01.31.08
Posted in East Village, Italian, New York City Neighborhoods, New York City Reviews, rated 7 to 7.5 at 19:16 by Dominique
335 Bowery and East 3rd/East 2nd St. in the Bowery Hotel, 212-505-9100
Great for: tourists, serviceable Italian, people named Gemma
We had late plans in the East Village and had heard this new restaurant in the Bowery Hotel was great, so it worked out perfectly. We got a Saturday 8pm reservation without too much trouble. They had us wait a while when we got there – it seemed they had some large parties – and finally sat us at a small deuce by the door. It was the only one available, so we took it.
We started with the fritto misto, which is shrimp, calamari and vegetables, and quite good. I found it very odd that the dish doesn’t come with marinara sauce, but when I asked the waiter about it, he said that he could bring me some. It was great and I was happy. The Boyfriend got the double cheese and meat plate, which consisted of gorgonzola, pecorino, coppa and mortadella. They were all good as well.
For entrees we ordered the rigatoni with prosciutto, peas and cream and the pork chop on pomegranates and arugula (we think) with ricotta salata. My rigatoni was a satisfyingly big dish that I couldn’t finish. It wasn’t amazing but it was good, with a nice proportion of meat and peas to pasta. It was the right level of creaminess, and the rigatoni were nicely al dente. The Boyfriend liked his pork chop, although the pomegranates didn’t add very much. The ricotta salata was new to us and very yummy. Salata means salted, and basically the cheese is crumbled up and great to eat just like that.
I wasn’t feeling very well so I just had one drink, the aperol spritz. It’s a mixture of aperol (orange-y apéritif), prosecco and club soda and pretty good. Our waiter got mixed up and brought the Boyfriend a bellini instead of a Peroni, which I think was because of the bustle of the big parties. He was a good waiter, but definitely distracted with those other people. I could tell he was trying to pay attention to us and knew what he was doing but was too busy.
I liked the decor of the place, which was old-fashioned-looking yet trendy at the same time. The huge curtains over the French windows are a nice touch. Overall it was a nice place, definitely good if you’re staying in the Bowery Hotel or are in the neighborhood, and don’t feel like a very haute cuisine fussy meal.
I went again in November 2008 – the crostini with chicken liver and parmesan flakes are surprisingly tasty, as is the pizze margerita. The prosciutto is all right.
Rating: 7 / 10
Our cost: $120 (1 drink and 1 beer)
Noise level: probably fine normally, but a bit loud this time with those large groups
Chance of walking in: Medium
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Posted in Asian, Gramercy, Latin, Midtown East, New York City Neighborhoods, New York City Reviews, fusion, rated 9 to 10 at 17:03 by Dominique
237 Madison Ave. and 37th St., 212-726-7755
Great for: romantic trysts, delicious cocktails, sophisticated debauchery, incredible food
I’d wanted to try Asia de Cuba for ages, but somehow never got around to it. The Boyfriend and I decided to have a hedonistic night in Murray Hill and this seemed like the perfect place. When I pulled up in the cab, even though I’d been there before for drinks, I almost couldn’t find it, the door is so low-key. Inside I was greeted by three hot hostesses who fussed over me in a most welcoming manner. One of them led me upstairs to where Boyfriend was waiting. There’s something very naughty about the open-plan top floor, where you can look down on the larger tables in the middle of the first floor. It almost felt like I was meeting a lover for a secret rendezvous.
After a preliminary drink at the bar, we started with seared scallops on habanera corn crema with sweet and sour plantains and raisins. Despite my usual hatred of fruits and sweets in savory food (and specific dislike of plantains and raisins) I thought it was great. The Boyfriend and I looked at each other after our first bites – we could tell this was the start of something special. Restaurants seem to frequently mess up scallops by overcooking or not getting the freshest ones. A scallop that is even slightly not tip-top tastes very clearly fishy. These were perfect. Even the plantains were an interesting yummy texture. Our other appetizer was Asian pesto grilled shrimp atop wok-charred mango and pineapple and fried lotus root. The pesto is made of chives and garlic and is absolutely delicious, as are all the other parts of the dish. At this point we were so happy with the food, we couldn’t wait to see how amazing the entree would be.
We weren’t disappointed in the least. The waiter told us that the entrees were family style, and definitely large enough to share. So we just got the char sui short ribs with chili orange mojito-flavored rice and black beans on congre tostones (fried plantain discs), and couldn’t resist adding a side of lobster-boniato mash to that. Every bite we took was accompanied by an “Mmmmm!” It was amazing in every way. I was again pleasantly surprised at how well sweet things can add to a savory dish, even when I would normally hate them. Boniato is a tropical sweet potato that tastes much better than ordinary sweet potato, which I detest, or maybe it’s just that they have a magical way in the kitchen here. The mash was addictive; even when we were full and really couldn’t eat any more, we kept nibbling at it. Actually we kept nibbling at everything within reach until finally I told the waiter to please take away the temptation.
We couldn’t possibly fit any more food in, so we had to skip dessert. The cocktails more than satisfied my sweet tooth though (the Boyfriend stuck to vodka sodas). I had the mambo king, dragonfly, and coconut club martini – they’re all good, but the best is definitely the lovely, pink and delicious mambo king. It’s Champagne and Stoli Razberi in a very tall stemless flute with grenadine anchoring sugar to the rim.
As if the amazing food and drink weren’t enough, we also had one of the best waiters ever. He was attentive without crowding us, made sure we had enough drinks and generally made us feel extremely welcome and looked-after. He did a great job explaining the menu and what we would want to order. I love the ambience of the place as well – it feels very sexy and sophisticated, but not pretentious. It’s the kind of place you could go in designer jeans & a slutty top before hitting the club, or wear an evening gown and not feel out of place (I went the dress route). The lighting is dim enough to make it romantic without requiring glasses and flashlights to read the menu, and the music is appropriate and unobtrusive. We had one of the best meals ever and we can’t wait to go back.
Rating: 9.5 / 10
Our cost: $180 + $50 tip because of awesome service
Noise Level: not loud
Chance of walking in: medium, seems pretty reasonable
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01.22.08
Posted in Asian, Meatpacking District, New York City Neighborhoods, New York City Reviews, Southeast Asian, rated 7 to 7.5 at 18:15 by Dominique
403 W. 13th St. and 9th Ave, 212-675-2322
Great for: dates, Asian-French fusion, getting hammered in a civilized fashion, impressing out-of-towners, pre-club wallet lightening
The Boyfriend and I had a friend visiting from England, and thought Jean-Georges’s take on Asian street food would be a nice New York-y place to take him. We’d had dinner elsewhere separately so we just did drinks and appetizers. The times I’d been here before, the food was quite good, and this time was no exception.
We got the pork satays, beef skewers with lime sauce, salmon sashimi and spicy chicken wings. The wings had a bit too much sauce, unlike the way I remember them, but were still yummy. The fish was really good, as was the pork, and the beef was my favorite. I also couldn’t stop eating the spicy chips with hot sauce that come in lieu of bread. They remind me of papadoms, a kind of super-thin baked Indian thing that looks a bit like a tortilla chip.
The cocktails are great. Between the three of us we had several beers and the pattaya, Saigon cosmo, mai tai and East India cocktail. They’re all delicious; the East India, made of Courvoisier VSOP, Cointreau, Angostura bitters and pineapple, was my favorite.
I love the way the place looks. It’s dark and romantic but also good for a bunch of friends. It’s pretty upscale for street food, although I’d expect nothing less from Jean-Georges. We had great service as well. Our waiter was clearly very busy but managed to be there every time we needed new drinks, plates cleared, etc. It’s also not as difficult to get a reservation as it used to be, which is nice. One time I went with two girlfriends and their guy friend, and it took him a $100 handshake to just get past the bouncer, then another $100 to persuade the hostess to believe his lie that we had a reservation. This time, we were able to walk in and get a table right away, although it being a Monday night at 9:30 probably helped. Overall, I like the place a lot. It’s definitely one of my favorites in the meatpacking district.
Rating: 7.5 / 10
Our cost: $130 for drinks and appetizers for 3 people
Noise level: medium, and there are lots of private nooks
Chances of walking in: low
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