New York Restaurants by Area – Page 43 – Writing With My Mouth Full

The North Fork Table & Inn

57225 Main Road, Southold, North Fork, Long Island
631/765.0177
about $250 for two, with four drinks, without tip
♥ ♥

From Chef Gerry Hayden, of Manhattanâ€™s Aureole and Amuse, and Gramercy Tavernâ€™s pastry chef Claudia Fleming, comes a huge effort. The menu concentrates on the island’s freshest produce including seafood from Peconic Bay and the Long Island Sound. We walked in a few minutes before our 9pm reservation to a hushed dining room. Even though the decor is bare, the lighting was perfect enough to bring out the coziness of what was the old Coeur des Vigne. At the bar, they didn’t have fresh mint leaves, but it was too early to be disappointed so we ordered the tomato water martini and raspberry bourbon instead. Both were too strong to be enjoyed, so we basically nursed our drinks until our main courses came.

It was because we had our drinks on the table that our waiter never asked us if we were interested in wine with our dinner. But what do you expect when most of the wait staff look like they’re under twenty-five years old? The restaurant is quite new and the service needs a little sharpening–a little finesse, just like what Thomas Keller would say.

But what The North Fork Table & Inn lacks in service is made up by the seasonal and local items on the menu. The roasted beets with goat cheese from Catapano Dairy Farm were evenly roasted. Salted pistachios gave them a crunch and the sherry vinegar a nice kick. I had the yellowfin tuna tartare with ponzu sauce topped with mizuna greens: fresh and light.

We never usually order fish from the menu, but the sautÃ©ed wild striped bass came with warm fennel, radish and celery salad, so it was hard to say no. The meat was so tender, just perfectly cooked. The olive vinaigrette gave it the right amount of salty taste. And who says no to lamb chops? For forty dollars, they were the most expensive dish in the menu, but the chops came with a nice cut of shoulder, too, encrusted with smoked pepper. I could have been happy even without the mashed potatoes on the side, but I suppose most diners expect something mushy with their manly dinner.

Have I already mentioned that Claudia Fleming was awarded by the James Beard Foundation as its best pastry chef of 2000? How else can I describe the upside-down peach and blueberry cobbler with sour ice cream? Try divine.

North Fork is about two hours away from Manhattan but the Table & Inn makes the trip worth it.

Searching For a Good Taco: Upper West Side

For my first search for a good taco, I decided to stay on Amsterdam Avenue and the upper west side, specifically from 100th to 145th Streets. I started on 100th mainly because I wanted to hit a favorite spot on 108th but also because I wanted to end up at Jesus’ Tacos near my apartment, a small store that shares space with Twin Donut. Every time I pass by, I chuckle at the name and I knew that someday, I’m going to have to buy something from there. (Of course, it’s more likely pronounced as Heh-sus than Gee-sus but that’s not as funny.)

I was alone and I immediately found out that two tacos were my limit, maybe three if I pick on the filling and skip the tortilla, so I kept it down to ordering chorizo or ground pork tacos. At the stores where they didn’t carry the pork kind, I either bought beef, goat or chicken. I also didn’t spend more than $2.50 on each taco, the cheapest being two dollars. As for selecting which ones to go to, I looked around as I made my way up Amsterdam Avenue and went in to every store, restaurant and bodega that had an awning painted with the Mexican flag colors and had, well, “tacos” or “Mexican food” plastered on the windows. Banderitas, loud Spanish music or television and a picture of the Lady of Guadalupe were all big pluses.

Noche, 852 Amsterdam Avenue between 101st and 102nd Streets, 212/662.6900

Italian Mexican, 886 Amsterdam Avenue between 102nd and 103rd Streets, 212/316.1427

Los Paisas, 890 Amsterdam Avenue between 103rd and 104th Streets, 212/961.1263

Taqueria y Fonda, 968 Amsterdam Avenue between 107th and 108th Streets, 212/531.0383

Yuca Mexican Products, 1345-49 Amsterdam Avenue corner of 125th Street

Cielito Lindo, 1354 Amsterdam Avenue between 125th and 126th Streets, 212/222.0938

Mex Juquila, 1486 Amsterdam Avenue between 133rd and 134th Streets, 212/694.7142

Jesus’ Taco, 501 West 145th Street on Amsterdam Avenue, 212/234.3330

The verdict: chorizo tacos are indistinguishable; ground pork is ground pork. What makes a difference is how the chorizo is cooked and how the taco is prepared. My favorite was the chorizo taco from Taqueria y Fonda between 107th and 108th Streets because the bits and pieces of pork were grilled, crunchy and toasted. Even the onions were grilled so they added some sweetness to the flavor. Their salsa also came with small pieces of avocado and finding each one was a nice surprise. The chorizo from Cielito Lindo between 125th and 126th Streets came in a close second. They actually cut a sausage into smaller pieces; crunchy chorizo skin is always a plus.

As for the non-chorizo tacos, the goat from Yuca was great and the huge peppers were a nice touch. The chicken from Mex Juquila was pretty much like how white meat tastes: boring and unexciting. Between the two beef tacos I got, I liked the one from Noche better than the ungodly experience at Jesus’.

Babbo Ristorante e Enoteca

110 Waverly Place between MacDougal and Sixth
212/777.0303
about $900 for six, with a lot of drinks, with tip
â™¥ â™¥ â™¥ â™¥

For my annual pilgrimage, I was diligent and booked a table exactly thirty days from our dinner date to get a prime spot at 9pm for six people. It was to celebrate Cameron’s and Peter’s birthdays. I’d like to think that for friends, I’m extra thoughtful.

There is no need to explain why I’m giving Babbo yet another four. I’ll let these photos do their job:

There was also the marinated fresh sardines with caramelized fennel and lobster oil, the epic grilled octopus with “Borlotti Marinati” and spicy limoncello vinaigrette and the spaghettini with spicy budding chives, sweet garlic and a one-pound lobster, the unforgettable lamb’s brains, plus three other desserts and three bottles of a rosÃ© champagne and red wine. After four hours, we were way above our heads to even recall every detail. It was a very good night. I love me some Mario Batali.

Pier 2110 Seafood Restaurant

2110 Adam Clayton Powell Jr. Boulevard off 126th Street
212/280.7437
$110 for two, with two drinks, without tip
no stars

Updated, 2007: Pier 2110 was short-lived

I’ve been living more than twelve years uptown, three of those in Harlem. When I go to a restaurant in the neighborhood, I’ve come to expect that there’d be little to no ambiance and the food will be very simple but down-to-earth. So when a new restaurant bills itself as “Harlem’s Newest Jewel”, I believe it but I expect more.

The Korean-owned Pier 2110 tries hard to be that jewel, but so hard everything comes out garish and overpowering. I know they mean well, serving seafood dishes the locals are already accustomed to and revitalizing the neighborhood, but for a $21 plate of pork chops, I don’t want steamed broccoli with it smothered with plum sauce and then call it “plum-glaze.” My catfish was equally intriguing on their menu: pan-roasted with sweet potato purÃ©e, broccoli florets, fig and rosemary compote and bourbon cider sauce. But for $19, I didn’t expect an overcooked limp fillet with a soup of mashed potato.

They’ve been up and running for almost a month now but the service still needs a lot of sharpening. The maitre d’ didn’t have our names in the computer even though I secured reservations a day before. (No shorts and sneakers allowed, by the way!) A busboy interrupted our waiter and his announcement of the specials to let us know that the rolls were still in the oven. We waited for a few minutes to get our waiter’s attention to ask for a knife to eat our pork chops with–he picked up the knife from the table setting next to us. (He came back with a steak knife after we rejected that.) In between courses, he brought out the bottle of Purell–I am not kidding–so we could squirt and sanitize our hands. He offered us tea before the dessert menu which I thought might be a good way to end our lackluster evening. To our surprise, he came out with a beautiful jeweled box full of…Celestial Seasonings tea bags.

The restaurant’s decor is ocean-themed, but their idea of high-end reminds me of the Red Lobster in Times Square. There are cascading water on glass walls and small fountains, stained glass artwork and aquariums everywhere. There is a “sushi” station offering all kinds of California rolls in the middle of the room, perhaps the same space where Billie Holiday used to perform during the Vaudeville Era. (In fact, the building used to be the Alhambra Theater in 1905.) The staff was very attentive, but Pier 2110 has to offer the kind of service–and food–that’s worth $110 for two people.

Savoy

70 Prince Street corner of Crosby
212/219.8570
about $125 for two, with two drinks, without tip
♥ ♥ ♥

Three people splitting nine small plates and three Indian pale ales for $25 each isn’t such a bad deal for a New York City lunch. Our afternoon selection for one over-heated summer day:

Roasted beets vinaigrette with horseradish, orange and thyme
Market string beans with harissa and garlic
Yucca fries with house-made ketchup
Bulgarian feta with tomato and urfa pepper
Salt cod fritters with sweet pepper vinegar
Guanciale and local cherries and fennel
Tuna confit and marinated summer squash
Greek potato spread with almond and garlic
Turkish red pepper and walnut dip

Minus the different kinds of bread that came with each plate, everything was light and refreshing. All the ingredients are seasonal and from local farmers, including the guanciale, or pig’s lower jaw meat. Delicious.