The Basics: U Cafe is a little kosher spot on the Upper East Side with sandwiches, salads and such crafted with great attention to detail. A haloumi salad came in an artful display with shish kabobs of grilled cheese rubbed in za’atar spice with grilled peppers, onions and tomatoes. A sandwich on crisp Jerusalem toast (think a flat, toasted sesame bagel) was creamy and sharp, filled with feta, cheddar and tomato. For your sweet tooth, go for the challah French toast with berries and whipped cream. Beware, some prices seem inflated for a casual cafe. Unfortunately it’s often par for the course at kosher restaurants. Cuisine: Kosher (Dairy) Food: Very Good Service: Very Good Value: Good Average App/Entree Price: Around $15 for a salad or sandwich, $26 for an entree. Location: 1436 Lexington Ave, (between 93rd and 94th) You Gonna Finish That? Every last bite.
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.
The Basics: There’s a lot to be excited about at Centro Vinoteca, aside from the great people-watching along downtown 7th Avenue. Neat leather banquettes and zenlike brown and white tones setup a serious affair though the friendly service and a lively crowd keep things down-to-earth. But Centro is better than your run-of-the-mill cheese and charcuterie Italian. Try thoughtful dishes like english pea ravioli with parmigiano broth and black truffles or potato-wrapped striped bass with morels. The chef is Top chef alum, Leah Cohen, famous for smooching the champion Hosea Rosenberg.
*Update, just received word that Leah Cohen is leaving Centro Vinoteca (9/18/2009)
Food: Very Good Service: Very Good Average App/Entree Price: $14/$20 Value: Very Good Word to the Wise: Centro Vinoteca offers a 3-course prixe fixe brunch, lunch and dinner for $16.95/$19.95/$35, one of the best deals in town You Gonna Finish That? Every last bite.
The Basics: Tom Valenti’s upscale Ouest has been a reliable UWS spot for nearly a decade. His latest American Brasserie venture, West Branch, shows he has a knack for laid-back locales too. The brown-and-white toned, masculine decor may be drab, but the salty, caramelized onion focaccia bread is anything but. On a Wednesday evening at 8:30, every table in the huge space was occupied, no small feat in these times. The service was friendly and the food was flavorful and well-priced. A true home run! Best Dish: Heirloom tomato panzanella salad and luscious arctic char with a cool potato salad Food: Very Good Wine: Very fairly priced, diverse list, we had a nice Gruner Veltliner for $32 Service: Very Good Value: Very Good Average App/Entree Price: $12/$21 Location: 2178 Broadway and 77th You Gonna Finish That? Every last bite.
The Basics: I’ve never felt such an intense hatred towards a waitress as I did during our meal at Belcourt, an open-air, uppity French bistro on a casual strip of 2nd Ave. Everything we requested seemed to be a huge ordeal and took far longer than necessary. It reminded me of the scene in “Wet Hot American Summer” when Paul Rudd crashes the table setting onto the floor and then makes a hilarious scene out of picking it all up.
Basic requests like: “Can we have some more water please?” “Can we have some butter for our bread?” All elicited this reaction. I thought we were asking for her first born child when all we needed was a basic level of service. When you wait an hour for lunch and your waitress behaves like the above, you lose your appetite. The East Village offers a lot in affordable, satisfying food. Head to Mermaid Inn, Counter, Redhead, Esperanto or Jack’s Luxury Oyster Bar before considering Belcourt.
Best Dish: Yes, the lamb burger my sister had was juicy and flavorful. And my crisp truffle fries had the perfect amount of funk and salt. Food: Very Good Service: Poor Value: Poor (Their $11 bar sampler consisted of 5 olives, 5 nuts, and 5 crackers) Average App/Entree Price: $11/$23 Location: 84 E 4th Street You Gonna Finish That? Not even worth a doggy bag.
I didn’t expect much when my girlfriends and I abandoned an empty and depressing Irving Mill for a more lively scene at Wildwood Barbeque down the block. Good barbeque is tough to come by in New York and with Wildwood being part of the B.R. Guest restaurant consortium I had my doubts. Could a puppy mill of restaurant trends churn out something grand?
My snooty early judgements were proven wrong. I was deeply impressed with the great flavors of the food and our waitress who was friendly and accomodating. A wacky chopped salad with tomato, feta, cucumbers, capers and everything else under the sun was a crunchy, refreshing starter to the upcoming meatfest. I was overjoyed by my tender, saucy and smoky lamb ribs with a fair amount of slippery fat. You see, dry rubbed ribs are not my thing. When I eat ribs I like to go all-out. Give me something that can put that dish-towel napkin to work! I eyed my friends’ barbequed chicken and took a bite, finding it to be sweet and delicately spiced, but no match for my awesome ribs. Creamy, aged cheddar mac n’ cheese, brussel sprouts in a cute cast iron pot and skinny sweet potato fries rounded out the meat fest. They also have a wide beer selection including lots of IPA’s, local stuff and even some Abita brews (love to represent my former college town of N’awlins). If you dig Bourbon, they boast 32 varieties.
In the ranks of serious BBQ houses in the city, Wildwood can hold its own. The mac n’ cheese was leagues below Hill Country’s dense, rich version, but the lamb ribs provide a challenge to Hill’s beef. It’s nice to be pleasantly surprised.
Wildwood Barbeque: 225 Park Avenue South
Cuisine: Barbeque
Average App/Entree Price: $8/$20
Food: Very Good
Service: Very Good
Value: Very Good
You Gonna Finish That? Every last bite.
Word to the Wise: If you don’t eat pork, Wildwood is the only restaurant in the city to serve lamb ribs (according to our waitress).
The Basics: Stuzzichini is a paradise for the peckish with little plates of Italian crostini, cheeses, grilled seafood, affordable pastas and more. Nothing revolutionary here, but it satisfies. I can’t figure out why people complain about the spacious, Brasserie-esque ambiance, it seemed fine to me! Best Dish: Ricotta with saffron-honey crostini, Mixed wild mushrooms with ricotta and Orechiette con Cavolfiore (“little ears” with cauliflower and bread crumbs in a butter sauce) Food: Good Service: Good Value: Very Good Average App/Entree Price: $6-$10 for Stuzzichini, $20 for Entree Wines: Order by the glass, quarto or bottle, they have selections that span Italy and Sicily from $29-$165 Location: 928 Broadway (at 22nd) Word to the Wise: If you want to try a lot, the “Stuzzichini Misti” allows you to select a choice of three and enough to feed the # of people that you’re with. It’s a great deal. You Gonna Finish That? Every last bite.
The Basics: Taking a little abuse from owner, Ezra Cohen, is worth it for the best falafel in the city. What Azuri Cafe lacks in ambiance and friendly service it makes up for in crisp, homemade falafel patties, more rich in spice and flavor than anything I’ve had in Israel. Super-fresh salads of white bean, baba ghanush, hummus, taboule, pickles and more make perfect partners. Best Dish: Falafel! Though their freshly baked marzapan-rich pecan cookies were great, baked by Ezra’s wife. They also serve shawarma and various kababs, all Glatt kosher. Food: Excellent Service: Good (despite the gruffness, the food is ready quickly) Value: Very Good Average App/Entree Price: $11-$14 Location: 465 W 51st Street You Gonna Finish That? Every last bite.
The Basics: A Washington-square sleeper with reliable food and service. “No one should ever be afraid to be SQUARE”, reads the site, which they seem to embrace fully. If a reservation at Babbo across the street isn’t in the cards, pull up a chair at North Square. Food doesn’t have to be en vogue to be enjoyable, as long as it’s well-executed. Best Dish: Radicchio and Boston lettuce salad with goat cheese, beets and honey-spiced pecans. Arctic char with oven dried tomatoes, basil risotto and truffle sauce Food: Very Good Service: Very Good Value: Very Good Average App/Entree Price: $10/$23 Location: 103 Waverly Place You Gonna Finish That? Every last bite.
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.
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