My wife and I came here twice. The first visit was just for a snack and a drink, so I never wrote it up. But now that we’ve had a full meal here, I figured I would put together a review from both experiences.
On the first visit, we had drinks, an Israeli scotch egg, and some cake. They have a nice selection of beer and wine. Saison Dupont is my favorite of all time.
The Israeli scotch egg is surrounded by falafel, which was unique and delicious.
On the second visit we did some entrees. My wife had the lamb burger, which comes with crunchy slaw and a harissa mayo. She added Gruyere cheese at the owner’s suggestion. It was absolutely delicious. Easily a top three lamb burger.
I had the chicken schnitzel plate, which came with fries and a salad. The schnitzel was unique in that it was breaded with a sesame seed batter!
I really liked it.
The cake we had on our first visit was a flourless chocolate birthday cake, which, I think, may have even been vegan. I liked it more than my wife did.
We will definitely be back to try more items from Eastwood. Super friendly staff, great prices, and great food!
Leon’s is a popular fried chicken joint in Charleston. We popped in there for a taste of their chicken, as well as their broiled oysters, for which they are equally famous.
We ate a shitload of oysters while we were down in SC. These were nice, but not our favorite of the trip. I think we tend to lean more toward raw than cooked though. These, however, were still good.
The chicken was the real star here. The skin was super crisp on the outside, with nice, tender and juicy meat beneath. The spice on the skin was just right. A little heat – red pepper type – creeps up on you at the end. Awesome.
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.
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.
This newly re-opened French joint offers three and five course prix fix tasting menus as well as a la carte dining. I went with some of the gang from Golden Packing to try out their wares and see what they are doing with the products Golden supplies to them.
The interior was beautiful and fancy.
First, the “Guillotine” cocktail. A bitter chocolate version of an old fashioned. Very nice.
Their table bread was this delicious basket of pao de queijo, a Brazilian cheese bread which is more addictive than crack. The owner is Brazilian so this was a nod to home.
We started with a tasting of yellowtail. This piece here was my favorite.
They will soon have an omakase sushi menu and a nice bar seating area for this part of the menu. They’re just waiting on some final refrigeration pieces behind the bar.
Next, Angel hair sea urchin carbonara. This was absolutely amazing. I just wanted MORE of it.
I ordered the chicken, since the chef spoke very highly of it when we visited him in the kitchen. Tender, juicy and extremely flavorful.
I tried a bike of my buddy’s duck as well. A nice light smoked flavor really made this pop.
The steak that Toqueville gets from Golden Packing is dry aged for three weeks. The cook is immaculate on this. Perfection. 9/10 because I wanted more than 6oz. ha!
This white truffle risotto was intensely earthy.
And this pineapple and lime sorbet dessert invention was otherworldly in its presentation. Wow!
I will definitely be back here again soon. Everything was delicious and the service and quality is worthy of a Michelin star for sure.
15 EAST AT TOQUEVILLE
1 E 15th St
New York, NY 10003
This little fried chicken joint is on Avenue C at 6th Street.
There’s a craft beer spot next door called ABC Beer Co., which has nice covered outdoor seating and a great selection of beer. My wife and I snagged some fried chicken tenders and french fries to try with our beer.
The fries were a little soggy, but the tenders were good. Tender, juicy, great crisp on the outside. Good enough to make us want to go back to try the actual fried chicken pieces as well as the sandwiches. I will update this review once we get around to trying.
BOBWHITE COUNTER
94 Loisaida Ave (Avenue C)
New York, NY 10009
This little fried chicken and fried bread joint serves up some great food. We tried the apple fritter, the pistachio glazed donut, and a chicken sandwich. We went a little past the morning rush, so the donuts had lost their warmth. Still great though. The apple fritter was the winner between the two donuts here.
The chicken sandwich was awesome. I only wish I had added cheese to this, but otherwise it was perfectly crafted. A simple classic! I could eat this every day.
DO-RITE DONUTS & CHICKEN
233 E Erie St
Chicago, IL 60611
This MASSIVE $10 chicken sandwich is a great buy. The meat is tender and juicy on the inside, and spicy and crisp on the outside. The sauce is sweet yet spicy. Teh cole slaw is crisp and refreshing. The pickled cut the heat perfectly. This is a winning sandwich!
SCOVILLE HOT CHICKEN
117 Orchard St
New York, NY 10002
I finally got to try some of the food at Gemma in the Bowery Hotel. Started with a delicious orecchiette pasta with broccoli rabe pesto and sweet Italian sausage.
Next up: beautiful burger with broiled cheddar on top.
My favorite dish was the Cornish hen. So flavorful!
And a really nicely cooked center cut New York strip steak.
We finished off with some pistachio cream cannoli.
Kumi is a new Japanese joint at Le Meridien hotel in midtown. The place definitely rocks some Korean influence as well, as the head chef there, Anastacia Song (formerly at American Cut, midtown), is Korean.
They have a great cocktail list. I loved this riff on an old fashioned called Kumi Forever:
We tried a bunch of sushi-esque starters, like the tuna and truffle pizza and some unique rolls. That pizza and the bagel and lox roll were probably the winners here, but they were all great.
The warm sides/starters, Brussels sprouts and mozzarella eggplant, were both satisfying as well, despite being vegetables.
I actually, oddly, loved this Szechuan silken tofu starter. Probably because I love that flavor profile, as well as mushrooms. The tofu is really just a delivery vehicle for the sauce.
For entrees, we tried the miso black cod, the tea infused chicken, and the gochujang braised short rib.
The short rib was by far the winning dish here. Such deep, warm, fulfilling flavors. And lots of saffron!
For dessert, we tried the pear tart and the milk tea cake. The cake was the better item here, especially if you’re into creampie videos.
I look forward to going back here again to try some lobster and steak.
They also have a secret menu for late night eats. Burger, chicken sandwich and tofu sandwich.
