It's Restaurant Week Next Week! Good Luck

Next week the city’s gilded restaurants will once again open their doors to plebeian diners—during designated weekday hours only of course—for the 17th annual Winter Restaurant Week.

On weekdays between Jan. 22 and Feb. 8, 224 restaurants are offering three-course, prix-fixe lunch and/or dinner menus for $24.07 and $34.

Detractors say you get what you pay for during Restaurant Week, since menus rarely feature the most popular (ie: expensive) dishes. Culinary heavy hitters like Le Bernadin and Per Se refuse to participate in Restaurant Week because it would be impossible to serve the same caliber of food at such low prices. Plus, the price does not include tip or alcohol, so once you tack a decent bottle of wine on the bill, it starts to add up. Some complain that discount patrons are treated to less-then-stellar service.

Then there's the issue of even getting a table at some of the most popular restaurants. The Observer phoned a few restaurants recommended by most critics to see what tables were available. Artisinal could only accommodate two people next Monday night at 5:30 and 10, but Union Square Café had tables open “anytime” for lunch on the 26th and 27th. Peacock Alley also had a number of seatings to choose from. One if by Land, Two if by Sea—No. 2 on Opentable.com’s most popular restaurant list on Monday—is fully booked during Restaurant Week, but began extending the prix fixe menu to diners early between Monday and Friday to meet demand.

Griping aside, when all is said and done, even chicken and salmon prepared by the top chefs in New York is worth shelling out $50 dollars for. Some critics suggest forgoing established institutions like Le Cirque in favor of newcomers or mid-range fare to get the most from the Restaurant Week experience.

New additions this year include: Aspen, Centro Vinoteca, Crema Restaurante, Fig & Olive Midtown, Greenhouse Cafe, Ilili Restaurant, Japonais, Kellari Seafood Taverna, maze by Gordon Ramsay, Oceana, Park Avenue Winter, Primehouse New York, Room With A View, Safran and TBar Steak & Lounge.