Experience Dinner At The Movies In New York City's New iPic Theater
The first thing you need to know about iPic at the South Street Seaport is this: If you go, you should go big.
The premium reclining seats at this New York City outpost of the popular entertainment chain are the perfect distance from the screen, which is just the right amount of large and awesome. Once you snuggle up in the "pod" built for two with a blanket, pillow, secret cup holder, and menu, begin perusing the menu before previews start.
Not only did they have unsweetened iced tea for us (instead of the canned stuff), but it was delicious, the kind you'd get at an upscale eatery. Every last food item we got was tasty, right down to the complimentary popcorn.
When we tell you that the pretzels served with cheese and honey mustard are the softest we've ever had, we are not exaggerating. It's almost as though the soft pretzels you get at the mall and the rock-solid pretzels rotting away at hot dog carts got together in one of those "pods" and made a beautiful baby.
The shrimp tacos are generous with the fillings albeit a little tough to navigate in the dark with all the moveable parts, and the lobster roll on brioche is tasty and succulent. The truffle fries are a signature must, and all of the food, which technically is served by your waiter, is really brought to you by chef Sherry Yard, who designed the exclusive "dining in the dark" menu to be eaten hands-free — no knives or forks or related accidents thereof.
Fun fact: The only bathroom in the joint is actually in the restaurant upstairs, the Tuck Room. Don't drink too much soda otherwise you'll need to journey up the escalator and through the restaurant to go. Although, it's definitely a great bathroom experience, one that will make you want to return to the restaurant to dine, which we intend to do tomorrow night. It is hardcore popping off in there.
Combining dinner and a movie somehow works without being as disruptive as you'd think with waiters running around, people dining, and folks whispering food orders. Maybe don't see that emotionally gripping Oscar contender, but the extremely attentive waiters, who appear with the touch of a tiny blue button, are more of a delightful service than inconvenient distraction.
The graffiti-style murals are also breathtaking — one is so visually complex and vivid that we didn't even realize it indeed depicted two people and wasn't just abstract.
Is it pricey? Depends how you look at it. Most movie tickets at NYC theaters are about $16, and then you have to fork up more for popcorn, and chances are, you went to dinner before or after. So the $20 starting price for seats isn't too outrageous.
You may not make this your go-to theater every time you catch a flick, but after you've experienced it for yourself, it's worth at least an encore.
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