Pan

I went to this restaurant yesterday with my girlfriend, based on recommendations from Chowhounds who struck me as knowledgeable. For a place that started out by putting me off somewhat because the teacup had a residual lemon cleanser aroma and I had to have my chopsticks replaced, due to a couple of bits of vegetable on them, I could hardly have been more pleased. We ordered Fried Tofu with Assorted Seafood in Casserole, a special, and Pea Shoots with Double Egg. The casserole was excellent, superior to the equivalent dish at Congee Village. The pea shoots were accompanied by century egg and egg drop over chopped meat (probably pork), making for an interesting and again, very tasty and satisfying dish. I really liked my meal, and the portions were absolutely humongous (while the prices were inexpensive: $38 and change before tip), so I took home most of it. And I haven't finished it yet; most of the pea shoots are still in my refrigerator. It's unlikely I would have wandered into the restaurant without recommendations, because its exterior is so unprepossessing - it looks like they haven't done anything to it in 20 years, maybe longer - and you really can't judge the food's quality from the menu. But take it from me; it's well worth going. Cantoon Garden 22 Elizabeth St. (between Bayard and Canal) (212) 964-2229

You should be able to get most if not all of these items in big Chinese supermarkets. The biggest I know of within city limits is A&C in Flushing, on Kissena Blvd. across the street from the Flushing branch of the Queens Borough Public Library. In Manhattan, try Hong Kong Supermarket on Pike St. (extension of Allen) between East Broadway and Madison St.

I wouldn't know the answer to your question, but if he is in fact different in person than the image he presents on TV, that surely is not unusual.

absolutely!! but i think you're sarcastic, no? some make no profit at all. (see fleur de sel, fiamma).[...] ← No sarcasm here. As oakapple said, obviously, some restaurants fail. That doesn't prove that high-end restaurants generally have thin profit margins. Maybe I should specifically ask the question about a place like Ko. As currently constituted, what would tend to cut into their profit margin, as opposed to padding it? Obviously, they pay rent and insurance. Their food expenses are presumably lower than the charge for their dishes, right? They undoubtedly make money on drinks. They pay out to the people in the kitchen and can only serve a limited number of covers per day. Where do you think the profit/loss margin would end up, with everything considered?

Lupa is a medium-priced restaurant where meals with a quartino of wine cost around $45-50/person before tip. They'd be crazy to waste time and money sending someone to buy out-of-season asparagus, and anyone who asked them to do so would be totally unreasonable. Felonius, I love the story about your father.

Do high-end restaurants have thin profit margins?

One possibility is to ask to have a taste of the wine before purchasing a bottle. In high-end restaurants, and even medium-priced places like Lupa, they have gladly given me and my dining partners tastes of wine before we decided whether we would order even a quartino. As a matter of fact, not only did our waitress happily do that for us at Babbo when I had dinner there a few months ago, but so did our waiter at Lupa on Monday night. We didn't like the first wine but did like the second wine. And in his case, he provided us with a taste without our even having asked for one. But I have found that high-end restaurants are always happy to give tastes of as many as three different wines, if asked. But none of this really addresses your situation, because it sounds like you reasonably counted on the knowledge of a sommelier. If I had been you, and the wine had been very clearly at variance with the sommelier's description and unsatisfactory, I would have insisted on sending the wine back, though apologetically (something like: "I'm sorry; this wine really tastes terrible and nothing like the sommelier's description. I really hate to send it back, but I really have to. Please bring us a taste of another wine we might like.").

My friend took me out for a birthday dinner tonight at Lupa. Everything was very good, but I want to particularly recommend the butternut squash appetizer, which comes with pickled onion slices, and the braised oxtail secondo. Both were in my opinion standout delicious items.

Yes. Harmony Palace is another one that is often rented out for wedding or community association banquets.

I'm surprised there's been no activity on this thread for so long. Anyway, I had dinner tonight at Kefi with my parents. It's now in a larger space at 505 Columbus, between 84th and 85th Sts., but the food is exactly the same as it was at the old location, which is to say: Great. This is a remarkably consistent and high-quality restaurant, especially at this price point. Moreover, our waiter was friendly, and we had good service. We had the following: Bean and spinach soup - a special, which was wonderfully lemony and soothing. Two Greek salads (good as usual). Appetizer of delicious lamb sausage on skewers with some pita, tzatziki, and a little bit of salad. My mother was a little put off that it was kind of raw in the middle and brought it to the attention of the waiter, who explained that they deliberately sear it. I was surprised, too, when I noticed how red it was inside, but I had no complaint because it was so tasty. Sheep's Milk Dumplings, Tomato, Pine Nuts, Spicy Lamb Sausage. Yes, my mother had lots of sausage tonight. This dish was delicious, as usual, and quite spicy. Grilled Branzino, Potato, Olive, Tomato. I ordered this, and it was the same as ever - perfectly unfishy, perfectly cooked fish with nice accompaniments. Grilled Swordfish, Tomato, Cauliflower, Olives. My father ordered this, and I didn't try it, but he spoke very appreciatively of it. For dessert, my parents got one galaktoboureko apiece, which both of them loved (I tried my mother's, and it was lovely). I got the yogurt, thin-sliced almonds, and honey dessert, which was soothing and satisfying, as always. The new location is very big, and I think it's great that such a good place is able to expand successfully at a time of economic hardship. I celebrate their success!

You got sick. That sucks! I'm enjoying these reports, though. I've been to Singapore only once, in 1976, but did have wonderful food there. By the way, lobak goh is usually called "turnip cake" here, but "daikon cake" would be more accurate. "Carrot cake" gives the wrong image (sweet cake, probably including raisins and with icing), and really, as you probably know, carrots are called "red daikon" in Chinese and Malay (the Malay version is "lobak merah").

I live very close to Grand Sichuan St. Marks, I'm a regular customer, and I got takeout from them tonight. All that said, I consider the 24th and 9th location better. The best Sichuan-style restaurant in Manhattan, though, is Szechuan Gourmet, 39th between 5th and 6th, and it is possible to eat there for about $20/person (though it could also be $30, depending on what you order).

Yeah, it's really strange. Supermarkets and just plain convenience stores can sell beer but not wine, but until you mentioned it, I hadn't thought about the fact that liquor stores can't sell beer. Do you know how that state of affairs came about?

I've been getting delivery from Congee Village lately, and it's all been good (though it can take a long time, especially on weekends and, of course, around Chinese New Year), but I did have one mixed experience the last time I ate there, about a month ago. Their Hot and Sour soup was totally excellent - better than it's ever been, truly hot and sour and without sweetness. But the Five Spices Duck tasted very strongly of cod liver oil, which is a problem I don't think I've ever experienced except in chicken. It was really disturbing. But that isn't a service problem. Your mother's experience is really weird.

Sure, why not? Sounds good. Gung Hey Fat Choy!

I guess I don't understand what a "foodie" is, then. Foodies aren't all about the food?

It sounds completely different from what you are thinking of doing, but I'll just note that most of the Koreatown restaurants are open 24 hours.

I've never heard of La Sirene, but where are you getting that Lavagna is a current favorite? I used to like the place but haven't been there in years, because there are a lot of other places that are cheaper and better, including Cacio e Vino. August is a place I liked very much when I went there, but it was probably July 4, 2005 or 2006.

I had some great dishes at Jo Jo back in their heyday in the 1980s, but even if they're still serving the same dishes, they probably won't be the same. So: Babbo: Their amazing Casunziei Very honorable mention: Goose Liver Ravioli with Balsamic Vinegar and Brown Butter Are you all surprised I didn't mention Spicy & Tasty in this thread?

That meal looks amazing! Was it as good as it looks?

This was the first McDonald's in Manhattan, and obviously Sokolov could not have predicted that there would eventually be one every 10 blocks. But it clearly didn't meet the traditional one-star criteria by any stretch of the imagination.I trust we can all agree, however, that Bruni has stretched the traditional star system to a degree not matched by any of his predecessors. Whether it's a good or bad thing is open to debate. ← Can you think of anyplace that doesn't serve clearly better food than McDonald's that Bruni gave a star to?

I agree with your friends. Just the same, I generally would order something to drink in that situation.

Huh?

Well, I beg to differ. Their 3-course Cucina Povera menu is $35. Tonight it includes a Ribollita soup, braised lamb shank with polenta and rapini and a hazelnut budino for dessert. Ordering smartly off the regular menu, a nice meal can be put together at $50 for food. ← Btw, thanks for the correction.

OK, I get where you're coming from. We just have different priorities or different criteria.