What done one write after dining in a restaurant so many times? The Grand Tier is always good, and always a respite from the stress of NYC. And one gets to hear an opera as well!

We ate at the Grand Tier Restaurant as part of a special night: introducing a granddaughter to her first opera. The dinner was an excellent start: the menu selections were interesting and varied enough for everyones' tastes; the service was gracious and unobtrusive and the food was excellent!

We were able to hold a conversation without having to strain to hear. The table decoration was just enough to be festive yet not overwhelming and the table itself was large enough that service pieces were not crowded.

At intermission our deserts awaited us and we had an unhurried time enjoying them!

Excellent meal before the opera. Able to return to the table during first intermission to enjoy our dessert. Highly recommend.

Great food, perfect service, world class ambience (it's at the Metropolitan Opera house for God's sake!). Worth every penny.

We dined here before a matinee opera. At first we had a seat in the front area but it was unbearably hot and the sun was BLINDING! The waiter graciously moved us to another table. The food was amazing! The eggs Benedict was the best I’ve ever had. The Caymus wine was excellent. It was an amazing meal! This was our third time to eat here and it never disappoints.

The food was fabulous! Any forkful from any of the three courses was delicious! Our waiter was wonderful - just the right combination of professional with a slightly repressed twinkle in his eye. The champagne was lovely and cold. It added greatly to a wonderful evening at the opera.

If you want to make your opera experience really "Grand ", this is the place to dine.
Yes, it is pricey. But, the whole opera experience starts from here. You are under the famous chandeliers. Staff are very cordial and nice. Food is in a right size. I mean I am a small eater, yet, I could finish it. So, dress up ( although, there is no dress code ) and enjoy the grand night !

A special night at the Opera. Lots of smartly dressed people, lovely waiters, great service and delicious food. Rey expensive but worth it for the occasion and a wonderful night out.

Very elegant setting, excellent service and perfect atmosphere.

Excellent food and very good wine selection. Expensive but worth every penny because of quality and convenience.

Great place to dine before an opera. Service was refined.

Inattentive waiters at times due to the rush. Need a separate restroom (especially ladies) for dinner patrons.
Waiters try hard to make a good experience.

The overall experience was simply outstanding. It is the perfect choice for dining before a performance at the Met. The price point is what one might expect to be commensurate with a performance at the Met. The executive chef is a master of seasoning choices that are complex and not overpowering. I am no food critic but I know good food when I taste it. With all our dish choices, the seasonings were a fantastic blend of a main seasoning and a cast of ancillary seasonings that supported without overpowering the main seasoning. It was a symphony in your mouth. For anyone who values how dishes are plated (it's not especially important to me), the plating was also exquisite. I was quite impressed but, most important of all THE FOOD TASTED fantastic! It wasn't a meal, it was more of a dining experience.

Yes, but only if my friend were attending a performance at the Met Opera and the weather might be inclement. Otherwise, I would suggest the Lincoln Ristorante, which is also expensive but a better value. For example, $8.50 for an espresso is a bit much, the wine by the glass is about $4 or $5 more for perhaps not as good quality, and three courses at the Grand Tier are $98 (there is no two-course option), whereas at the Lincoln you can order two courses for $79 or three for $91 or so, and the quality of the food is better, as well as you get some extras that are not available at the Grand Tier. The one advantage of the Grand Tier (other than proximity to one's seat) is that you can order a la carte, which you can't do pre-theater at the Lincoln.

Dramatically over-priced, food served cold, horrible service. How can the Metropolitan Opera management tolerate this in their house?

The chef must have changed because the food was terrible. I have eaten here many times before the opera and ballet and have always regarded it as a wonderful meal. This time the price of prix fix dinner had increased from $70 to $95 and the meal was terrible!! What a waste of money. I won’t be returning.

This is an expensive dining experience, but, if you want, or in our case need, to eat in the Metropolitan Opera House, before a performance, the Grand Tier can’t be beat.

Pricey, but worth it for the full opera experience. Our server Todd was exceptional. Kind, funny, attentive... made our dinner one to remember.

Disastrous evening! They nearly couldn't complete 2 course service within 1 hour and 45 minutes, even though we were "on time" for our reservation, ordered within 10 minutes of arrival. Very poorly handled by server and by female manager who smiled when she "sort-of" apologized for the delay. Was told by one server that it was the chef's 3rd day on the job. Maybe he needed more rehearsal time, like the opera singers get?!

The Grand Tier has raised its prices considerably, and we now think it is overpriced -- actually, more expensive than the Lincoln Ristorante, although the food, while good, doesn't quite measure up. We go to The Grand Tier mostly in the winter to avoid having to go outside, and it is the most convenient restaurant if you're attending an opera or ballet at the Met, but mostly we prefer the Lincoln, where you get more and better for less.

A wonderful evening! Everything was perfect. Duke, our server, helped to make my Mothers 90th birthday extra special! Thank you so much!

Excellent in every respect: Delicious food, great service and wonderful ambiance!

Excellent food and service, albeit expensive!

Wonderful meal with great service, stunning views and fantastic ambience! Exquisite meal with lovely attention to detail!

Was not impressed with the service or the food considering the amount of money spent on the meal. We did love the ambiance of the restaurant though and the location of our table.

What's better than having a lovely dinner before walking a few steps to one's seats at the Metropolitan Opera?

Fantastic food and impeccable service!!!

Wonderful food, excellent service, spectacular view.

Our only complaint about the Met and the Grand Tier is inadequate rest room facilities to accommodate the crowds.

A lovely meal prior to the opera

This restaurant is a great way to get the full “Met” experience. My first time at the Met with my parents included a dinner at the Grand Tier. This was my sister’s first “Met” experience and I thought it fitting to include the Grand Tier.

The Grand Tier is so elegant that it is always a pleasure to eat here just for the setting and excellent service. Sadly, however, the food is only mediocre and wildly over priced. So you are going to feel a bit ripped off, but in a very satisfying way.

Sunday lunch before the opera
Ridiculously expensive

Service and staff were excellent! Very friendly and welcoming. Food was excellent but pricey. The experience is well worth it and convenient to get right to our seats for the opera.

As usual, our pre-performance dinner at the Grand Tier was the perfect start to a thoroughly enjoyable evening. The food was delicious and beautifully presented. The service was impeccable - Todd and his team operate like a well-oiled machine, adding so much to the evening. Even though some might dismiss opera and this restaurant as out of fashion, the two institutions make a powerful argument about the importance of respecting tradition and maintaining high standards of timeless elegance. Dining at the Grand Tier is a singular pleasure - a sumptous environment, redolent of a more formal past, where modern culinary trends are seamlessy incorporated and the guests are treated to the kind of relaxing and satisfying experience that evokes a less hectic era. Priceless.

It was our 20th Wedding Anniversary!! It was perfect! ❤️

The staff was sincere and incredibly helpful.

impeccable.

Just know it is VERY highly-priced for the food you get. Count on about $175 pp; more if you are going to drink a cocktail or a glass of wine. Show up early, enjoy the ambiance.

Lovely restaurant overlooking Lincoln Center plaza and a great prelude to a night at the Opera. The staff couldn't have been more welcoming and professional and the pre-theater dinner was run like a well-oiled machine... in other words, perfectly. The food was excellent... we had the crab cake to start and the scallops for our main course. Both were perfectly cooked and seasoned as well as beautifully presented. Considering this was a pre-theater menu The Grand Tier knocked it out of the park. Kudos to the staff for making our evening a happily delicious and memorable one. We'll be back!