I Had Breakfast At Tiffany’s—How To Get One Of New York’s Hottest Breakfast Reservations And If It’s Worth The Hype

Everyone has had something to say since Tiffany & Co.’s Blue Box Café, the crown jewel atop the famed luxury store’s Fifth Avenue flagship, reopened in 2023 after extensive renovations and a complete culinary overhaul. But what is it really like behind the iconic restaurant’s roped-off entryway? I snagged a seat to find out.

(And, in case you were wondering, the ropes dividing those privileged guests from the gawkers are, in fact, Tiffany blue.)

Hepburnphilia 

When I was 18, I was mistaken for a reincarnated Audrey Hepburn by a doddering drunk, and the ensuing awkwardness quickly worked itself into family lore. That, coupled with my love of vintage cinema, started me down the path to becoming a “Hepburnphile.” I dress like her character Holly Golightly (from the classic film Breakfast at Tiffany’s) for Halloween and every other chance I get, including, on occasion, a random Saturday.

When I booked my first trip to NYC last autumn, I knew I would do whatever it took to make sure I got to experience a real Breakfast at Tiffany’s. But getting into the Blue Box Café is nearly as unthinkable as being able to buy one of Tiffany’s famed “Bird on a Rock” necklaces, which will set you back somewhere to the tune of $80,000. Breakfast, on the other hand, starts at $34. 

The Downside to Uptown Dining

Sitting kitty-corner from the Bergdorf Goodman and only a couple of blocks from Central Park, Tiffany’s sits at the corner of 5th Avenue and 57th – a street aptly known as “Billionaire’s Row.” While a dining experience at Tiffany’s crown jewel (pardon the pun) sixth-floor restaurant might not put too much pressure on your pocketbook, the reservation system might make you feel like a beggar. Since Tiffany’s Blue Box Café is considerably less cost-prohibitive than its jewels, the space is fairly intimate, and diners tend to linger, walk-in seating at the bar is unlikely and tables are nearly impossible to snag short of an equally difficult-to-procure reservation.

This isn’t particularly uncommon in Midtown Manhattan, where restaurants tend to guard their reservations system as fiercely as Tiffany’s security guards protect their jewels, but the ins and outs of New York dining can be difficult for a mere tourist to navigate. In the case of a highly anticipated new restaurant on one of Midtown’s hottest street corners, even luxury concierge services struggle to book reservations, which open exactly 30 days in advance at midnight. 

But, even though I prefer my beauty sleep to burning the midnight oil, I had two things on my side when it came to snagging a table. First, I was determined. Second, I lived on the West Coast.

I checked my calendar, did some research on how to manage the RESY booking site, and set a reminder for the day exactly one month before my weekend stay in New York. That evening, I went over to the house of my traveling companion, pulled up the reservations site, and began refreshing my browser every few seconds, starting at 11:59 p.m., until the reservations window opened.

When the clocks in New York all struck midnight and my own chimed 9 p.m., a full catalog of reservations appeared, beginning at 10 a.m. and stretching until the evening hours. (The café’s signature Breakfast at Tiffany’s is its croissants and caviar, but it also serves afternoon tea and brassiere-style bites fit for a late lunch or light dinner.) 

If I was going to Tiffany’s, of course, I would be eating breakfast, but would I rather have it at 10:00 or 10:30? I glanced over to quickly confirm the time with my friend before clicking Reserve Now.

I got an error message.

Refreshed my browser. 

Gasped.

The restaurant was fully booked.

A glance at the clock revealed that less than two minutes had passed since the reservations window opened. A split second’s hesitation had cost me my seat.

Undeterred and feeling more confident after my “trial run,” I tried again the next evening. This time, my fingers moved lightning-fast. I nabbed a table for two in less than a minute. Good thing, because, when I refreshed my browser out of curiosity, that day was sold out too.

Getting a reservation confirmed that the hype was real. For months after my trip, people would gape at me when I told them I’d been able to get a table. And the air of exclusivity heightened my excitement for my dining experience…even as Yelp reviews trickled in, professing that the entire restaurant was a tourist trap, the Disneyland of dining experiences. 

Yet, 30 days after that fateful night, I found myself in front of Tiffany’s in my little black dress, ready for breakfast.

Breakfast, a Cure for the (Tiffany) Blues

The Tiffany & Co. flagship opens every morning at 10 a.m. (the same time as the Café welcomes its first round of reservations), and would-be diners must traverse six flights of stairs before being rewarded with sustenance. This also requires said patrons to run the glittering gauntlet of twice that number of display cases featuring outlandishly priced jewels.