Chef Andrew Carmellini is in a unique point of his career. Food lovers rave about his cuisine, though to the average New Yorker his name still draws blank stares. Mention his work though, however, and people will join in with praises. Chef Carmellini was the first Executive Chef at Cafe Boulud, after which he picked up a Michelin Star at A Voce, and now he’s found great fanfare with more casual restaurants Locanda Verde and The Dutch.
The way he’s cooking nowadays, he’s fast on the way to becoming a household name.
Locanda Verde, busy shortly past 5:30.
Locanda Verde was considered the first project designed from beginning to end by Chef Carmellini. Opened in 2009, it was quickly nominated for Best New Restaurant by the James Beard Foundation. Three years later, it’s still one of the hottest seats in town. Reservations are pretty tough to come by, and while the restaurant does maintain a few tables for walk in guests, they tend to fill up within minutes from opening. The bar does serve the full dining menu, but can get quite crowded. For good reason, this place serves pretty serious cocktails. On a chilly day the Cafe Sculacciata works wonders. A hot coffee cocktail with a house made biscotti and spice whipped cream. Continue reading Locanda Verde Review
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As oyster eaters become pickier, oyster bars are increasing their diverse selections of bivalves. It’s safe to say that most oyster bars around the city now offer at least 2~3 choices per coast. Therefore I was quite stunned when I noticed that the menu at Pearl’s Oyster Bar featured but one type of oyster: Bluepoints.
From the outside looking in, it didn’t seem to matter. The place was absolutely packed. Luckily half the restaurant is designated bar-seating, and we were spared the long wait for a formal table.
Pearl Oyster Bar, expect a line.
We started with a dozen oysters, Bluepoints, served up fresh and simple. At $3 each, they are a tad pricey compared to the other oyster bars in the area. (You can get Bluepoints at many happy hours for $1, or $1.75 at Fish anytime). Continue reading Pearl Oyster Bar Review – Simple Delicious Seafood.
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Where Chiyoda Sushi used to be now sits Mai Cuisine. On this Japanese outpost of a street, Mai serves the craving for a quick bite of healthy Japanese. The front section is filled with all kinds of Japanese lunch boxes for the midtown crowd and the back room opens up to a sit-down dining section. To clear up the confusion, only ordering from the menu earns you a seat in the back, which is well worth it too if you have a moment to spare.
Recently, Mai Cuisine is working up a healthy appetite for macrobiotics. In working with California’s M Cafe, it is pushing a new series of healthy plates. Before talking about the tasting, I’ll address the somewhat loaded term “macrobiotic.” I find mostly to be a dirty word: few bites, fewer calories, and a conspicuous lack of meat. This grain and vegetable focus is a painful change, but maybe not as painful as the heart attack I foresee having at the ripe age of 30.
The tasting started off with a scarlet quinoa salad (not pronounced ki-no-ah). The scarlet comes from the beet, with which a relationship can be hard to develop. I’ve only really started appreciating them this year (thanks CS!), so be brave and embrace the magenta grains and root.
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Keith McNally’s restaurants are tremendously popular, and all remarkably similar. Why mess with a proven formula beloved by hipsters and bankers alike?
The concept seems very simple: antiquated European decoration, dim yellow-tinted lighting, late night dining, a wait staff that look like models, and food taste far more complex than its casual guise. The only difference is the style of cuisine on focus. On Bowery Street, McNally has decreed that Pulino’s serve Italian pizza.
Like every one of McNally’s restaurants, without a reservation you face a daunting line at the door, even on a weeknight. With a reservation, the seats are cramped and uncomfortable. Despite all this, hipsters and fashionistas are undaunted and continue to flow into the restaurant.
The rough seating was made somewhat worse by the slow pace of service. However when the food arrived, everything was solid. The waiter made some excellent recommendations, such as the chicken liver mouse with bacon jam, and assorted crostini.
Yes you taste the bacon jam.
Crostini assortment.
We also got a plate of broiled peppers with sea salt. Sometimes simple really is best, we could pop these all day.
Delicious peppers.
True to the name of the restaurant, the pizza was quite impressive. Though not as memorable and flavor packed as the pie at Motorino, it was a very tasty, slightly neater pie.
The pizzas at Pulino are excellent.
One special that our waiter continuously pushed upon us was the fideua, a noodle based paella. Not only was the dish difficult to eat, the seafood was overcooked and the dish overall did not have much flavor. Stick with the pizza.
Fideua - Paella with noodles.
For desserts, a simple Tiramisu. Classic execution. I was quite surprised by the great texture of the lady fingers that were exposed on the outside of the slice.
A classic Italian dessert.
Aside from Minetta Tavern, I’ve never considered the Keith McNally restaurants to be destination dining. The food’s solid, but the dining experience is never too comfortable. Regardless, there’re always people who wish to mingle among the trendy crowd, or grab a late night meal before and after trips to the bar.
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When New York Times announced that it was swapping in Pete Wells for Sam Sifton as the publication’s main food critic, food lovers rejoiced, and for good reason. While I do enjoy an occasionally witty phrase from Sifton, I’ve grown weary of his writing style and more importantly his restaurant choices.
During his tenure as the NY Times critic, Sifton visited 3 Chinese restaurants, only 2 of which are still in existence. Perhaps in an attempt to appear fair to the Chinese population centers, one review went to Chinatown, and another to Flushing. As someone who is ethnically Chinese, his reviews of Chinese restaurants probably means as much to me as the common Yelp user writing about sushi.
Then the unthinkable happened. Sifton included a dish from Hunan Kitchen in his “10 Best New Restaurants” feature. This obscure restaurant in Flushing now sits on a list that includes Ciano, Danji, Red Rooster, Boulud Sud, The Dutch, Empellon, Tertulia, and John Dory (M Wells is no longer open). Thing is, I liked all of those restaurants, and have written about them all. Could Hunan Kitchen of Grand Sichuan be nearly as good as its peers?
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