At the Concierge's Service

Forget about the downtown hipsters, the real tastemakers (for the tourists, at least) are in Midtown. The concierges of the city make hundreds of recommendations a day, so it's only natural they get their own nights at restaurants like The Palm.

The NY Times looked at the world of concierges when they are being courted: A dinner at the Palm after a matinee of "Hairspray". Earlier in the week they saw “The Pirate Queen,” enjoyed the Russian Tea Room, and took in a performance by the Paul Taylor Dance Company at City Center. All in producers' /restaurateurs' hopes that when out-of-towners want to know what to see or where to eat, one of these will be recommended. The NY Times spoke to one concierge, Mr. Domenick, about the pitfalls:

“I sent a family of 13 to see ‘Company,’ ” Mr. Domenick said, adding that he described the plot and mentioned the occasional salty patch. “Well, 9 of them left. They were with kids, and they were from the Bible Belt.” He had given them fair warning, he said. “Look, I can’t give you a transcript.”

Ha! But we're sure Rent seem risque when it first came out. James Jolis, a poetry-at-Stanford and former Barry Manilow backup singer who is now the head concierge at the Michelangelo on West 51st Street, says one surefire Broadway crowdpleaser is “The Drowsy Chaperone."

Do you play concierge for your visiting-from-out-of-town friends and relatives? How do you help them with their choices for things to do, places to eat?