It's been a long time! Catching up Part I - June highlights

So I was a real slacker with updating the blog this summer. In an effort to catch up, I'll start with highlights of restaurants I went to in June.

We went to a number of restaurants for Restaurant Week in June. The wife and I had lunch at Union Square Cafe. Both of us ordered from the restaurant week menu. I have to say that I was somewhat disappointed. I didn't find the food to be particularly exciting, but it might have been because we ordered the restaurant week lunch. I've read and heard that a problem with restaurant week is that the special set meals that are served are often of lower quality than usual, due to the price and quantity constraints the restaurants have to deal with. We did receive a pair of coupons for a discount when we return again for lunch. We'll use those coupons to see if we have a better impression next time. I did like the relatively casual atmosphere and bright, relaxed, and fun decor.

The next restaurant we visited for Restaurant Week was Tao in midtown. This was another disappointing experience. My wife and sister each ordered restaurant week lunches that were fairly tasty, but nothing special. Most of the dishes they had were pretty comparable to P.F. Chang's, which is pretty good, but not anything with a real authentic chinese or southeast asian flavor. I ordered a number of dimsum items and found the wrapping to be thick and chewy, and the filling to be pretty bland. If you do want to check this place out, I would recommend sticking to meat dishes, like duck, ribs, and etc.. The decor is pretty dramatic, with a high loft-like space and a gigantic buddha at the end of the dining room. Like P.F. Chang's, I think this is an 'accessible' chinese/asian restaurant with spiffy digs, decent service, and food that is a step up from your local chinese take-out joint.

Our last stop for Restaurant Week was Butter in the east village. The restaurant has a very trendy feel to it. Big plush booths, soaring arched ceilings, and bamboo style wall coverings. Definitely got the Sex in the City vibe. It was nice though that the seating is well spaced so that you don't feel like you are eating off your neighbor's lap, and the decibel level is comfortable. Kind of a more zen-like version of the trendy clubby type restaurant. I hadn't been expecting much of the food, thinking that this was just another cool place to go with so-so cuisine, but boy was I wrong. I absolutely loved the dinner they served for Restaurant Week. All of us enjoyed all of our three courses. The lobster ravioli entree had a fresh and delicate flavor, that really brought out the flavor of the lobster filling. The braised short ribs were tender, sweet, and rich tasting without being too oily. We did notice though that the prices seemed a bit higher on the regular menu. But if you are in the mood for fresh and inspired interpretations of popular American / New American dishes, this place is well worth a visit.

Important Note!
One of our favorite places in the east village, Natchez, is no longer. The space adjacent to the Patio Bar that was being leased by Patio Bar to Natchez is now occupied by Patio Bar. The waittress said that the owner of Patio Bar and the chef of Natchez decided to part ways. I would love to hear any news about the whereabouts or plans of the ex-chef of Natchez.

big steaks

Smith and Wollensky's
We had a gift certificate to Smith and Wollensky's so we went with our friends from out of town. This is very much of a business dinner type of place. When we were there, I'd say almot 3/4 of the customers were men wearing business suits. The steaks all costs around $40 each and are extremely large. Large selection of cuts, but preparation is all very simple. I really enjoyed my steak as did everyone else. The biggest problem I had was how noisy it was in the upstairs dining room where we were sitting. There is a smaller downstairs dining room that looks more intimate, where it looks like they seat smaller parties of 2-3. I don't think I would go back to this place on a regular basis on account of price and there not being any item I like a whole lot, but I can imagine myself going back again with friends from out of town or with a bunch of other guys to celebrate a special occasion.

Annie's
We absolutely loved this place on the upper east side! It reminded of us of the breakfast places we liked going to in the Chicago area and the Bay Area. The prices were reasonable, and the menu had a great variety of breakfast and lunch items, with a small number of dinner entrees as well. My sausage, cheese, and asparagus frittata was very good. It was thick and hearty tasting the way I like it, not light, fluffy, and wimpy like I've had at some places. Amy had a croque monsieur and it was delicious. There was a generous amount of black forest ham in the sandwich, which was a little much for Amy, but I helped her out so it was all good. The restaurant is fairly large, at least compared with what we are used to in the village. The atmosphere is homey. It seems like there are generally two kinds of places for breakfast/brunch in our neighborhood. There are the diner types that serve large quantities of lower quality dishes, and there are the weekend brunch places that have a small selection of items that are smaller portioned and more refined. Annie's has a large menu like at the diner's but with great tasting food like you would find at the weekend brunch places. This is a lot like the nice breakfast/brunch places in the suburbs that have long lines on the weekends. We really wish that there was a place like this close to us.

Frank
We went to one of our favorites restaurants in the East Village last night. We enjoyed the food tremendously as always. This was actually only our second time here, but we've ordered delivery a few times since going the first time. The pasta here is so good, and the times that we've ordered pasta for delivery, it was still very good. I ordered the squid ink linguine with calamari that my sister loves, and my wife ordered the papardelle with veal ragu sauce that I love. The pasta always has perfect texture when it is served. The squid ink linguine didn't have too strong of a squid/seafood flavor like I've experienced at other places, and the overall flavor of the dish was well balanced. The papardelle had a straightforward meaty flavor with the nutty sweetness and saltiness of the parmegiano reggiano mixed in. Of course, the texture and flavor of the sheets of papardelle pasta in your mouth is absolutely heavenly. Amy typically can only eat about half of the papardelle due to the strong flavors and the cheese, so I was able to enjoy both of my favorite dishes. There main drawback to Frank is that it is a very small restaurant, typical of the East Village. Throughout the night, you may have bad luck and run into a long wait, so it might be a good idea to call ahead and check. Also very noisy when it gets busy. Also typical of popular and (relatively) inexpensive East village eateries, no reservations and cash-only.

May 2005 Roundup

Cornelia Street Cafe
We had lunch here on a nice day. The patio doors were all open and we sat inside, just out of the sun and it was very pleasant. The food was very reasonably priced, and offered a nice variety of bistro and cafe food. The country pate appetizer was interesting, as it had more texture to it than the usual creamy texture. The texture came from bits of vegetables mixed in and it had a more fresh and sweet taste than the usual salty and gamey taste. Steak frites, burger, and salmon entrees were all solid. Portions were sufficient for lunch and the food was simple and straightforward, and was a little bit on the lighter side. I particularly liked the burger, which was served on an english muffin and had a fresh and nicely seasoned patty.

One if by Land, Two if by Sea
We went here for dinner to celebrate a special occasion. The room was certainly romantic and elegant as advertised. We sat upstairs which had a more intimate feel, but I think I would have actually preferred to sit downstairs in the more open and elegant looking dining room. I'm not sure if it's possible to get outdoor seating, but it would be really nice to sit outdoors or by the window on a summer night. The food was excellent, but I do agree with what I read in a number of reviews that it is not particular inventive or groundbreaking. I don't mind the lack of creativity because I thought all our food tasted great. One thing to keep in mind is that the portions are huge for this type of restaurant. We ordered the smaller prixe-fixe menu rather than the full tasting menu. Both the appetizer and entree were large, and the entree portions were especially large. You will be very full by the time you get around to dessert. We ordered the standard souffle that is commonly offered at restaurants of this price range and it was absolutely fantastic. Nice and simple, but beatifully done!

Petite Abeille
We had brunch here with some friends. I believe this is a small chain in Manhattan. I ordered macaroni and cheese and it was somewhat disappointing. I was expecting a bowl of the baked cheddar style of mac-n-cheese with a side of sausages. What I actually got was a mac-n-cheese pasta dish made with rigatoni. The first four or five bites were fantastic but by the time I was half way through, I had way more than enough. This is coming from someone who can eat a whole plate of cheese fries on his own. Amy ordered waffles and others ordered omelettes. All the other dishes seemed to be light and fresh. So if you are in the mood for brunch with lighter fare, this might be a good place. The portions also are a bit on the smaller side, so that also helps make this a good place for a light brunch.

NYC Dining Websites

Here a list of websites on NYC dining that I find useful. Eventually, I want to find a way to have permanent links on the blog homepage to this list and to a list of my favorite restaurants. I'll need to look into how to do this, and I may have to build my own website to be able to add these kind of customized features.

NYC Department of Health Restaurant Inspections
http://www.nyc.gov/html/doh/html/rii/index.shtml
Safety first! I believe this site has inspection reports on every restaurant in New York City. If you are thinking of going to a place that is not listed on this site, then it's probably illegit!

St. Mark's Place Food Map
http://www.newyorkmetro.com/nymetro/realestate/neighborhoods/maps/10862/
A guide to the eclectic mix of restaurants in the St. Mark's Place area.

Opentable
http://www.opentable.com/home.aspx
Make reservations online rather than call and haggle with the reservationist. Especially handy for fancy places such as Felidia, Daniel, Union Square Cafe, and Gramercy Tavern.

Menupages
http://www.menupages.com/
I like researching a restaurant extensively before going for the first time. Here I can read up on menus for pretty much every restaurant in the city.

New York Metro Dining
http://www.newyorkmetro.com/restaurants/
I like NewYorkMetro.com's dining section. Reviews on a large number of restaurants with insightful information.

The Food Section
http://www.thefoodsection.com/foodsection/
A great food and dining website/blog focused mostly on New York City. Tons of helpful information and great links along with frequent blog entries by the site's author.

Natchez and discovering Elmhurst

Went to Natchez for dinner for the second time this past Friday. Showed up around 7pm this time and it was much less crowded and the ambience was much more pleasant. The first time we were there for Amy's law school friend's b-day, we didn't get seated until about 9pm and it was packed and loud. The small dining room actually felt quaint this time. We sat by the window, it was still light out, and the room felt pleasant and we were able to talk comfortably. I tried the gumbo this time. Very good but it had quite a kick, so I was dripping sweat. We also shared bbq shrimp for a starter and the shrimp tasted fresh and were covered by a sweet and zesty sauce. The sauce was so good we were sopping it up with bread. Like last time, I ordered the pork chops and Amy ordered the fish. My favorite part of my entree was the corn and orzo side that came with the pork chops. It was not described as such in the menu, but big chunks of shrimp was generously mixed in with the corn and orzo, which made for a rich tasty side that could almost be a meal to itself. I was very impressed by the oyster po'boy my sister ordered. It had a mild bbq sauce in it rather than the thousand island style sauce. The oysters were not over greasy and the bread was softer and less crusty than with the usual po'boy. Overall, it made for a less messy sandwich and also tasted lighter.

Going back to Natchez, I was reminded of my expert insect extermination skills the last time we went. There was a big cockroach running along the wall behind where I was sitting. I wasn't sure what to do at first, but I decided it was too big to let it run loose, so I took my cloth napkin and snatched it up. Then I handed the napkin to the waitress and said, "I killed a cockroach with this." The waitress seemed a bit surprised and just said "Oh, thanks!" I just hope she really was surprised because I do reallly like the food there and want to keep going back.

Amy and I went to eat in the Elmhurst neighborhood of Queens this past Sunday. We were meeting up with our friends visiting from out of town. We actually regularly go to Elmhurst to shop at a chinese grocery store there after church on Sundays, but typically we eat lunch at church and then go shopping, so we never had opportunities to sample the restaurants in the area. I think most people consider Elmhurst to be the "third" Chinatown, behind the one in Manhattan and the one in Flushing. I would agree with that in the sense that it is not nearly as big as the other two, but the great thing is that it is not nearly as crowded either. We went to a restaurant called King 5 specializing in Taiwanese beef soup noodles. We ordered various types of soup noodles and Amy ordered her usual Taiwanese fried pork chop over rice. All of the stuff we ordered were very authentic. In particular, the noodles tasted like they were made from scratch and Amy's pork chop rice came with the soy sauce hard-boiled egg and salty ground pork like it should. We also found out that there was a restaurant in the area that specialized in Taiwanese dishes including some of my favorites such as oyster pancake and smelly tofu. From now on, we will look to sample the restaurants in the area by picking up some dishes to supplement dinner before heading home.

We were in fact planning on going to Joe's Shanghai in Elmhurst. We found out that it had been closed, probably b/c it wasn't doing as good business as the other locations. So I still haven't had the soup dumplings at Joe's Shanghai. I wonder how impressed I would be though since I've tried them at lots of places and they all taste about the same to me.

Natchez
31 2nd Avenue
New York, NY 10003
(212) 460-9171

King Five Noodles
82-39 Broadway
Elmhurst, NY 11373
(718) 205-7888

catching up

It's been a while. I've not been very good at keeping up with this whole blogging thing. So let's see, where have I been to eat since the last time I blogged.

The most memorable meal that I had recently was going to Tartine for dinner on a beautiful spring evening. We brought a bottle of sauvignon blanc and every dish we ordered was fantastic. We ordered mostly specials. Amy had a scallop appetizer with a light herb broth and generously covered with tobiko. The contrast between the slightly salty and sour tobiko and the sweet and rich scallops was fantastic. I tried their french onion soup and it was one of the best I ever had. It wasn't over salty and peppery like at most cheap places. There was a fresh sweet taste of onions and just the right amount of saltiness and cheese flavor to complement the onion flavor. For main course, I had an excellent pork chop and Amy had a seared yellowfin tuna. Both dishes were just great. The first time we went to Tartine we liked it but were slightly disappointed. My sister had really hyped up the 'chicken pot pie' dish. We liked the pot pie but it was a little too much of the same thing. I think if I was in the right mood, I would have really liked it, but I think we will stick to picking items off the specials list that look good to us. And of course the french onion soup.

We went to the Union Square Coffee Shop for lunch a couple of days ago. You know, the one on Union Square East, at 16th I think? The one across the street from Blue Water Grill and where everyone likes to sit outside. The food was pretty light for the 'diner' type of food I was expecting. Portions were a little small for the price, but I can see that they are going for a lighter slightly more upscale menu despite the Coffee Shop name and diner look of the place. I would definitely go back again and perhaps try some of the many Brazilian items they have on the menu. Actually, sitting outside at the Coffe Shop made us really want to try Blue Water Grill. The outdoor seating at Blue Water Grill was not very well shaded, but they had all the windows and doors to the patio open so it looked really airy and inviting inside the dining room. Will definitely have lunch there sometime soon.

Let's see, we also went to Otto Enoteca with my sister a couple of weeks back. Each time I go I like the place more and more. I've gotten over the high price/portion ratio and am fulling embracing the gnoshing of the various appetizers and pizzas. The pastas are still somewhat uneven, but we haven't gone wrong by ordering appetizer specials and pizza specials to share. The wine by the caraffe is also great. The place can get super busy for dinner but lunch and late dining are great options, especially since the menu is so suitable for snacking.

One other place I wanted to write about is Risotteria on Bleecker in the West Village, close to Cornelia Street. We've been trying out a lot of the restaurants in the Cornelia/Bleecker area in the last few months. Risotteria was especially good for us because Amy loves risotto and they not only have great risotto, but such a wide variety of flavors that pretty much anyone can find something they like. The place is very small, but it's not too busy at lunch.

Actually, now that I've mentioned Risotteria, I have to write about Pearl Oyster Bar as well. Pearl Oyster Bar is a New England style seafood place, serving classics such as oyster rolls and lobster rolls. I find the lobster roll a little too sweet, but the oyster roll is fantastic every time. This most recent time I went, Amy ordered something that was absolutely fantastic. She had a pan fried skate sandwich and I just loved it. She had the skate last time, but it was on its own served with some kind of side starch. I loved the sandwich version because it has the sauce/dressing that they put in the oyster roll and it tastes great with the juicy skate. This is becoming one of my favorite lunch places, although it is a bit pricey.

Alrighty, that's a lot of stuff I've written tonight. Probably will be going out to lunch with Amy and my sister tomorrow and will be having lunch with friends visiting from out of town in Queens this Sunday. I don't think I've actually sat down and ate at a restaurant in Queens before. From what I've seen of Queens so far, I actually haven't seen any restaurants that seem interesting. I'll do some research before Sunday and try to find an interesting place. Will report back here if I have a notable experience.

Tartine
253 W 11th Street
New York, NY 10014
(212) 229-2611

Coffee Shop
29 Union Square West
New York, NY 10003
(212) 243-7969

Otto Enoteca Pizzeria
1 5th Avenue
New York, NY 10003
(212) 995-9559

Risotteria
270 Bleecker Street
New York, NY 10014
(212) 924-6664

Pearl Oyster Bar
18 Cornelia Street
New York, NY 10014
(212) 691-8211

Cheese Fries

Went to Outback last night by myself after my afternoon class was cancelled. Actually stopped by Jamba Juice first to get a smoothy and to do some studying until dinner. Arrived at Outback with a stomach full of Jamba Juice and proceeded to order one of my all time favorite dishes and ultimate guilty pleasures, the Aussie Cheese Fries, along with an extra large 22oz beer. On a typical evening, I can finish the entire order of cheese fries on my own, but was only able to eat about 1/3 of the whole thing this time. Probably psychological, but the plate of cheese fries looked quite a bit bigger than all the many other times that I've ordered it to go. Anyway, tasted excellent, especially since it was fresh from the kitchen instead of having sat in a take-out container for about twenty minutes. Also nice not having to speed walk from Outback to the subway station and hoping that the train comes soon so my fries will stay warm.

Saw a screening of a horrible movie after Outback. It's called In My Country and it's about the apartheid reconcilliation hearings in South Africa. A very serious subject matter, but it incorporated a ridiculous love story b/w Samuel L's character and Juliette Binoche's character. Felt like the film was trying to add a road trip element as well. Didn't know if I should laugh or cry when a scene of a mother testifying about the brutal murder of her child is followed by Samuel L. and Juliette Binoche partying it up at a bar and then hopping into bed with each other.

Was really excited about this movie screening class I am taking, so I was a bit disappointed when I didn't like this first movie at all. It was kind of fun feeling a little bit of the New York City celebrity vibe when they introduced Cady Huffman (The Producers), John Shea (Lois and Clark), and Michael Imperioli (Sopranos) in the audience. Dr. Ruth came on stage at the end and promised that everyone in the audience would have great sex for the rest of their lives b/c they came out in the blistering cold weather.

Polished off the fries with the help of the wife after getting home. Just couldn't let myself leave the fries in the fridge overnight.

Outback Steakhouse
www.outback.com
60 W 23rd Street
New York, NY 10003
(212) 989-3122