Tag Archives: tapas

Lower East Side/Chinatown, Non-Steakhouse Steaks, Other, Restaurant Reviews, Rib Eye

Balvanera

September 14, 2025 Johnny Prime Leave a comment

Balvanera is an Argentine wine bar and steak-focused restaurant. We went with another couple, so we were able to try a bunch of stuff.

We started with four small plates:

Octopus

Roasted Beets

Blood Sausage

Burrata & Squash

All of these were really great, but I think we all sort of agreed that the octopus was the best, with the blood sausage either close behind or tied. Really great flavors on this stuff. The blood sausage had none of that grainy, irony, gamey flavor that you sometimes get with low quality or overcooked blood sausage. It had a sticky sweetness to it that was hard to describe. The octopus was so incredibly tender, and the Romesco sauce was killer.

We went with the 25oz, 28-day, dry-aged rib eye for our main course ($120).

This was cooked to a perfect medium rare, but it lacked a little bit of that dry-aged flavor. It was present mostly around the edges and along the bone. But that didn’t matter, because the flavor was so great. This is a solid 8/10 steak, potentially bordering on 9/10 if the aged flavor bumps up on future visits (definitely going back).

For dessert, we did a chocolate tart and flan. Both of these were pretty nice, but I think next time I will focus more on the small plates in the savory department instead of the sweet stuff.

BALVANERA
152 Stanton St
New York, NY 10002

Eastern European, Lower East Side/Chinatown, Restaurant Reviews

Oti

September 12, 2025 Johnny Prime Leave a comment

First, check out my Ride & Review video HERE:

Oti is a small Romanian restaurant with a great outdoor space on Clinton Street in the lower east side. My wife and I popped in here for a quick meal. The menu consists of mainly small plates and wine. Here’s what we had:

Farmers Board

This is a nice charcuterie style board with meats, cheeses and dips. At $25 this wasn’t too bad. Great bread too.

Broken Burrata

Pretty self explanatory. This was really delicious.

Bone Marrow Toast

I didn’t get much bone marrow flavor on this, but there was something pickled and sweet on top that threw my taste buds for a loop. This was tasty and had melted cheese on it. It was good despite not following through on the marrow aspect.

Stuffed Pepper

This was probably the best (and biggest) dish we tried. Inside was a nice mixture of spiced meats, rice and cheese. I would definitely get this again. Save some bread to drag through that delicious sauce too.

Meesh

These meatball / kebab style thingies were really nice. That sauce on top was a mustard of sorts. I would definitely get this one again too.

Pickled Grapes

Our waitress suggested these over the pickled Jimmy Nardello peppers to cut the fat and compliment the Meesh. They were SUPER sour. Eating them together with the Meesh was the best way to have them. In hindsight, I wish we had gone with the peppers instead.

OTI
40 Clinton St.
New York, NY 10002

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

Bar Oliver

August 11, 2025 Johnny Prime Leave a comment

First, check out my Ride & Review video HERE:

Bar Oliver is a small Spanish style tapas and pintxos joint at the intersection of Oliver, St. James, East Broadway, Bowery and Worth downtown.

My wife and I stopped in for drinks when they first opened, but now that the menu is fully built out, we wanted to go in and try some food.

We started with the Montauk red shrimp pintxos. These were tasty little bites. Expensive at $18 for two, but that’s the way of live here now I guess.

Next up, the mushrooms. These come with a beautiful egg yolk on top to break and mix in. Loved this dish.

We also tried the skate cheeks. These were served in a nice bright tomato sauce and ate more like a soup than I had expected. There were three to four good sized fish cheeks in there.

We contemplated getting a larger format rib eye, but instead we went with the wagyu hanger steak, which comes with fries and is served atop a really nice piquillo pepper sauce.

The steak was perfectly cooked, but it was a bit small for my liking. I’d say around 6oz. But at $39 it isn’t a bad deal. I give this a, 9/10. Perfectly cooked, nicely seasoned, great flavor and texture.

For dessert we did the Spanish cheesecake. To me, it ate more like a standard cheesecake. Still good though.

I would definitely go back to try more items. Especially the larger steaks. They had a good selection of local beef and domestic wagyu cross breed, all dry aged.

BAR OLIVER
1 Oliver St
New York, NY 10038

American, Lower East Side/Chinatown, Restaurant Reviews

Bar Contra

May 27, 2025 Johnny Prime Leave a comment

First, check out my Ride & Review HERE:

My wife and I stopped in here for a quick meal and drinks at the bar. Here’s what we had:

Montauk Royal Red Prawns

These beauties are served raw over ice and dusted with umeboshi (dried pickled plum). I really liked these.

American Wagyu Tartare

This was probably one of the best tartare dishes I’ve ever had. It came with crispy fried artichoke, fried shallot and ramp oil.

Smoked Pacific Oyster “Tartare”

This was essentially a dressed up tin of high quality smoked oysters, minced up with red onion and aioli, which you then spread on toast points.

Stuffed Chicken Wings

These were stuffed with stilton, pork sausage and scallion. I think there may have been some hatch chili involved too. The flavor was excellent on these.

Potato Ice Cream Sundae

Totally unique. I could taste the potato knowing that it was made from that. but otherwise I might not have. It was not too sweet, which I really appreciated. This was also served with blueberries.

I can’t wait to go back for more drinks and food. Everything was so good!

BAR CONTRA
138 Orchard St.
New York, NY 10002

Burgers, Lower East Side/Chinatown, Restaurant Reviews, Spanish

Eel Bar

August 30, 2024 Johnny Prime Leave a comment

First, check out my Ride & Review HERE:

This joint, run by the same folks as Cervos, just opened nearby. My wife and I tried five items:

Squid Pintxos

These were awesome. I would get them again and again. I only wish there was more on the plate! Perfectly fried and dressed, and really nice toasty bread underneath. I was transported back to San Sebastian.

Fried Mussels

I would pass on these. They tasted like canned or tinned mussels that were breaded and fried. A bit too potent. I’m curious if they might be better on another night. Perhaps just a funky batch?

White Shrimp

Best item of the night. These were perfectly cooked and dressed in a deliciously light and garlicky tomato sauce and drizzled with olive oil. Make sure you ask for extra sourdough to soak up the sauce!

Rainbow Trout

I was surprised that this was a whole fish (deboned)! It was really light but flavorful. I would get it again.

Burger

Yes – that burger has fried anchovies on it. It wasn’t as nasty as I expected. It was actually tasty, in a way. The roquefort lessened the fishy flavor, but it did feel like I was eating a burger on the seaside. Nice medium rare temp with a good crust too. I probably wouldn’t get it again, but I’m glad I tried it.

We will definitely be back to try more items! FYI: There is no eel on the menu, at all.

EEL BAR
252 Broome St.
New York, NY 10002

Lower East Side/Chinatown, Other, Restaurant Reviews

87 Ludlow

August 18, 2024 Johnny Prime Leave a comment

87 Ludlow is a relatively new bar and restaurant that offers up an ice happy hour, chock full of nice cocktails and interesting Filipino food.

My wife and I stopped in for a quick meal last week. Here’s what we got:

Oyster Sisig, which I didn’t get a photo of, but you can see a bit of it in the beginning of this video here (my wife is mixing the quail egg into it):

The Isaw (crispy pork intestines) was excellent!

I think the penang curry mussels were my favoritie though:

We also enjoyed the crispy pork knuckle.

And last, the uni noodles:

87 LUDLOW
87 Ludlow St.
New York, NY 10002

Lower East Side/Chinatown, Restaurant Reviews, Spanish

Da Li

June 17, 2024 Johnny Prime Leave a comment

My wife and I have walked by this tapas bar that turns clubby at night a hundred times, and we have always wanted to go in. This time, we couldn’t pass up the opportunity.

Their $10 martini during happy hour was perfect.

We also tried some of their tapas menu, which was also discounted (basically two-for-one).

We will definitely be back to try more!

DA LI
37 Market St.
New York, NY 10002

East Village, Latin/Mexican & Caribbean, Non-Steakhouse Steaks, Other Cuts, Restaurant Reviews, Spanish

Bad Hombre

March 26, 2024 Johnny Prime Leave a comment

First, check out my Ride & Review HERE:

Amigo is now Bad Hombre! Ruben transformed the space and made it absolutely gorgeous inside.

What an amazing bar, matched by amazing cocktails.

We basically tried the entire menu, except for a few items here and there. As is common with Ruben’s restaurants, everything was off the charts delicious. These were some of the best, most delicious oysters I’ve ever had.

This scallop crudo was a great balance of natural sweetness with some seasoned heat.

Shrimp and octopus aguachile? HELL YES! The octopus here was cooked perfectly.

This corn gratin dip was a nice combo of sweet and heat too. It may not look like much, but it packed a wallop of flavor.

We tried three different tortilla based items: shrimp tacos, a fish tostada, and a mushroom quesadilla. I am hard pressed to choose a favorite among these, but I think the mushroom was a real standout to me. Much like the mushroom carpaccio at Nai and Emelia. A true winner.

The grilled octopus here was absolutely gorgeous, and the black bean puree sauce hits you with some Indian and middle eastern spices that will blow you away.

I could not resist the chimichurri skirt steak. Delicious!

These St. Louis ribs fell apart when I picked them up. So friggin’ tender! They were cooked confit style and glazed with soy and sesame.

But honestly, I was caught off guard by how insanely tasty these crispy habanero aioli Brussels sprouts were. I could eat them every day for the rest of my life and never get tired of them.

Dessert was also a home run. The chocolate mousse with sea salt flakes was rich without being heavy. It was fluffy and extremely well balanced – not too sweet.

This semi-frozen panna cotta with pineapple granita was so creamy and delicious too. What an understated and gentle but powerful flavor bomb!

I can not wait to go back here for more meals. Everything Ruben touches is incredible.

BAD HOMBRE
29 2nd Ave.
New York, NY 10003

Lower East Side/Chinatown, Restaurant Reviews, Spanish

Cellar 36

October 10, 2023 Johnny Prime Leave a comment

First, check out my Ride & Review video HERE:

Cellar 36 is a small wine and tapas bar located in Chinatown owned and operated by the same folks behind The Ten Bells, which I love. Like Ten Bells, Cellar 36 offers a great happy hour deal that includes $20 carafes and $1 oysters. We went for it.

I definitely recommend this spot, and I’ll definitely be back!

Cellar 36
36 Market St
New York, NY 10002

Lower East Side/Chinatown, Restaurant Reviews, Spanish

Carlota

July 22, 2023 Johnny Prime Leave a comment

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: