New York City Restaurants

[P_Dias]

Return visit to La Cabra. It is so great. We lucked out and got a table very close to the area where you order. It was such a joy to listen to the counter person enthusiastically answer every question with detailed descriptions of their coffees, pastries etc. I learned a ton!

soilpimp on Instagram: "@lacabracoffee from Denmark has fast become our favorite Sunday morning coffee and pastry spot. Thanks to Chef @diningwithflynn who sources his amazing bread from here for putting it on our radar. The team is informed, passionate, helpful and just a joy to interact with. Extra-credit for whomever selects the music! #eater #eaternyc #nytimesfood #foolmagazine #bonappetit #michelin #michelinguide #foodandwine #coffee"

Amazing spot. One of my favorite bakeries at the moment.

[Zachary_Ross]

Had dinner at Fradei last night and it was just perfect to us! Sadly they are taking a break in September from the tasting menu format and moving to a wine bar format. The plan is to return to the tasting menu format post September. It was so good we are going to try to return at least one more time.

soilpimp on Instagram: "@fradeibkln and @erykahbadu We started our evening off at Fradei, a restaurant helmed by two @septimeparis alums, if you have followed along here you know Septime is one of our favorite restaurants in the world. We have absolutely loved everyone of our meals at Fradei since pur first post-pandemic visit. This meal was no exception, although this meal might have taken things up a notch. The bean, tomato, raspberry, guanciale with smoked tomato juice was 🤯 and one of the most thrilling dishes we have had this year! The entire meal was sensational! They are temporarily switching to a new wine bar like format for the month of September so get there soon if you can! Thank you @gooddocreverso🙏🏼 Dinner was followed by @erykahbadu It was HOT but as I often say she is the reigning Queen of Soul (although after seeing Chaka Khan last weekend she might have something to say abouth this) and Renee’s favorite artist so we would have been there even if it was 100+ degrees! Despite the heat and a delayed flight Ms Badu put on a spectacular performance🔥"

I’m happy you enjoyed your return to Fradei. We loved it!

[Jay_Miller]

Spending a week on Staten Island while waiting for a new hvac to arrive (my air conditioning stopped working last Wednesday).

On the plus side I’ve had a chance to try some decent restaurants that I would never otherwise have tried.

Vitalia - a small reasonably priced Italian. When we were there an amazingly efficient young woman was handling the entire room (taking orders, mixing drinks, making coffee, clearing, serving) all while remaining upbeat and smiling. Calamari was so so but homemade Ricotta with honey, linguine alla vongole and shortribs were all very good. Clams in the linguine were plump and flavorful, shortribs falling apart and flavorful, and the ricotta was wonderful. desserts are brought in from a local bakery and not so great.

Precious Island Dim Sum - apparently a new entrant the SI Chinese scene and one of the few (only?) that doesn’t focus on Americanized Chinese. I was one of the only non-Asians in the place, always a good sign. A shade below my Chinatown and Jersey city favorites but everything was good and they have a parking lot. If you’re in SI and want Chinese probably the best choice.

Marina Cafe - higher end with a lovely room and views of the water. We were disappointed with all three appetizers (soggy calamari, bland, albeit plump, blue points, and flavorful but tiny crab cakes) but the main courses and desserts were all great. The seafood al forno was well cooked with a delicious sauce. The barramundi was simply prepared and fantastic. The coffee ice cream cappucino was delicious and the Italian Cheesecake was one of the best I’ve ever had. Judging by all the people ordering hot fudge sundaes I’m guessing they’re known for their ice cream. So by all means go, just skip the appetizers.

Joe & Pats - very good pizza, though not as good as, for example, Razza. But wherever they source their pepperoni from it’s fantastic.

[M.Kaplan]

A wine bar from two Momofuku alumni is opening in my neighborhood this week. It’s meant to be burgundy-focused and looks interesting (though there’s very limited information out there). I’m hoping to swing by this week or next.

Claud: https://www.claudnyc.com/

I’m going to attempt to go there tomorrow with a friend. Looks like the bar is for walk-ins.

how was it?

disclaimer, chase is a friend (and client). list is pretty amazing and i love the vibe. i anticipate it will be packed for the foreseeable future.

Small world. Chase and Katie are college and post-college friends and I remember him well from Mailaino. We are planning to be near NYC (she’s moved to Pelham) over Labor Day weekend and will hopefully grab a reservation at Claud.

[ybarselah]

Small world. Chase and Katie are college and post-college friends and I remember him well from Mailaino. We are planning to be near NYC (she’s moved to Pelham) over Labor Day weekend and will hopefully grab a reservation at Claud.

that’s awesome. i’d love to see you.

[jprusack]

had dinner at rolo’s in ridgewood before seeing nick lowe at tv eye. im never in this area but knew this place would be great…it was. two sheet lasagnette with pesto was the best pasta dish ive had since being in liguria. even the burger with coppa was one of the best i’ve had in ages. we had an assyrtiko and some mezcal.

if you find yourself in this area, rolo’s is a must.

[Ramon_C]

An un-reserved drop in at Nonna Dora’s for dinner with a delicious antipasti of all-tentacles calamari fritti followed by an excellent Lasagna.

Compact, but nicely-thought out, mostly-Italian wine list is a +.

[Robert_Dentice]

had dinner at rolo’s in ridgewood before seeing nick lowe at tv eye. im never in this area but knew this place would be great…it was. two sheet lasagnette with pesto was the best pasta dish ive had since being in liguria. even the burger with coppa was one of the best i’ve had in ages. we had an assyrtiko and some mezcal.

if you find yourself in this area, rolo’s is a must.

I loved our one meal there.

[Evan_K]

We went to Semma last night - the food was very good. Initially, we ordered the uttapam (pancake with corn and tomatoes), dosa, mirchi ka salan (curried chili peppers), chettinad maan (venison shank), and coconut rice. Our waiter encouraged us to order the Attu Kari Sukka (lamb) and a side of kal dosa. That was at least a dish too many.

The drink menu is pretty short but there are some workable options. The standouts were the dosa, mirchi ka salan (I particularly liked that you could choose-your-own-adventure with how much of the pepper took on with each spoonful of the curry), and the chettinad maan. The attu kari sukka was also very good.

The service was a bit slow and disjointed, but it didn’t bother us much. The front of the restaurant was quite warm - the back has fans, so I would try to snag a table there on warmer nights. Also, if you happen to get seated next to a party who orders the crab, you are in the splash zone!

Lastly, the maitre d’ mentioned the restaurant group is opening a spot in Park Slope called Masalawala on August 30th that will focus on Indian street food. http://masalawala.com/

[Rich_Salsano]

I am sure there are multiple versions of this question throughout this thread but I am having trouble finding anything with the new interface. Lol.

Looking for a nice place for a special occasion expense account meal in midtown (walking distance from Park and 51st) that is not sushi or too ethnic. Also trying to avoid places that only have tasting menus. Wine doesn’t need to be the focal point of the experience.

Already excluded Le Bernadin.

Appreciate everyone’s recommendations.

[Robert_Dentice]

The Grill, Acquavit, Pavillon, The Modern Bar Room (The Bar Room is not a tasting menu).

On expense account I would do The Grill.

[P_Dias]

A little further, but Gabriel Kreuther is a good choice.

[P_Dias]

Going to Atoboy tonight and just checked out the wine list. I don’t remember the list being so pricey.

Any wine recs? Going with a party of 4.

[Robert_Dentice]

All of the Emrich-Schonlebers work great with the food and around 2-2.5x retail.

[BryanGreen]

How did you like the 63 Clinton wine list?

[BryanGreen]

I’m going to throw my rec in for WB crowd.

Noreetuh.

Wine Spectator “Best Of” winner. Retail fun Riesling heavy list. Plenty of quirky affordable picks if you know what you’re looking for or are just adventurous.

Best to go with plenty of friends, order more food than you think you should, and just indulge. Lowkey energy and pricepoint, but terrific quality all around.

[Shan_A]

I did BYO. Many WB do wine dinners at 63 Clinton who can opine on the list (if its not already online) . Very wine friendly spot. Not cheap, but excellent! Need to learn how to make my own Tomato Martini…

[Ramon_C]

Friday dinner @claud_nyc.

Pretty much hit the spot with all shared courses we ordered. A fan of the old Momofoku Ssam here, so wasn’t surprised with the good service and well-executed comfort foods. Compact, but “expandable”, wine offerings with aged bottles. I byod.

[Barry_L_i_p_t_o_n]

What did you wind up getting?

[Robert_Dentice]

I have been meaning to post a few recent meals of note.

Yoshino - An absolutely riveting meal. I have already gone back a 2nd time.

Film — YOSHINO · NEW YORK

Cosme - Shockingly great. I have eaten there twice recently and they are taking full advantage of what is in season. And the current Chef has really elevated the menu. The food paired so well with Riesling. Can’t wait to go back.