thanks -i'll give those places a call.
Just curious, how do you make your own spit?

Did you ever find one? I'm planning a pig roast, too, and I'm also having trouble locating a spit (or La caja china) for rent.

Defonte's also closes for most of July.

DeFonte's had a sign posted in their shop about a year ago looking for someone to open another one in the city. I don't know if it's a franchise or what, but I bet the new place is related to DeFonte's.

it's called Korhogu 126 (126 Union). The food has been very tasty every time I've been there.

I think that both Petite Crevette on Henry St. and Korhogo126 on Union Street (both Carroll Gardens West) are good date restaurants: intimate, good food, and relatively quiet. Both of them are also a little off the beaten path which can add some fun to the date.

I'll have to try it again, because when they first opened I had their cheesesteak and it was truly awful. It sounds like they changed it for the better. Will try it next time I'm at H&A.

get out -i grew up in Glenside and went to CHS. Been in nyc/brooklyn for 12 years, and haven't found a decent cheesesteak yet! I'll try Peppino's soon.

yeah, i thought of Freemans because I really like it, but I don't think it would be good for the kids, and the grandparents wouldn't get it either. But it's good to know they have a reasonable prix fixe -thanks!

thanks. i was thinking of fig&olive (or olive&fig...), but crispo looks much better.

Thanks. It is expensive, but the pub menu is more reasonable.

I normally post on the Outer Boroughs board, and I'm not as familiar with Manhattan restaurants these days...I need to find a place for a celebration dinner in June for 12 people. Nothing too exotic since there will be kids and older people who don't have very adventurous pallates, so I'm thinking maybe french, american/steak, italian/meditteranean. I'd like to stick to neighborhoods south of 42nd street, but that's not essential. I'd like a place that is moderately priced and has a nice atmosphere with the ability to have a large group.

There are several restaurants that I like (Pastis, Tartine, Salt -etc) but I mainly like inexpensive ethnic places, and that won't work for this group, so I'd like to try something different and would love to hear some new ideas. Also, most people will be out-of-towners, so something interesting or with "New York" charm would be great. Any suggestions are welcome. Thanks.

I drove by on Sunday and they were not there... A friend also reported that she didn't see them on Saturday either.

Defonte's in Red Hook has the best meatball parm hero I've had. It's about as 'old school' as it gets. Or they also have humongous breakfast subs -eggs & peppers or eggs & potatoes. Also try the sausage & peppers and eggplant parm.

unfortunately, 360 is closed

My top delivery places are (not in any particular order):

Dhaka -Indian food on Atlantic. Both times I've ordered from them recently the food was tasty.

Nine D -Thai on Court. Basil chicken or shrimp is pretty good

Kotobuki Bistro -Japanese/sushi on Columbia. Sushi is average/fine and hot japanese dishes are decent.

Mazzat -Middle-eastern on Columbia -the basic shish kebabs are good and the side plates are also pretty good.

I also have a soft spot for SuSu YumYum, which operates out of the Jake's Barbecue kitchen (not sure how that works...) The chinese food seems fresher and a small step above the average chinese delivery joint in the nabe. Chicken with black bean sauce and the hot&sour soup (with meat) are my two stand-by's.

I'd like to hear about other people's fave's because while I order from all these on a semi-regular basis, I'd like to find out about new places too.

I hear that Neil Ganic just opened a new place in Red Hook where Lillie's used to be -anyone been there or know more about it?

Good Fork in Red Hook has a lovely garden, great drinks and great food. The food is American with some Korean influences. Two good appetizers are the dumplings and the crab cakes. For entrees, the skate is delicious, steak & eggs (korean style), roast chicken, and others are also very good. I haven't had a bad meal there.

It's not in Carroll Gardens or Cobble Hill, but since someone already mentioned Hope & Anchor, I thought I'd add Good Fork in Red Hook. They have a really good burger.

I just visited Macau and had a nice Macanese lunch at Henri's. It's on Avenida da República and faces the Macau Tower. I found it after seeing the A Ma Temple and walked along the road by Sai Van Lake. The codfish ball appetizer was delicious. I had a portuguese fish that was okay -it was breaded in a spongy egg-like coating that wasn't so hot. Other things on the menu looked very good, though. I found their website: http://www.henrisgalley.com.mo/main_e...

There are also some macanese restaurants on Taipa in Taipa Village. One's called Pinnochio (something) and it's supposed to be quite good. I liked Taipa Village a lot -it's smaller and more quaint than Macau, but still fairly touristy.

I actaully had a similar experience with the service when I was there (see above for my brief review). The waitress was very slow getting us things, and then when the food came out, one entree was missing, and she just sort-of looked at us like we were supposed to do something about it. Finally, she realized that, yes, we did actually want the missing entree. It took almost 45 -yes 45- minutes for that entree to come out!! Our friend was about to pass out from hunger. On top of that, they were rushing us out because they needed our table! He had about 5 minutes to eat, and then when he complained, she looked like we were insane. It spoiled the experience a bit.

Just an update: I went last night and it was amazing. The food was absolutely delicious and the atmosphere was so wonderful. It was definitely one of my top dining experiences ever.

My friends and I went for the four course meal. We ordered a really good (but not overly expensive) bottle of pinot noir from California. I started with the greens and herb salad with fried egg, and it was so unexpectedly delicious. I asked them how they made the egg and they told me, so I'm going to try it myself soon! Then I had the roasted grouper with corn chowder. The fish was perfectly cooked, crisp on the top and moist inside. The corn chowder went well with the sweetness of the fish. Then I had the Hudson Valley beef. It was a tenderloin sliced thinly and served over tiny roasted potatoes and mixed beans (green and yellow string beans). I have to say that I didn't like this as much as the other dishes. I think it's because I'm not used to the taste of grass-fed beef, and it was a little too aromatic for me, but it was prepared perfectly. I rounded out the meal with a cherry sorbet with goat cheese souflee/cake thing that was super delicious.
The service staff was friendly, knowledgeable and attentive.

Overall, it was an incredible evening and well worth the $130 price tag, including wine and tip, and that's something I never thought I'd say...!

Thanks. I read about the salad in a few posts, but other than that, there aren't many specific suggestions. I also read some mixed reviews this morning that suprised me. I hope I'm not disappointed!

I'm finally going there for dinner tomorrow night -I'm very excited!
What dishes can anyone recommend?

Oh, and the food at Alma is also really good.

Alma, at Columbia and Degraw, has a really nice rooftop dining terrace with great views of lower manhattan. go to http://almarestaurant.com to see a view from the roof.

Sounds delicious. I haven't gone back, but I'll put it on my list of things to do this summer. Thanks for the update.

How is it "ill planning" to allow 2 hours for dinner?
I'm sorry, but that's more than a reasonable amount of time.

Lucali's in Carroll Gardens is the closest place to Grimaldi's that has great pizza. search for it here, there have been several reviews and posts about it.

Defonte's in Red Hook (corner of Columbia and Luquer). Their meatball parmesan sub is truly heaven. They also have eggplant parm, chicken parm, sausage&eggs, potatoes&eggs, steak&peppers, sausage&peppers, hot ham, hot corned beef, and a large selection of coldcuts. Yum, my mouth is watering just thinking about it.