Quick Bites: Oceana (Revamped)

The Basics: After staying afloat on East 54th street for nearly two decades, Oceana has swum South to a bigger space with the same fresh seafood and star service plus a modernized menu. Some of the new territory appears unfamiliar though. With ceviche, carpaccio and tartare on nearly every menu in Manhattan, there is no need to pay $19 for an appetizer trio of tuna, hamachi and wild salmon, unless it’s mind-blowing. Unfortunately their one-dimensional version wasn’t. Fresh? Yes. Inspiring? No. But prepared entrees remind you why an historic restaurant like Oceana can still survive, and earn a Michelin star for 2009. Meaty Branzino for two stuffed and rolled with spinach, juicy mushrooms and plump olives was simply bursting with flavors and the presentation of the coiled fish was stunning (though it looks a little scary in my phone-camera photo).

Food: Very Good
Drinks: An expansive, fairly priced wine list and a hefty beer selection too. Despite the Livanos family’s background there was nary a Greek wine on the list. They plan to add some soon.
Service: Very Good
Average App/Entree Price: $17/$36
Value: Good
Location: 1221 6th Ave and 49th
You Gonna Finish That? Every last bite.

Quick Bites: Anthos

The Basics: Michael Psilakis’ modern gem elevates Greek cuisine (and Midtown) to a whole new level.  Seafood lovers will find heaven in fresh dishes accented with Mediterranean flavors. A touch of feta, a dash of spicy paste, and an elegant spread of fresh charred brussel sprouts or fennel puree, makes each dish sing.
Best Dish: A beautiful raw meze of tuna, salmon, marlin, escolar and scallop, each with their own preparation.
Food: Excellent
Service: Very Good
Value: Good
Average App/Entree Price: $17/$32
Location: 36 W 52nd Street (Between 5th and 6th)
You Gonna Finish That? Every last bite.

Quick Bites: Bar Americain

The Basics: Bobby Flay’s once-hip Midtown staple is in desperate need of a facelift. There’s nothing innovative about grilled tuna with avocado relish or “spice rubbed” steaks, certainly not when charging $30 for an entree and when they taste as if they’ve been sitting for a period of time. The whole restaurant feels like a tacky cliché from 10 years ago. The folks from Kentucky next to us seemed happy enough, though.
Best Dish: Mussels and Fries with Green Chile broth
Food: Good
Service: Very Good
Value: Poor
Average App/Entree Price: $14/$30
Location: 152 W 52nd Street (between 6th and 7th)
You Gonna Finish That? Meh, you can taste the side.

Amalia

** Note: Amalia is no longer serving food as of June 2009

New York Restaurant Week meals can run the gamut from insultingly bad to refreshingly well-executed, and the contrast between my meal at Megu and Amalia proves that. Not only was the decor, service, and food at Amalia spot-on, we had an enjoyable three course meal for $35, which is exactly how Restaurant Week should be. Amalia also shows that there is great food to be had in midtown Manhattan, and I discovered another perfect pre-theater venue.

Named after Sigmund Freud’s mother and located in the Dream hotel, Amalia definitely has that air of fantasia with ornate Baroque paintings lining the ceiling and a floating staircase covered in blue mosaic. Amalia sure is “gussied up” but it feels airy and relaxed, not overly refined. It’s the kind of restaurant you want to linger in, which is great because the restaurant has many rooms each with a unique decor, for private events.

Amalia was once more Mediterranean-focused, but now the menu leans more toward Mediterranean/New American. It seems to be having an identity crisis with some of the menu offerings, though the flavor and presentation was clear.

The meal began with warm pita served with a delicate hummus. My friend and I both had a fattoush salad of arugula, mint, feta, toasted flatbread and a lemon vinaigrette. It was very fresh, though small, though this was reconciled by our entree: a generous fan of beautiful skate served with a cucumber-fennel salad and tztatziki sauce. The skate was lightly breaded, adding some richness to the dish to complement the cool flavors. I did note that the entree seemed rushed as the sauce looked sloppy. Both of our desserts were nice too: a chocolate mousse bar with vanilla ice cream and a luscious coconut flan with banana ice cream. It’s tough to demand a better three-course meal for $35. I’d love to see what they can do on a regular evening.

Amalia: 204 W. 55th and Broadway
Cuisine: Mediterranean, New American
Average App/Entree Price: $14/$30
Word to the Wise: Amalia makes accommodations for pre-theater dinners.

Le Marais

Le Marais is one of many great kosher restaurants in Manhattan that prove, you don’t have to serve dairy with meat to have a great meal. My second trip to Le Marais last week was better than the first as E and I sat at the bar, getting recommendations from the bartender on everything from his favorite beer, a double-fermented “Champagne” lager” to the perfect amount of tabasco to ask for in our beef tartare.

We’d heard that the beef tartare recipe was recently updated so I was intrigued to try it out. On our past visit it was overloaded with spicy Dijon mustard and though tasty, it was sloppy and cloaked the taste of the meat. Monday’s version was delicately seasoned and silky, with a hint of spice, served with a mountain of crispy frites and greens. We shared a risotto special to start, with salty leeks on top. The risotto did seem to be yearning for a hit of parmesan but the rice was creamy and rich without it.

The menu features many other traditional French bistro dishes like duck confit salad and steak au poivre as well as more exotic offerings like merguez sausage with cous cous. You’ll even find non-dairy creme brulee! Even a fromage-head like myself was pleased with the meal.

Le Marais: 150 W 46th Street
Cuisine: Steakhouse, Kosher
Average Entree Price: $25-$35
Food: Very Good
Service: Very Good
Value: Good
You Gonna Finish That? Every last bite.

Le Bernardin

What was surprising to me about Le Bernardin was not the sublime food or the impeccable service-I expected that-it was the real warmth of the restaurant, the lack of stuffiness. Le Bernardin is an iconic place for French cuisine in Manhattan. It has been the king of French seafood in New York since it opened here in 1986 and has only improved in stature since Eric Ripert took the throne as executive chef in 1994. It has been one of few restaurants in New York to win 3 Michelin stars for years now.

Yet the wood-paneled room with blue carpeting and oversized plants feels comfortable. And the people at Le Bernardin don’t exude any kind of arrogance. The menu offers a choice of a 4-course prixe fix or more extensive tasting menus. The selections are so exciting for a seafood lover, I really had a tough time choosing. Whether oddities like geoduck or uni are your cup of tea or “barely touched” escolar, the kitchen at Le Bernardin allows the fresh flavors of each dish’s centerpiece to express themselves, without much distraction.

Star appetizers are the layers of thinly pounded tuna with a touch of foie gras and a layer of crispy baguette, studded with chives or a smokey, warm octopus salad with lemon confit. A bountiful tray of warm breads are generously served between courses. Le Bernardin’s take on a “surf and turf” was also exceptional served with buttery, crisp kobe beef, round eggplant “fries”, and seared white tuna. Even the amuse-bouche, which for me is rarely of note, was a tiny bowl of rich, seafood soup with chunks of lobster. One miss though, was the bland calamari stuffed with sweet prawns and wood ear mushroom, in a calamari consomme. I sampled enough of my Dad’s crab-stuffed zucchini flowers though, to make up for it.

I’m not typically dazzled by desserts but they did some neat things here mixing sweet and savory like a “chocolate sweet potato” and a dish with bacon ice cream. My heart is always with cheese and their gooey assortment of types I don’t remember (except roquefort) was a killer finish.

Service was timely without too much pomp and circumstance. I had expected a well-orchestrated display of synchronized steel-lid-lifting, but as mentioned before, Le Bernardin was more relaxed than I’d expected. Le Bernardin was definitely one of my top dining experiences, and I highly recommend it for your next special occasion.

Le Bernardin: 155 W 51st Street near 7th ave
Cuisine: French, Seafood
Average Entree Price: 4-course prixe fix is $109
Food: Very Good
Service: Very Good
Value: Very Good
You Gonna Finish That? Every last bite.
Word to the Wise: Jackets Required. Also, Le Bernardin makes a point of serving exclusively eco-friendly fish.

Insieme

At Insieme, the menu is separated into “traditional” and “contemporary” Italian dishes, and they offer a “pasta tasting menu” as well. Insieme means “together” in Italian, so it’s a fusion of old and new, with a focus on fresh ingredients as chef Marco Canora learned from Tom Colicchio. But in light of its recent Michelin star gain, Frank Bruni’s coveted “very good” review, and praises sung by my family members (who are hard to please), my expectations were as high as could be before my visit. With these high hopes, I couldn’t help noticing the strange service.

The oddities began at the very beginning, when our waitress warned that there were only 2 left of the special pork appetizer, despite the empty restaurant and the wee hour of 5:30PM we were dining at. I guess the lunch crew really loves their pork? A friend of mine said she had a similar experience when they were nearly out of the lasagne on her visit. I get that it’s possible for a restaurant to “run out” of things, and dishes are not made completely fresh for each meal, but having it be a point of discussion was off-putting and seemed out of place in a fine restaurant. In addition, our waitress was uncomfortable with the menu and rather cold toward us. My Mom inquired about the lamb preparation and the response was that it was a loin and a shank. She then had to pry for more information. Is this the “warm hospitality” that Insieme prides itself in?

This, coupled with my Dad’s extreme difficulty in finding somebody to help select a Gruner Veltliner, started the meal on bad footing. Our waitress was missing so a bus boy tried to assist, followed by the manager, despite pleas for help from somebody familiar with the list. Eventually the beverage director assisted us.

The food itself, was really nice. I’m still dreaming about my sweetbreads with lemon, capers and parsley and a perfectly cooked papardelle with smoked lamb neck. A branzino “saltimbocca” wrapped in paper thin slices of prosciutto was delicately seasoned and accented by a lemon puree. I was still envious of my sister’s tender, rich duck breast with foie gras and hazelnuts though. The beverage director helped us select a cheese assortment that fit my “super stinky” requirement and brought some Madeira to close the meal. He truly salvaged the meal from our frigid waitress, hand-picking wines for each course including the Gruner Veltliner, a Garnacha, and an ‘03 Brunello.

In perspective, my complaints are not major, but worth noting. I love Hearth and Terroir, Grieco/Canora’s, other spots and I think they’re better than this. I hope that if you visit Insieme you order the papardelle, and a different waitress.

Insieme: 777 7th Avenue @51st Street
Cuisine: Italian
Average Entree Price: $20-$36
Food: Very Good
Service: Good
Value: Very Good
You Gonna Finish That? Every last bite

Sake Bar Hagi

You have to hunt to find this subterranean Japanese small plates shop, hidden below a larger sushi restaurant. Perhaps that’s why the Times Square mobs have yet to invade it, despite its convenient location on West 49th. If you define authentic Japanese food by the number of Japanese people in a restaurant (as some unabashedly do) then this place equals authenticity at its best. My friend and I were the only Caucasians in the restaurant, which was packed on a Wednesday evening in the middle of a snow storm.

Any elegance lost in the gruff service and torn menus, is made up for in intensely flavored dishes that cash in at 3 bucks a pop. Don’t miss inventive yakitori like chicken meatball, enoki mushroom wrapped with bacon, and teriyaki squid. A mini udon pot filled to the brim with hearty noodles, poached egg, and shrimp tempura will make you wonder why David Chang’s ramen gets so much hype. Adventurous eaters can go to town here with deep fried chicken gizzard and yakitori chicken skin. Oh, and what else do they have at Sake Bar Hagi? An incredible list of sake and shochu. My sake knowledge, or lack-there-of, is limited, so we resorted to the smaller list of featured sakes with short, English descriptions.

I would eat here more frequently, if not for its unfortunate location. Now that I’ve let you in on the secret though, I’d recommend braving the Times Square crowds for at least one visit.

Sake Bar Hagi: 152 W 49th Street
Cuisine: Japanese, Small Plates
Average Entree Price: $3-$8
Food: Very Good
Service: Good
Value: Excellent
You Gonna Finish That?

Toloache

It is often said that Manhattan is starving for decent Mexican restaurants. We’ve got plenty of mediocre, Tex-Mex style establishments but the West coast cities have us beat in terms of authentic Mexican cuisine. So, is Hell’s Kitchen newcomer Toloache the answer to your Mexican-craving dreams and desires? Probably not, but it’s a fresh face and the food sure is tasty.

Toloache offers an extensive list of tacos including everything from marinated pork with pineapple to braised beef tongue. They even offer a specialty of oaxacan-style grasshoppers. Yes, they’re real grasshoppers. In addition they have ceviches and inspired entrees like whole grilled branzino with jicama-red cabbage as well as a pollo Toloache with chipotle marinated chicken breast, corn and pico de gallo. The menu dances between safe offerings and unique twists like a dried fig salsa and avocado French fries. Toloache is an inviting two-story restaurant with bright yellow colored walls and decorative lamps hanging from the high ceilings.

Service was frighteningly over-eager. I’m not sure if our waitress was rushing so she could get to an audition or if she just lacked timing finesse. There were plenty of empty tables in the restaurant yet we were constantly checked on, pushed to order and plates were removed prematurely by the bus boys. At one point my friend was going in for another dip of guacamole only to find the cup had been removed from beneath his hand. Entrees arrived while we were still eating our appetizer and the bill was provided to us without our request. Another round of drinks wasn’t plausible.

Aside from the service issues we did enjoy our food. We started with a guacamole trio which came with a fruit guacamole made with pomegranate, mango, quince, habanero and basil as well as a spicy guacamole with tomato, red onion, chipotle and queso fresco as well as a traditional guac with serranos. I had roasted garlic shrimp served on a crispy tortilla with black beans and spaghetti squash. The crisp tortilla seemed out of place as it was soaked in sauce (making it not so crisp) but the shrimp had a delightfully sweet flavor and was a great match for the soft spaghetti squash. My friends ordered chicken enchiladas which came with dried fig salsa, green apple salad, and Mexican cheeses and the other had mole poblano (chicken) with Jerusalem artichoke and plantain gratin. Both enjoyed their dishes. Unfortunately the grass hoppers weren’t in the cards for us that night. I’ll have to return with someone brave enough to try them with me ;)

Like I said, Toloache isn’t revolutionizing Mexican cuisine in Manhattan but if you’re pre- theater or in a rush for any other reason, it’s good to have on your list.

Toloache: 251 W 50^th Between Broadway and 8^th
Cuisine: Mexican
Food: Good
Service: Poor
Value: Good
You Gonna Finish That? Meh, you can taste the side.
Word to the Wise: Order a margarita and avoid the watered down sangria. They have hundreds of tequilas to choose from, even Mezcal.