snaporaz's Profile
Is there ANY decent pizza on the UWS?!
After resigning myself to eating mediocre City Pie pizza for the last few years I have discovered two respectable pizza joints in the low 70's.
For a sit down or delivery single person pizza with a very thin Roman-style crust (full disclosure: I'm from Rome so that's what I crave - pizza purists flame away), Gina La Fornarina does a very respectable job, though it's way too expensive for what you get. Still - cravings need to be satisfied on occasion.
For a grab-and-go slice, though I would never have guessed it, Little Italy Pizza on Amsterdam b/w 70th & 71st is great. IMO it's by far the best slice in the neighborhood with a surprisingly thin and crunchy crust that somewhat approaches what I might get back home. And I suspect the reason I was so pleasantly surprised is that the guys making the pizzas are mostly from Egypt and many, many Roman pizzerie are staffed by, you guessed it, egyptians. Just a theory - but very happy to have these guys around.
Mullet Roe?
Or also in Chelsea Market, Buonitalia usually has bottarga from Sardegna.
Sushi Yasaka UWS
Just wanted to give a shout-out to a great relatively new addition for sushi on the UWS which has not been mentioned much. Aside from Gari, this is by far the best option in the neighborhood. Great selection (with neta that is the right size!) and very reasonable prices for what you get. Plus they deliver (which is a good thing when you've just added a new member to your family and are somewhat 'trapped' at home ;)
It's in one of those cursed restaurant spaces that is constantly turning over so I'm trying to push business their way to make sure they stay, as the UWS sorely needs this!
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Sushi Yasaka
251 W 72nd St, New York, NY 10023
Date Place on UWS
How about Fish Tag? IMO best PQR in the neighborhood, good for a date, and they have a pretty mellow bar area in the front.
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Fish Tag
222 W 79th St, New York, NY 10024
Omakase for two around $150. Other sushi rec's?
I must respectfully disagree with foodwhisperer. There is no reason anyone should ever eat at Sushisamba.
Omakase for two around $150. Other sushi rec's?
Thirding Shimizu. BTW why the Thursday rec?
BEST JAPANESE IN NEW YORK-VARIOUS STYLES
I know En doesn't have many fans here, but I've found that if you order wisely it can be quite good, especially for a group. Just went with nine other people who are not japanese food lovers like myself (honestly it wasn't even my choice) on Saturday, as usual ended up doing all the ordering (does this happen to you guys?), and they were thrilled. Got some obanzai (very good, especially the pork belly and lotus root), sashimi moriawase (just ok), fresh scooped tofu (very good), kara age (of course a huge hit, very good), raw tuna and avocado salad (meh - but people liked it), miso marinated black cod (I was trying to stay away from this but people wanted it, good). Asked if they had shirako (for me!) but no dice. Anyway, nothing special, but a dramatic space and a crowd-pleaser of an izakaya, which can be tough when people aren't there just for the food, and don't get the charm of a place like, say, Ariyoshi. So it does have value as something like... "best crowd-pleaser izakaya for a big group".
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En Japanese Brasserie
435 Hudson Street, New York, NY 10014
BEST JAPANESE IN NEW YORK-VARIOUS STYLES
+1 for Momokawa. IME they also tend to have very good sashimi - much better than any other mid-range place in the city.
Stumped! I’m trying to find a traditional French restaurant but…
It's probably not fancy enough but how about Le Veau d'Or for very old school french?
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Le Veau d'Or
129 E 60th St, New York, NY 10022
Sushi Help
I'm a big fan of Shimizu and you could definitely have a feast for that amount or less, depending on your appetite. You can sit with Shimizu himself, though a bit of Japanese goes a long way since his English is not that great, or with the other itamae (his name slips my mind), if you like a lot of interaction.
Omakase at Morimoto or Nobu 57?
Ok... it's omakase (お任せ) not omakaze (that would be お任ぜ ) - and I do know what it means (approximately: "I trust you" or "I'll leave it to you"). However on these boards and elsewhere it is most often - though as you say not exclusively - applied to sushi.
That said, in retrospect I agree that it's not being very helpful to be asked about two choices and answer "neither" - so apologies for that. I just really dislike the food at both of those restaurants, especially the sushi but the cooked dishes as well, all of which I consider extremely overpriced. I also firmly believe that the only reason they're still in business is the celebrity chef element - hence my comment. Anyway, I'll leave it to those with a preference to recommend one over the other.
And +1 for Kyo Ya - was just there and it was outstanding.
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Kyo Ya
94 E 7th St, New York, NY 10009
Omakase at Morimoto or Nobu 57?
Please forgive the implicit criticism of your choices here, but with all the excellent options for omakase in NYC (Yasuda, Shimizu,15 East, Kanoyama, Jewel Bako etc.), may I ask how you narrowed it down to two celebrity chef chain restaurants (30+ for Nobu, 6 for Morimoto) that don't really specialize in sushi? Honestly my answer would be neither.
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15 East
15 East 15th Street, New York, NY 10003
Shimizu
318 W 51st St, New York, NY 10019
Sushi Yasuda
204 E 43rd St, New York, NY 10017
Jewel Bako
239 E 5th St, New York, NY 10003
Kanoyama
175 2nd Ave, New York, NY 10003
Nobu
105 Hudson Street, New York, NY 10013
Morimoto
88 10th Avenue, New York, NY 10011
Where to buy a Cutting Board in NYC
The September edition of Cook's Illustrated put a bunch of cutting boards to the test, with the three front runners being:
- Proteak Edge Grain Teak Cutting Board (Highly Recommended)
- OXO Good Grips Carving & Cutting Board (Recommended)
- John Boos Chop-N-Slice Reversible (Recommended)
Since there is no shortage of kitchen supply stores in NYC, maybe a better strategy would involve trying to find a store that has #1 and #3 (#2 is thinner and plastic so I'm assuming you're not interested) so you can check them out for yourself.
Big group (8-10), short notice, $50 all in - suggestions?
:) $50 per person. If that were for the entire party I'm sure I could find a McDonald's to accommodate us.
And thegforceny I like that strategy very much - though I can't say I have a fave in the theater district - so thanks a lot for the suggestions!
Big group (8-10), short notice, $50 all in - suggestions?
I hate to post something like this, but I find myself in the unenviable position of having to figure out a venue for a last minute birthday dinner tomorrow (Saturday) night. Two weeks ago I might have suggested something like Fish Tag, but obviously it's way too late for that. There are some options on OpenTable in the $$ category, but I realize that I have never been, or don't even know about, most of the places. In the event that there might be a hidden gem somewhere in the endless list of probable duds I thought I might reach out to fellow hounds so... suggestions? TIA!
Fishtag: what do people think?
I think it's good PQR but the three times I've been there since it opened I thought the food was off balance, often having too much acidity and/or sour elements. I think he's trying to do the David Chang acid counterpoint thing but less successfully. But it is one of the more interesting affordable eats on the UWS. And agree that those menus are so complicated as to be ridiculous.
Sushiden – Another Good Midtown Sushi Restaurant
+1 on Shimizu - both for quality and convenience of location it's been my go to sushiya since it opened. Looking forward to your review.
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Shimizu
318 W 51st St, New York, NY 10019
Degustation - very poor
Very sad to see Wesley go. For a long time Degustation was IMHO the best bang for the buck finer dining in NYC.
Where to go for AWESOME FUN IZAKAYA.
I would add Rockmeisha to the list if you would rather do your izakayaing further downtown with the slightest hint of decor. But the food is way better at Yakitori Totto and Aburiya Kinnosuke.
And for a higher price point / higher price-quality ratio, I always find Brasserie EN to be a crowd-pleaser, though it is not my personal favorite. The space is pretty dramatic, it's not in midtown if that matters to you, and the food can be good if you order wisely.
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Yakitori Totto
251 W 55th St, New York, NY 10019
En Japanese Brasserie
435 Hudson Street, New York, NY 10014
Aburiya Kinnosuke
213 E 45th St, New York, NY 10017
Rockmeisha
11 Barrow St, New York, NY 10014
Sushi Etiquette Question for CH Sushi Experts
I don't have much to add to Silverjay's comment except to say that I have never done or seen it done in [my sushi-filled albeit limited trips to] Japan or in New York, but have both seen it done and done it myself a number of times in L.A. Which might make regional sense given L.A.'s relatively more 'informal' vibe. And I hope I'm not opening up a can of worms here.
Introduction to Japanese
I would add Momokawa for shabu-shabu, sukiyaki, and other assorted washoku, including some generally outstanding sashimi.
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Momokawa
157 E 28th St, New York, NY 10016
Reservation for the bar at Spring?
"I also understand that sometimes when the upstairs is full, some diners are seated there but can "eat like upstairs", which means the actual Spring menu."
Thanks for the info. This is most likely what they offered us. And it may in fact be the best of all possible outcomes given the Mrs.'s dietary restrictions. It would be great if she could pick and choose while I had the menu. It would also be great for me to be able to order different wines by the glass, since part of this "allergy" also prevents her from drinking alcohol.
Do you think it would be a problem if I had the menu du marché while she selected from the Buvette menu? Or will my dinner take way longer than hers?
Reservation for the bar at Spring?
Despite calling a month ahead to the day, I was only able to secure a reservation at Spring for the bar, as the main dining room and the upstairs were already booked up. I was assured the bar has the same menu as at a table so I figured NBD. But as I read more about it, it seems like the only "bar" area is the Buvette in the basement level, which as far as I can tell has a limited menu and does not take reservations. For those of you lucky enough to be familiar with the new space, is there another bar area that is not the buvette? Or have they changed their reservation and menu policy for the downstairs?
Also, I just found out that Mrs. Snaporaz has developed a temporary "allergy" to things like raw fish and unpasteurized cheeses (if you catch my drift)... which is great and all but not so easy on the chowhounding in Paris. Has anyone dined at Spring with similar limitations? And what was the outcome? TIA!
Spanish restaurant/wine bar
+1 for Txikito.
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Txikito
240 9th Ave, New York, NY 10001
Can you recommend a restaurant in NYC/Manhattan?
I would add that if you do decide to go to Lupa I would reserve well in advance or go early as it is still a very popular spot with long waits at peak times if you don't have a reservation.
Also, apologies if I made you feel like you had to defend yourself about your chosen criteria, as that was not really my intention. Whatever your dining choice hope you have fun eating in NY!
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Lupa
170 Thompson Street, New York, NY 10012
Can you recommend a restaurant in NYC/Manhattan?
I think your subject line and criteria are a little too broad to get a significant response here. From your post it seems that you want $50-75 and a TV chef, but if I were you I would scrap the Top Chefs and focus more on area (where will you be coming from or going to?) and/or type of food (ethnicity etc.), then repost or edit your title to reflect that (like "Great Japanese - not sushi - $50-75" or "Dinner near mid-town east $50-75"). I'm sure you'll get a lot more replies that way.
That said, going on those two alone I would try Lupa (Mario Batali).
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Lupa
170 Thompson Street, New York, NY 10012
Tattooed Couple looking for funky, trendy, fun, fancy dinner. And DRINKS!
Honestly, on a weekend, aside from the Highline, I would just avoid the entire Meatpacking district like the plague, regardless of H & H's legacy status. Unless you want to be proposing around jersey girls with their thongs hiked over their tramp-stamps. Harsh? Maybe... but true.
Suggestions for a pair who love Ouest?
One more vote for Telepan if you're looking more UWS. And I haven't been there in a while, but what about Dovetail?
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Dovetail
103 West 77th Street, New York, NY 10024
Lunch on the upper westside
I think the 2 course prix-fixe at Telepan barely squeezes into your buget without including tip. So it's a stretch but worth it IMO.
2 courses - $22
Wednesday to Friday
11:30am - 2:30pm
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Telepan
72 W. 69th Street, New York, NY 10023
Where to go for Japanese Shabu Shabu
I think your best bet is Momokawa, which specializes in shabu-shabu, sukiyaki and nabe. You must reserve as it's very small, and service can be a bit slow, but everything I've had there was outstanding.
http://www.momokawanyc.com/
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Momokawa
157 E 28th St, New York, NY 10016
