Boqueria SoHo

03. December 2008 SoHo, Spanish 3
171 Spring Street between West Broadway and Thompson 212/343.4255 $70 for three, with drinks, without tip ♥ ♥ I felt like I got the gist of Boqueria SoHo after I stopped by for “dessert” with my brother and sister-in-law during its second weekend. We walked in around 5:45pm to eat an early dinner but were ...

Peter Luger

26. November 2008 American, Brooklyn 0
178 Broadway, right under the Williamsburg Bridge in Brooklyn 718/387-7400 about $350 for five, with a bottle of wine, with tip, cash only ♥ ♥ Our waiter spilled porterhouse juice all over my sister-in-law’s hat. She wasn’t wearing it at the time, but it still sucked when she realized it outside. It was windy and ...

Cafe Select

19. November 2008 Anglo-Euro, SoHo 2
212 Lafayette Street off Kenmare 212/925.9322 $40 for two, with 2 drinks, without tip ♥ ♥ Everything Serge Becker touches turns into the next place-to-be. (You’ve seen La Esquina and The Box in the news, right?) A 1pm lunch date with my friend at the bar started gloomy: we were meeting to drown our sorrows ...

Almond Restaurant

05. November 2008 French, Union Square + Murray Hill 0
12 East 22nd Street 212/228.7557 $90 for two, with 2 glasses of wine, with tip ♥ ♥ ♥ We’ve driven by Almoncello on Montauk Highway only to stop at Townline BBQ for lunch instead. This summer I told myself, okay, I’ll definitely eat there next year. But now that their Manhattan branch has opened, I ...

Talay Restaurant

29. October 2008 Southeast Asian, West + East Harlem 1
701 West 135th Street and Twelfth Avenue 212/491.8303 $104 for two, with 3 drinks, without tip ♥ ♥ If anyone in the restaurant industry deserves a break, it’s King Phojanakong, owner and chef of Kuma Inn in the lower east side. I don’t know if it’s the Filipino-Thai upbringing that keeps him humble but I’m ...