hungrycomposer's Profile
Anyone tried Sao Mai on 1st Avenue?
I also tried the pho banh mi. It's kind of like a Vietnamese French dip sandwich. Tasty and different. It also has bean sprouts. I was there for dinner of Sunday night and I'm happy to say it was crowded.
italian sausage or pepperoni bread
Russo's on 11th St. also sells prosciutto bread, though they don't always have it.
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Russo's Mozzarella and Pasta
344 E 11th St, New York, NY 10003
Anyone tried Sao Mai on 1st Avenue?
Banh mi are only available until they run out of bread. Tonight I arrived at 8:30 and there was no more bread. Their chef's specialty is a pho banh mi, which I look forward to trying.
Tonight we tried the beef and watercress salad which was delicious. Much more watercress than beef, but very good. We didn't eat the out of season tomatoes, though. Also got Chinese broccolli, which was good but not terribly different from what I might make at home.
So happy to have this restaurant in the neighborhood!
Anyone tried Sao Mai on 1st Avenue?
Tried it the other night - it's good! We got a bowl of pho, (delicious if not too remarkable) a pork chop on rice (a bargain at $7.50 and a great example of this affordable staple - thin but unusually tender, and well seasoned) and and a banh mi (good hot bread, traditional filling. It didn't come with fresh chilis, but when I requested some they brought me some real incendiary killers - not the usual bland jalapenos). Next time I will not play it so safe in my ordering since everything was excellent. The staff was very nice, attentive, and professional. Sao Mai is a real asset to the neighborhood and I wish them well.
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Sao Mai
203 1st Ave, New York, NY 10003
Anyone tried Sao Mai on 1st Avenue?
That looks promising. I don't normally trust giant menus, even seeing pho + banh mi + expansive Vietnamese menu made me wonder, but I dropped in last night and it looked pleasant. (I had already eaten.) Nice that they've already got a good record.
The Lucky Peach
I bought it at Milk Bar. You may be able to buy it at all of the Momofuku restaurants.
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Momofuku Milk Bar
251 E 13th St, New York, NY 10003
Anyone tried Sao Mai on 1st Avenue?
Sao Mai, a Vietnamese restaurant, just opened on 1st Avenue between 12/13th Street. Has anyone tried it? It looks promising. The quality of Vietnamese food in NYC has never been great, it would be wonderful to have a good place close by.
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Sao Mai
203 1st Ave, New York, NY 10003
Stollen back at the Milk Bar stand at Union Square
And it's as delicious as ever. I just saw one type of stollen this year. The ingredients list pistachio, almonds, candied ginger, currants, raisins, candied lemon, cranberries, and whiskey. I don't know if they're selling it at the Milk Bar too, but it's worth a trip to Union Square and you've only got til Christmas eve!
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Union Square Holiday Market
E 14th St Union Square W, New York, NY 10003
Good dumplings (small, thin, homemade skin) in a sit-down restaurant -- like Shan Dong in San Francisco
Somehow I had completely forgotten about TKettle! So happy to know that they're still good! My only complaint was that sometimes they steamed the dumplings for too long, but I think you can buy them cold and steam them at home.
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TKettle
26 St Marks Pl, New York, NY 10003
Zaab-Elee, new Thai in the east village, now the best Thai in NYC, perhaps.
Thanks, what is your blog? I'll actually be in Wannsee, which is outside of Berlin. I hear there is a great chef where I have my fellowship, but there are plenty of meals in which I'll have to fend for myself. I hope the grilled fish at the market includes grilled mackerel, which can be so great in Germany. And I'll be looking for a good Asian supermarket, so I can stock up on ingredients for cooking in Berlin.
Zaab-Elee, new Thai in the east village, now the best Thai in NYC, perhaps.
Is the market there in the winter? I have a fellowship in Berlin Jan through May, and that looks mighty good...
Ideas for lunch pre fixe
FYI you can get an extra pasta dish for another $10 at Del Posto. That's not mentioned on the menu. Do a search here for posts on lunch at Del Posto for more details.
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Del Posto
85 10th Avenue, New York, NY 10011
Misoya – Interesting and Tasty Hokkaido Style Miso Ramen
Thanks for the tip. I think LA is the best eating town. I moved to NYC from a generic, urban, LA neighborhood and felt so let down with the local eats when I got here (it was the early 90's, things have improved). Even our generic local ramen shop in LA was great and incredibly cheap.
Misoya – Interesting and Tasty Hokkaido Style Miso Ramen
Yes, the owner of Nori was an employee at Takahachi prior to opening Nori. When I moved here in the 90's there were far fewer options for Japanese food, Takahachi was a favorite among musicians. I didn't mean to imply that Takahachi and Nori had the same ownership, but the owner at Nori is certainly a familiar face from the neighborhood for many years now. We just enjoyed lunch at Misoya, my favorite was the Kome-miso ramen and the fried chicken. A funny touch that I haven't seen mentioned is the fried potatoes in the Kome Ramen: basically a couple of big fat fries thrown in. The quality of the miso itself seems higher than what you get in most ramen in these parts. The owner said that they make it in California, and import some of the miso from Japan. I put in my plea for mackerel sushi once he gets more side dishes up and running.
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Takahachi
85 Avenue A, New York, NY 10009
Misoya – Interesting and Tasty Hokkaido Style Miso Ramen
I'm glad to see a positive report - I've been craving Nori Sushi's mackerel and bemoaning their loss! But the owner, who you may remember from Takahachi, is a good guy and I wish him well. It's definitely on my list to try, if only they still served mackerel...
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Takahachi
85 Avenue A, New York, NY 10009
Zaab-Elee, new Thai in the east village, now the best Thai in NYC, perhaps.
Has anyone else found that dinner tends to be better than lunch? Maybe there is a different chef working at night? I went a lot earlier in the year (summertime I tend to stay home and cook greenmarket bounty) so I haven't had much recent experience, but I definitely got better meals in the evening.
One splurge in manhattan for an Aussie tourist?
Momofuku Ko is a great choice. And something you won't experience anywhere else. If you're interested sign up for a reservation account in advance. You'll know quickly if you snag a reservation when you sign on at the exact time necessary - there's only a few minutes leeway, but if you're prompt you'll likely get something for the night you want. Keep your credit card handy.
Keep in mind that a normal tip in NYC is 20 percent, and there is also tax on the check total (8.5 percent?) so the cost of a meal can be close to one-third higher once it's paid. Cocktails can be as high as $18, but $13-15 seems about normal for something a mixologist dreamed up. Lunch is a great alternative for those not scheduling their leisure time around a 9-5 job. Dress is often casual but it can still be sophisticated - you can look great without a jacket and tie if you leave your shorts at home.
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Momofuku Ko
163 1st Ave, New York, NY 10003
One splurge in manhattan for an Aussie tourist?
Get the $29 prix fixe lunch at Del Posto. Order an extra pasta course (not on the menu, but only $10). Order anything that comes with a supplement, drink with abandon, don't bother with a jacket, and you will have a splurge-y experience and probably still come in under budget. God knows you couldn't eat dinner there for that price...
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Del Posto
85 10th Avenue, New York, NY 10011
Brunch at the Dutch
I had brunch there last month and totally agree with your review. The fried chicken was very good. The okonomiyaki was closer to an omellette (not so exciting). My favorite part of the meal was my bloody Caesar, who wouldn't love an oyster in their drink? But I have to say that Carmellini's meal at Le Grand Fooding totally knocked my socks off!
Which Momofuku resto for Saturday LUNCH?
If you accept Momo's ramen for what it is, and aren't going for authenticity, I think it's delicious. Noodle bar is more lively and casual, and if it fits into the poster's budget more comfortably, it's definitely worth a trip.
A word of warning: noodle bar and ssam bar can both get very noisy. If you are a party of 2, I suggest sitting side by side (as opposed to across from each other) as it's easier to shut out the big noisy parties of yahoos.
Which Momofuku resto for Saturday LUNCH?
They are all good, you can leave it up to your budget. KO would be the most unusual, memorable, and expensive meal, provided you could get a reservation. Ssam bar is a little more high end than the noodle bar, and you actually can order duck on the weekend. (Either an individual portion for lunch, or a whole duck for the 2 of you). I just had dinner there with my BF - 3 dishes and 3 drinks were $136 with tax and tip. Tonight's favorite was the pork shoulder steak and mango/bourbon drink. Noodle bar is cheaper and more casual, but also delicious. Probably a good choice if you're in the mood for noodles (obvious, maybe...?)
Anyone tried Hot Kitchen on 2nd Ave?
Has anyone tried this place yet? I saw this post but haven't been there:
http://evgrieve.com/2011/09/hot-kitchen-now-open-on-second-avenue.html
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Hot Kitchen
104 2nd Ave, New York, NY 10003
Stockholm
I'm going to Stockholm on Oct. 18 for one week. I'll be staying at the Clarion in Sodermalm, but I will have concerts in the center of Stockholm at the Kulturhuset. I would greatly appreciate any recommendations for great places to eat: both restaurants and markets. Since I'll be working, it helps if it's walking distance from either the hotel or the Kulturhuset. And cheaper is better - looks like Stockholm can be very pricey especially now that the dollar is not so high!
Stockholm
I'm going to Stockholm on Oct. 18 for one week. I'll be staying at the Clarion in Sodermalm, but I will have concerts in the center of Stockholm at the Kulturhuset. I would greatly appreciate any recommendations for great places to eat: both restaurants and markets. Since I'll be working, it helps if it's walking distance from either the hotel or the Kulturhuset. And cheaper is better - looks like Stockholm can be very pricey especially now that the dollar is not so high!
Manhattan eating for four nights.
How's the ramen? The ramen menu is almost identical to a place I went to in LA years ago.
Manhattan eating for four nights.
I managed to talk myself into lunch at Ippudo. Really delicious, and only a 10 minute wait at 2:30PM on a Thursday(!). The one thing that I'm not crazy about is that it feels a little corporate, and the music is pretty lame. Even if we are in the fucklehead district here in the East Village, we do have the advantage of so many small, personal, privately owned places to eat.
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Ippudo
65 4th Ave, New York, NY 10003
East Village Simple Birthday Dinnner?
If you're willing to cross Houston you could also consider Taqueria Lower East Side, which is festive and affordable (but small, so see if you could get a reservation).
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Taqueria Lower East Side
198 Orchard St, New York, NY 10002
Manhattan eating for four nights.
Since I live in the east village I know to avoid eating out on the weekends. It truly becomes the fucklehead district. I try to go out to lunch instead of dinner, but on weekends you're competing with the less drunken but equally clueless brunch crowd. Weekday lunch (for those of us sans day job) is the way to go, but sometimes I wonder if the best chefs are on duty. Come Saturday night I'm happy I know how to cook.
As for Momofuku, their employees win for best work ethic, but I think that's company policy. And they are generally very nice if you're nice to them. I've seen a lot of entitled customers raise servers' hackles everywhere in this town.
Lunch at 84th and Lex?
Thanks. We wound up at Lexington Candy Shop, primarily because their chocolate malteds are made with Bassett's ice cream, from my home town of Philadelphia. Good meal, funny place.
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Lexington Candy Shop
1226 Lexington Ave, New York, NY 10028
Manhattan eating for four nights.
Yeah, I knew I was setting myself up when I hit "post". When I go to noodle bar I sit at the kitchen/bar next to my BF which is the easiest way to ignore the noisy yahoos. And I've always had good luck with all of the servers there, but I suppose every meal for everybody is different. But I will give ippudo another shot.
