Forty Four Lounge
“With fireplaces, warm inset lounges with fur throws, and very dimly lit areas, Bar 44 is elegant and trendy.”
“Great midtown spot, especially when you work in Times Square and want to leave the madness.”
“The lobby is very swanky, but very warm and cozy, with lots of dark wood and cool lighting.”
Forty Four Lounge
Takes Reservations: Yes
Accepts Credit Cards: Yes
Wheelchair Accessible: Yes
Good for Groups: Yes
Coat Check: Yes
Waiter Service: Yes
Price range.
$$$ Price range $31-60
8 reviews
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Whattttt, another Dukedom by me… How dare I… yes NYC.. How dare I!
We stayed at the Royalton, ate at 44 (not sure about that pic of the dude outside as representative of the lobby, bar, and restaurant), the food was great, the bar was great (expensive drinks, but worth it as they use a good amount of alcohol in them). I took pics of the menu and our food, peruse at leisure, if you stay here, you will have to try the restaurant at least once…
I loved this spot. Cozy & trendy decor. Strong drinks with a picturesque presentation.
My only peeve?
They were most accommodating while you were picking out a drink. Unfortunately, they took over 20 minutes to get the check to us.
Fail -_-
DAMN annoying & super rude in regards to my friend & I's timetable.
The place was not busy at all so I dont understand why this was a problem.
I'd go back but the servers need to be on POINT.
Forty Four?
Haaaaah! I think NOT….. More like 11 and a 1/4!!!!
_____________So fellow Yelpers, how bout' we talk math?_______________
What do you get when you take 44 and subtract customer service? Hold onto that answer and then divide it by a conveyance of irrefutably absurd business hours and THEN multiply it all by run-of-the-mill, if not certifiably uninspiring food within a surprisingly well decorated setting.
What you get, ladies and gents- is Forty Four reasons to AVOID dining at this place!!! Feel free to consider this review one of them.
* Located within the posh and upscale 4 star Royalton Hotel with their just as trendy "44 West 44th Street address" — amid the epicenter of both Manhattan as well as the hotel itself, sits this plush lounge that from head to toe modifies the adjective 'sexy'.
* For what it's worth, the bootylicious undertones emphatically end there.
Those enabled enough to traverse beyond the "homey fireplaces" and dimly set lighting let alone the entrancing melodies of streaming "bebop" and recurrent sauntering of wannabe's, posing endlessly (minus any such reason) – as if to await their (never to be found) chances at obtaining stardom by no such existent paparazzi — will like-mindedly stumble upon the ineluctable conclusion; that being, that Forty Four CLEARLY FLUNKED an algebra course or two and just as likely missed out on summer school as well.
Possessed the pleasure of making the Royalton our hotel of choice this past NYE (separate review) and while I'm nothing short of pleased by the hotel itself – the message bestowed by way of 44, the establishment's on-site "restaurant/bar/lounge", would be enough to deter even the President.
While they accept reservations, don't anticipate them being honored by any means. Given their inconsistent business hours (ranging from 7:30-11am, 11:30-2pm and then again within the evening from 5pm – 12am) and the lackluster dispositions of the establishment's employees – I truly question how this place has managed to remain in business. If anything, I attribute the continued patronage of unsuspecting spectators to the overall flare of the hotel itself.
Ordered a cocktail. Nothing complicated; just a Jack and Coke only to receive a Hennessy and Pepsi. —- I'm no rocket scientist, but how do you screw up a Jack and Coke???
#probably-a-high-school-drop-out
Requested it be sent back for an Amaretto sour only to be informed that the bartender was new and didn't know how to make one.
Are you kidding me???
Frustrated as hell, finally I thought I'd settle with a frikkin' Shirley Temple but not before I/we were made even further aware that they were out of damned grenadine!! (sighs……)
Water it is—! (——- MINUS 1 star)
Perhaps this should've been our red flag just to call it quits and head to Times Square in pursuit of booze and sustenance but with our room just 14 floors upstairs, we elected to stay, ordering burgers and fries.
Now it's no secret that Kenny Ken isn't exactly Chef Boyardee yet while engaged in conversation over the various antics surrounding this implausible and mind-boggling occurrence, we took notice that a whoppin' 40 minutes had elapsed ————– and we were still VOID OF FOOD!
Where in the high hell does it take 40 minutes to toss some meat between a few buns and add a slice or 2 of cheese? (I'm just sayin'……….)
* THERE WAS NO SERVER PRESENT TO INQUIRE UPON STATUS WITH …….AND THE BARTENDER WAS OVERLY-ENGAGED WITHIN A SESSION OF TEXT MESSAGING THAT SIMPLY COULD –NOT– BE INTERRUPTED.
In turn, I thought it necessary to "take one for the team" and without hesitation did I get up and make my way directly to the kitchen, storming completely past the chefs, only to view our previously ordered food sitting idly beneath heat lamps.
Whaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaat the phuk???
Of course I was promptly ushered out and requested to return to my table HOWEVER had I not followed up, it goes without stating that we'd have continued to wait while left unattended to, likely until the return of Christ,…………….all the while the pitifully apathetic, under-worked and overpaid staff members continued to discuss their post holiday commencements in broken dialect. (——- MINUS 2 stars).
Need I say – the food was passable but nothing I'd so much as travel out of the way to consume, further leading me to my trial balloon.
The verdict is in and I'm advocating for continuous and rapid striking to the knuckles of Forty Four —- by way of a rattan cane followed by even more striking to the buttocks.
My only diversion around this ^ would be Forty Four's –IMMEDIATE– expulsion for a semester or two!
Provided our recent encounter is to be considered a final exam towards you all's methods in quality assurance. I assure you: YOU HAVE FAILED – – – –
The round light fixtures, rounded corner tables and netted borders between tables imply that this lounge has been converted from the most exquisite midtown dentist office from 1962 into a nightlife spot. That's not the case, but there's a feeling of casual glamour that is both rare in a hotel bar and rare to find in midtown without devolving into a kind of kitsch retro aimed at tourists.
I feel in love with the space during a site visit for a winter party. The space wasn't right for our event – it opens on the hotel so stopping crashers would be impossible – but I came back with a different crowd a few weeks later. We had pre-ordered appetizers, which included a vegetable plate, cheese, crackers and spreads. The thick brie stood out, nothing else did, although plated cold appetizers for large parties are probably not where the kitchen shines.
A better-than-expected set of cocktails, beers and wine help smooth over the late arrival of a couple of guests, while smooth coordination between the entrance staff and the waitress made sure that everyone was deposited at the table with a minimum of fuss.
A sour note came at the end of the night when we failed to meet an agreed upon minimum. The restaurant was quiet, and we didn't leave people without tables. Our waitress said she couldn't waive the fee or provide a credit, but she encouraged us to continue the conversation with the manager the next day. At 5 pm someone called me back to say there couldn't be an adjustment. This bait-and-switch was not entirely kosher, as if we'd known there was no possibility of change we'd ordered an expensive bottle of wine and been forced to drink it. Instead the buck was passed to an unseen manager who played bad cop.
I'd expect better from such a cool space.
I had a lunch date here and was very impressed with my experience. The Hostess, Cassandra was a sweetheart.
The lobby area was very grand with dim lights and gold undertones. I felt there was a hint of art decor influence throughout the restautant. The leather upholstery booths looked very comfortable. The deep Cherry wood and carving detail throughout the restaurant was very well done.
I had the Tomato soup with olive oil which came with a side of two slices of white bread. I loved how wholesome it tasted. There was no need for salt and pepper. Plus the portion was pretty large so the price is good for the amount you get.
A very sophisticated location for a business lunch or personal private outing. This has a spot on the hidden gem ' s list :-).
My friends and I met up for drinks at the bar at the Royalton – it's the perfect location between the upper west side and the upper east side.
From the perspective, this is the epitome of a New York bar – it's dark, sleek with lots of dark wood and leather. The drinks are spendy (which is to be expected) but I appreciated the relatively chill environment and the ease with which we were able to find seats, though we arrived just after 5 p.m. At that time, it was a quiet place to have a drink and catch up with friends. As we were leaving around 7, the noise level had picked up, and it was pretty crowded.
This is a dark place … The atmosphere is great with a great bar as well as tables and comfortable lounge chairs, but as so many lounges they took he concept of dim lighting to the next level. Reading the menu?! Please hand me the candle, as I cannot see.
The cocktails are boozy. Not much fruit juice in these babies … if any at all!
Two problems – space can be noisy and prices are on the high side – say $19 for a cocktail.
On the plus side the space is really big, the bar takes up most of the ground floor space – which runs all the way from the front entrance on W 44th Street to the back entrance on W 43rd Street. The bar area is divided up into a series of connected alcoves which make it comfortable. It is pretty much all table service; not a place which makes it easy to meet new people.
Bartenders are professional and engaging.