kathryn

What huiray said. Get to GATG and Frontera Grill EARLY. Be there right when they open and be prepared to grab seats . (NB: I've gotten a Frontera reservation for 2 before, but I called 3 months in advance.) For Girl and the Goat, both the actual bar area with bar stools as well as the lounge tables with couches are considered first come, first served, and they serve the full menu at both. So you might be OK if a lounge table opens up and you don't mind eating on low tables. Love the food, and it's very reasonably priced. Maybe for Saturday lunch, skip Hot Doug's, and try Purple Pig then, as they are open continuously all day. Even if your flight or check in is delayed, it's not like you're missing a reservation or something, or worrying about Doug closing the line at a certain time (which they do). The Violet Hour is excellent (craft cocktails in a speakeasy setting) but they don't allow standing inside, and it's rather popular. And I'm afraid of what the line will be like on a weekend night. Many people choose to wait while eating tacos and drinking bourbon across the street, at Big Star (IMO the tacos are good, but they used to be better). Also the Aviary is CLOSED Sundays and Mondays. Your only shot would be on Saturday and if I recall correctly, the reservation time slots are only for 6, 8, and 10pm. They might be willing to make an exception if you ask nicely? The new head bartender is great. The quality still seemed quite high to me in late October when I was there last (for the Kyoto Next menu). Booker & Dax in NYC or Rogue24 in DC are in a similar vein but not exactly.

I usually take unadventurous Midtown visitors to Marseille. http://www.marseillenyc.com/menu.aspx?mid=112

I can't speak to their reubens but really like the chicken in a pot and matzoh balls at 2nd Avenue Deli. Their pastrami isn't that great, though, I prefer Katz's for that.

The Publican is not near any tourist sites. It's also only open for brunch and dinner. I am not sure the "beer hall" atmosphere of the Publican is going to appeal to a 13 year old. Not sure I've ever seen any kids there. However, you might like Publican Quality Meats, their store next door, which does have soups, sandwiches, charcuterie, etc. Purple Pig is closer to tourist attractions due to proximity to Magnificent Mile, serves the same menu all day, and I've definitely seen kids there.

Also near the Loop, try Do-Rite Donuts (L2O alums, check hours beforehand), and The Gage (gastropub). 2nd Mercat a la Planxa. I've also heard good things about Terzo Piano inside the Art Institute as well. Also nearby the Art Institute is Cafecito and their takeout window No. 5. Note that it's a long-ish walk from any nearby hotel to Shedd's front door (15-20 minutes given that the paths through the park are not exactly direct) and the Field Museum. Also: buy tickets to Shedd online ahead of time! However, near Shedd/Field Museum is the Bongo Room, with fun pancake flavors that a 13 year old may like a lot. I personally find it too sweet, but I'm no longer a teen. Your teen may also like Garrett's Popcorn. There's very little near Navy Pier; don't eat around there and make sure you plan around that. Near Magnificent Mile in River North, check out GT Fish & Oyster, Xoco/Frontera Grill/Topolobampo (closed Sun/Mon, Topolo may be too formal but the food is excellent, Frontera is more casual but may be already booked up, Xoco is a quick service restaurant), Purple Pig (no reservations so go for lunch or early dinner), Sable. Also nearby are Pizzeria Uno, Due, and Lou Malnati's -- this will be a very different style of pizza that you probably have at home as well. Some of them will allow you to call in your order beforehand as it can take 45 minutes to make.

Now I have to hope some of the recipes are eventually revealed... that Dueling Banjos sounds really interesting to me. It's essentially a Mai Tai but with lemon standing in for the lime, freshly made corn milk standing in for orgeat, and two bourbons instead of two rums. I'm sure they'll give you the specs if you ask (the postcard that comes with the check has "fill in the blank" spaces pre-printed for cocktail recipes), and they're pretty active on Twitter as well. https://twitter.com/pouringribbons

Here's the Pouring Ribbons menu in PDF for those following along: http://www.insidehook.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/Classics-and-House-Cocktails.pdf

Due to an angry neighbor and issues with their liquor license, Death & Co's last call/close time used to be midnight. They have since extended it to about 1am last I heard, after resolving the issues, but that's why it closes "early" in comparison to other places. Definitely go to Death & Co and Pegu Club. Pegu Club allows standing so it can get really loud later on in the night. Luckily it opens at 5pm and not 6pm like the other places, so it can be a nice place to start. It's the 2nd floor and bright and airy, with a very different atmosphere (not speakeasy). For Milk & Honey, you need to have their contact information already and I don't think non-members can go before 1am on weekends anyway. You could try the new sister bar Middle Branch instead (though it's a bit out of the way if you're doing an East Village/Lower East Side crawl). I don't believe Attaboy is open yet. For something similar to M&H, try Lantern's Keep in midtown (closed Sundays, especially if you get Theo who works at both Lantern's Keep and M&H) or Raines Law Room near Union Square. For Raines, note that they open later on Sundays & they don't have a proper bar with stools, all the drinks are made in the kitchen. The approach and atmosphere reminds me of Milk & Honey. Pouring Ribbons is excellent. You might be lucky enough to actually get Toby Maloney (Violet Hour), Joaquin Simo (ex-Death & Co), or Troy Sidle (Violet Hour) as your bartender. I also love Booker & Dax. They are the only ones really doing anything molecular in terms of cocktails. There are also a number of specialist bars that are worth visiting: Mayahuel (mezcal and tequila), Amor y Amargo (huge selection of bitters, try their great housemade vermouth in a Negroni), or Gin Palace (gin, obviously). You might also want to look into the Experimental Cocktail Club.

http://starchefs.com/cook/features/mixology/aged-cocktails I'd also ping David Wondrich via Twitter.

I believe the new format begins today. They have been closed for the past week doing renovations.

Insieme. Formerly by Marco Canora, who left in fall 2009.

Amazing! Thanks for reporting back!

So glad that worked out for you! Especially since Alinea is on vacation starting today until the 22nd.

Get to a Brisket Lab if you can, eGulleteers! Hopefully you have a friend who pre-purchased tickets/meat as the events are all sold out now. This was my first time attending the roving BBQ pop-up and I was quite impressed. If you did pre-purchase meat, here's what to expect. $25 for two people yielded 8 oz of brisket each, plus slaw, pickles, onions, and bread, with tax and tip included. The slaw was excellent, a carrot and red cabbage vinegar-based coleslaw with lots of fresh herbs, including mint. Yum. Quite fair especially since the live music is also included in the price, and they passed around a tip jar for the band (who were actually good). The drink specials for this particular event were also a nice surprise, as they'd hired a craft cocktail bartender for the event, who'd devised a number of Lillet cocktails (sponsor). He threw together something off-menu for us, and apologized for missing some ingredients in his arsenal, having just returned from Tales of the Cocktail. The brisket itself was very, very good. Tender, fatty, with good smoke ring, and would hold its own against the best BBQ in NYC. I'm thinking it would also compare favorably to some Texas stalwarts like Smitty's and Black's, from my experience. Pretty remarkable. The meat is from Pat LaFrieda and cooked low and slow for over 24 hours. Delaney purchased a smoker in Austin from the famed Franklin BBQ and drove it up to Brooklyn! That's dedication to the craft. I can't wait for his restaurant Brisket Town to open later on this year. He's doing a pre-purchase/ticket plan again most likely. Sign up for when Brisket Town goes on sale: http://comingsoon.br...om/?lrRef=cgB05 More about Daniel Delaney: http://delaneybbq.com/

NB: Hot Doug's is taking a few days off in August. MONDAY, AUGUST 6 THROUGH TUESDAY, AUGUST 14