Monthly Archives: August 2013

New York City

Rosemarrys (NYC, NY)


If you want a funky, modern, brunch place for the whole family, then Rosemarrys Greenwich Village NYC, is the right place for you. It has moderate  service and awesome food, which come in the form of tapas and bigger dishes.

RECOMMENDATIONS:
You have to try their  mozzarella, tomato and basil stuffed bread. There is so much cheese that you don’t know when the bread starts and stops. The tomatoes make it juicy so it balances with the cheese. The appetizers, which are mainly a selection of tapas all exude scents and tastes from all over the world. In case you don’t know what tapas are, they are: Small Spanish savory plates, typically served as a snack or appetizer. 

Tapas (Appetizers)
If you are a fish, seafood type of person then try their calamari. It is grilled calamari with almond, celery, raisins and chili oil. 

 Also try the eggplant which is cold and marinated in spices, in an “american curry,”. Also they have olives, but they aren’t just regular olives. They are heated up with herbs so that they are nice and warm and taste like nothing you’ve tasted before. 

MAIN COURSE: For the main course, you should try the skirt steak. It comes with a mixed salad, arugla and olive oil with a side of fingerling potatoes. They prepared the steak just the way we asked for it which was medium well, better than a lot of steak houses you will go to. For brunch, you should also try the poached egg with oyster mushrooms, and a salad. It is just amazing! Poached just right, and the yolk tasted quite unique with the mushrooms.  Rosemarry’s is definitely  a stand out in New York City.
FOOD: ****
AMBIANCE:****
SERVICE:  ***



New York City

The NoMad (NYC, NY)

New York City is filled with thousands of restaurants, but a must try is “The NoMad.”

Located at the NoMad hotel is one of the best continental restaurants in Manhattan. The NoMad Hotel is located on 1170 Broadway and 28th street, right in the heart of the historic NoMad Neighborhood (North of Madison Square Park.) The interior makes you feel like your back in time, to old Europe. 
RECOMMENDATIONS

APPETIZERS: If you’re in the mood for fish, try the fluke. The fluke is marinated with sorrel, amaranth and comes with a side of mushrooms. It lays on a bed of tomatoes and greens. If your not a big fluke fan, then try the tuna. The Tuna is a tuna tartare with lemon, black olives and tomatoes. One interesting thing about the tuna, is that it’s served on its own bone! The tartare is gently punctured through the bone, and will slide in a smooth motion into your mouth. Another appetizer I recommend is the King Crab Tagliatelle. I’m not that big of a pasta fan, but this dish blew me away! It was savory lemon mixed with Buttery Alaskan King Crab with a hint of black pepper. You should also try the lamb. Its glazed with romaine lettuce, cumin and yogurt. It was cooked amazingly and was very juicy. 
MAIN COURSES:
If you want something on the lighter side, go with the lobster. The lobster is poached and served with zucchini, summer beans and vegetable bisque. The lobster is out of the shell and comes in three pieces. The lobster bursts with flavor, and the vegetables balance with amount of meat. If you want something more to the heavy side, but not too heavy, I strongly recommend the suckling pig. The pig is served with a confit, with cherries, arugula and bacon marmalade. The skin on the pig is nice and crispy, and its so moist inside. The cherries give the pig a nice sweet taste, but not too sweet so that the flavors of the cherries aren’t overpowering. At NoMad, there is an option for a meal for two, which is a roasted chicken. The Chicken comes with Foie Gras, Black Truffel and Brioche. It’s a huge entree, even for two people, so bring your appetite!
CHEF:
Chef Daniel, originally from Switzerland, began his culinary journey at the age of 14. He went on to cook at the finest Swiss hotels and restaurants before earning his first Michelin Star at the age of 24.

                                                           

New York City

Nobu (NYC, NY)

If you want a fancy Japanese sushi restaurant, with very good service and a nice ambiance, then Nobu is what you should try. There are 3 Nobu’s in Manhattan but the one on Hudson street is the original, and most laid back.

RECOMMENDATIONS:
At Nobu the sushi specialty roll is salmon, crab and tuna, wrapped in rice and radish. It was good but not the best sushi ever. Also with the eel maki, it was good but not outstanding as I expected it to be. The tuna and eel hand rolls were amazing! They were actually succulent, and a little moist. If you go to Nobu you can’t just get sushi, you have to try their wide variety of hot Japanese food. Their specialty is blackened cod with miso sauce. In my opinion that is the best cod I have ever had. It was a huge full piece of cod, coated in a sweet sauce. It was so tender and it melted in your mouth. Also you try the lobster. It is stir fried with a mixture of vegetables, such as carrots, mushrooms, scallions and basil. It was just impeccable, and delicious. Also, we had the rock shrimp tempura. It was crunchy with a hot and spicy sauce. The tempura was not overly coating the shrimp, thus giving it a delicate tempura flavor. Also try the tempura style fish and chips. It was a tempura fried white fish, with seasoned, delicious sweet potato fries. It had the best tempura fry. Crunchy and crunchy ;). We also had a spicy seafood soup. The soup was spicy and clean, with lots of lobster, shrimp, scallops and squid. Also if you have all of those dishes, you need rice. Nobu’s rice is a special rice from Japan. It is sticky rice, but not to sticky. DESSERTS: Nobu has a great variety of deserts. We tasted caramelized banana with vanilla ice cream, mochis, espresso moose and chocolate cake block.The banana was sweet and decident, and a hot and cold fusion. The mochis were in three different flavors: Blueberry, Green Tea and Tiramisu.The moose was velvety chifanne like, with a smoothe texture. The cake block was servered with raspberry sauce and fresh raspberrys. It sure was special.
Service:****
Ambiance:*****
Food:****

New York City

Bhatti (NYC, NY)

A casual Indian restaurant in the heart of little India on Lexington avenue and 27th street. Amongst so many other Bubbling Indian Eatries in the neighborhood, which stands out for its tandoori food and Curries. It is owned by the iconic indian restaurant “Moti Mahal” in New Delhi, India. APPETIZERS: For an appetizer, we had Bhelpuri. Bhelpuri is an Indian snack, made of a mixture of rice puffs, lentil crisps, onion, tomatoes, chilies, cilantro and mixed with tamarind and mint chutneys.  Its flavors are sweet and sour at the same time. We also enjoyed chicken and lamb boti kabobs. They were marinated in ginger garlic, yogurt and roasted black cumin, then were cooked in the tandoor (clay oven). They were very moist and served nice and hot. MAIN COURSES: For the courses, we had chicken biryani, Bhuna Goash and butter chicken. The chicken biryani: a fragrant combination of long grain basmati slow cooked in a special vessel with fresh herbs and spices served with a mint yogurt. The flavors just bursted in our mouths, and were not too spicy, yet not too bland.The Bhuna Goash was a home cooked style Mutton (goat), with a masala of onions, tomatoes, ginger garlic and a nice blend of selected dry spices. The goat was on the bone, but was so moist that it would just slide right off, and be sucked in your mouth. The butter chicken has to be the best dish I had there. The man who invented butter chicken was the owner of “Moti Mahal,” hence this is the original recipe. The chicken is first grilled in the tandoor, and then immersed in a butter and cream sauce, then blended in with various exotic spices. Also, we had the Ajwanni Shrimps that were marinated in lemon and ajwan (Indian Spice) and cardamom.  We alsoAlso try the Gilauti Kabob. Bhatti has recreated this kabob, which it’s recipe comes from one of the best kabob makers from Avadh-Tunde Mian, and is so unique and it’s very soft, which supposedly came from a family who incorporated 160 different spices. DESSERT: Theres only one way to go for dessert at Bhatti:Phirni. Phirni is an almond and rice flour pudding dish. Its a good palate cleanser after a great spicy meal. AMBIANCE: ** SERVICE:**** FOOD:*****

New York City

North End Grill (NYC, NY)

If you want an elegant continental dining experience,come on down to the tip of Manhattan in Battery Park, to the North End Grill. Located on 104 North Avenue, North End grill has indoor seating, and a full bar, with a great view of the kitchen and window seating with great views of the Hudson River. RECOMENDATIONS APPETIZERS: For an appetizer, one of my favorite dishes was the clam pizza. It’s grilled with chili flakes and lemon. It has a nice flavor that is not too hot and not too sour. This dish is for someone who likes white pizza or flat breads. I would also recommend the Tuna Tar Tar. It’s served with a fried quail egg and crispy shallots. It’s for someone who likes raw fish. Also try the scrambled eggs with morels mushroom. The last time I saw that in a restaurant in Paris. As well as the eggs, try the duck breast. It is served with sunflower sprouts and an apricot compote. MAIN COURSES: For the main course, I recommend the Ashley Farms roasted half chicken. It’s served with foccacia crutons. The chicken was very moist and the outer skin was a golden brown, and nice and crispy.The croutons give the chicken that nice crunch you look for in your meals. If your a fish type of person, I recommend the wreck fish or the Branzino. The wreck fish is grilled and served with bacon, Romano beans, squash and cherry tomatoes. Its a very light fish with amazing flavors. The Branzino is a whole fish, so bring your appetite! It’s served with grilled lemon on top. With any entree, you can pick any of these sides: Three spiced fries, Charcoal grilled baby carrots, Grilled sweet corn with red onion Grilled summer squash,and Braised North End Grill rooftop greens DESSERTS: For all the sweet tooths out there, They has an excellent dessert menu. One of the specialties is the Manhattan sundae. It consists bourbon ice cream, cherry meringues and vermouth caramel. It’s flavors scream out at you, making you want to dig in more. Also, try the Deconstructed German chocolate cake with coconut milk chocolate ice cream. It’s flavors are very rich and creamy. I also recommend the plain cheesecake. It has it’s usual simplistic taste, and is a circular shape, with the graham cracker crust only around the cake. It’s served with a raspberry reduction sauce. For those wanting something refreshing and light, you must try the sorbet selections. The yellow plum and raspberry sorbets were to the mark. CHEF Chef Floyd Cardoz was the chef at the Taj Hotel in Mumbai, where he first started his culinary journey. He was the head chef at the French Indian restaurant “Tabla,” which unfortunately closed its doors. He is also the author of the book “One Spice, Two Spice.” RATINGS 1 Star (Poor)- 5 Stars (Outstanding) Service: *** Food: ***** Ambiance: ***** v  iews