Midtown West « Two Fat Bellies

Posts Tagged ‘Midtown West’

Disappointingly Bland Food at Hanci

Wednesday, March 31st, 2010 by virginia

We did take up Silva on her recommendation to try the Istanbul Café, but we’ll post about that meal later. What prompted her recommendation was the meal we shared at Hanci Turkish Cuisine that left us wanting more – more seasoning that is. We went there with a group of people after some happy hour drinks at Valhalla. Josh and I suggested it because it was close by, we had enjoyed our first visit, and because it was a BYO, or so we thought.

We stopped off at a liquor store on our way over and picked up a few bottles of wine. The first thing we were told when we showed up at the restaurant with the wine was that they were no longer a BYO, and that if we wanted our wine there would be a $10 corkage fee. No thanks. None of the wines on their short list seemed very appealing, so most of us stuck with soda while Josh tried a Turkish beer. It was very light, nothing to write home about but perfectly drinkable.

Turkish beer

We decided to share a few appetizers to accompany the wonderful Turkish bread that I’ve been raving about. The bread was as good as I remembered – hot, crispy, and flavorful. We devoured baskets and baskets of this bread, and everyone agreed that it was pretty tasty.

Delicious Turkish bread

Our appetizers included the ezme, which is a dip made from chopped tomatoes, peppers, and onions, with an olive oil and lemon juice dressing. It’s a little spicy and very flavorful, perfect for slathering all over the wonderful Turkish bread.

Ezme

We also got the piyaz, which was the white bean salad that Josh and I ordered when we got delivery from the restaurant. The salad was fresh and chock full of creamy white beans but like with our delivery, it lacked seasoning. The tangy vinaigrette helped a little, but it definitely needed more salt to perk up the flavors a bit.

Piyaz

Our last appetizer was the cacik, which is a dip made with yogurt and cucumbers seasoned with dill and garlic. Again, this dish lacked flavor and seasoning. It needed a lot more dill and garlic, plus salt. It tasted mostly like plain yogurt, and we ended up saving most of the bowl to use as an accompaniment with on our entrees.

Cacik

Both Silva and Felipe ordered the kofte for their entrees, and they were really disappointed with the lack of spices and seasoning in the ground lamb mix. I had the lamb sis kebab and thought the lamb was perfectly cooked but also lacked seasoning. The meat itself was juicy and tender, but it was bland. We made liberal use of the salt shaker on our table.

Lamb sis kebab

Fortunately, Josh’s entrée was much better. He ordered the iskender kebab with chicken, which was served over bread cubes and a pool of yogurt and tomato sauce. The yogurt and tomato sauce provided a much-needed tang and sweetness to the otherwise bland chicken kebabs. It was an interesting dish with lots of unusual textures coming from the bread cubes that were soaking in the wonderful sauce.

Chicken iskender kebab

Overall I think everyone was a little bit disappointed with the dinner we had at Hanci. When I think Turkish food, I think of perfectly grilled meats with a wonderful array of spices. The food we had just didn’t fit the bill. Everything was cooked perfectly but nothing had been seasoned, rendering everything bland and flavorless. And without the bonus of the BYO, the only thing drawing me back to the restaurant is the bread, though I’m not sure it’s worth making the trip. Which is really too bad, because we had such a great time during our first visit. Even service fell off a notch the second time around, with our waitress slightly surly and indifferent. We’re going to expand our horizons for now and try other Turkish restaurants, even if they aren’t within walking distance from home.

Hanci Turkish Cuisine
854 10th Ave. between 56th and 57th St.
New York, NY

Tags: Chicken, Lamb, Midtown West, Turkish
Posted in Restaurants | 1 Comment »

Uncle Nick’s Greek Cuisine

Wednesday, March 24th, 2010 by virginia

When Josh and I first moved to our current apartment, the first neighborhood restaurant we tried was Uncle Nick’s Greek Cuisine on 9th Ave. We ordered way too much food and all of it was really good, but for whatever reason we never made our way back there. Fortunately it’s a favorite of our Aussie mate Kate, so one night we went to dinner there with Josh’s parents and her parents, as well as a few of their family friends. We were seated in a large square booth all the way in the back of the restaurant, kind of tucked away from the rest of the dining room. It was a nice, cozy spot, and the food didn’t disappoint.

We started off with an appetizer of mixed dips that included tzatziki, tarama, melitzanosalata and scordalia. The tzatziki is a yogurt, cucumber, and garlic dip, the tarama is a fish roe dip, melitzanosalata is an eggplant dip, and scordalia is a potato and garlic dip. All of them are very flavorful and refreshing, perfect for dipping into with the soft, fluffy, grilled pita bread. I liked the garlickyness of the tzatziki and scordalia, and the slight smokiness of the melitzanosalata. Josh still isn’t a fan of tarama, but I enjoyed its saltiness and brininess.

Tzatziki (bottom right), scordalia (bottom left), melitzanosalata (top left), and tarama (top right)

We also shared a two large Greek salads, which was plenty for our group of 11. The salads were piled into huge bowls and featured crisp lettuce, tomatoes, onions, olives, cucumbers, pepperoncini, and some fantastic feta cheese. The cheese was tangy, creamy, and not overly salty, kind of like a mild goat cheese. The dressing was light and vinegary, a perfect complement. The salad was really very tasty and refreshing.

Greek salad

For our entrees, Josh and I shared the lamb kebobs and the elliniki compania, which featured gyro, pork souvlaki, salad, rice, pita, and tzatziki sauce. The gyro was wonderful, with crispy browned bits on the outside and wonderfully spiced meat on the inside. The pork souvlaki was cooked perfectly and was well seasoned. We made mini sandwiches with the accompanying pita bread and tzatziki sauce. The portion was very generous and I liked having the variety from the gyro and the pork.

Elliniki compania - pork souvlaki and gyro combination

The lamb kebobs were cooked to medium rare as requested but wasn’t quite as flavorful as the souvlaki or gyro. Still, the meat was very tender, and I liked the accompanying grilled vegetables (onions, tomatoes, and peppers) and rice pilaf.

Lamb kebobs with grilled vegetables and rice

We were all too full for dessert so instead I had a frappe, which was rich and frothy and served in a Shock Top beer glass. The frappe wasn’t too bitter, though I did end up adding a bit of sugar to sweeten it up a little, and it had a nice strong coffee flavor to it.

Frothy frappe

Overall we were all pretty pleased with the food we had at Uncle Nick’s, and I plan on going back there more often now that we’ll probably renew the lease on our apartment. The food is classically Greek and very well prepared. All the meats we had were tender and perfectly cooked, and the dips and salads were fresh and flavorful. Service was fine and the place has a nice casual yet upbeat vibe to it, similar to some of the tavernas we went to when we honeymooned in Greece. Portions are generous and prices are reasonable, so you really can’t ask for much more. Plus they’re watching out for Manhattan’s sewage systems, as evidenced by this sign I saw in the bathroom:

All kidding aside, the food is good and the atmosphere is festive. Nothing is fussy or over done; everything is simple and straightforward, and you’ll definitely walk out full, satisfied, and happy. There’s an ouzeria next door as well owned by the same people, which features small plates and Greek tapas. Hopefully we’ll check that out soon and report back!

Uncle Nick’s Greek Cuisine
747 9th Ave. between 50th and 51st St.
New York, NY

Tags: Greek, Lamb, Midtown West
Posted in Restaurants | 2 Comments »

Pizza Plus

Tuesday, March 16th, 2010 by virginia

The latest delivery place on our pizza quest was Pizza Plus on 9th Ave. They left some delivery menus in the mail room of our apartment building and it looked like they had a lot of different options so we decided to give it a shot. We actually liked our pizza order so much the first time that we ordered from them again later in the week. Both times we placed an order online through their website, which also included 20% off coupon codes – that’s always a plus. The first time we ordered, our food arrived in a decent amount of time and the cheese pizza looked pretty promising.

Cheese pizza

The crust was thin and there was good cheese coverage on the slice. The cheese was flecked with oregano, giving it a bit more flavor and a fresher taste. The sauce wasn’t overly sweet or overpowering.

Lots of seasoning and herbs in the sauce and on the cheese

The crust was nicely browned and somewhat crispy, though the pizza was slightly cold when it arrived so it was a bit chewier than I would have preferred. Overall it wasn’t too bad, but it would have been much better had it been served hot.

Underside shot

We also got an order of garlic knots, which were big and puffy but didn’t have enough garlic flavor or seasoning. They were quite bland and very uninteresting.

Bland garlic knots

Deviating from the norm, we got an order of buffalo wings. I wasn’t expecting too much out of buffalo wings from a pizza place, but these weren’t terrible. They were decently meaty and covered in a vinegary hot sauce. Again, these would have been better had they been served hot, as they would up being chewy rather than crispy.

Buffalo wings

Last but not least, we got an order of french fries. These were on the thicker end of the fry spectrum but they were fried to a well done, so they weren’t too soft or soggy in the middle. They weren’t too greasy, and for delivery fries, they weren’t bad.

Decent french fries

Overall we were pretty pleased with our first order from Pizza Plus, so we decided to give them another shot in the same week, hoping that we had finally found our go-to delivery pizza place. Again we ordered online, but this time, our food took forever to come. After waiting for almost an hour, we decided to call them up and see what was going on, as they’re not located too far from our apartment. They told us that the delivery had left already, so we waited a bit more.

After another while, we got a phone call from the delivery man saying that he couldn’t find our apartment, and that he was on 58th St. and 6th Ave. Umm, that is nowhere near our apartment. We live pretty much a straight shot down 9th Ave. from where Pizza Plus is located. How in the world did the delivery guy end up on 6th Ave.?? This time it wasn’t my fault, as we had definitely put in the right address.

Needless to say, when our pizza finally showed up, it was ice cold. If I thought the pizza wasn’t hot enough the first time, the second time it might as well have been sitting in the fridge for a few hours. Don’t get me wrong, I love cold pizza as much as the next person, but I like hot pizza better. And when I order a fresh pizza from somewhere, I expect it to be served hot.

Cold and stiff pizza

The crust was hard, and the cheese had congealed into one solid mass. We ended up putting slices into the oven to reheat, which only meant that our dinner was delayed even more.

Cold and congealed cheese on top

The chicken parm hero we ordered was also stone cold, and into the oven it went as well. Even after reheating, it was pretty bad. The chicken had been chopped into smaller pieces, and they were hard and dry. The cheese on top was clumpy, and it just wasn’t a good sandwich overall.

Disappointingly bad chicken parm hero

The fries were the same kind as the first time, but they also needed reheating in the oven as they were ice cold and hard.

Cold fries

We were extremely unhappy the second time around, as we just couldn’t understand how they messed up our order. We don’t live so far from the restaurant, and they should have looked up our address if they weren’t sure where it was, even though they found us just fine the first time. How the delivery man ended up on 6th Ave. is just mind boggling to me. They ruined our dinner and didn’t even attempt to make amends in any way. That’s just service I can’t condone, and sadly, I don’t think we’ll be ordering from them again. Even though the pizza had such potential, it’s never delivered to us hot, and at that point, it’s just not worth it. And so, the quest continues.

Pizza Plus
642 9th Ave. at 45th St.
New York, NY

Tags: Chicken, Delivery, Fries, Midtown West, Pizza
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Delivery Doesn’t Do Hanci Turkish Cuisine Justice

Sunday, March 14th, 2010 by virginia

Josh and I really enjoyed the meal that we had at Hanci Turkish Cuisine and decided to get a delivery order from there one rainy night when we were too lazy to venture out of our apartment. We decided to get a few appetizers and split an entree of the mixed grill, since last time we had ordered too much food. We both remembered how much we loved their freshly baked, crispy and chewy Turkish bread, so when we placed the order on Seamlessweb, we wrote in the special instructions section, “Please bring us extra bread, we love it!”

Our order arrived quickly but sadly, they failed to bring us the extra bread we requested. Instead, we got three measly little pieces, not even a basket’s worth if we had eaten at the restaurant. I guess that’s what we get for being lazy? The bread was delicious as always but the three pieces weren’t nearly enough to use on the portion of cacik we ordered, a yogurt based dip.

Delicious Turkish bread but a meager portion

Cacik is yogurt mixed with chopped cucumbers and seasoned with garlic and dill. It’s similar to tzatziki sauce from Greek restaurants, but Hanci’s version was much milder in flavor. There were lots of small cubes of cucumber but I wish they were more heavy handed with the garlic and dill, as it was kind of bland. It did go well with the mixed grill we ordered, but we ended up putting in a lot of salt to coax out some more of the flavor.

Cacik - yogurt with cucumber, garlic, and dill

We also got an order of sigara boregi, which is fried phyllo dough cigars filled with feta cheese and topped with parsley and dill. The fried phyllo dough suffered a bit from delivery, as it steamed in the container and got a bit soggy, but flavor wise it was quite delicious. The salty feta paired well with the fresh herbs, and though the phyllo was soft, it wasn’t too greasy and was still somewhat flaky.

Sigara boregi - phyllo dough cigars filled with feta cheese

Our last appetizer was piyaz, which is a salad made with white beans, onions, parsley, tomato, and olives. It was dressed with a tangy vinaigrette, and I loved the bite that I got from the slices of fresh red onion. It was a refreshing and flavorful dish but it also needed some salt to boost up the flavor a bit.

Piyaz - white bean salad with onion, parsley, tomato, and olives

For our entree, we split an order of the mixed grill, which was a dish that we had ordered when we went to the restaurant the first time. The mixed grill features lamb sis kebab, chicken tavuk sis, lamb kofte, and chicken adana. All the meats are served over rice pilaf and a side of mixed vegetables. It’s a generous portion of food, though I favored the lamb sis kebab and the chicken tavuk sis, which are just grilled cubes of lamb and chicken. Both the kofte and the adana lacked seasoning and flavor, although all the meats were nicely cooked and very tender.

Mixed grill over rice pilaf with mixed vegetables

I have to admit that we were a bit disappointed with our delivery order from Hanci. We enjoyed our meal at the restaurant much more, and perhaps the food just suffered a bit from being taken out. I did think that a lot of our food lacked basic seasoning though, such as salt, and was much blander than I had remembered. We were also disappointed that they didn’t bring us extra bread, or even a normal sized portion of the bread, as we had ordered several appetizers that needed the bread to pair with. I don’t know if they just didn’t see our special instruction or if they chose to ignore it, but after the hospitality we received while we were there, we were a bit surprised that they weren’t more accommodating. I understand that the bread they offer free at the restaurant costs them money to produce, and I would have paid for extra bread if that was an option, but it wasn’t. In general, I think their food is best enjoyed at the restaurant, when it can come out hot and fresh, and you can have all the delicious Turkish bread that you want.

Hanci Turkish Cuisine
854 10th Ave. between 56th and 57th St.
New York, NY

Tags: Chicken, Delivery, Lamb, Midtown West, Turkish
Posted in Restaurants | 1 Comment »

Great Service and Great Food at Nook

Saturday, March 13th, 2010 by virginia

In my first post about Nook, I mentioned that we hadn’t been there in years because the service was bad, but after a long hiatus, Josh and I went to brunch and thought both the service and the food were fantastic. We decided to go back there for dinner to see if the service was consistently much improved, or if our brunch experience was merely a fluke. Even though it was quite late for dinner when we arrived, the tiny restaurant was completely full, probably because it was Saturday night. The hostess/waitress told us the wait would be about half an hour and suggested we go across the street to a bar, saying she would call us when a table was available. Since neither of us were starving, and there really is nowhere to wait in the restaurant, it seemed like a good solution so that’s exactly what we did.

We headed across the street to The Snug, which, like Nook, is aptly named. It’s a long narrow bar with limited seating but we managed to snag a small table all the way in the back. Josh got a beer and we chatted for a while. After half an hour, no call. We had left Josh’s phone on the table so that we would see it ring, in case we couldn’t hear it in the noisy bar. Forty-five minutes later, still nothing. At this point we were getting a little peeved, and after almost an hour we decided cross back over to the restaurant and see what the situation was. As soon as we walked in, we saw an empty two top right by the door, and were a bit miffed that we hadn’t received a call.

The waitress came over to us and said she was wondering what happened to us because she called us twice and left a message when we didn’t answer. She then offered us the empty two top and said we could sit right away if we wanted. Josh and I looked at each other, perplexed, because we definitely didn’t see or hear the phone ringing, but we shrugged it off, gave her the benefit of the doubt, and sat down for dinner. Indeed, halfway through the meal, Josh got the beep that he had two missed calls and a voicemail from the waitress telling us that our table was ready. So she really was telling the truth, and we blame AT&T for our frustrations.

We were glad we stayed because not only was the waitress very gracious about the whole mix up, the food was great as well. She opened up our bottle of wine right away (the restaurant is a BYO) and brought us glasses as well as a basket of the same kind of bread that we received at brunch, a rustic and crusty sourdough.

Basket of rustic bread

We ordered two appetizers that we had remembered enjoying the very first time we ate at the restaurant in 2006. First was a tuna tartare served with avocado and flavored with soy and ginger. The tuna was very fresh and nicely cut into small cubes, which I like better than the mashed up tuna that we sometimes receive from other restaurants. The tuna paired perfectly with the creamy avocado, and the whole dish was well seasoned and very flavorful.

Tuna tartare

The second appetizer was mushroom cigars, which was filo dough wrapped around a filling of ground mushrooms, goat cheese, sage, and truffle oil. The pastry was lightly browned and perfectly flaky while the filling was really delicious. I love mushrooms, I love goat cheese, and I love truffle oil. The three together were simply divine. We only wished that the portion was larger, as it’s really only one small cigar cut in half. Josh and I just couldn’t get enough of it.

Mushroom cigars

For our main courses we also opted to order dishes that we’ve tried previously, and both were just as good as we had remembered. The first was tuscan chicken, which features a large boneless chicken breast stuffed with spinach and ricotta, topped with a light parmesan sauce. The chicken was tender and juicy, not at all dried out, and the filling was nicely seasoned and garlicky. The parmesan sauce bound everything together, and it was a very homey and comforting dish. The chicken came with a side salad that was tossed with a tasty vinaigrette, and it was supposed to come with chive mash potatoes but I requested the rosemary fries instead, which they gladly accommodated. The fries were slightly limp but well seasoned, and we could really taste the pleasant rosemary flavor.

Tuscan chicken

Our other entree was the Thai marinated grilled rack of lamb. The serving came with four perfectly grilled chops that were tender, juicy, and flavorful. The Thai marinade was slightly sweet, which worked well with the slightly bitter braised cabbage that came on the side. There were also chive mashed potatoes that came with the dish, which was why I had requested the fries with the chicken dish instead. Despite the casual presentation, the food was well prepared and the flavors were very refined.

Thai marinated grilled rack of lamb

Josh and I weren’t in a rush and were lingering over our meal, finishing up our wine and debating dessert when we got a call from his parents who happened to be in the city that night for a party. It turned out that they were just around the corner from where we were, so they met us at the restaurant for dessert. Our waitress had no problem letting us move over to an empty four top, and we ordered a round of coffee drinks. Unfortunately, the coffee was terrible. The espresso was weak, as was the cappuccino. Both Josh and his mom ordered extra shots of espresso to try and bolster their drinks, but even those were super weak.

Fortunately dessert was much better. Lloyd ordered the cheese and fruit plate, which turned out to be quite a large serving of assorted cheeses (I’m not a cheese person so I only recognized brie but there were others) and various fruits, including grapes, blackberries, and slices of apples, pears, and strawberries. There was plenty to share, and the waitress brought extra bread to pair with the cheeses.

Cheese and fruit plate

We also got a slice of the apple pie, which was served warm with a scoop of vanilla ice cream. The pie was more like a cobbler, with tasty, buttery, crumbly bits on top, but it was no less delicious. It wasn’t overly sweet or too cinnamony, and we all enjoyed it immensely.

Apple pie with vanilla ice cream

I have to say, I’m thrilled that the service at Nook truly has improved, as we now have a neighborhood spot that serves up good food at reasonable prices, and is a BYO to boot. Nook really is teeny tiny though so it does get a bit cramped inside, but I find the atmosphere to be homey and welcoming. If you want to dine during pre-theater or prime hours, however, it’s probably best to make a reservation. While the menu hasn’t changed all that much since the first time we were there in 2006, it’s nice to know that we have a place that we can rely on, where the dishes are familiar, tasty, and always well prepared. We’ll be back, and often, I hope.

Nook
746 9th Ave. between 50th and 51st St.
New York, NY

Tags: BYO, Chicken, Lamb, Midtown West
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Aaheli

Monday, March 8th, 2010 by virginia

Josh and I usually order Indian food from Baluchi’s but we’re always on the lookout for other good delivery places. One night we decided to try out the delivery from Aaheli, an Indian restaurant that we’ve walked past many times and always seems to have a lot of patrons, which is usually a good sign. We started out with some vegetable samosas filled with potatoes and peas in flaky crust.

Vegetable samosas

The samosas were fried well so that the crust was crispy and not too greasy, but we found the filling to be a tad bland. Usually there’s a distinct flavor of curry powder and other spices but this version was rather plain. Fortunately they brought us an assortment of sauces to dip the samosas in, including a coriander sauce, a tamarind sauce, and some mango chutney, which helped boost up the flavor a bit.

Samosa innards and accompanying sauces

For our main courses, we got an order of spinach keema mutton and chicken korma. Keema mutton is a dish made with ground lamb mixed with peas and various spices. Aaheli’s version had good flavor and lots of fresh ginger running through out that gave it a nice fresh touch, but I found the dish to be too oily overall. There was a significant amount of oil that had pooled at the top, which was a bit unappetizing. Too bad, because it was otherwise a pretty tasty version. The spinach was a nice addition that set it apart from the usual keemas that we get from other restaurants.

Spinach keema mutton

The chicken korma fared better, with tender pieces of chicken in a rich almond and cashew curry sauce. This version wasn’t overly creamy or too sweet, with an intriguing mix of spices, and it was one of the better versions that I’ve had. There were thin slivers of almonds mixed throughout, which added a nice crunch.

Chicken korma

Both of our curry dishes came with rice that was scented with spices, and we also added an order of naan for each of us. The naan was thick and fluffy, with a flaky exterior – perfect for dipping into the curry sauces.

Curry on rice with a piece of fluffy naan

Overall we thought the food at Aaheli was pretty good. The flavors seemed fresher and they added some ingredients to some of our favorite dishes that gave them interesting twists, such as the fresh ginger and spinach to the keema. While I did think some of the dishes were a bit greasier than usual, they were still really tasty. Price-wise, the delivery was more expensive than Baluchi’s, but mostly because Baluchi’s offers that great prix fixe deal that includes an appetizer, entree, rice, and bread for only about $15. Curries from Aaheli are about $10 for chicken and $12 for lamb, appetizers range from $4-$6, and breads are $2-$3 each. That’s cheaper than most other Indian restaurants in the neighborhood though, so I think it’s still a good value. It looks like Aaheli does offer a lunch buffet on weekdays that costs $9.95, and a weekend prix fixe deal that looks to be a very reasonable $10.95. Hopefully we’ll check those out one of these days and see if the food is even better when it’s eaten fresh at the restaurant.

Aaheli
826 9th Ave. between 54th and 55th St.
New York, NY

Tags: Delivery, Indian, Midtown West
Posted in Restaurants | 1 Comment »

Fat Tuesday Feasting at Becco

Wednesday, March 3rd, 2010 by virginia

Josh and I typically don’t pay attention to Mardi Gras festivities but we wound up going to Bourbon Street Bar & Grille on 46th St. the day before Ash Wednesday, otherwise known as Fat Tuesday. It was quite crowded there, as expected, but Josh and his coworkers managed to stake out a good spot right right in the center of the bar. After a few Hurricanes and some Abita beers, we were feeling pretty festive ourselves but we were also starving so we headed across the street to my favorite restaurant, Becco.

At this point it was well past pre-theater time and we were able to get a table right away. We ordered a bottle of our favorite wine from the $25 list, the Ramitello, and snacked on the bread box items. The box always features some soft focaccia, slices of rustic Italian bread, and crunchy grissini. My favorite is the focaccia, which is lightly salted and has a nice olive oil flavor to it. The grissini are nice to munch on as well.

Bread box goodies

The breads are great for dipping into a creamy bean spread doused in olive oil. If you run out, don’t be afraid to ask for more, as the dip is really addictive. Also good for snacking is the small bowl of assorted olives.

Creamy bean spread and assorted olives

All of us opted for the “Sifonia di pasta”, which is the unlimited tasting of the three pastas of the day that includes an antipasto misto or a caesar salad to start. Both Josh and I went with the caesar, which was delicious as always. The dressing is creamy and garlicky but not too overpowering, and the leaves are never overdressed.

Deliciously garlicky caesar salad

The pastas of the day were fettucini bolognese, mushroom raviolis, and rigatoni with tomato-basil-olive sauce. The fettucini looked and tasted handmade, with thick chewy noodles covered in a rich bolognese sauce. The sauce is thick and meaty with peas mixed throughout, and a hint of cinnamon in the background. The cinnamon really adds an unusual twist to a classic dish, and really makes it stand out.

Fettucini bolognese

The mushroom raviolis were absolutely fantastic, and are probably my favorite pasta out of all the pastas that I’ve had at Becco. The chewy packets are bursting with mushrooms, plus a bonus of truffle flavor. I’m guessing they probably use truffle oil in the mushroom filling, but whatever the case, these raviolis are delicious – tender, flavorful, and earthy. I drool just thinking about them, and if they were a dish I could order all the time, I absolutely would.

Amazingly delicious mushroom raviolis

The last pasta was the typical tomato-basil, but with a twist as well. Usually it’s just a plain tomato sauce with big basil leaves running through out, but this time they added some briny olives to the mix. The olives really popped, adding a nice bright and salty flavor to the sauce. The rigatoni were perfectly cooked al dente, and the basil was fresh as always.

Rigatoni with tomato-basil-olive sauce

No dessert this time, as we were all completely stuffed by the time we got through two rounds of pasta. We definitely put away enough food in honor of Fat Tuesday, though if I could have eaten more mushroom raviolis, I totally would have! One of Josh’s coworkers even commented that he wished he hadn’t eaten the antipasti, as he would have saved more room for the pastas. If that’s not a ringing endorsement, I don’t know what is!

I just can’t say enough about how much I love Becco, and I still think the pasta tasting is one of the very best deals in the city. Add in the quality $25 wine list and it’s just a bargain that can’t be beat. If you haven’t tried Becco yet I strongly recommend making a reservation right away!

Becco
355 West 46th St. between 8th and 9th Ave.
New York, NY

Tags: Italian, Midtown West
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More Tasty Lunch Specials from Yum Yum Bangkok

Monday, February 8th, 2010 by virginia

It has been a while since Rodney and I had one of our weekday lunches at Yum Yum Bangkok. It’s a pretty far hike from our offices and the weather has been pretty lousy lately. One day, however, we decided to suck it up and make the trek over to 9th Ave., as we couldn’t resist the great lunch specials and tasty Thai food.

As I mentioned in my first post about Yum Yum Bangkok, the lunch special is basically any entree from the menu, which ranges from approximately $6.50 to $8, and comes with your choice of two appetizers from a decently broad list. I decided to try some new appetizers this time around, instead of my usual spring rolls and soup. Rodney and I both opted to start with a Thai salad, which was a pile of iceberg lettuce, some shredded carrot, and one slice each of cucumber and tomato. The salad was topped with a sweet peanut dressing, and it was perfectly fine but nothing special. I think the salads are pre-made and refrigerated though, as they came out almost immediately and were ice cold. But even so, the vegetables were still pretty fresh and crisp.

Thai salad with peanut dressing

I also opted for the steamed dumplings, which came two to the order. The dumplings were similar to Chinese shumai, and featured ground chicken and shrimp in a steamed yellow wrapper. They tasted ok, but texturally, they were kind of mushy.

Steamed dumplings

Rodney stuck with the spring rolls, which I liked better. I think I’ll stick with those the next time. Freshly fried and super crispy, with a sweet and sour dipping sauce, these are pretty hard to beat.

Crispy Thai spring rolls

For my main course, I also deviated from my usual chicken pad thai and went with chicken pad kie mao, which are flat wide noodles stir fried with chicken, broccoli, peppers, onions, and lots of Thai basil. It’s a very flavorful, savory dish, perfect for anyone who likes basil. The slightly licorice flavor permeates throughout, and though it’s slightly greasy, the noodles are perfectly cooked, not too mushy, and the vegetables provide a pleasing crunchy contrast. Just watch out for some of the peppers, as I bit into one thinking it was a bell pepper but it turned out to be super spicy. I’m sure they’d adjust the spice accordingly upon request. I would definitely get this dish again.

Chicken basil noodles (pad kie mao)

Rodney had the chicken pad priew whan, which was chicken in a sweet and sour sauce with onions, tomatoes, and pineapple chunks. It was a dish that reminded me of General Tso’s chicken, but fresher tasting. The sauce wasn’t too sweet or cloying, and the dish was tasty spooned over the accompanying white rice. The chunks of pineapple were a nice touch, and Rodney seemed to enjoy it a lot.

Chicken in sweet and sour sauce (pad priew whan)

As usual, Rodney couldn’t resist a scoop of green tea ice cream, still just $1 as the “summer special.” It might be freezing outside but he always has room for ice cream.

Green tea ice cream

Yum Yum Bangkok is still one of my favorite lunch places, and you really can’t beat the lunch special deal. We always eat tons of food and never spend more than $10 each, including tax and tip. The food is tasty and service is quick and attentive. It’s always packed whenever we go but we never have to wait for a table, so even though it’s a far walk from our office, we can still usually get in and out in less than an hour. I would definitely still recommend this place to anyone looking to get away from work for a bit and have a nice reasonably priced sit down lunch.

Yum Yum Bangkok
650 9th Ave. between 45th and 46th St.
New York, NY

Tags: Dumplings, Lunch, Midtown West, Noodles, Thai
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Nook

Thursday, January 28th, 2010 by virginia

The last time that Josh and I were at Nook was in 2006, when we went with two of our friends, Shiraz and Nicole. While the food was terrific, the service was not. I went back there with Shiraz a few months after that, and it was the same thing – great food, terrible service. We’ve been avoiding it ever since, because even though it’s a BYO and a great value, I just can’t support poor service.

Now that we live in the same neighborhood as the restaurant, we pass by it often and it’s always packed inside. We figured that maybe it was time to give it another shot so a few weeks ago, when Josh and I couldn’t decide on a place for brunch, I suggested picking up a bottle of champagne and heading over to Nook. It has an interesting and reasonably priced lunch/brunch menu that I’ve been wanting to try, and I was hoping that it would have improved service-wise in the last 3.5 years.

The restaurant, as the name implies, is super tiny and seats maybe 24 people at most. Tables are basically on top of each other and there isn’t much elbowroom or space to maneuver to get in and out of your seat. It was early afternoon by the time we set out, which was late for the brunch crowd, so I wasn’t worried about not getting a table. Decor-wise, it looked pretty much the same as the last time we were there. There are nice pictures on the walls and Christmas lights were strung up, giving it a festive atmosphere. What we noticed immediately, however, was the difference in service. The waiter/host was super friendly and greeted us as soon as we walked in. He sat us immediately and brought us flutes for our champagne (cava really). The last time we were here, our waitress was surly and indifferent, leaving us to open our own wine while she chatted on the phone with her friend.

We opted to get orange juice for our champagne, which was $3 for a small pitcher that we used to make our own mimosas. The juice was very obviously freshly squeezed and not overly sweet. The pitcher was plenty of juice for our purposes, even though the waiter offered to refill it halfway through.

Mimosas with cava and freshly squeezed OJ

We were given a basket of bread while we looked over the menu. The bread had a nice crispy crust and a chewy interior, with a slight sourdough flavor. And, we were given bread plates; the last time, we had to put our bread down directly on the table. Again, another sign that things have improved.

Crusty/chewy bread

Josh and I decided to split a brunch item and a lunch item for some variety. From the brunch menu, we selected eggs benedict with smoked salmon. The eggs were perfectly poached, with runny yolks and delicate whites. The hollandaise sauce wasn’t too rich or buttery, and the smoked salmon had good flavor to it. My only complaint was that the english muffin wasn’t toasted, so that it ended up being kind of cold and mushy. My favorite part of the whole plate, however, was the house home fries, which was kind of like lumpy mashed potatoes mixed with paprika, garlic, onions, and I think red peppers. It was unusual and completely not what you would think of as home fries, but it was flavorful and delicious.

Eggs benedict with smoked salmon and house home fries

From the lunch menu, we went with the croque monsieur. Based on the description, we knew not to expect a true French version of the sandwich, since the cheese was listed as cheddar, not gruyere. It ended up being a huge ham, cheddar, and tomato sandwich on toasted thick bread. While not traditional, it was still very tasty.

Croque monsieur with rosemary fries

The slices of ham were thick and not too salty, the cheddar mild and melted, and the tomatoes helped cut through the fat of the cheese and buttery bread. I just wish that the bread had been toasted a bit more evenly, as it was a bit soggy towards the middle. The sandwich came with a side of fries that had a nice rosemary flavor but were also a bit limp and not too crispy. Lastly, both entrees came with a little side salad that was lightly dressed with a tasty vinaigrette.

Autopsy shot

Overall we both really enjoyed our brunch/lunch at Nook and I’m glad that we decided to give it another chance. I understand that because the restaurant is so small, there’s only one person to cater the entire room, but they seemed to have worked out their service issues. Many of the people who came in while we were eating were obviously regulars, as they were greeted with hugs and questions about how their trips were, if they wanted their usual orders, etc. This was exactly the kind of atmosphere I was looking for in a neighborhood restaurant, and I would happily come back here again. Prices are very reasonable to begin with, and the BYO really makes it an even better deal. Since it is so tiny, I’d definitely recommend making reservations, especially during prime dining times. Just don’t forget to bring a bottle of wine with you!

Nook
746 9th Ave. between 50th and 51st St.
New York, NY

Tags: BYO, Eggs Benedict, Midtown West, Sandwiches, Smoked Salmon
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Lasagna Restaurant Redux

Friday, January 15th, 2010 by virginia

It’s been a while since we were last at Lasagna Restaurant, with my college friend Phil. Josh and I enjoyed our meal there so we suggested it for Sunday night dinner. Unfortunately, on the evening we went, I was recovering from a cold and had trouble tasting some of the food. There were windows of opportunity though, when my sinuses would clear briefly, and I would scarf down as much as I could during those periods.

Our meal started off with the same delicious and addictive garlic bread. The bread was warm and crunchy on the outside, and it packed enough buttery garlic flavor that I could taste it despite my stuffy nose. We polished off several baskets and they continued to replenish our supply throughout our meal.

Addictive garlic bread

Josh and I decided to go halfsies on two different salads for our appetizer. First was the arugula salad with goat cheese, crostini, roasted pepper, and balsamic vinaigrette. The salad wasn’t quite what I was expecting, as it was mostly just a pile of somewhat tough arugula (it was not the baby kind) topped with a few strips of roasted pepper, a few rings of red onion, and two pieces of untoasted baguette spread with a thin layer of goat cheese. It wasn’t bad, per se, it was just kind of uninteresting. They could improve it by switching to baby arugula, so that the leaves aren’t quite so bitter, adding more of the other ingredients, and mixing it all together. The goat cheese crostinis were a bit out of place though, and the bread should have been toasted.

Arugula salad with roasted peppers and goat cheese crostini

The other salad was the Caesar, which Josh had the last time we were here. The dressing was fine, flavorful and thick, but there was way too much of it. The lettuce leaves were weighed down by all the dressing and were starting to wilt because of it, which was too bad because that ruined what would have otherwise been a perfectly fine version of Caesar salad.

Overdressed caesar salad

Fortunately things improved with our entrees. I had penne alla vodka with chicken, which was described on the menu as being hot and spicy. I figured the spiciness would help clear up my sinuses but the dish really didn’t pack too much heat. I liked the flavor of the vodka sauce though, and was glad that it wasn’t overwhelmingly creamy. The penne was al dente and the chicken, white breast meat cut up into bite size chunks, was still tender.

Penne alla vodka with chicken

Josh went with the chicken parmesan, which I had the last time. It was just as good this time around, with a large tender chicken cutlet topped with well seasoned red sauce and lots of cheese. The penne pasta underneath was also al dente, and he enjoyed the dish very much.

Chicken parmesan over penne pasta

For dessert, there was a seasonal special of pumpkin gelato (to give you an idea of how long ago this meal was!) that we couldn’t pass up. The pumpkin gelato was rich and creamy, and actually tasted like pumpkin, not overly spiced. It was served with graham crackers and whipped cream, kind of like pumpkin pie, which was a nice touch. We shared two orders between seven of us, and I wished that we each got our own!

Pumpkin gelato with whipped cream and graham crackers

Despite the somewhat so-so salad appetizers, I still thought that our meal at Lasagna was pretty good. Our issues with the Caesar salad are easily fixable, and while I liked the concept of the arugula salad, I think it just failed in execution. But more importantly, Josh and I enjoyed both of our entrees and thought that the pastas and red sauces were really well prepared. Service was attentive and we had a good experience overall. Is it the best Italian restaurant in the neighborhood? Probably not, but it does serve pretty solid food at reasonable prices, and it’s a nice place to have nearby.

Lasagna Restaurant (multiple locations)
785 9th Ave. between 52nd and 53rd St.
New York, NY

Tags: Italian, Midtown West
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