An Empire Comes to Midtown
Richard Sandoval spices things up with his newest creation
A few years ago, I was at this exact same spot when it was Jeffrey Chodorow’s Wild Salmon, the last of his multiple attempts to make the location successful. I had a great meal in a beautiful space, but it folded.
Now it’s chef Richard Sandoval’s turn. Perhaps the impresario behind 14 other restaurants around the world will have the Midas touch with his Asian and Latin fusion cuisine. Partner Placido Domingo, a friend of Sandoval’s, opened Zengo weeks after surgery, so things may already be looking up. Read more
Neapolitan Cookery Ready For Its Close-up
Wood-burning oven provides savory flavors
By Tom Steele
I can’t remember ever visiting a two-week-old restaurant that had its act so completely together. Credit must be bestowed on Tiella’s co-owner Mario Coppola, whose hands-on management style results in a tightly run ship. And Peppe Castellano’s Neapolitan cookery is as authentic as it is intensely delicious. Read more
Now You Skeen Him, Now You Don’t
5 & Diamond is still a bit rough
The first thing we learned at Harlem’s newest haut restaurant 5 & Diamond is that you need a reservation, even if no one is in the small, 40-seat dining room. On a recent rainy Wednesday evening at 6:30, we were shocked to find that no seating was available on the floor, and wouldn’t be all evening, despite the open tables. Read more
Uptown Outback
The Sunburnt Calf brings a bit of Australia to the Upper West Side
According to the back of its menu, The Sunburnt Calf got its name from owner Heathe St. Clair’s beloved heifer Bessie, who filled his childhood with laughter and wonder until the day she was accidentally left outside too long in the Australian heat. Cows can’t really recover from sunburns, so Bessie had to be put down. I have to admit, reading the tale of a euthanized cow wasn’t exactly how I wanted to start my Upper West Side dinner, but how can you argue with a restaurant that offers tableside keg service and shark meat? Read more
Bird is the Word
Fried chicken served with Southern flair
Many fried chicken devotees believe that you have to travel south of the Mason-Dixon Line or north to Harlem to have your bird cooked as God intended. Chef Charles Gabriel, of Charles’ Country Pan Fried Chicken fame, brings a little of that Southern flair to Midtown’s Aretsky’s Patroon with his latest creation. Read more
No Resisting This Siren’s Song
Enticing seafood specialties and reasonable prices at Mermaid Inn
By Tom Steele
In a time not long gone by, other than the venerable Ocean Grill, you would have been hard pressed to find a really terrific and reasonably priced seafood restaurant on the Upper West Side. Somehow, this decidedly idiomatic area just didn’t lend itself to seafood-driven places. In 2007, restaurateur Danny Abrams and co-owner/executive chef Laurence Edelman decided to change that by opening a new edition of their East Village seafood shrine on a populous stretch of Amsterdam Avenue. Read more
Oh, What a Tangled Vine
Walking into a wine bar can often feel a little daunting. You see a full list bursting with promise, but only a few names ring a bell. To the uneducated wine drinker, names like “rueda” and “refosco” remain mysterious grapes and blends we often skip in favor of better-known bottles, like pinot noir and sauvignon blanc. But at the two-month-old Tangled Vine, your glass of wine comes with not only the good feeling that most of the bottles are graced with organic or sustainable tipples, but with a healthy dose of education about what you are drinking.
The wine list alone is organized in an unusual way, from the lightest of the brews to the richest. But even with the comical and well-informed descriptions under each offering, the staff is more than happy to pair wine with food, or just to offer a glass you will love. I was lucky enough to spend a recent evening with Tangled Vine’s wine director, Evan Spingarn, as he taught me what went with which dish, and how different wines could really bring out the flavor of the food. With more than 160 types of mainly
The Tangled Vine offers more than 160 types of wines from Italy, Spain, France, Austria and Germany. Photo by Linnea Covingtonbiodynamic, organic and sustainable wines from Italy, Spain, France, Austria and Germany on the menu, I appreciated the wine 101.
We started with the restaurant’s signature plate, the fideos negros. Created by chef David Seigal, of Mercat and Jean Georges, this rich, squid-ink-blackened pile of small, thin noodles with braised cuttlefish and a potent garlic aioli was first paired with a light and bubbly cava brut natura ($10). Manager and wine expert Victoria Levin also brought over two reds, a sturdy dolcetto di dogliani ($12) and a glass of the fruitier ros di rol ($15). All three wines had different results for each of us. I preferred the basic, clean-cut dolcetto di doglaiani, which allowed the garlic and lush flavor of the squid ink to take charge of my palate. One of my dining companions liked the cava, which helped calm the richness of the dish with its bubbles. Our other diner went for the ros di rol, which was the most complex, as the juiciness tangoed with the savory part of the meal in a bold combo.
While we nibbled on crostini topped with perfectly smoky charred eggplant and red pepper with a light saba sauce ($6), the waiters bounced around the tables. They didn’t hesitate to answer guests’ questions about what might go well with the spring vegetable risotto ($16) or the mushroom fricassee ($16). Levin herself busied about the mainly female-packed restaurant, helping customers understand what certain wines were like and how to pair them.
Once we finished another round of crostini—this time a spicy and succulent sobresada and quail egg ($7) version—we opted for a round of sautéed pea shoots ($9) and pork montaditos ($10). The former, despite being heavy with butter, tasted fresh and was well balanced with a tossing of sweet raisins and salty pine nuts. Normally a big fan of pig, I found the pork belly sliders too rich for my blood. Maybe if the slathering of garlic dijonaise had been toned down, the meat in this dish would have shined through instead of getting buried in sauce. The organic veal meatballs ($14) were another story. Made with a great combo of light ricotta mixed with tender ground veal and bathed in a fresh tomato sauce, these treats harmonized perfectly with the glass of refosco ($10).
Three hours later, I was so full and brimming with wine lore that the thought of dessert melted away. Though next time, I look forward to trying the saffron panna cotta ($6) or ricotta cheesecake ($7). If they are anything like the rest of the food we had, I know they will taste divine.
Tangled Vine also offers an extensive cheese and charcuterie list ($17 to $29) and homemade, paprika-sprinkled potato chips, which I recommend munching on with a glass of apple crisp gruner veltliner ($8) as you peruse the menu.
Run for the Border, Via Yorkville
Satisfying drinks and apps, with entrées that could use a little punch
When you think Yorkville, the words “dining destination” don’t generally come to mind. In fact, it’s often difficult at all to find any interesting place to eat that far to the east. Coming to the rescue on an otherwise barren stretch of the avenue is Palacio Azteca, where you can kick back with cerveza and tuck in for a bountiful, inexpensive Mexican meal. Read more
The Empire Strikes Back
Decades later, Milanese matriarch ‘Bice’ Ruggeri would be proud
By Tom Steele
Bice is nearly 30 years old, yet the restaurant feels as fresh and vibrant as a newcomer. But Bice is an international empire of more than 50 Northern Italian restaurants, started in 1926 by a Milanese matriarch by the name of Beatrice Ruggeri, nicknamed Bice. The restaurants are everywhere from Dubai to Montecarlo to Miami. The New York edition is the flagship American restaurant. Read more
Like Paris in the Springtime
In Sutton Place, moules, frites and a crisp glass of wine on a sunny day
By Linnea Covington
As spring breaks through in little bursts of sunshine and warm days, there is no better way to welcome it than by eating fresh mussels and sipping a glass of wine on the balcony of East Side newcomer Bistro Vendôme. Here, owner and chef Pascal Petiteau (of Jubilee fame) dishes up delightful plates of French classics in an old townhouse. With three levels, lots of sun and a view of the Queensboro Bridge, Bistro Vendôme is a welcome addition to this quiet street. Read more
