tommy:eats

Beef: Ribs, BBQ

I'm not sure why I haven't posted about this deliciousness yet.  In fact I'm not sure that I've posted about any deliciousness recently.  Today's (or technically tomorrow's, I suppose - 5/24/09) article in the NY Times Magazine reminded me that I should.

Morton's Steakhouse: and their blog and silly claim

Morton's Steakhouse now has a "blog".  The blog is called "The Best Steak Anywhere", which is their (new?) registered trademark.

Really?  The best steak anywhere?  It kinda makes you wonder if they've ever been to Peter Luger, or Florence.  

I suppose they are guided by the same principle that so many are:  if you say it enough, well then it just has to be true.  They lie.  It's not.  How am I so sure?  

A Mano in Ridgewood: back on track

As soon as t:e reader "Ev" tipped me off that A Mano's original pizzaiolo, Roberto, was coming back to train the staff, I had visions of A Mano returning to its past glory.  Under Roberto's command, A Mano was producing wonderful Neapolitan style pizza.  The place was a treasure, and a great addition to the area's mostly cookie-cutter restaurant scene.  After Roberto's departure, however, the place slipped quite a bit.  This was evident in the service (which was never stellar to begin with), the management, and most importantly, the pizza.

Roberto is/was indeed back, if only for the short term.  From what I can tell (and I'm not a reporter, so I don't generally ask owners or managers many questions on this stuff), A Mano is now part of Associazione Pizzaiuoli Napoletani, which is one of the several professional organizations whose goal is to preserve and promote Naples' prized product.  Part of A Mano's association with the associazione involves training, and I'm guessing Roberto was sent back to sort them out.

And sort them out he did...

The bun: as important as the meat, and a thank you to the Spotted Pig

Clearly I like burgers.  Clearly.  It's a beautiful thing, the hamburger is.

Since most restaurants have no idea how to make a good burger, I spend a good amount -- probably an unhealthy amount -- of my time thinking about and making hamburgers at home.  I never buy pre-ground beef (except from Fair Lawn's Swiss Pork Store, where they grind to order), use only high-quality interesting cheeses (most of the time at least), really good bacon, rarely ketchup, tomatoes only when in season or Campari tomatoes if not.  And as for the bun?  Well hell, I'm not a baker, and we don't have many options in north Jersey for fresh baked buns or brioche.  So I have to concede and use store-bought mass produced buns. 

Rosa Mexicano: Hackensack, initial impressions

We took a walk by the chain restaurant trifecta that recently opened at the Riverside Square mall. 

There's a Maggioni's or something like that, whose awning claims "PRIME STEAKS."  Plural, as far as I can tell.  I took a look at their menu, and only one steak is "prime", and it's not even suggesting that it's USDA Prime (it also claims "aged", which I assume means that it was sitting in a Cryovac wrapper for a while.  Yay).  I guess what they meant by "PRIME STEAKS" is that they have several of those steaks. 

There's also PF Chang's.  I couldn't get past those enormous concrete horses.  I'm sure I'm missing some sort of cultural significance, once again illustrating the depth and breadth of my ignorance. Seriously, they're kidding, right?...

...and then there's Rosa Mexicano.

Red and green chile sauce: beef and shrimp, a la Rosa Mexicano

I was exchanging emails with iamnotachef yesterday, as we sometimes do, discussing bourbon and absinthe and the state of New Jersey dining -- you know, things that two people who are complete strangers would talk about over email -- when it occurred to me that instead of telling him what I'm making for dinner, I should probably blog about it.  He concurred, but said that I should only blog about it if it's very good, or very bad.  I tend to agree, but the other reason I sometimes blog about the things I cook is so that I can remember what I did. I'm horrible at keeping notes for repeat performances, so this blog sometimes doubles as a dumping ground for those semi-successful meals that were thrown together.  Trust me, this blog thing and those dinner posts aren't about trying to impress people.  Of this you are assured.

The discussion started with a mention of the opening of Rosa Mexicano in Hackensack's Riverside Square mall.  What I said to the fella was this:

Ceci, shrimp: and chiles, a la Otto

Over on the blog I Am Not A Chef, the blogger known only as 'I Am Not A Chef' was discussing great and simple combinations.  Specifically, shrimp and cannellini beans.

I figured I'd one up him with an even more simple shrimp/starchy stuff combo:  Ceci, shrimp, chiles, a la Mario Batali's Otto.

Ben and Jack's Steakhouse spotted on "30 Rock"

Since no one else on the internet has mentioned it, I figure I'll take it...

Primehouse New York: New York, NY

Jakes

“Well, here’s the thing. The steaks were *cooked* perfectly, but, they were *not* served in butter.” 

That’s the thing, according to my friend Jake, who left me a vmail on the way home from our meal at BR Guest’s Primehouse in New York.  And you can ask him.

Egg on top: makes anything taste better

My three favorite words to stumble upon when perusing a menu?  "Egg on top."

It's really a simple concept:  an egg on top makes anything taste better.  I've figure that much out.  And if I've figured that out, then you should certainly have figured that out.  But just in case, here's a reminder.

Lahori Chicken: Suvir Saran, Stephanie Lyness, and Riesling

I've been a fan of Indian food since my college years, when I first explored New York City in search of new and different foods like Thai and Vietnamese (they were "new" to me, since I had spent my whole life at the Jersey shore, and went to NYC only for museum visits, the circus, and a Yes concert on their 90210 tour, or whatever it was -- none of those trips included much eating).  I still remember my first visits to A Taste of India, which was, and I believe still is, on Bleecker in the Village.  These were certainly new and exotic flavors to my palate, and there's no reason you should care about any of that whatsoever. 

For some reason I've never tried to cook Indian food.   I've butchered Thai, and Japanese, and most other culture's foods, but never Indian.  A few weeks ago I figured it was about time, so I consulted a trusted source:  Suvir Saran.

Blue Smoke, NYC: the burger

Photo courtesy of blackeyedpig

Blue Smoke's (NYC) burger, time and time again, gets dissed in various burger "round-ups" (not on that one) and on blogs (here, though) and just about anywhere that people discuss burgers.  So much so that each time I read about someone's thoughts on what is one of my favorite burgers I think "surely this person is going to love it.  surely."  And I'm pretty much always wrong.

My question is: are these people high?  Blue Smoke's burger is certainly one of the best restaurant burgers in NYC.  I'm sticking to that opinion regardless of what the rest of the world says.

Dos Caminos: pretty colors, lots of tequila

Dos Caminos recently opened their third New York branch.  On 3rd Ave this time, where La Maganette used to live (I'd guess at 50th or so).

I figured it would be another colorful meat market, like the one on Park must be (I've never been).  And I might be right. What I know for sure is that they've got a bunch of nice tequila and some decent pork tacos.  And pretty colors, as the super-megapixel image above so clearly illustrates.

Houston's has a burger: that doesn't suck

The Houston's burger can be seen here not sucking.

So I found myself poking around the internet, looking for places that serve a good burger (go figure), and an oddity kept popping up here and there (most significantly on A Hamburger Today):  people have been claiming that Houston's, a chain restaurant, has a good burger.   

Let me make something clear:  I don't think people have very good taste, generally speaking.  So normally, I'd just ignore these claims.  But for some reason I thought they might be onto something.  And A Hamburger Today people seem to put a lot of thought into this stuff.  So, off we went to Houston's in Riverside Square mall, in Hackensack, NJ.  After my experience with Applebee's "Triple Prime Burger", I wasn't expecting much.  Of this you are assured.

Notable recent bites: Oceanos, Babbo, Maywood Inn, The Restaurant

I know what you're thinking:  I haven't been posting blog entries so I must not be eating.  Well just because I don't post blog entries doesn't mean I'm not eating.  That's plain silly.  Of this you are assured.  It's just that I don't always feel like writing a whole bunch, or, more accurately, don't think I have anything interesting to say (usually the case).  So, every now and again, I write these superficial little recaps, describing what I recently ate and where I ate it, if it think it's important enough.  It's less pressure on me.  This comes out of laziness, lack of motivation, lack of confidence, and a complete and utter lack of interest in whether people return to my blog for fresh posts.  The occasionally declining tommy:eats blog stats are a testament to that, if not a reminder to post something.  Anything.

So here you go:  superficial and shallow notes on a few notable bites from the past week or two, that I think you should know about, from Oceanos (NJ), Babbo (NYC), Victor's Maywood Inn (NJ), and The Restaurant (NJ):

Metro Marché: Oysters at the Port Authority

Sexy camera phone pic. Sweet, I know.

When the news first broke that someone was building a sort-of-fine-dining restaurant (well, compared to the Silver Bullet - the previous tenant of the space at 41st and 8th - pretty much anything is "fine") at the Port Authority bus terminal (or as our fraternity cook, the lovely Anne, used to call it, "the Port of Authority"), people were quite surprised.   "Oysters at Port Authority!?!?!" people asked  (I was one of them).  Responses generally came in the form of "Well, look what they did with Grand Central.  There's plenty of fine dining in Grand Central now, and that used to be gritty too."

Allow me to indulge myself:  Grand Central was once an opulent and beautiful structure, which fell on hard times, and was refurbished back to its original majesty.  The Port Authority, conversely, was a big ugly piece of metal before the pencil even hit the paper.

The Amish Market, NYC: Pizza

The Amish Market is a bit of a mini-chain of upscale gourmet food markets in Manhattan.   They've got a great selection of produce, cheeses, olives, desserts, breads, meats, fish, and practically everything else you'd ever need.  They also have a fair amount of prepared foods and nice hot/cold buffet-style selections.

The standout to my mind is the brick oven pizza.  It's really quite good.   

craftsteak, NYC: batting .500

I'd be remiss in my duties as the self-proclaimed foremost authority on dining and most-things-taste-related (aka, "food bully") if I didn't mention my most recent visit to craftsteak, especially considering how much I enjoyed my first visit a few months ago.   My recent meal can only be categorized as not-so-good.

And it went a little something like this.  Hit it boys...

Wu Liang Ye, NYC: yet another great meal

I actually had a camera with me (I don't normally bring a camera to restaurants).  I think the photos speak for themselves:

The strangest thing I ate this week: Grand Sichuan, NYC

Pig intestines at Grand Sichuan were a lovely treat.  Fried crispy, like cracklins, with a nice porky flavor.  I have to say that for the money, there were a lot of intestines.  Not that I have any barometer for such a thing.  It just seemed like a lot.

Served with vegetables in a spicy sichuan pepper-kicked sauce.  Highly recommended.

Fascinating service moment of the week: Le Cirque, NY

At the bar at Le Cirque, in New York:

The strangest thing I ate this week: Chinatown Brasserie, NY

I don't want to come off as inappropriate, but the first thing that came to mind was "KKK". 

notable bites over the past week: 20060623

Here're some notes on a of a few of the bites I've had in the last week or so in New York and New Jersey (Wu Liang Ye, Dona, Bisto-en).  I just can't find the time to write up proper entries on these places.  Yet.

craftsteak: New York, NY

craftsteak lives where Frank's steakhouse used to live, on 10th ave at 14th Street.  Frank's was in the middle of nowhere.  craftsteak is in the middle of Morimoto, Chelsea Market, and Del Posto. Times, they be-a changin'. 

My clearest memories of Frank's include a Mark Fuhrman sighting (that detective related to the O.J. stuff back in the day), their enormous and quite delicious shrimp cocktail, and a bachelor party during which an intense case of sun-poisoning kicked in.  That was the most miserable bachelor party you could imagine.

Frank's has since moved around the corner into the Chelsea Market building, and Tom Colicchio moved into its grand old space, bringing with him a total and gorgeous renovation, a bunch of steak from "artisanal producers," a dry-aging room, and a private dining room that seats 40...although I probably wouldn't choose this room for a bachelor party.

With no less than 14 different types of steak from which to choose, you'd do well to review the menu on their website before going.  When I say "different types" of steak, I'm not talking about the typical steakhouse choices, which generally include several different cuts of 28 day dry-aged grain-fed beef and a tasteless filet mignon.  I'm talking about different cuts of steak, several ages of steak, different producers, and hell, different breeds of cow.  So what's the best approach to ordering?  Simple:  get as many people together as you can and order as many steaks as you can and share them.  A steak tasting menu.  What could be better?  craftsteak seems designed for this approach, and they're more than happy to help you sort that out.

Epstein's Bar, LES: the burger

We ended up at Epstein's Bar in the lower east side the other night.  Word from my friend's roommate was that they have a good burger.  The folks at CityRag agree.  They're smart folk.

Epstein's opened a while back in the old Living Room space.  The Living Room was a tiny little bar, packed with tables, where you could catch some pretty decent music on the right night (for free, no less), like, for example, the wonderful and talented Lauren Hoffman.  Those were the days. 

Somehow, the owners of Epstein's made the same space seem double the size.  They opened up floor to ceiling windows and doors, and put some tables outside.  Perfect for people-watching, if that's your thing.  It's mine.  There's a sizeable bar still, but only a handful of tables inside.  Lower east siders don't need all those tables (and they look just like east villagers did 10 years ago).   And, they have what appeared to be a really good internet-connected jukebox.  And a big flat-screen TV. 

None of that matters.  What matters is that the burger ($7 with bacon, although you can get it for $5 without), is really excellent.

Naples 45 : the best pizza in Manhattan, almost

And the almost best pizza in Manhattan is...

[drum roll...]

Naples 45.

Whahuh? Naples 45 is big, generic-looking airplane hangar of a restaurant in midtown, catering mostly to midtown office workers' lunches.  It's owned by Restaurant Associates, which is a big conglomerate that owns a bunch of mostly mid-tier restaurants.  So why is anyone going to believe me when I say that they have incredible pizza?  They're not.  And that's fine, as there will be more pizza for me.

Del Posto: New York, NY

I didn’t know what to expect from Mario Batali, Joe, and Lidia Bastianich’s new restaurant. Even after all of the hype, the Food TV special, and then all of the subsequent chatter on the internet (mostly, apparently, from people who had never actually eaten at the place, and oddly, to me, seemed to have no interest in eating at the place), I still didn’t know what to expect. What I really wanted was to have a meal as good as those I’ve had at Babbo. That’s a lot to ask of most restaurants, but it shouldn’t be a lot to ask of Del Posto.

Aside:  That bullet-head Chris is butchering a Styx song on American Idol as I try to type this and I can’t concentrate one bit. Make it stop.

At any rate, given my expectations and hopes, Del Posto delivered: I had a meal as good as those I’ve had at Babbo. I’m guessing that’s not what they’re shooting for, though.

per se: New York

A few months ago we had the pleasure of dining at the French Laundry in Napa.  It was certainly one of the most expensive and memorable meals that i've even been a part of.  And it remained so until a few days ago, when i had by far the most expensive meal of my life (time will tell if it was "memorable"), complete with piles of shaved truffles and a piece of foie gras that, judging from its size when presented to the table, must have come from a pterodactyl.  This meal, of course, was at per se, Thomas Keller's other restaurant (the only "other" of importance i'd think).

People all over the internet wax poetic about their meals here, complete with photos of all of their courses in some cases (the food is beautiful), photos of themselves (not always necessary, but thanks), photos of the flatware, and claims of keller's genius.  So what can I say about per se that hasn't already been said by practically everyone who has been lucky enough to get a reservation (and let's face it, for some people half the story is the fact that they got the reservation).   Oh wait, i got one:  the truffle was tasteless.  There, i said it.  per se is not perfect.