glenn

Iron Monkey is no longer a restaurant. They're a bar & lounge. What a waste.

Great report on Yaxche, thanks. That'll be our 1 dinner out. The food at Royal Hideaway is supposed to be top notch and it's included in the price, so it's kind of a waste going out. This is my first time ever staying at an all-inclusive and though the RH has gotten rave reviews, I'm sort of sorry I went this route, especially in an area where there's so much to do and see. Next time though. Can't wait to go diving in the cenotes and Cozumel!

Wow, Verjuice, great report and very timely. We're staying at the Royal Hideaway in PDC next week. I see you cancelled your reservation there. Did you ever eat at Yaxche? I couldn't tell from your post. From what I hear, it's the #1 restaurant in PDC. I posted this on another thread -- there's an incredible site with an active forum on PDC over here. There's an in depth section on restaurants. We're only staying 4 nights, which is way too brief. It'll mostly be a relaxing stay without much activity except diving and snorkeling. However, I do wanna at least spend one day sightseeing the Mayan ruins. I'm debating between Coba and Tulum. Chichen Itza is just too far. Any thoughts?

In my quest for info, I came across this. It's an extremely comprehensive site on Playa del Carmen complete with restaurants and a very active forum.

Ah, very timely, we just made last minute plans to stay in Playa del Carmen area (Royal Hideaway) the week after next. First time. Any more recommendations for restaurants other than Yaxche and Moros?

Yes, parking generally stinks, not to mention JC has or did have the highest auto theft of any city in the state or world or something. Sorry, I can't help with the specifics as I haven't patronized these delis -- the Afghan deli is downtown on Newark Ave near the restaurant Miss Saigon. The mideastern deli is on Baldwin Avenue just north of Montgomery Street. Sorry I can't be more specific, but I'll try to pay attention next time I pass them and note names and addresses.

Jersey City may not be known for its good vibrations, but there's no shortage of grocers from virtually every corner of the globe. While there are numerous Indian and Filipino grocers, lots of other nationalities are represented -- Mideast (Moroccan, Afghani), Korean, Chinese. Even a kosher style deli. Newark is another city rich in cultural diversity where you can probably find most anything. Just make sure your bodyguard is well-armed when touring either city.

Can I just say... Bless my soul, what's wrong with me ? I'm itchin' like a man that's on a fuzzy tree My friends say i'm acting as wild as a bug. I'm in love, i'm in love, i'm in love, i'm in love, i'm all shook up. Ah, ah, ah, all shook up most of the time. [© gs, birthday boy]

Ditto. Perfect evening all around. Well, it would've been perfect if ya remembered my friggin' birthday cake ;-( Great to see the old faces and meet some new ones. I can't believe the DePersios, though -- I never would've seated a bunch of egluttons in the middle of the dang place ;-). Thanks to them for a wonderful meal and for remembering to equip Rosie with a high chair.

It's in the meatpacking district -- 13th St. between 9th & 10th Ave. I thought I read somewhere this was a joint collaboration with Gray Kunz, though I haven't seen any mention of him in a couple of reviews I saw. Was I dreaming this?

in

Lou, have you tried writing directly to Tim Z?

I wasn't aware that you could get validated parking at the lipton tea lot. Amanda's free parking recently changed -- the lot on Sinatra Drive closed, though I don't think they changed to the lipton tea lot - it's somewhere else. India on Hudson?? I ate there once when they first opened and it was horrible. Have things changed, like did the chef kick the bucket? ;-) Made reservations today at AD for next week. Before the review, you had to call a week in advance for the weekend. Considering they have under 40 seats, it'll probably be impossible to get into after the review comes out. Sometimes you gotta hate BIGMOUTH Corcoran.

We usually go out to eat Sat and/or Sun, though I'll go out any weeknight if I can find anyone but Rosie to accompany me. My wife doesn't get home until late from work and is usually too exhausted to go out during the week. I normally prefer to go out with 1 or 2 other couples -- though, like tommy said, depends on the place. Distance -- I am notoriously lazy and generally stay within 10 minutes from decrepit jersey city, but will go the distance if the place warrants it. I hear rumors that American Place, oops, American Grill may warrant such an adventure ;-) As for drinking habits, I'll have 2-3 glasses of wine and sometimes a cocktail any night that I dine out. And no, I'm not a lush (anymore) - I never ever drink at home. Re corkage charge -- I never considered bringing my own to a place that was licensed. Not so much because of the corkage fee or that I probably had nothing really special to bring that the establishement didn't serve, but because it seems tacky. Would you, as a restaurant owner, not frown upon someone who brought their own bottle just to save money? Or is my perception completely wrong?

I love the CB, and yes it's mucho loot, but I got it on the cheap. Some places give health insurance, others give wine. Count me in for the CB.

YOur choice -- tell me what to bring Reds Domain de l'arlot Nuits Saint Georges Premier Cru Clos des forets Krug Zinfandel Drouhin pinot noir russian hill syrah Whites Santorini Boutari (from a winery in Greece) Cloudy bay sauvignon blanc

I meant to mention earlier -- Lou, you confirmed reservations 7 days prior? I think that's way too far in advance. People who have multiple reservations still haven't made up their mind. Despicable as the practice of multiple reservations is, it's a fact of life. Not to mention a lot can happen in 7 days, like you break up with your lovey dovey or whatever. I think the ideal is to confirm the day of, though that's not always practical. A couple of places I had reservatiions at confirmed the day before AND the day of. Kind of bothersome, but I think it's a good idea. Bux, Roz and others -- I forget the rationale why restaurants are considered different by credit card companies than hotels, airlines and the like, but there is some validity. Not that I agree with it. One argument goes that a restaurant doesn't lose anything if it ends up filling a table that was a no show. While I don't agree with that as there are other costs, administrative and the like, it's not as simple as that, but that's a whole other argument. In my opinion, the only way this will ever get resolved is when the Jean-Georges of the restaurant world implement credit card guarantees and refuse to accept any credit card that will not honor a no show charge. A lesser known restaurant doesn't stand a chance of making this work by themselves. The industry needs to unite and fight this problem. Which will probably never happen.

It's been said before, but if credit card guranantees were widely accepted, no one would have a problem. Except for those who don't have a credit card.

The theory goes that sending a man to the moon had a profound effect on some people's brains. Well, at least that's my theory. I can't swear to it, but I believe the OpenTable software enables you to easily do this. I'm not sure how prevalent OpenTable's reservation system is in NJ but it might be worth looking into. If you no show on a reservation booked on OT, they pull out your nosehairs one by one, or ban you from the system after a few times of such behavior. Or drop off cash. Be aware though, if you choose to use the Amex guaranteed program, you need to abide by some fairly simple rules and sign an agreement with them. I don't think this would work in general, but for special occasions, I think it's a good idea.

Most restaurants do have a formula or at least use some system for overbooking. And if you're overbooking, it only goes to follow that you're not leaving tables open. Sometimes it works out ok for everyone, sometimes not. However, for VD or mothers day, such formulas go out the window. I forget the latest statistic, but the percentage of no shows is staggering. As a result, more and more restaurants are using American Express' program. And Lou, for Xmas eve and New Year's Eve, I had to give a credit card number for a reservation at Bernards Inn and Nicholas respectively, though in the case of Bernards Inn it was probably enforceable as they are a B&B. There's no harm in taking it and like I said, the worst you can do is lose in the event of a dispute.

Although it can't be enforced, the act of taking a credit a credit card number is usually enough to motivate someone to call and cancel. Most people do not know it is unenforceable, nor will they want to hassle disputing a charge. There is no rule that you can't charge someone's card (that I know of). You just lose in the event of a dispute. In addition, American Express has a guaranteed reservation program and you can charge a no show fee of up to $25 per person. The problem is that anyone who doesn't have AMEX is either out of luck or have faith that they'll honor it. If a significant amount of your customers use American Express (which is likely if you are upscale), this might be a viable option.

I hate to ask the obvious as I know you probably at least contemplated it. But it surely seeems appropriate, at least for holidays. Credit card guarantees??

They're now open for a "gospel" Sunday brunch featuring live jazz, though I can't quite figure that out. Unfortunately, we came in at the tail end of it. The buffet didn't look so appetizing as it was obviously sitting out for hours so we ordered off the regular menu. We haven't been there since it first opened, but it seemed like the menu changed quite a bit. I'm sorry we kept away for so long. Great baby back ribs, among the finest. The meat just fell off the bone. All the sides were super (6 for $14). It was the usual assortment, thought he macaroni and cheese stood out. The best part was dessert, sweet potato pie.

Serious?

Bad idea. Count me in for 1.