The Monday Room

Very good snacks and cocktails though wee bit overpriced.

I took a friend here a birthday dinner. We came 30 minutes before our reservation on a Wednesday night to enjoy a drink at Public. We then took our drinks and were seated. We shared a bottle of Syrah with our meal after help from the waitress. She was very knowledgeable about their wines. We ordered the kangaroo to start which was excellent! I highly recommend it. The meat was incredibly tender and was served with a thin falafel and some greens. For an entrée, she had the pork belly and I ordered the grilled scallops and salad (2 apps), all of which were excellent. The scallops were probably the best I’ve ever had. I tend to order scallops at most places I go since it is a favorite of mine, but these were really wonderful and were the perfect texture. We also shared a side dish of roasted brussels sprouts. We were both raised in the south and couldn’t resist… and they were excellent.
The dining room is small but nice. Luckily no one was seated at the table next to us, so we didn’t feel cramped. Our servers was perhaps a little overly informative, but in general was really good. Since it was her birthday, they brought out complimentary small glasses of a cava (a sparkling white wine) for each of us, including my boyfriend who was just there to meet us before we left for another place. Overall, it was a terrific dinner with wonderful food! It can be a little pricey for sure, but since it was a special occasion (and I had looked at menu prices before going), I knew what we were getting into and prepared accordingly. I would definitely recommend coming here for a special night, it was absolutely great!
And drinks at the Public next door (while expensive) are also really awesome. The bartender there was delightful!

The Monday Room is the study in the home of Public a Michelin rated restaurant and bar. I can’t tell you about the food because I didn’t have the pleasure of eating however, I can tell you about the drinks, the ambiance and how the two go extremely well together.
I came about this place via my friend who hosted his birthday cocktail party here. This semi-​private room adjacent to the bar was the perfect place to do that. Two L shaped leather couches with standing room in between and a few tables, we packed in about 20 people comfortably. The music was chill, the fuchsia whiskey sour was delicious, the crowd was mellow and might I add well dressed and I was psyched to have found a great vibe on Elizabeth.
I don’t go out too often on the east side of the island. You can bet when I am in these parts, Public will definitely be in the lineup.

Thursday night… Two girls (who were supposed to yoga but decided that dinner and drinks sounded much better) found their way into this wonderful place. It was cozy, dimly lit and had an air of this could be pompous because it’s so adorable. On the contrary, the waiters and waitresses welcomed us with their friendliness (literally and with champagne flutes) and impressed us with their wealth of knowledge. Ooh tell me more about the grapes in Australia and how to marry them with glazed eel…
We only hit up the starters menu for small plates:
–Dashi custard: What a perfect starter of a lobster salad, lime and caviar. It was light and refreshing.
–Glazed eel: OMG get 2 spoons… This is quite possibly the perfect bite of food especially paired with this grapefruity-​nutty wine that I cannot recall. This one bite of pickled bean sprouts, glazed eel and a soft boiled quail egg, fully deserved to be on the food network show, «The Best Thing I Ever Ate.» It literally made the world stop for us. It brought on a silence to the table. We had faces that only Giada makes after a bite of food… Pure orgasmic deliciousness.
–Fried Hama Hama oysters: First of all, I was tricked. They arrived on what looked like a bed of snow yet the plate wasn’t cold. Second, these were delicious. I probably could have eaten a dozen of these. They were fried but they were fluffy, light and full of flavor.
–Marinated white anchovies, quinoa croquettes with spicy saffron aioli: God, what will quinoa do next? Quinoa is like the new black. It literally goes with everything and it is perfect as a croquette especially with the least fishy anchovies I’ve ever had.
–Pan-​seared fois gras: I wish that I hated fois gras but the buttery creaminess always gets me. Plus this pan-​seared version with mango chutney is tasty, and the crispy bacon just put me over the edge. Mmmm.
–And finally… we ended with a cheese plate since we needed some cheesiness to end such a savory dinner of small plates. Even their cheeses were paired well with various berries and chutneys.
This place is wonderful and so well-​thought out. The staff really knows what they are doing and really explained everything that they were thinking in making these dishes and their wine pairings. It was super awesome!

Caramel coloured luscious bar inside Public.
I love caramel & cosy places like this. The service was warm & friendly. It’s small so don’t plan on taking your entire entourage with you.
Good after dinner drinks on a cold Monday night in Manhattan!

Really love this place! Will definitely be back for drinks.
Tucked next to Public, the Monday room is a cool cozy lounge where great conversations, drinks and food takes place!
On a rainy Friday night, the restaurant was packed and the Monday room was full as well. Made reservations ahead so that was a good call. Drinks at Public’s bar was great, lots of fruity mixes as well as flavored vodka. I loved the pineapple one!
On to the food/​drinks. The wine list was good (according to my wine enthusiast bf) and as everyone said, the glazed eel and foie gras were amazing! You can also order cocktails from the Public bar, which was nice for our none wine drinking friends.
I also loved their wine member mailbox program! which is $ 50.00 per month with a monthly wine and some perks of wine tasting as well as reserving tables. I definitely want to think about that going forward.
All and all a great experience.

Once in awhile there’s incentive to be fashionably early. I arrived early for a reservation at Public, and was whisked away to the Monday Room which seems to be some ultra chic annex of an already chic place. Had I known I would be accommodated in such a haute little hamlet, I would have come hours earlier.
While waiting for my perpetually late friend I was doted on by a most dapper gent with a silk bowtie and handlebar mustache. The salon room is incredibly handsome, with low back black leather couches, oriental rugs, and a gilded door. I chose to sit on the patio facing Elizabeth Street, so I could both feel beautiful and watch the beauties passing by.
Wine wasn’t on my mind, so I ordered a preprandial drink-​champagne with a dash of cognac and bitters called the Monday Fizz. It’s touted as a wine bar, but they keep some top shelf liquors too. I was served by this tastemaker who looked as if he had come straight from the haberdasher and bore a striking resemblance to the Pink Panther. The drink was great, the interior stately, but this man was unforgettable.
I almost wanted to flake on Public and stay protected under this lotus leaf for the rest of the night. They serve food too, though I’m not sure if they have their own menu or if they serve from Public’s. With such great conversation and libations, food would likely be an afterthought.
The Monday Room was the best reward for coming early. Why can’t punctuality always be accompanied by men from Vogue Homme and cognac?

We were looking for a wine bar in the neighborhood, and Unilocal led us to the Monday Room. It’s a secret little place off of public, with fantastic service, great cheese and wine. There was one hiccup though, where we asked the waitress if the there was blue cheese in the cheese platter, she said no, and then brought out blue cheese! She did bring us some little chocolates to go though, for the mix up. Although a bit pricey, this place is a very cute date spot.

This was a great little place which serves only wine and beer. I was with a vegetarian so we literally couldn’t get any food, but a glass of wine each did the trick. The waiter seemed a bit impatient with us, but I guess I could see why…
Sorry, this review isn’t very helpful.

Great atmoshere and helpful waitstaff. I was not overly impressed with the food. It was good, but clearly this is a place you come for drinks and/​or a romantic/​intimate atmosphere. If I had one complaint it would be that the staff became increasingly anxious to move us along despite the fact that there were open seats around us. Good place to go for a few drinks, but if you want the option of settling in for a few hours, this is probably not the spot. I would recommend this spot to friends though. Reservations booked for 8:30 on a Friday with no problems.

After watching a segment on the Glazed Eel dish on «The Best Thing I Ever Ate,» I was super excited to try this place while I was in town.
Things started off poorly when we discovered they didn’t make our reservation for The Monday Room at 9:15 on a Saturday night, but for Public instead. Not a huge deal. We waited for a few minutes and our group of four was eventually whisked away to a «secret» entrance and seated in a booth. A woman promptly brought us water, but we had to wait for someone to take our food and drink order. After 25 minutes, the only waiter/​sommelier the restaurant had working there, finally came over and told us he’d be right with us. Another five minutes passed and the waiter returned asking us if we needed help picking drinks. We told him we were ready to order and he went on to tell us they were out of the Glazed Eel, Crispy Duck Salad and Venison Sliders. He then proceeded to explain that it was a Saturday night. Seriously? I get that kitchens run out of food on occasion, but running out of three of the 12 items on the menu seems a bit ridiculous. You may not be called The Saturday Room, but being a Saturday night doesn’t seem to be a good enough excuse for poor service and bad planning. I’m sure the food, if it was actually available, would have been delicious, but we were all so frustrated we decided to walk out instead.

Places rarely live up to their Unilocal hype. There’s always some Unilocaler waxing poetic about this and that, but the reality almost never lives up to the picture I’ve painted in my head.
BUT The Monday Room delivers. I entered this relatively small bar/​lounge with low expectations. «Secret» entrance? Been there. Sleek finishings and plush leather seats? It’s New York for crying out loud, these joints are a dime a dozen. Impressive wine list? Big deal. I was so ready to write this off as another overpriced wannabe speak-​easy type of establishment.
Yes, impressive wine lists, beautiful décor, excellent food, and hidden gems are all fairly common in New York, but it’s exceedingly rare that a single place carries each and every aspect off well. Oftentimes, the drinks will be good but the food not so much. Or it’ll be beautifully decorated with watered down, overpriced drinks. Not the Monday Room.
Everything I tried was was absolutely on point. The venison sliders were delicious (not gamey, not tough, just succulent loosely packed mini burgers with a tiny cornichon skewered on top), the cod fritters good, the eel spoons were super flavorful, the seared foie gras was perfectly accompanied by a polenta cake and blueberries (unexpected, but so good) and the complimentary spiced popcorn in lieu of bread was a welcome change.
I’m not a huge wine connoisseur, so I can’t comment too much on that, but the glass of cava I had was tasty, and they have many affordable half glass options at $ 5 and $ 6. If you favor liquor based drinks, they can also bring your cocktails from the Public bar downstairs.
Service was super pleasant and helpful, but never overbearing or pushy. My friend and I chatted for a while after our bill was paid and were never rushed to clear the table or leave.
All in all, a great experience and I’ll definitely be back. I rarely rave about places, but The Monday Room deserves it. The $ 6 Monday menu makes it even better.

Delicious! We had the Glazed Eel and Crispy Duck and Lychee Salad for starters and I loved both. Things I never would have put together in my head and yet here they were as highly sophisticated dishes. Meat plate, cheese plate, and venison burgers to round out. Everything was great, I only wish I had had the capacity to eat more.
The service was admirable, because this was one of those occasions where you know your party is being a pain in the ass (it was a girl’s night out and we were kind of loud and annoying). They even brought us a small birthday cake for our friend. Everyone was nice and prompt.
Two catches: its a little hard to find because its actually inside another restaurant. Look for Public from the street and then go to the left once you are inside. Also, the wine is super pricey, so only take on that challenge if you’re committed to an expensive meal.

Had to have been the worst service I’ve ever had. Waiter seemed to have completely forgotten we were even there, did not write down our order and then naturally proceeded to forget some of the things we had ordered. The bus boy was much more attentive, but told us that he could not bring us certain things, because that was the waiter’s job. The food and wine were decent, but the service so awful that I’d stay away.

This is a great place for a date — the atmosphere can get very cozy with the large cushy booths and dim lighting. I also recommend this place on a Monday night if you don’t have a big wallet since there is a $ 6 menu.
We ordered the pinot gris, which was very, very good, and the Monday Room Chocolates. The chocolates were tasty, but way too small.
To sum up, go for the wine and atmosphere!

Up the stairs of Public, hook a left, and there is the Monday Room. It looks more like a Law Library than anything, with plush leather sofas and red (pony?) hair leather covers on their menus. I thought the pairings to this place was OK. I added up the dishes a la carte and you do end up saving $ 15/​ea, or $ 30 for two if you get the tasting menu. The paired wines ($ 50) were half glasses with each dish. I didn’t think any of the wines made any of the dishes SING, per se, but it was nonetheless an interesting experience. It’s a shame that I needed 2^nd dinner after this, as the portions were paltry at best (MINUS ONE STAR). To their credit, the caliber of the food was never suspect. Ingredients were masterfully prepared and synergized well with the main ingredient. Nothing was too overpowering. Service was attentive and friendly. More of a wine bar with ‘tapas’ than a dinner. Big eaters look elsewhere.
Ordered:
–A Five Course Tasting Menu with Paired Wines ($ 95) — wines prob taste better on their own, not paired well IMO, we split one wine pairing
TASTING MENU ($ ⁴⁵⁄₆ courses)
–Glazed eel [with pickled beansprouts and soft boiled quail egg] — served on a metal tablespoon over a slice of cucumber, tiny diced cubes of eel, quail cut the tartness, best eaten in one bite, cider vinegar used for bean sprouts, cinnamon, star anise in sweet soy for eel, cilantro, thai basili, as featured in THE BEST THING I EVER ATE (Claire Robinson)
–Dashi custard [with a salad of lobster, lime and caviar] — served shot glass style, quite complex, tasty
–Grilled Maine scallop, crispy pork belly [Thai glaze with a shallot, mint and ginger salad] — bits of pork belly were barely seen, scallop was served on its shell and very fresh, delicious
–Corned Kobe beef tongue [with roast marcona almond purée, black mission figs, chorizo oil and chocolate wafer] — 4pcs, more like a ‘cold cut’ thin slice, extremely tender, probably the best beef tongue, over Kyo Ya, Tsukushi I’ve had, the almond purée was CRACKTACULAR! and a perfect match
–Braised lamb shoulder [with green olives and rosemary crust with roasted parsnips and carrots] — melted in your mouth, too bad you only get 4 bite sized pieces, I could eat 20 of these dishes, so good
–Chocolate bread pudding [with crème fraîche and bacon] — was okay, I like Gramercy Tavern’s better, supposedly Dessert Truck has the best
Total came out to $ 94/​pp after everything

Monday evening at The Monday Room. Perfect relaxation… but at a hefty cost (that little bill in that lovely horsehide (or some other animal hide) will cause you minor stress. Be warned in advance).
I had a very long day of business meetings that started at noon and lasted until 6, one after the other. So, it was delectable to sink into one of cushy booths at the Monday Room with a glass of wonderfully crisp white wine that had been recommended by the knowledgeable sommelier. I met a friend and we whiled away the evening talking about everything and anything from books to our childhoods and sibling rivalries.
There’s something about the fact that the Monday Room is hidden inside a restaurant with an unmarked door that makes one feel, oh so in, oh so hip. And I am never «in», nor hip. But a winebar that can give me that delusion is worth the hefty bill occasionally.
Oh, and the Public is the only place I’ve been to where they have individually wrapped soap bars in their bathroom as a takeaway marketing strategy. Must work. I still remember it.

Disclaimer — one of the principles of AVROKO the owners and architects of Public as well as few other restaurants about town is a friend of mine. That said, just cause I know you doesn’t mean I’ll like it. I do however like the Monday Room. You walk into Public and behind the hostess stand is a door — just open that door and walk in (aka the Monday Room)
I love wine — so of course, I love wine bars. the atmosphere is very clubby, great cushy booths. It’s a tiny, tiny space. but very chill abd laid back with fantastic service.
Service is top knotch and the sommelier well versed in wines.

You are taken care of at The Monday Room. From the hostess to the sommelier to the black leather booths, high white-​brick ceiling and marigold lighting, this wine bar is just luxurious and solicitous enough without being cloying. The service can be efficient or engaging, they take your lead.
WINE: The sommelier handpicked and explained our flights to complement our meal. He even brought out a resplendent German white wine (gratis, mind you) for our foie gras, since we ordered a red wine flight that didn’t go. So smart. A classy guy.
FOOD: The menu is small plates in what I’d call «New International» style. From an olive trio (Italian, Moroccan, and Spanish) to the best foie gras (with pineapple and mango chutney) to oxtail ravioli to a funky Asian-​inspired ginger short rib, the menu is fearless in its scope and country-​hopping.

Old school gentleman’s club meets Nolita hipster at this way sexy back room of Neighborhood brunch mainstay Public (go in the main entrance and the door is behind the Maitre’d’s desk). I bookmarked this place a while ago not realizing the two were connected (Public remains one of my favorite Brunch places around). The décor is stately and intimate, and perfect for friendly conversation without making you yell or feel like you have to hush.
The wine list is really excellent, a cut above the average wine bar (in price as well as quality) and while I didn’t try any of the food, if it shares a kitchen with Public, I’m sure it doesn’t disappoint. We ordered a Chamin Bordeaux, which was smooth and spicy.
But what really stood out for me here was the service. Beyond things like decantering the wine and always making sure our glasses stayed full, the staff had a real sense of the fun of dressing up. Being served by a scruffy Australian boy in a gray suit and skinny tie combo just put a smile on my face. Also, little touches like including with the check a business card signed by your waiter just make for a 5 star experience all around. Big fan.