tupac17616

First of all, this is a completely un-food-related suggestion....but I tend to find it quite peaceful just to walk around NYC, Central Park perhaps, either with a friend or alone, and just enjoy the beauty of springtime in New York. And hey, if you just happen to run into any necessary food stops along the way, even better For me, nothing says comfort like pasta, and no place does pasta like Babbo . But, hey, if you want something to do in the kitchen for a few hours, why not make your own pasta? I've always found that to be a fun and relaxing (and tasty!) experience. And why not top it all off with a nice pumpkin pie for dessert. You are a Pumpkin Lover, are you not?

Tough choice between those two. Both were so good. For me, though, the winner would have to be the saffron panna cotta.

A few places where I've had very good pasta dishes: Babbo Felidia Union Square Cafe Via Emilia Crispo Max Soha

Good call

Tipping is an interesting subject for me. While I agree with the above poster that there is no such thing as over-tipping, I also believe the converse has some relevance, too --- there is no such thing as undertipping. That's the policy I try to stick to, at least. I think it is ridiculous to say "I always tip XX%". If the service is good, I tip well. If the service is terrible, I do not tip well. Namely, I think the quality of the service (not the food, by the way!) should be reflected in the amount/percentage of the tip. To me, the service is such an important part of the experience of eating in a restaurant. That being the case, I understand service is variable from place to place, meal to meal, waitperson to waitperson. And that variation means that sticking to a certain percentage simply doesn't work for me. Also, I cannot stand it when a waiter/waitress illustrates a strong sense of entitlement to receive a certain tip regardless of whether or not they make any effort to do their job. Providing service to the customer is their job, and if they do not do their job, I don't think they should feel entitled to be paid for it. Plain and simple. While I have never worked in the food business, I have worked. I don't see anything special about the food business that should set it apart from any other kind of business. For a person to be entitled to be paid, I think they ought to be doing their job. For me, it's that simple.

We chose not to do the wine pairings. I do not drink at all. I simply don't like the taste of alcohol (and I'm 20 years old, so it's technically illegal anyway ). Actually, I never drink anything besides water. Ever. Not to mention I have no problems going through a multi-course meal on just one or two glasses of water. Yes, I am weird, but that is beside the point. While my uncle does enjoy wine, he was not in the mood for it tonight. And I am pretty sure my aunt does not drink either. Wish I could help you out a little in figuring out the best-value wine option for Babbo. But I'm sure some of the other friendly eGullet-ers will chime in soon. I can tell you one thing, though. At $59, the food cost of the tasting menu is a great value in my opinion. And I definitely share your paranoia about the $100 per person thing. That is one threshold I have yet to pass in my dining adventures so far.

Just got back from dinner tonight at Babbo. I went for the first time last May, and was very anxious to go back. We opted for the pasta tasting menu, and all three of us definitely were not disappointed in the least. Here's a quick run-down of what we had: Black Tagliatelle with Parsnips and Pancetta Mmm..pancetta What more need I say? Great start to a great meal. "Casunzei" with Poppy Seeds These were ravioli filled with roasted yellow beets, potato, and fresh ricotta cheese. Finished with butter, poppy seeds, fresh grated smoked ricotta salata and parsley. Very subtle flavor. The potato filling reminded me of pierogies. Garganelli with "Funghi Trifolati" Perfectly cooked pasta. Wonderfully earthy mushrooms (not sure what kind). Simple, but very tasty. Marco's Pyramids with Passato di Pomodoro Pyramid-shaped pasta stuffed with braised beef and finished with tomato sauce. Finished with freshly grated pecorino romano. We all thought this dish was among the best of the five pasta dishes. Pappardelle Bolognese Absolutely wonderful. The flavor of the ground pork and veal was great. Perfectly cooked pasta. I was anxious to have this dish, as I had made the exact same dish (from the Babbo cookbook) only a week ago. Turns out my home-made version compared quite well to the restaurant's version, although my homemade pasta pales in comparison to Babbo's in terms of its light texture. Oh well, practice, practice. Mozzarella "Fatto in Casa" with Cara Cara Oranges and Da Vero Another great combination of simple flavors, with the olive oil, cheese, and orange all combining beautifully. Loved every bite. The salt sprinkled on the dish heightened each of the individual flavors very well. For dessert, saffron panna cotta was the dessert printed on the tasting menu, but to our surprise they brought out two other desserts for us to try as well, a different dessert for each of us, so we could all share and sample some different desserts. Saffron Panna Cotta with Vanilla-Scented Mango and Mango Sorbetto This is the dessert that is supposed to come with the pasta tasting menu. Wow. What can I say? It was unanimously the best dish of the night. And considering all of the wonderful pastas, that statement says a lot. Wonderful texture. The subtly flavored panna cotta paired perfectly with the finely diced mango and mango sorbet. We were fighting over the last few bites of this one. Pistachio and Chocolate Semifreddo This dessert was also quite good. My aunt does not like pistachio, so she only had a very small bite of this. (Good, more for me and my uncle ). Seriously, though, this was very tasty. Almost like an ice cream sandwich. I'm not a big fan of chocolate normally, but I thought the flavor complemented the pistachio gelato quite well. Yet another cleaned plate. Almond Sbrisolona Crumbly Almond Cake with Espresso Gelato and Amarene Cherries This was decent, I guess. Definitely the most forgettable dish of the night. The cake was dry, but its flavor was pretty good. The cherries were good. And the espresso gelato was the only thing that got left on the plate, as espresso is a flavor which both my companions and I hate for whatever reason. Oh well. Hard to complain when everything else was so good. And I definitely appreciate them allowing us to try this dish and the other dessert which were not on the tasting menu. Overall, great meal, great company. I was treated to a meal at my favorite restaurant with some of my favorite people. What more can you ask for?

Safron Panna Cotta with Vanilla-scented Mango and Mango Sorbetto

My mom's solution to the common cold has often been to force me to drink the following: 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper juice of one lemon 1/4 tsp honey Tastes so bad you can't help but get better!

Yep, sounds to me like I just had some bad luck. My recollection of the crust as being "crunchy" is probably my brain's way of trying to erase the memory of eating burnt pizza

Funny, I tried Mas for the first time a few weeks ago, and came away with exactly the same impression of it that you did. The food was not bad, but not outstanding. The portions are indeed ridiculously small. I, too, am all about quality over quantity, but I do not enjoy leaving a restaurant hungry after having an appetizer and a main course. I am glad that I tried it once, but I definitely won't be back unless someone else is paying. For my money, there are many many other places at this price point which blow Mas out of the water.

Sure thing, Pan. I, too, am a thin crust fan. And for me, the pliability is the key. I do not like thin and crunchy (or thick and crunchy for that matter). I want the slice to be thin and fold-able, like the pies from, say, Patsy's in East Harlem, or Grimaldi's, for example. From that I remember of the slices I had last year at Full Moon, they were both too thick for my taste and too crunchy (which was probably just a result of the fact that the pie from which they came was not fresh out of the oven, so the slices needed to be re-heated for a few minutes in the oven). The crust had a solid crack when folded, and that is something I do not like. For me, there is a difference between a crisp crust (which I like) and a crunchy crust (which I do not), and from what I remember, these two slices were crunchy. For all I know, Full Moon may turn out excellent slices on a pretty consistent basis. But from what I remember from when I went, I will most likely not give them a second shot, (1) because I very rarely have occasion to be in the Bronx and (2) because there are still many other pizza places I would love to try all around NYC. Does that answer your question?

Dinner: Grilled salmon, some corn, peas, zucchini, yellow squash, baked sweet potato, a bagel, some herb orzo with feta cheese, some green beans, and marinated chickpeas Dessert: Chocolate chip waffle with vanilla ice cream, chocolate sprinkles, rainbow sprinkles, M&M's, Reese's Pieces, walnuts, mini chocolate chips, sliced strawberries, cherries, fresh whipped cream, and hot fudge sauce. Needless to say, I am pretty stuffed right now. Just another crazy dining hall meal at my school...

Chocolate chip waffle with vanilla ice cream, chocolate sprinkles, rainbow sprinkles, M&M's, Reese's Pieces, walnuts, mini chocolate chips, sliced strawberries, cherries, fresh whipped cream, and hot fudge sauce This was my dessert tonight, and oh, what a dessert it was...from my school's dining hall, no less. Gotta love that place sometimes

I remember trying that place some time last year. I was not such a fan of the pizza. I seem to remember their crust being too crisp and crunchy for my taste. But that doesn't quite match up with your description of their slice, so maybe I am remembering wrong, who knows. But I do remember the day was not a total loss, as I was consoled by the lobster tail I picked up afterwards from the little bakery about half a block west on the same side of 187th as Full Moon....hmm, can't remember the name. What was it??? That place was good.

I haven't yet had the opportunity to try too many cuban sandwiches here in NYC (although I definitely some in the near future ), but FWIW, I had a bbq pulled pork cuban sandwich at Dinosaur BBQ last week that was quite tasty. Also, a few months ago, tried the cubano at La Rosita on Broadway around 107th, that was pretty good, too. I don't have much experience eating cubano sandwiches, but these are two places I would definitely order a cubano again.

I'll leave the arguments for whether or not these are the "best" to others, but here are several NYC ice cream places I've enjoyed: Otto Il Laboratorio del Gelato Cones Australian Homemade Ice Cream Brooklyn Ice Cream Factory Eddie's Sweet Shop (Queens) Mary's Dairy Chinatown Ice Cream Factory Ciao Bella Shake Shack (frozen custard)

Sounds good to me, Pan. My vote goes to Franny's. They are definitely tops on my list of places that I still need to try. I've also heard good things about Fornino, which I have not tried either. Of course, I'd be open to other suggestions also. Come to think of it, I haven't had pizza in a while. Tragedy

Pecan Pie. Definitely pecan pie.

Licorice, tabasco sauce, American cheese

I, too, enjoyed the Fromage Blanc cheesecake at ChikaLicious. The texture was so light, and the flavor was great. Also, when I ate at Blue Hill a few weeks ago, they had Fromage Blanc souffle on the dessert menu. If that dessert is anything like the rest of their food, there's no doubt in my mind it would be quite tasty. Sorry these two recommendations are not specifically what you are looking for, but they may offer a nice tasty diversion while your search for the cheese continues.

I am definitely in agreement with you on this point. Once a dish passes up the $35 mark, it had better be very good if not great. Otherwise, I'd be quite disappointed with the money I'd spent, knowing I could have had a better food for the money at about 1,000 other places in this great city. Any place that makes me leave with that kind of disappointed feeling is definitely not a restauratnt I would be willing to try again. **Cough Cough** Such as the ridiculously mediocre $36 braised pork entree at Mas **Cough Cough** Excuse me. Had to clear my throat.

I don't drain either. Just cook up some spicy sausage or chorizo depending on my mood, drop it in the crockpot with the velveeta, and let it all come together. The quintessential Texas "recipe", if you could call it that

Great suggestion. I love that place. I need to get back there soon, too.

Hmmm, its a toss-up for me between Blueberry Morning and Special K Red Berry.