Blossomed Anew
February 4, 2010
Despite the influx of taco joints and pork-saturated dishes flooding restaurants these days, there is still a place for those seeking respite from animal proteins. Situated on the restaurant-heavy First Avenue, between East 79th and 80th streets, Café Blossom recently opened up its third location at what used to be a chicken shop (Eastside Poultry Inc., which moved to 1564 Second Ave.). Now, the food is all vegan, all the time. [Read more]
Plus-Size Barbecue
January 21, 2010
What with the wildly popular Big Apple Barbecue Block Party in Madison Square Park each summer, and relatively new barbecue joints in nearly every neighborhood, barbecue joins burgers and Vietnamese banh mi sandwiches at the top of New York City’s most esteemed foods. And to think that a mere decade ago there were only three or four restaurants serving barbecue in Manhattan. Due to the city’s strict smoke emission regulations, starting a barbecue restaurant is a dicey—and pricey—prospect. It took the venerable Danny Meyer a good year to get Blue Smoke right. [Read more]
Lighten Up
January 8, 2010
January brings a slew of New Year’s resolutions, like the perennial mantra to eat healthier. Since wan lunchtime salads quickly lose their appeal, consider these local eateries offering delicious dishes that also keep your waist small.
Ozu (566 Amsterdam Ave., near 88th St., 212-787-8316): This Japanese restaurant focuses on vegan dishes that eschew refined sugars and showcase fresh produce and whole grains. The pocket-sized eatery has only 26 seats, but dishes out huge portions. Kabocha, a Hokkaido squash similar to butternut, appears throughout the extensive menu. In an appetizer, the steamed pieces are smothered in a seitan sauce so delicious it ought to come with a spoon. Steamed kabocha, carrots and sweet potatoes, or a generous romaine salad with a tangy beet dressing, accompany the entrées. [Read more]
The Modern Mexican
December 23, 2009
The menu at Cascabel says, “Eat, Drink, Love Tacos.” And this is exactly what you will do at this new taqueria.
With the sudden boom in places dishing up Mexican street food, it’s easy to get overwhelmed by new-fangled taco combinations and attention-grabbing slogans. Cascabel is also a bit gimmicky, as it’s completely decked out in lucha libre (the stylish Mexican wrestlers) icons. From the figurines behind the counter to wood block prints by Brooklyn designer Ulla Florholmen and two large wrestlers painted on the wall, there is no lack of kitsch in this small laid-back café. [Read more]
Fork Meets Pork
December 9, 2009
When you enter Accademia di Vino, it is like stepping into the coziest Italian wine cellar that, just for a moment, feels as if it’s all yours. Since the restaurant boasts an 800-bottle collection, you can never run out of options. And a book-like wine list highlights bottles from each region of Italy, broken down by type, color and area. It reads like a well-loved novel and includes a glossary of grape varieties.
After careful deliberation, we chose a bottle of the Eugenio Bocchino Barbera d’Alba ($47), a full and meaty wine that worked swimmingly with the heady Italian fare Accademia di Vino offers. [Read more]
Chowder House Ahoy
December 3, 2009
As I’ve written before, given the tens of thousands of hungry people who come to the Lincoln Center area, it astounds me that there aren’t more really good restaurants there. Yes, Jean Georges is great, but it’s a bit pricey for most people; ditto A Voce, Per Se, Masa and Picholine. But the clever forces behind the brand-new Ed’s Chowder House devised a formula that allows them to serve first-class seafood dishes at affordable prices. As a result, they’ve hit the ground running. [Read more]
Peace Out
November 19, 2009
A dining experience can be many things, but rarely does it prove comical by nature. I don’t mean rolling on the floor laughing because your waiter is really a comedian or the counter person does improv, but the kind of humor one looks back on with a groan of disbelief, as if to say, “Did that really happen?”
The service at Peace Food café invokes these feelings, and if the vegan and raw food menu didn’t offer up several culinary gems, I would advise you to avoid the madness. It started with a glass of water. Yes, one glass for four people. No silverware, menus that had to be procured by asking an eye-rolling server and a lackadaisical waiter who insisted on sitting down with us.
- The brightly-lit Peace Food Café. Good luck getting silverware. Photo by Linnea Covington
We finally got enough water to satiate the table and ordered a round of delightful sounding, alcohol-free drinks, which came interchangeably with the food. First up, the Brazilian nut chai ($4.50), a mildly-spiced hot beverage that my friend bogarted with the claim, “Mine is the best,” after everyone got their respective sips. It was good, but not the strong flavors I am used to in chai. My favorite of the four beverages was also my own, the gingerade ($4). This cold beverage tasted refreshing, but packed a kick at the same time, not unlike the hot version, an apple ginger soy steamer ($4). The tart orange apple cider ($4) was also a winner, leading us to believe that drinks are a surefire thing to order at this cafe. Food items, on the other hand, proved more hit or miss.
After procuring some cutlery and small plates, we dived into the roasted Japanese pumpkin sandwich ($9) served on toasted whole spelt rye bread. The gooey mashed pumpkin with vegan goat cheese blended well together with the sweet caramelized onions. It came with vinegar-dressed jicama salad that pleasantly surprised me by tasting sugary, rather then the usual sharp bite of the root. We also ordered a large side of the plain daily vegetables ($9.95) that came with overcooked squash, dry pumpkin slices and a handful of perfectly roasted cauliflower and broccoli.
The chickpea fries ($7) were a favorite with our resident vegan and my roommate (the fries were discussed long after we left the restaurant). As a side, they came piled up like Lincoln Logs, slightly fried and with a buttery, melt-in-the mouth texture. Not like French fries at all, but a winner just the same. Not so popular were the baked soy nuggets ($7) that were served with herbed vegan mayo, which gave these soft and fluffy chunks the only flavor they had. The vegetable tamale ($6) also failed the table’s taste test with its bland seasoning heightened only by the sliced jalapeños. The restaurant got the texture of the cornmeal right, though, despite the lack of the classic ingredient: lard.
Possibly the greatest disappointment was the roasted, seasonal vegetable pizza ($9.95). While this personal-sized pie packed in a lot of broccoli, squash and cauliflower, the vegetables tasted watery and flavorless. However, I liked the sweet tomato sauce enhanced with pine nuts and the thin crust, which did well holding up the soggy greens.
As we were finishing our meal, the waiters finally started to pay attention to us again and kept trying to take away the plates, even though food remained on them and we were still eating. Requests for water refills went ignored for a while, and getting the dessert menu required flagging down someone other than our waiter. We decided to go for the raw key lime pie ($6.95), a pumpkin-cranberry bread pudding ($4.50) and the “funny-bone” ($4.50), which is like a giant HoHo, but with peanut butter instead of cream. The desserts came quickly but napkins and forks did not. We still enjoyed all three, each for personal reasons (like a love for chocolate and peanut butter combos). The key lime pie had a good, solid citrus flavor and the pumpkin dish proved thick and hearty.
When we finally got the check and walked out of the brightly-lit Peace Food Café, we were full of good food and amused by how bad the service actually was. Still, the unimpressive staff obviously hasn’t kept the place from filling up. I guess in the end, the palate calls the shots.
Drop Anchor at Galway Hooker
November 11, 2009
I’m a big fan of the Emerald Isle, from the accents to the wool to the love of beer. When I heard about an Irish Pub just east of Macy’s, I wanted to see if Galway Hooker was more mediocre Blarney Stone, or if the place could hold its own against the city’s many Irish spots. The name, incidentally, has nothing to do with the oldest profession, but instead refers to a sailing boat used in Galway, Ireland. [Read more]
Big Digs for Littlenecks
November 5, 2009
Oceana has moved from its demure and staid ocean-liner stateroom space on East 54th Street to the imposing and comparatively enormous space just off Rockefeller Center. Not since the relocation of Aquavit in 2005 has such a dramatic transformation of a restaurant occurred in Manhattan.
Proud owners Paul McLaughlin and the Livanos family have obviously spared no expense in preparing Oceana’s new incarnation. Opened just in mid-September, the restaurant offers an unusually wide array of dining options. [Read more]
Bottoms Up
October 29, 2009
Upper East Siders, let’s face it: we could stand for a little more sexy in the neighborhood, especially that of the Latin persuasion. At least that’s what the brothers behind Astoria’s El Boqueron tapas bar thought when they opened El Porrón, on First Avenue. Since alcohol is arguably sexier than food, the dimly lit space leads with an airy bar area that accounts for almost half the restaurant. The long bar and high tables, where many patrons choose to dine, are adorned in dark wood and cool Spanish tile. They even named the establishment after a large glass pitcher with a thin spout that allows you to pour the wine right into your mouth. [Read more]
