UWShound's Profile
St John -- restaurant, bread & wine, hotel [London]
I will be visiting London from NYC on Sunday and would like to try St John. Questions:
- Do I have a chance without a reservation? I'm happy to sit at the bar if there is one.
- Which one should I go to? The hotel is much more convenient than the others relative to where I'm staying, but is it as good?
- What should I order?
Two days in Paris
My wife and I will be in Paris December 28-30 and are looking for recommendations for great food. We live in New York and know the restaurants very well there, so are most interested in things that aren't available or not as good in NYC.
We are staying near the Opera but also willing to travel around the city for the best food, from neighborhood bistros and patisseries to Moroccan and Chinese/Vietnamese, as well as high end (but preferably not too stuffy) French places. What are the can't-miss places?
Backup for Torrisi
We are planning to try Torrisi Italian Specialties (250 Mulberry St) on a Saturday night with friends but worry we won't be able to get in and will be stuck without a good backup. I'd be grateful for suggestions of other great places around there.
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Torrisi Italian Specialties
250 Mulberry St, New York, NY 10012
Thanksgiving duck!
My family doesn't really like turkey, so we'd like to make only the sides/trimmings and buy a roast Chinese duck instead. Do you have suggestions for where to buy it? How about Big Wong or some other place in Chinatown? Is it necessary to reserve or possible to just walk in?
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Big Wong
67 Mott St, New York, NY 10013
nobu vs. bond street south beach
which one is better? Does either one have outdoor seating? And would it be awkward to bring children?
South Beach Special Occasion
Looking for a top notch outdoor place in South Beach for 10 including 4 children -- Latin/Fusion preferred, not stuffy but stylish and absolutely awesome food. Can be expensive so long as it's worth it. Any suggestions?
Asian fusion
Looking for a New York buzz-y Asian fusion place for a couple of not-too-adventurous friends from that culinary and style desert known as Washington DC. They loved Spice Market the last time they were here, and we were thinking Kittichai but unfortunately it's fully booked. Can you recommend similar types of places, preferably ones that don't book out weeks in advance?
Wallse -- what to order?
I am taking my office to Wallse for a holiday dinner. I've been there before, but it was years ago and I can't remember the menu that well. Are there any can't miss dishes? Anything to avoid? If you have wine suggestions that would be great as well. Thanks a lot.
Yasuda -- How to Order?
We have a reservation for 3 at the sushi bar this evening and are hoping for an unforgettable experience. What's the best way to order? And how much is it going to cost?
Review: Spice Market
Agree with that. One other point in favor of Spice Market is that the casual small plates concept means that it doesn't have to be an expensive experience, even though each individual item is actually quite expensive. Sit outside, look out on 9th Av on a nice summer evening, have a couple of ginger margaritas and a few of the small plates -- hard to beat for the sheer enjoyment of NY.
Which is best choice for West Side lunch?
Also, for dessert, Cafe Lalo (83 btw Amst &Brdwy) and Cafe Edgar (84th btw Brdwy&WE) are both nice sitdown places if slightly overpriced. For Japanese creampuffs, Beard Papa on Broadway & ~76 is a great option -- try them if you haven't had them, even if you don't normally like Japanese.
Which is best choice for West Side lunch?
If you'd consider Italian, go to Celeste (Amsterdam btw 84&85). The best value and, for that matter, the best Italian food in any price category on the UWS -- horrendously crowded for dinner but you can always get a table for lunch. Although the lunch menu is small, everything is delicious.
Kittichai -- what to order?
I'm going on Saturday, mainly for vibe reasons but would still like to have a good meal. Is the seabass good (have seen mixed reviews on this board)? Any other suggestions, especially ones that aren't too sweet (my main beef with Thai food in the US)?
Financial district sushi -- Ise isn't it
Thanks for the Koodo tip -- I had it tonight and agree it's good.
Financial district sushi -- Ise isn't it
Just wanted to say that the detractors are right on this one -- delivery took forever and the fish wasn't fresh. Any suggestions for good sushi in financial district would be appreciated -- if it's on Seamless Web that would be a bonus. Thanks.
Jever Pils?
Where in Manhattan can I find it, either in a store or a restaurant/bar?
San Franciscan in the Big Apple
I think the key is to go Italian, Italian, Italian and avoid anyting Asian which is much better in SF. Don't believe the Babbo detractors, they are just trying to be contrarian and "interesting" -- it's outstanding and is extremely consistent in my opinion (and quite reasonably priced to boot). Other good Italian places are Po (almost equally hard to get into but you can try the bar), Little Frankie's on LES and Celeste on the UWS -- all three are real bargains too.
The best Taiwanese 四神豬肚湯, now at Excellent Pork Chop House!
I agree the pork chops are only OK. However, the fried chicken leg, the rice with minced pork sauce, and the soup noodles are truly "excellent".
Good Italian restaurant featuring pastas
Celeste on Amsterdam/84. I particularly like the ravioli and the spagghetti vongole.
Al Fresco in Meatpacking district?
I am looking for a place with good food and outdoor seating/peoplewatching that does not involve a 2-hour wait on a Saturday night (the latter requirement rules out places like Pastis and Spice Market). Any suggestions?
Take out Chicken UWS
Try Flor de Mayo (two locations on Amsterdam at 100 and 83) -- a bit more expensive but the Peruvian chicken is definitely tasty.
UWS Thai?
I am looking for a good Thai place on the Upper West Side, mainly for delivery purposes. The only one I know is Land, which I find a bit too sweet. Grateful for any recommendations.
Bettola review
I have also found saltiness to be an occasional problem at Celeste. I don't think it happens all that often (we go a lot, so I can say this with reasonable confidence) but if you want to be on the safe side just make sure you remind them to use less salt when ordering. We now usually do this and haven't had any problems recently.
Bettola review
Went to Bettola (79th and Amsterdam)with my wife and children this evening. It's a nice place and we had an enjoyable meal. The pizzas were very good, as has been noted on this board, although I personally prefer them just a little less crisp (but that's clearly a matter of personal preference). The seafood soup was also good; we were slightly less impressed with the grilled calamari and spelt salad starters.
On the whole, it's a good neighborhood place, although it can't compete with the top UWS trattorias (Celeste and Gennaro) let alone the downtown places IMHO.
Looking for a great Italian restaurant in the East Village or surrounding area...
It's on the LES, but Little Frankie's is one of my favorite inexpensive Italian places in New York. Apart from the excellent food, I especially like the inexpensive red house wine which makes you feel like you're in Italy.
Acqua review
For inexpensive authentic Italian, I love Celeste but hate the wait and have therefore been looking for alternatives on the Upper West Side for a long time. Tried Acqua at 95th and Amsterdam for an early dinner with my wife and kids this evening; here's my report.
Ambiance/service: pretty good. Nice room, comfortable chairs, service not the fastest but quite friendly.
Food: Mixed antipasto plate ($10), which was ordinary except for excellent fried artichokes (I think this also comes by itself). Pizza Margherita ($12) was pretty good but not exciting. Of the pastas, the vongole ($13) was excellent, almost as good as the Celeste version. The daily special black fettucine ($15) unfortunately was quite soggy and disappointing. We also had another pasta (a Sardinian kind whose name I don't remember; $12) with sausage and tomatoes which was pretty good, and two decent glasses of Nero d'Avola ($8 each).
Value: Not too bad in absolute terms, but frankly about 30% higher than Celeste for a space that is quite a bit nicer but food that's nowhere near as good.
Overall, it's not a bad place "in a pinch," but the quest for an alternative to Celeste continues. If you have other suggestions, I'd love to hear them.
Favorite restaurants in Campania/Calabria/Sicily
It's a great time of the year for this trip, and the Amalfi Coast really is very beautiful if a bit overrun. That said, the highlights of the trip for me (apart from the above restaurants) were probably the archaeological sights (particularly the museum in Napoli, Herculaneum, and Paestum), Mount Etna, and Catania -- a wonder ful city that doesn't get nearly as much attention as it deserves. If you go to Catania, also be sure to visit the market just off Piazza del Duomo (my wife went a bit nuts taking pictures of all the amazing seafood and vegetables there).
