Nathan

ah...thanks. that does indeed. it is now on my radar

Babbo is probably more consistent than Del Posto. Del Posto is certainly more of a "fine dining" experience. you can compare menus here: http://www.babbonyc.com/menu2.html http://www.delposto.com/dinner_menu.htm but I like your top three picks as they stand.

Thanks for this. It wasn't on my radar. However, it's at the same price point (or a little more expensive) as Lupa and not that much cheaper than Babbo. http://www.menupages.com/restaurantdetails...d=0&cuisineid=0 http://www.luparestaurant.com/menu-NEW.html http://www.babbonyc.com/menu2.html

Thanks to the cabaret laws combined with the general NY aversion to the slightest risk of looking foolish, there's not much of a dance scene here I'm afraid. And what there is is primarily populated by 20-somethings (and younger) from the surrounding region. Especially on the weekend....and even more especially on Saturday. Cielo is probably your best pick. It's also going to be very difficult to get into as it is a very small venue. More on the general club scene here can be found here: http://nymag.com/news/features/27845/

one other thought: it receives no love here, but people who's opinions I respect have raved about the tasting menu at Del Posto. I also completely forgot about Atelier Robuchon. I'd make that my third pick. I went ala carte but the tasting menu looks like an excellent survey of the menu.

excluding those two, you should probably consider: 1. Masa. I have not been. But it's rep certainly precedes it. 2. hmmm.... WD-50. tasting menu. 3. maybe EMP? maybe Esca? maybe LB or Daniel?

the DM bbq cart is still around

I don't think much of Platt...but I thought this review was accurate.

The "buzz" appears to reflect two factors: a. a somewhat innovative menu format. b. it's a decent restaurant in the culinary black hole of the UWS.

in a nutshell, UK residents are under the personal jurisdiction of the UK. I doubt that UK law would grant "protection" of American law to a UK resident. a U.S. citizen posting potentially defamatory information on a U.S. server may be able to escape liability (i.e. the U.S. may not accept a UK judgment)....assuming he/she did not have assets in the UK. the classic example of this is the Yahoo/France suit. Yahoo auctions include some items which are illegal to sell in France (antique Nazi stuff). A French court rendered a criminal judgment against Yahoo (physically located in the U.S.). citing the First Amendment, U.S. courts refused to enforce the French judgment. however, a French resident selling items on Yahoo auctions would not have been able to plead the protection of American law in a French court. put differently, books which are embargoed under UK law are often published in the U.S. FG: I think (no one quote me please) that the mens rea requirements are different under UK law for defamation....especially dealing with public figures.

here's a good summary: http://nymag.com/news/features/27845/

This is good news. Robins is seriously talented ... he won't be looking long for a job...and hopefully the next concept will use his talents better.

one quick note on the champagne glass prices. when I was there, it was a list of "grower" champagnes (the cheapest was $21 I think)....if that's still the case, I don't know that they could serve a glass for cheaper. But since this specific complaint has come up a number of times now...it may make sense for them to add a $12 glass of some major house NV.

Do you realise how restaurants may suffer when you cancel 3 of those dinners An absolutly discusting thing to do in my opinion Ok the larger restaurant may fill your cancellation no problem, but smaller independent ones may struggle ← Though I agree with this in principle...all of these restaurants do a massive amount of business and all of them have many walk-in customers hoping for a table. But I agree with your general point.

I've noticed that you and some people on Chowhound call the restaurant "Sriphithai." Why is that? ← cause I'm misspelling it. (not tendentiously)

Kittichai is parsecs above the others. Its the only one I would actually recommend going to. Spice Market might be your second best bet...but it's very inconsistent...it's possible to have a good meal..but don't count on it. Buddha Bar is ok....about the same level as Morimoto (discounting the omakase at Morimoto which I haven't tried). Asia de Cuba's best days were long ago....

I fourth the above. go cheap on breakfast and dinner. spend your per diem on lunch....expecting to go out of pocket if necessary on breakfast and dinner (but by doing bagels and Chinatown you can get by for like $10). I can't believe they won't cover wine with dinner though (at least up to the limit)...that's bizarre....its not like you're asking them to cover your bar tab.

a report on Will and Wylie's recent Milan excursion can be found here: http://www.latimes.com/features/food/la-fo...1,4414096.story

George, We might have some trans-Atlantic differences here. The Last Word has been redundant in American cocktilian bars over the last few years...not as much as the Aviation...but redundant nonetheless. As for the Widow's Kiss...it shows up on virtually every list of Chartreuse-containing drinks that I've seen. a damn fine drink too. the Vieux Carre and De La Louisiane are New Orleans classics. Its more than possible that they did not cross the Atlantic much. Neither were they commonly made in New York to the best of my knowledge. But they were standard in New Orleans...which makes them classics in my view. edit: as I noted up the thread, I can vouch for at least 13 of those drinks as being of "old" origin...(14 if the Dr. Blinker is the Blinker). I would be surprised if the other 6-7 are of recent provenance.

fair enough...that's what I was curious about. I knew it was an S&W restaurant so I didn't know how different the food really was.

I recognize the following as classic: Deshler. De la Louisiane. East India Cocktail* Last Word*. Obituary Vieux Carré*. Widow’s Kiss I believe the "Straits Sling" was developed by Dr. Cocktail as a variation on the Singapore Sling. The Liberal, Metropole, Opera, Old Pal and Rose are old...but I don't think they're made much. The Widow's Kiss and Last Word are unquestionably classics. I have recipes for all of these at home....and can give you those tomorrow. offhand, the Widow's Kiss is: 2 parts Calvados 1 part Benedictine 1 part Chartreuse Angostura I'm guessing a little googling would find you all the others as well.

jsmeeker is correct. it began in nightclubs sometime in the 80's or 90's...in either Paris or Miami (the accounts differ). basically, clubs have a bunch of tables in a restricted area (only people who rent tables can go into that area). you rent a table by purchasing a bottle of say Absolut for $300 or the like. this guarantees that you and your guests will get into the club. its just a way for them to generate income. it has nothing whatsoever to do with wine or a normal restaurant.

defamation (slander and libel) jurisprudence is far more liberal under UK law (which I imagine applies in northern Ireland)...than under American law. in other words, it is far easier to bring such a suit...and win...under UK law. UK law is weighted in favor of protecting individual reputation over free speech while U.S. law is weighted in favor of free speech. Canada generally follows the UK lead while India and Australia have lately moved in the U.S. direction. nevertheless, veracity and fair comment are defenses under UK law. according to the link, this was a jury verdict. what I don't know is at what stage in a UK court proceeding that veracity and fair comment defenses are considered for purposes of summary judgment etc. it may be that this is saved for appeal. hopefully a UK barrister will comment on this thread and explain this for us.

Well, there is an existing (if old) review for Smith & Wollensky. edit: I've been curious about it though. AvroK can generally do no wrong when it comes to decor...is the menu radically different as well?

It seems more like pizza. ← That seems about right. We agree. btw, interesting stuff on this link here: http://www.everything2.com/index.pl?node_id=53941