BryanZ

For all future interested parties, Grayz is closed on Sundays.

Shacktoberfest, or whatever they're calling it, was in full swing this weekend at Shake Shack. I stopped by for some custard, a Shack Burger, and a beer--enjoyable as always--and saw lots of people trying the special sausages (those mentioned above by kathryn and a couple others) and condiments. All of them looked rather tasty. Lines on Sunday were rather long all afternoon, due in large part to the obscenely warm autumn weather. It seriously looked like a day in July more than it did a day in October.

This is not the first time I'm echoing Nathan's sentiments on brunch at Perry St. I dragged some friends down here from the Siberia that is the UES (seriously, I can get to Perry St. from my house in central NJ faster than I can from 88th and 1st), but we ended up having a really great time. First, the wine specials are worth mentioning. A few of us split a totally serviceable $20 bottle of a French white that was perfect for brunch. Very light-bodied, inoffensive, and easy to drink both alone and with food. For $20, how can you say no? Glasses, as Nathan notes, are $5. I tried several items today, some new and some old. The amuse was a standard butternut squash soup, elevated with a bit of spicy apple creme fraiche. A nice start. The current beef dish--slices of rare hangar steak atop pickled jalapeno and spinach, surrounded by a liquified gruyere poured tableside--was really delicious. The jalapeno did a great job cutting through the rich beef and cheese. A fillet of snapper poached in chili oil should be a JG staple, it's so evocative of his cooking. Tender fish with just a faint hint of spice is set off by crunchy and bitter radish. A salmon dish with shishito peppers and maitake was a bit predictable and my pan-roasted chicken sandwich was good for what it was but not better than anything I could make at home. A safe option, if not a memorable one--the mainstay tuna burger is a better sandwich option. The watermelon ice was a simple dessert. I wasn't crazy about it--it seemed just like an overly large palate cleanser--but it was refreshing and texturally diverse. Still, Perry St. makes for a great brunch at a more than fair price. It certainly beats the chaos of getting brunch at other lesser, if more popular, establishments.

Trust me, I was on the top of the world. That is until I went to Bamn!. Seriously though, it's not even the wait I mind, though I know people who can't wait more than five minutes for a drink, it's the fact that some of the craft of the cocktail gets lost or distorted when you're not directly interacting with the craftsman. I'll stop with the metaphors now.

Made a quick stop at Setagaya for second dinner and a beer. This time i ordered the chayashu ramen, with two kinds of pork. This was really a killer bowl of noodles. The broth seemed less salty and less oily than last time (when I ordered the dish with the separation of noodles and broth). The two types of pork really played off of each other nicely and the noodles were very firm. This was late in the night and the restaurant wasn't very crowded so perhaps the cooks were better able to tend to their noodle and pork cooking techniques. Still, I was very impressed and again assert that Setagaya beats the pants off of Momo for an enjoyable ramen experience

Had dinner at Yakitori Torys a couple nights ago and was thoroughly satisfied. Torys is a bit more refined--quieter and less boisterous, less smoky, smaller skewers, more attentive cooking--than the yakitori restaurants I've been to in Japan, but it really shines in its ingredient quality. Tried a good swath of the menu and most enjoyed the tail, wing, and pork belly with scallions. Soft knee bone was tasty, if an interesting textural experience perhaps not well-suited for the uninitiated. Other unexpectedly fun items were the whole prawn and the yamaimo. The place isn't exactly cheap, but it's not exactly expensive either. With a couple appetizers--goya ponzu; arugula, onsen egg, sardine salad--a bunch of skewers and two drinks, two of us made it out of there for just under $50/person. We were able to walk in at 6 on a Saturday night without a reservation and sit at the counter. They were not seating walk-ins at the tables.

Was back at PDT yesterday evening. Tried all sorts of drinks and really enjoyed myself. My only criticism is that some of the experience is lost without sitting at the bar itself. There's less of an opportunity for customization and the waiters/waitresses don't know as much about the drinks as the bartenders themselves. Not that this is necessarily PDT specific, but more a general observation. If going with a group of three or less, do try to sit at the bar. Still, I love this place. The day I don't find walking into the phone booth cool is the day I officially become old and will forfeit my soul.

After several drinks and some poutine at Pommes Frites, I found myself staring at Bamn!. I quickly procured the requisite $1 coins and put myself at the mercy of the glowing wall of food. In general, this place is pretty awful. Even in far from sober state I couldn't manage more than one bite of the lobster (yes, lobster) mac-and-cheese croquet. It was as bad as you might imagine. The burger I tired was actually decent, but I'll take a couple sliders from White Castle as my cheap burger of choice any day.

While not centrally located, Perry St. for its $24 3-course menu most certainly comes to mind.

Thinking of stopping in Sunday night and am having a hard time getting a handle on these reports. Strange concept aside, is this place worth it for drinks and snack or two?

How timely that this thread was bumped. I'm back in town for the holiday weekend, and I just returned from Anthos where I, too, enjoyed the chef's tasting menu. To say that it surpasses Per Se is perhaps overly high praise, but a case for three stars can certainly be made. I'll report shortly.

I like the idea. How do you bind the noodles again? I think I knew at a time but have since forgotten.

So cool.

From what I've read, most reports have said that the change was for the better. Right now the tasting menu looks pretty damn good.

If you've never been, I think it's worth going. It's only buffet in Vegas that really wows with "luxury" ingredients. Of course, we're not talking absolutely top quality, but there's something gluttonously satisfying about walking back to your table with a plate full of lobster tails and oysters with all the good bubbles you can drink.

Gourmande. It looks quite good right now. More of the glowing EMP reports are from diners who enjoyed the Gourmande.

Many Fortune 100 CEOs would probably beg to differ. But, of course Timh makes a good point.

Nice pictures, UE. The red glow of the room does a lot for the images. The whole dessert thing is weird, though.

Common decency, morality, ethics. Any of those. And probably a waitstaff who'd give you a serious WTF. Besides, I'm pretty much certain that whole soft-opening song and dance isn't going on anymore.

I so should've called that. Clearly, I have no idea what I'm talking about.

Oh yeah, my mother and a business associate had a great lunch at Maze a few weeks ago. Not as good a deal as JG, but she said the subtle nature of the food was a welcome change. And on Larry King tonight, Gordon claimed that things in NYC are going great after a "tough" six opening months. Then again you have to take that with a very, very, very large hunk of salt.

I'm in very much the same boat and recently joined the ranks of the management consulting industry. I'm proud of my newfound employment and think I'll enjoy it, but there's something about not going into your passion that seems a little bit unsettling. I tell myself that the end game is to get back into the professional food world from the business side, but this is probably short-sighted delusion. The other end game is to make mad bank and enjoy all the perks in the food world that having a lot of money affords. Again, something of a soul-crushing revelation, but life is real. I think this thread is somewhat unique because most people ask how to get into the industry in general. It seems that you have an idea of where you want to go, likely a function of your age, and I think this is a good thing. I'm also assuming you mean high-end restaurants, not, like, Red Lobster (though as a tangential aside you may be interested in exploring corporate jobs with chains and major packaged food manufacturers). You're probably at something of a disadvantage because, as you admit bluntly, a Jazz Studies degree won't do a lot in the food world. Your lack of experience is also something of an issue. People will say just jump into the industry, getting whatever experience you can, as they do in every thread like this. While this is undoubtedly sound advice, if you're really serious about this you should look into restaurant management classes at something like the ICE in NYC. I've heard good things about that program and without some experience at a MAJOR restaurant, getting on the path to running the floor or, better yet, a restaurant group will be very difficult. A restaurant management certificate is a nice way to at least somewhat guard against your resume being tossed into the trash after a cursory glance. Finally, to end all this poo-pooing on a somewhat uplifting note and offer you a potential lead, I know that the Hillstone Restaurant Group has a well-structured management program. "Danny Meyer loves our interns," is what a friend of mine was told by a Hillstone recruiter. Hillstone is interesting in that it's far from fine-dining, but places a greater emphasis on quality than most other upper-middle chains.

Tangentially related, Gordon's ex-chef de cuisine, Neil Ferguson, will be opening Allen and Delancey shortly.

The obvious answer is just to go to Alinea.

Ordered my copy, and I don't even know where I'll be living next fall. I may well buy a couple copies, one for the family and a personal copy for myself.