The LCL: Bar & Kitchen
“The LCL recently opened in the new Westin Hotel (formerly the Helmsley) near Grand Central.”
“The actual bar area is clean and cool looking with tv's that blend in all along the top of it.”
“Additional note: The place is architecturally very nice – furniture, decor, and lighting.”
The LCL: Bar & Kitchen
Takes Reservations: Yes
Take-out: Yes
Accepts Credit Cards: Yes
Good for Groups: Yes
Has TV: Yes
Waiter Service: Yes
Price range.
$$ Price range $11-30
8 reviews
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Stopped by for a drink with friends and this place was convenient to those who were just stopping and staying at the Westin Grand Central.
The bar is dark, a lot of smaller chairs and big bar to support those who wanted to just sit and grab a drink, watch the game. $7-11 dollar brews on-tap and in the bottle, and more expensive half bottles on the menu, too. Didn't try the finger food, but the wait staff was attentive and quick with the drinks, nothing complicated or crazy here for them to deal with, so I think they were just relieved at dealing with straightforward orders. Will have to try other things the next time I pop in here, but for what we did, which was just grab a drink and catch up to chat, it worked just fine.
During my stay at The Westin Grand Central, I ate at The LCL ("The Local') twice. Once was for a media tasting when I had the opportunity to sample a variety of bites from the menu, chat with the chef and learn more about the pro-local and sustainable choices behind the menu.
Although I was not the biggest fan of the pizza, I thought the deviled eggs were a real treat and mussels, delicious. The chef seemed to have taken a real pride in the burger, but regretfully no one in our party ordered that. (So if you're reading this, maybe you could tell me how that is?)
The best kept secret (or rather, discovery) during this dining session was the skirt steak. At the time, I felt like I had missed out so I made sure to return the next night for dinner to see for myself.
When I arrived, I was seated promptly in the chic, cozy lounge area to dine. I had plenty of space to post up with my laptop, enjoy the surroundings and not feel like a complete loser since it looked as though many of the folks dining at that time were other business travelers. I ordered a Cab Sav from their wine list (loved that the wines are labeled (S) Sustainable, (O) Organic, (B) Biodynamic, (L) Local) and the Skirt Steak with a side of steamed veggies.
I'm going to have to co-sign on the Skirt Steak. It was cooked to perfect succulence and had great flavor. Paired with the wine, I was a happy camper.
Additionally, the lounge has a pretty decent vibe at night. It doesn't seem to yet really draw a crowd from outside the hotel, but it definitely has potential. The DJ was awesome, the atmosphere laid back and the cocktails are tasty.
I don't expect much from hotel bars, but I was blown away by the professionalism and drink options.
The boyfriend ordered a dark and stormy, and hearing that they did indeed have ginger beer in stock, I ordered a ginger beer and found out that they brewed their own. The LCL's ginger beer is one of the best I've ever had. You can really taste the ginger in it and it's sweet, but not too sweet. They also stock a professionally brewed ginger beer, but the house-brewed beer won me over so completely that I didn't bother trying the other one.
The waitresses and hostess were so friendly and willing to talk shop with us about their beers. I'm so used to the stereotypical rushed bar staff so it was refreshing to be in such a relaxed environment.
We only stopped by for a quick drink with friends, but I definitely want to come back for a lengthier visit and more ginger beers!
So for a hotel breakfast place, this was a big disappointment.
Loved my stay at the Westin, which makes it all the sadder to ding this place, but this place shows what poor service can do for an experience.
The waiter took forever to take my order. Though she made an emphasis on my drink order (coffee).
And then i waited. And waited some more. It's morning and for $6 coffee, I was looking forward to it. Or at least some water.
I didn't get it.
My eggs with bacon did come out. I waited a bit more and then asked another staff person to bring over some coffee and water.
Only when I was nearly done, did my original waitress pop over with a carafe only to discover that I had it. No apologies.
As for the food itself, the eggs were not over medium as requested, but fried. And the potatoes were a disappointment. (Who doesn't love bacon, though.)
But for $25, I expect a little something more. Particularly after being crammed in with other tables basically next to you.
If you're at the hotel, go outside and get breakfast. It'll be cheaper and better.
Overpriced midtown restaurant with mediocre service. The location is right by my office, so I went for a business breakfast midweek…and all they were offering was the buffet. Drink refills were slow, and getting the check was near impossible. I won't be back anytime soon.
Side order of fries took 25 minutes, showed up cold. Also got the turkey burger which made me a little sick.
Servers are nice, but food and service itself are mediocre.
Now, you might not know this, and you certainly don't care, but i'm a lover of all late 80s – early 90s food fads, including the shrimp cocktail, zigzagging strawberry sauce over a slice of cheesecake, and in this case, the Cobb Salad.
I'm also all too familiar with hotel three-meal restaurants, from their sleepy corporate menus to their mediocre-city transplant managers.
The verdict after three lunches at the LCL bar & Kitchen is that the restaurant serves good food, including a delectable Cobb Salad, with generally inconsistent and inoffensive service. The front of house staff is nimble enough to ensure that three ice cubes are consistently placed in each water glass, but they'll never refill your water. And still, after three visits, I've never seen a front-of-house manager keeping an eye on anything at all.
But whatever. Give me my no-surprises cappuccino, my depressingly 'manhattan lounge' style cafeteria, a bomb-ass cobb salad and a water with three ice cubes in it that will never get refilled, and I'll acknowledge that life could be worse.
We enjoyed a Saturday brunch at The LCL. The brunch selection was nice – the food was very good. My rating came down for the price. The brunch was very expensive – even for New York standards. The service was great and the food was very good – but you pay for it with the price.