Posts Tagged: dinner

American Traditional / dinner / nyc / Seafood — 1 Comment
2
Oct 11

Lure Fishbar: Seafood in Soho

Lure Fishbar is located within Soho, an area populated with shops and stores, and provides solid American seafood fare. When you go down the stairs and get seated, it looks like you are sitting inside a beautiful cruise ship with dark wood walls and golden lights. I went for a company dinner and was excited about eating some seafood.

Pictured above was their crab cakes which were bite sized but had fresh crab flavors. Yum.

We also ordered their Lobster Tempura Roll to share, served with tobiko, spicy mayo, and avocado. It was good, of course not authentic Japanese, but lobster in anything will make it 50x better.

For myself, I ordered the Lobster Ravioli served with tomatoes and greens.  I enjoyed the entire dish; the ravioli was perfectly filled with lobster meat, and the sauce was light enough to feel full yet heavy for that thicker buttery flavor.

I would go back to Lure, especially if I feel like having solid seafood dishes. Maybe I’ll make it there after a long day of shopping.

Lure Fishbar
142 Mercer St
(212) 431-7676

American Nouveau / dinner / French / Fusion / Japanese / Korean / nyc — 1 Comment
23
Apr 11

Má Pêche: Beef 7 Ways – A Meat Feast

Má Pêche, the 4th restaurant of David Chang’s empire, is his first midtown restaurant located in the Chambers Hotel.  The “boeuf sept façons” better known as “beef seven ways” meal is…intense. Boy, if you love meat you will love this meal.  Similar to his other food feasts, this meal can feed up to 10 people and requires a minimum of 4…and trust me, you will want and need all 10 people to be there considering they give you TONS of meat.

First course featured the tongue made into a salad comprised of basil, tatsoi, and plum vinaigrette. I was VERY impressed with this dish because it made me want to eat tongue! All the flavors melded together very nicely, and the tongue was sliced thin and was very tender.

Along with the salad was the wagyu served with ginger, scallion, and radish. To be honest, you can’t go wrong with wagyu but they did a great job highlighting the meat itself.  Oh the wagyu meat definitely melted in my mouth…gotta love that fat.

What is in this plate o’meat? There was sausage made of lemongrass, thai basil, and shallots, and the Cote de Boeuf which has butter, thyme, and garlic.  I must say, both of these dishes were REALLY good.  The sausage was well flavored and well spiced. The cote de boeuf was nicely cooked, tender and perfectly juicy.

Oxtail was cooked with soy, sherry, and apple juice which made it tender and slightly sweet. I could only eat once piece at this point but it was very good. The meat fell off the oxtail and had very good flavor.

And then there’s the SHANK. Not sure if you could tell how large this shank is, but it was huge. The shank came with the bone and served with crab paste, onion, and chili. The more impressive part of this dish was the size of it rather than the taste. It was the hurdle and if you and your friends could conquer it, more power to you all. We didn’t want to scoffed by the waitress, so all the guys managed to muster more stomach room and finished the shank.

The last course, the consommé with cilantro, basil, and lime reminded me of pho broth. I was just glad that this wasn’t something I needed to chew.

All in all, it was a memorable meal – a meat feast. There were definitely some highlights and requires intense eating skills from everyone to finish it all. Make sure to bring a group of friends that are ready to eat their faces off.

Má Pêche
15 West 56th Street
New York, NY 10019
(212) 757-5878

American Nouveau / dinner / nyc / Thai — 1 Comment
13
Feb 11

Kin Shop: Asian-inspired Done Right?

I was excited to try out Kin Shop, Harold Dieterle’s 2nd restaurant (winner of Top Chef Season 1), since it has gotten rave reviews from NY Times, NY Mag, and just about any other magazine. The reservations were made about a month ahead of time, people confirmed for the dinner, and food gathering #2 was organized. We were all eager to try out Kin Shop  in hopes of finding an actual good “Asian-inspired” restaurant. That night we got to see Harold by the busing station, basically being QA. It’s nice seeing the chef actually being at his restaurant.

Pictured above – Sliced snap peas with Diver Sea Scallops, served with crispy shallots, pea greens, and toasted coconut. The scallops were nicely cooked. The sauce added a good creaminess to the dish.

This is their Chiang Mai Sausage and Steamed Duck Egg with red onion congee, razor clams & fried thai basil-garlic sauce.  I felt the highlight of the dish wasn’t the sausage or egg, but ratherthe red onion congee. It almost felt like they treated it like an orzo, cooking it with a broth or sauce to create add another flavor layer for the congee. I think the use of Taiwanese sausage rather than Chiang Mai would work better since it would provide a sweeter flavor, but I suppose that wouldn’t make the dish Thai-inspired anymore…

The roti was VERY good. Oddly enough this was one of my favorite dishes (or side dish?) to eat. Each layer was probably coated in butter, and the flakiness to doughiness ratio was perfect. It was slightly chewy, crispy, buttery, and made your mouth crave for some more. Just thinking about it, I totally want some now. Highly recommended!

The roasted duck breast with green mango, fresh herbs, and tamarind water was the best main dish. I’m not sure if it was the tamarind water, but the sauce that came with the duck breast had a good amount of heat and sweetness. It complimented the flavors of duck very well, so much so that as a person who doesn’t normally love duck, I ate around three pieces by myself. If I could, I probably would have eaten the whole thing. Another highly recommended dish!

Kin Shop’s braised goat with fried shallots, purple yams, mustard greens & toasted coconut was also a successful dish. I felt like they did a great job with braising. Not only did I not taste the gaminess of the goat meat, but the meat fell right off the bone. It was tender and juicy, just the way meat should be. The sauce added that creaminess and perhaps helped mask the gaminess. Fried shallots are always a great addition providing an extra crunch and sweet onion-like flavor to a dish. I definitely wouldn’t mind eating this again.

Lastly, dessert - Thai coffee-chocolate and Thai ice tea ice creams, and Calamansi sorbet. I have to say, it was really cool eating Thai ice tea ice cream considering we’re all used to drinking it. That different way of consuming Thai ice tea gave them plus points. The Calamansi sorbet was very good, had a sweet and sour taste, and the Thai coffee-chocolate was pretty normal.

Their dessert menu was actually the smallest menu for a restaurant I’ve encountered, with only ice cream and sorbets available, but maybe this isn’t a course they want to stress anyway. After all, their appetizer / main dishes were very well cooked and nicely seasoned. I would still recommend people to go, but make sure you make reservations! It’s a small space and with rave reviews, seats are difficult to come by. You can reserve through OpenTable.

To answer my question, Kin Shop makes good Asian (and more specifically Thai) inspired dishes that are cooked very well. It is clear that they carefully thought through flavors and textures of each ingredient though one dish presentation wasn’t very aesthetically pleasing. But hey, can’t win them all. Even though this meal didn’t knock my socks off, that doesn’t mean it wasn’t a good meal especially for the price. I’m just glad it’s next door to me.

Kin Shop
469 6th Avenue (btw 11th and 12th st.)
New York, NY 10011
(212) 675-4295

American Nouveau / dessert / dinner / nyc — No Comments
29
Dec 10

Colicchio & Sons: A Warm Christmas Dinner

What used to be known as Craftsteak has been transformed into Colicchio & Sons, a new American restaurant that serves solid dishes with great wine. As one of Tom Colicchio’s restaurants (as if the name didn’t give it away enough), this restaurant isn’t overhyped by Colicchio’s successes of Top Chef and being a James Beard winner. In fact, it meets expectations – dishes that highlight the ingredients, sauces that compliment other elements of the dish, and wine that suits the meal.

Who can deny this beautiful bread basket, rather cast iron skillet? As a bread lover, this was the perfect start. It was warm, moist, and nicely buttered. I’m drooling even thinking about it…I can eat this any day.

Charred Onion Agnolotti (a type of ravoli) are pockets of deliciousness. Served with some celery root and field mushrooms, it is a light and easy to eat appetizer. It can also be made into an entree for those vegetarians.

This is roasted Nantucket Bay scallops, served with green apple, endive, and szechuan pepper. Oddly enough you didn’t taste much of the szechuan pepper. The scallops are small, not sure if it is because I shared this dish, but they were bite-sized and quite tender.

Loch Duart Salmon with roasted persimmons, sunchokes, turnips, and almond puree. Salmon is from Scotland and the persimmons were sweet with a nice bite. Everything was well marinated plus the salmon was well cooked (medium rare).

Boston cream doughnuts with spiced pear jam, malted milk, and milk chocolate ice cream. It is as good as it sounds. The doughnuts weren’t oily and not to sweet. Definitely a good ratio to cream and a nice touch of chocolate. The milk chocolate ice cream was really good and added another layer of flavor – sweet and cold.

It was great for a Christmas dinner, warm and tasty, exactly what suits the holiday season. Colicchio & Sons is definitely worth a try if not continual visits. I hope to try the tasting menu next time since it sounds rich and decadent. Gotta make sure I make room for that meal.

Colicchio & Sons
85 10th Avenue
New York, NY 10011
(212) 400-6699

Australian / dinner / Fusion / nyc — No Comments
3
Feb 10

Public: Fusion is the Name of the Game

Yup, I am reviewing another fusion restaurant. So finnnnne…maybe I go to more fusion restaurants than I would like to admit, but at least I am featuring GOOD places right? Anyway the point is that I was impressed by two things:

1.) the menu ingredients are very varied (i.e. wild boar, quail & foie gras, Tasmanian sea trout)
2.) the restaurant is really spacious and felt down-to-earth yet sophisticated

Now down to the stuff you’ve been waiting for…delicious food pictures.

Here we have the Grilled Scallops appetizer. This is served with sweet chili sauce, creme fraiche, and green plantain chips. I gotta say, there’s nothing better than a nicely grilled scallop, especially since it’s so meaty and has a smooth bite.

Snail and Oxtail Ravioli. Yup I had to try it…not only did it sound so intriguing to me, but it’s not a combination of meat that I have seen. It is served with pickled shiitake mushrooms, oven dried tomatoes, peashoots and smoked paprika oil. Some foodies would say that I “nommed nommed” and finished it easily. I enjoyed the vegetable : ravioli ratio AND the sauce totally enhanced flavors. I just wanted to say “can I have some mooorrreee?”

Lastly, and sadly I cannot seem to remember what this dish was…blame it on my horrible memory or the “al-al-al-al-alcohol”, but here’s a picture of it:

I cannot figure it out for the life of me. If any of you have an idea, PLEASE let me know, pretty please. Otherwise I might just shrivel up in frustration and agony in a corner of my small bedroom over a delicious dish I cannot remember. Yes, that is how serious I am. Leave a comment, email, SOMETHING.

Conclusion: It lives up to the Michelin Star ranking it received. Interesting dishes, comfortable and sophisticated atmosphere, and a friendly waitstaff. It is a great place for a date especially for a avid food fanatic.

Public
210 Elizabeth Street
New York, NY 10012
(212) 343-7011

dinner / Korean / nyc — No Comments
18
Jan 10

Feast: Momofuku Bo SSsäm

As I flipped through all my food photos (and try to catch up this blog with all the good eats), I came across one of the finest feasts I have had with my friends: Bo Ssäm at Momofuku’s Ssäm Bar. Let me say that I am NOT the hugest fan of all their food — don’t even get me started on Momofuku’s Ramen, but THIS meal/dish is marvelous. To all the meat eaters out there, this is a MUST to experience with your friends. Note: You must make a reservation for a group of 6 or more and it must be made at least one day in advance.

We gathered together, all starving for pork butt that had been cooked for 6-7 HOURS. “Meat, meat, meat”, we all chanted. They started bringing over the fundamental materials needed to properly eat this dish.

This is the lettuce, Ssäm jang, salted shrimp, and kimchi to wrap the meat in. I have to say, the sauces were so good. So good to the point where we had to ask for refills at least two times. I am pretty sure the waiters were prepared and sauces appeared instantaneously before our eyes.

Aside from the meat, 12 oysters come with the meal. We weren’t really interested in this and I didn’t feel like it added much to the feast either. No one really complained. After all, we thought the more food the better. This just whetted our appetite, kind of like a pre-game before a major event.

After some light conversation and much anticipation that amassed amongst us, they brought the core of our meal: pork butt - the Bo Ssäm.

OH MY GAWD. As the plate of roasted pork butt was placed in front of us, we gawked and slurped up the drool that was dripping off the side of our faces. Then someone asked, “how are we supposed to cut this?” One of us rushed to grab the knife and quickly took a stab onto this piece of meat. OH YEAH. We saw the meat just fall right off the bone - juicy, fatty, tender – and all quickly reached for our plates.

The frenzy had begun.

Ten hungry people reached for meat, lettuce, sauces all at the same time required a particular kind of harmony. Place all sauces onto personal plate. Pass the lettuce to the person on your left. Grab more meat. Eat eat eat. Silence fell upon us as we all munched together.

A close up of my plate…that is some nice lookin’ meat.

Yeah, all our sauces are gone…into our tummies. Delicious and satisfying.

As we wiped our hands and scraped our plates, we all realized how incredible this meal has been. It brought together people with the same desire to eat some good food for a fair price. Because there were ten of us, it amounted to cost around $25/person…with tip! Granted, because there were ten of us, there wasn’t as much meat as they would have liked, but it was still a memorable meal.

Conclusion: Make the reservation. Enjoy. Thank me later for the recommendation.

Momofuku Ssäm Bar
207 2nd Ave
New York, NY 10003

dinner / Fusion / nyc / Queens — No Comments
24
Dec 09

Day: Rose House; Night: Buddakan

These two outings happened on different dates but they’re both memorable. Memorable = Post-Eligible. That’s right folks, I try to bring you the best of what I encounter as well as what I see. Not to mention it is in time to make a New Years Resolution: to blog more often. So…here goes!

Day: Rose House

After a nice dim sum meal with the family in Flushing aka. “China-in-New-York”, we decided to spend more time with each other at the Rose House located in Queens Crossing. They actually have locations all over Asia (definitely in Taiwan!), and they are now in Flushing too. You can basically order rose teas from polite waitresses. Well I decided to order this dessert along with a bunch of tea:

Ice Cream with Warm Waffles. Oh yes, it was pretty great – the combination of cold ice cream with warm, crispy waffles.

Conclusion: This place is not cheap for what you’re getting. Hopefully you can enjoy the atmosphere and believe what you’re paying is going into the floral couches and delicate teacups.

Rose House (in Queens Crossing)
136－17 39th Avenue
Flushing, NY 11355

Night: Buddakan

I remember running to meet my friend that night for drinks at Buddakan. I have never been there but heard a little bit about it so we decided to check it out together. As we pushed through various crowds that looked like they were attending corporate happy hours, we got to the bar to order drinks. I gotta say…they were delicious. They were able to mix beers with asian flavors pretty well. It went down my throat very smoothly. However, the longer we talked the more we got hungry so we decided to order some snacks, as pictured below:

Beef tartare with a sesame cracker. Not too bad.

Jade Shrimp Dumplings. We killed these pretty easily…

Conclusion: I would say this place is great for drinks and I’m still a bit undecided about the food. I think we need to go back again and have a real meal there.

Buddakan
75 West 16th St.
New York, NY 10011

American Nouveau / dessert / dinner / nyc — No Comments
15
Aug 09

Long Awaited Post: Park Avenue Autumn with Ryan Boyd!

So what else would I be doing on a Friday summer night in Manhattan? BLOGGING OF COURSE. With the television on the show ABDC (America’s Best Dance Crew) whilst cleaning the bathroom, I realized that it is about time for me to blog. Clearly I have not achieved my goal of blogging once a month but I guarantee you that every post I make is meant to entertain…myself. HAHA.

Accenture has provided me with meeting fellow foodies from all across the USA. I was lucky enough to meet Ryan Boyd, a friendly Texan that is very into eating. He educated me in the different types of BBQ and I talked incessantly about the great food in Manhattan. Of course he called me up when he came to NYC and offered to treat me to a delicious dinner with him and his girlfriend. My pick: Park Avenue [insert season here] - Autumn.

They are known to change their decor and menu every single season. I remember that the menu had a special section for MUSHROOMS. That’s right – just to highlight this lovely fungus that is most fresh in the autumn. I was thrilled to be invited to this dinner.
Warning: I apologize ahead of time if I don’t list things properly or if I can’t even identify the dish at all. This is a LONG awaited post (something like 1 year old??) so forgive me!

This was the chef’s starter. What it is you ask? I cannot remember, but I do recollect my feeling towards it. Please sir, can I have some more?

We dabbled in bread. Drrooooool. My weakness…carbs. But oh are they delicious…we are talking about flat bread sticks, multi-grain bread, and muffin-like rolls. ”Gimme gimme more, gimme more…”

And onto appetizers! We ordered:

Local Diver Scallops with Lemongrass Broth and Red Delicious Apples. This dish highlights aspects of autumn and combining fall’s fresh ingredients with seafood.

Unidentifiable dish #1:

I think this might be an appetizer or main entree. Either way I can’t remember…however, doesn’t it look so pretty?

Speaking of mains:

I believe I got the Dover Sole with fine herbes brown butter. It was delicious and eaten in a matter of minutes.

The side dish that stands out the most:

Broccoli & Cheetos! Yes, I am serious. They use REAL cheetos for this side. I was really surprised but I really liked it. It gave the broccoli a pleasant crunch.

And a meal is not complete until you finish it off with dessert!

The chocolate cube and…

Cranberry almond cake with Cranberry brulee and toasted almond ice cream. What is in the chocolate cube? I can’t remember. How were the desserts? That I do remember…and they were gobbled up in a matter of minutes. Two thumbs up!

All in all, one of my most memorable meals…thanks to Ryan Boyd! You rock! I would highly recommend going to Park Avenue [season], and I am more than happy to accompany anyone if desired.

Park Avenue [Season]
100 E. 63rd St.
New York, NY 10021
(212) 644-1900

American Traditional / dessert / dinner / Fusion / snack / travels — No Comments
10
Nov 08

Raleigh, NC…Is There a Food Scene?

To answer the question “Is there a food scene in Raleigh, NC?” I would venture to say…yes. Okay, it cannot compare to New York (obviously) but it’s certainly has made a mark on my mind to becoming a growing city with some yummy eats.

Sadly I don’t have pictures of the Carolinian pulled pork dish I had at The Pit, which is one of the featured BBQ joints at Big Apple BBQ in Madison Square Park in the summer. However, I do have a few memorable eats to mention:

This is the Pretty in Pink cupcake that is comprised of strawberry cake topped with strawberry buttercream. The cupcake rated satisfactory overall. In comparison to the multitude of cupcakes I’ve eaten, the cake was a bit too dry. The buttercream itself was great, but since I don’t really like huge buttercream ratio to cake, I took off most of the cream portion. However, this cupcake shop provides the up-and-coming city with some cupcake love. It’s real cute and make sure to get a punchcard! 10 cupcakes will get you one free.

The Cupcake Shoppe
104 Glenwood Ave
Raleigh, NC 27603
(919) 821-4223

After my senior executive RAVED about this restaurant - An - I had high expectations. I quickly googled the restaurant and it was fusion Asian and American. Definitely was hesitant about this…as with many fusion cuisine I am wary.

This dish is called Crab Cakes in envelope, which has jumbo lump crab meat, edamame, taro, scallions, rice paper, napa cabbage, candied almond slaw, wasabi remoulade. Can we say lots of ingredients? But yes, it was good.

Com Tay Cam has salmon, zucchini, carrots, mushroom, scallion oil, sunny side up, jasmine rice cooked in a cast iron pot, with smoked garlic sauce. To tell you the truth I cannot recall if this was good or not, but at least it had a nice presentation…

Overall, this restaurant is pretty good for Raleigh. How would it fair in NY? I would say average. The decor in the place is real nice and they even have an outdoors area, so it can accommodate large parties. However going there with fellow co-workers, not to mention the bill was on the company, made it a lot nicer. Free good food. Can’t deny that.

An Restaurant
2800 Renaissance Park Pl
Cary, NC 27513
(919) 677-9229

dessert / dinner / Fusion / Japanese / nyc — No Comments
6
Jun 08

Lan: Fusion Japanese Done Well

I’m always hesitant about Japanese food in the city. There are a lot of Japanese restaurants out there, and majority of them I am not often too impressed with. Either the quality of fish is lacking (reflective in the price), or it’s so expensive that I wouldn’t dare step in (i.e. Maru, 15 East, Blue Ribbon Sushi, the list goes on…) so it leaves me at this weird middle place about Japanese.

Then you bring on FUSION. I’m always hesitant about this idea of fusing two different cuisines. It’s hard to master one cuisine, not to mention incorporating another one…can a restaurant really do that well? I always see fusion = japanese + chinese + korean = not good.

However my friend Alex wanted to try this place and I’ve always passed it when I was at NYU so I said, “Why not? I’m a working woman now. I can afford to come here now.” Therefore, I say this as a warning – do NOT go there with a student budget mindset. It is not for the poor and hungry! However, I can guarantee you that you will get very good food…and onto my review:

Lan
56 3rd Avenue
(between 10th and 11th St.)
New York, NY 10003

Once you walk into the restaurant, you find yourself away from the loud NYU area to a quiet and dim open area. It looks very clean and the waitstaff are very attentive. Took our coats, scarves, umbrellas, and onto our table we sat. After deliberating for a while, we decided on a number of dishes/courses…this is my attempt to be “baller” status:

This is Steamed Homemade Prawn & Vegetable Dumplings flavored with oil. Though there were only a few dumplings, it was really good – they definitely used fine ingredients. The prawns were large and the skin was silky smooth. It was slightly spicy, but not overwhelming in flavor.


This is their Egg Custard “Chawan-Mushi” with Lobster Sauce. It was a new take on the traditional Japanese egg custard dish that is often eaten as an appetizer and has a soft silky texture. They added a lobster sauce, which worked very well with the egg custard. You could taste the lobster as well and it added another layer of flavor to this dish.


We deliberated for a while which sashimi plate to get – chef’s selection or the normal selection? CHEF’S SASHIMI SELECTION! Boy, was it good. It was like a trip around the world because they had fish imported from Japan. The cuts were fresh and meaty…I felt like some pieces even melted in my mouth.


This is the Green Tea Tiramisu dessert. As you can see, it is covered with matcha powder. The combination was surprisingly good and didn’t clash.


Shown above is the Chocolate Souffle, Raspberry Sauce, and Vanilla Ice Cream. It is REALLY good…namely because I also love desserts that incorporate both cold and hot elements. The combination of all three – chocolate, vanilla, raspberry – made this a delectable dessert.

Conclusion: My experience at Lan has been one of the most memorable Japanese dinners I’ve had. One dish that I didn’t show above was the prime rib shabu shabu. Our waiter was so helpful too, even when it comes to picking sake! He gave us a sampling of three sakes and it was delicious with what we ordered. Yum. I give this meal and restaurant a HUGE thumbs up!

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