Rye Visited 7/17/10 3.5 Forks

Rye 247 S 1st St (between Roebling St & Havemeyer St), Brooklyn, NY 11211

I had been wanting to try Rye for a while but just never seems to make it over (except the one time I tried to go for brunch and they were closed).  After a REALLY long day of moving and having a 30% Blackboard Eats coupon, I decided it was finally time to treat ourselves to dinner at Rye.


We went at 8pm on a Saturday so I was afraid that we would have to wait for a while, but even though it was pretty crowded, we were seated immediately in a nice cute corner table.  The decor is old school with lots of dark wood and dim lights.  The one thing I really did not like was the fact that it was SO loud in there. I could barely hear our waitress tell us the specials.  The menu itself is pretty simple with only a handful of dishes on the menu.  We started with the crab croquette ($9), which essentially like a giant crabcake with some watercress on it.  It was pretty good but not enough crab tasting for me.  For drinks, Dan got the Kings beer ($6), which was like a michelada but it had rum and they used Bud.  I had the Carol Cooler ($10), which was watermelon juice, basil, vodka and  another herb. It's normally made with gin but I'm not a huge gin fan and they were nice enough to substitute without giving me attitude. 


For entrees, I got the hanger steak ($18), which was cooked perfectly (medium rare, but closer to rare) and it came on a bed of sautéed spinach, which was cooked pretty well.  The meal itself was pretty simple but good tasting, but I couldn't help but feel like it could have used another side.  Dan got the special ravioli ($18), which had about 6 large pieces in a butter-y herb sauce.  The sauce was great and I eventually started dipping my steak in it.  For dessert, we got a steamed lemon cake, which came with some fruit on the side ($9).  It was indeed very lemon-y, although it didn't blow my mind, I thought it was a good way to end the meal.  The service was pretty attentive, my water was constantly re-filled and they took my card as soon as I put it down.  The total bill was $79 (which for a regular night out is a bit more than what I would like to spend)  but with my BBE coupon, it was $60.  I would definitely try brunch here and would come back whenever I was in the mood for simple American fare.  

ABC Kitchen Visited 7/5/10 4 Forks

ABC Kitchen  35 E 18th St, (between Broadway & S Park Ave), New York, NY 10003

ABC Kitchen is Jean-George's new restaurant venture in NYC and has gotten a LOT of very positive buzz lately, so of course I had to go check it out.

Just getting a reservation took a while. I used OpenTable and I couldn't get a good time for a few weeks. I finally decided that I would go for my 5 yr anniversary with Dan over the 4th of July weekend.  One of my first reactions when I saw this place was Wow, it's beautiful.  You walk in and you immediately notice all the white - white tables, white chairs, white painted brick wall.  It also has an exposed loft feel with exposed wooden beams and concrete pillars.  The table setting was very rustic with hand painted porcelain plates and "antique" flatware.  The staff is extremely attentive and nice throughout the whole meal.  The menu consists of the ever-so trendy farm to table, organic, local, sustainable, whatever you want to call it, food.  The back of the menu lists all the ways they are local and sustainable...which I appreciated but it almost became like the J.Peterman catalog when they started describing how the bowls (or something) were hand made by natives from the hills of Patagonia..seriously, that's what they said. 

The food menu had a section of Market table and appetizers. I'm not quite sure what the difference is, but in any case, Dan and I each order an item as a starter.  I ordered the fresh mozzarella, heirloom tomato, basil, and chili ($13).  The mozz was these 5 small balls of cheese and they were extremely fresh and it was mixed in with a lot of gorgeous looking tomatoes (greens, dark reds, bright reds, etc), topped with basil and then thinly shaved chili.  Good thing they were thinly shaved b/c you could really taste their heat from just the small pieces in there.  Dan got the snap pea salad, which was a bunch of greens topped on a weird hunk of lettuce.  I really liked the fresh taste of the peas and it was dressed really well (not too heavy) with light cheese.  However, I didn't like that it was on a thick hunk of lettuce that was essentially not too edible. 

For entree, I got the organic crispy chicken with mashed potato ($23) and Dan got the black sea bass ($27).  I know that normally chicken sounds like a boring dish, but to me if you can do a chicken right, that's a sign of a good restaurant. And oh boy, was this chicken good. It has to be one of the best chicken dishes I've had in a while.  It was perfectly juicy and it had the right amount of crispy (not deep fried) skin on it.  The mashed potato tasted like it probably had 5 sticks of butter in it, which is why it was so good. I wished they had more of it, it was just a very thin layer on the bottom.  I was practically using the chicken as a sopping bread to get all the potato on my plate.  Dan's sea bass was also very fresh tasting and came in a light salty broth. 

For dessert, we opted for the rhubarb crumble ($9).  When it came out, it was in this cute mini dutch oven like pot and it came with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.  The crust of this crumble also tasted like it had 5 sticks of butter in it and it was delicious.  To be honest, it tasted exactly like an apple crumble, only if you looked hard could you see some pink/redness to it. Dan thought it had a tartness that comes with rhubarb...I guess I just don't know rhubarb very well.

Overall, this was a very pleasing meal and I can see why people like it.  The place is gorgeous, the service is attentive, and the food is very fresh.  Several of the pastas and pizzas were more affordable (in the $15 range).  Total bill for two before tip was $109.

Char No. 4 Visited 7/3/10 3.75 Forks

Char No. 4  196 Smith St, (between Warren St & Baltic St), Brooklyn, NY 11201

I've been to Char No. 4 before for drinks and snacks before but never for dinner. I always kind of thought that it was a bit expensive food-wise, so when Blackboard Eats had a $38 3-course prix fix meal plus whiskey tastings I thought that I would finally give the food a go (although I will say that I've had their pork nuggets and fried cheese curds before and they were delicious).  The set menu came with a cold pea soup with shrimp to start, a choice of jambalaya, hot sausage link or gnocchi for an entree and a key lime pie with marshmallow topping.  Each course came with a 1 oz whiskey pairing.

Priced separately the total meal would have been around $50ish, so the $38 gives you around the standard 30% discount.  The soup, as described, as chilled with bits of shrimp and chunks of avocado.  It was good to be honest, I'm not a huge fan of cold soup in general.  There was an element of spiciness to the soup...I'm not sure if that came from the shrimp or that added something to the soup.  While I love avocado in general and would eat it in any form, I'm not quite sure they it was in the soup.  It didn't really add much to it.  The whiskey pairing for this was the Rittenhouse Rye, which was pretty good.

For an entree, I got the jambalaya and Dan got the hot sausage link.  Both entrees were pretty big in size.  The jambalaya was served with manilla clams and 3-4 big,de-shelled shrimp (I thought it was a nice touch to have it completely de-shelled).  I thought it was flavored well and all the seafood was prepared to the right consistency.  The hot sausage link came with crispy shallots and potato salad.  The potato salad was pretty good...it was the yellow mustard-kind and not the white mayo base.  The sausage could have been cooked a bit warmer...strangely the plate was extremely hot but the meal could have used a few more minutes on the oven.  The whiskey pairing was the Eagle Rare 10 yr, which was a substitute from the listed Elijah Craig.  The Eagle Rare was very good. Extremely smooth and easy to drink.

If this wasn't a prix fixe meal, I would have stopped eating and drinking here.  I was pretty full by the time dessert rolled around, but I couldn't say no.  When the pie came out, it was way bigger a slice that it needed to be.  And damn it, it was really good too. The graham cracker crust was really yummy and the pie was the right amount of tartness and sweetness.  The marshmallow top didn't really need to be there, but who's going to say no to marshmallow?  Unfortunately, I couldn't finish my piece even though I really really wanted to.  The whiskey pairing here was the George Dickel No. 12.  At this point, all my senses were in overload and I think I liked this whiskey? Even though I didn't drink a lot of alcohol and I ate a heavy meal, by the time I got home I seriously felt like someone had drugged me. I couldn't stay awake past 11pm.

The total bill plus tax and tip was $98 for two.  Not too bad when you factor in each person got a 3 course meal and 3 1 oz. pours.  I would always go back for the whiskey as they really have an awesome selection.  While I enjoyed my meal too, I definitely don't think I would order a 3 course meal there. I might just stick to the snacks.

Pho Grand Visited 6/20/10 3.75 Forks

One of my most favorite foods in the world is pho.  I will eat it any day, time or place.  So on one of the hottest days in NYC I had a craving for pho, which seemed pretty crazy.  I actually had another pho place in mind when Dan and I went to eat but this address was what stuck in my mind.  When we got there it actually was this place that I had been to with my mom a few years ago and I remembered she had read about it in Travel and Leisure. 

I will say that this is one of the cleaner places in Chinatown that I have been to.  And even though I generally am not a huge fan of ethnic restaurants not being run by people of the same ethnicity (this place was run by Chinese people), you can't really get away from it.  I got the large #9 pho ($5.95) which was round eye and brisket and Dan got the regular #6 ($4.95) which just came with round eye.  The bean sprouts and basil that came out were extremely fresh looking and tasting.  I knew that there were other things on the menu but I was on a mission and quite frankly, I didn't really have room to eat much more than a bowl of noodles.  The food came out quickly (but not as quickly as it does in other pho places) and I was very pleased by it.  The broth was flavorful with the right amount of onion and cilantro in it.  I would have liked a bit more noodle and for my meat to be a bit more raw, but I should have probably asked for that.  Total bill with 1 iced coffee was $14.  You really just can't beat that deal anywhere!

Flatbush Farm Visited 6/20/10 2.5 Forks

Flatbush Farm  76 St Marks Ave, 6th Ave and Flatbush Ave, (between 4th Ave & 5th Ave), Brooklyn, NY 11217

I've been to Flatbush Farm before for my birthday last year and I thought that the food was pretty solid.  So when it came time to think of a place to go for brunch in Park Slope (there is almost no good places really in the 'hood for basic brunch), it seemed like it would be a good choice.  But it was probably not the best idea to go on one of the hottest days of the summer.  

First the walk there was just brutal.  We got there and we were already sweating like crazy.  They were able to seat us outside which originally sounded like a good idea but after sitting there for as long as we did, it wasn't the best idea in the end.  But I will say that the outside atmosphere is really beautiful and bigger than most backyard patios in Brooklyn.  The theme of Flatbush Farm is the ever-so trendy farm to table concept and the menu is often different from season to season.  All I want usually is your basic egg and pancake like dishes...they did have an omelet and 1 pancake dish on the menu but I wasn't overwhelmed by what was offered.  I got the omelet with ricotta and herbs, which came with a side salad and 7-grain toast ($10) and then a side order of sausage ($6).  Dan and Will both ordered the Barn Burger ($16) which was a burger with 2 huge pieces of bacon, a fried egg, and telggio cheese and a side of plantain hash.  Aarti got the Farmer's Breakfast (scrambled eggs, kale and plantain hash for $12).  My first gripe with this place was the service.  It was just super slow and our waitress just looked like she was not all with it.  Another pet peeve I have is if the table orders drinks, they should come out pretty quickly.  Instead, the drinks took a long time to come out (15 mins after ordering) and the food came out another 20-25 mins after that. At one point, I just stopped talking b/c I was so hungry.

When the food did come out, it was fine.  No fireworks, but good enough.  I will say that my eggs were very wet, which is exactly the way I like it but I thought that the herbs were very overpowering.  The sausages were also very salty and you could taste the casing, which I don't really like.  But I will say that the bite I had of Dan's burger was very good.  However, I think after he and Will both finished their burger, they instantly felt like they couldn't eat for the next week.  The total bill was around $77 (without tax and tip) which I thought was a bit high for brunch.  Oh and they also do not take AmEx, which was annoying.

Mercat Visited 6/19/10 4.5 Forks

I cannot say enough how much I love Blackboard Eats.  It's a great service and they really pick quality restaurants.  I had actually never heard of Mercat but when I saw it on their list I thought What the heck?

I had looked up the reviews on Yelp and everyone had nothing but amazing things to say, so I was pretty excited to go there with my friend Lav, who was in town from London.  Luckily, the food there is very veggie friendly, so we had no problems ordering enough food to satisfy both of us. 

First off, I must have walked down this street many times before in my life but never have seen this restaurant.  The inside is super cute with a sleek modern feel.  The style of food is Catalan Spanish Tapas and to be honest I would have had a hard time understanding the menu if it did not have english descriptions below.  We started the meal with a nice bottle of Blanco Tempranillo($39)...I had only had red tempranillo and this one pretty good...it wasn't too sweet, which is what I generally think of white wines.  We started with some manchengo cheese ($5).  Cheese is always a good addition to any meal and the bread that they served with it was perfectly soft and good on its own.  Next we ordered the mushrooms with fried egg and truffle oil ($13), which was amazing! The truffle oil was very present but not completely overpowering.  Then I got the short noodles with sepia in its own ink ($18)...I have to say it was one of the most amazing dishes I've had all year. Seriously.  I can't explain how freakin good it was and it just looks like a basic noodle dish but the ink and the cream fresh like topping was just perfect.  Then Lav and I also split the beet salad ($11), which was pretty good considering beets are not my favorite veggie and the special pepper dish of the night (~$13).  The peppers are green jalapeno peppers grilled to the point where they are no longer spicy but then they are covered in olive oil and salted with kosher salt.  Delicious!  I usually am not a fan jalapeno peppers b/c I can't really take the heat but this was just biting into complete saltiness, but in a good way.  And of course, no meal with Lav could be complete without dessert.  We got the churros with chocolate sauce and like I said in my previous post, anything fried is just hard to get wrong.

I was really surprised by Mercat. I had never heard of it but now I will tell many people about it.  It's in a pretty good location and by the time we left dinner at 9pm, it was definitely hoping.  The service was also really good there, attentive but not completely overbearing.  The total original bill was $110 but with my Blackboard Eats 30% discount it was a very reasonable $77 total.  The one thing that was a major bummer was that they don't take AmEx.  How does a hip and not super cheap restaurant in NYC not take AmEx?!

Pies N Thighs Visited 6/18/10 4 Forks

Pies N Thighs  166 S. 4th Street (between Bedford Ave and Driggs Ave), Brooklyn, NY

Pies N Thighs is probably one of the most talked about restaurants in Williamsburg these days.  It's been on the Today Show and in the NY Times recently, so I felt like I HAD to check it out, but sometimes you're just not in the mood for fried fatty food. 

I finally made it last Friday and I was expecting a long line, but the restaurant is actually pretty large with an indoor restaurant and then it extends into the back garden and then another room in behind that.  We were seated immediately with our choice of any available seat.  The menu is pretty limited in terms of entrees, you're choices are basically the fried chicken box or the pulled pork sandwich box ($11 and $10 with a choice 1 side).  Of course I had to get the fried chicken box since that is what they are famous for and I got a side of mac and cheese.  Dan got the pulled pork sandwich and side of potato salad and that day they had a fried green tomato appetizer special ($6). 

I've never had fried green tomato before and it was really really good.  It was covered in corn meal and then fried and it came with a side of green salsa, which was perfect.  The salsa was not very spicy at all but it was a great garnish to the dish since I think it needed something to go with it.  There were actually 5-6 pieces of big sized tomatoes so it was definitely well worth the $6.  In fact, I heard that after we got our fried green tomato to our table, they had just run out of it and it was only 7:45pm.  Now to the main dish, the fried chicken.  I feel like it's pretty hard to get anything fried wrong and this chicken was no exception.  It was pretty juicy and you get 3 pretty filling pieces.  I had overheard a man at the other table speaking and he had said that it wasn't up to the usual crack-addictive taste and the waiter had said that the normal Friday night cook wasn't there, so I wonder how different the "other" version would have been, but I still thought it was pretty good. The mac and cheese and potato salad (they used red potatoes which was light on the mayo and topped with fresh dill) were also very well done and the portions were fairly large.  By the time we were done with our meal (we had both completely cleaned our plates) we had no room for the pie portion of Pies and Thighs.  But the pie menu looked quite good ($4.50-$5.50 depending on the type) and maybe next time we will skimp on the sides and leave room for pie.