Hangawi (Spice and Serenity)

Though on the edge of K-town, you won’t find communal BBQs at Hangawi, a Zen temple of vegetarian Korean fare. When E suggested we try a Korean vegetarian place he had been to for lunch, I did not expect this level of elegance. After some jerky driver behind me honked incessantly at my cab, I stepped out, walked into Hangawi and felt immediately calm.

Not only is Hangawi beautiful with its soaring ceilings and ornate table settings, but the staff glides around the room with such ease, that your stress lifts away. And boy, does it smell awesome!

A lot of that peace comes from the fact that everybody removes their shoes at the door. You won’t hear any clicking at Hangawi. It was a real joy to take off my heels and tuck my feet into the space below our table. I was amazed at how far the menu could go without any meat. From dumplings to leek pancakes, seaweed salad, vermicelli, and an entire maitake mushroom prixe fixe, the menu piqued my taste buds again and again. Narrowing down our selections was no small feat.

We started with the seamed kimchi buns, two pillows of dough with sweetly-flavored slices of kimchi inside.  The texture was just dense enough with the right amount of elasticity. I’m no bun expert but I know what a David Chang bun tastes like and what an over-processed Zen Palate bun tastes like. These were somewhere in the middle. Even better than the buns were our vegetable dumplings with a pool of spicy/sour sauce (chilli sauce? not listed) Don’t let the vague descriptions  fool you, the kitchen pays great care to detail and the flavors are there.

I appreciated the serene vibe until a LONG pause between our appetizer and entree. People began to leave the restaurant as we crept closer to closing time, with no entree. Our waiter was missing. Eventually we caught the attention of our hostess and magically, our waiter emerged with our Zen noodles and spicy chili mushrooms, served with generous side plates of spicy and mild kimchi.

The hostess felt terrible about the wait and apologized profusely. She asked if there was anything else they could bring. E mentioned a particular type of kimchi he had on another occasion. While they didn’t have it, they brought another side of some marinated, thinly sliced cucumber. The cucumber wasn’t life-changing, but a good effort at salvaging our meal.

Timing mishaps and mistakes occur all the time in restaurants, but it’s possible to recover with grace, as the staff at Hangawi did. This was a truly memorable meal and I would be happy to return anytime!

Location: 12 East 32nd Street
Food: Very Good
Drinks: No expansive wine list here but you will find some sake and sochu cocktails and a couple of beers.
Service: Good
Average App/Entree Price: $11/$21
Value: Very Good
You Gonna Finish That? Every last bite.

NoiDue Cafe

Following on the heels of Mike’s Italian Kitchen, NoiDue (two of us) is the latest Italian Kosher cafe to open, offering antipasti, salads, thin crust pizza, paninis, pasta, and more. NoiDue is owned by a young, engaged couple who were beaming with pride at their packed restaurant on a Sunday afternoon at 3PM. NoiDue has been open less than a week (March 17th was the opening), which shows the tremendous potential for more restaurants of its kind. It’s a casual cafe that is comfortable for families but with thoughtful, artisanal ingredients. As we waited to be seated we eyed the plates of Sicilian style pizza, mushroom panini and apple pastry that were laid out for takeout orders and noticed the brick-oven for pizza in the back. I got excited.

Service was solid from the sweet waitresses who alternated with each other, though I couldn’t figure out why two waitresses needed to serve a table for two. While there seems to be a lot of heart in the venture, the food lacked tremendous seasoning that I hope will come in time. My pizza with “shiitake” mushrooms (actually cremini), ricotta, sundried tomatoes and onions had a nice thin crust but lacked substance beyond its crunch. Because it was a white pizza, the lack of sauce meant that the ricotta was just an underseasoned glob. There was so much potential in these toppings but without that special kiss of seasoning, they fell flat.

There was more hope in E’s ricotta-stuffed eggplant in a marinara sauce, but the eggplant was slightly undercooked and the sauce was bland. We both had salads as well, mine had a sprinkling of quinoa, mushrooms, and pistachio and E’s had avocado, mozzarella and crisp artichokes. Both were so delicate on their toppings that I was digging for them. I’m still searching for the “pesto dressing”. The most flavorful thing we ate were the garlicky bread morsels slathered in olive oil with parsley specks. The food was almost chaste, like it came from a chef who was still learning and needed to be corrupted by the idea of garlic, spice and salt. The savior of the meal however, was a luscious cannoli, oozing with a perfect savory-sweet cream.

When our waitress checked in, I couldn’t bare to tell the truth. If somebody in the kitchen becomes more daring, NoiDue can be a great kosher option.

NoiDue: 143 W 69th Street
Cuisine: Kosher (Dairy), Italian
Average App/Entree Price: $8/$12
Food: Good
Service: Very Good
Value: Very Good
You Gonna Finish That? Meh, you can taste the side.
Word to the Wise: They offer an affordable brunch deal which includes a $10-$14 entree that comes with bread, salad, antipasti and a variety of cheeses. NoiDue is also very kid-friendly. NoiDue is located next to Levana, an historic, upscale kosher restaurant that is temporarily closed for renovations.

Turquoise (Glatt Kosher Seafood)

Turquoise Seafood Restaurant, once praised for its sesame shrimp and tilapia stuffed with crabmeat, has now been given a concept makeover, becoming Glatt Kosher, under the supervision of the Orthodox Union as of November 2008. I had never been to Turquoise prior to the change, but it seems to be a wise one as the restaurant was packed on Valentine’s Day evening, even at the late hour of 10PM.

The scene is modern and airy with colorful lighting and a pale wood floor. The menu is mediterranean and seafood focused though steak dishes are offered as well, like Chianti braised short ribs and roasted organic chicken breast with root vegetable puree. Warm bread with pesto olive oil starts the meal. Service is amiable though quite rushed, perhaps due to the holiday. E and I were hustled into ordering quickly after being asked if we were ready on multiple occasions (despite our open menus).

I started with an excellent jalapeno-dotted tuna tartare with avocado, mayonnaise and wonton chips. They were out of the pot of artichokes, so E had crispy, spicy beef spring rolls with a chile reduction. After the appetizer we waited, and waited… and waited some more, seeing entrees that suspiciously seemed to be ours passed to a table that had arrived after us. I wondered about some confusion in the kitchen. Finally, entrees were brought to us, though I was mistakenly given mahi mahi when I had ordered arctic char. They apologized and brought my char while E had pepper-seared ahi tuna with spinach and pickled ginger. My char was fine though uninspired and served with undercooked, rubbery eggplant and a little glob of rosemary apple preserves and some underseasoned haricot vert that looked like regular string beans to me. E’s “pepper-seared” tuna lacked pepper and we both thought the pickled ginger, a pile similar to a sushi accompaniment was odd. We washed it all down with a Russian River Pinot that was smooth and fruity, though lacked depth.

Generally, I’m glad to see an innovative seafood restaurant choose to become kosher and I think there is potential for Turquoise to be great. They need to reevaluate some of their preparation and improve service.

Turquoise: 240 East 81st (betw 2nd and 3rd ave)
Cuisine: Seafood, Kosher
Food: Good
Service: Poor
Value: Poor
You Gonna Finish That? Meh, you can taste the side.
Average Appetizer/Entree Price: $12/$33

The Prime Grill (Kosher Steakhouse)

Arguably known as the best kosher restaurant in Manhattan, the kitchen at The Prime Grill fuses inventive flavors into hearty steaks, seafood, and sushi items with nary a dairy ingredient in sight. Menu offerings like tuna tartar with wonton chips and barbeque sauce, Chilean sea bass with pesto and wagyu angus ribs, make one forget that the kitchen is limited by the laws of kashrut.

The spacious, classic dining room was near full on a late Thursday evening but the service was courteous and friendly. We shared meaty, crisp but not greasy duck rolls, served with a barbeque sauce to start. I went for a sushi platter (the prime platter) which came with a generous assortment of nigiri and a spicy tuna roll. Not the best sushi I’ve ever had, but certainly good quality. E had a Prime Grill filet, served with a bearnaise and red wine shallot sauce with mashed potatoes on the side. They overcooked it a bit but the bite I had was still tender and flavorful. Despite the absence of any milk, the potatoes were quite creamy. I nearly wanted to poke my head in the kitchen and ask how they made it work. I ventured into a glass of kosher red wine (despite warnings to the contrary), a Pinot Noir from New Zealand, only to severely regret my decision. It was watery and punchy, lacking any depth of flavor or body. Oh well, the beers worked just fine.

With the wide variety of menu offerings I can certainly see myself returning to Prime Grill. I’d recommend it even for the non-tribe members out there ;)

Prime Grill: 60 East 49th Street (betw Madison and Park)
Cuisine: Steakhouse, Kosher
Average Entree Price: $40-$60
Food: Very Good
Service: Very Good
Value: Good
You Gonna Finish That? Every last bite.