I started my meal with a $9 glass of Spanish wine. The wine was good, but the bartender, (who by the way needed to smile more-he seemed nice but I wished for a more positive vibe) I feel underpoured the glass. He finished what was left in the bottle, and I thought he might come back to add some more-he didn't. I struck up a conversation with the "cheese" gal, and asked her for some recommendations. Her being the "cheese" gal she started talking to me with her Spanish accent about the various cheeses they had. I didn't really understand her, so I just nodded and told her to give me three of her recommendations. The cheeses came with three pieces of toasted rasin bread. I honestly have no idea what I type of cheese I was eating, but can tell you all were good. I liked how they were all different from each other, in texture as well as taste. This was definitely a nice start to a meal, and at $4 per cheese, I found it to be a great deal. This is definitely a nice spot for a date.
After fifteen minutes some seats opened up for me at the bar next to me, so I got to sit. I decided to order another glass of wine and some tapas. Alas, my wine was poured to the same amount. I'm either not experienced enough in proper pourage or I was being ripped off, either way, the wine still tasted nice. I decided to order the three creamy croquetas and the grilled lamb tapas.
The croquetas came with serrano ham, chicken and mushrooms. They were very creamy and tasted nice. Although there was much more cream flavor then chicken or ham, I still enjoyed them.
The grilled lamb was marinated in lemon and cumin and came on two skewers on two pieces of small toasted baguettes. The lamb was tender and tasty and the lemon and cumin gave the flavor a nice kick.
That is all I ordered. I just wanted to get my first look into this new tapas joint. I think I'll come back with some more people and order some more of their bigger dishes. But I'll make sure, before we go, to drink one or two bottles of wine first.
Boqueria
53 W. 19th Street (bet. 5th and 6th Ave.)
New York, NY 10011
[ add comment ] | permalink | related link |
( 3 / 491 )Today for lunch I decided to go to a new burger joint that opened up in the West Village; BLT Burger. BLT Burger is the lastest restaurant from popular NYC restaurateur/chef Laurent Tourondel (BLT stands for Bistro Laurent Tourondel).
The place is not fancy or stylish at all like his other restaurants (BLT Steak, BLT Fish,
BLT Prime). Its plain and simple with a bar up front, then walls lined with booths and some tabels in the middle. At the end wall there is a huge mirror with a huge stuffed bullhead with huge horns on it. The place reminded me of any bar or burger joint you might find in the suburbs.
The menu consists of your typical burger joint classics; regular burgers, turkey burgers, and ups it up a notch with a lamb burger , an "ahi" tuna sandwich, and a kobe beef burger. They have have a few salads and appetizers too. There is also a large beer selection and milkshake section, which you can get "spiked".
I went with the classic burger combo which came with a burger, fries and a fountain soda for $11. The burgers are 100% Beef Burgers and a combination of Sirloin, Short Rib, Chuck & Brisket Cut and are served on a Soft Bun with Tomato, Red Onion, Iceburg Lettuce, Pickles, Ketchup, Mustard & Mayo. I got mine with Monterey Jack Cheese. I was expecting a massive burger, but when it came out it was much smaller and flatter then I expected. This wasn't a bad thing. It tasted fine, but it didn't blow me away.
I also got some waffle fries with melted cheddar on them. They were crispy and tasty. My coke was perfect.
I ended with the peanut butter milkshake which was sweet but fine.
BLT Burger is a nice burger joint and I'll probably come back some time to try another type of burger or some chicken wings with some beer. The prices are fine which is nice cause it gave me an insight into what is turning out to be the BLT Empire.
BLT Burger
470 6th Avenue (bet. 11th and 12th st.)
New York, NY 10011
[ 1 comment ] ( 22 views ) | permalink | related link |
( 3 / 504 )Last night my sisters and I decided to go out to dinner for my younger sister's birthday. My older sister works in the East Village, so that was our dining destination. We ended up going to the 2-month old Cuban restaurant on St. Marks called Cafe Fuego. I heard good things about this spot, and was excited to venture into Cuban territory, a cuisine I rarely indulge in.
The place looks really nice. It's a casual atmosphere, but still gives you that romantic feel. The first thing that caught my eye when I looked at the menu was the prices. It was all cheap and the highest priced dish was $17.95. We started with a $55 dollar bottle of Champagne from California, which actually is not champagne, but sparkling wine. It was great. A touch sweet, but not too sweet.
For appetizers we had the empanada with chicken, the calamari on a corn medley, and choripan- which is bread with melted mozzarella and chorizo.
The empanada was excellent. Crispy on the outside, tender on the inside. It came with a tangy green sauce that complimented it well.
The choripan was not that great. It reminded me of a more Italian sandwich. But, a "not that good" sandwich you might get at your local "not that good" deli.
The calamari was not that good either. It was more corn medley than calamari. And the flavor was basically non-existent. I added lime, which did nothing to the overblandness of the dish.
For my entree I decided to try the suckling pig with onions, tomatoes and rice and beans. Suckling pig is not something I ever had, so I was excited, and asked the waitress to make sure that pig was suckling! Well, this dish was a huge disappointment. In fact, it might have been the most dry piece of meat I have ever encountered in my life. There was no flavor. I assumed the onions and garlic were supposed to help moisten the pig, but they did nothing. It was truly awful. I didn't send it back, and in fact finished it, but I should definitely have sent it back.
My sister ordered a shrimp dish that was bland too. The shrimps had garlic on them, but it didn't taste good at all. It came with an even more bland yellow rice. Do they have salt and pepper in Cuba??
My other sister ordered a steak which came with a green garlic and butter sauce. It was ok, and had least gave the steak a bit of flavor. The best part of her dish, and probably of all the dishes were the fries that came with the steak. They were extremely crispy, just the way I like them. They were actually some of the best fries I have encountered. I guess I'm a crispiness fanatic!
For dessert the restaurant gave us everything for free- due to it being my sister's birthday. This was very generous of them, and luckily the desserts did not dissappoint. The churros with dulce de leche were amazing. Sweet, tasty, and crispy! Delicious! The bread pudding was not overly sweet and really good too. The flan was sweet but tasted great. The chocolate puta (yes, that is what they call their chocolate cake) was fine.
Would I go back to this restaurant? That is a very interesting question. I really wanted to like this place. I hate to say you get what you pay for, but in this case what we got for our money was mostly bland and flavorless. The restaurant is young and I will give it another try to get all their flavor kinks out. Also, they were understaffed, instead of the usual four servers, they only had two. Maybe the kitchen felt the pressure. But, the main reason I'd go back is to have those churros one more time!
So if you are in the East Village and looking to get your Cuban on for cheap you might consider Cafe Fuego. Let's just hope by that time you get more bang for your buck.
Cafe Fuego
9 St. Marks Place (between 2nd and 3rd avenue)
New York, NY 10001
[ add comment ] | permalink | related link |
( 3 / 490 )Sunday night my family went out to dinner for my younger sister's birthday. I sent my sister a list of 20 options I thought she might like, and she went with Landmarc in Tribeca. Landmarc is known for having a great wine deal. Unlike most restaurants they don't mark up the half or full bottles of wine, so basically you are paying what you would pay if you went to a wine store. I think this is great. More importantly, I think Landmarc is a great restaurant.
It's a two story space with exposed brick and is very welcoming. For appetizers we tried the Roasted Marrow Bones with onion marmalade and grilled country bread, the Foie Gras terrine with pickled onions, the grilled Octopus with potatoes and tomatoes, chorizo vinaigratte , and the Mussels with shallots parsley and white wine, and fries.
The Roasted Bone Marrows were good, and we were instructed by the waitress to place some onion marmalade on the grilled country bread, then the marrow, then to add a pinch of salt. The result was delicious! The Foie Gras was also excellent; smooth and tasty. The Octopus dish was perfectly flavored and nice. And the mussels were also delicious. The fries were fine and came with some mayo.
For my entree I had the Braised Lamb Shank with celery root puree, brussels sprouts and lardons. This was a great dish. The lamb was tender, fall-off the bone. I loved the celery puree and the lardons. It was truly all delicious!
My father had the crispy sweetbreads with horseradish and green beans. This was another winner. Everything tasted great. My younger sister went with the steak tartare with grilled country bread and field greens. It was very tasty. My older sister had the grilled pork chop with sauteed spinach, carmelized onions, and apples. I really enjoyed how the apples and onions complimented the tender pork. My mom had the grilled tuna with white bean ragout, sweet garlic, red peppers and parsely. It was good and fine.
What I liked most about all these entrees was that they were all perfectly cooked and everything on each plate perfectly complimented the main dish. The sides weren't just thrown on for no reason. It all went well with each other. And thus, everything tasted great!
For dessert we tried one of each (creme brulee, blueberry crumble, nutella eclair, lemon tart, chocolate mousse, and tiramisu) and they did not dissappoint. My favorite was the lemon tart. The tanginess and sweetness balanced each other perfectly. We tried three ice-creams; hazlenut, coffee and tangerine sorbet. All came in cones and all were great.
Landmarc is the perfect restaurant. It's elegantly casual without being too stuffy. It's almost like dining in a neighbor's house for dinner. The food is great. The wine is great. I definitely recommend it. Also, the good news for people who live uptown and don't feel like trekking all the way to Tribeca; they are opening up a Landmarc in the Time Warner Center.
Landmarc
179 West Broadway
New York, NY 10013
[ add comment ] | permalink | related link |
( 3 / 435 )As I was wandering around the Lower East Side on Friday night, in search of a culinary destination, I passed by The Orchard. This is a restaurant I have read about, and decided to dine there.
I was told it was BYOB, and although I had spent the whole fashion week drinking, and told myself just to order coke, I pursuaded myself to go across the street and buy a bottle of wine (a great $11 red) for myself.
I sat at a table of four by myself. The dining room is casual and modern. The lighting is brightly dim, if that makes sense; almost orange. It was a large square room, which made me think of it like a fancied cafeteria. It looked good though.
I wasn't too hungry but did want to try some dishes. They have a nice selection of flatbreads, and I went with the Braised Short Rib flatbread with marinated cherry tomatoes and sweet horseradish cream ($12). It was excellent and delicious.
I also had an entree of Butternut Squash Agnolotti with brown butter, sage and toasted hazlenuts ($22). The dish was sweet, and was definitely an autumn/winter dish. But, it was still very good.
I felt obligated to try a dessert, and went with the Orchard Chocolate cake with dark chocolate outside, warm milk chocolate inside, and mascarpone whipped cream. This was a great dessert, especially for a chocolate lover. I dont know how they did it, but the inside was really warm, and delicious. The marscapone whipped cream was the best whipped cream I have ever had in my life-deliciously perfect!
The Orchard is definitely a place I'd like to go back to and try all of their dishes. I definitely recommend this place!
The Orchard
162 Orchard Street (between Stanton and Rivington)
New York, NY 10002
[ add comment ] | permalink | related link |
( 3 / 492 )Back Next
Calendar
