NY Eats – Page 18 – Food & Pixels

A few more notes before Restaurant Week

Today kick starts the 2 weeks long New York Winter Restaurant Week. Don’t have a reservation yet? Still don’t know where you want to go? I have been to a few more places, and hope what I post here might help.

The Library at the Public
The Public as in the Public Theater near Astor Place, not the Australia restaurant on Elizabeth street. The Library is a great place to grab a bit or a few drinks before or after shows. Comfortable dinning room severing up american snacks/ pub food. We went there for RW last summer, and I checked, the menu is exactly the same. The Library offers some good choices, great varieties, and the portions are decent. We were full before desserts hit the table, and we ended up bringing one of them home untouched. [gallery_bank type=”images” format=”thumbnail” title=”true” desc=”true” responsive=”true” animation_effect=”fadeIn” album_title=”true” album_id=”14″]

Boulud Sud
Michelin Started chef Daniel Boulud has a few restaurants participating in RW. His “newest” addition to the empire, Boulud Sud, opened in 2011 right next to Bar Boulud. Unlike other Boulud brandname places, Boulud Sud serves Mediterranean cuisine, with seafood as the main focus. We went there in Summer 2013. And we chose there because of its value. At first glance, I found there were quite a few supplement items. But when I researched a little more, I found out that the RW menu is very close to the pre-theatre pre fixe, which is a lot more $$$. It is a clean, white space, with high ceiling. The semi-open kitchen let you take a peek, and keep you guessing. With the RW menu offerings, it does gave me a real taste of what Boulud Sud is capable of. Although the portion is not huge, everything is beautiful. And I wouldn’t mind coming back at regular price.[gallery_bank type=”images” format=”thumbnail” title=”false” desc=”false” responsive=”true” special_effect=”overlay_fade-white” animation_effect=”fadeIn” album_title=”true” album_id=”15″]

Lure fishbar and Park Ave Winter are two other places I would recommended.
I would choose to go to Lure in Soho at lunch time simply because their lunch and dinner menu are the same, so why would I pay more for the same thing? Lure has some very good choices. With $25 for lunch, I could get half a dozen oysters for appetizer! Entrees are decent portions too.
I really like my brunch at Park Ave Winter, so naturally I would recommend it for lunch/dinner. 5 different choices for appetizer and main course, and four desserts to choose from. I haven’t been there for dinner yet, but I am looking forward to. Dinner has a couple more items than lunch, otherwise is the same. So take a look and see which fit your craving.

As much as we enjoy restaurant week for its values, plenty of RW haters out there have said “it’s not worth it”; “totally waste of time”, and I can definitely see the reason. There was a time that we totally gave up trying places out or almost avoid dinning out during RW. We had some “not so great” experience, or the portions were ridiculous small, or the dishes just not up to the restaurant’s fame which become a total disappointment. After these leaning experience, I came up with a few guidelines I follow when choosing where to go during restaurant week if possible:

1. Have 3 app choice, and 1 of them not a soup /salad
2. Have more than 3 main course, and 1 of them being not a salmon/ chicken/ veggie
3. If I can get the same thing at lunch, do go at dinner (why pay more?)
4. If the restaurant offer similar pre-fixe regularly (since I can go some other time during NOT restaurant week)
5. No sushi place (I love sushi too much that 5 pieces and a roll is not going to satisfy me.)

It’s chow time, so dine out! Eat up! Enjoy!

Fig & Olive (restaurant week dinner 2014)

Fig & Olive (restaurant week dinner 2014)

Fig & Olive is a chain of Mediterranean restaurants, that has 4 locations in NY alone, with 3 in the City. We went during restaurant week last winter. Its regular menu is priced mid range, with $39 lamb chop and sea bass being the priciest item. We choose F&O for RW because it seems to have petty good choices, but I happened to choose maybe the most uncomfortable location. At its meatpacking district and 5th Ave location, both have good size dinning room where there is actually room to maneuver. We went to its uptown location, across the street from Bloomingdale’s. It is a long room, where the front bar room is converted to sitting during a busy night. We were seated in the front bar room. There were 5 other parties cramped in the elbow to elbow space, waitresses barely have any room to move around. At the same time, there were people coming in and out from the front door right behind us, and plenty of people standing in the already very crowed space waiting for their table. It was way too crowed, and uncomfortable.

bread with 3 kinds of olive oil Hugh plate of bread plated felt oversize on the tiny table. There were 3 different kinds of olive oil presented. All were very fresh, but I failed to tell the difference. Bread however, while soft and spongy, was cold. :( — bread with 3 kinds of olive oil
Hugh plate of bread plated felt oversize on the tiny table. There were 3 different kinds of olive oil presented. All were very fresh, but I failed to tell the difference. Bread however, while soft and spongy, was cold. 🙁

TRUFFLE MUSHROOM CROQUETTE Cremini mushroom, parmesan, béchamel mushroom croquette was tiny, hiding underneath a full plate of parmesan. — TRUFFLE MUSHROOM CROQUETTE Cremini mushroom, parmesan, béchamel
mushroom croquette was tiny, hiding underneath a full plate of parmesan.

CRAB CAKE Bell pepper, shallot, horseradish, lemon, cilantro sweet pimenton aioli Crab cake was good. Plenty of crab meat. I love the cilantro sweet pimenton aioli, and I actually would like more of that dressing. — CRAB CAKE
Bell pepper, shallot, horseradish, lemon, cilantro sweet pimenton aioli
Crab cake was good. Plenty of crab meat. I love the cilantro sweet pimenton aioli, and I actually would like more of that dressing.

PRIMAVERA LOBSTER RISOTTO Grilled Maine lobster, arborio rice, asparagus, lobster stock big pieces of lobster, very well cooked. Risotto was a bit too salty for me. — PRIMAVERA LOBSTER RISOTTO
Grilled Maine lobster, arborio rice, asparagus, lobster stock
big pieces of lobster, very well cooked. Risotto was a bit too salty for me.

PAELLA DEL MAR Black tiger shrimp, sea scallop, calamari, mussels, saffron rice with chicken, green pea, red bell pepper, artichoke, saffron aioli, pimenton & oregano – Hojiblanca Olive Oil Plenty of seafood. But this Paella needs could use a 3rd piece of lime, but otherwise, very good plate. — PAELLA DEL MAR
Black tiger shrimp, sea scallop, calamari, mussels, saffron rice with chicken, green pea, red bell pepper, artichoke, saffron aioli, pimenton & oregano – Hojiblanca Olive Oil
Plenty of seafood. But this Paella needs could use a 3rd piece of lime, but otherwise, very good plate.

DESSERT “CROSTINI” Amarena cherry, mascarpone, pistachio shortbread with micro-basil Love the shortbread cookie, it was airy, and very buttery. But I hated the amarena cherry, it is just overly sweet and just bursting syrup. Fresh cherry of blueberry would have been so much better. — DESSERT “CROSTINI” Amarena cherry, mascarpone, pistachio shortbread with micro-basil
Love the shortbread cookie, it was airy, and very buttery. But I hated the amarena cherry, it is just overly sweet and just bursting syrup. Fresh cherry of blueberry would have been so much better.

CHOCOLATE POT DE CRÈME White chocolate is the way to go with this. Good balance of chocolate and creme. — CHOCOLATE POT DE CRÈME
White chocolate is the way to go with this. Good balance of chocolate and creme.

For Fig & olive, I would definitely choose a different location, or indicated in my reservation that i want a table, a real table. And on second look, I found on F&O’s website, that they do have a Pre Fixe for $38 from Sunday to Thursday. So, if there’s another place you want to try, may be you can save F&O for another time, and hope on regular days, it is not as packed.
(see Fig & Olive Winter 2015 restaurant week menu)

THE DAVID BURKE EMPIRE in restaurant week part 3

THE DAVID BURKE EMPIRE in restaurant week part 3

Unlike its uptown sisters, the downtown Kitchen offers a more relax atmosphere. This “farm-to-table” concept restaurant take space in the basement of a Soho hotel. We went there twice on 2 different restaurant weeks. One for lunch, and one for dinner. During daytime, it is bright, with its wood furnishings, it does give out a farm house/ barn vibe. On the regular menu, lots of shares and dessert items are served in mason jars, while most of main course still shadows those in the sister restaurants. However, don’t be mistaken, just because it is in a basement instead of a townhouse, sticker prices are still up there. So luckily there’s restaurant week.

Lobster dumpling soup with coconut fennel creme and watercress

Here we have 3 different kinds of lobster dumplings. The left one was served during lunch, and the right one was served at dinner. They are actually the same thing but prepared differently. Steam, deep fried, and in soup. It is hard to pick which one I like more, because it was mostly dough. One of them was even a little fishy.

PRETZEL CRAB CAKE mustard glaze, boston beer foam, pepper mamalade — PRETZEL CRAB CAKE
mustard glaze, boston beer foam, pepper mamalade

The signature pretzel crab cake is the same as the ones at Townhouse or Fishtail, although, this one is the biggest in size. To be honest, i like pretzel a lot, I just think the crab got lost in there, and the honey drizzle at the bottom really wasn’t necessary.

TUNA TARTARE TACOS whipped avocado, tobiko caviar — TUNA TARTARE TACOS
whipped avocado, tobiko caviar

These 2 dishes were from the lunch RW menu. A quiche and a grilled salmon. And the 2 below were from dinner. While I do like the short rib and cavatelli, I found them a little on the salty side.

Short Rib and Cavatelli wild mushrooms, truffle cream — Short Rib and Cavatelli
wild mushrooms, truffle cream

BLACK SEA BASS tomato miso vinaigette, bok choy, ginger olive oil — BLACK SEA BASS
tomato miso vinaigette, bok choy, ginger olive oil

For dessert, I preferred the ice-cream with berries. Just because the others were overly sweet. For me at least, it seems the dishes were a bit over seasoned. Or may be my palette just crave for a bit lighter.
(Jan 2012 & 2013)

THE DAVID BURKE EMPIRE in restaurant week part 2

THE DAVID BURKE EMPIRE in restaurant week part 2

Just a block away from David Burke’s Townhouse, Fishtail’s set up is almost identical. It is also a townhouse: bar in the front downstairs, and formal dinning room on second with oil paintings of fish on wall. As its name indicated, majority of the menu is seafood, and some of them are echoing with Townhouse.

Remind you, this was years ago. I haven’t seen this on their menu for a long time, and hopefully never again, because I really have no idea why would they put it on the menu, nor why I would order it. It was an embarrassment. Crab meat rolls in different sizes; rice were broken and falling off 2 sad piece of sushi (different sizes too); ginger and wasabi looked like they were just thrown onto the plate. And yes, it tasted as it looked.

As I almost lost it with the sushi platter, Anger Mussel showed up and calmed my anger. Served in a cast iron pan, with a wonderful sauce on the side, it was delicious. The sauce had a hint of curry in it, which went very well with the mussel, and very good flavor.

PRETZEL CRUSTED CRAB CAKE was not that much different than the one in Townhouse, minus the shrimp on top.

I am not a fan of branzino. It seemed to always be a boring cut of fish, and it is. It was seared perfectly, well seasoned, and skin was as crispy as it could be. There was nothing wrong with it, just boring.