Maloney & Porcelli - the new wine dinner?

My fondness for Cite%26#39;s wine dinner has been well documented over the past two years. Now that Cite is no more, their website says the wine dinner continues at weekends at Maloney %26amp; Porcelli. It has become marginally more expensive at $75 compared to $69 but still tempting.

Had never heard of Maloney %26amp; Porcelli - anyone here been?

Maloney %26amp; Porcelli - the new wine dinner?

Top of the day to ya!

Re Maloney %26amp; Porcelli - I%26#39;ve never been but (through a friend of a friend) I can tell you it%26#39;s a steak and pork chop hang out for the pin striped suit crowd - bankers and lawyers. It%26#39;s owned by the huge group that owns Smith %26amp; Wollensky (and did own Citi)

http://www.maloneyandporcelli.com/

Maloney %26amp; Porcelli - the new wine dinner?

M%26amp;P is part of the same group as Cite, the Smith %26amp; Wollensky company. I have to preface my comments by noting that I didn%26#39;t like Cite at all. Having worked in the neighborhood for many years, and now just a block away, I%26#39;ve dined pretty frequently at most of the S%26amp;W group%26#39;s restaurants. I was always disappointed in Cite. My favorite of the group, alas, closed a while ago. That was Manhattan Ocean Club. We%26#39;d go to their wine week all the time. We switched to Cite when MOC closed, and then tried M%26amp;P, which was better but not great either. I%26#39;m sure others will weigh in with their opinions.

What about Smith %26amp; Wollensky, or the more modestly priced Wollensky%26#39;s Grill?

Bettina I%26#39;m Irish - hence the fondness for the wine dinner ;)

Ethnic stereotypes aside, I do quite like steak once on a trip, though we eat predominantly Asian food when we travel (I think we managed 3 Thai dinners in Jan). The wine dinner was good value IMO.

I ask because hubby is going to NYC in May (without me, sob) and we%26#39;d always hoped to get that group of friends to Cite. Now that it%26#39;s gone we thought the M%26amp;P dinner would be a good way to control the cost of dinner for 8 people.

I quite like a nice steak and a glass or two of wine, but I%26#39;m just not wild about the midtown steakhouses, I%26#39;d rather leave them to the expense-account crowd. I%26#39;d much rather spend my steak dollars at Balthazar.

I%26#39;d also suggest Veritas. It%26#39;s not a steak house, but the entire menu is created to complement their extensive wine list. So, if hubby likes his wine, he%26#39;ll love the place.

Thanks Bettina, as ever you are a fountain of wisdom! Has Balthazar got online booking yet?

Now back to my mountain of New York Post articles about you know who.....2 months to go til this thesis is in!