Our best bite in Miami was the cubano sandwich from a small, relatively new shop called Cubaton. It was incredible!
Had I known it was this good, I would have went twice. We were leaving for home the same day we went here.
The frozen drinks were great too.
CUBATON SANDWICH SHOP
413 15th St
Miami Beach, FL 33139
First, check out my short Ride & Review video HERE:
My wife and I finally got in here for a sandwich.
The place has been around for a long time, and I have to say, there’s a reason for it. The sandwiches are GREAT! This was a little expensive at $17, but when you compare to a place like Joey Roses ($8), which are smaller, the price makes sense. The quality is great from the bread to the Calabrian chili paste to the meats and mozz.
We went with the Uncle John (mortadella being the big selling point) and we added the chili paste.
I will definitely be back.
REGINA’S GROCERY
27 Orchard St
New York, NY 10002
First, check out my Ride & Review HERE:
I had been eyeballing Press Club Grill for a while because they have some nice looking large format items, so when @Jennerous_Eats suggested that we go as a foursome on her press invite, I was psyched to do so.
We tried a LOT of stuff, so let me get to it.
First, sourdough bread with fancy piped butter. The butter was a little on the cold side (not as spreadable as you would think for the shape), but I imagine they need to keep that cold so it doesn’t lose its structure or melt.
Next up, steak tartare. This was great! It reminded me of the new version they serve at The Lambs Club, but with a shrimp chip instead of toasted bread of potato chips.
The generous folks at Press Club Grill brought us out a trio of additional starters with the summer salad, the crab rangoon, and the buffalo carrots.
I was stunned by how much I enjoyed the buffalo carrots. They really ate like eat in texture. Also, the crab rangoon was light on that “cream cheese” flavor, so we all enjoyed that as well. Even the salad was bright, fresh and flavorful. Hits all around.
We also tried this mushroom ravioli pasta, which was very nicely executed. The broth was really flavorful and could have doubled as a consomme.
Alright, now on to the big stuff. First, the chicken schnitzel.
This was nice and juicy, but the breading didn’t cling very well to the meat. No matter though, I still enjoyed. It came with a little bowl of spaetzl and a beautifully smooth cream sauce on the side.
The beef Wellington was a sight to behold.
Once sliced, you could really see how perfectly executed it was.
Everything from the bright medium rare pink center to the crispy outer edge of the pastry dough was spot on… Enhance…
ENHANCE!
I would definitely recommend this. The only thing I will say is that it was a bit too heavily salted. I’m not sure if it was the duxelles or something in those outer layers, or maybe too much finishing salt, but I still give it 8/10. Stunning.
Next (oh yeah, we still had more…), was the duck three ways, but they call it Duck a L’Orange for two.
The first of the three ways was a perfectly seared pair of crispy crusty skinned duck breasts a l’orange style.
This was our favorite dish of the night. Big winner. The skin was so crisp and rendered out with textbook level skill, and there was a minimal amount of that nasty bittersweet boozy orange flavor you often get with that style. In fact it ate more Szechaun to me than French. Wonderful.
The second way for the duck was a bowl of wontons. I wished there were more!
The third way was this garlicky duck fried rice. It was lacking in crisp texture on the rice, but still tasty.
For dessert, we tried nearly everything except the baked Alaska (next time). The crowd favorite seemed to be the bananas Foster creme brulee.
My photos here don’t do the beauty justice, so make sure you watch the Ride & Review above.
I wasn’t a huge fan of either the cherries jubilee or the popsicle, though both really were nicely presented.
I think next time I want to try the porterhouse and the baked Alaska for sure. I’m also wondering if this joint needs to be placed into the “steakhouse” category. I’m just not sure. I didn’t do it for The Grill or Monterey, which are similar concepts, so I guess I’ll hold the line and say that this isn’t a steakhouse.
PRESS CLUB GRILL
1262 Broadway
New York, NY 10001
First, check out my Ride & Review video HERE:
My wife and I went on a little food and bar crawl this past weekend, and The Hairy Lemon was our first stop for a bite. We tried two flavors of wings: spicy orange and ginger sauce, and mango habanero. We liked the mango habanero better, but neither were particularly as spicy as we had hoped.
We also tried their tots. These were nice, but just needed a hint of salt. A nice dipping sauce came with them.
I’d definitely go back to try the burger, and to hang for some UFC fights. It’s a big sports bar with tons of TVs, a pool table, a giant Connect Four game, etc.
THE HAIRY LEMON
28 Avenue B
New York, NY 10009
First, check out my Ride & Review video HERE:
This joint is beautiful inside.
It’s part of the Dream Hospitality group (Dream hotels, etc), so they really went all out. It’s huge, and at night there are belly dancers, fire shows, a DJ… It becomes a nightlife spot.
Nice cocktails to start, all Greek flavor inspired and named, like the Hera Spritz.
We started with the Pappas Chips, which are thin slices of eggplant and zucchini, fried and served with yogurt sauce.
I expected these to be a bit more crispy, but they were still tasty.
The grilled octopus was incredible. Probably one of the best I’ve had. Super tender.
The boneless rib eye was cooked perfectly and had a nice Greek flavor profile of spices and herbs. 8/10.
This lamb shank was the winning dish, though.
There had to be a pound or more of orzo in that pot, and the meat just fell off the bone. So tender, juicy and flavorful.
For dessert, we tried the baklava and the orange custard. Both really great, not too sweet, and large enough to share.
I would definitely go back!
PAPPAS TAVERNA
105 MacDougal St
New York, NY 10012
First, check out my Ride & Review video HERE:
Carlota is a small tapas and vermouth bar on Orchard just above Canal. It’s a great spot for sips and snacks, and it’s a sister restaurant to Bar Belly, just next door.
We tried a lot of stuff, so there’s a photo dump below. Everything we had was excellent.
Here’s the menu:
Jamon and Tomato Bread to begin:
These squid ink croquettes were killer.
Cockles with chorizo – get extra bread for that amazing broth.
Awesome lamb chops.
Delicious taters.
And Basque style cheesecake was on the house!
Next time I want to try the chorizo sandwich.
CARLOTA
14 Orchard St
New York, NY 10002
First, check out this badass Ride & Review video HERE:
My wife wanted to check this place out for their pork and pasta dishes, and I was interested in their artichoke and rabbit dishes. We tried all of it. Here’s how it started:
Two lovely cocktails, a classic negroni and a martinez, for me.
Vitello Tonnato was on special, carpaccio style. I had to try. It was great!
We also had their grilled artichokes, which were amazing. I don’t think I’ve ever had them grilled before, but I’m a huge fan.
This stracci pesto pasta was like a pile of lasagna noodles.
Fucking fantastic! I absolutely loved it.
This pork dish was belly, roasted and then grilled, with a tangy plum BBQ sauce, of sorts. Very unique.
The fried rabbit was incredible. Perfectly seasoned, and it came with a big hunk of fried sourdough. This could easily replace chicken and waffles if served with some whipped ricotta and a spicy Calabrian chili honey.
For dessert, a perfectly executed tiramisu.
We will definitely be going back for the fried calamari/fritto misto and fried zucchini. The plates coming out looked nuts!
VIA CAROTA
51 Grove St
New York, NY 10014
First, check out my kickass Ride & Review video HERE:
We started with some cocktails. My wife got the walnut whiskey sour, and I got a classic martini. Both were excellent.
Next we shared some apps. The fried shrimp were head-on, which was nice, but they needed a little salt.
The burger was delicious. Aside from the lack of adequate cheese melt, I really enjoyed. The pickled green tomato is a great way to introduce both pickle and tomato into the burger’s flavor profile without using ketchup (garbage, but it is nostalgic).
It was cooked to a nice medium rare. Right on the money. One other negative here was that the fries were a little too salty. I didn’t mind much, since that sort of balanced with the shrimp.
For our mains we had the Iberico pork “Secreto,” which is a shoulder cut if I’m not mistaken, as well as the lamb rack. We both liked the lamb better.
The pork was still good, I think it just needed a chimi sauce or something. Also maybe another minute on the grill. I like this pork medium rare, but this was straight rare so it ended up being a little chewy at times unless you cut it up small. Broccolini was charred with lemon, just how we like it.
The strawberry shortcake dessert was fantastic. I highly recommend it.
One other negative to note here: there was some sort of eyelash or eyebrow hair in my wife’s amaro. We didn’t say anything, but the level of service here was incredible so I’m sure they would have gotten us a new pour if we asked. It was late, and we were tired, full and otherwise very happy. The staff definitely pays attention to the notes you put on your reservation. A few different people made conversation with us a few times about it being our anniversary. Great staff! I will be back for the steak options.
CECCHI’S
105 W 13th St
New York, NY 10011
First, check out my badass Ride & Review video HERE:
We started with the mortadella, stracciatella and pistachio flatbread. This was incredible!
Next up was chicken parm. They use a huge amount of extra funky cheese on this. BOLD!
Their Frutti di Mare pasta was perfect. Shrimp, mussels, clams and calamari, all cooked just right in a beautiful sauce.
The panna cotta was just right! Very nice texture.
We will definitely be back to try more, especially from the massively extensive cocktail menu!
DANTE
79-81 MacDougal St
New York, NY 10012
First, check out my Ride & Review video HERE:
My buddy Herb (@thesocialpause) invited me and The Cake Dealer here to help promote and take pictures of the new Sagaponack menu item for the 4th of July holiday weekend: A massive Korean inspired seafood boil, chock full of shrimp, mussels, lobster, manila clams, andouille sausage, corn and potatoes. It was a monster of a dish.
We made a huge dent in this, especially with the help of our other friends Jae (owner and chef at Nowon) and his wife Rebecca (an Instagram food buddy of ours from WAY back). We probably could have finished if we didn’t eat so much other stuff before it came out. At $35/pp this seafood boil is a steal, though. Look at this mountain:
Here’s what we had BEFORE the boil came out:
Two raw starters (fluka tartare and salmon crudo):
Some fried goodness (chicken, calamari, artichokes):
Tons of seafood (Spanish style shrimp, escargot style oysters, manila clams, and broiled oysters):
For dessert we had creme brulee topped with strawberries and a Thai tea milk cake (the cake was INCREDIBLE!).
I can’t wait to go back and try more. They have ‘nduja mussels as well as a hanger steak frites that I’d like to try in particular.
SAGAPONACK
4 W 22nd St
New York, NY 10010
