After getting
scolded by us -- and nearly every other reviewer in town, along with God only knows how many patrons – the honchos at
Table 45 and the InterContinental Hotel have done the right thing and eliminated the $6 valet parking fee.
We don’t usually bitch about parking costs: Like crappy weather and lousy relief pitching, they’re a fact of life in these parts.
But having to ante up this particular fee always irked us. First off, valet parking had always been free at Table 45’s predecessor, Classics. What changed that it should now cost $6 to check into the hotel’s own lot? Second, while paying for valet parking in, say, the Warehouse District, is a choice, there simply aren’t many parking alternatives around the InterContinental, unless you want to risk it with the East 93rd and Hough Valet, which
is free, but has questionable customer service. (Their slogan, "Get out of the car motherfucker," always struck us as less-than-professional).
Not only did 45's management have diners over a barrel, they seemed way too eager to take advantage of their leverage. Tasty appetizers or not, moves like this make customers, as they say in the business, want to kill someone.
The move to free parking is especially key if the restaurant’s overseers were serious about their stated desire to cater not only to diners, but also to hipsters who might want to hang at the bar, have a cocktail or two, and then cruise on out. An extra six-buck tariff surely wasn’t going to help them pull in such crowds.
But whatever. The valet parking charge is history. Go, eat, drink, and park for free. Just be sure to tip your valet. ---
Elaine T. Cicora
