Marc Forgione
“I highly recommend the Kampachi Tartare, Chili Lobster, Chicken under a Brick, and the Halibut en Croute.”
“Just looking inside at the brick and candle light everwhere (I am a sucker for candles) I popped in.”
“For me the standouts were the Kampachi tartare and the "Proposal" sauce served with the halibut.”
Marc Forgione
Takes Reservations: Yes
Accepts Credit Cards: Yes
Bike Parking: Yes
Wheelchair Accessible: Yes
Good for Groups: Yes
Outdoor Seating: Yes
Waiter Service: Yes
Price range.
$$$ Price range $31-60
8 reviews
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Marc Forgione is one of my favorite restaurants in the world. I have always had amazing experiences there and I'm excited to write this review. One time I ate the halibut entree ON THE SUBWAY because I couldn't wait to eat it. THE SUBWAY, people. The food is just that good. I seriously considered starting a petition to get this place's Michelin star back.
Most recently, a group of five of us went to MF for New Years Eve. We were seated right away. The restaurant itself is dark and pretty with lots of candles. They had it all decorated with balloons. We first ordered a bottle of wine that our server recommended, which was a magnum bottle of Gruner. Their wine list is reasonably priced which makes it easy to try different things.
MF starts you off with warm, soft rolls with a garlic butter. Fantastic. They also usually bring out a small dish, compliments of the chef. We had a little dish with cucumber and lox spread and little mini "everything bagels" stuffed with cream cheese. Very cute.
We ordered some appetizers to split. With some of the apps, they will pre portion them out to fit your group size. We started with the kampachi tartare which is served over avocado in a sweet, fruity sauce with "potato chips" on the side. This is a fantastic appetizer. The fish is super fresh and the whole thing is very flavorful. For five people, they allowed us to order 2.5 dishes and then portioned them out for us. The presentation of this dish is really cool, too. They give you an herb that numbs your mouth and then a spoon with a small bite of the app. It's not pretentious at all, either – the servers are always very patient and explain the different dimensions of the dish. Excellent – and at 17$, a no brainer.
We also ordered cavatelli to split – this was good although I preferred the other dishes.
For entrees, we split the halibut and the chicken. The halibut is INSANE. It's a beautiful piece of fish served with a crunchy topping over hazelnuts, capers, cauliflower, and this SAUCE. The SAUCE is AMAZING. I'm not sure what they put in it but whatever it is, it's highly addictive.
The chicken is also excellent. It's served in a oily, fantastic sauce with broccolini, onion crunchies, and potatoes. It's not quite as good as the halibut, but then again, nothing is.
For dessert we ordered cookies and milk for the table. The cookies are crunchy on the outside and essentially cookie dough in the middle. I don't care how full you are – you need these.
At the end they brought us out little butterscotch candies and were cool that we had to itemize the bill. Our server was very cool (which is the norm at MF). He knew a lot about the dishes, had recommendations, and was genuinely a nice guy whose attentive service amplified our experience.
All in all, the experience was fantastic, like it always is. Main takeaways:
1. The food is top notch and you can't go wrong with anything you order. On past visits, we've gotten the giant potato chips, the duck in a jar, a duck entree (over jasmine rice), etc – everything is good and it's all consistent.
2. It doesn't matter where you sit, the service is always great. If you sit at the bar, you will get the same attentive, knowledgable service as you would at a table. The bar is first come, first serve and the bartenders are fantastic. The last time we sat at the bar, we tried their banana whiskey which was really different.
3. From what I can tell, Marc is there a lot. On one occasion he came out to greet people. We've also met one of the managers who sat at the bar with us. Everyone who works here is really nice and approachable.
4. Although this place isn't cheap, it is well worth the money and it's pretty much perfect for every situation (date, family, client dinners).
I love Marc Forgione – everything about it is awesome.
This is one of my favorite restaurants to go for special occasions. It's also the only restaurant I'll order chicken from. You know how places tend to overcook their chicken to the point where it's so dry? Marc Forgione doesn't do it. I always order the chicken under a brick every time and it's juicy each time. The dish is meant for 2 people, but if you wish, they can make the chicken for a portion of 1. Special occasion or not, I definitely recommend ordering the chili lobster with Texas toast appetizer. It'll cost you the amount of an entree, but it's soo good. The soup base is what makes this dish – I literally can just pick up the bowl and just drink it. However, I just took the bread, which is amazing too, to soak up all of the deliciousness.
Extra brownie points because we were given free champagne for my boyfriend's birthday. Also, Marc Forgione happened to be at the restaurant that day and walked around greeting each table. Score because we were able to take a picture with him!
With almost 1 month wait time, we finally landed a dinner reservation at Marc Forgione. The decor and ambiance of the place was awesome – very nice vintage touch. Service was very friendly and efficient. Their potato bread was hands down 5 stars! My 2 years old had I don't know how many rolls. It was simply too good. In mains we took the chicken under the brick. It was pretty good too, juicy and well seasoned. The only critique I have is unbelievable amount of oil / fat in the pan. I only wish it didn't have that much oil. Chicken was almost drenched in oil which I normally don't like but for now I would give it 4 stars. It was really good experience overall.
I have mixed emotions about this restaurant. Most of the food I had was good and creative, EXCEPT FOR THE STEAK, but the price and service were not up to par.
My cousins highly recommended it so our expectations were high, I mean, it's an Iron Chef so it must be amazing, right? I hear you can also meet Marc Forgione on weekdays and that he's very friendly.
*Atmosphere 4/5: Beautiful restaurant, romantic, with exposed brick walls, lots of candles…just a bit too dark (had to use my cell phone to read the menu) but very modern. We were a party of 6 and were seated in a high communal type wooden table
*Food:
-We started with buns that very buttery, warm and yummy. Some sea salt on top and extra butter was available if desired; 4/5
-I ordered a Basil rye cocktail which had tea, honey and alcohol. It was bitter, nothing special. My sis got the Tropical rum cocktail and it was even more bitter, $14 ea; 3/5
-Kampachi tartare, $19: it was a pleasant surprise. They give you a wooden spoon with some type of green herb that numbs your mouth, and then you eat the kampachi which was very good, on top of some avocado yumminess; 5/5
-Canneloni, $17 for the appetizer portion. It was good but nothing special; 4/5
-Foei gras, $24: it was a tad salty but very yummy when accompanied by their thin jam "leather" cover with berries and biscotti; 4/5
-Chili lobster, $34: one of their signature dishes. It's just lobster in a spicy sauce, it was ok but not worth the $ for the portion; 3.5/5
-Chicken on a brick (for 2), $62: another of their signature dishes. It's deep fried chicken on a casserole with yukon potatoes. I had the breast and it was very tender and juicy but reminded me of chinese fried chicken. Mom had the drumstick and she said it was a bit dry. It swims in a pool of butter/oil; 3.5/5
-Duck, $39-small pieces of chewy meat that were lukewarm and just alright; 3/5
-Halibut, $36-just a small filet, nothing special; 3/5
-Cote de boeuf was the most disappointing, $129- I have never tried this cut but it was HARD and BLAND, do NOT get!!! 0/5. It was topped with lots of greens herbs and they give you some sauce to pour on top which should have been a sign because good meat only requires some salt and pepper. The Meat itself had no flavor, it was hard to chew and came out more rare than we asked for. We asked the server about it and he just apologized. When we asked again, the manager just came to ask questions, wasn't very apologetic and just asked if we wanted another entree. We had already finished the meal and were just expressing our dissatisfaction, did not need another entree. We thought he would at least comp dessert but nothing! Even when I asked about it after receiving the bill, they refused to do anything to compensate for our disappointment. Wow, I'm in the service industry and couldn't believe they were just so apathetic to our small request, especially for a party of 6 that is dropping almost $100 ea and complained about one dish.
I read another review that also complains about the steak. I guess that's just not their forte.
As far as service, the fact that they didn't care that we were so unhappy about the steak was just plain rude and arrogant. I guess they don't need my business. It's a shame
Solid restaurant but ultimately I'd recommend posting up at the bar for a couple of apps but I'd pass on dinner. Veal was a let down, but the Spanish Octopus and Kampachi Tartare were ridiculous. Escargot was solid.
Went here for my wife's birthday recently and was fairly happy with our meal. The ambiance is great, it's like you're a guest in Chef Marc's living room. Unfortunately, the meal failed to live up to the greatness that we experienced our first time visiting the restaurant about two years ago.
To start, we had the Spanish octupus, which was fantastic. The texture was unlike any octo I'd had before and the sour orange was a great feature. We had a duck confit as well, which was very tasty.
The mains left a little more to be desired. The Yellowfin Tuna was just flat out bad. It had been seared, but lacked both the flavor and the texture of any seared fish I've eaten. In fact, the fish had the texture of overcooked fish, which is crazy given the fact that it was only seared. The 30 dry aged ribeye was ok, although we were both expecting better. About half as good as the dry aged porterhouse at Delmonico's.
Both desserts were fantastic. My wife had a Creme Brulee which was as close to perfect as you can get and my Carrot Cake Semifreddo was really nice too. Had great wine suggestions all night.
The service was also fantastic and our server was very nice to take the Yellowfin tuna off our bill after she realized how much we disliked it. There are better options in the area for meals in this price range.
Before I leave or if I ever leave NYC, I definitely need to stop by Marc Forgione again. The first time we ever ate here was for brunch, which wasn't a bad idea but we also heard that it was famous for the Brick Chicken.
Boy, we figured out why soon enough. Brunch menu was pretty standard, nothing extraordinary. (The chicken wasn't on the brunch menu so don't come here during brunch for that!) But I have to saw the decor was one of the best in NYC. Now, located in Tribeca, you gotta step up your game as you are setting the table for some of NYC's elite.
The main dining area was huge and very fancy. I would take a co-worker or something more formal here for a classier dining experience. It kinda reminds me of ABC kitchen but different color scheme.
NOW GET THE BRICK CHICKEN…. I'M GOING TO SAY IT ONE MORE TIME…GET. THE. BRICK. CHICKEN.
It's amazing. We had a bunch of other dishes too but nothing compares and honestly that's all I really remember about Marc. The chickennnnnn. My favorite chicken dish besides that fried chicken dish from ABC.
Loved it and I know you will too! Check it out!
Another one of Marc Forgione's Tribeca hotspots, this one actually bears his name. The atmosphere here is very "tribeca," with exposed brick, industrial lighting, and an old elevator shaft right in the middle of the space giving off a very unique rustic yet chic vibe. Most patrons (whether it be for dinner or just at the bar area) are either locals or finance types considering the exterior is very unassuming on a quiet Tribeca street.
While the atmosphere here is a massive part of the experience, the food menu (which has a distinct American farm to table flare) is unforgettable. For those at the bar looking for a snack, they have massive communal tables to share anything from Chesapeake oysters, to shishito peppers, to a 24 inch potato chip (it's incredible). For those looking for a full meal, enjoy anything from squid spaghetti, to chili lobster (a clear local favorite), to the bell & evans chicken. As with all of Marc's spots, this is truly one of those establishments where you need to sample as much of the menu as possible. Oh, and don't forget about the desert. There are few other places in New York City that could make something as simple as milk and cookies or s'mores so memorable (fun fact: they have a "forager" on call whose job it is to collect the sticks necessary to make the s'mores) .
The service is world class, with the entire waitstaff there to make you feel at home and answer any random questions you may have (see my fun fact above). Of course, the entire experience doesn't come cheap (most of the dinner menu is in the $30-40 per item range). That said, this is one of those New York establishments that makes Manhattan dining so legendary.