Power lunching in Midtown Manhattan had always been a game of chicken among restaurateurs demanding exorbitant sums of cash and the expense-account elite confident or dumb enough to pay them.
Hence, the $21 tomato salad at Michael’s, the $56 veal chop at The Four Seasons, and now the beef tasting menu at Ma Peche, which can, after wine, tax and tip, easily cost $1,000 for six -- the minimum number of patrons required to enjoy the feast at lunch or dinner.
