kathryn

Degustation does have a lot of shellfish and fish dishes on the menu. It's not a good place to take someone who dislikes, say, small oily fish like sardines. It's great if you like things like tomatoes, oysters, squid, octopus, quail, poached eggs, pork, duck, etc. A quick search of Menupages and Yelp yields very little in terms of classical Portuguese. But Hotel Griffou's Portguese Brunch may appeal: http://www.griffou.com/pdf/Griffou.PortugueseBrunch.pdf

Sunday lunch: if your flight lands at 1:30pm at JFK, you might not get out and about and ready to eat until 3pm, barring flight delays, which seems a bit late to have dim sum IMO (though the places you listed cook to order vs using rolling carts). BTW, for a notch up in terms of dim sum quality and a more upscale atmosphere, there's also Chinatown Brasserie, which serves continuously all day. Sunday evening: Grab a hot dog and some tater tots while you drink at PDT. Make sure you arrive right at 6pm for some bar seats. It's busy even on holiday Sundays. We were there Easter Sunday, and the place was packed. By the time you leave for Death & Co, it will probably be about 7:30-8pm, so there might be a bit of a wait. If so, I would have a few backup plans: cocktails and a few bites at either Mayahuel or Vandaag. Then hit up Momofuku Ssam Bar for a late-ish dinner, around 9:30 or so. Other ideas: Ippudo, Lupa, Motorino, The Dutch, Osteria Morini... As long as you're sitting down to eat before 10pm you probably won't have any problems, especially in the East Village. Monday lunch: Corton doesn't serve lunch, so it's out. I would call EMP to ask if they plan to be open that day. Monday dinner: The Breslin sounds fine, but geographically you'll be closer to the Spotted Pig. For both, I'd do dinner around 5-5:30pm so there's little to no wait, and you have plenty of time to get to the airport. 10:30pm international flight means arriving at 8:30pm at JFK (?). .

BTW, I was at Szechuan Gourmet at 7pm this past Saturday, and there was no wait at all, and even a few empty tables.

I might rethink Osteria Morini if you want something special. The tables are extremely close together (as in, become friends with your neighbor's foot). It's also very, very loud. Since you like Babbo, Del Posto, Lupa, I would look into Maialino and/or Scarpetta who appear to have some early / late tables left on OpenTable for that weekend. I enjoyed my meals there more than Morini. I hear good things about Ciano as well and they appear to have primetime tables left. Degustation absolutely does take reservations but only by phone. Call ASAP. Reservations are highly recommended since it is such a small space. Another option nearby would be to make a reservation for the chef's counter at Kyo Ya for their kaiseki cuisine. Aldea (Portuguese) might be an option as well. They also have a chef's counter. You should also know that Tien Ho left Momofuku Ssam Bar a while ago to run the kitchen at Ma Peche. The food is excellent and the atmosphere is more sedate/quiet. Corton also appears to have space via OpenTable if you change your mind about tasting menus. Szechuan Gourmet is excellent and for a party of 2, I've had to wait maybe 15 minutes, tops. Just don't get there too late. They close the kitchen around 9pm.

Chris! I hope you'll be able to make at least one of the Manhattan Cocktail Classic events this weekend. Also, you should know that it's probably going to rain this weekend which puts a damper on any picnic / outside seating / food truck ideas. Since it's possibly going to rain on Friday as well, the ground may still be wet on Saturday, even if the weather is nice. You're in prime "crazy brunch line" territory so you're smart to plan ahead. I've done a late lunch at Shake Shack on a weekend before and it's not the line that'll kill you, it'll be trying to get 4 seats together. The kitchen at the UWS Shake Shack is huge, the seating area is too small. I remember sitting the basement with my friend who had just finished the marathon and getting the evil eye for staying too long. Safest bet would be to make a reservation somewhere for lunch or go off the beaten path. If it is raining, you don't want to get stuck outside while it's pouring, especially as other people linger due to the weather. A quick check of OpenTable shows Salumeria Rosi and Mermaid Inn UWS have tables left.

It is good. I'd go for weekday breakfast or lunch. Love the caesar salad, terrine boards, lamb burger, fries, three cheese sandwich, and the vegetable sides are usually good. Pretty good cocktails. The food can be quite heavy and salty though. The wait can get pretty long for dinner.

Apparently opening night did not go well.

Ma Peche is close and has a good list.

I found dinner at M. Wells to be quite good and reasonably priced. We particularly liked the beef tartare, brains, and insanely large burger (38 oz!) but dinner being served only Tuesday through Thursday is a little annoying. At least they take reservations for dinner.

It's not computers doing the food identification, it's humans, being paid very low amounts for the task, through Amazon's Mechanical Turk service. A few pennies per photo.

They appear to be using Amazon's Mechanical Turk service to identify foods, and a lot of user reviews in the App Store are complaining about inaccuracies and lag time to get calorie counts back.

Don't miss the crostini with ramp butter, if it's on the menu already. Love Franny's.

Thanks for the report. I loved San Sebastian when we went in 2009 but my husband got really frustrated by the smoking in restaurants and the smokiness of the hotel we were staying in (it would drift in from other rooms). How is it now with the national indoor smoking ban?

Is it possible to post the list? (Translated, of course) It was in a print magazine 2 years ago, I doubt she still has it.

Serious Eats did, but that was essentially 5-6 months ago: http://slice.seriouseats.com/archives/2010/11/nate-appleman-leaves-pulinos-pizza-changes-crust-bowery-manhattan-nyc.html

Possibly new ownership. I wouldn't know. I was turned onto it by my Chinese-speaking aunt, who found it in a Chinese language magazine as the ranked #1 of 8 different wonton noodle soups in Chinatown. She (of course) being skeptical of magazine results quickly ran through the whole list of 8 to see if she would come up with the same conclusion. And did. I do also really like their bo zai fan/claypot rice dish.

Mitch, have you been to Noodle Village recently? I think their wontons are better than Great NY Noodletown's. Though I'll still go to Great NY Noodletown for roast pig, roast pork, roast duck, salt baked squid, beef with flowering chives.... Also: M Wells appears to be serving Peking Duck as well for dinner (Tues-Thurs).

thirtyoneknots, are you posting about Bar Congress or Second Bar & Kitchen? Congress is an upscale restaurant with only two options (prix fixe and tasting menu). Bar Congress is kind of the "pass through" between Congress and its sister restaurant, Second Bar & Kitchen. Bar Congress and Second Bar & Kitchen are separated by a thick set of curtains, which is I believe what thirtyoneknots is referring to above. Second Bar and Kitchen has beer, wine, small plates, as well as cocktails (and TVs showing movies), but cocktails are kind of relegated to a list of 8-10 on the back. It's much more casual than Bar Congress and Congress. It's a full on restaurant with a separate bar you can dine at. Bar Congress serves small plates, snacks and a limited number of entrees from the menus of both Congress and Second Bar + Kitchen (this is explains the kind of crazy nature of the menu since it's got cheaper small plates and much, much more expensive entrees from the menu of Congress). Cocktails by Adam Bryan, with a separate list than Second Bar + Kitchen. It's the "bar" for the upscale restaurant Congress, and seems to have a heavier focus on cocktails since it's more a bar than restaurant and has a longer cocktail list. The Preferred Lies was excellent: earl grey infused bourbon, apple drinking vinegar, Canton ginger foam. My Mestizo (Hacienda Sotol Blanco, Sour Orange and Lime, Scratch Grenadine, Arbol Chile), was good but not nearly as good. Very nice, very comfy, quiet bar. So sad that last call is at midnight (even on a Friday) as we could probably have stayed for hours. Would definitely go back. Second Bar + Kitchen actually has difference bartenders in charge: Billy Hankey of the Good Knight and Brian Dressel of East Side Show Room. I only got to try the Texas Benedict, served with pulled pork, sausage gravy, on two pieces of jalapeno cornbread, which was good, but only one of the many, many items on the small plates list. I only got to try one cocktail here but it was quite good. Mazel's Transformer: tequila, egg white, house made grenadine, lime, cholula hot sauce. Foamy and delicious. BTW I really like the chalkboard they have wrapping around the bar with sayings like "No Mexican Martinis" and "I will not use sour mix" written multiple times in chalk a la Bart Simpson.

I recently spent 11 days in Austin for SXSW and chased down all of the food trucks I could find. Pueblo Viejo: The little taco truck at the East Side Drive In became a brunch destination a few days in a row. They served us good breakfast tacos and also had quite friendly service. I really liked the woman working there--the bottled water wasn't cold and they offered to put it into the freezer for a few minutes for us. Their salsa was also quite good as well, both the red and green (tomatillo?). Loved eating breakfast outside in the sun at the East Side Drive In. Unfortunately their hours seemed a bit inconsistent. My husband went on a Wednesday morning around 8:30am and they said they'd be open, but they weren't. I'd come back but am still on a search for great breakfast tacos downtown near the Convention Center. Pig Vicious: Excellent deep-fried, bacon wrapped pickles with a chipotle-esque ranch dressing. One of the best ways to start off your Saturday morning. Talking to the guy working there is a trip, too. I wish I'd had more time to try other items but I kept ending up at the East Side Drive In more around mid-day instead of at night...or very late at night after they had already closed. Great atmosphere, great signs, though. Loved the concept and the name. Odd Duck: Wow. I see what the fuss is about now. The pork belly slider with sauerkraut and shaved turnips and aioli -- fatty, crispy heaven between a bun. The creamy, cheesy, perfect goat cheese grits with a poached duck egg, wild mushrooms, and grilled turnip was a punch in the face of sweet umami flavor. Fresh shrimp, perfectly cooked and so sweet, served with arugula, broccoli, texamati rice, sherry vinegar, and gruyere cheese was great but my friends didn't think much of the salad/rice combo. Venison sausage with sweet potato salad, cheddar, aioli, and pecans was great and gamey. Amazing. I think the only thing I didn't care for was the grilled quail with cabbage, ricotta, carrots, and brussels sprouts, which was hard to eat and didn't really seem to come together conceptually. But overall I loved this food truck. And they were out of 1/2 the menu by the time we rolled up around 6:30pm on a Saturday. I'd definitely go back. So great. It's a toss up between Odd Duck and Uchi for the best meal I had while in Austin. Gourdough's: Very good doughnuts, but a bit too intense for my liking. My husband and I split the flying pig: maple icing and bacon. Delicious but very intense, especially after dinner at Odd Duck. The doughnut was huge and un-finishable, although I tried. I ended up leaving a single piece of bacon. We loved the ODB cream-filled doughnut holes rolled in coconut shreds and ate them all up. Basically perfect, especially right out of the fryer. My friend took a few bites of her 'banana pudding' inspired doughnut dish but couldn't finish it. Seems like the doughnut holes are the way to go here, shared between a few people. I'd definitely go back but be more careful about the quantity I ordered. Old School BBQ (a food... bus): I had a chopped brisket sandwich during the Foodspotting Street Food Festival event. Loved walking up to the school bus and ordering BBQ, as the smoker let out its delicious fumes across the parking lot. Unfortunately, the brisket itself was tender but wasn't as flavorful as I wanted it to be, nor as fatty. It was good but not great. They had a more limited menu for this event, IIRC, and I'd like to go back and try the regular brisket not during SXSW. Lucky J's: I loved this chicken waffle "taco" so much I had it three times. Soft pliable taco, sweet maple syrup, hot sauce, and a crispy chicken tender. I think the only thing that was missing was a bit of butter on top. I actually talked some friends into visiting the 6th St/Waller location after drinking one night, and they fell in love as well. I also found it to be the perfect SXSW Music Festival food, that could be eaten while walking. Chi'lantro: I had the beef bulgolgi tacos twice and really liked them. The lettuce slaw with sriracha sauce really hit the spot, particularly. Sweet, meaty, and spicy. I could probably eat those beef tacos every day for a week and not get bored of them. Unfortunately, I didn't get to go back a whole lot because they were participating in a 25c taco promotion and the lines were insanely long much of the time. Patika Coffee Truck: A nice iced coffee in the sun. Not the best I've ever had (we were told to go to Medici instead) but we were being lazy and wanted to sit outside. Ugly Banjos: Jimmy Crack chicken sandwich and fried Oreos. At first glance it seemed like your typical chicken sandwich with tomato, lettuce, and cheese. Then came the pickled jalapenos and honey truffle butter, which really make the sandwich sing. Every once in a while I'd get a sweet, buttery, crispy, spicy bite. Thumbs up. Molten Oreo goodness, battered, and deep fried? My husband was skeptical and ended up eating 2 1/2 of the cookies himself. So good! Peached Tortilla: I ate an amazing banh mi taco that I had at a party they were catering. I asked what the server's favorite taco was and he got very excited about making me the banh mi taco, and even spent a bit of time finding a huge, nice piece of pork belly in the tray for me. Loved the combination of the fatty, delicious pork belly and daikon, carrot, cilantro, and Sriracha mayo toppings. Great contrasting flavors. I'd definitely go back. One of my friends actually ate here four times in four days! Austin Daily Press: I had an OK black forest ham and cheddar cheese sandwich that was a little dry, but I did have it on the run. But on Red River, you really don't get the good Austin food trucks, right? Cool Haus: I had a sandwich with chocolate cookie and pecan ice cream inside after getting out of a particularly overcrowded concert. The ice cream was good but a bit too sweet to my taste. The cookie was excellent and very chocolatey. However, when the two were combined, it felt like the ice cream was too soft, and slid out of the sandwich every time I took a bite. I liked but didn't love my ice cream sandwich. Taqueria Rodriguez: Very nice ladies who were parked at 5th and Trinity behind the PureVolume house. I walked up about noon one day and asked if they made breakfast tacos since the sign didn't indicate so. The answer was in the affirmation and I had two nice chorizo and potato breakfast tacos. Very conveniently located, only $4, and while not as good as Pueblo Viejo, they were pretty good regardless. Coreanos: They were out of the beef short ribs, so I had one chicken taco and one pork taco. Neither impressed me, as I felt that Peached Tortilla had better quality of pork and the chicken seemed a bit dry. Of course, it might be unfair to compare as I didn't get to try the beef tacos but I felt a little disappointed. I'd rather go to Chi'Lantro or Peached Tortilla, though. Along Came a Slider: Really great and high quality food truck where you could see them cooking all of the burgers to order and kicking butt. My slider was excellent. I ordered the W Pig: pecan coffee rubbed pork shoulder, Texas pinot noir BBQ sauce, with jalapeno slaw. My first bite I wasn't sure I liked the coffee rub, but by my second bite, I was in love. Yum! East Side King: Pretty good pork buns but not as good as Momofuku's. The bun itself didn't seem quite as fluffy and while I liked the crispy pork and pickle, the crispiness of the pork make it hard to eat the bun. Same for the pickle, which was cut too large. It was tasty but I wouldn't order it again, I'd probably try something else. I did like the atmosphere a lot. Between Odd Duck, Lucky J's, Pig Vicious, Chi'Lantro, Peached Tortilla, Ugly Banjos, Along Came a Slider, and Pueblo Viejo, it's hard to choose a favorite. I only regret not being able to try more like G'raj Mahal, Cazamance, Local Yolk...

Web site is up and taking reservations: http://www.ticketsbar.es/en/

Asador Etxebarri, Basque Country, Spain.

BTW, Maks has left the Counting Room for Maison Premiere (also in Williamsburg, Brooklyn) and will be behind the bar on Wednesdays and Saturdays.

41 Degrees opened on 1/24, Eater has a photo gallery of the bar, as well as photos of Tickets here: http://eater.com/archives/2011/01/25/albert-ferran-adria-41-degrees-tickets-barcelona-spain.php

You mean the Golden Mall? Which place has soup dumplings? How do they compare to Nan Xiang?

Sunday is probably our favorite as it's relatively easy to drop in at a no reservations place early on a Sunday night around 6pm or 7pm (I rarely get out of work that early during the week). Of course, the high end/4 star restaurants are closed typically on Sunday. Thursday through Saturday is eh. In Manhattan, the day the weekend starts keeps creeping up, it seems. Thursday night feels like Saturday night in a lot of places. Weekend lunch is no good unless the restaurants specifically serves a proper lunch. Most have chosen to either a) be closed or b) give into the demands of the brunch masses. Note: I do like brunch (as a concept). It's just not really a quiet time to visit a restaurant in NYC.