Cafe Boulud

Happy Birthday to Mitch!

Despite little interest in visiting the country, Mitch loves French food.  Especially fancy French food (can't say I blame him).  So for his 29th birthday (you're welcome), I took him to Cafe Boulud.

Cafe Boulud is located on the Upper East Side in the Surrey hotel.  The dining room's sleek, modern decor is somewhat surprising for a neighborhood and clientele averaging over 50 years old. 

Cafe Boulud offers several dining options, from a la carte, to price fix to  a 5or 7 course tasting menu.  A wine paring option for the tasting menu is available as well.  The menu hops on the farm to table band wagon and places an emphasis on seasonal ingredients. Make sure to arrive famished because there are so many mouth watering options at Cafe Boulud that it's worth ordering the tasting menu. 

Cafe Boulud, unlike most NYC restaurants, does not allow you to bring your own wine for a corkage fee.  But Cafe Boulud makes up for it by offering a ridiculously comprehensive wine list.  Note: be prepared for a markup of at least 4 times cost.

Celebrating my husband's youth, we opted for a bottle of sparkling wine.  But the bottle of bubbly was merely a side show to the experience ahead.

Our attentive  server allowed us to specify which foods we were adverse/allergic to.  Also, she checked with the kitchen to confirm that one diner's restrictions would not eliminate the dish from the other diner's dishes.

Immediately after placing our order, an amuse bouche arrived, consisting of a spring pea arancini over tasty unidentifiable crisps..  The arancini comes out piping hot so fight the urge to pop it in your  mouth.  Instead, cut it open and let it cool off for a minute.

Shortly after our amuse bouche arrived, a short man with an enormous bread basket stopped by our table, offering several options.  The freshly baked garlicky focaccia beat out the whole wheat raisin bread but I enjoyed both of them.







Because we ordered the tasting menu, another amuse bouche arrived, consisting of another arancini, a sliver of foie gras topped with a slice of peach, and dollop of lump crab meat wrapped in a slice of cucumber and topped with a cilantro sauce.  The foie gras was the standout of the trio.   

The only course from our tasting menu that was underwhelming was the eggplant ravioli (it wasn't bad, it was just very average). But each dish before we savored before and after the ravioli more than made up for it.  Daniel Boulud has done his namesake proud, providing top notch service, food, wine, and ambiance. 



What to Eat:

The Marinated Cuttlefish, which is sliced into thin, delicate strips resembling tagliatelle pasta, is marinated in an herb chimichurri sauce.  The thin strips give the cuttlefish, sometimes a bit tough, a softer consistency.  Make sure to dip the cuttle fish in the delicious spring pea emulsion.













I almost hugged our server with joy when the Cherry Glazed Duck arrived because I was dying to try it  My guess is that the staff at a classy place like Cafe Boulud might frown upon that sort of behavior. 

The thick, meaty slices of duck breast arrived medium rare on top of a bed of red quinoa.  Cafe Boulud's duck was incredibly juicy and tender (next time I would order this a la carte so I could have more!).  The duck was prepared with a hint of the cherry glaze (for cherry haters, you will still like this dish).  The plate was decorated with a pitted cherry and sweet vidala onion.  

If you looking for an entree from the sea, Daniel Boulud's signature dish happens to be the Striped Bass.  The thick filet of striped bass is cooked to perfection, wrapped in a fried, wafer thin potato slice, and then placed on a bed of mashed potatoes, which is surrounded by a decadent red wine reduction. This is the best fish filet dish I have had anywhere, ever.  I never crave fish but Daniel Boulud's striped bass?  Reason enough to return.












The tasting menu usually includes one fruit and one chocolate dessert but we requested only chocolate desserts.  I was hoping for the caramel brownie and the molten chocolate cake (we passed the cake on our way in and it took every bone in my body not to snag it off the diner's table).  We shot a 50%. 

The Salted Caramel Milk Chocolate Brownie was outrageous!  This deconstructed chocolate brownie could be up there in top 5 desserts.  The gooey caramel was layered onto a round bite of brownie, and then topped with sea salt and caramelized milk sorbet.  No description could do it justice.  I could have had 3.


Need an incredible experience for a special person? Cafe Boulud is your spot,

Your foodie friend

Insider tip: Save room for the warm, freshly baked madeleines at the end of your meal.  Also, Cafe Boulud is participating in restaurant week for lunch over the next few weeks, three courses for $24 at Cafe Boulud is a steal!

La Esquina

In desperate need of a margarita, I headed to La Esquina.  This restaurant has been around for over ten years and is still packed on a Saturday night until after 10 pm.  Luckily, I wanted a late reservation so when I called around 9:30 pm and intending to arrive around 10 pm, they offered us a reservation for 11 pm.  Turns out our table became ready half way through our first drink.

While waiting for our table, I snagged a couch and sent my husband to the bar for a round of margaritas.  The small bar area, adjacent to the dining room downstairs, is set up as a lounge with couches and seats tucked into the walls.  The dim lights and mix of fun, blaring music in the bar area make you forget you are in a restaurant.

While waiting for our table, I was stymied by a bartender unable to make a decent margarita.  It's a margarita, readers! At $15, there's no excuse to F this up.  Luckily, when we were seated, our server asked if we wanted a drink and we shared our prior disappointment with her.  Equally horrified, she told us never to accept a bad drink and that she would make sure the next round was up to par.

And it was, thankfully. 

What to Eat:

Start with the Rotisserie Chicken Tacos.  The two small corn soft taco tortillas were piled with tender, chunks of chicken and then covered in a spicy green sauce.  

For a side, go with the Grilled Green Beans. Olive oil and kosher salt apparently work miracles because my husband actually ate the green beans and agreed with me that they were delicious.  Green beans are probably my favorite vegetable but I had never tried grilled green beans before.  The light char, when paired with a coating of olive oil and kosher salt, was fantastic.

For an entree, we went with the Fish of the Day, which was a dorado smoked in a banana leaf.  The fish was deboned and stripped of the banana leaf when it arrived on our table.  The dorado was surrounded by a slightly creamy pistachio sauce and topped with an exotic, sauteed vegetable medley (okra, zuchini, lima beans, etc).  The rich pistachio sauce was decadent and the white flaky fish melted in your mouth.




Need a fun night out (or drown your sorrows) with good food, good music, (and in my case, good company)?  Make sure not to settle on a bad drink, lesson learned,

Your foodie friend

Insider tip: Make a reservation, walk ins were turned away, even after 10 pm.  Also, La Esquina's air conditioning is lacking, perhaps a better spot after the NYC heat wave ends, in September.

Tocqueville

Hello Tocqueville.  I have a new favorite classy NYC restaurant.  I needed to push my reservation back 30 minutes, Tocqueville's response, no problem.  I didn't want the anise sauce on the duck, Tocqueville's response, no problem.  Everything about Tocqueville, from the decor to the service to the food, is classy.

The small dining room at Tocqueville managed to pull off modern chic, yet still cosy.  Every employee we interacted with had a fantastic "how can I help you and make your night fabulous" attitude. Our server and bus boy constantly checked in on us constantly.  Tocqueville knows how to pamper its patrons.

Shortly after you order, a bread tray with sourdough, focaccia and brioche will make its way to your table.  Stick to the brioche.  Each item was home made and featured a slightly unique take but the brioche stole the show with it's buttery goodness.








We started with a half of a bottle of the Fournier Sancerre (it was a Tuesday night) and I was glad we only ordered a half of a bottle because the Fournier was so good, I would have ended up finishing a whole bottle if we had one.


While waiting for our appetizers, an amuse bouche consisting of duck mousse topped with gooseberries  on sourdough bread arrived at our table.  It was so good, I could have consumed a tray of them. The tart gooseberries and mustard seeds brought out the complexity of the duck mousse's flavor and consistency.



What to Eat:


   
Start with the Sea Urchin and Angel Hair Carbonara.  The airy angel hair noodles are smothered in a creamy carbonara sauce.  While the sea urchin really doesn't really add or subtract from the dish, the hint of soy sauce was a cool Asian inspired take on a traditional Italian dish.  This pasta dish is reason enough to go back to Tocqueville. 













Next, order the /Smoked Duck Breast.  Everyone that goes to Tocqueville always says you have to try the duck and they are all correct.  The tender duck breast is cut into large slices and typically prepared in a anise sauce.  As a mentioned above, I don't like anise.  And my foodie friend didn't like bok choy.  So we pretty much told the server we wanted Tocqueville's duck breast but prepared it a different way and with different sides.  The server agreed to make the changes without an ounce of hesitation.  The light au jus sauce allowed the quality of the duck to shine.


For dessert, the Chocolate Souffle is a must.  The rich chocolate souffle was cooked perfectly, with a largely gooey center and a moist outer shell.  We opted for the home made hazelnut ice cream instead of the cherry ice cream, which was the perfect nutty flavor contrast to the decadent chocolate souffle.

Looking for a restaurant to impress a client, parents or a date? Make a res at Tocqueville,

Your foodie friend

Insider tip: This restaurant is frequently features on groupon, giltcity.com, etc.  Make sure to snag a deal!

Cafe Yu

I found myself starving near Madison Square Garden (again).  Luckily my good friend guided me to a local Chinese restaurant.  I've walked by Cafe Yu hundreds of times in the past few years around lunch time and always noticed it was packed but never considered walking in.  In desperate need of immediate sustenance, we turned to Cafe Yu.

Cafe Yu serves Chinese American cuisine at a reasonable price.  The restaurant is cleaner and slightly better decorated than the average NYC Chinese restaurant.  The service lackluster, which was surprising because by the time we were seated a little after 9pm, the restaurant was only half full and there was a handful of waiters clustered towards the front of the restaurant, chatting away.  You had to ask the server for water, to order, etc...But what Cafe Yu lacked in service, it made up for in high quality ingredients and speedy food delivery to starving patrons.

Somewhat typical (and fabulous) of Chinese restaurants, the menu featured dozens of options and the portions were large.  We had a difficult time narrowing down what to eat because there were so many appetizing options, which in my book is always a good problem to have.  Every thing we ordered was incredible and I would definitely go back to try different menu items (who am I kidding, and order most of the same items as well).

What to Eat:

Instead of ordering appetizers, we went with a family style feast, allowing the kitchen to bring out food as it was ready.  Start out by ordering the Fried Rice with Chicken and Pineapple.  I was (happily) surprised by the curry flavor, more commonly found at Thai restaurants.  This dish is a very satisfying way to fill a hungry stomach.  Despite the large portion, there were very few pineapple chunks in the fried rice.




For  an entree, definitely order the Prawns in Lobster Sauce.  This was delicious!  The large, fresh shrimp were coated in a thick lobster sauce.  Even though I love peas, I thought it was great that Cafe Yu swapped out the peas for a ton of edamame!














Also, for the somewhat less adventurous, try the Chicken and Broccoli.  When feeling the need to incorporate vegetables into my Chinese feast, I usually order Chicken and Broccoli.  To be fair, this is a hard dish to screw up. Cafe Yu used fresh, moist chicken and perfectly cooked broccoli.  Also, it wasn't oily, which is were most Chinese restaurants go wrong.  I would definitely recommend this to someone looking for a slightly healthier dish.

Starving near MSG/Penn Station?  Cafe Yu help you escape the crowds,



Your foodie friend

Pylos

In my past life I must have been Greek because I love Greek food.  I could eat it every day.  It never seems to get old for me because there are so many delectable options.  During a recent self guided dessert walking tour of the lower east side (for a different post readers), I strolled past Pylos, an intimate lower east side Greek restaurant.  I thought this would be the perfect new restaurant to try with my fellow Greek food lovers.

Pylos opened the front doors so that the few tables in the front of the dining room give off the impression of dining al fresco (the rest of the restaurant suffers from a lack of AC, which is somewhat typical for the lower east side).  I would definitely recommend asking for a front table when making a reservation if the weather is nice.  


The sleek modern interior gives Pylos a slightly trendy vibe, somewhat unusual for a Greek restaurant.  But the decor is not entirely void of Greek touches, clay pots line the ceiling.  


After ordering our dishes, we were greeted with a plate of freshly baked, warm pita bread and a white bean dip.  The white bean dip was average but I could easily ruin my meal on the pita.




What to Eat:

Start with the Artichoke Heart Moussaka.  This thick casserole is packed with baby artichoke hearts, caramelized onions and three Greek cheeses.  What I wouldn't give to get my hands on this recipe.  It reminded me of my mother's three cheese artichoke dip.  Every bite of this rich, savory appetizer melts in your mouth.  I had to fight myself from order a second serving.

For a shared starter, go with the Fried Zucchini and Eggplant.  It tasted like a healthy, yet delicious take on french fries.  Each slice of fried deliciousness is generously seasoned with oregano and sprinkled with a Parmesan type cheese.  Make sure to dunk your slice in the side of creamy tzaziki.







For an entree, order the Shrimp and Sea Scallops in a Creamy Tomato Ouzo Sauce.  The short, homemade egg noodles are covered in a sweet, creamy tomato sauce.  For a cream sauce, it was surprisingly light  The portion was large and included a generous helping of fresh shrimp and scallops.

Need a Greek food fix?  Snag a table by the front door at Pylos,

Your foodie friend