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Daniel Boulud's DBGB on Bowery


Holly Moore

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So soft opening to the public was last night. Reservations in the main dining room were booked until 10 so I walked in and got a seat in the bar/cafe area with three friends. The fact that these bar tables are not overseen by the host stand is a little bit perplexing. It gives the bar area more of a disorganized atmosphere that doesn't really benefit anyone. In addition to the usual masses of people stalking bar seats, you have parties stalking tables. It's kind of of awkward. I kind of lucked out in getting a bar seat right away for a pre-dinner drink while my friends quickly found a table. I could see this being very frustrating though, especially if you're not willing to be all eagle-eyed and pushy with the tables. The fact that couples took up four-tops and groups of three and four were forced to sit at tables for two doesn't seem all that efficient.

I will say the space is rather striking. The dining room is set a little below street level and you immediately walk into this glass foyer that looks over the entire restaurant. The beer list and text scrawled and imprinted on the glass mirrors that circle the top of the room are all but illegible, making them kind of pointless. The much blogged pans from famous chefs across the world are cool I suppose but don't make much of an impression in this busy space. If you didn't know you'd be hard pressed to think they're any different than the copper cookware in any bistro or brasserie.

Servers were harried but friendly. It was their first night so I'll cut them some slack, but our table was about the only one in the bar area that had to request both a bread basket (with our two plates of charcuterie) and a condiment rack (with out burgers and sausages). It's super busy so don't expect coddling. Our food came quickly, perhaps too quickly, but everything was prepared very well.

The bar menu is a rather abbreviated version of the main dining room menu. Oyster, two types of charcuterie, three dogs, three burgers, some cheeses, and perhaps a salad. The variety of sausages and composed dishes available on the full menu are not offered in the bar. Still, we put together a well-rounded meal. There are a good number of well chosen beers on tap, but they're all rather expensive. A couple $6 selections, and it goes up from there. No $3 PBR cans or $5 Brooklyn Lager specials here.

My favorite of the three burgers was actually the Yankee, the most basic of the lot. I felt as though the pork belly on the Frenchie and pulled pork on the Piggie were perhaps a bit distracting, though both were wholly enjoyable. The grind and cooking on both burgers was exemplary. Loosely formed, juicy, very tasty. Burgers are a few dollars more expensive than what was shown on preview menus, so while tasty they're not particularly cheap. To start we also tried the two charcuterie items on offer. Both were very good, but should be served with more than a single slice of crusty bread. The bread in the bread basket itself was, surprisingly, forgettable. The dogs were the weak point for me, and the DBGB dog was the weakest dish of the night. It was fine but the filling was too airy and smooth. If I'm being honest I find Thuuman's dogs to be much more flavorful and snappy. Also had the Tunisienne, a very skinny merguez sausage on a bun. Flavor was good, but the sausage itself was a bit dry; the bun-sausage ratio was a bit off which further contributed to the perceived dryness.

Desserts were classic but really intense. The coffee ice cream in our chocolate-coffee sundaes was pleasantly bitter. The sweetness came from rich brownie squares that managed to shy away from being cloying. The souffle was technically great, with strong Grand Marnier flavor. Would like to try the Baked Alaska for two, but at $18 we weren't ready to take that risk on a somewhat bizarre sounding dessert.

After tax, tip, and one beer I spent about $46. One could spend less, but not much less. Of course, the sky is the limit with premium items like the seafood towers and more expensive plated dishes available in the main dining room. I thought it was a good value given the level of quality in the ingredients and unimpeachable execution. Wish service was a bit less harried but that will hopefully work itself out in the coming weeks and months.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Finally made it back to DBGB with a friend (and a reservation) last night.

We started with a couple of (free-poured - boo!) cocktails in the jam-packed bar area. At 8 PM, not a place where I'd really want to try and enjoy any food, but that's just me.

However, once you're ushered into the restaurant proper, it feels almost serene by comparison - it's not, mind you, but it's quite comfy - and those banquettes along the walls look really cozy.

I'd heard reports of crazy waits and the kitchen getting backed up, but at prime time last night we saw none of that - as a matter of fact, the service, from the hosts and hostesses to the wait staff, was great.

This is food I love, so I really can't find much fault with any of it. Some of the appetizer portions (hey, it's sausage!) might have been a tad precious, but they're not so expensive where having 3 or 4 of them is gonna blow your budget.

Standout appetizers were the duo of mackerel, including a perfectly cooked warm filet as well as mackerel rillettes, the veal tongue with fingerlings and the crispy tripe lyonnais-style. If you've never had or liked tripe before, this dish should change your mind.

Instead of opting for "main courses," we chose instead to share 2 of the 3 burgers on the menu, the Yankee and the Piggie. The delicious Yankee, coming on a sesame seed bun with all your favorite garnishes, was cooked as ordered and served with fries and an Essex St. pickle slice. A bit of a fuss has been made about the Daisy Mae pulled pork bbq topping on the Piggie, but I thought it was great...something different, on it's own special bun. I mean, if anyone is worried about covering up the flavor of a burger, why would cheese ever go on top either? It may not be a hamburger, but it's a burger and it's damn tasty. The fries deserve a special mention - at least they did last night, because they were perfect - crispy and salty, and dunked into that spicy mustard - just right. Crispy down to the bottom, by the way, and if you've ever scarfed up the last of the Balthazar fries, you know what I mean.

Dessert was the Kriek-Beer and cherry sundae; I'm no dessert expert, but there wasn't any left.

With this style of cooking, at this price range, in this location...we might be seeing the first serious competition to the Balthazar style of restaurant in the city. Opened, that is, by someone other than Keith McNally.

Mitch Weinstein aka "weinoo"

Tasty Travails - My Blog

My eGullet FoodBog - A Tale of Two Boroughs

Was it you baby...or just a Brilliant Disguise?

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"We started with a couple of (free-poured - boo!) cocktails in the jam-packed bar area. At 8 PM, not a place where I'd really want to try and enjoy any food, but that's just me."

Free Poured - BOO???????

Please explain the boo. As a bartender for more than 10 years this one escapes me.

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By one of the country's best bartenders, from a thread here called "The Rusty Knot" (the name of a New York City bar he helped open, where all drinks, initially, were free-poured):

I am now trying to figure the best way to eat crow.  Breaded and fried with a corn relish?  I have egg white on my face.  I thought that it would be possible to open a bar without jiggers.  I was wrong.  I thought that if you give bartenders the right tools that they would do the right thing, they would take some pride on putting out a quality, consistant product. I was wrong.  I have learned that if you have fresh squeezed juices, good booze and thoughtfuly contructed syrups you need jiggers. 

Please forgive my hubris.

Toby

This thread isn't the place for it, but if you search around the Cocktail board, you'll see several discussions of the merits and demerits of free-pouring.

Edited by Sneakeater (log)
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We started with a couple of (free-poured - boo!) cocktails in the jam-packed bar area.  At 8 PM, not a place where I'd really want to try and enjoy any food, but that's just me.

Free Poured - BOO???????

Please explain the boo.  As a bartender for more than 10 years this one escapes me.

if you search around the Cocktail board, you'll see several discussions of the merits and demerits of free-pouring.

I can explain the "boo" even better...although Toby's testimonial is pretty informing.

For $10 or $11, I'd like the bartender to actually act like he or she cares how my drink tastes...the same as the chef cares about how my food tastes.

As Sneakeater pointed out, there is another topic where free-pouring vs. jiggering is discussed. It's here:

Will Jiggers Kill the Bar Star?

Mitch Weinstein aka "weinoo"

Tasty Travails - My Blog

My eGullet FoodBog - A Tale of Two Boroughs

Was it you baby...or just a Brilliant Disguise?

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I can't agree.  For $58 an entree do you need the Chef to use measuring spoons to demonstrate care? 

Good staff, not jiggers, make a good bar. 

Now...back to DBGB.

I would argue that precision in cocktail creation is an entirely different thing than precision in cooking. (It is probably more akin to baking if anything). A bit too much or too little of any one ingredient can throw a cocktail off completely.

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I can't agree.  For $58 an entree do you need the Chef to use measuring spoons to demonstrate care? 

Good staff, not jiggers, make a good bar. 

Now...back to DBGB.

Never said DBGB wasn't a good bar. What I said is that if I'm ordering $10 or $11 cocktails at DBGB, that requires the use of the jiggers - which were sitting on the bar.

The beers were just fine.

And while the chef doesn't need to use measuring spoons, they usually taste the food before it goes out - the same as a good bartender does with a cocktail.

Mitch Weinstein aka "weinoo"

Tasty Travails - My Blog

My eGullet FoodBog - A Tale of Two Boroughs

Was it you baby...or just a Brilliant Disguise?

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Do you care how nice a cook is?

No, you care how skilled and precise he is.

What separates a Serious Bar from a hangout is that the 'tenders care as much or more about carefully mixing quality drinks as they do about cozying up to the customers.

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OK.

I agree with a lot of you:

You can argue that drink making is closer to Pastry. The difference is that you can add to a drink, hard to do with a cake.

You would only know to add something if you taste the drinks that you are making...something that should be done.

Whether or not the barman uses a jigger, all that I ask is that the rest of his bar does not suffer. I don't like waiting 30 minutes at the bar for a glass of bourbon because the drink ordered in front of me has the staff searching for two types of ice and cultivating exotic herbs. Some bars can pull off both great cocktails and efficient service (Bobo come to mind) while others cannot (long list).

Can't wait to check out DBGB!

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Return trip to DBGB last night with a party of six. My pre-dinner drink last night, taken in the bar, was an Americano (made with Anitca, which I didn't even have to ask for). Just fine, free poured. Why not just remove the jiggers from the bar already?

Seems like they have a lot of the early service issues worked out - transferring the check from the bar was no problem, and service was quite efficient, a big leap forward from the first week or two. True, Daniel was in the house - maybe that helped a bit.

Our party shared 4 appetizers, and though we were counseled to order two of each, that was a bit much. The asparagus with duck prosciutto, fried egg and cracklings might've been the best of the bunch, followed closely by both the super tender grilled octopus (the panisse served alongside is fight-over able) and a lovely slice of PÂTÉ CAMPAGNARD, which would've been even better with more than the 1 slice of bread that came with it. Minor quibble - while the bread is okay, maybe another variety or two would make that bread basket so much better.

Most of our party ordered burgers, which I've had and liked before. As a matter of fact, I was the only one to order something different for my main course - the lamb, two ways, including a confit rib and roasted leg, served perfectly medium rare, as ordered. Over a great spring bean casserole (favas, limas and haricots), tender, juicy and just slightly gamey, if the lamb dish is any indication of the "rest" of the menu, there should be enough here to keep the multitudes happy for a long time.

And I still look forward to trying the Grand Marnier soufflé.

Mitch Weinstein aka "weinoo"

Tasty Travails - My Blog

My eGullet FoodBog - A Tale of Two Boroughs

Was it you baby...or just a Brilliant Disguise?

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Went last night at 8 - had a reservation - the place was crazy packed and LOUD. (I will not bring my parents there anytime soon.) My first contact with the host didn't go so well: he unapologetically and with a great deal of attitude told us to get drinks at the bar (how exactly? bar was four deep) and that they were running behind on reservation time. But before I could even tweet my annoyance, we were told a table was available - in the back room, luckily, because there's no way I would have been able to have a conversation in the front room.

Our server was knowledgeable, attentive and friendly, a bit of an up-seller, but not annoyingly so. Had some delicious beer (I know nothing about beer whatsoever and rarely drink it, but here it seemed the thing to do) and started by sharing the grilled octopus and the rillettes. Both were very flavorful and well-prepared, but they were the smallest portions I've ever seen. If nothing else, the one-slice-of-toast with the rillettes has got to be rectified.

Happily dug into my burger (the Yankee), which was very good and flavorful. I can't say it was the best burger I've ever had. Dessert was the caramel-coffee sundae, a bit underwhelming.

In all I'd say it was a mostly satisfying meal, but I was not blown away by anything I had. I would go back to try more of the charcuterie for sure. This place is a total scene though, you've got to be in the mood for that.

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Just as a point of information, ALL reserved tables are in the back room. The front room is strictly walk-in (and the full menu isn't served there).

So if you have a reservation, you will ALWAYS eat in the back room and NEVER in the unbearable front room.

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Our server was knowledgeable, attentive and friendly, a bit of an up-seller, but not annoyingly so.  Had some delicious beer (I know nothing about beer whatsoever and rarely drink it, but here it seemed the thing to do) and started by sharing the grilled octopus and the rillettes.  Both were very flavorful and well-prepared, but they were the smallest portions I've ever seen.  If nothing else, the one-slice-of-toast with the rillettes has got to be rectified.

That's so weird about the portion size because our two portions of octopus on my last visit were big...and I totally agree with the one slice of toast thing; they don't really expect you to pile all the rillettes on that one slice, do they?

And there's no way I'll be going there without a reservation, at least not for the foreseeable future. At DBGB, it seems, Tuesday might be the new Thursday - or is that the new Wednesday?

Mitch Weinstein aka "weinoo"

Tasty Travails - My Blog

My eGullet FoodBog - A Tale of Two Boroughs

Was it you baby...or just a Brilliant Disguise?

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Our server was knowledgeable, attentive and friendly, a bit of an up-seller, but not annoyingly so.  Had some delicious beer (I know nothing about beer whatsoever and rarely drink it, but here it seemed the thing to do) and started by sharing the grilled octopus and the rillettes.  Both were very flavorful and well-prepared, but they were the smallest portions I've ever seen.  If nothing else, the one-slice-of-toast with the rillettes has got to be rectified.

That's so weird about the portion size because our two portions of octopus on my last visit were big...and I totally agree with the one slice of toast thing; they don't really expect you to pile all the rillettes on that one slice, do they?

And there's no way I'll be going there without a reservation, at least not for the foreseeable future. At DBGB, it seems, Tuesday might be the new Thursday - or is that the new Wednesday?

As long as it's not the new Saturday I'm open to it ....

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I went for brunch with my brother and the place was pleasantly busy. Not at all jam-packed. They sat us at a little table and I asked to move to one of the comfy banquettes, and it worked. Much better!

The piggie is everything that has already been said here: simply delicious, and juicy and smoky.

Also loved the classic DBGB dog - perfect sausage-to-bun ratio, toasted bun.

Fries? Perfection, too.

Service? great. Very efficient.

Crab cake with curry sauce? Best I've had in years, all crab, no fillers. Perfectly seasoned.

I left the place with a smile that went from ear to ear, basically. And plan to go back asap.

I've posted photos of all the dishes here

Alexandra Forbes

Brazilian food and travel writer, @aleforbes on Twitter

Official Website

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  • 4 weeks later...

my friend and i walked in at 7:30 on the second night dbgb started offering the full menu at the bar. as sneakeater posted, the hostess informed us that the front is first come first serve. they don't take names, which means the diners are left to fend for themselves for a seat. i'm not a fan of hawking in the first place, but it seems odd that one of daniel's spots would allow this–perhaps to stay true to the rambunctious brasserie vibe? luckily we saddled up against the bar right away. others throughout the night weren't so lucky as they anxiously waited for others to wrap up. i also noticed two girls taking up a 4 top, their designer purses snagging up the adjacent seats. unless i misunderstood the hostess, dbgb should seriously consider keeping a list of the walk-ins.

by the time we started ordering, we acclimated to the noise and felt comfortable at the bar. both of the bartenders were great. we ordered:

octopus la plancha w/crispy panisse - well prepared and tender. the coiled end of the tentacle had a lot of flavor.

fried egg and asparagus w/duck proscuitto - simple, delicious, a must.

roasted bone marrow - great presentation; the entire length of the bone split in half, i'd guess just shy of a foot.

gilles verot fromage de tete - the bartender said it's slightly different than bar boulud's version but i really couldn't tell, which i suppose is a good thing.

tunisienne - spicy lamb & mint merguez w/lemon braised spinach, chickpeas. excellent.

the frenchie - not nearly as pretty as the pics online, but it's one flavorful burger. well-seasoned, juicy and balanced. fries were slightly soggy but still very good.

kreik beer-cherry sundae - prob should've gone with the souffle but this came highly reco'd. it's good but it's not a $9 dessert.

besides the sundae, the price is very fair. nice beer and wine list, good service, plenty of interesting and well-prepared items on the menu. the crowd is tolerable in the front, but i'm making a reservation to dine in the back next time.

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i'm not a fan of hawking in the first place, but it seems odd that one of daniel's spots would allow this–perhaps to stay true to the rambunctious brasserie vibe? luckily we saddled up against the bar right away. others throughout the night weren't so lucky as they anxiously waited for others to wrap up. i also noticed two girls taking up a 4 top, their designer purses snagging up the adjacent seats. unless i misunderstood the hostess, dbgb should seriously consider keeping a list of the walk-ins.

I predict that after the first actual fight, they start taking names for the front.

If you're waiting for seats at the bar, do the bartenders at least take mental note and make sure you get bar seats if you've indicated you want one?

Mitch Weinstein aka "weinoo"

Tasty Travails - My Blog

My eGullet FoodBog - A Tale of Two Boroughs

Was it you baby...or just a Brilliant Disguise?

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i'm not a fan of hawking in the first place, but it seems odd that one of daniel's spots would allow this–perhaps to stay true to the rambunctious brasserie vibe? luckily we saddled up against the bar right away. others throughout the night weren't so lucky as they anxiously waited for others to wrap up. i also noticed two girls taking up a 4 top, their designer purses snagging up the adjacent seats. unless i misunderstood the hostess, dbgb should seriously consider keeping a list of the walk-ins.

I predict that after the first actual fight, they start taking names for the front.

If you're waiting for seats at the bar, do the bartenders at least take mental note and make sure you get bar seats if you've indicated you want one?

i didn't ask or notice if they were taking keeping track, but i'd be surprised if the staff hadn't already refereed a heated argument or two. i can definitely picture a mixup escalating into a fight, especially on the weekends. it's also bad for the diners who have a table as all eyes are on them as they near the end of the meal. a walk-in list would ensure civil guests. well, as civil as they come.

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i didn't ask or notice if they were taking keeping track, but i'd be surprised if the staff hadn't already refereed a heated argument or two. i can definitely picture a mixup escalating into a fight, especially on the weekends. it's also bad for the diners who have a table as all eyes are on them as they near the end of the meal. a walk-in list would ensure civil guests. well, as civil as they come.

Yes, that's a lovely way to enjoy a meal - with people breathing down your neck. As Sneakeater mentioned elsewhere (I think), it's really two different restaurants, and I'll take the back room, thank you :smile: .

By the way, very civilized at lunch.

Mitch Weinstein aka "weinoo"

Tasty Travails - My Blog

My eGullet FoodBog - A Tale of Two Boroughs

Was it you baby...or just a Brilliant Disguise?

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  • 1 year later...

Went last night and now the full menu is offered at the bar/cafe section.

We had an excellent brandade croquette appetizer with a white bean, cilantro, and spicy tomato-pepper garnish. I've got some baccala sitting around, so I'm tempted to try making it.

You can order two sausages as a main, so we got four-Tunisienne, which is like a merguez, Beaujolaise, more French rustic with pork and mushrooms, canard, and Thai. All were good, Thai and canard really good.

Very reasonably priced-$13 for the brandade app and $25 for each pair of sausages.

An impressive display of classic copperware from the kitchens of various distinguished chefs.

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Had a late dinner here a couple weekends ago. The boudin basque, a round of blood sausage studded with head cheese nuggets over mashed potatoes sprinkled with Espelette pepper was the best thing I ate on my trip to NY. Add in excellent oysters and a well thought out beer list, and I was quite pleased.

True rye and true bourbon wake delight like any great wine...dignify man as possessing a palate that responds to them and ennoble his soul as shimmering with the response.

DeVoto, The Hour

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