Food Adventuring Around NYC
You know a restaurant in Astoria is legit when English is barely spoken and Greek men are playing cards in the kitchen. This off-the-radar taverna served me and my Greek friend some spectacular pork sausage kissed with orange and fennel. It made me really miss Greece, but now I realize I can just hop on …
This new concoction by the chocolate geniuses at Mast Brothers sounds like a dessert of sorts. It’s not. While a little added sugar is recommended, this complex drink really lets the flavors of the cacao bean shine with fruity, earthy, or smoky flavors. It takes a little while to wrap your head around it, but …
SADLY, MATCHABAR IS NOW CLOSED. Not an easy task, but the new Matchabar in Williamsburg is attempting to wean Brooklynites off their morning coffee and onto the more healthful matcha. The powdered green tea produces a beautiful drink in any number of forms (hot, cold, with frothed milk, or with seasonal fruit juices) with a nice …
SADLY, TAKASHI IS NOW CLOSED. Eating any number of the cow stomachs sounds a bit terrifying for most Americans, but the impeccable Takashi makes it accesible for adventurous eaters. The first stomach is marinated in their special sauce and then grilled tableside so that it has a crisp, chewy texture with lots of meaty and sweet …
It comes out looking like a bowl of chocolate soft serve and this chicken liver mousse is just as decadent. Softened and creamy, the smooth texture is unbelievable and the rich flavor has hints of sweetness with a garnish of candied walnuts for crunch. Spread this on toast with some pickled shallots and you’ll quickly …
SADLY, SAU VOI CORP IS NOW CLOSED. Who’d think a nondescript Asian CD store would also be selling some of the best Vietnamese banh mi sandwiches in Chinatown? The “number one” is the classic crusty baguette bread overloaded with salty ham, rich paté, and slices of chewy pig’s ear. It’s brightened with the usual cilantro, cucumbers, …
Maman is a cute little Soho café with bites and coffee, but their chocolate chunk cookie reigns supreme. Kissed with sea salt and studded with a variety of nuts (almonds, walnuts, and macadamia), the modest little cookie is loaded with crunchy, buttery, and sweet surprises. It’s certainly the best cookie of the year. Price: $3.75 MAMAN …
One of the most interesting beers I’ve tasted this year, the White Coffee Stout is a bit of a misnomer but it’s certainly exciting. The blonde colored beer releases the same sort of roasty, coffee flavors you expect from a dark stout. Here, it’s both creamy and light while rich and sweet. It’s as exciting …
This unusual beer is part of the brewery’s special Worshipful Company of Brewers series, wherein a different brewer gets to create whatever sort of beer he or she wants to and then it is available for a limited time exclusively at the brewery. When it was Saidou Ceesay’s turn at bat, he created a smoked …
A decadent Italian meal deserves a proper ending and Via Carota does it right. Their irresistible semifreddo is a light, creamy glassful loaded with sweet chocolate and hazelnut flavors and topped with a mound of whipped cream and one beautiful chocolate-dipped gooseberry. VIA CAROTA 51 Grove Street (between Seventh Avenue South and Bleecker Street), West …
Greeks know how to cook octopus and Chef Michael Psilakis at Fishtag is no expception. His tender and richly-flavored smoked octopus dish is a stand-out right alongside fingerling potatoes, heatrs of palm, snow pea leaves, and a bright, sweet date and olive puree. Price: $14 FISHTAG 222 West 79th Street (between Broadway and Amsterdam Avenue), Upper …
This obscure Italian dish looks just like a burger minus the bun, but it’s so much more than that. The chopped meat mound is just seared on the outside to provide a peppery, crisp layer, but inside the meat is juicy and rare. Almost like a lightly cooked steak tartare. Roasted garlic cloves and a …
A hearty stew of boneless chicken with crushed walnuts and cooked in a sweet and rich pomegranate paste, is one of Iran’s most famous dishes. And it’s the highlight at the Persian grill known as Ravagh. Price: $12.50 RAVAGH PERSIAN GRILL 11 East 30th Street (between Fifth Avenue and Madison Avenue), Midtown East (212) 696-0300 1237 …
SADLY, ÉLAN IS NOW CLOSED. At his new restaurant élan, Chef David Waltuck has graciously brought back his classic seafood sausage from his long-shuttered Chanterelle. It’s a perfect dish. It’s a heavenly sausage loaded with rich bites of seafood in a natural (and taut) casing floating above a decadent beurre blanc sauce. Hurry and try …
SADLY, DELAWARE AND HUDSON IS NOW CLOSED. The most exciting opening this year in Williamsburg was the grown-up restaurant Delaware & Hudson that is offering affordable (and generous) tasting menus. The food is simple, honest, and delicious representing dishes from the mid-Atlantic from Delaware to the Hudson. Check out the video above for a sense of …
Don’t skip dessert at Scott Bryan’s new restaurant The Milling Room. The chef has just as deft a hand with chocolate cake and panna cotta as he does with pork chops and chicken. His panna cotta is my favorite to date seasoned with fresh vanilla and floating in a pool of tangy and bright …
I’ve already included Chef Scott Bryan’s pork chop on a previous list when I was lucky enough to taste it regularly when I worked at Apiary, where his food reigned supreme. He has since moved on and his amazing food can now be found uptown at The Milling Room, where many of Apiary’s greatest hits …
SADLY, NITECAP IS NOW CLOSED. A refreshing, easy-drinking cocktail from one of the Lower East Side’s hottest new bars. Thigh Highs is a bubbly blend of rum, passionfruit purée, lime and pineapple juices, sparkling wine, and spices. Works in transporting you to a much warmer place. Price: $14 NITECAP 120 Rivington Street (between Essex and Norfolk Street), …
Rob Newton replaced his refined Southern dining restaurant Seersucker this year with a more casual joint. The standout here is a delectable fried chicken sandwich, moist and crunchy, on a simple potato roll and a dab of mayo. Price: $7 WILMA JEAN 345 Smith Street (at Carroll Street), Carroll Gardens, Brooklyn wilmajean345.com
One of New York’s most iconic restaurants is the historic Keens Steakhouse. They’re known for filets and T-bone steaks, of course, but even more so for their preparation of the rarely seen mutton chop. The mature sheeps yields huge amounts of tender and delicate meat. And don’t be scared of the classic mint jelly accompaniment. …
