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Air’s Champagne Parlor is All About the Bubbly
Beer, wine and even cider bars abound in NYC, but Air’s Champagne Parlor is one of the few area drinkeries devoted to bubbly. To be fair, the Riddling Widow briefly preceded it, but owner Ariel Arce was actually beverage director during its tenure, as well as Birds & Bubbles before that, and Chicago’s Pops for Champagne (not to mention Grant Achatz’s exclusive, original The Office) before that. Meaning her reputation as queen of Cuvèe absolutely proceeds her.
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Where to Celebrate Oktoberfest 2017
If you’re already mourning the loss of summer, Oktoberfest is a reliable way to get you over the hump. Essentially spanning the duration of fall (kicking off on September 16th this year & extending all the way to October 31st, allowing revelers to seamlessly transition to Halloween), the 16 to 18-day festival is a giddy saturnalia of German culture…
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Spotlight on the Finalists for the 2017 Vendy Awards
As a fun challenge to the James Beard Awards, the Vendy ceremony — now in its 13th year — is dedicated to honoring the very best in street food. So here’s who’s in the running during the September 16th event at Governors Island; from an artisanal twinkie baker to an upstart french toast sandwich maker, to a Chinese meat skewer purveyor, whose been tapped for the Vendy Cup…
Most Recent Dish
Chicken With Forty Cloves of Garlic
From Chef David Waltuck “Staff Meals from Chanterelle” This chicken classic is a tribute to the transformational power of heat. Although raw garlic is pungent and aggressive, slow-roasted garlic is the complete opposite—it’s gloriously sweet and mellow. When this dish comes out of the oven, each buttery-soft glove has become a subtle complement to the perfectly roasted chicken. Ingredients:(Serves 6 to 8) 2 chickens (3 to 3 ½ pounds each) 2 tablespoons rendered chicken fat or unsalted butter Coarse...
Read MoreQ & A with Eric Ripert
If you want to know how to cook a fish, ask Eric Ripert. If you don’t cook, you should consider visiting Le Bernardin, one of the most regarded seafood restaurants in the world. Born in Antibes, France, Ripert attended culinary school at age 15, followed by cooking stints in Paris. Ripert worked the fish station for Jean-Louis Palladin, Joel Robuchon and David Bouley before Maguy and Gilbert Le Coze hired him away as a chef at Le Bernardin. ...
Read MoreApiary
60 Third Ave., between 10th and 11th Sts. (212) 254-0888 Mon.-Thurs., 5:30-11 p.m.; Fri-Sat., 5:30 p.m.-midnight; Sun., 5:30-10:30 p.m. CUISINE: New American VIBE: Stylish E. Village eatery OCCASION: First date, group dinner DON’T-MISS DISHES: Roasted peaches and serrano ham; spice-crusted lamb PRICE: Appetizers, $12; entrees, $25; dessert, $8 RESERVATIONS: Recommended CAPSULE: Honey and spice Apiary reminds me how hard it is to get it right. To most of us, dinner is just dinner. But to a restaurant’s chef and...
Read MoreThe Smith's Cucumber Loco
By Jeffrey Lefcourt Muddle: 3 Tablespoon diced cucumber 1/2 oz simple syrup Fill the glass with ice and add: 1 1/4 oz silver tequila 3/4 oz Triple Sec 1/2 oz fresh lime juice Address: 55 Third Ave., btwn 10th & 11th Sts.Phone:...
Read MoreQ & A with Christophe Bellanca
Five years ago, French-born Christophe Bellanca never imagined he would be running the kitchen for one of New York’s top restaurant institutions: Le Cirque 2000. Bellanca first began his career at La Mere Vittet in Lyon, followed by stints in such classic French restaurants as La Pyramide and Pic in France, as well as Domaine de Chateauviex in Geneva. Only a few years ago, he accepted the executive chef position at Los Angeles’ L’Orangerie. At the time, he spoke...
Read MoreAllegretti
46 W. 22nd St., between Fifth and Sixth Aves. (212) 206-0555 5 p.m.-11 p.m. CUISINE Southern French VIBE Think yacht chic OCCASION First date, group dinner, business lunch DON’T-MISS DISH Heirloom tomato salad, seared dorade, chocolate fondant PRICE Appetizers, $15; entrees, $26; dessert, $10 RESERVATIONS: Recommended Capsule: You’ll want to become a regular at Allegretti. Allegretti is growing on me. And that very fact demonstrates one of the few drawbacks of being a restaurant critic. I don’t get...
Read MoreJosh Eden Unveils a Late-night Dim Sum Menu
Late-night dining just got much more interesting on Prince Street. Though Shorty’s.32 may play an American comfort food restaurant by day, it’s soon to become a dim sum speakeasy by night. Why tamper with a good thing you might ask? “Because chefs need to eat dinner as well…” That’s a quote from the new late-night menu. When we got word of this under the radar project, we stopped in to taste the offerings for ourselves. Bottom line: there’s a...
Read MoreA Sneak Peak at the International Chefs Congress – With 2008's Rising Star Chefs
What are the best young chefs saying about their success? You may get to eat at their restaurants, but you don’t often get to hear what these Star Chefs say to their peers. Or in some cases, what they don’t say. This year’s International Chefs Congress arrives in town this Sunday with chefs from around the world. The three-day symposium will be held at the Park Avenue Armory. Here’s a sneak peek at what 2008’s Rising Star Chefs will...
Read MoreBoqueria's Brewsky Sangria
By Wine Director Roger Kugler Ingredients 6 oz. full flavor lager 2 oz fresh lemon juice 2 oz pear puree (we use Funkin) 2 oz Triple Sec Mix all ingredients and slowly stir (not to flatten the beer). Pour over ice in a pint glass ½ filled with ice. Garnish with fresh summer fruits. Address: 53 West 19th St., btwn. 5th & 6th Aves.Phone:(212)727-1548Boqueria website Photo Credit: Dawn...
Read MoreGizmo Girl’s Vertical Chicken Roaster
After a long summer of hamburgers and hot dogs on the grill, there’s no need to abandon the grill. Instead, seize the last days of warm weather with a BBQ rotisserie chicken. We just discovered our new favorite bbq gadget, the Vertical Chicken Roaster, which makes grilling a chicken as easy as flipping burgers. The Roaster allows you to pour wine, beer, or water right into the center to add moisture and flavor while your chicken roasts. Vertical Chicken...
Read MoreQ & A with Julia Jaksic
For most chefs, running a kitchen is a full-time job in its own right. But Employees Only chef Julia Jaksic also finds the time to run a rather, avant-garde dinner club as well. After graduating from Le Cordon Bleu, she went on to work her way through Chicago’s restaurants before moving to New York’s SoHo Grand. Her father, a butcher in the Meatpacking District during the 70’s, taught Julia how to butcher a pig and make her sausages. With...
Read MoreLa Superior / The General Greene
La Superior 295 Berry St., near S. Second St., Brooklyn, (718) 388-5988. Mon.-Thu. 12:30 p.m.-midnight, Fri.-Sun, 12:30 p.m. – 2 a.m. Cuisine: Mexican street food Vibe: Dingy taqueria Occasion: Destination dining Don’t miss dish: Mushroom quesadillas, enchiladas suizas Average price: Appetizers, $4; entries $10. Reservations: No reservations, cash only, BYOB. To say La Superior is understated is an understatement. “Do you think this is it?” a friend said nervously. We were standing outside a dingy storefront on an empty...
Read MoreApotheke's Morning Glory Cocktail
By Apotheker & Co-owner Albert Trummer A luminary among bar chefs, Austrian born Albert Trummer conceived the cocktail menus for Town as well as David Bouley’s Fraiche in Los Angeles. Before that, and long before it was fashionable, Trummer took the art of the cocktail as seriously as the art of cooking. At Trummer Home in Greenpoint, New York, he introduced libations in strict accordance with the seasons, quickly earning a reputation for his exotic creations. Trummer re-emerges on...
Read MoreQ & A with Alex Grunert
Alex Grunert, the pastry chef of Blue Hill at Stone Barns, seizes upon his Viennese upbringing in his ardent commitment to the restaurant’s “locavore” philosophy. Following a stint at the famed Hotel Inter-continental restaurant Vier Jahreszeite in Vienna, Alex sharpened his skills as a chocolate maker for the Austrian patisserie Oberlaa Konditorei. He then moved to New York City, where he seamlessly weaved his Austrian technique into the classic pastries at Bouley and Danube. As the executive pastry chef,...
Read MoreDelicatessen
54 Prince St., at Lafayette St. (212) 226-0211 Mon.-Sat., 7:30 a.m.-1 a.m.; Sun., 7:30 a.m.-midnight. CUISINE Creative comfort food. VIBE Open-air theater. OCCASION Casual date; group dining. DON’T-MISS DISH Bangers and mash, Ovaltine pudding parfait. AVERAGE PRICE Appetizers, $7-$11; entrees, $12-$24; dessert, $8. RESERVATIONS Recommended. Not many delicatessens require reservations. Then again, Delicatessen isn’t a “deli” in any conventional sense of the word. It’s a sleek, open-air theater in SoHo – floating leather banquettes, glossy white tables, a backlit...
Read MoreStanton Social's Watermelon Margarita
By Partner Peter Kane 3 cubes of (tequila infused) watermelon MUDDLED w/ 1/2 teaspoon of diced ginger .5 oz of ginger simple syrup 1.5 oz watermelon infused white tequila .75 oz of fresh lemon juice Shake and serve over CRUSHED ice in a rocks glass. Address: 99 Stanton St., between Orchard & Ludlow Sts. Phone:...
Read MoreParlor Steakhouse
1600 Third Ave., at 90th St. (212) 423-5888 Sun.-Thur., 5:30 p.m.-11 p.m.; Fri. & Sat., 5:30 p.m.-12 a.m. CUISINE Modern American steakhouse. VIBE Butcher-shop sleek. OCCASION UES date; group dining. DON’T-MISS DISH Tomato and watermelon gazpacho, filet mignon, sour-cream cheesecake. PRICE Appetizers, $9-$15; entrees, $22-$42; dessert, $8-$10. RESERVATIONS Accepted. You need a road map through the menu at Parlor Steakhouse. Here it is: Order the gazpacho, ask for the filet mignon medium rare, and finish with any one of...
Read MoreGizmo Girl’s Wine Thermometer
Every wine has its perfect temperature – but the chances of getting it just right are probably slim to none. Thanks to the latest wine gizmo, the Wine Thermometer, getting your dry sherry to its ideal chill or your cabernet to its best temperature is simple with this metal sleeve. Slide the thermometer around the bottle and the temperature will match the desired grape. Who knew becoming an oenophile was such a sinch. Wine Thermometer Care to share your...
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