Category Archives: Lower East Side/Chinatown

Latin/Mexican & Caribbean, Lower East Side/Chinatown, Restaurant Reviews

Cibao

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First, check out my Ride & Review video HERE:

This joint dates back to 1958, when it was called La Lechonera. In 1978 it became Cibao, and it remains a neighborhood icon to this day.

I’ve walked by it many times, and always wanted to try it. There are a lot of great Hispanic and Latin American food places nearby, like Castillo de Jagua (I and II), Casa Adela, and Castillo de Manhattan. I’ve tried all of those, and now I’ve finally made it to Cibao for some grub.

Everything was tasty. Here’s what we tried:

First up was the Cuban sandwich. So crisp and tasty. Great ratio of meat to mayo to pickles to cheese. This is a win, especially at just $9.

Next, the bone-in chicken chicharrones. The only way to get them! Juicy inside, golden brown outside and with very flavorful, super crispy skin. Perfect! I want to order the larger format fried chicken items next time to see how they compare.

The Pernil was a little dry, but overall still really tasty. Best for sandwiches that have cheese, pickles and mayo, to juicy it up a little bit. Or maybe they could serve this with a little cup of the roasting juices/drippings.

The sides were good too. We tried the green plantains, yellow rice and beans. Platano power!

We washed it all down with some delicious Morir Sonando (orange juice and milk drink).

I will definitely be back here again for the fried chicken and mofongo, and I’ll likely order it for delivery as well. The Sancocho is only offered on specific days, so I’ll definitely have to go for that.

CIBAO
72 Clinton St
New York, NY 10002

African/Middle Eastern, Latin/Mexican & Caribbean, Lower East Side/Chinatown

Omar’s Kitchen

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First, check out my Ride & Review video for this spot HERE:

My wife and I have walked by this place a bunch recently, and it reminded us of a smaller version of Miss Lily’s. The food looked great, and my best friend from growing up said that he heard great “tings” about it, so we had to give it a try.

Omar’s serves up Caribbean and Jamaican food in a small, casual and lively spot on Clinton Street just below Houston. The cocktails are awesome. This Scotch Bonnet pepper margarita was incredible. A perfect balance of heat, sweet and savory refreshment.

These Scorpion Pepper wings aren’t as spicy as you might think. The sauce is really nicely balanced here, so you won’t hand numb lips and watery facial orifices after eating. The meat is also insanely tender – almost as if they were stewed.

I also loved this salt fish hush puppy type things. Perfectly friend. Light and dense at the same time. Very satisfying.

These hibiscus sorrel lamb chops are as unique tasting as they are beautiful. A combination of earthy Indian and bright Latin/Caribbean spices that marry beautifully on tender, nicely cooked chops.

The real star of the show, though, is the coconut curry with oxtail and dumplings.

This was insane! The dumplings ate almost like Korean rice cakes, but a bit less chewy. Nice little logs of free-form dough, soaked with the rich, deep flavors of the curry. Delicious.

We will definitely be back here again. What a spot! The only negatives here: (1) all of our dishes came out at once, apps and entrees at the same time, and (2) the music is a bit loud if you’re seated inside. Go for dinner, stay for drinks!

OMAR’S KITCHEN
29A Clinton St
New York, NY 10002

Burgers, East Village, Lower East Side/Chinatown

Le Burger

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First, check out my Ride & Review video of this place HERE:

This place used to be the original location of Black Iron Burger, I think.

My wife and I stopped in on a mini food crawl and gave it a shot. It was good!

The 6oz patty was cooked properly, with a nice crust from the flat top. The toppings were well portioned, and the bun held up, for the most part.

Fries could have used a bit of salt, but the onion rings were perfect.

I would definitely go back. I really like the cross between a luncheonette and a pub vibe that they have going here, and the staff was delightful. Next time I’ll try their signature burger that has brie and caramelized onions.

LE BURGER
540 E 5th St
New York, NY 10009

East Village, Lower East Side/Chinatown, Pizza

Luzzo

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Check out my Ride & Review of this joint HERE first.

Long story short: you can kip this place! The pepperoni slice is fine, but at $5-$6 a slice, this place is a rip off.

I feel like you can do better at a good dollar slice joint. The toppings on this pesto and fresh mozz “Genovese” slice were nice, but the dough was a little gummy – maybe underbaked – and dense.

Finally, the official name of the restaurant is “Luzzo’s La Pizza Napoletana,” but there is nothing Neapolitan about this pizza. It’s a standard slice joint that’s oddly reminiscent of some national chain pizzerias, like Sbarro’s or Little Caesar’s.

LUZZO
15 Avenue B
New York, NY 10009

East Village, Japanese, Lower East Side/Chinatown, Restaurant Reviews

Domakase

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First check out this quick Ride & Review video HERE:

This joint offers 13 pieces with unlimited sake for $120. We had about 4 or 5 carafes of the stuff, so we definitely got our money’s worth. Our favotire pieces were the lean and fatty tuna, the foie gras on crispy mochi, and the bowl of uni, ikura and caviar. Awesome! Would go back for sure! Only criticism was the sterile, medical office type lighting being a bit “fluorescent blue,” if that makes sense, and the loudness of the music.

DOMAKASE
23 Avenue B
New York, NY 10009

East Village, Italian, Lower East Side/Chinatown, Parms, Restaurant Reviews

Il Posto Accanto

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First, check out this kickass Ride & Review video HERE:

– link –

My wife sent me an Instagram post from this place about a special burrata and mortadella app they were running. When I realized how close it was to our place, I called up and grabbed a reservation for dinner later that day. The food on their account looked awesome, and I’m always looking to try neighborhood joints like this.

The meal was incredible. First, let me say that the table bread was so good! They had an onion focaccia and some Italian bread, served with olive oil (watch the video to see it).

We started with that special burrata app, which had spicy salami, prosciutto and mortadella along with the burrata.

Next up, fritto misto, with calamari, shrimp and zucchini. LOTS of the seafood. Great portion!

We also had the grilled calamari, which is marinated in olive oil for a day before being grilled. This was lovely.

For the second half of the meal, we did two pastas and their smoked mozzarella chicken parm.

Although the cheese wasn’t bubbly or melted out, the dish was still really great. The chicken was pounded out enough to be tender, but not so thin that it lost juiciness.

The first pasta was a Sorrento style long, thick ribbon called scialatiella.

I love a thick pasta, and this was easily one of my favorite pasta dishes of the year.

Cavatelli with sausage, peas, and mushrooms in a white truffle cream sauce was next. This was so damn tasty. Cavatelli is typically my favorite pasta shape. All the pasta here is hand made in house, and really well made at that.

For dessert we tried the panna cotta. This was so smooth, creamy and delicious. The berry compote on the bottom was just the right amount of sweet acidity to cut that rich creaminess.

What a meal! We plan to be regulars here, and we can’t wait to go back. Check out the bottom line of the receipt. That shit had me cracking up!

IL POSTO ACCANTO
190 E 2nd St
New York, NY 10009

Italian, Lower East Side/Chinatown, Non-Steakhouse Steaks, Other Cuts, Restaurant Reviews

Casino

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Check out my Ride & Review video HERE:

This little Italian joint opened up down by us on East Broadway, and we were excited to try it out. The cocktails are all great, and the bar is stacked with lots of amari.

We tried three starters: the endive salad, the prawns and the fried artichoke. These were all fantastic; seriously one better than the next. These items are every day kind of items. They’re that good!

This smoked lamb ragu pappardelle was BONKERS!!! The pasta ate sort of like hand pulled noodles. A bit broken up in parts, but I would eat this by the bucket load. Amazing.

The dry aged duck was a bit of a let down. Not terrible by any means, but it was over seasoned, the skin was not crisp enough, and the flesh was a bit tough in parts. A 6/10. Maybe 7 on a good day. One half/slice was definitely better than the other.

This “crespelle” was sort of like a vegetable lasagna, and it was absolutely delicious. I was shocked at how much I liked this, considering it was utterly meatless.

For dessert we shared the midnight cake, which was definitely more like a mousse than a cake. We loved it. That little blob of white is creme fresche.

I would definitely go back, especially for those starters and the pasta dishes. They have a t-bone on the menu, so I’ll eventually have to try that as well.

UPDATE 7/20/2023

I had the steak!

This is an easy 9/10 and it is in the running for a best bite of 2023. The age was perfect on it, super tender on the filet side, nice texture on the strip side with no connective tissue (a center cut). Beautiful.

CASINO
171 E Broadway
New York, NY 10002

Burgers, Lower East Side/Chinatown

Milk Burger

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This joint is on Houston Street in the Lower East Side (they have a Bronx location too). I had been meaning to ride over and check it out, but one night just recently, Uber Eats showed me a push notification that they had a “buy one get one” offer for their cheeseburger. I gave it a shot.

I liked it! It eats similar to a Shake Shack burger. Sides/fries and chicken items were good as well. I’ll definitely be hitting this spot again when I need a fast food burger fix.

MILK BURGER
321 E Houston St
New York, NY 10002

Lower East Side/Chinatown, Restaurant Reviews, Spanish

Ernesto’s

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I finally made it over to Ernesto’s! I’m happy this place is really close to home. Check out my Ride & Review video HERE first, and then read on below.

Firstly, the cocktails here are excellent! A bit pricey at $18, but worth it for the skill and flavors.

We tried a bunch of starters. Everything was excellent, but the stand-outs were the croquettes, the squid, the anchovies and the tripe.

Potato Tortilla:

Croquette:

Asparagus Carbonara:

Fried Squid:

Anchovies:

Tripe:

They didn’t have the txuleta (vaca vieja) special on this trip, so we went with the rabbit rice and the blood sausage. Both were great, but we preferred the blood sausage out of the two. It was light and refreshing, which was a complete surprise to us. Blood sausage is usually so heavy!

For dessert we had flan and Basque style cheesecake. Between the two, the cheesecake was the winner.

I will definitely be back here to try the steak when they have it on special again.

ERNESTO’S
259 E Broadway
New York, NY 10002

Japanese, Lower East Side/Chinatown, Restaurant Reviews

Matsunori

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First and foremost, check out my Ride & Review video HERE on YouTube:

This small sushi counter offers an $88 omakase, which consists of two appetizers, ten pieces of nigiri sushi, two hand rolls and a bite of dessert. Here are the two apps:

The nigiri:

This tuna with truffle oil was so good:

Scallop with uni – delicious:

Since my wife can’t have scallop, they gave her this uni piece instead:

This salmon with shaved manchego cheese was wildly unique:

Below is the chef, and the final piece (which was our favorite): Fatty tuna belly with caviar and truffle oil.

The hand rolls (eel + foie gras, and tuna) and dessert (melon):

This is probably one of the best deals I’ve come across when you line it up with quality and portion sizes. I left full/satisfied, and every bite was better than the last. The staff was super nice and offered us a free shot of yuzu sake in return for us offering the chef a glass of our wine.

I highly recommend this place, and I will definitely be going again, as their BYOB policy is a very attractive lure!

MATSUNORI
151 Allen St.
New York, NY 10002