Did anyone eat out for Thanksgiving in NYC?

[flinflon28]

Three of us at Bouley and it was fine. Not earthshattering but very good.

There were choices for appetizer, middl and main courses and they wer primarily from th regular Bouley menu with the addition of a turkey option for the entree.

I had the phyllo crusted shrimp and squid appetizer which I hear is pretty much his signatur dish and it was outstanding and definitely the highlight of th meal for me. The sauce managed to incorporate every flavor of the ocean an required a litte extra bread to sop up the goodness. Great bread was served...in particular th raisin nut bread and they were generous with options and portions each time the bread trolley came by. My second course was steamed bass (I think) which was quit good but the sauce was overwhelmed with ginger to the point where I don't think it was intentional. This was fine with me as I am a ginger fanatic but I could see it being a problem for others.

My main was lamb which was fine...not particularly remarkable. Friends had the turkey option and it was also just ok.

I had th buttrnut squash macaroon for dessert and I was pleasanlty surprised...quite delicious.

Service was was professional and not frazzled but we at at 3:30 and one of the runners explained that they had quite an evening ahead of them.

A round of drinks we ordered was forgotten for about 15 minutes and when it was brought to their attention more effort was placed into finding out who dropped the ball rather than bringing th cocktails...this has happned every time I've eaten at Bouley. When the drinks were finally brought one was spilt on my dining companion...not a disaster as he is asygoing and it just isn't something worth getting upset about. That round was comped.

What I liked about eating early was that there was enough time to digest and be able to go out for more drinks without being too full and the portions were enough to fill you up but there was no "Thanksgiving coma" afterwards!

[zimonsays]

I didn’t eat out for Thanks Giving but I did order a Turkey from Rub BBQ. I typically don’t love Turkey but this was very good . The bird was about a 12 pounder. It had a great smoky flavor and was really juicy .The suggested retail was a little pricey compared to some other places…... Next year I’m going deep fried, any suggestions…

[Pan]

I figure it's time to revive this thread.

I'm sick today and had to miss the celebration. Surprisingly, I struck out on trying to get delivery. I called a little after 2 PM, and Grand Sichuan St. Marks, Taksim, and Teresa's were all closed. Congee Village and Cafe Mogador were doing only takeout. I got the following at Mogador:

16 oz Lamb/harissa soup

Chicken tagine (1/2 of a small chicken) with charmoula and extra harissa

Moroccan tea

Two pitas from a commercial package were also provided.

The total cost of the meal was $27 and change, and the food was very good. Attendance at the restaurant was pretty sparse at the time I was there waiting for and picking up my food.

[mascarpone]

Hey, Pan. I am sorry to hear that you were under-the-weather on Turkey day.

By coincidence, my wife and I ate at Cafe Mogador (Saint Marks, btwn Ave. A and 1st Ave). I called the night before and made a reservation for two. We both got the thirty-dollar holiday special. The meal started out with a glass of bubbly (six dollars extra, I can't remember the name). We both got the butternut squash soup and the mixed salad with pear, walnut, and goat cheese. I got the Cornish hen stuffed with couscous and raisins, while she got the short ribs with mashed potato. There was a warm apple cake in sweet crème sauce for dessert.

It was a very nice meal. The soup and main dish were both served piping hot. My favorite was the short ribs--my wife abdicated the remainder of her meal to me as her stomach was at capacity. There were no ribs to speak of, just very tender cuts of meat. I also liked my hen stuffed with couscous and raisins. Service was very warm and efficient.

As it turned out, dinner was only part of our epicurean adventure this Thanksgiving. We saw an excellent film, Volver at Sunrise Theater on Houston in the AM, and ate lunch next door at Yohah Schimmel's. We both shared a bowl of Borsht and a mozzarella potato knish. She drank coffee, and I had water. The best thing was the knish. The borsht was a variation that I was less familiar with; it consisted of a beet broth with sour cream mixed in with dill. It was served warm. I guess I am used to a hearty vegetable borsht served hot, with the sour cream on the side.

After this we stopped by Moishe's Second Avenue Home Made Bake Shope 115 2nd Avenue, New York, NY 10003; (212) 505-8555 where we picked up cheese Danish and blueberry cheese strudel for 'the day after' breakfast. We sampled several delicious delectables while we were there. One was a potato onion loaf, whose name escapes me. It was very peppery (black) and salty for my taste, but my wife loved it.

After dinner we shopped at JAS-mart on Saint Marks and Hong Kong Market in Chinatown. The Hong Kong Market on East Broadway was considerably cheaper that JAS-Mart; there was incredibly inexpensive and fresh shrimp, squid and scallops there. What a great place!

Edited November 25, 2006 by mascarpone (log)

[Shmily]

Hi...We ate at Capsuto Freres and it was okay but we are looking for more suggestions for next Thanksgiving...for 5 people, with a regular a la carte menu as well as turkey for those who might like it...good food that is not really extravagant since I dont feel this is the day to splurge...thanks a lot in advance for your suggestions...

[Pan]

mascarpone, the potato/onion loaf is called a kugel, and I really like it, too.