Steve R.

I agree on Tanoreen…. been going for many years. I'd also recommend La Vara for excellent innovative tapas, although I'm not too sure about their approach to having children there. Stay away from the "tapas" place on Montegue St. Although I haven't been there in quite awhile (& there have been several reports of it declining), Waterfalls on Atlantic Ave was always good for small plate Mid-Eastern food, especially vegetables. I also haven't been to the new Dosa place on Court St, but it may be worth a visit.

Actually, I tend to agree with the sentiments behind your post. I don't react well to people who tell me how to think and I'm pretty clear that I can easily remain friends with people who I really don't agree with on a # of things. But, I don't think that your conclusion follows from that. I can hear what he says, disagree with it and tell him so. I can also represent my own opinion about what he said by deciding to not support his business. Leaving him alone basically does nothing to advance the dialogue or assist with debating relevant issues. As for this particular debate, he is entitled to think anything he wants but there really is (or should be) a qualitative difference between allowing beliefs like "I think green is better than red" to exist without comment as opposed to issues of human equality. I believe that we owe it to each other to challenge ideas like his very forcefully, since they go to the very core of people's existence and treatment. Being outraged and expressing it on a food board is just a very small way of doing so.... at least for me.

Again, weinoo and I are in full agreement. My wife and I just spent a month living in Florence and the differences are evident (not our first trip so not a surprise). We already miss some of the things we began to take for granted. As weinoo basically said, although some of the differences can be traced to U.S. & local regulations, there is also the issue of many Americans (not food board folk of course ) wanting an antiseptic product and willing to sacrifice freshness and flavor to get it. After all, you can always add condiments like mustard, ketchup and mayo for the flavor. However, all that being said, some careful shopping can yield a pretty good array of items and Brooklyn has a pretty wide spectrum, from old line Italian meat and cheese stores to newish, artisinal product (Saxleby cheese for example). As long as you remain skeptical of all old things being good and all sincere youngsters/hipsters producing the best new pickle, you can do fine around here. To Franci: dont let the mussels experience completely color your view of Fairway. In my opinion (somewhat biased), the cheese and olive oil there are still great buys & worth going for. As is the view from the back coffee area.

I agree with Weinoo about Union Square probably being the best choice for you. However, a couple more ideas, since I live in Bklyn Heights and shop at Fairway/Fish Tales, so I'm probably close to you. First, the greenmarket by Bklyn Borough Hall sometimes has one of the seafood purveyors from Union Sq. Since it's walkable and open Wed/Sat, you might want to see if that'll work easier. Secondly, check with a couple of the local restaurants that serve mussels and whose owners live in the neighborhood... they'll know the differences and might be able to point you in the right direction. Chez Moi on Atlantic Ave comes to mind as one good choice... the owners are friendly and local. I'd also check with Noodle Pudding (dont let the name fool you, it's a "slow food" type Italian restaurant that's one of our favorite places to eat), all the way down Henry St almost to the Bklyn Bridge... the owner, Tony, is friendly and is fierce about buying fresh seafood, including a lot of local Long Island product, and may be helpful as well. My last thought is much more inconvenient but you might be interested enough to trek to the other end of Brooklyn and talk to the folks on the Sheepshead Bay boats that go out fishing every day. I'm pretty sure that the boats (that sell fish upon their daily returns, and take out day trippers) do not have any direct role with shellfish, but they are all very knowledgable about every aspect of the fishing/wholesaling/retailing industry related to seafood in the area. Besides, you'll get to see one of the "other sides" of Brooklyn. If you want more info., feel free to contact me.

Even though their advance p.r. (200 keys given out... no one else gets in...) & their website ( http://www.playearth.jp ) make it seem like a referrals only exclusive place, recent reviews at the yelp site (finally, yelp is useful) show otherwise. http://www.yelp.com/biz/bohemian-restaurant-new-york

I'd second Katja, newly enlarged & reopened. I've also liked (at a somewhat less refined level) Loreley. And, of course, Prime Meats (in Bklyn, from the Frankies) seems to be German-ish in intent if not a full blown ethnic experience. I'm not a Blaue Gans fan, but recognize it may well fit the bill. Unfortunately, Silver Swan closed 4 years ago.

I think Katz' has the best pastrami but there are other places. Here's a link for any of you that want to trek out to the far corner of Brooklyn: http://www.millbasindeli.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=20&Itemid=31 I've been going for many years and it's among the best in all deli meats. And the guy's an art dealer, so the walls are lined with original Erte's, Calders and other great pieces of art.

Not so fast there pardner: http://www.sheepsheadbites.com/2012/10/brightons-mi-international-plans-to-expand-but-community-demands-more-parking/

Henry's End is still there and we go at least monthly for years now (25 or so... we're old). We were just there a couple of nights ago eating soft shells, duck and King Salmon... all good. He (Mark, the owner and chef) has a game menu that starts late fall and runs thru the winter. Once the game menu starts they always have elk chops and rotate other game items in and out depending on availability. I've had kangaroo there several times, as well as ostrich, wild duck and boar. Less exotic but there's usually rabbit, turtle soup and venison on the menu as well. Excellent domestic wine list at very reasonable prices.

Which, I might add, worked very well after a big dinner at Mission Chinese food. Too bad they didn't have mint chip.

And the rest of us were very glad you did. The 6 of us went thru probably 2/3 of the menu and I have to admit, I didn't find just about anything that wasn't very good. Believe it or not, the pastrami was probably my least favorite, but I'd eat it again without hesitation. What I like about this place is that they're churning out inventive, interesting takes that are 10-20degrees off "normal" Chinese food (of any specific region). And they're doing it with a wide variety of styles and tastes. And at a very nice price point. And in a very friendly environment. Genuinely friendly. It will not replace my trips to Flushing for more traditional excellence at Fu Run, Little Pepper, Xi'an, Imperial Palace or the underground malls. But, for interesting somewhat off the wall stuff that works... this is the place. Aside... the beer comes in nice big cups while the glasses of wine are very small. Spend your $7/serving wisely. eta: I can't stop thinking about the brisket w/greens dish. Or the mackerel fried rice. Or even the peanuts.

This is not an upscale place but I admit to being more than an occasional customer. Very large portions of basic red sauce dishes, with eggplant rollatini that is almost perfect. It's the type of place that has more tables filled at 5:30 than at 8pm & where the average age is 40 only because it serves as many 10 year olds as 70 year olds. Not many places left with Keno games on TV screens in the dining rooms. Very old line and worth checking out. Just stick to basics & find a relatively inoffensive wine.

I agree about Tommaso's, but thought it was too far out of the way to mention (I wasn't actually recommending Parkside for this visit, just mentioning that it's the benchmark for red sauce Italian... and, since I'm going tonite, it's on my mind). The owner of Tommaso is an acquired taste but, if you like owners who break out into song (in his case, opera... not bad on some arias, by the way), then this might be perfect. The wine cellar is really good. You remind me that I have to get back there one of these days. Another place that has a great wine cellar is Manducatis (also in Queens). The kitchen is not what these others are but, if/when Ida is in the kitchen and, if she's feeling good (two big maybes these days), it can be the perfect place. By the way, Queen's decor was never actually replaced. The original location, with it's dark old-line furniture and lighting, was one block away (where the big movie theater and Barnes&Noble are now). That whole block was razed (about 15-20 years or so ago?) and Queen moved the restaurant to the current location, without relocating the pizza place it ran next door (the 1st place that Dom DeMarco made pizzas before opening DiFara's 40-something years ago). The new restaurant was furnished in "modern" style to keep up with the needs of the lunchtime lawyers and politicians who flock to the place & pizza was "by request only". Significant dinner business is relatively recent (5 years or so?) and I think that they're still wondering what happened to bring in all these "young 'uns" who like their food.

I agree that, whether you like the food or not, Frankies' on Court St in Bklyn is most definitely not old school NY Eyetalian. And I really don't think that either Roberta's or Franny's are either... not by a long shot. Additionally, I am hesitant to agree that you can order right in Bamonte's, as the last 3-4 meals I've had there were not good at all but, since I stopped going many years ago, I really can't provide any recent confirmation that it should be avoided. So, if you're going to stay in Manhattan and/or close-by Bklyn locations, I think that Piccolo Angolo really does the best job of it, with gigantic meatballs and a great variety of old time favorites, including slices of fresh garlic bread in the basket, gratis. And an owner (Renato) right out of the old school handbook. I love this place and have been going for over 15 years. Then there's Queen in Downtown Bklyn, which can hit the mark (although less so, in my opinion), but you have to put up with plastic flower ambience and a waitstaff that sometimes is old time friendly and other times seems not interested in you at all. Il Mulino is definitely in the category but the Manhattan location is tough to get into, is merciless with the upsell and price non-disclosure, and the food can be uneven. Of course, when this long time Brooklynite wants an old time red sauce place, I'm just as likely to get in the car and hit Park Side in Corona (as I'm doing with friends from this board on Friday) as I am to walk the 3 blocks from my home to Queen. Just saying'.

"Oh, if you like beer, there is a place called Open Baladin that has hundreds of beers. I know you can get that in the US, but they'll have a ton of artisanal beers made in Italy. another huge rage here now". That reminds me that we lucked into a really interesting place across from the Testaccio market that had 20-30 pages of beers. A lot were out of stock, but many were available and worth a shot. Wine list was also incredibly good, as they are a retail food and wine store and sell everything from the shelves to those at the tables.

Mitch - Eliz. Minchilli's blog last week has a great lead on hamburgers in Rome... that got people talking More seriously, in that article, she references the place that the sous chef from Arco went to and that sounds hot right now. And, just a reminder that Ginny and I went to Perilli twice last month when we were there. Think pajata (or carbonara). Hanging out in Testaccio a bit, it seemed to us that a # of new places seem to be opening in that area. There's also a wine bar right on the square in Campo de Fiore that has a great listing by the glass and tables outside. In the middle of tourist central but it looked genuine. Remind me to give you the name... it's been there, looks like forever.

It's been 20 years since I've been there, dragged by a vegetarian friend who lives in Vermont and meditates quite often (at the direction (suggestion?) of his spiritual master of course). Not that I'm biased against places like this but they're not the big, bold red sauce eyetalian haunts that I so cherish for my own meditative practice. At any rate, I found the meal exactly as Will describes and I really liked it. Except for sitting in a very uncomfortable position, that is. Twenty years later, I have fond memories of how many types of seaweed I now know I can enjoy without feeling in need of therapy. And I'd go back. But my Vt. friend wont visit this amoral, corrupt big city again so there goes my excuse (and he, like Bernie Sanders and Ben/Jerry, is from Bklyn... sheesh).

Hell, send them to Arturo's and be done with it. The back room is relatively quiet, the pizza is more than good and the wine list... well, it's drinkable.

Yes, they are still good. But everything has gone downhill in the last ten years, hasn't it? I'll have to be the dissenting voice then. YS's knishes are now uneven, at best (& I think I'm being kind). I have not had a really good one in years, but I've had many bad ones. If nothing else, I am a persistent creature and just cant admit that something's over. Maybe, given your opinion, I'll try again? Sometimes the persistence pays off, however... I had an above mediocre meal at Jackson Diner (the one still in J.Hts.) this past weekend (talk about going against the odds, huh?).

Ginny and I enjoyed it as well. Always nice to see weinoo again (or whatever his other names are) but missed Ms. Weinoo. And, of course, our regular eating companions Rich and Peg. At any rate, for a Monday night, this place was on. Okay, so there werent any 1950's type "cigarette girls" giving out samples of beer the way there were another time we were there, but there was a magician going table to table doing card tricks. Really. Weinoo pretty much named the dishes so I wont belabor the point(s). I remain convinced that this is the best of its ilk and it reminds me of some of the old Little Italy places I used to like years ago (Da Nico for one, but that was 20 years ago, when the backyard tables faced apartments where old Italian ladies were hanging out their wet wash and.... well, I digress). It has an Italian-American charm to it, doesnt do too much upsell and the food is above what is usually the case in these type places at a better than average price point. And the lit bocce court just outside the door and the valet parking and Lemon Ice King across the street... well, its a one block Arthur Ave. Worth going.

You should. We're going back tonite and taking a couple of others who've never been. It's across the street from bocce courts and one block from Lemon Ice King. By the way, if you want to downscale it and see old Bklyn as it used to be (Keno boards in the dining rooms and all), go to Colandra's New Corner in the 70s (8th Ave). Get the eggplant rollatine app. and the lasagne. Look around at the customer base... 70 and 80 year olds finished by 5:30pm, families then arriving and leaving around 7-7:30pm, and some tables (like us) arriving at 7pm or so and just about closing it down by 9pm. The food is better than our local red sauce places (Red Rose, Sam's, Marco Polo) but not up to Queen. Worth the trip though. I think even Sneakeater liked it when we took him.

No, these days you get a valet ticket/stub Obviously (since we've been there together several times and are going again next week), I agree that Parkside is a very good place for the old style Eyetalian-American (well Bklyn/Queens/Bronx) type of food. It's certainly better than any of the others of its ilk (Don Peppe, Piccolo Venezia, Marco Polo, Michaels...), although Queen can give it a run for the money (on just the food... certainly not on atmosphere or service) most of the time. But, even though Queen is 2 blocks from me, I'll drive to Corona for Parkside almost any time I want this experience. Last of its kind at this level.

I guess that when you dont cook at home much and go out as regularly as we do, the answer to questions like this can be long. We're regulars at La Mancha (a Spanish place around the corner from where we live), Henry's End (a really nice upscale American food place in our neighborhood that has a game menu in winter and great soft shells at peak time), at Otto, at Chestnut, at Redhead (well, we've slipped a bit on this) & at Ali's Kebab Cafe. And, to a lesser extent (but where we're immediately recognized and greeted), at at least another 6-10 places (like at Devi/Tulsi, or anywhere that Hemant goes). Honestly, I'm not sure what we get out of each... some comped drinks and a better chance at a bar seat at Otto, some comped drinks/dishes at the others... but what we love getting out of each is the feeling of comfort that goes with being known and, therefore, feeling more at ease & being able to engage in conversations with others. Guess we gotta get back to Locanda V. and finally get to Purple Yam, huh?

Most of the time when we're in the mood for that kind of interaction, we sit at the bar to eat. But, if a communal table is available and we're in the mood, we're fine with it. There are plenty of good places in NYC where communal tables can be enjoyable and, when it's not, we know how to shut off our interactions. Given how close together some places put individual tables, you might as well be dining communally anyway.

Not that anyone asked, but my current favorite places in Flushing are Imperial Palace, several of the stalls in Golden Mall and Fu Run (used to be Waterfront) on Prince St. I've personally never found a dim sum out there that is worth going out of my way for but the mall's stalls are better for snacking anyway.