Manhattan Palate

Weaving through the city streets enjoying fabulous food

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Birthday Excuse to Indulge: 2

I don't think much commentary is needed for Part 2 of the celebrations - Buddakan.

Must Try List:

Edamame Dumplings

Tofu/Pineapple/Cashew

Fate (elderflower, pineapple, prosecco)

Lush (sake, lychee, gin, rosemary)

I hear Rikshaw Dumplings (new storefront on Lexington and 45th) has great Edamame dumplings as well... And then of course there was the dessert: Some sort of strawberry shortcake delight and Almond Bread Pudding. The former was better, and took me back to the days when Twinkies used to be cool -- I guess some would argue that they still are:

[nycpalate-blog]

Birthday Excuse to Indulge: 1

"Age is something that doesn’t matter, unless you are a cheese."

I am no cheese; and, so this year I decided to celebrate becoming one year older with not one, but two excuses to indulge: Brasserie Beaumarchais (formerly, Bagatelle's) and Buddakan. I'll dedicate this post to Beaumarchais.

If Brunch was an extreme sport, as it almost is in new york city, I would register to compete in a heartbeat! So I could think of no better way to "do it up" than entering myself in "THE" (allegedly) Party Bunch Arena of Manhattan, Bagatelle's. Few things to note:

The have tiered seating

First seating takes place prior to 1:30pm; Second seating takes place after 1:30pm

First seating has a 2-hour table limit

Second seating has a $250 per person minimum

The La Pomelo drink is fantastic - it had me at "elderflower"

As we waited for everyone to arrive, I kicked off with the Sangria Rose (w/ peach puree) at the bar - tasty, but seemed to lack the "kick" i would hope for in a $16 beverage... although I suppose it was only Saturday afternoon. Despite the lack of a large crowd, service was extremely slow. The man behind the bar (well, most that were employed there) was handsome, charming, and spoke with a French accent - that definitely helped his cause, but still... The beautiful sunny weather made our table even more clutch, as we sat along the open wall to the outside sidewalk seating. Here's the skinny on the food we enjoyed:

gnocchi - Okay

french toast - Great

huevos rancheros - Pretty good

eggs beaumarchais - Great

burger beaumarchais - Good, though slipped on the order

la pomelo - after I tasted a friend's, quickly understood it was the drink option to stick with!

and then the surprise dessert...

   IT CAME     |     WE SAW     |     WE CONQUERED

Dessert rarely needs explanation. It was delicious - the berries buried beneath the whip cream and ice cream with cookies and marshmallows were the best (since they were also now soaked with sinful vanilla and chocolate flavors).

Honestly, the "Party" aspect of this party brunch - a.k.a. the DJ spinning his tables and buckets of rose being passed around - was very weak. Perhaps we didn't stay long enough to see the party launch... We certainly had fun, but I can't say I can attribute it to any "amazing daytime nightclub experience."

Yelp reviews seemed to kill the Brasserie for pretentious attitudes. Listen, you're in meatpacking, part of that comes with territory - but though the service had a slow start, I can't say we encountered any serious snooty personalities. Overall, a good time. Though, if not for the occasion and awesome friends and family who ordered an intense sugar monster with flaming sparklers, I may refine to simply "okay." 

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Sea of "Wine Bars"

The allure and artful tradition of wine may be millenia old, but the business craze is all relatively new to me. For the longest time I chose to stick with my colorless odorless friend on a night out, which used to fair poorly for me while my friends guzzled away pitchers of beer. [A] my tab would be higher; and [B], the expectation of going "glass for glass" never seemed to thin out based on beverage type consumption. Man down.

In any case, a number of delightful "wine experiences" helped kick off my own obsession with one of the latest food trends of the decade: the wine bar. 

Last weekend, I joined some friends to check out a dig in the East Village. Now the fact that wine bars are plentiful in NYC help my cause since I'd never run out of new wine venues to check out. However, that also causes a big problem in finding the "right" bar that you're supposed to be meeting your 5 other friends at [I mean how many entries do you think owners have to reference in a thesaurus for "wine" when naming their restaurants?]

Anyway, after I zipped down 2nd ave in a cab in search of the "actual" place I was to be 30min ago, Cellar 58 (inspired by a friend's recent Groupon purchase), I had a fairly decent dining evening. Our waitress, though very nice, perhaps wasn't the biggest vino connoisseur, but she made great food recommendations. We began with a staple meat and cheese platter - I particularly enjoyed a mix of the Robiolo with fig. That night I went red. I'm all about whites, but I figured why not? My roommate, a red usual, chose a Merlot for us. Excellent choice for me: not bitter or heavy! Really enjoyed it.

The waitress gave me a heads up about the gnocchi. They "weren't typical," as in they weren't made from potatoes. Up for something different, I tried the semolina-based item. I went from being skeptically surprised by their large size and wad-of-spinach-looking presentation to extremely satisfied after taking the first bite. They were delicious! I shared the pesto/avocado/artichoke sandwich too, and I was pleasantly surprised. Maybe my expectations were low, but the mix of all three of those ingredients on a warm freshly toasted ciabatta was fantastic. Cellar 58's playlist boasted forgotten favorites, and the restroom was clean (in case you're wondering). It was a good find (thanks, Katie!), and a place i'd definitely come back to - just not with any wine snob friends.

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Cheers Farewell

You can't ask a vegetarian for restaurant recommendations

Contrary to popular belief, individuals who enjoy the tastes of freshly cooked vegetables can still in fact distinguish pleasant ambiance, fine beverage selections, exceptional service, and scrumptious food. Preposterous. I know.

It was disheartening to hear that a staple recommendation of mine, Fig & Olive (midtown), faired poorly for my manager the night before. As he recounted to me his night of aggravation - from lipstick stained glasses and a seemingly inconsiderate waitstaff - all I could think about is how much I'd still rather be sipping on a glass of Robalino paired with a Rochetto morsel with walnut tapenade than sitting at work on a beautiful Friday afternoon. Anyway, I hope to exonerate my recommendation reputation by sharing a new dining experience -

A few hours later that day, my thought bubble popped into reality. It was my last day with the team, and in gesture of thanks, my manager (fortunately a foodie of grand taste) took me out to seemingly right the food experience that had wronged him the night prior.

We set out to Lavo. Nymag will write things like "histrionics of daytime... bachannal..." when describing this Tao sibling. I did not know what these words meant (thank you dictionary.com); but the meal and genteel decor were much appreciated! The Friday lunch crowd seemed to be full of groups of women perhaps discussing details of their next facetious charity event, or perhaps the drama of their unfaithful husbands; and of pairs of fitted-blazer-no-sock-wearing men discussing the details around their next venture deal. In any case, one crisp bottle of Sauvignon Blanc, satisfying plate of polenta fries served in marinara sauce, and brick oven cooked burrata (new cheese to me, which was deliciously fresh!) & arugula pizza later, all that didn't matter anyway.

Infused with words of wisdom to follow me to my next stop in life's journey, lunch at Lavo was a delightful experience: an "A" in ambiance, beverage option, service, and food from me! Intrigued to play out their brunch scene soon...