Plan my weekend in Manhattan

[Fuuma]

Originally Posted by gomestar

you will be held responsible for the ample post consumption Momo hype. A major responsibility, almost puritan at heart. Be sure to discuss how phony other restaurants are without crossing the line between "chat" and "important details". Never reach the latter. Bonus points for using the word "corporate" in your discussion. Super bonus points for a "how do you live with yourself" statement after any question about my job is answered.

Setagaya ramen is better than Momofuku's.

 

[Connemara]

Originally Posted by Manton

I read that she died.

don't mock Angie.

 

[GQ Lawyer]

Originally Posted by Fuuma

Setagaya ramen is better than Momofuku's.


Ippudo is amazing!

 

[Fuuma]

Originally Posted by GQ Lawyer

Ippudo is amazing!

Ippudo=best ramen in NYC.

 

[gomestar]

I'm still hooked on Doyer's

 

[akatsuki]

I agree with Ippudo over any fancy place for ramen. For Japanese I was always partial to En, authentic modern stuff, not too pricey. Their fresh tofu is great.

Also try Wallse.

 

[GQ Lawyer]

Have you tried Sakagura or Matsugen for Japanese? Both are great!

 

[Mark from Plano]

Post-trip report: Thanks guys for all the suggestions. I took some, rejected some and am saving some for later. All-in-all it was as successful a trip as it could have been considering that the weather was completely dreadful. Cold I can stand. Rainy I can stand. Windy I can stand. Cold, windy and rainy makes for a miserable combination in a city built for walking. Still and all it was a good trip. As to the details from which you guiz gave input: FRIDAY: The first night I had made reservations at the River Cafe in Brooklyn. I don't think there could have been a better choice in the circumstance. The view, the food, the wine, the service and the company were all spectacular (the price was

). For the appetizer course, she ordered a lobster soup that was amazing and I had the fois gras two ways, which came paired with a Maison Nicolas Reserve Sauternes. The fois gras by itself was wonderful. The Sauterne by itself was fantastic. The combination of the two can only be described as a 2+2=27 event. For dinner, she ordered a fish dish (I can't remember now...it was a special) which was amazing and I ordered the lamb chops. The Sommelier was great help to us and we selected a 2002 Domaine Guy Castagnier Charmes-Chambertin Burgundy that was just sublime. I'm hard pressed to remember an overall dining experience that was better. After dinner we called the hotel concierge to ask where we should go to hear live music. Between her and the cab driver we wound up on the Lower East Side, near Delancy Street (?). We went into one place and the doorman allowed us to pop in to hear the band before paying the cover and it turned out to be a group that had clearly spent way too much time listening to Nirvana to be much interest to us (not that Nirvana isn't good, but...). We asked some of the other patrons where to go and got some directions. We wound up at the Rockwood Music Hall on Allen. The place was completely overpacked. They must have had the fire marshal on the payroll. We eventually got in and somehow my hyper-aggressive, securities lawyer girl-interest miraculously secured us a table right next to the very tiny stage. The band that night was a group called "Marwood" which we were told had been broken up for several years and this was their reunion gig. They were amazing and must have been quite popular because everyone in the place but us knew all the words to every song they played. We agreed they were fantastic and I wound up buying three of their albums off of iTunes during the show. After their set, another band played which we were told would be even better. They weren't. We stayed for part of the show then left. It was late. SATURDAY: We slept late, then went to the gym at the hotel. The plan had been to spend the day walking the city. We had places we wanted to visit in mid-town, the Upper East Side, the Village, Chinatown, etc. Sadly for us the weather said no. We decided to try it anyway, dressed in grubby clothes and set out umbrellas in hand. She went by Ann Taylor and did some damage there then stopped in a sandwich shop for lunch. I wanted to check out a few places including Leflotts (?) in the West Village for some serious shoe damage. But by this point it was clear that this wasn't going to happen. She'd bought a ring in the diamond district on an earlier trip and had dropped it back off to have it resized. We went back by the shop, picked up the ring and she bought some earrings. By this time we were so wet and cold that there was only one thing to do...drink. So we dropped into a couple of different pubs on 47th near the hotel to compare their Nutty Irishmen. Afterward it was back to the hotel to dry off and nap through some pay-per-view movies. At some point we decided we'd need to eat dinner. She'd originally requested that we not make reservations for Saturday, but then changed her mind so we set about trying to find a place that was (a) near the hotel, but (b) not so close that we'd be tempted to walk since the weather was terrible. We wound up with reservations at Il Gattopardo across from the MoMA. While this place was certainly good, our overall impressions were probably affected by the spectacular experience the night before. Our tab here was exactly half of the night before, yet the overall experience was less than half. The food was good, not great. The wine was overpriced relative to quality and the ambiance was not what we'd hoped. I'd like to try this place again someday because perhaps we just caught them on an off night. Or perhaps we just weren't in the frame of mind to enjoy it as much. Or perhaps it just wasn't fair to eat here after the night before. Anyway... No after dinner entertainment that night. We stayed at the restaurant fairly late and then went back to the hotel. The original conception of the trip had been to do lots of walking and exploring. That simply wasn't possible given the weather this trip. We still had an amazing time and found a new favorite place in NYC. Her comment was that she enjoyed the River Cafe so much that she'd love to go back there again even over trying someplace new. Anyway...thanks for the help. Another successful SF intervention.

 

[Piobaire]

Thanks for the write up, Mark. Glad to hear you had some high points and it sounds like it was a great weekend. Nothing like exploring parts of an unfamiliar, large city.

 

[philosophe]

Weekend with gf in New York, then news clothes in the mail. What's next, Mark?

 

[Mark from Plano]

Originally Posted by philosophe

Weekend with gf in New York, then news clothes in the mail. What's next, Mark?

Sadly...back to reality. Work this week and I need to get started on my tax return.

 

[romafan]

Originally Posted by Fuuma

Ippudo=best ramen in NYC.

i live across the street from this place - there is always a line!

 

[Ricardo Malocchio]

My wife and I also spent a wind-addled, rain-soaked weekend in Manhattan, staying at the Soho Grand and basically within the neighborhood save a couple short excursions for dinner. I'm not sure why I'm reporting this here, but we had a great time, rain-ocalypse and all!

After arriving late on the delayed shuttle from Boston, we found our way to the Aroma Kitchen and Wine Bar by 11pm. Amazing, terroir-driven, all-Italian wine list and some really wonderful food. We drank more than ate.

Denim run on Saturday - my wife scored a pair at the Jean Shop and I went somewhat more downscale with those new Levis 514 Japanese selveges. Wow, I love these jeans. And for 30% of the cost of Jean Shops!

Stopped for lunch at a Soho wine bar that was serving 2002 Brunello by the glass (Boom?). Had 3 glasses before it hit me that I probably should've just gotten the bottle.

Aldea for Saturday night, at the Chef's bar. Sea urchin toast just OK (heavy-handed wasabi nearly obliterated the urchin flavor); foie gras amazing, arroz de pato comfort food heaven, and those little donuts... oh my god.

Balthazar bakery and shopping at Daffy's on Sunday. A quick, but unmemorable stop at Felix for lunch (my wife's tartare was nice) ... and the inevitably delayed shuttle back to beantown where I got to experience that storm all over again on Monday.

 

[gomestar]

Originally Posted by Ricardo Malocchio

Stopped for lunch at a Soho wine bar that was serving 2002 Brunello by the glass (Boom?). Had 3 glasses before it hit me that I probably should've just gotten the bottle.

glad the trip is great, too bad it wasn't a 2001 or 2003 Brunello! 2002 was a tough year by all accounts, hope you didn't notice.

Originally Posted by Ricardo Malocchio

Aldea for Saturday night, at the Chef's bar. Sea urchin toast just OK (heavy-handed wasabi nearly obliterated the urchin flavor); foie gras amazing, arroz de pato comfort food heaven, and those little donuts... oh my god.

odd question, perhaps, but what did you think of the interior of Aldea?

 

[Ricardo Malocchio]

I'm not terribly familiar with Brunellos (often quite cost-prohibitive and that fooferal over non Sangiovese blends makes me nervous about investing in bottles), but I often like "off years" (2006 CdP, for example) ... suffice to say, all I noticed was how much I was enjoying it!

I believe it was a Col d’ Orcia, and I found it very earthy and notably mushroomy over dark red fruit, leather and spice. I'd love to explore this wine more - though, again, it's somewhat price-prohibitive. But a good excuse to venture out of my Piedmont comfort zone, as I've lately been enjoying perhaps too many moderately priced nebbiolos (mostly from Langhe). Any suggestions for non investment-grade Brunellos?

I liked Aldea's interior, though I tend to prefer a more homey, comfortable ambience. We sat at the Chef's bar and didn't make it upstairs, and I suspect we might have liked it better if it were a bit less sleek and minimal. It was interesting to watch the interactions between Chef Mendes and his kitchen staff, but my preferences run more toward a nice deep bar, an attentive and knowledgeable bartender, and a menu of wine-friendly small plates. Despite it's rather clunky name, Aroma Kitchen & Wine Bar really fit this bill much better.

I'll say this for Aldea - not cheap eats, of course, but surprisingly inexpensive for a Manhattan restaurant of this quality. I'm certainly glad I went, and the arroz de pato and foie gras presentation were definitely the food highlights of the weekend for me. And, oh yes, the donuts (the "little clouds" or whatever they're called) - fried dough bliss!