skrillcakes's Profile
Your 10 favorite Manhattan restaurants?
corton / kanoyama / del posto / balthazar / ippudo / bacaro / tulcingo del valle / grand sichuan / tia pol / malatesta
Private Dinner Clubs
Had a friend come back raving about his meal at The Cardinal Club in the East Village. Saw some blog press about them as well, food looks nice. Has anyone been there or to any other kind of private restaurants / clubs that they would recommend? I really like the idea, especially eating outside in weather like this...
Corton - a cautionary note
i had the same early spring dish and thought it was incredible. spider crab in the shell with jellied crab stock and yuzu. extraordinary. the daurade w/ shiso and the scallop w/ uni also very good, but perhaps not as mind-blowing. the surcharge is because of the spider crab from japan. you're right though, "from the garden" is a little less arresting now than it was in the fall.
the cod main w/ arugula and speck is the best thing on the menu for me. the texture, color and flavor of the arugula mousseline revelatory. in general, i've found everything at corton to be pretty close to exceptional. i have a really hard time believing your mains were overcooked, since i'm 99% sure all their proteins are cooked at controlled temperatures (sous vide / oil poach). $42 does seem a bit egregious for an extra appetizer, especially in light of the fact that you skipped dessert. but you probably should have spoken to someone in that case and tried to come to an amenable solution.
Corton tomorrow night - tasting menu?
"from the garden" may sound boring, but is one of the most incredible dishes i've had in a restaurant - period. the hamachi app is also incredible. pheasant also great. must get caramel brioche dessert.
Top Chef- Bridal Shower
sorry... how was that jamie's win? she may have "orchestrated the presentation" but what she brought to the dish was the carrot puree. she even introduced the dish by starting with "what you have here is a carrot puree... with lamb." radhika made the marinade for the lamb and the raita that sauced the lamb. it was a lamb dish and radhika was responsible for how it tasted. she really should have spoken up.
Mexican brunch suggestions
la palapa st mark's is very good and often slept on. huevos tapatios are great w/ pickled red onions, chorizo, avocado and grilled nopales. crema on 17 st has very good chilaquiles.
Phoenix: best bbq, mexican
best bbq: a&j on 16th st
best mexican: rito's / carloina's / el nopalito
Must Sweetbreads be Blanched?
for grilling, white wine works best - maybe with a bay leaf or some cracked peppercorns and plenty of salt. then served with lemon. barely cooked scallion tops are a nice garnish.
Must Sweetbreads be Blanched?
you do not have to blanch sweetbreads before grilling - but you should definitely soak them in some kind of wine or lemon bath. what blanching is used for is to seize up the protein and make the sweetbreads easier to handle in more delicate preparations such as sauteing. this is why they are also often pressed. for grilling, soak them, dry them, oil them and grill until cooked about 3/4 - if you cook them all the way through on the grill, they will have an unpleasant texture.
Veg Recommendations for Congee Village?
chinese seasonal (water) spinach with bean paste is one of the best things on the menu. vegetarians i've eaten with have also been very happy with the braised bean curd casserole. kind of a shame to eat there and not be able to try the more exotic offerings, but i'm sure vegetarians are used to that kind of thing...
Spot on Recs, need one more in Chelsea
just had lunch at les ambassades, newish french / senegalese place on 22nd just east of 7th ave. fantastic thiebou djeun - easily holds up to its harlem counterparts. very casual and relaxed as well.
Amazing downtown wine bar?
have to recommend bacaro. amazing wine list (the pinot nero is especially fantastic) and deceptively simple, delicious food. the downstairs area is labyrinthine and could easily accommodate 20 of you if you give advance notice. on division street just east of orchard.
Una Pizza Napoletana - Steer Clear
nosher-
thanks, i know how restaurants work - it was more the attitude with which we were seated as opposed to having to sit at a 2-top. that is where the train went off the rails, but i think there's a big difference between saying "we can seat you at this table, but if a table of 4 comes in, we'll have to ask you to move" or even "sorry, but we really need to keep these tables for parties of 4" as opposed to "no you need to sit here, these are for bigger parties." especially when it's right at opening time, the restaurant only has 2-person tables in it, and this one is being encroached upon by a woman with a baby. not even worth debating really, as it's all in the way you say something - and the condescension and smarmy tone of voice were completely unwarranted. went to see dominic in midwood yesterday and one bite of the porcini square washed away all the bitterness of this ridiculous experience.
Una Pizza Napoletana - Steer Clear
Seriously the worst service I have ever experienced. At 6 pm, all the 2-top tables but one are taken, with 4 separate 4-top tables wide open. They insist on seating my friend and I in the last remaining corner 2-top, making a woman roll her baby in its carriage out of the way while I climb over her. They explain that the tables for 4 are reserved for parties of 4 or more who may show up. Fine. This attitude is irksome, but if that's the policy, so be it. Then they give us one menu for two people. OK, possible oversight. The waitress asks if we know what we'd like to order LITERALLY 15 seconds later. I've barely had time to even realize we only have one menu. We start looking at the menu, and 30 seconds later, the other waiter comes and asks us if we know what we'd like. I have no idea why they're being so pushy, maybe because we're young and from the neighborhood, we don't give the vibe they would like? I have no idea. 1 minute later, we put our order in and have to ask for water. Then she comes and basically slams the glasses and bottle down on our table. It is obvious something is rubbing them the wrong way about our presence.
The pizzas themselves were definitely good, and didn't take long to come out. Quality fresh ingredients and nice taste. But it's $21. For bread, tomatoes and cheese. It's pretty exorbitant - borderline ridiculous. $18 was enough.
After we're done eating, we wait 10 minutes for the check (while the staff fawns over Lou Reed and Laurie Anderson, who have just come in) and then when we ask for it, she shoves it in my face as if to say "here, now get out." We did, and happily. Without leaving a tip.
It is unacceptable to charge these kinds of prices and try to be a bastion of New York pizza authenticity without having your service game tight. You have a manifesto about flour, why not take a little time to give your staff some hospitality training? I've never felt this condescended to in a restaurant, especially one in the neighborhood that is meant to be a casual spot in the Italian tradition. Never again on this place.
