Nathan

yup...just found that...should have realized it. thanks! going Monday.

I didn't realize you could make reservations for the Cafe.

I've noticed that EVERYONE knows about Ko. heh, several times I've mentioned Momofuku Ssam Bar and the person I was talking to would immediately think I was talking about Ko. but people are getting in. several non-food board people I know have all gone in the past couple weeks.

oh this looks cool. I'm in.

I wonder about Adour.

do they serve that tasting menu to solo diners at the bar?

This opened a couple months ago in NoLIta...the old Rialto space I think. It was marketed as a cocktails and small plates place...with Psaltis purportedly consulting on the menu. pretty space. they're using the garden well. cocktail list....not so good...lots of vodka and even drinks that looked interesting were way too sweet. bartenders were pleasant. prices were very low by contemporary standards. for some reason a cheeseburger is just about the most expensive thing on the menu. portions are huge....some of the small plates would be mains at other restaurants. we were on a small plates rotation between Elizabeth and the Monday Room so we shared two "small" plates and one large. beef tartare was quite good. this is a chunky version...with horseradish cream (mild but very good) and a quail egg. to be spread on grilled bread. one of the better tartares around. is it as good as the definitive tartare at Robuchon? no. but it's $12, not $45. watermelon and feta salad (with olives) just wasn't very interesting. a main (also $12!?!) of pappardelle with morels and vermouth cream was quite good. the vermouth cream was sharp but not at all unpleasant. lots of stock too I think...and lots of morels. this dish was huge. the place was jampacked. clientele was 80% female, literally.

this time the eel was perfect. there's a good scallop dish with little chunks of pancetta/belly (the scallop could be cooked slightly less...but that's a personal preference)...the sauce would be overly sweet if it wasn't cut perfectly by the white they paired. interesting venison carpaccio. this food really is about the wine...it doesn't make sense to eat it without getting almost every course paired.

besides Perry Street, consider Gotham Bar & Grill and Momofuku Noodle Bar.

that pea sformato is much more subtle and less earthy than the norm for Babbo dishes. it's also terrific. the pigs foot Milanese was too greasy, dry and tasting too much of breading. pastas are as good as ever.

oh my. obviously none of this should have happened. fwiw, I can't imagine not using one's fingers when eating that duck, there's no other way to do it.

Bruni has given POOR twice before: Ninja (October 2005) and Harry Cipriani (November 2007). I think both of those were actually more scathing than this one. ← yup

it's fantastic. if memory serves, they were also serving it last fall at PDT.

I'm a fan of Broome but I'm no coinesseur

Absinthe in San Francisco does the lovely Choke Artist as well....utilizing Cynar, sherry and tequila...

I believe that Lynette of Elatteria came there from Franny's (and might still tend there as well?)....it definitely qualifies as one of the restaurants with a legitimate cocktail program (a discussion worthy of a thread of its own I think). I will say that Franny's is about as much a pizza restaurant as Momofuku Noodle Bar is a ramen restaurant (though the pizza at Franny's is probably better for its genre than the ramen at Noodle Bar).

I'll agree that Arturo's is not in SoHo because which side of Houston you are on is in fact the division. it is adjacent to SoHo. also gratified to see others supporting my contention that the WV begins at 6th Ave (this also has the benefit of consistency with the boundaries of Chelsea)

I finally braved the wilds of Park Slope and made it here. yeah, it's really really good. you know what this place is? it's Lupa...with pizza instead of the secondi (very good pizza btw). excellent seasonal ingredients simply dressed and excellent salumi. (the house-cured pancetta crostino was really great). the cocktail list is one of the better restaurant lists around.

newish GV Thai-Malaysian place (I think it's the same owners as Penang). I'd heard good things from people I trust, asserting that it's better than Pam Real or Wondee Siam. It might just be. not in the league of Sripaphai but then nothing here is. some dishes even had genuinely assertive spicing. and the larb gai was very well balanced. the pork moo-na-rock was awesome. menu here: http://www.rhong-tiam.com/menu/laguardia.pdf

Yes, but the statements "the kitchen had no clue how to use proteins" and "seafood [was] often good" are simply inconsistent with one another. ← here's what I noticed. they couldn't cook meat. raw seafood dishes (usually with citrus) were good.

right. I went twice shortly after it opened. I stand by my assessment of the restaurant as it was then. it wasn't like I heard enough great things after that to cause me to give it another chance.

nada. nothing like a Momofuku. TR was essentially a cross between Savoy, Blue Hill and a vegetarian restaurant; along with an interesting wine list. the problem was the kitchen had no clue how to use proteins and the constantly changing menu was more ambitious than they could handle. and the prices were those of a superior restaurant. great ingredients, but they needed a chef. (the veggies and seafood were often good) edit: as for the neighborhood, it was a relative newcomer (Public and Cafe Leibowitz cum Bar Marche had already raised the bar somewhat on Elizabeth Street) and there's still plenty of room for more good restaurants in NoLIta...Savoy is also in the hood but I doubt that older mainstay killed TR.

Don't think I hadn't thought of that! I'm just not sure my increasingly middle-aged digestive system can take it. We'll definitely try to sqeeze Ssam in sometime, even if it means delaying our departure so we can have an early dinner Sunday. ← capital idea!

ten is a perfectly normal eating time in this town...especially on the weekend. GT does trend a little older and touristy so that won't be as true of it (as BryanZ noted)...but it won't be dead by any means. furthermore, I'd show up at 9:30...tell them you're there early and getting a drink at the bar....there's always a decent chance that a table comes available early.

another comment: Lupa usually has a pork shoulder dish...but the preparation changes regularly. if they're doing the one with Apulian honey....well, I think it's fantastic. somehow avoids being cloying. last time I had it, I thought the ricotta gnocchi was the best gnocchi in NY.