New York Restaurant Reviews – Page 28 – Writing With My Mouth Full

Nobu 57

40 West 57th Street between Fifth and Sixth
212/757.3000
about $650 for omakase for six people, 60% comped, with drinks, with tip
â™¥ â™¥ â™¥

You know when people say it’s all about who you know? I realized what that truly meant last week when I was invited to join a friend’s family for a birthday dinner at Nobu 57. The birthday boy works in the omakase kitchen, so it was just appropriate that he took his family to work to celebrate. The Dr. and I were lucky enough to be included. We joined the celebration a few minutes late. The night was young and already, the restaurant was loud and buzzing with celebrities. Blistered peppers and grilled fava beans were on the table when we arrived. I rarely see fresh fava bean pods in the market, so I was thrilled to see them as appetizers. The kitchen continued to send plate after plate to our table for the next three hours. The celebrant was all too familiar with the dishes because they make at least 500 of the omakase orders a night from the time the restaurant opens for lunch until it closes around midnight. His friends in the back surprised him a few times with new specials.

They started us with the yellowtail sashimi with jalapeÃ±o peppers and the fluke in ponzu sauce. Both were so light I was led to believe that the rest of the night was going to be manageable. But then the presentation began–the kitchen staff trying to impress one of their own. The tuna with spicy cucumbers was served in a martini glass and topped with microgreens. The lobster and shiitake mushroom salad, a popular Nobu dish, became one of my favorites. The lobster was so succulent. The mushrooms only highlighted its decadence. A tofu and mussel salad was more mellow, served in trendy foam made of miso. Although impressive, it was probably the least memorable.

The rock shrimps were served with a spicy cream sauce. I could have done without the creaminess, but apparently, Scarlett Johansson loves them the way they were. The soft-shell crabs were lightly deep-fried and cooked to perfection. I loved them even more because they were served with small chunks of watermelon. Cubed fish was served next on lettuce leaves meant to be picked up with our hands. They were topped with fried phyllo dough that looked like dried noodles. We could have ended our meal there, but the food kept coming. The arctic char was delicately sweet, so grilled cauliflowers and purÃ©ed cilantro sauce were the perfect complements. At this point, I was unable to move, but I had to force myself to keep eating because the beautiful lamb chops came in. These lamb chops made up for all the bad lamb I’ve ever had in my life. Redemption is oh-so-sweet. I could have eaten a few more if only my stomach didn’t beg for me to stop. I had no choice but watch as the rest of the table picked up the sushi pieces in front of me which included a salmon lookalike ocean trout and seawater eel.

Thank goodness the drinks kept pouring. The beer and the wine flowed freely. Two carafes of cold sochu, one pomegranate, another lycheee flavored, disappeared immediately. We were too paralyzed to eat the desserts, but we happily picked on three kinds including the Nobu beer ice cream served with a white peach and jasmine soup and the whiskey milk ice cream with coffee crumble. One by one, the kitchen staff came out to greet the birthday boy. They brought with them a warm chocolate cake with green tea ice cream and a plate of fresh cantaloupe with a flickering birthday candle.

I’m not as young as the celebrant, but I had no reason to complain as we achingly walked out of the restaurant to digest. Happy birthday indeed.

Petite Abeille

466 Hudson Street
212/741.6479
about $45 for three dishes, with two beers, with tip
â™¥

With four locations in the city, my favorite is the one on Hudson Street in the West Village. Petite Abeille is known for their mussels. On Wednesday nights, you can eat all the mussels you want for about $20 with a Stella. But I really like their waffles with fresh strawberries, topped with whipped cream and sprinkled with confectionary sugar. I order it whenever I visit one of their locations no matter what time of the day it is.

When it’s warm out, it’s nice to sit by the sidewalk and watch the West Village crowd walk by. For lunch, there are several salads and sandwiches to choose from, but skip the spicy tuna sandwich and stick with the pot of mussels. Dip the crusty bread in the broth and you’re set. Make sure you order a Leffe with it.

Landmarc at the Time Warner Center

Third floor of the Time Warner Center, 10 Columbus Circle
212/823.6123
about $75 for brunch for two, with mimosas and coffee, with tip
â™¥

Baby strollers of different sizes and colors almost blocked the entrance. One of the babies being held by its father burped and threw up a gooey substance on the floor. Where were we? We were standing outside Landmarc in the Time Warner Center on a Sunday afternoon. Thankfully, we were seated immediately at the bar which kept us away from any more cranky babies and parents with their hands full. We both stayed out late the night before, so we needed to start our day right. Mimosas were in order–about three glasses apiece, in fact, until the small champagne bottles were empty. I ordered the smoked salmon peppered with capers. I was craving a toasted plain bagel and cream cheese, which I rarely eat, so I was more than happy to eat something unexciting. The salmon was tasty, though, and even the Philadelphia cream cheese was good.

Cameron chose the very filling eggs en meurette, poached eggs served with bacon, onions and mushrooms in reduced red wine sauce. The bacon was chunky and the crusty bread was softened by the sauce. It could have been a classic dinner option because it was so hearty. This stood out among the other breakfast selections. We also split the blueberry pancakes with warm maple syrup. I’ve had a lot of bad pancakes before and I have to say that the Landmarc pancakes were pretty good. Real blueberries peeked from the soft cakes at every slice with a fork. Even with our first two dishes, we didn’t have a problem doing damage to them.

We raved about the coffee. I had to call the restaurant two days later to ask for the source. The coffee is from La Colombe and roasted in Philadelphia. It is also served in restaurants like Daniel and Le Bernardin. It’s $15 for a pound in the Chelsea Market, so I’ll just visit this weekend for dinner and order it after my meal. Babies sleep early, right?

El Idolo

Corner of 14th Street and Eighth Avenue
no phone number
$10 for four tacos and a drink
â™¥

We had been drinking for several hours when the El Idolo truck caught my eye on the corner of 14th Street and Eighth Avenue. I convinced my tired and drunk friends to cross the street and eat one last meal before heading home. We ordered the chorizo, the el pastor and the chimichuria. I couldn’t really tell the difference between the el pastor and the chimichuria, but the chorizo tacos were deliciously salty. The green hot sauce I poured all over them added a nice spicy kick. A cup of cold horchata, a Mexican rice milk drink flavored with cinnamon, almonds and vanilla also hit the spot.

After spending a few dollars more than I can afford on drinks, the $2 tacos were bounty sent from Mexican heaven.

Dogmatic Gourmet Sausage System

In the park on Bleecker and Hudson
no phone number
$13 for two hotdogs, one asparagus and a drink
♥

Right behind the playground on Hudson and Bleecker and steps away from the long lines outside Magnolia Bakery is a small hotdog stand with an expensive flair called the Dogmatic Gourmet Sausage System. The flair during our visit was a thin turkey sausage for $5 a piece made by Sullivan County’s Violet Hills Farm. There are fancy sauces that you can add, from white truffle gruyere (yes, I know!) to dijon mustard and spicy ketchup. There is also grilled asparagus for the vegetarians. Everything comes in a toasted baguette. To push all the gourmet choices down, there are homemade ice-cold drinks like a really refreshing ginger with vanilla bean.

The owner, Jeremy Spector, is also the chef at nearby Employees Only. (He was wearing his Employees Only T-shirt and chef pants when we stopped by.) After we ordered, we sat on the park bench next to his stand to wait. He walked over to bring us the wrong orders: he put spicy ketchup on our asparagus instead of the hotdog and he slathered the melted gruyere on another hotdog instead of the asparagus. We joked at how confused he was–it must have been the summer heat. We ended up eating two hotdogs and one order of the asparagus because of his mistake. He let us have the other hotdog for free. And, well, we thought he was really cute for being all flustered.

Dogmatic Gourmet is a noble idea in the perfect neighborhood, but I’m not sure if I’m its customer. I found it hard spending $5 on a sausage.