11.26.10
Posted in Greenwich Village, New York City, New York City Reviews at 20:27 by Dominique
113 MacDougal St. & Minetta Lane, 212-475-3850
Great for: everything especially burger, people-watching, meeting at the bar
I was a little skeptical of Minetta after hearing all the hype, but it’s an unqualified McNally success in my book. It was awesome we could celebrate my friend the Eurasian Beauty finishing her Series 7 exams and the end of my 6-day juice fast in such style. She had a 10:30 reservation for four, and around 11 they gave us a nice table right in the middle of everything. Next to the Allstate guy! Apparently he’s the president from 24 as well. We decided, upon looking around at other people’s plates, that two appetizers and two entrées would probably be enough for us to share. If no one’s starving, that’s about enough food.
The dressed prawns with Bibb lettuce, trevise, haricots verts, celery root remoulade and lemon was very lemony indeed, in a good way. The vegetation was a delicious contrast to the large, fresh prawns. We loved the tartare goutez tasting, which comprised veal with black truffle and chervil, lamb with argan oil, olives and mint, and steak with mustard and cornichons. The tartares came in quite small portions that looked like quenelles, but were actually a good amount. The lamb was the chewiest and my favorite was the veal. All of them were well thought-out flavor combinations.
There was definitely enough fish in the trout meunière with brioche croutons and crab. I didn’t need the croutons but the great big fillet’s perfect, crispy skin with tender, juicy meat was perfect. And of course, we had to try the much-vaunted LaFrieda Black Label burger with caramelized onions and fries. I totally get what all the fuss is about. The meat is buttery, nutty, juicy and either marinated well or just naturally tasty and thick – it goes in my hall of fame. We didn’t even need to add ketchup. I also have to praise the crunchy fresh pickles, which were sour as hell and terrific. The fries, just to overload our pleasure circuits, were chewy and irresistible.
With such great food, no wonder the place was still full at 11 pm. Our very nice waitress didn’t rush us and was unobtrusive. I like the speakeasy vibe. It’s a bustling place with quite a lot of large tables, and an interesting black- and white-tiled floor. It seems to be plastic, which probably keeps the volume down. The crowd, on the other hand, is full of noisy, fashionable people, with many older women trying to look at least twenty years younger. (Since we are all in our early twenties they looked pretty bad by comparison. What, I’m not mean, it’s true.) I am very much looking forward to trying other things on the menu and having some more heavenly burger.
Rating: 8.5 / 10
Our cost: $120 (4 people, 2 mains, 2 sides, no alcohol)
Noise level: eclectic music at a good level, people are loud
Chance of walking in: don’t bother, make a reservation, & unless you’re a somebody, expect it to be at 5pm/11pm.
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Posted in brunch, East Village, French, New York City, New York City Reviews, rated 7 to 7.5 at 18:45 by Dominique
84 E. 4th St. & 2nd Ave., 212-979-2034
Great for: pani frattau
My friend Lovely Blonde and I tried to play tennis one Saturday morning but it started to drizzle just as she picked me up on her Vespa. That was all the excuse we needed to skip exercise and go for early brunch. Stupid Prune had a half hour wait at 10am so Belcourt it was. (I do really want to try Prune, I just hate waiting more than I could possibly love the food. I only wait if I am paid handsomely or it’s less than 15 minutes.)
After falling in love with half the things on the menu, I finally settled on salt cod hash with poached eggs, harissa, potatoes, peppers, scallions and flat bread. What little there was of the fish was tasty, and I quite liked the combination of things. The bread was not good.
LB’s waiter-recommended pani frattau was terrific. It consists of music-paper bread lasagna with house-made ricotta, crème fraîche, tomatoes, Parmesan and poached eggs. The whole thing was soft and yummy and almost inspired me to make lasagna at home again. (It is a bit too much trouble and I have too many leftovers when it’s just me.) And of course, how could I, a singer and violinist, not love music-paper bread?
Service was nice, décor too, and I plan to visit again to see if they make anything else well.
Rating: 7 / 10 (pending dinner review)
Our cost: $30 (2 brunch entrées + $5 pot of tea)
Noise level: noisy
Chance of walking in: decent, there are a lot of tables.
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Posted in American, eclectic, Greenwich Village, New York City, New York City Reviews, rated 8 to 8.5 at 17:16 by Dominique
9 Jones & W. 4th Sts., 212-929-6868
Great for: salad, duck meatballs, agnolotti, really pretty much anything
I have never watched Top Chef. I suppose this could be an honorable exception, but I have a strict no-reality-show policy. There are so many scripted shows I watch for work, I just don’t have the time or desire for much else. Plus, looking at food on TV makes me hungrier. All this is to say that I had no prior knowledge of Harold Dieterle except that he won one of the seasons. And I am glad I could be so pleasantly surprised.
Blackboard Eats offered a 30% discount which I shared with my good friends the Average Wonderwoman (her choice of name) and B. We started with some crisp, light, tasty duck fat popcorn. If they served this in movie theatres I would have a hard time not eating it. AW stayed on the somewhat healthy path with a great appetizer of Bibb lettuce, hearts of palm, peppercress, mango, manchego and toasted macadamia nut vinaigrette. My spicy duck meatballs with mint cavatelli, water spinach and quail egg were my favorite of the whole meal. It’s four big meatballs in scrumptious sauce.
B’s crispy lamb belly with pickled rhubarb, black lentils, feta froth and Banyuls-vanilla caramel was surprisingly not sweet. The lamb bits are chunky but not fatty – the dish is very satisfying and large. Chef Dieterle really has a gift for combining things that sound like they wouldn’t get along and turning them into a harmonious flavor symphony. (Even six months later, the memory of the food inspires me to purple prose.)
B ordered the wonderful spicy duck burger with jack cheese, avocado and spicy fries. They brought duck breast by accident and immediately and graciously corrected it. The finely minced patty is seasoned well, and very filling. The fries are more spiced than hot, and so good I had to strictly limit myself to only a few.
I got the tasting of wild boar, which included grilled strip loin, crispy boar belly in crispy eggroll skin and a stuffed cabbage bon bon. The strip loin I liked though it was a bit tough, I think just because it’s game. The belly was a fat explosion as expected, and tasty though I didn’t much care for the sweet red sauce under it. I liked the cabbage thing; I didn’t know what to expect, and it turned out to be sausage-like.
AW’s fiddlehead fern agnolotti with honshimeji mushrooms, lemon zest, asparagus and aged pecorino were delicately delicious. Fiddleheads are interesting, crunchy and earthy. I decided I like them, but not enough to go to the greenmarket. The asparagus were great, the agnolotti the length of my finger and lovely.
They brought some yummy petits fours and coconut ginger cookies, as if we needed any more calories after all the meat and wonderfulness. Their cocktail list is small but a good bet. I can recommend the Perilla 75 and Liliko’i personally.
We had a hot, very thoughtful waiter. The restaurant is bigger than you’d expect for the area, filled with gorgeous dark wood and lots of candles and light. Overall, the portions are nice and large, maybe not mind-blowing but really good value for the amount of food and how tasty it is.
Rating: 8 / 10
Our cost: $190 not including discount (2 cocktails, 1 glass wine, 1 bar snack, 3 apps, 3 entrees)
Noise level: convivial hum
Chance of walking in: you want to reserve. It was full on a Sunday at 8:30, and the place is not small.
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Posted in Indian, New York City, New York City Reviews, rated 7 to 7.5, Upper East Side at 03:47 by Dominique
175 E. 83rd St. & 3rd Ave., 212-628-3000
Great for: hungry people – get the combo
The ex and I (this is the last time you will hear about him, and more importantly the last time I have to write about him, hooray) were on the upper east side for some reason. I’d wanted Brick Lane’s lunch buffet but he was so late meeting me we had to go to May Chan instead, and now my Indian craving would not be denied. This quiet spot was pretty much exactly what I wanted. Not hard on the budget, either.
We both got the Thali combo for $18.95, which comes with tandoori chicken, lamb shaag, chicken dopiazi, poori (fluffy bread), salad, rice and tea or coffee. Each entrée is about half the size it usually is at other places and maybe one-third the size of the mains here, which are $12.95 and up, so this is a great deal. They don’t stint with the meat either.
The slightly spicy, very crisp papadums are terrific. We wasted no time demolishing them utterly. The standard green and red sauces are fine but the pickled onion salsa was the standout for me. The two pieces of tandoori chicken were juicy and tender. Shaag of lamb with onions, tomato and spinach was a tasty mush in the best sense. The dopiazi was also nice, though not spicy enough for me. I was happy to find that the deceptively deep bowl of rice was completely sufficient for my sauce mopping-up needs, assisted by the poori, which was an enormous thin puff as big as my hand span.
The service is very friendly. The green and red décor reminds me of my favorite Indian restaurant in the world, the Mughal room in Cairo. (I really wish I had started this blog when I was traveling everywhere with the English Ex.) It’s colorful and old-fashioned without being shabby. I have added it to my list and you should too.
Rating: 7 / 10
Our cost: $50
Noise level: quiet
Chance of walking in: pretty good. It’s kind of tucked away.
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Posted in Asian, East Village, Japanese, New York City, New York City Reviews, rated 7 to 7.5, small plates at 03:28 by Dominique
119 2nd Ave. & 7th St., 212-982-4285
Great for: meat yakitori, gyoza, trying many small things
If you like to nosh on tons of little nibbles, as I do, this is the place for you. It even has decent ramen and happy hour deals.
Of the skewers, which are all $2, my favorites were the chicken breast and thigh with scallion. The shrimp was very tasty but overcooked, and the salmon was also good but the seasoning left something to be desired. The skirt steak was flavorful and slightly tough.
Beef ramen is quite good for only $7.99. The noodles are nice and chewy, and I very much enjoyed the ample amount of lovely shredded beef. I did have to add a lot of spices to the broth. And I really liked the six terrific gyoza for $2.99. They had properly thin skin, and though I could do with more meat I heartily recommend them.
Everyone was nice even if the service was a bit slow, and we were there around 4:30 pm, which I know is a weird time for the kitchen. I doubt it’s normally a problem. The food was good enough to jolly me out of a bad mood.
Rating: 7 / 10
Our cost: $40 (including green tea and a small bottle of Coke)
Noise level: probably loud when the NYU kids are there
Chance of walking in: probably not too bad.
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Posted in Chelsea, New York City, New York City Reviews, rated 7 to 7.5, small plates, Spanish at 02:29 by Dominique
205 10th Ave. #1 & 22/23 Sts., 212-675-8805
Great for: croquettes, calamari, deviled eggs, potatoes
Since I’ve only lived on the east side of Manhattan, I have neglected Chelsea restaurants shamefully over the years. (Well, that’s mostly my dates’ faults.) Fellow eater Hagan of Wandering Foodie suggested lunch and it seemed as good an opportunity as any to pay a visit to the justly-famed Tía Pol.
We started with some very robust roasted chickpeas, which may have been cooked in bacon fat. Whatever my waistline has to say about that, my taste buds heartily approve. The crisp croquettes are also great here. The ham ones came with a béchamel or cheesy filling, it was hard to tell, and I didn’t really care because I was too busy devouring mine. The ham was of the quality you’d expect from a good Spanish restaurant. The special croquettes with creamed asparagus were also lovely and quite big, too.
I wasn’t sure about Hagan’s insistence on a calamari po’boy but it was terrific. The combination of aïoli, tomatoes and bitter greens was a great contrast to the delicious squid, which was only mildly rubbery. What a unique and well-done idea for a sandwich.
I loved the fantastic, creamy deviled egg al pimentón de la vera (paprika). It was exactly what I hoped for. There’s just something about deviled eggs – it’s a good thing they’re too much trouble to make at home, or I’d have really high cholesterol. The spicy lamb skewers, while decent, were the one misstep in the meal. They needed more flavor. They do have salt flakes on top but that’s not the same. We were happy to finish with the excellent patatas bravas with their spicy aïoli, crisp exteriors and soft insides.
We ate at the bar, which was pleasant, and I didn’t notice any lapses in service. The atmosphere is typical blond wood and sleek without being too hip. I can see myself making more of an effort to be in the neighborhood.
Rating: 8 / 10
Our cost: $50
Noise level: loud
Chance of walking in: it’s not that big, so you will probably have to wait. Parties of 6-8 can reserve.
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Posted in American, Barbecue, New York City, New York City Reviews, rated 7 to 7.5, West Village at 02:07 by Dominique
178 W. Houston & 6th Ave., 212-741-7390
Great for: ribs, buffalo wings, takeout
I have no idea how I’ve never heard of this place when I’m such a huge barbecue fan. Apparently it’s been around for years. It is about the size of a postage stamp with a grand total of four tables, though. That’s probably why takeout is 10% off.
I shared a brisket and 1/4 rack combo platter with stuffing, potato salad and cornbread. The ribs were truly fall-off-the-bone delicious and I could definitely have had more. Could use some right now, in fact. They were balanced between sweet and savory just the way I like, decidedly on the savory side. The stuffing was very good – I found it a bit bready but that’s what stuffing is, so I didn’t really mind. The potato salad is creamy and liquid instead of with mayo, which is odd but still tastes good. I was somewhat disappointed in the tender but not fantastic brisket. It maybe needed more braising or marinating.
I loved the eight medium-size buffalo wings. They were very crisp despite dripping with sauce, which was spicy without destroying my taste buds. Definitely one of the better versions I’ve had. Damn, I just made myself hungry again.
It’s a cute, quaint little restaurant. The owner/chef is nice and you might get to know some strangers while you’re pressed up against them eating delicious meat. I may need to stop by soon for some more ribs and wings.
Rating: 7.5 / 10
Our cost: $35 (1 combo platter, 1 order wings, no drinks)
Noise level: noise is unavoidable in such a small space
Chance of walking in: not good. Takeout is definitely an acceptable option.
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11.25.10
Posted in Asian, Lower East Side, New York City, New York City Reviews, rated 7 to 7.5, Southeast Asian at 20:12 by Dominique
172 Orchard & Stanton Sts., 212-228-9833
Great for: lunch special, crispy flounder
My actress friend E had just moved back from LA so I took her out to lunch. We tried to go to Café Charbon nearby, but it turned out great that they’re not open for lunch on weekdays – this place was a very good, albeit completely different, substitute.
Lunch is only $7.95 including soup (winter) or salad (summer), shrimp and crab taro spring roll, veggie spring roll and an entrée. All the little appetizers are good, though they are quite tiny. My crispy flounder can only be described as awesome, a perfect combination of crispy outside and tender inside. Its bed of rice noodles was just as good. E’s pad thai was pretty good too, though not on the same level.
Our waitress was very nice. I’m definitely going to try some more food here soon.
Rating: 7.5 / 10 (pending dinner review)
Our cost: $30 for 2 lunch specials with iced coffee and tea. Cash only
Noise level: probably fine unless the nearby Meatball Shop patrons really whoop it up
Chance of walking in: not too bad, medium size.
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Posted in Italian, Midtown West, New York City, New York City Reviews, rated 7 to 7.5 at 03:11 by Dominique
234 W.56th St. & 8th Ave./Broadway, 212-265-2610
Great for: specials, bruschetta, pastas
The then-Boyfriend’s parents were taking us to see Jersey Boys, and wanted Italian food nearby beforehand. This seemed to fit the requirements, and turned out to be a really good choice. So was Jersey Boys, for that matter – I didn’t even know most of the songs and I still loved it.
I had an audition beforehand so I missed most of the apps, but they very kindly saved me a little bit of each. The calamari was just ok, pretty chewy, with nice breading and sauce. The bruschetta was better. And I was really glad they’d managed to leave me some of the creamy burrata special, which was scrumptious mozzarella wrapped in lightly toasted prosciutto. I would happily have eaten a couple more plates of that.
Two of us ordered the rock shrimp and scallop spaghetti special with cherry tomatoes and arugula. Though the tomatoes could have been incorporated more, it was very good overall. The nice fresh seafood was cooked just the right amount. I couldn’t bring myself to try any of the special of ravioli stuffed with wild mushroom in butter and sage sauce, but the sauce turned out to be quite tasty despite the mushrooms. The baccalà with potato slices (really chips) in fennel purée was well-executed, tender and flaky.
Service was as lovely as the décor. If you need good, moderately priced Italian food in midtown, you won’t do much better than this place.
Rating: 7.5 / 10
Our cost: $160 for 4, 3 apps, 4 entrees
Noise level: happy noisy
Chance of walking in: not bad, there are lots of tables.
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