helenheaven's Profile
Where to drink in Sao Paulo and Rio?
I'm going to be in Sao Paulo and Rio for three days each in a week, and am loving the recommendations here for where to eat -- but where are the good places to drink? Whether it's great cocktails, or a great scene, or a beautiful room, or beautiful people, or the perfect kind of dive, or fantastic music. I particularly love high-design hotel bars, bars attached to excellent restaurants, and (for lack of a better explanation) hipster bars, the kind with young, artsy folks filling them up. Great bar snacks are a bonus, too!
Vegetarian-friendly celebratory dinner for 10?
I'm stumped on where to have a celebratory dinner next month. The guest of honor is a vegetarian, though none of the guests are -- and we're a party of 10 looking for a Saturday night reservation at a reasonable hour. Fixed menus are fine, below 34th street would be ideal, under $50/person minus alcohol.
All the usual places I would think of for a group this big offer few - if any - vegetarian options. Any thoughts? Thanks!
Saturday afternoon bar where a group can be loud & raucous
Whoops, thanks for asking such thoughtful clarification questions!
I think for this crowd (and for the penis-hats and whatnot we'll likely be sporting) down-n-dirty is the way to go.
As for locale, anywhere in the Central Business District or the French Quarter is probably just perfect for us - our hotel is about smack in the middle between those two neighborhoods, according to Google Maps.
Saturday afternoon bar where a group can be loud & raucous
I'm coming to New Orleans for a long weekend with a big group of friends for a co-ed bachelor/bachelorette party. We're only spending a little bit of time split up, with the girls doing the traditional bach-party stuff: Saturday afternoon, from about 4-7. I'm looking for a bar where a group of about 7 ladies can be loud and giggly (and possibly have with us some of those classically annoying bachelorette accessories, like lingerie and naughty hats) without driving the other patrons up the wall. The sillier, tackier, and more fun the better. Thank you!
Where's a good place to have a fancy dinner for 30 in Hudson/Bergen/Passaic?
We're throwing an anniversary dinner for my boyfriend's parents, and are looking for an elegant, fun place to have dinner for 30 for under about $80 per person in Hudson, Bergen, or Passaic counties.
Sadly, it'll be in the middle of winter, so outdoor spaces aren't an option. Italian, French, Middle Eastern, American are all preferred cuisines. I've looked into NYC-view places in Hoboken and Jersey City but I'm hoping there's some other amazing place I'm just not thinking of. Thanks in advance!
What to serve with boeuf bourguignon?
I'm having a 10-person dinner party soon and to save effort, etc, I'm making a basic boueuf bourguignon that I've made before and that I know is failproof. The problem: I have no idea what else to serve. Is good bread + a simple salad enough? Should there be something else?
Relatedly, and I know I'm an idiot for not really knowing the answer here, do you suggest serving the stew in bowls or plates? If I do bowls, should I do the salad (or whatever the side is) as a separate course?
Pastrami Ends?
I'm looking to buy pastrami ends -- the super-peppery leftover nubbins of a whole pastrami. I used to buy them in bulk from a kosher butcher in Chicago, and have no idea where to go to get them here.
Doesn't have to be kosher, but I don't know if it's the sort of thing that even comes in a nonkosher version.
scandinavian groceries?
I'm trying my hand at Swedish meatballs tonight and am in dire need of lingonberries (or lingonberry sauce). Is there a Scandinavian market anywhere? Google is unhelpful.
nougatine or perry street?
i've got the option to go to either to celebrate my birthday. which is preferred? reviews in the usual places (nymag, nytimes) are all over the place. i feel a bit lost...
and if i'm barking up completely the wrong tree with these places, what's a good alternative?
killer chili dogs
we're hosting a big crowd for 4th of July, and I'm thinking chili dogs are the way to go.
what's your best chili dog recipe? grilled, steamed, or boiled dogs? ideal accompaniments?
menuless dining
this month's Food & Wine has a great piece in favor of restaurants abandoning menus. i love the notion, and want to know where in NY i can go and just be subject to the chef's whim. i'm not talking about tasting menus (i've been burned by those in the past); rather, places where i can walk in and no one will flinch if i ask the chef to surprise me.
i've heard you can do this at Craft, but you have to ask delicately. where is it easy?
dinner party menu paralysis
oh god, i would so completely attend menu group therapy sessions.
dinner party menu paralysis
every time i'm having folks over for dinner, i totally freeze up when it comes to putting together the menu. i'll pore over cookbooks for days and not have a clue what to make. wander the aisles of the grocery store, uninspired. it kills me.
tonight i'm having three people who i love dearly over for dinner. they'll forgive me if dinner is horrible. but i want it to not be horrible.
so two things:
1. what on earth should i make for dinner? i was thinking about something involving lamb - maybe a tenderloin?
2. how can i keep from being eaten alive by menu stress?
casual meet the parents dinner
Beppe on 22nd and Park Ave S. is pretty great. The menu can skew pricey (pastas around $20, entrees around $30), but the atmosphere is relaxed and the service is phenomenal.
amazing food near Columbia?
what an exhaustive list! thanks... the last time I was up there we went to Le Monde and i was pretty appalled by how bad the service was. But Taqueria y Fonda or maybe A sound like they'll be perfect - exactly the sort of thing I'm looking for.
amazing food near Columbia?
i'll be up at 116th and Broadway tonight and would love to have a fantastic dinner within, say, 20 blocks in either direction. any type - takeout, hole-in-the-wall, fancy sit down. what's the best uptown choice?
lamb for two?
the plan is boneless tenderloin. i was thinking about searing it, but i'm stumped on flavorings, marinades, and side dishes. garlic and a blanket of fresh herbs? minted peas? basil-mint puree?
he's hard to please. restrictions: no wheat, rice, or other grains. potatoes are ok. no cheese.
dinner for 2 near the angelika?
any recs for the retail-heavy, restaurant-light area around the intersection of broadway and houston? we've tired ourselves out on Noho Star and Lure Fishbar - looking for something new!
recs needed: dinner for 2 near the angelika
i'm getting tired of Noho Star. any good recommendations near the retail-heavy, restaurant-light intersection of broadway and houston?
steak for beginners
thanks for all the tips, guys! but there is a new exciting twist:
turns out we only have a nonstick skillet. so no stovetop-to-oven, and no cast-iron preheating.
what's a girl to do?
steak for beginners
wednesday night i've signed on to make a steak dinner for my boyfriend, and i'm completely in the dark. what cut of meat? what marinade? what cooking technique? i don't have access to an outdoor grill, but we've got a cast iron skillet and a broiler.
any suggestions for good sauces, sides, etc. would be most welcome.
converting cooking times from cake to cupcake?
i'd like to make cupcakes of a molasses-rich ginger cake that i've made before. the recipe calls for baking for an hour at 350 in a 9" cake pan.
restaurants with jacket required?
apparently i'm being taken to a jacket-required restaurant for valentine's day. help me compile a list of possibilities? so far the only place i can think of for sure is Le Bernardin.
Dad's 70th Birthday This Friday
Nice Matin on the UWS is great - their fava tortelloni are to die for. Also on the UWS, 'Cesca is consistent and delicious.
it's my birthday! where to have dinner for 7 on saturday?
great suggestions! i made a reservation at Alta and also on a whim called Cookshop, which would be perfect except that - naturally - they're booked solid.
As it happens, I've had past birthday celebrations at both Artisanal and Otto. Artisanal was delicious but loud, as ever, and the service and food at Otto was astonishingly bad (I'd been several times before and it'd been much better).
it's my birthday! where to have dinner for 7 on saturday?
i'm having dinner with an eclectic collection of people, including my mother and my 25-year-old roommate. last year we went to 'Cesca, which was perfect both in terms of atmosphere and price. what's a good bet for a large party, mid-to-expensive range, and not oppressively loud and hip?
