cru

totally respect that request and agree. However, I should have noted that I'm travelling to Paris on a culinary adventure, towing along restaurant workers, as well as my parents. I respect the society's opinion and wanted to tap these respectable resources as there are plenty. Now back to eating....

Please help me find a great hotel in the Bastille area for my parents. It's their first trip to Paris and I want to make them extremely comfortable. Anywhere near Bastille or Place des Vosges only please. And under $180. Nothing corporate. Any help extremely appreciated.

felice thanks for the great response. i agree about Astier, I wanted to show him something "typical". Do you know of a better place that would be very traditional? Would love to know.

based on your Clash avatar I'm going to guess your pretty cool and we might, perhaps, share some of the same sensibilites. New York is less interesting now than it used to be and you could go home very disappointed. So let's keep this whole thing downtown and steer clear of celebrity chefs. My strong opinion: Expensive Meal: WD 50. But really splurge, do it right... let Dewey choose your wines and food. Cheaper meal: 360. Best inexpensive restaurant in New York. Go on a thurs, fri, or saturday. call Jorge for a reservation and tell him "cru" from egullet sent you. you will get looked after. the place is phenomenal. if you like wine, this place is a cant miss, and the fresh, local ingrediants produce a French experience you'd be pressed to find in Paris. Call a car service, they will call one for your return. don't be put off by the trek, it's half the fun... 360 Van Brunt, Red Hook, Brooklyn. Real New York: Katz's. Take your ticket. Go straight to the pastrami counter. ask for 2 pastramis on rye. have your wife go down the line for soda's and beer. put a couple of dollars in the tip jar and MAKE SURE THE GUY BEHIND THE COUNTER SEES THIS, he'll hook you up. Whatever you do, don't get waiter service. that's for novices. bon appetit.

I'm taking a young very talented chef to Paris next month and want him to experience the best of Parisian dining. Classic and Modern. I'm already going to Chateaubriand, Astier, Bistro Paul Bert, D' Chez Eux, and Chez Michel. We're also hitting several breezy little wine bars like La Verre Voule and Cremerie Caves Miard.Let me know if you feel strongly against any of my choices or strongly about 1 I may have left out. thank you in advance.

Pirate: This probably merits a whole new thread, but whether you go to a starred-place or your neighborhood dive and the choices on the "menu" are an egg or salad with goat cheese for firsts; and baked salmon or farm-raised chicken for mains - and two scoops of ice cream or creme brulee for dessert - do we really have a realistic chance of testing the chef/kitchen/establishment (as Bux, his always sage-self says)? I might say the same holds true in the old US of A on Restaurant week(s) in NYC, sauf Danny Meyer, whom member Paga steers me to. ← Let me rephrase the posting> where can I get an exceptional lunch for under 80euro in Paris. I'm reserving my evenings for bistros but want to sample some haute cuisine for lunch.

I need a place to splurge. Not as modern as L'Atleier de Joel Robuchon and not as classic as Grand Vefour..... Suggestions? Who has the cheapest 3 star prixe fixe bargain?

Yes definitely Caves Auge'. Also La Cave des Papilles, 35 rue Daguerre. Pick up anything natural from Loire. Unreal, new cult wines. won't find em in this country.

But are'nt TribeCa and the LES both residential neighborhoods? How many people live in the Meat district? And arent those neighborhoods establishments slightly more local friendly than the bridge and tunnel mess in the meat district? The best thing I can say about this up and coming 'hood is that it sucks the garbage out of better neighborhoods.

you guys are being WAY too technical. Perhaps I should have asked, who will fill the seats between 10-18th streets X W.Side Hwy to 9th Avenue? the fact that you have to cross a street to get to Del Posto doesnt change a thing. Same people, same neighborhood, different name, perhaps....

you drink it. i'll pass.

Thousands of new seats are being added in the meatpacking district but at some point won't there be more seats than people? Who will succeed and how far can this neighborhood go? Is there an end in site? what are your thoughts? How will hugely ambitious outsiders like Sascha fare? How will Stephen Starr succeed. I heard he's sent a poacher to Spice Market for managers. It's getting really competitive down there. What are your thoughts? Where will this all end? And is it good for the city?

I need more suggestions????? anything, not just creperies.... What about wine bars?

I have to agree that this is a very tired topic. And I have to politely disagree that he did a good job with this piece. Not one interesting tid-bit or insight. Not one. What, the margarita lady? The myriad of specials to be memorized? The hungry, angry customers? Gimme a break! As a friend sarcastically snarled " Yeah, this expose' really blew the lid off the service industry." As I've said before, a great city deserves a better paper.

here's a few that come to mind...... cold borscht: Barney Greengrass Pho: Pho Tu Do Tom Kha Gai: Thailand Restaurant/ Bayard Young Garlic Soup: Jean-Georges French Onion: Balthazar New England Clam Chowder: Pearl oyster bar Manhattan Clam Chowder: Grand Central Oyster Depot Add some of your favorites

Yeah, that's the place!! Best late night dining in the city (3am). Always full and fun and the food is one of the best on the block. Skip Le Express or the usual diner, and get the bone soup.

Also Keens Steakhouse, Or at least until it was reviewed, it was my under-the-radar steakhouse. great atmosphere, good steaks. And this Korean restaurant on 32 street, dont remember the name, but its open 24 hours and always busy. server a bone soup, cold meats, and pancakes. This place is fantastic!

another highly publicized secret bar. you'd be wrong if you guessed their not paying for PR.

Again, just want to emphasize, L & B is 9/10ths atmosphere. It's such an insanely only in Bensonhurst experience. Atmosphere cannot be undervalued in coralation with eating. Like having pesto high above the Cinque Terre, or Pulpo on the Amalfi. It's a complete experience.

Sri was "my place" for years. I found it back in '92 and used to take all my friends there and blow them away. then it expanded and the white man came. I thought I was wrong because I kept reading so many great reports. Then took a hardcore thai eater w/ me for a final analysis. god, i wanted it to be good. all i remember is a very sweet, ketchup like pad thai. i'll never go back. i know a lot of you still love it, but it's just not as good in my opinion. As for Spumoni Gardens, I've never had a better Sicilian in New York. And the atmosphere is 9/10ths of the fun. you did have a sicilian and not a Neopolitan?

your right. some of these places are very well know. i just wanted to emphasize their special place in my heart, because sometimes these institutions are taken for granted and there comes a time when we need to re-evaluate, me thinks. thanks for the reply. i like the sound of this army place.....

There are so many great NYC restaurants that never get their due on this site so I thought I'd list my secret havens if you list yours..... 8. Zaab Thai on Roosevelt Avenue in Queens serves rare northern Thai specialties to a mostly Thai crowd. The scene is funky, serving the working girls- it stays open very late. And by the way, it BLOWS away Sripathpai, which hasnt been good in 10 years. SORRY. 7. Ici in Brooklyn. Lovely and very well thought out French menu that's perfectly executed and always impressive. Run by the manager from Rocco's, it couldnt be friendlier. And the wine list is one of the most imprssive small, organic lists in the city. Brunch spectacular, too. 6. L & B Spumoni Gardens in Bay Ridge. The craziest guido and guidette scene in the city spills out onto the sidewalk at this pizza legend. Remember to only order "squares" (sicilian) that's what their known for. And request a corner to get that crunchy charred experience. Dont forget to go to the spumoni window and get a rainbow spumoni on the way out! Only go in summer. 5. Bette Restaurant. I know, I know. Amy Sacco. Trendy. Movie Stars. Long Impossibe waits. But that's also part of the upside. This is New York, after all. Already lauded by Andrew Dornenberg and Karen Page. Jay Mcinerney has proclaimed it his favorite restaurant. Recent sightings: Maguy LaCoze, Eric Ripert, Andrew Carmellini, Rocco Dispirito, and then the stars. Who Cares!!? This place has got the best wine list in the city and the most innovative, fresh cocktails I've tasted in a while. And the food? Classic Euro-bistro, truffle fries, steaks, amazing cheese course. I heard they have the biggest selection of natural wines in the city. I believe it. The secrets out..... 4. Cafe des Artistes. You all forgot about this one? It always feels like magic to sit at that bar in the back and soak up the old fashioned atmosphere. Make a reservation. It's sublime. An only in New York experience (or Budapest, I guess). 3. Barney Greengrass. If you havent been and you or anyone has ever used the word foodie to describe you, shame on you!! Brunch here is a secret New York institution. Get the smoked fish platter if your 2 or more, and remember to order toasted Bialys instead of Bagles. You'll understand. Even the OJ is memorable. But Sturgeon is king here. So order the sturgeon already. 2 Katzs Delicatessan. Just want to put the argument to rest. This is the best pastrami on the planet. The most quintessential Lower East Side experience you could ever hope to have. One of the best hot dogs in the city, also. And dont' forget to stuff a dollar in the tip glass as he's cutting your meat, he'll give you a mouthwatering sample. WOW. 1. 360 in Red Hook Brooklyn. The best unheard of and unreviewed restaurant in the city. Hard core foodie stuff w/ the best wines on the planet. Way ahead of the curve. Quit putting it off! Call Delancey car service. Have them pick you up and drop you off/$20. And the always cordial proprietor Arnaud will call you a car service back home. You've had a memorable experience and you still saved money, even after the car fare. What are you waiting for???? this order changes daily. actually the LIST changes daily. What are some of your unheralded faves???

What a great garden.... Unfortunately the food is terrible. Since Gerard sold the place years ago, the service, style, and food has been sliding. It now rests on its laurels and knows it can serve anything resembling food and people will still come. not me. Skip it.

Ah! I forgot about that one. I've been meaning to go there. I'll surely make it this time. Thanks for the reminder.

what's the name of the one in the 15th run by the L"os a Moelle people? anyone?