222927 Sun May 29 13:25:59 -0700 2005 0 18 Manhattan 0 1185859 Had a lovely pre-theater at Rene Pujol last night. It's still $44 prix fixe for three courses, but there are surcharges on quite a few items. One sour note: I requested wine by the glass and was asked "white or red?" Answered "red", was asked "Merlot, Cabernet or Pinot Noir"? Now if I hadn't been with my large, talkative, lively, family, I might have interjected at this point, "Don't you have a list? or "Tell me about the wines", but I just wanted to get my order in, so I said "Cabernet". What I got was essentially Kool Aid. Shame on a restaurant of this caliber not having their wines by the glass on a list, and then offering no description at all of what was available. And double shame on them for plopping some crummy jug wine into a glass. I guess they assume that anyone ordering just a glass of wine doesn't know or care about what they're drinking--an old-fashioned snobby French attitude that just doesn't work anymore. Luckily I became adequately intoxicated by the roast duck and chocolate souffle, and the wine issue didn't matter much by the end of the meal! Sun May 29 13:25:59 -0700 2005 0 MommaJ