Tuesday, September 24, 2013

Moonstruck Kips Bay

This place is always very busy when I go and seems to have a lot of devoted regular customers.

Wonder what Yelp has ( and what of it we can trust, given recent revelations)

Again, from "YUM!" to "Awful!"

Moonstruck East Restaurant

2.5 star rating
75 reviews Rating Details
Category: Diners
449 3rd Ave
(between 30th St & 31st St)
New York, NY 10016
Neighborhoods: Midtown East, Kips Bay
(212) 213-1100

Order Delivery or Pickup

Nearest Transit Station:
33 St.
28 St.
23 St.
Hours:
Mon-Thu, Sun 6 am - 1 am
Attire:
Casual
Accepts Credit Cards:
Yes
Parking:
Street
Price Range:
$$
Good for Groups:
Yes
Good for Kids:
Yes
Takes Reservations:
No
Delivery:
Yes
Take-out:
Yes
Waiter Service:
Yes
Outdoor Seating:
No
Good For:
Breakfast, Late Night
Alcohol:
Beer & Wine Only
Noise Level:
Average
Ambience:
Casual
Has TV:
Yes
Caters:
Yes

Review Highlights   What's this?

  • "I was very happy with my 2 eggs, hashbrowns and coffee." In 15 reviews
  • "Love this diner in Murray Hill." In 4 reviews
  • "Great quality food, good portions for." In 3 reviews
Rating Distribution | Trend
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75 reviews in English

  • Review from

    • 1 friend
    • 52 reviews
    Linwood, NJ
    7/2/2013
    Pretty decent diner food with horrendous service. This is a place you sort of end up with on Sundays for brunch when you're too lazy to find another place to go.
  • Review from

    • 183 friends
    • 194 reviews
    New York, NY
    9/8/2013
    Does everyone else remember diners having better eggs, better coffee, better orange juice...better everything? way back in the day? Why are they all so mediocre nowadays?! Even the pickles are limp. Did running a good diner just become too cost prohibitive, or did squeezing the last dime just become more important than building client and local loyalty? Maybe with 12 million rotating customers and 1 million college kids, making decent toast just doesn't matter...I mean, clean those tables at least, for F's sake!
  • Review from

    • 1 friend
    • 10 reviews
    Plano, TX
    8/25/2013
    Food, average. Service bad. Usually. We've been here about half a dozen times, and it gets the job done, but not enough to recommend it to anyone....
  • Review from

    • 1 friend
    • 7 reviews
    New York, NY
    9/3/2013
    The service is always very slow. I have to go get the waiters, because they won't come to you. It does not matter if the place is empty it not. The service is always slow.
  • Review from

    • 0 friends
    • 6 reviews
    New York, NY
    6/30/2013
    A major disappointment. I went here with my family for a quick breakfast. We had to wait 45 minutes (there was a large party that put in orders just before us). When our food arrived, it was not as expected and they did not do a good job to rectify the situation. Will not come back here.

    First, two of us ordered an eggs-benedict dish (except with lox instead of ham). The dish was cold, and had been sitting out so long that the once-poached eggs were now basically hard-boiled eggs and the hollandaise sauce was congealed. I'd added catsup to my hash browns, but they were also cold when I tasted them. We sent them back, expecting them to remake the dish. Nope, they simply reheated it, so the lox was now hot, the eggs were overdone, and my catsup was hot (not quite the breakfast I had in mind when I walked in the door).

    When we complained to the waiter, he quickly got the manager, who apologized. But when he brought the check he still charged us for one "because you ate the food." Of course we did! We were starving, had to wait 45 minutes, and the likelihood of getting re-made food in the next century was very small. A proper establishment would've taken off both meals, and maybe offered a discount on a future meal. We told them we wouldn't be returning, and they didn't seem to care - way to rub in the salt, Moonstruck.
  • Review from

    New York, NY
    9/15/2012 1 check-in here
    I love diners, Having a little breakfast for lunch. Sometimes you just want some breakfast, no matter what time of day it is. Maybe I'm just craving some pancakes, or an omelet and coffee. When you're open 24/7 breakfast is always an option. Any time. Any day. All day.

    Anyway you want it
    That's the way I need it
    All night. Every night.
    We just had ourselves a little Journey moment there.

    Moonstruck is a pretty decent diner, with an industrial/artsy decor vibe, a nice semi outdoor glass enclosed eating area that reminds me of an atrium, and fish tanks! There is some fun art on the ceilings and walls in the main dining area, and the whole place makes you feel like you are eating in a mod-art wacko art gallery. You can see the fish tanks from almost any seat and wonder what those fishies would taste like fried up with some batter on them. Sushi perhaps?

    Since this place is only a few minutes walk from where I work it's another option when I am sick of the deli's and sushi places in the area. Huge menu with all the normal diner food offerings. Prices are decent. The place is clean and the staff is friendly and attentive enough. Had an egg white omelet with spinach and feta cheese a few days ago here. Not an ounce, not even a drip of butter or grease was on it. That's how it should be done when ordering a healthy meal. Too many places will cook that in what seems like a pan full of lard. They do it right here.    

    Oh yeah, I don't know how they do it but their french fries rock! It's like they are lightly battered and fried with an extra crunchiness to them. My inner fatty approves!
  • Review from

    Long Beach, NY
    9/13/2012 1 photo
    Diner food = YUM

    I like this place - I don't think I've ever gone there before it was redone, as a couple people have mentioned, but the decor is diner-riffic, and you can stare at giant fish whilst waiting for your fattening lunch from almost anywhere on the floor.

    During my most recent visit here, my friend literally ate herself sick - she had to go home from work early because she ate so much.  She KNEW she should stop eating her omelet, but she just couldn't until it was all gone...and their portions are huge. She further went on to order an apple crumb cake - which was so large, it looked like it could have been at least 4 normal sized servings...with ice cream.

    Oink.  Her saving grace was the old man in the corner ordered the same thing.  match made in heaven if you ask me.  She was tempted to get onion rings to go...but we had to draw the line somewhere.  Gluttony, aren't you one of the 7 deadly sins?  Watch your back, girl.

    The selection here is typical diner - huge...I highly recommend their salads, everything is fresh, the variation is wonderful, and they have some really tasty salads.  That they'll chop.  I LOVE me a chopped salad.  And they have these yumtastic pita wedges with the Moonstruck diner special salads.

    I've had eggs here, as well - groovy, groovy, and their chicken fingers (hello, hangover food).  I don't LOVE their method of chicken fingers, its just not my type of breading and I like when they're cut flatter (I'm picky about my chicken fingers, back off) but their honey mustard is so. good.  Like, I could effn drink it, good.  I also love how they serve dressings and sauces in old FUSE bottles, I think its funny - and you also know its home made.

    go here, order stuff, get honey mustard and have a warm apple pie.  Just don't molest it, pervos.
    • Apple pie...with ice cream. and whipped cream. Just missi…
  • Review from

    • 2 friends
    • 2 reviews
    New York, NY
    9/28/2012
    I have been going to this restaurant since November 1989 when I moved into the neighborhood.
    Tuesday night we ordered and had been served, the waiter brought back some mustard and mayo in plastic containers with lids prepared at the location. He dropped one in front of our table and bent down, picked it up and put it on the table. It was so fast I could hardly believe my eyes.
    I asked "did you just drop that and then serve it to us?" he didn't answer but walked away.
    I was stunned as were my 2 friends. I was trying to get his attention to have him replace the mustard when I noticed a 10" + black hair on my plate.
    I then said to him "just take it away and I don't want anything else"  He didn't return and never apologized to us but when he brought the bill he said "I didn't charge you for yours"  
    I didn't even take a bite!                          
    I won't be going back there any more.
  • Review from

    Queens, NY
    4/26/2012 1 photo 1 check-in here
    In this night, in this midnight hour
    I've come to bestow upon the moon
    Here now with these words, I call upon you
    Heed the hope within my mind
    To awaken my delight
    Course unseen
    Take me where the moon glistens alluringly bright
    Into the midnight hours of this endless night
    Give me your power

    Following an unparalleled folk rally musical performance, my party of eight musician/poetry circuit were molecular transference at Moonstruck East Restaurant into the wee hours of the night.  Dinner totals $119.30 which includes 1/2 service that conjures good diner quality entrees.  My bow tie pasta with sun dried tomatoes and mushrooms were somewhat dry amid enjoyable in conjunction with my first ever Matzo Ball soup.  Oy!  The bowl was microscopic (Oy vey!) but the soup was enticing for the first try that I want some more--just not here.  My party of eight's entrees were a glaring sight materialized to delight of turkey burger, buffalo burger, sweet potato fries, feta cheese salad, et al.  Beer and wine are available which are served in actual glasses as there is no miserly on the walk of misery selfish road here.

    Service is attentive amid not very prompt.  Staff cannot break into individual bills to accommodating large parties.  Staff are not communicative with grace but they somewhat hone their customer service skills.

    Moonstruck East Restaurant is one of the better quality diners I've experienced.  Facilities are clean for the one stall each of both genders.  Albeit it is not Moon Festival but I glare to adore without reason for hunger pangs invoked this incantation at this midnight hour.  It sits on Third Avenue and operates late into the wee hours of the night.
  • Review from

    • 176 friends
    • 242 reviews
    Elizabeth, NJ
    6/26/2012 1 photo 1 check-in here
    We came here around midnight for a quick bite before a movie. 2 coffees and a shared bagel & lox supreme platter. Bagel and lox is kind of difficult to mess up, but  the lox tasted fresh and so did all the veggies it came with. The portion was big and fed us both well, and the service was quick enough for us to get out of there in 25 minutes.

    Also, the decor is great--a weird but fun fusion between outer space and under the sea. Feels very "cool" eating there.

    Unfortunately, a star is knocked off because it was actually kind of dirty...my boyfriend's fork had old food crusted on the inside and there was a hair on the table (wasn't mine...). It just felt kind of gross after that.

    I may come back again if I'm around the area because the food was pretty good and I enjoyed the atmosphere.
  • Review from

    Morrisville, PA
    7/19/2012
    I have frequented Moonstruck for a million or so years, and ya know what, they finally "upped" the quality of their ingredients.  I can totally see a 2 star rating for this place, a year or two ago. Today?  In the category of solid "go to" diner, they have definitely upped the ante.  Food quality, 100 percent better.

    Service?  An unfortunate story. We had to ask for our check three times. They do have ample staff. There are so many people that visited our table, our heads were spinning on trying to figure out who our actual server was (and could give us our check).  Food, four stars. Service, three stars.  Do better, get more stars.
  • Review from

    • 17 friends
    • 36 reviews
    Manhattan, NY
    9/12/2012
    For a go-to weekend (typically hungover) brunch spot, i have absolutely no complaints.  you'll be getting exactly what you think - decent yet satisfying food and OK service, all for a pretty good price.  There is rarely a wait, but I often get placed in the upstairs section which is a little bit more separated, and the food will sometimes take a little longer to arrive.

    I usually go for an omelette and if I'm dining with a hungry crowd we'll split french toast or a short stack for the table.  The omelette selection is pretty standard, but everything is always cooked to satisfaction. I do, however, make a point to make a special request for well-done hash browns (but then again I always like everything a little more crunchy).

    Also, they let you pay either at the table or up at the register, which always makes it easy especially for large parties.  Overall, a quick, easy, and enjoyable neighborhood staple!
  • Review from

    San Francisco, CA
    3/24/2012 1 check-in here
    Man....you know its 3am, and you are stumbling home wasted off your ass, drunk munchies are calling, and you can't decide if you want waffles or a club sandwich. It's best to stop in this 24/7 diner, because:

    a) you are drunk and hungry for something greasy to subside your hangover tomorrow

    b) you are drunk and nobody working here will judge you, because everyone they are serving is drunk at this time of night, ah, morning

    c) you are drunk and if you go anywhere else you will willing spend way too much money, here you won't

    d) you are drunk and you need something satisfying to absorb all the alcohol in your system, ideally something that won't give you the runs (Moonstruck won't)

    If you are SOBER, then why are you here??? Unless you are fueling up on food before a crazy St. Patty's day or other citywide bar crawl.
  • Review from

    Manhattan, NY
    1/14/2013
    Best diner in the neighborhood.  The salads are monstrous (but so delicious that I never have any trouble finishing them ... oops!)  I love this place so much.  The eggs are always yummy with tons of options for omelette ingredients.





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