10. Sabatini

How could anything so good go so bad? I loved Sabatini's. I had my first date with my fiancée there. We have celebrated several special occasions together there; and it was always perfect. But now it has gone downhill…The restaurant also seems geared to tour groups now - with all the noise and smoke that that entails. [Note that the nonsmoking tables now have been moved to the entrance - where it is like eating in a dentist's waiting room... brightly lit and heavily trafficked by patrons and waiters.) The strolling musicians, eager for tips, play incessantly and cacophonously now... it used to be 15 minutes 'on' interspersed with 15 minutes respite. Given the low ceilings, the combination of the Filipino musicians and the raucous tour groups is deafening. Furthermore, the hallmark carpaccio had disappeared on our last visit to be replaced by cheap ham; and the staff all looked new and nervous - a far cry from the slick and silent service that Sabatini used to offer. When we complained, the manager initially offered to delete the charges for dessert and coffee... disingenuously overlooking the fact that we had fled the noise of the restaurant without ordering either…