Toot's Profile
Brazilian Restaurants
It's probably too late for you but Via Brasil and Emporium Brasil both at 46th street have very good food. I don't care too much about the places decor but service is friendly and the food is very good, that is where I go when I am homesick.
Churrascaria Plataforma is also good, but it is very expensive and, as the name says, it is a Churrascaria... which will means tons of food. It's festive though.
Where to eat near Rubin Museum?
El Cocotero is a Venezuelan place on 18th Street, it is very casual but pleasant. I went there a couple of times (both times after the Rubin) and enjoyed the food. Venezuelan food is not so common in NYC so it's an opportunity to try something different. You can check the menu in menupages.com.
Rio de Janiero - pls check my list
From your list I have only been to Gula Gula, Fratteli, Artigiano, Guimas, Belmonte and Garcia Rogrigues.
I don't care for Garcia & Rodrigues and Guimas is the kind of place that has been around forever but the food is nothing special (nothing bad either). I haven't been in Guimas in a long time, so I don't know if the menu became more creative.
I would add Resto in Ipanema and Julius Brasserie in Urca to the list. These are newish places with creative menus and nice ambiance. Not cheap but not that expensive either.
I love Gula Gula and Artigiano, and only went to Fratelli once but it was quite good.
For pizza (which in Brazil is great) I would add Cappricciosa (for pizza and antipasto), Alessandro and Frederico (has also a very good antipasto) and Braz.
And if you like Kilo style I would highly recommend Frontera.
rio de janeiro with a three and a half year old.
Brazil is very different from the US in that way, you can safely assume that all places are kid friendly, unless your children can't seat quiet during the course of a meal or cry all the time :). Most restaurants don't have a kids menu but Brazilian menus have plenty of options that children would eat. The exception would be the very high end places, but otherwise you can basically take your children in most restaurants. The kilo style restaurants (you pay by the weight) are a very good option and one great Kilo is Frontera. Frontera has many locations at Zona Sul.
D.O.M tasting menu cost?
According to an article at Folha de Sao Paulo it is R$400.00 for the tasting menu, which has 8 cousers plus cheese plus dessert, I guess 10 courses altogether. Last time I was at D.O.M. was 2004 I remember it was expensive but not that expensive.
Tips on tipping - pleeease [moved from Manhattan board}
Yes, double the tip, that was what I was taught when I moved to NYC and don't see anything wrong with it. Unless you are very wealthy, then you can tip 20, 30, 40 % in very fancy restaurants, but for most of us, 18% is a reasonable tip.
Where to drink in Sao Paulo and Rio?
Helen, Brazilian culture is very different than the American when it comes to bars. Food is bigger than drinks in Brazil. A happy hour without food is not that happy in Brazil :) Of course people appreciate good wine and cold beer but there is much less of a bar scene in Brazil than you would have in the US.
In Sao Paulo a really nice upscale bar is the bar in Hotel Fasano but not sure how young the crowd is. The place is pretty expensive. D.O.M. restaurant has a bar, also expensive. Spot used to be a trendy, people watching place, but I haven't been in SP for a while.
In Rio you will have a big botequim (casual bars, mostly for beer) culture, especially for after the beach. But these are very casual places where people go in their bathing suits, not exactly what I belive we are looking for. One suggestion in Rio is Belmonte (they have in different locations), it's a casual place but with a young lively crowd, has wonderful salgadinhos (Brazilian savory snacks) and good beer.
The Marina Hotel in Leblon has a more upscale option, Bar da Praia. Also in Leblon, Q Bar is supposed to be very nice. In the same street of Q there is Chico e Alaide who is very popular, casual botequim.
There is a newish Champagne Bar in Copacabana I went last time. Charleton Lounge. It was ok but too pricey for me and it really felt like a place for tourists to me. But you can check it out.
Best place to go for upscale afternoon tea?
This was posted a couple of weeks ago: http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/830986
Three guys heading to Rio - any restaurant advice is appreciated!
From your above list I do like Fronteira, Porcao, Braz and Alessandro & Frederico.
I used to love Stravaganze but in my opinion went downhill. The pizzas at Braz and at Capricciosa are much better.
The best Porcao in my opition is at Aterro, so I would go there unless it is much moe convenient to go in Ipanema. In the end there is not too much difference in my opinion.
Another place that I like very much for Lunch is Gula-Gula (especially for the desserts, if you have a sweet tooth, the petit-gateau de doce de leite is amazing). But Celeiro is also a good option for lunch.
I also like Julius Brasserie at Avenida Portugal, Urca. It's out of the beaten path but I like the view and the food. It is not a big scene place, though. Next door to Julius Brasserie is Belmonte which is a bit more of a scene, people go for beer and salgadinhos (Brazilian savory snacks, the chicken pie (empadinha) is very good).
Another good option for lunch is a juice stand. Although not a sit down meal, juices are amazing in Brazil. I like Polis Sucos in Ipanema at Maria Quiteria Street. The sandwiches are quite good too.
Looking for the best high tea in Manhattan . . . .
The Mandarin Oriental has a tea service every afternoon at the Lobby Lounge, the view and the room are lovely but I haven't tried the tea yet.
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Lobby Lounge
80 Columbus Circle, New York, NY 10023
2 nights in LA
Thank you all for the suggestions. I finished up only having one dinner and went to AOC because it was the closest to my hotel. I don't mind walking but it feels a bit odd when you are the only person walking on the street... AOC was great and I had the duck confit and the faro/black rice dishes. Both are good although the combination was a bit too rich. I had the butterscotch pot-de-cream for dessert and it was amazing. Together with a glass of a really good prosecco the bill was $60, not bad at all. I might go back to LA in May and will try to check out Animal.
2 nights in LA
Thank you all, keep the suggestions coming. I am from NYC so I can walk, not a problem, although I can't drive!
2 nights in LA
I will be in Los Angeles on business for 2 nights. I don't know the city at all so I am looking for 2 dinner options nearby South Fairfax Avenue (my hotel is near The Grove). I prefer waking distance as I won't have a car and also places that are good for dining alone (perhaps at the bar). I don't eat spicy food, so Mexican is out, but that is my only food restriction. As for price nothing too expensive, I am hoping to stay around $50. with one drink.
Thanks for any help.
Best Beef Stroganoff in NYC or the boroughs?
Well not sure how authentic it will be for you, but believe or not strogonoff is a very common dish in Brazil. Via Brasil in 46 street has a very good one, it's Brazilian style, served over rice. You can find it in most of the Brazilian restaurants in NY.
Brazilian grocery store?
You can find Brazilian products at Buzios in 46th Street between 5-6 Aves. Astoria used to have a pretty good Brazilian market, Rio Bonito, but I am not sure if it is still opened. Another place that carries Brazilian products is Trade Fair on Ditmars (Astoria) but they won't have feijoada meat. Buzios carry some of the meat: calabreza, paio, carne seca e toucinho. In my opinion the feijoada meat that you find in the US is not great so I don't really make or eat feijoada in here. It is the kind of dish that I eat in Brazil or I don't eat... But I heard good things about the feijoada Emporium Brasil makes, it is a restaurant in 46th Street, right in front of Buzios. I have no idea where they get their meat but I suppose you can ask.
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Emporium Brasil
15 W 46th St, New York, NY 10036
Buzios
20 W 46th St, New York, NY 10036
Saturday brunch...10 ppl...need help because my GF will kill me if this doesn't go right.
I guess it will depend on what you are looking for, but I had a great brunch at Bistro Lamazou. The place is neither trendy nor a destination place, but the food is really good and the prices are moderate. It is a neighborhood place, but the room is pretty and comfortable, service is friendly and I have enjoyed my meals there (twice for dinner, once for brunch). You can check the website: www.bistrolamazou.com
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Bistro Lamazou
344 3rd Ave, New York, NY 10010
Need Thanksgiving reccos for 6, not too pricey
Blaue Gans menu for Thanksgiving is $45.
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Blaue Gans
139 Duane Street, New York, NY 10013
Thanksgiving Catering/take-out
Yura on Madison (Madison and 92), Mitchell London Foods (65th, bet Madison and Fifth).
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Yura on Madison
1292 Madison Ave, New York, NY 10128
Bar eating by Waldorf Astoria
Fig and Olive at 52nd and 5th has very good food and a nice bar area, although is more casual than the other places mentioned, but check the website: http://www.figandolive.com/
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Fig & Olive
10 East 52nd Street, New York, NY 10021
Best time to attempt Laduree?
Don't know about serious eats, but every time I had Payard macarons they were very good and fresh. Same thing for Maison du Chocolat, but Maison du Chocolat has limited flavors, mostly chocolate. Not that there is anything wrong with that...
Best time to attempt Laduree?
Never heard about aging a macaron. Best one I ever had was at a bakery in Montmartre, fresh from the oven. You can taste the difference if the macaron is a day old, I would think aged ones wouldn't be my favorite. As for the best time for Laduree I would say wait until the madness is gone; at the meantime go to Payard or Maison du Chocolat, they are wonderful. I pass in front of Laduree everyday, is on my way from work and it is always a huge line, can't understand why someone would wait on line 30-40 min to buy a cookie (although a delicious one, I love macarons), but I guess it is probably the same crowd that overnight in front of the Apple store on 5th Avenue :)
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La Maison du Chocolat
63 Wall St, New York, NY 10005
Francois Payard Bakery
116 W Houston St, New York, NY 10012
Laduree
864 Madison Ave, New York, NY 10021
Brunch w/in 15-20min walk of 57th and 2nd
I like Fig and Olive on 5th and 52nd. It is not the usual bruch menu but they do have some egg dishes and paninis. You can check the website: http://www.figandolive.com/
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Fig & Olive
10 East 52nd Street, New York, NY 10021
Where to buy Brazilian food ingredients
In Manhattan Buzios is the best. If you are willing to travel to Queens there is a Brazilian supermarket that will have a much larger selection of Brazilian products, it's called Rio Bonito. But if what you need is ingredients for moqueca you will need the dende oil and coconut milk and Buzios will have those.
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Buzios
20 W 46th St, New York, NY 10036
10 Downing Food and Wine then Drinks (BUT WHERE???)
I only went to 10 Downing once for lunch and was really unimpressed. Nothing really bad, just totally average. As for drinks, recently I went with some friends to En Brasserie bar on Hudson and had a really good time.
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En Japanese Brasserie
435 Hudson Street, New York, NY 10014
10 Downing
10 Downing Street, New York, NY 10014
Brazilian food, moqueca
My favorite Brazilian restaurant is Via Brasil at 46th St. That is my best option if I am homesick. But I don't like the neighborhood and the decor of the place, but both service and food are very good.
I haven't been at Circus in a long, long time. But when I last went there the food was quite good, It's more upscale and more expensive than Via Brasil.
Zebu Grill is good, but the menu is very limited. I prefer Via Brasil food anyway.
Delicia in the West Village has a very good moqueca, the problem with Delicia is that it is very, very slow and it can take a long time until you get your food. I also haven't been there in a long time, so I am not sure how is food and service nowadays.
I don't care too much about Casa in the Village. Food is very much adapted to the American tasty with lots of pepper (Brazilian food is not spicy, and hot pepper is served on the side rather than in the dish).
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Casa
72 Bedford St, New York, NY 10014
Delicia Brazil
322 W 11th St, New York, NY 10014
Via Brasil
34 W 46th St, New York, NY 10036
Zebu Grill
305 E 92nd St, New York, NY 10128
Mexican on UES?
Not your traditional Mexican, but I like Itzocan Bistro on 101 and Lexington.
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Itzocan Bistro
1575 Lexington Ave, New York, NY 10029
Brazilian Pavilion "Chicken Bossa Nova"
There is no dish called Chicken Bossa Nova in Brazil (or at least I have never heard about). The restaurant probably used the name because it sounds very Brazilian... You might want to do a search under "frango a passarinho" This is a very traditional way to do fried chicken (or grilled) in Brazil. It can be battered or not and in general has a lot of garlic.
Carnegie HIll and North
If you like Indian there is Maharaja Place on Madison between 94/95.
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Mahabir Enterprises
28 E 23rd St, New York, NY 10010
Maharaja Palace
1350 Madison Ave, New York, NY 10128
interesting corporate dinner
It would be helpful to know where. This board covers a vast geographic area...
Palm Two NYC
Well, I wouldn't be sure that it will be fantastic. I had a terrible meal there a couple of months ago. Here is a recent review: http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/799003
