We went again last night, party of four. As I stated before, udon is the main reason we go there for. Last night we also got some appetizers: uni with grated yam, a Michelle roll, gyoza and grilled spanish mackerel.

Here's my opinion on them:
The mackerel was dry. Slight miso flavor but not enough to make it enjoyable. C
The uni was decent but not the best (or close) that I've ever had. The grated yam, flavorless and mucilaginous (texture off-putting for some) was good with the addition of wasabi and soy sauce. B
Michelle roll - an A. Yellowtail I think, with a crunchy topping and salmon roe over, a bit spicy... Very good. I'm sorry I didn't take a picture of it, it looked good, too.
The gyoza was ok, let's say a B. Maybe B+

The star remains the Nabeyaki Udon. The noodles are perfectly chewy, the broth has a very enticing aroma, the tempura shrimp on the side always good.

I'm still happy they're in the neighborhood :)

Ramen, pho, udon - doesn't matter. Any place that closes at midnight? TIA

Nabeyaki udon. I liked that they bring the tempura shrimp (excellent, btw) on the side, as to not get soggy from the soup.

Went twice in the last few days for the udon, and I love the place. So happy to have solid udon in the neighborhood.
The first time I went, my friend got a sashimi to go for her husband and he claims that it wasn't impressive. Although I trust his taste, I won't judge until I tried the fish myself.

The udon is excellent but the service is a bit... scattered. The first time we went we waited about 10 minutes for the menus, last night about the same for spoons after the soup was brought to the table. I think they don't work sections of the dining area as two of the girls came over to take the order and each time the owner brought the soup at the table. Nothing major with the service, they're polite and they're trying but somehow there's a bit of lack of flow, if you know what I mean. It doesn't bother me much, just thought others might care.

There's so much on the menu that I want to try, can't wait to go back.

OK, I'm very confused. We went again and again I got the pistachio, only this time it didn't have bits of pistachio in it. Not that it wasn't good, just that it wasn't as good as the last time.

And they definitely give you two flavors in a small cup.

Oh, that's wonderful news! I wonder how I missed this, the last visit at Grom was around July 10th or so - and believe me, every time I go I look at the specials. But I'll try to make it there a.s.a.p. Thank you!

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Grom
233 Bleecker St, New York, NY 10014

Yes, baccio is hazelnut chocolate and you might ask for a taste, it's worth trying.
The tiramisu I only tried from someone's cup, not sure if it has chocolate chips and ladyfinger pieces, but I don't think so. Maybe someone who had a whole serving could chime in. While I love tiramisu, I don't usually go for it in gelato.
But the pistachio, I do think is better than Grom's.
I think it's worth mentioning - just so you're not disappointed when you go - that LC's chocolate doesn't have chocolate chips. And I think they have less flavors than Grom. :)

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Grom
233 Bleecker St, New York, NY 10014

I went to La Cremeria 3 times in the last 2 weeks, each time with a couple of friends. Got to try several flavors this way and I have favorites but I have to say that everything was very good.
Love-love-love the Baccio and I don't think I'll be able to go to LC and not get it. Pistachio is the best I've had in NYC. Tiramisu is boozy and creamy. If you like sorbets (not me) the fragola and limone are as good as they get. Dark chocolate is fabulous if you're a fan of dark chocolate (not me). Amacord was my least favorite.

To give you an idea of my tastes, I'm a fan of Grom although I never thought they're as good as any gelato I had in Italy - with the disclaimer that the cassata siciliana they had on special a long time ago is stuff that dreams are made of. I find La Cremeria a step above Grom.
L'arte is going on 3rd place now and I've never liked Il Laboratorio.

katryn, I haven't done an A/B comparison with Grom but we went there the next day after the first LC try. One of us thought Grom slightly better than LC, the other 2 went with LC. As we didn't get the same flavors, can't say it's completely fair to Grom.

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Grom
233 Bleecker St, New York, NY 10014

La Cremeria
178 Mulberry Street, New York, NY 10012

Great piece on Slice about PizzArte today. I'll try them on Sunday.

*sorry, meant to reply to the OP

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PizzArte
69 W 55th St, New York, NY 10019

The best I've had was from Cherry Hill in Sheepshead Bay but I admit that this is coming pretty close. Counting the trip, it's fantastic to have this in the 'hood.

I don't think they're fully stocked yet, although the store is by no means empty, I just think they have more goodies to spread around. I'm really happy they opened here.

Parrot Coffee on Queens Blvd. at 46th St, just opened yesterday. For those not familiar with the Parrot Coffee (longtime exclusive to Ridgewood) they have cold cuts, many kinds of cheese, grocery items, olive bar, refrigerators with plenty of goodies - homemade taramasalata and eggplant-tomato spread, puff & phyllo dough, butters etc.
Not much unlike Massis and it doesn't appear to be fully stocked yet, but much more conveniently located right at the 46th St. 7 stop. I was told that they'll be open until 10 pm 365 days a year.

In other news, the newly expanded supermarket on the S side of Queens Blvd. (Key Food or whatever they call themselves now, they kept changing the name) is making a very good prosciutto/ lard bread. Comes in a small size also.

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Massis
42-20 43rd Ave, Queens, NY 11104

Parrot Coffee
45-15 Queens Blvd, Queens, NY 11104

A few blocks south at Rock Center there's a food court downstairs. Tri-Tip Grill is my fave there, but there are quite a few options.
A few blocks N: on 55th St there Menchanko-Tei (very good ramen soups), on 56th St. there's Tina's Cuban restaurant with many very good sandwiches at around $7 or cooked food for $10-12. A plate of fried pork chops (comes with with fries and salad) easily feeds 2 people in my opinion. Entering the place, as seating is in the back, you'll pass by the trays with cooked food, so you can see what looks good to you. I also like their patties (empanadas) - filled with chicken, beef or cheese.
Also on 56th there's another good Japanese restaurant, Sushi-ya - good bento boxes at $15, excellent udon soups and generally good value and quality sushi.

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Tina's Restaurant
23 W 56th St, New York, NY 10019

Menchanko-Tei
43 W 55th St, New York, NY 10019

Sushiya
28 W 56th St, New York, NY 10019

Tri Tip Grill
30 Rockefeller Plz, New York, NY 10112

Natural Tofu closes at midnight.

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Natural Tofu
40-06 Queens Blvd, Queens, NY 11104

I find Red Velvet more flavorful than a plain cup/cake. Granted, if it's done right. The biggest kick is the frosting, though.
I didn't try Two Little Red Hens or Cake Man Ravens but everything else I tried was mediocre at best - and I hate to say this but I like the Magnolia Red Velvet Cake (not so much the cupcakes) . Which is why I'd rather make it myself.

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Two Little Red Hens
1652 2nd Ave, New York, NY 10028

Nha Trang Center, if you want to go Vietnamese. I love their fish hot and sour (salmon), but they have variations with chicken, shrimp or vegetables only.

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Nha Trang
148 Centre St, New York, NY 10013

$10 for $20 Worth of Cupcakes from Dessert Club ChikaLicious, max. 3 per person, redeemable one at a time within a year. A bit of a pain that the order has to be emailed a day in advance, but I for one will deal with it.
I hope this message is not inappropriate for the board. I'm a big fan of ChikaLicious so I hope some of you are interested.

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ChikaLicious
203 E 10th St, New York, NY 10003

Dessert Club, ChikaLicious
204 E 10th St, New York, NY 10003

Unfortunately, lunch is usually near work, in Manhattan. YY is dinner and to me it's on the expensive side for what I got.

Yes, we usually order from I am Thai also, but we wanted to try Yum Yum to see how it goes.
I wonder how YY portions are dining in.

Had delivery from them a few days ago.
Coconut soup w/shrimp, curry puffs, pad woon sen and seafood karee.
The soup was ok but had 2 little shrimps in it.
The curry puffs, delicious, I could have a dozen at a time.
The entrees were good, tasty - although a bit bland looking. What surprised me the most was the portion size: if barely half the height of a round plastic container. The seafood karee seemed a bit fuller for the two big mussel shells, but really not too much food for $40 (after t&t).
I wish I thought about taking a picture of the portions, they were ridiculously small.

The carrot cake donut is a must try.

Sunnyside Meat Market is not really a butcher, I'd say their specialty is cold cuts. They do have some cuts of beef and pork, sometimes lamb (especially now, before Easter when they sell very young lamb), but I would not expect expert cuts. Other then that, their meat is fresh and reasonably priced.

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Sunnyside Meat Market
43-10 43rd St, Queens, NY 11104

Croissants got smaller, too. They're almost half of what they used to be.
But they're still amazing.

A Korean restaurant on Roosevelt Ave at 49th St., right under the 7 train.
Never tried it, had a couple of instances of intent but in all honesty I don't find it inviting somehow. I'm sure I misjudge the place but there's this air of exclusivity, somehow.
I looked at the menu a few years back and I remember thinking that it's not inexpensive either.

Would you be so kind and tell me at what location? went to Bowery and couldn't find it. I suppose they're in the same fridge with the tofu and shirataki noodles?

In Sunnyside there's a deli on Skillman at 47th St. that I recall having cheeses. I'll pass by one of these days and make sure, if that wouldn't be too late for you.
For canned foods, olives, spices there's one small deli on 43rd Ave at 46th st (I think it's called Sunny Grocery), also Massis (43rd Ave & 43rd st) carries quite an assortment of Turkish products.

I second Muncan. There are so many choices that is mind boggling, and talk about good value - the prices are very reasonable. They have very few things that are factory made, everything else is made in-the-house.
There is a lamb sausage that comes to mind - ask for "babic". It's very dry, flattened and shaped in a loop, and it has to be sliced very thin because of the hardness. Sort of a jerky texture, incredibly aromatic and flavorful. Slices are about the size of thumbprint.

Set of pictures here - http://www.flickr.com/photos/loladear...
they were taken at both Muncan locations (there's another in Ridgewood, a bit longer train ride, Astoria is much easier to get to). You have a product and price list there, too.

There's meat at Natural Tofu. LA Galbi is pretty good (if not excellent) and so is the grilled octopus drenched in hot sauce, bbq chicken etc. Very good seafood pancake for starters.
The name of the place is misleading, they have a couple of soups with soft tofu and seafood (and they're really-really good, a bowl of their soup makes a great meal, especially when it's cold outside).
Mangal - look in the display case before ordering and see what looks good to you. Lachmacun is good for starters, their salads are decent also.
There's a very small bakery on Queens Blvd. bet. 46th and 47th, their pan con queso in several variations is my fave for breakfast, but they have a few other pastries too.
On Skillman & 46th st there another pastry shop, Daco-Romana bakery, that makes decent coffee.

I'll remember that for the future. Made the pinwheels, cinnamon and gruyere - http://www.flickr.com/photos/loladear...

Thank you all. They're great snacks and they won't last long - half gone already.

Thank you all, I think I'll do the rolls, both with sugar-cinnamon and cheese - sounds great.
rworange - I dont hate it, it just wasn't great as a pie crust. Actually, the crimped rim was good, which is why I think the roll idea is great.
I'll let you know how it came out, and again many-many thanks. :)