10.30.08
Posted in Asian, East Village, New York City Neighborhoods, New York City Reviews, fusion, rated 8 to 8.5, small plates at 17:03 by Dominique
224 E.10th St. & 1st Ave., 212-677-0695
Great for: dumplings, pork buns when the Momofukus are too busy, cheap wine, birdlike eaters
E and I had heard a lot about this little place, and were happy to take the opportunity to try it one cold summer night. I’m glad we did. Though not amazing, it was consistently good, and when you’ve had several mediocre resto experiences in a row, that is something to be prized.
The simple menu broken down by price – $7, $12 and $15 dishes – was paradoxically difficult to choose from. Everything looked so good! We finally settled on six things. The fantastic prosecco lychee martini is included in the $7 section and comes with lychee sorbet, a brilliant twist on the usual splash of juice and a lone lychee drowned at the bottom of the martini glass. Not that I haven’t enjoyed tons of those, but this one is special.
The six (or was it eight) chili pork dumplings with grapefruit confit and chickpea semolina shredded on top were also great. The hint of fruit contrasts nicely with the spice, and somehow everything blends subtly together. We also liked the seaweed duck roll with onion confit, sesame seeds and a touch of Korean chili. I didn’t care for the seaweed (I only like it dried) but the duck was roasted perfectly, with an almost beef-like texture. The onions on the side were a bit spicy, while the sauce was not. The dish was basically six delicious little bites of art.
The braised pork bun with apricot chutney was a salty, spicy, flavor orgy. Before I tried the Momofuku version I thought these were heaven. They still come pretty close. The buns also had crunchy puffed corn, puffed rice and peanuts inside. The chutney, traditionally Persian-style with pits, was heavy, sweet and surprisingly good. Both things were hedonistic in their own ways. Be sure to have some water on hand, as the bun portion will set your mouth on fire.
We quite liked the green chili shrimp with mirin, daikon and mung bean salsa, bean sprouts and green papaya over pickled radish salad. The shrimp was so tender it verged on raw. I wasn’t totally on board with that. For a wonder, I liked the salad too, which was hot in a refreshing way. The chickpea-crusted skate in mint yogurt sauce, accompanied by beet greens and hen-of-the-woods mushrooms, was delicious. Crispy outside (the chickpea used as breading), soft within, the fish was perfect. The greens were spinach-like and I even enjoyed the minty stuff.
Tipplers without trust funds, take note: every glass of wine is $8 and every bottle is $25. I had a lovely large glass of bold cava, and E’s Chardonnay grenache and Matthias Dostert rosé were yummy too, though the afore-mentioned lychee martini in an interestingly sexy glass was definitely the star of the drinks. Our waiter was very self-assured and helpful, about the wine especially.
The cozy space has a few large communal tables and a pair of chairs at a side area. Try not to carry any bags as you will either have to sit on or rest your feet on them. Despite its small size, the restaurant’s darling, thoughtful décor makes the whole space feel inviting. And though each dish was fairly small, we felt like we got good value for our money while trying a good representation of what the kitchen can do. I hope I can come back soon.
Rating: 8 / 10
Our cost: $130 (2 drinks each)
Noise level: pretty good, unless a giant party sits behind you
Chance of walking in: low except at early times.
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10.23.08
Posted in Latin, New York City Reviews, West Village, rated 7 to 7.5, seafood, small plates at 17:04 by Dominique
[Sorry it's been so long. Between my full-time lawyer project and starring in an upcoming off-off-Broadway musical, I'm pretty swamped. I promise I'll try to keep up better - the backlog is currently about 20 restaurants long.]
122 Christopher & Bedford Sts., 212-242-0010
Great for: papas rellenas, shrimp in bacon
The English girl gang I run with sometimes (ok fine, it’s just a bunch of English girls plus an Aussie, me and another American) wanted to get ceviche again. Fortunately this time was better than Rayuela. I still didn’t love the ceviche, which I think maybe I just don’t enjoy. Citrus has never been high on my list.
The papas rellena, deep-fried mashed potato balls stuffed with beef, raisins and olives, were huge and better than they sound. They’re creamy and decadent, as well as covered in red onion slices. Delicious, as are the shrimp wrapped in bacon with spicy Peruvian dip under more red onions. That was probably my favorite thing all night. The sauce is green and creamy and the bacon crisp. The shrimp could be a tad more tender but the whole thing is still delicious. Just so you know, you get five decent-sized shrimp in one dish. You probably want at least two servings.
For a main I got the ceviche caliente, consisting of giant sea scallops and fresh shrimp grilled in spicy sauce over fried yucca (which I changed to rice). It was pretty good but had a very strong, sour, citrus taste. It could have been cooked less, too. I preferred the shrimp; the scallops were a tiny bit gritty and set my teeth on edge somehow. Some of the others let me try their entrees. The aji chicken is a bit bland and dry, but overall not bad. I found the lamb hearty in its very dark sauce.
The sangria was tasty and not too heavy. The service, on the other hand, left a bit of initiative and sense of urgency to be desired. Plus they forgot my tiradito, although it was fine because I was so full from the app and ceviche. I generally liked the Latinized pop songs they played. Not so much the scary movie on the flat screen in a random place on one wall. I kept getting distracted from my conversations by the horrors unfolding across from me. In general, the apps are better than anything else, and you should stick with those and sangria.
Rating: 7.0 / 10
Our cost: $470 (8 people, 1 app and 1 ceviche/entree each, with a few pitchers of sangria; apps are $7-16, ceviches $14-17, entrees pretty reasonable though)
Noise level: not bad
Chance of walking in: good.
The service is really abysmal. The girls wanted to come back a year later, and I just got the bacon-wrapped shrimp and papa rellena, which were still good. I had to speak Spanish to the waiter and tell him everything three times, though.
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10.08.08
Posted in food-related musings at 15:11 by Dominique
Yesterday, Mr. Bruni at the Times investigated how different treatment for men and women at restaurants is evolving. (I was impressed by how many people he interviewed for the article. I barely have time to eat out, let alone write about how it went – I don’t know how he does it.) I’ve noticed lately that some restaurants have stopped serving ladies first. Now, I don’t really mind, as no matter who gets food first we all have to wait until everyone’s ready to start. But it bothers me when servers seem to deliberately serve the men first. If you’re just going from left to right around the table, it makes sense to start with whomever is closest. If I see a waiter deliberately start with the same person every time then it’s really weird if that person is not the woman at the table. Especially if the restaurant insists upon all those fancy phrases like “pardon my reach” (seriously, it doesn’t bother me unless you clock me in the face, I’m always happy getting food) and “tonight we are offering [xyz]” (oh, so it’s free? Sweet).
According to proper manners, ladies come first. Through doors, in chairs, wherever. The places I hostessed at were very upscale and they told us to always give menus to the women first. It’s just common sense too. If you are at a nice restaurant it’s like being at a formal event. A gentleman in that situation would never greet a woman sitting down or not open the door for her. I know there has been some noise about how unfeminist it is to allow men to be gallant, but I personally prefer a man who thinks he should take care of things for me to a lout who lets me fend for myself.
Now, if the restaurant is more casual, it doesn’t matter. I completely see Apiary’s point in the article. Serving people in the most space- and time-efficient manner is perfectly fine. And I’m glad to see that many restaurants are moving away from the assumption that the man is picking the wine and paying for the meal. I remember the criticism of Momofuku Ko in the Wall Street Journal (can’t find the link, might be too old) and elsewhere that the surly chefs there were very obviously giving the male diners the heavier, some might say better, dishes. The man would get the short ribs – the woman, the chicken. It’s the same kind of sexist assumption when we order wine and the waiter gives it to the guy to try. If you really think about it, I should taste it, because the guy is more likely trying to please me than the other way around. In any case I think that’s more men patronizing women than being gallant, so that can go.
Basically, these are separate issues. One is substantive – money, wine, food for the table – and one is etiquette in formal situations. Proper manners should be observed at nice restaurants and equality is better otherwise.
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Posted in French, Meatpacking District, New York City Neighborhoods, New York City Reviews, rated 7 to 7.5 at 13:46 by Dominique
409 W.13th St. & 9th Ave./Washington St., 212-675-2400
Great for: picking up cute finance boys, tuna tartare, steak aux poivre, sparkly bottle-fueled birthdays, lazy people who want to go clubbing after dinner
My friend Dominique (she’s Angel, I’m Devil) invited me to her friend’s birthday here. It’s extremely scene-y and fun. Plus, the club Kiss & Fly is only a short passage away.
The tuna tartare with ginger and scallions is very good. It comes with a lot of avocado but they are quite generous with the tuna as well. I found it slightly chewy in a good way, not so much that you forget what you’re eating; just enough to avoid being slimy. The lobster ravioli tasted noticeably of mushrooms, which was mitigated by their texture blending in with the onions. The pasta was soft with not much lobster flavor; still pretty good in its pesto sauce.
The calamari came in what I call crazy Chinese form – unbreaded, with an abundance of peppers and sauces. (It’s crazy because I don’t like it.) It was too chewy for me to forget I was eating squid. I just picked at the peppers. The coquillette, elbow macaroni with Emmental and ham, was probably the best mac & ham with an afterthought of cheese I’ve ever had but that’s not saying much. It did taste nice and fresh though. Don’t touch the bowl, it’ll burn you. I found adding some tuna salted it up nicely.
My steak aux poivres with creamy spinach instead of french fries, which they brought me anyway, was tender, spicy and delicious. Bagatelle definitely made up a few points in this round. The spinach had only a hint of cream, with bread crumbs on top, and was quite good at first until it bored me. Incidentally, the lighting is so dark I had to eat the fat in my steak because I couldn’t see to cut it away.
Instead of dessert we had lots of bottles of Champagne. Also, I met a really cute guy in line for the bathroom and some other guys at the bar as I waited for Dominique Angel before dinner. Better than dessert, in my opinion.
The waiters try but service can be desultory, what with the crush at the bar and the sheer volume of ego and hair in one room. Try for a table in the romantic, cozy back nook but don’t expect the waiters to be able to reach you there. They are at least nice, which makes up for a lot of slowness. Don’t be intimidated by the pretty hostesses, either. They’re very helpful.
Apparently on Saturdays around 2 the place is like a day club in St. Tropez. Don’t bother trying to do anything at the bar after 10pm - it’s about 6-7 deep in a space that supports 5 at best so only the skinny will succeed. There are lots of cute banker boys if you’re into that, as well as a DJ who’s quite good. Take a deaf date, you won’t be able to hear anyway.
The food is better than it has to be but not as good as it could be. It’s clearly a bagatelle compared to keeping the crowd liquored up, though they provide an impressively extensive menu considering the simple banker/ad girls/socialite clientele. It’s fun, I’d definitely come again.
Rating: 7.5 / 10
Our cost: don’t know, probably a lot. (Thank you B!) Apps are $10-18, entrées $24-36.
Noise level: club with non-deaf DJ
Chance of walking in: as slim as most of the social x-rays who come here.
I did end up coming again, on a date this time, and I can wholeheartedly recommend the scallops St. Jacques as well.
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10.02.08
Posted in Italian, New York City Neighborhoods, New York City Reviews, rated 6 to 6.5 at 11:50 by Dominique
355 w.46th St. & 9th/8th Aves., 212-397-7597
Great for: having tons of pasta before a show
A thoughtful date took me to Becco about five years, knowing how much I loved pasta. If anything I love it even more now, but I eat it less often, so when I do I like to make it count. Unfortunately, Becco did not live up to my (probably idealistic) memories. At least August: Osage County afterward knocked my socks off. It was so good I didn’t even fall asleep despite all the food and my utter exhaustion from work.
We did the special prix fixe, all-you-can-eat of three pastas plus an appetizer for $22.95. We shared the antipasto misto, basically roasted vegetables and seafood. The whitefish was a bit overcooked, but I actually liked the octopus, which was pretty tender and not very chewy. The peas and ricotta with honey were good. The rest of the veg were mostly things I don’t eat. It’s an ok dish, and my focus was on the upcoming skillets of pasta anyway.
The goat cheese and beet ravioli had a creamy, delicate flavor. The beets were finely chopped and made the ravioli a pretty pink. I liked it at first, but it was a little too delicate compared to the other dishes. The penne with tomato and basil was a bit bland; still pretty good. The fettucine with panchetta, porcini mushrooms and peas was my favorite, partly for the nice al dente texture and partly because of the bacon (I know, panchetta is better; it still effectively just tastes like really nice bacon). There was an uneven ratio of additions to pasta though. Probably a cost-cutting measure. Midtown Hedge Funder didn’t like it as much as I did.
I’d been drinking steadily for the last few days, so I just had water. MHF had a $7 bottle of 2005 Il Brecciarolo. It was all right. The service is very good and quick here. There are tons of waiters and the place is enormous. I was amused by the upholstered ceilings. If you’re in the area and need a casual, quick meal, this is a fun choice.
Rating: 6.5 / 10
Our cost: $90 (one $7 bottle of red)
Noise level: noisy
Chance of walking in: not that good before a show.
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Posted in Asian, Japanese, New York City Neighborhoods, New York City Reviews, SoHo, rated 7 to 7.5 at 04:12 by Dominique
119 Sullivan & Prince/Spring Sts., 212-343-0404
Great for: rock shrimp tempura, orgasmic lobster with miso butter
Commodities Broker took my friend M and me out to dinner one night shortly after school. We had to wait about half an hour, but we did that in a bar down the street (the Room, it’s all beer and wine, quite nice) so I didn’t mind too much. Also, I knew I was going to have crazy delicious rock shrimp tempura soon.
The shrimp didn’t disappoint. It was every bit as wonderful as I remembered from last time. The yellowtail tartare with lots of scallion and a quail egg on top didn’t maintain the same high level, as it was a bit bland. M and CB attacked the edamame with gusto, and we also enjoyed the pork shumai. Beware the hot mustard that comes with the latter. The gyu tataki was somewhat bland too - the meat was good but it needed more soy sauce and slices. Six weren’t enough. Or maybe I’ve been spoiled by other places with ten or more slices.
We tried some jackfish, salmon and chutoro sushi, all of which were quite good. The blandness issue came up again with the two shrimp tempura rolls, though not with the spicy tuna and spicy crab rolls. I found the soy sauce massively salty. I’m not sure but I think it was in the low-sodium bottles – don’t know what’s up with that.
The hands down, chopsticks down, nearly pants down best part of the meal was the broiled lobster with miso butter. It was decadently awesome. I said the butter was like if KY tasted good. M, taking it to a whole ‘nother level, said it was what every girl wishes cum tasted like. (Am I allowed to say that on here? I guess since it’s my own site.) In any case, I completely agree with her. I confess to using the also-delectable pieces of lobster as succulent little convex spoons, because I just couldn’t get enough of the butter.
We worked our way through an enjoyable bottle of Black Dragon sake slowly, not because we weren’t trying, but because the glasses are quite tiny. We finished that as M and I mopped up the last few drops of miso butter. Dessert sake and a shared green tea crème brûlée rounded out our meal nicely. (See other review for my praise of the crème brûlée and service.)
I give them an extra half point solely for the lobster. (Thanks for telling us to get it, Dominique Angel.) Most of what we had this evening was at best a 7. If you come, get the shrimp tempura and the lobster, maybe some sushi pieces, and drink the rest of your dinner – that’s what I’m doing next time.
Rating: 7.5 / 10
Our cost: $463 (3 people, 1 large sake bottle, 3 glasses of dessert sake)
Noise level: not too bad
Chance of walking in: that’s a nice pipe dream. Put your name down and get a bottle of sake, it’ll be a while.
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