Well, it's possible that the high price will be the "gimmick" that will help keep the place in business. For example, in Beverly Hills, there's a sushi place called Ginza Sushiko that is also $500+ per couple. It opened before the recession and has managed to stay open despite the bad economic times while other less expensive restaurants faded away. I suppose that in LA there are plenty of rich people who want to be able to say they spent X amount of money on their dinner. I imagine that in NYC it's the same thing.

[This message has been edited by sheetz (edited 08-01-2000).]