Sarah, I loved the write up and especially the above section which is spot on to our feelings about high-end dining right now. Itâs hard for us at this point to not feel like we have seen that dish or a very close variation of it before at a lot of high end restaurants so itâs refreshing when you do see a new take on something or a whole new experience. First world problems for sure but sometimes I do miss the days when we were first getting into food and everything felt like a new experience.
Got taken to âBillâs Townhouseâ last night. Per the calendar invite, I literally thought we were going to someoneâs townhouse, then looked at the address and thought âthatâs an odd spot for a townhouseâ.
Anyway, it was just fine. I had the Branzino, which was solid. Wine list was mediocre.
Is it a bad idea to go to Grand Central Oyster Bar on a Monday?
Or have things changed and places get fresh oysters delivered on a Monday.
(Iâve been there many times before and love it for oysters and manhattan chowder; and I will be by Grand Central with only an hour to eat and finish by 12:30).
Agreed on all counts. Went last weekend. Food was mediocre, ambience was absent, and generally loud (quietest place to eat is upstairs). Overall, very disappointing. And definitely not a good place for a business dinner.
Le Coq Rico. Loved it. Decor was kitschy, chicken was excellent, as were the starters and sides. I also liked the wine list. We ate and drank way too much and had a fun evening. Will go the Paris original in Oct.
Morini on a Sunday night. Aside from fulfilling the stereotype of UES heavenâs waiting room, the pastas were very good. None of which, however, was as good as the always great fusilli at Marea.
Keens. Been eating at Keenâs since 1982 when a partner took me to dinner after I closed my first deal. Of the old time steak restaurants, it remains my favorite. I was surprised that I liked the porterhouse more than the âmuttonâ chop, as usually I prefer the latter.
Writing Room. Not my choice. Horrible, as it was when it was Elaineâs.
Marta. We were jet-lagged and only ate pizzas and salad. The pork chop looked to be excellent, but we couldnât manage it. Drank a bottle of Gruner that was very good. Pizzas were not really Roman, but were good. I want to go back for the pork chop. And Champagne. That Champagne list is nuts.
Canât really narrow ethnic because I like trying all sorts, especially a type I havenât tried. Here are some types Iâve enjoyed: korean, chinese (various regions), thai, viet, japanese (though honestly I have had tons of sushi out here in LA), nepalese, indonesian, indian (again, various regions), mexican, peruvian, salvadorian, brasilian, jamaican, trinidadian, russian, polish, persian, lebanese, armenian.
So pretty much any of those (or another interesting culture) where the food stood out to you.
Re: chelsea/ w village/ soho I will be checking all three out, so if you have one for each area thatâd be great. I will likely only get to have two lunches and two dinners in those areas so what matters most to me is trying whatever place stands out to locals.
Best 2017 opening - Secchu Yokota (opened in Late 2016 but for me the restaurant of 2017)
Best in Brooklyn/Queens - Blanca/Robertas
Best Lunch in Chelsea/West Village/SoHo - this is a tough one. Go to Chelsea market? ABC Kitchen, Alta, Prune (east village)
Best Resto for âFoodieâ Dinner with teenagers in-tow, near Chelsea/West Village/SoHo - Momofoku Noodle Bar (East Village but close enough) or any of the Momos (Momofuku Nishi is in the West Village)
Best Winelist at Restaurant - Go to Rebelle for Brunch - 50% of the winelist on bottles up to 40%
Best Winebar - Racines (more of a restaurant), Terrior Tribeca, Ten Bells (Natural Wine), Rebelle
Best Breakfast - Okonomi - classic Japanese restaurant in Williamsburg, my favorite
Best Morning Cappuccino - Abraco
Best Morning Pastries (Donuts Acceptable Too) - Doughnut Plant or use trycaviar and order from Dominique Ansel Bakery
Barry - The best restaurant neighborhood in NY and frankly the country is the East Village/LES. I could have given you a recommendation for everyone of your categories from the East Village.
Fantastic options Robert!!! I will definitely look at E Village more now! And love the shortcut of ordering ansel for delivery! I waited in the line once for an hour! Lol. Enjoyed their cannele amd dka more than the cronut. Very good! Doughnut Plant was good! Dough in Flatiron was yummy too!
My personal opinion is that if youâre coming from LA, ethnic food in NY can be an easy pass. If only because of economic reasons (limited space, high rents in Manhattan, the immigrant communities are more in the outer boroughs, etc.), you canât get the sheer breadth/depth of ethnic food in NY that you can get in LA. Korean/Chinese/Thai/Viet/Armenian/Mexican/Latin American/Persian â IMO all better in LA. The one exception would be higher-end/fusion-type ethnic places. E.g., Cosme in NY for high-end Mexican, Jungsik for high-end Korean (and Atoboy, which I loved).
Indian is a weakness of LA and I think NY is better for this, easily. Russian/Polish better in NY, as well. Veselka in the east village can hit 2 of your requested categories â Eastern European and in the village.
classic NY restaurant: I would think a classic âappetizingâ Jewish-food place would be something that LA strives to do but not as well as NY. Russ and Daughters in the LES is classic, recently expanded.
Contra - Perfect 5 course tasting menu for $70 (1 michelin star), I eat here along with Aska most in NYC
Wildair - casual sister restaurant from Contra crew
Secchu Yokota - Japanse focusing on Tempura
Cagen - Japanese focusing on raw fish/sushi (1 michelin star)
Rebelle - the brunch with 50% of bottles up to $400 (1 michelin star)
Momofuku Ko - The shorter version of the tasting menu at the bar is outstanding (two Michelin stars)
Momofuku Noodle - all around great
Momofuku Sam Bar - The duck is outstanding
Jewel Bako - Japanese (1 michelin star)
Kanoyama - Japanese (1 michelin star)
Kyo Ya - Japanese (2 michelin stars)
NIX - Vegetarian resturant (1 michelin star)
Kura - Under the radar Japanese that is very special
Prune - amazing lunch
NY Sushi Ko
Made our way to Greenpoint in Brooklyn last Friday dinner for, an easy to reserve within a 24-hour notice, new restaurant called Norman. This is, I would characterize as, another restaurant looking to partake in the wave of successful Scandinavian gourmet foods establishment making the quite recent foray into the city. Impressively done, especially for the reasonably-priced menu items.
We liked the Hake dish, the pork collar dish and our delicious vegetable-based starters.
Very spacious and airy, almost as large as an Ikea showroom, atmosphere and ambiance. Very new and some forgivable amateurish service still evident, but all done with apparent courteousness.
Important to us - only 4 minute walk to/from the nearest subway station.
Thanks for the considered response, Fred! I completely agree re:ethnic in LA vs NYC (especially Mexican, Japanese, Thai, Korean, etc as you say!). I would be most curious to have ones that NYC does BETTER than LA. I would think Russian, Indian⊠but also Greek food should be better (LA is not great for Greek food). Veselka sounds PERFECT. I see itâs in the E Village, like Robert was saying. And I DEFINITELY want good Jewish deli food in NYC, LA fails there imo. Thanks for the Russ & Daughters recommendation!
I have Cosme bookmarked. Not sure itâs a priority on this trip, but weâll see! More curious to try the mother mole at his Mexico resto.
Adding Wildair, Jungsik, Atoboy, etc to my bookmarks.
Any opinion on these places I already have bookmarked? Chelsea / Meatpacking