finally! They have daily tasting menu 6 courses for $85. Not bad pricing, but if everyone on the table has to get exactly the same thing, I wouldn't do it. So we ordered a la carte so that we can try a couple more items:
    App: mushroom soup- a bit on the salty side but it's a delight; scallops- fantastically cooked, sides are also amazing.
    Main: duck- perfectly cooked and the carrot sauce was wonderful to tone down the heaviness of duck meat; salmon- a bit on the raw side but the taste was wonderful.
    Dessert: carrot cheesecake- didn't enjoy it as much as I thought. Barely tasted the nutty flavor that were supposed to be in the carrot cake.

  7. I came here for dinner and we did the tasting menu with the wine pairing. The presentation of all the dishes was beautiful and I was certainly a huge fan of the wine pairing. However, although I found the presentation of the dishes quite impressive, I wasn't as impressed with taste. I didn't particularly enjoy the food but definitely liked the experience–good service, creative dishes, and a nice ambiance.

  8. Oops, I totally forgot to write this review! Eh, actually, not really. I "forget" to write a LOT of reviews…

    The bf and I visited The Musket Room back in June 2015 (during our NY trip) to try out the chef's tasting menu. I made reservations and we were seated promptly by the hostess. I dressed up for dinner but I wouldn't say it's completely necessary; the decor is rustic (almost a little homey) and definitely not a frilly place. The restaurant was completely empty and it didn't fill up once whatsoever while we were there.

    Unfortunately, since a year has passed and their menu has changed (as it does, seasonally) I can't really recall each and every course. I do remember thinking that the dinner was solid and that The Musket Room was well-deserving of its one Michelin star.

    However, service left a lot to be desired. It took a while for our server to greet us at our table and while she was attentive enough, she was cold. No smiles, no warmth, no personality! Hm. Maybe it's a NY thing?

    The next time I'm in New York, you can find me at Le Bernardin!

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Elizabeth Street 265
New York 10012 NY US
Get directions
Monday, 6:00 pm - 10:00 pm
Tuesday, 6:00 pm - 10:00 pm
Wednesday, 6:00 pm - 10:00 pm
Thursday, 6:00 pm - 10:00 pm
Friday, 6:00 pm - 11:00 pm
Saturday, 6:00 pm - 11:00 pm
Sunday, 6:00 pm - 10:00 pm