Claro on 3rd ave is pretty great.
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For sure! Almost 10 years old though. Within an easy stroll of the thousands of units that have been completed in DoBro in the last 5ish years thereās been Gage & Tollner open and ā¦ anything else of note?? Weād been hoping for a culinary renaissance and we got Fogo de Chao.
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Went to Cosme for dinner last night after a wine tasting at Flatiron a couple blocks away. Overall, I think there are better spots for the money out there.
Place was pretty packed on a Wednesday night which is a good sign but many of the seafood dishes all followed the basic same premise. Protein, with a sauce, some garnish and fresh corn tortillas on the side. Not very inventive. The scallops, lobster, soft shell crab and branzino dishes were all served this way and while they all tasted fine, it just wasnāt that exciting. A $500 bill for two with a cocktail each and a bottle of Chenin left me wanting a bit more for the money.
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Hey Rich,
My daughter and her best friend took advantage of Cosmeās restaurant week offer last night. I wonder if you saw them. Small red head with her very tall brunette friendā¦ They liked the food but thought the service was slow.
FWIW, we ate at Quique Crudo a few days before and absolutely loved it.
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Canāt say I saw them but place was definitely crowded and service was certainly on the slow side. I honestly didnāt know there was a restaurant week option. You must have needed to ask for the menu because the restaurant did not mention or offer to us which is certainly annoying now that I know!
My own fault for not looking into that ahead of time.
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another great meal at cafe kestrel. before the summer ends, you should consider dinner in their back garden if the weather is as nice as tonight. a mini prune if there ever was one with great seasonal bistro food, solid service and a good crowd.
$40 corkage now (previously $30).
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Reminder Cosme is on inkind. You donāt even have to have inkind credit to take advantage. Just pay with the app for free and get 20% of the check value back in inkind credit. If you never use it, youāre no worse off.
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Aggressive promotion of InKind. I like and use itā¦ butā¦
But what ?
Rich, just wanted to follow up on thisā¦my daughter said when she made the reservation on Resy, she choose ārestaurant weekā and she was seated at a high top in the bar area. My guess is that they only offered the resto week menu in the bar area.
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Makes sense. Thanks for the update. We probably missed it by choosing to be sat in the main dining room.
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Had the omakase at Sushi Lin in Brooklyn Heights last night. For $90pp, I thought this was a great value omakase with a mix of staples and some interesting stuff like king salmon nigiri with charred cooked tomato.
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Now maybe Iāll go again!
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Carefully worded press release to say they lost too much business. I for one prefer the vegetarian menu over the old menu. But guessing I am in the minority.
An Update on Our Menu
When we reopened Eleven Madison Park in 2021, emerging from lockdown, we vowed to rebuild differently: craft a meal every bit as transporting as before without a single animal product. The decision was a creative leap and a climate imperative.
Post-pandemic, it seemed like EMP was destined for a new milestone. Change is fundamental to who we are and how we grow. In this respect, we have to change to stay the same.
This change, though, felt different. The announcement ignited a debate that transcended food, something we hadnāt prepared for. This naĆÆvetĆ© proved to be an asset, and without it, I may not have had the courage to forge this path.
My team and I felt liberated and cracked open. The journey proved richer than any before.
We created a new culinary language: mille-feuille without butter, meringue without eggs, almond-milk ricotta, sunflower butter, koji stocks, whipped cashew cream, even āland caviar.ā We drew inspiration from food cultures we had previously overlooked. We furthered our pursuit of vegetables and launched our own āMagic Farmsā upstate.
In 2022, Eleven Madison Park became the first restaurant in the world to earn three Michelin stars for an entirely plant-based menu. Michelin wrote the rulebook of luxury dining, and to be decorated by the very guardians of tradition was something unimaginable. It felt like walking on water.
Over the last five years, with each season and new menu that weāve been serving, weāve also been intently listening to our guestsā feedback.
It became clear that while we had built something meaningful, we had also unintentionally kept people out. This is the opposite of what we believe hospitality to be.
The all-or-nothing approach was necessary to develop our expertise, but that, too, comes with its own limitations. As a chef, I want to continue to open paths, not close them.
As I approach my 20th anniversary at EMP, Iāve decided itās time for change again.
Starting October 14th, we will integrate our new language into a menu that embraces choice. We will offer a plant-based menu, of course, but also select animal products for certain dishes ā fish, meat, and yes, our honey-lavender-glazed duck.
Eating together is the essence of who we are, and Iāve learned that for me to truly champion plant-based cooking, I need to create an environment where everyone feels welcome around the table.
Iām deeply grateful to our team and guests for supporting this journey. Itās you who allow us to grow.
ā Daniel
This statement reads like it was crafted by no less than 4 pr professionals, probably took 250 emails and 5 meetings to finalize 
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So true!
And then was polished by a ChatBot.
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ā# An Update on Our Menu
When we reopened Eleven Madison Park in 2021, emerging from lockdown, we vowed to rebuild differently: craft a meal every bit as transporting as before without a single animal product. The decision was a creative leap and a climate imperative.ā
I guess the climate thing has been solved.
I wonder what would have been better for businessā¦putting out this word salad, or just putting meat back on the menu and not even mentioning it?
Edited to add, I wasnāt responding to Robert, but cut and paste from his quote of Hummās PR piece.
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Love to see that when you publish @ybarselah . I love natural wine but sometimes the lists, especially in Paris, can get a bit too funky, even for me.
Iād like to see the article as well. In general I canāt stand ānatural wineā and try to stay away from places that feature it (4HM is a notable exception).