mascarpone

My wife and I went to Gecko's on July 5 for dinner. It was excellent; smoked trout cakes, Navajo bread, dinner salad tossed with roast corn, Oaxacan Mole, crab enchiladas, and Pear Corn Pudding and white chocolate cheese cake for dessert. The accompaniments (black beans, corn muffin with butter and jalepeno jelly, etc.) were top notch. Excellent creativity, and attention to detail in every dish. Delicious Iced tea. The tab including tip came to around $75. A must-taste for anyone who goes to Cape May. Get out of the way Mark Miller (Cayote Cafe), here comes Gecko's!

Thanks, KatieLoeb!

My wife will be in the area for the 4th of July. I just wanted to bump up this thread to see if there are any recommendations on any new places or news on developments on the old places. thanks.

My wife and I will be in the area for July 4th(Ocean City, Sea Isle City, Avalon, Stone Harbor, Wildwood, Cape May), and therefore, I am bumping up this thread. Any new places, or developments at the old favorites?

I am contemplating taking the ferry from Cape May to Lewes, Delaware around July 4th, and was interested in restaurant recommendations for $60 per person. My wife and I like just about every kind of food under the sun, and are interested more in good food than fancy service/decor (but we tolerate fancy decor and service, if the food is good:>).

I just don't get it.

If you can get in, the $48 tasting menu is a real bargain. It's been a while since I've been though. I hear the food can be a little inconsistent. ← On a less ambitious level, a lot of people like East Village spots Frank, Max and Il Baggato. Also, Lavagna and Gnocco. Also, I'm not sure if Peasant qualifies. ← I really recommend the Chestnut pudding with hazelnut sauce at Gnocco. It is one of my favorite desserts ever.

I was very impressed with this place when I ate there several years ago.

Dominic's at Arthur Avenue in the Bronx.

Yesterday I saw some fresh (but not necessarily sushi grade?) in Chinatown. I also saw a frozen non-Sushi Turbot at Sunrise Market. I am not confident in selecting raw fish myself, when it is not labeled "for Sushi." I just picked up some Yamaimo and Sushi Grade Tuna at Sunrise for Yamakake. It was ok in freshness for Yamakake, but, for some reason, the structure of the tuna cut did not liken it to Sushi/Sashimi.

I am interested in finding sushi quality Turbot (Hirame). Any leads?

My wife and I will be in Matsumoto on for three days next week. I am award that Soba is a regional specialty there. Any recommendations on particular restaurants for this and other regional specialties? Also, any recommendations on any restaurants that do not necessarily feature regional favorites that are very good restaurants anyway? This trip is our honeymoon. I would be prepared to have one very nice meal ($60 USD per person), as well as some other very good, but less expensive options.

I forgot to mention, that the bill came to $1,100.00 before tip.

Yesterday we had a post nuptial family style dinner at Scottadito Osteria Toscana. It started at 12:30 PM and ended at 5:30 PM. The service was excellent, the food was impeccable, and the space, the wine cellar, was perfect for the party (15) that attended the dinner. We did the $45 plus $15 beverage supplement. This was an extraordinary bargain, considering that the party of 15 drank enough Miamosas, wine, and beer to put the restaurant out of business (seriously, I think they must have lost a considerable sum due to the quantity of alcohol consumed). As a result of the alcohol, the toasting turned into a raucous roasting. At any rate, we started with drinks and olives, which were followed by bread, and then bruchetta spread with a olive/eggplant tapenade that was outstanding. We had ear pasta with eggplant, basil and tomato, and parmagiano; and also tagliatelle with brie, basil and speck; delicious. The second course was salmon and chicken with vegetables; very tasty, but everyone was so sated with previous courses and alcohol, much of this course was untouched. They packed it for my wife and I; we will be eating it for lunch for a week. All the produce was organic; the pasta was cooked to perfection. The meal was leisurely paced, and the intimate setting of the wine cellar was ideal for the occasion. A large Tiramisu cake was made and displayed to polite applause, before it was devoured with the assistance of coffee/ biscotti. At the very end, when everyone was about to stand up and say a final congrats, we were served Lemoncello (sp?) to restore the palate. There were two Italian-Americans in our party. One, my bother-in-law, remarked that, although he normally does not like to dine at Italian restaurants, he was very impressed at the authenticity and quality of the food, much of which, during the course of the meal, he made references such as," my mother made it much like this."

Tasty Dumpling on Mulberry is run by the sister of the woman at Dumpling House. I seem to recall that Dumpling house had the Pork/Chive dumplings while Tasty Dumpling had both Pork/Chive and also Pork/Cabbage. I wouldn't go so far as to say the Pork/Cabbage was without taste, but rather, it was more subtle (sweet) that the more dramatic pork and chive.

I had dinner there last night with the bride, and we both liked it. We had a special app.; roasted red pepper stuffed with mozzarella and prosciutto on top of greens, which was excellent. The flavor of the vegetables was very strong, indicating their freshness (according to people I have spoken with, they use organic foods, which makes sense, as they are right next door to the Park Slope Food Co-op). We had two pastas for the Primi: I had the Rigatoni Scottadito; Artisanal Pasta with house made turkey sausage, green peas in a pink vodka sauce and shaved parmigiano cheese ($15). She had the Orechhiette Ale Verdure; house made pasta with zucchini, eggplant, asan marzano tomatoes and ricotta salsa ($10). One notable point of the presentation was that the pasta was served piping hot, & freshly grated parmigiano and ground pepper were offered and excepted with the app. and primi. I enjoyed my rigatoni; however, the Orcchiette was really great due to the texture of the pasta, the intense flavor of the fresh vegetables, and the tangy San Marzano. We had a pleasant Tiramisu for dessert, which was served in a large white coffee mug. The bill came to $48 dollars without wine (we abstained). The service was very warm and attentive.

This afternoon I went and had a look-see at Bacchus and Scottadito Osteria Toscano. Bacchus looked like it was the establishment with the most mileage; it was charming, albeit a bit worn. The woman I spoke to about the reservation was really off-putting. I was shown the covered patio by a more hospitable woman, who explained that they would clean it up for the party. There was a motorcycle parked and several misc. tables and chairs were scattered about. The facility at Scottadito Osteria Toscano was much newer, and presentable. There is a wine cellar which could comfortably accommodate 15-20 persons in a more intimate setting. I think this would be preferable acoustically to the upstairs dining area, as I noticed it was somewhat live with the stone floors. Of course, I have not experience with the food at either. I found the Scottadito Osteria at Savethedate.com. It fits the proposed budget.

Is anybody familiar with Scottadito Osteria Toscano @ 788A Union Street between 6th & 7th in Park Slope? Tuscan cuisine . . .

Thanks for the info, H. du Bois!

More details just in. It will be a Saturday, lunchtime reception/meal. I think this knocks out Tempo, Stone Park, Applewood . . .

Details to add: $50 per person including wine. Fancy Chinese is also an option.

I would like any advice on a restaurant for a post wedding lunch in the Park Slope Area (or thereabouts). I expect between 12 to fifteen will constitute the party: probably nice French, New American, or Italian. The wedding will be in mid August near the Brooklyn Museum/BBG. Sorry to be vague, but the details are gradually materializing, and I really don’t know the area that well.

I asked around at Union Square Green Market, and I was told that they were not in season yet. They said later in June, or even July they would be available.

Hmmmmmm . . .

These are all great leads. Thanks, Raji. I tried Kalustyans, but they did not carry it. The owner seemed to be really irritated that I asked for something he didn't have.