juuceman

are you talking about the cinder block building structure going up nearby?? if so, i think that's the new artwork for the summertime.

thanks so much for this tip.. spent a few weeks along the Oaxaca coast and we shot up into the city for a long weekend in mid-January.. came across your post from the internet spot on the Zocalo and made a beeline straight for Casa Olivo.. the ham was wonderful and while i don't recall what else we ate, all the food was great.. Oaxaca is a bit odd in that there's great low brow eating at the taco and torta shops and some of the basic commedores and then there's a relatively new influx of gussied up Oaxacan classics that don't quite do it for me.. Casa Olivo, while definitely being aimed at the tourist/expat community, doesn't have the same odd feeling that we found at any of the other swanky places in town.. it's casual but the food is great.. thanks again for this great tip..

Jim Dixon has the recipe on his website Real Good Food and is generally given credit for bringing this to egullet..

ate here last month.. full all night, but an interesting crowd.. we had an early reservation (7:30) and the place was filled with a good amount of families and possibly out of towners in larger groups.. we left around 9:30 and the bar/lounge of the restaurant was packed with a younger crowd, more groups of girls out for the night, dates, etc.

i'd called last week and they told me a ConEd snafu were keeping them closed until 2/15/05 they have a machine now that informs you that they'll open soon.. i'll swing by tonight and see what the deal is..

how'd it do?? did you get broth from Minca?? if you appreciate thr thicker brother that Minca makes, i think the winner is an easy call for me..

http://www.nypost.com/news/regionalnews/39829.htm this could be a problem..

the lobster roll was fine.. it doesn't compare to Mary's or Pearl, both of whose offerings are more rustic and a bit looser, with more mayo to them.. i didn't love the chopped chives topping the lobster roll but it wasn't the sole purpose for BLT fish's existence, as opposed to what the lobster roll has come to mean to Mary's and Pearl.. the raw bar is great.. none of the oysters were four bucks the night i was there.. all right around two bucks each.. and people were ordering huge platters of stuff, so i think they'll turn over just fine.. the stone crab claws came with a mayo based sauce different from the classic preparation, which i sort of missed.. due to a snafu in the kitchen, we wound up with two different servings of the clam chowder at different points during the meal.. both were great, thin, full of chunks of bacon and a good amount of the namesake clams..

spotted the three most common varities- Mushroom, Potato, and Tomato Sauce at the Chelsea Whole Foods Bakery on Sunday.. they also have the Pizza Bianca..

if you're talking about the branch on Chambers Street like i think you are, they do usually have at least the potato pizza, and sometimes they have the zuchinni pizza as well, which i enjoy, along with the mushroom..

hit it friday night with a bunch of friends.. we were eleven and managed to make it through most of the barbecue on offer.. it was crowded but there didn't appear to be much of a wait when we got there around 10:30.. i'll reiterate that the chicken is great.. the ribs were as well.. they definitely have the steak.. a bit fatty for me, definitely not the reason to go.. they might have had Prime Rib.. can't quite recall.. i'm a big fan of the Genny Cream Ale cans..

i've had the boulibase there and enjoyed it immensely.. lot of fish, including some huge crab legs..

they've had a few chefs in there over the past few years.. early on there was a woman in there, don't remember her name offhand, but i believe she was the chef at il buco before lavagna?? that's going back a few years though.. i haven't detected much of a change in the quality.. they've maintainted most of the front of house staff, and as long as the sublime rigatoni with fennel sausage, peas and cream remains on the menu, i'll long continue to patronize it.. without a doubt, my favorite east village italian.. it just all comes together for me.. it's crowded without being obnoxious about it.. the staff is genuinly thrilled that you've chosen to eat with them, as opposed to the bitchiness i've encountered when showing up at other east village italian spots that have been coasting by with crowds for years.. the room is warm and for some reason they manage to make me feel like they're there to make me happy, as opposed to the pack 'em in, slop it out, get 'em out attitude that's all too prevalent at this price point.. the food is great.. although i generally stick with the pastas these days, having tried most of the menu on repeated visits, i've yet to have a dud.. and those artichokes.. oh man..

the food isn't the reason to go to Zihua.. that said, we ate at Kau Kan and thoroughly enjoyed the view and the food.. best meal we had while we were in Zihua proper.. all the places on the beach are decent but there's nothing earth shattering there.. they all offer variations on grilled fresh fish.. in the mexican style they overcook pretty much everything.. villa del sol was fine for appetizers and drinks.. we did their beach barbecue one night, which was decent, but far from worth the money.. there IS an older egullet thread on Zihua restaurants.. the best food we had was in Troconnes.. about a 45 minute drive from the Catalina is this tiny little town right on the Pacific with a couple of small inns.. one of them, the Inn at Manzanillo Bay, has a chef from the California Culinary Institute cooking up the fresh catch and it was amazing.. best fish tacos, shrimp tacos, grilled mahi mahi, etc. i've yet had.. served up next to the beach, on the sand, but a world away from any of the Zihua hangouts..

when I called Citarella to order my Thanksgiving bird yesterday (we order an 18-20 pounder free range) they told me there's a problem getting larger birds this year, and that they can't guarantee anything over 18, and that even those might be hard to come by.. something weather related.. anyone hear anything about this??

my understanding is that it's a joint effort between Anita and Kenny Lao, from the Myriad Restaurant group.. according to Andrea Strong the menu will include "Classic Pork and Chinese Chives with Soy Vinegar and Sesame Seed Sauce, Chicken and Thai Basil with Lemongrass and Peanut Sauce, and Shrimp with Wasabi and Wasabi Miso Sauce".. the last time i wandered by, the place was still under construction.. i can't wait for a dumpling place to open in my 'hood though.. -j

this isn't one of the taco trucks that used to camp out there on the weekends was it?? as far as i know (i've stopped by about once a month) they've been gone for a solid 8-10 months now..

gray was on last night.. we arrived just before nine for our reservation and were seated at a four top immediately.. i was a bit disappointed as i'd asked for a reservation for four and been told they could only accomodate two of us, but this was the only downside to the evening.. they offer a selection of house cocktails, nothing earth shattering, but a nice way to begin the meal.. their draft beer is not yet available.. service was great throughout the meal.. the waiter, without hovering, was around throughout the meal.. a few management type people stopped by throughout the meal to check in with us and make sure everything was ok.. service was seamless throughout in an effortless kind of way.. unlike per se, where the formality of the service is part of what they're selling, here it was comfortable and polished without any attitude.. dishes were delivered and removed without any disruption of conversation or intrusion whatsoever.. explanations of the full menu were offered.. wine service was fine- they matched glasses for us, since our odd order really didn't allow for a bottle to work through the meal.. the room is out of whack with current ny design trends.. it felt like a nyc incarnation of LA in the 80's.. lots of mirrors and just odd surfaces.. i was comfortable and enjoyed it fully though.. the food was amazing.. nothing was less than exquisite, whether a specialty or a regular menu item.. while the meal is an amazing value (on top of which they comped us both wine and a fourth dessert) it's not the $65 that i've seen it priced out at a few times.. the bar was full throughout the meal.. we were definitely the youngest people in the dining room, but the bar was filled with a solid mid-20's crowd.. people were being turned away from eating in the dining room throughout the evening, with seating being offered in the bar area tables for walk ins.. a table of three sat down for dinner after 11 p.m. and there was no mention made of anything being unavailable, or otherwise indicating any stations had been closed as yet.. as we left i made another reservation in two weeks..

he can be found eating at the Knickerbocker over on University every now and then.. a bunch of local celebs seem to like it, low key atmosphere, eat at the bar and chat with the neighbors.. decent steak if you're not in the mood to head to a full on steakhouse.. Cedar Tavern draws in it's fair share of celebs.. old world nyc type of place where you can have a casual drink or so.. Tao always draws in hip-hop stars as well.. Jay-Z and Beyonce frequent it upon returning from out of town.. at night, you can usually find a bunch of models, movie stars, etc. over in the MePa bars.. same goes with the clubs- Avalon and Marquee are two of the big ones..

was the female bartender there?? the one that's a complete bitch, every time i go??

might i direct you over to the 22 pages we currently have on Per Se?? The pre-opening hoopla there was out of hand.. that said, i called grey several months ago and asked to be placed on their waiting list for when they start taking reservations.. i've yet to receive a call..

i've eaten at both.. forbidden city was a while ago.. the chefs or owners (or both??) are ex-Blue Ribbon guys, for what it's worth.. the food was pretty good, although the pricing was a bit out of line with other options and i haven't been back since.. i remember a decent selection of dumplings as well as the ubiquitous black miso cod, etc.. solid decent food, good for apps on a night out but not really a destination in and of itself.. kasadela is the new itzayaka (sp??) place in the east vill.. been twice in the past few weeks.. nice saki selection, with two or three natural or live yeast varieties.. the prices are extremely reasonable, we're talking $50 for two- all in for five or six apps and a carafe or two of saki.. it's getting a lot of press on chowhound, but check it out for the grilled chicken skins, the seared beef tataki salad, the age dashi tofu, tuna tartare with taro chips, and whatever else appeals to you.. minca seems to have fallen off slightly lately.. the meats and broth have both been a little too fatty, resulting in an unattractive pile next to my bowl by the end of the meal.. i still love their gyoza though..

I think that before it closed six months ago, Salon Mexico was the highlight of upscale mexican food in the city.. Alan Kaplan, the chef and owner of the place put his heart and soul into it.. Grimes reviewed it in December of 2002, linked below.. Kaplan sent out a newsletter a few months ago saying he was planning on reopening somewhere else soon.. i'll be there.. NYT Salon Mexico Review

ate here for the first time last night.. it was sublime.. we arrived just before nine, a few minutes late for our reservation.. the restaurant was 90% full, and it remained rather full until about elevenish.. we were the last two out, around 11:30, but were never rushed or made to feel uncomfortable.. the one single thing that made me happiest was the presence of two young children with their parents at the table next to us when we arrived.. we're not talking buttoned up prep school brats.. they were just finishing up dinner, and left within five minutes of our arrival, but they were fully entertained in drawing on the white paper that covers the tables.. the entire staff seemed to enjoy interacting with the family of four.. they'd left the tables on either side empty and no one seemed to mind the kids, whatsoever.. anyway.. the waitress dropped by and informed us that we could see the menu, although since we'd expressed interest in doing the tasting menu when making the reservation, the chef was offering to prepare a chef's 'suprise' tasting menu as opposed to the normal tasting menu.. we took up the offer without hesitation.. they opened up with a shot of cold watermelon soup.. it was nice and light, and perfectly clear.. moved on to a canape of goat cheese whipped with chives and a walnut.. followed almost immediately by a similar canape of testa, which was excellent, with a light drizzle of truffle oil over it.. on to an heirloom tomato salad with a tomato sorbet on top.. nice mix of red, yellow and green tomatoes, with the skin removed from the large chunks and halved grape tomatoes mixed in.. one last intermezzo of a warm corn chowder with a fried green vegetable gyoza on the side.. delicious.. i love corn chowder and this was a nice smooth version with a cool little foam in a macchiato cup.. a nice small piece of red snapper on sauteed greens and artichoke hearts with an uni and basil sauce was nice.. the fish was cooked very rare, to the point of being sushi raw in the center, but it was a nice firm piece of fish and i was pretty happy with it.. the highlight of the meal was the Berkshire pork dish.. a few slices of lean meat with one nice piece of crispy fat covered meat topping it off.. the first dessert course was a nice pile of tart berries with a champagne sabayon sauce, the presentation of which was beautiful.. the dish came out with a glass ring filled with berries surrounded by a champagne sabayon.. she removed the ring, the berries flowed over the sabayon, and bliss was there.. the tartness of the berries and the smooth creaminess of the sabayon went together amazingly well.. finished up with the heavenly raspberry souffle, with a nice little asian soup spoon of pistachio ice cream on the side.. some nice truffles came out with the coffee.. not big into wine, so after a round of cocktails the waitress matched a glass of white around the corn chowder and fish and a light red with the pork.. service was great, comfortable but polished.. i thought the value to be outstanding, considering the quantity of food, the quality of it and the service, and the amazingly reasonable cost.. based on a single visit to each, i'd rather hit this place four times than per se once, for the same price.. -j

new offerings- the triple shack.. a double shack burger with a shroom burger in the middle.. carmel milkshakes.. enjoy..