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.
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
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.
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!
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.
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.
First, check out my kickass Ride & Review video HERE:
If you haven’t heard about this place, it’s a very exclusive Amex Black card-holders joint. You CAN get access to it you have an Amex Platinum card, which my wife has. We were able to snag a reservation for 6:30PM on a Friday, and the experience was incredible. Seriously – watch the video above for the full effect.
We started with some cocktails that we really enjoyed. The stand out for me was the incredibly beautiful and delicious Carbon Martini, made with squid ink!
Our apps were a pair of tartare dishes. Table side wagyu beef tartare, and tuna tartare. Both incredible!
Next, we shared a wagyu burger. This was perfect. Thin slices of tomato, onion, pickles and just a single leaf of Bibb lettuce. Crispy bacon. Melty cheese and a special sauce. Perfect cook temp.
For entrees, we had lamb loin and aged strip steak (Snake River Farms). Both beautifully plated. The strip was 45-days aged, and 10oz.
I think we both liked the lamb slightly better. It came with a killer lamb sausage meatball wrapped in spinach (watch the video). Steak 9/10. Lamb 10/10.
For dessert we had a Lebanese pistachio milk flan called mouhalabieh, and a vanilla eclair. Both great.
Excellent table bread and butter here.
Some of the incredible views:
If you ever have the opportunity to dine or have drinks here, I highly recommend it. It’s definitely worth throwing on your bucket list.
CENTURION LOUNGE
1 Vanderbilt Ave
55th Floor
New York, NY 10017
The PR folks who are helping manage the newly opened Palermo Bistro (right on restaurant row) invited me in for a dinner to feature their Parrillada mixed Argentinian grill platter. Here’s what my wife and I had:
First, the Vitel Tone, which is similar to vitello tonnato – the Tuscan dish often made with veal (as the name suggests), or even wild boar, that tastes like tuna. This was great here, made with veal eye round and anchovy.
Next was the octopus, which was very tender inside and crisp outside.
I paid a little extra for this NY strip milanese (along with a drink), because I had to try it out. It was excellent!
That was really all I wanted when I saw the menu online, but the parrillada was better than I expected. Generally, these things let me down, but here, we loved the blood sausage and the hanger steak the most.
On the side, we had mashed potatoes, broccolini and humita, which was similar to a cheese and polenta dish.
For dessert, we had the banana bread pudding with vanilla ice cream. I liked this because it wasn’t too sweet, as many bread puddings can be.
Cocktails and bread service was nice.
I also liked the wall decor.
Give this place a shot – especially for the veal app and the milanese!
