Margon, a great and popular Midtown Cuban restaurant, known for serving a great Cuban sandwich, also has a great Pernil sandwich. Tasty and flavorful roast pork, onions, american cheese, on crunchy bread, equals deliciousness! Add a little hot sauce for some kick, and all for 6 dollars, makes this a great bang for your buck. Try it for yourself, and let me know what you think!
Margon
136 W. 46th St. (bet. 6th and Broadway)
New York, NY 10036
212-354-5013
www.margonrestaurant.net
Hey Foodie!
Check out my lunch in Little India, at Panna 2 Indian Restaurant, with one of our greatest actors, Al Pacino!
Hey Foodies!
Check out my lunch at Nyonya Malaysian Restaurant in Chinatown with Superstar Lady Gaga!
Bon Appetit!!
Hey Foodies!
Check out my meal at Tasty Hand-Pulled Noodles with special guest, Johnny Depp!
Ahhhh, Summer is upon us. With long and hot days, and sweltering heat, there is not other dish I crave more than the lobster roll. I love lobster. I love it any time of year. The lobster roll is my Summer sandwich though. I had a great one at The Mermaid Inn, which I just wrote about, and last week had near lobster roll perfection ($14) at the new and popular Luke's Lobster in the East Village (an Upper East Side branch has just opened too!).
Lobster is so amazing, you really don't need to add much to it for it to taste great. Too many restaurants are messing up the roll by adding too much extra stuff like lettuce, onions, and vinegar. Let the lobster speak for itself, like it does at Luke's Lobster. They add a sprinkle of celery salt and just a touch of mayo, and what you get is greatness!
So for one of NYC'S best lobster rolls, head on over to Luke's Lobster. It'll make your Summer a great one!
Luke's Lobster
93 E. 7th St. ( bet. 1st and A)
New York, NY 10009
212-387-8487
Le Cirque is a restaurant from the "old guard". It has been with us, NYC, for a while, catering to the rich and famous, heads of state, and foodies like me. I had a tasting menu two years ago, where I ate the best scrambled eggs in my life (topped with caviar). Last week I was invited to a lunch there, where chef Craig Hopson is cooking some delightful bites!
My dining companions and I sat in the decadent dining room with a soaring, tent-like ceiling, and ordered the $45 three-course prix fixe lunch. To start off, the bread basket at Le Cirque is excellent.
I started with the wild burgundy escargot with gruyere gnocchi, pickled fiddlehead ferns, and bottarga. This was my favorite dish of the lunch and extremely memorable. Those little gnocchi were mind-blowingly great!
My companion's marinated tuna, avocado tapenade, clementines, and sesame tuile was fresh, sweet, and a splendid appetizer.
The comté cheese souffle with mixed greens was also a nice start to our lunch.
My roasted lamb chops with pistachio gremolata and pommes purée was excellent. I loved the crunch the gremolata gave to the tender meat, and the pommes purée was some of the best I've had.
Paupiette of black cod leeks, crispy potatoes, Rocca di Frassinello sauce and filet of beef “Pot-au-Feu” with bone marrow and spring vegetables, satisfied both my companion's lunch appetites well. I had a bite of each, and they were both delectable.
To end, Floating Island “Le Cirque” , (old-fashioned style island over light vanilla cream,) Crème Brûlée “Le Cirque”, and a miniature chocolate hazelnut cake, were all simple, light, and a really nice ending to a pleasant lunch.
So, have a taste of the "old guard" at Le Cirque, you'll feel like royalty.
Le Cirque
151 E. 58th St. (bet. Lexington and 3rd)
New York, NY 10022
212-644-0202
www.lecirque.com
Pure Food and Wine in Gramercy is a beautiful and amazing raw/vegan restaurant in NYC, with the most beautiful and amazing and patio in town! If you aren't dining on their fresh, healthy fare, you must check out their takeaway annex on the other side of the restaurant, with an entrance on 17th street.
The Swan Greens juice ($10), cucumber, spinach, dandelion, pear, grapefruit, tarragon, spearmint, and yuzu, is refreshing, rejuvenating, and absolutely fantastic!
Also, when you stop in, you must try their version of the malomar ($6)-it is healthy, orgasmic and mind-blowing!
Pure Food And Wine Takeaway
125 1/2 E. 17th Street (bet. Irving and 3rd)
New York, NY 10003
212-477-7151
www.purefoodandwine.com
The bagel. A culinary institution of NYC. Synonymous with New York. Every deli has them, many places specialize in them, but who makes the best one? Which place reigns supreme?
Ess-A-Bagel is one such place that is on many "best bagel" lists, and after visiting last week, I'd have to agree. Topped with good whitefish salad, perfect texture, nicely seeded, it was a wonderful and perfect bagel. I was in culinary awe.
So head to Ess-A-Bagel for the city's best bagel. It'll bring the true New Yorker out of you.
Ess-A-Bagel
831 3rd Avenue (and 51st)
New York, NY 10022
212-980-1010
359 1st Avenue (and 21st)
New York, NY 10010
212-260-2252
Ole! Ole! Dos Caminos, a standard Mexican hangout for many in NYC (there are four in NYC), has escaped my culinary adventures for some time now. A sceney spot, known for its made-to-order guacamole and margaritas, the food to me always seemed to be an afterthought. Well, I stopped in for lunch last week with a PR buddy of mine, and was pleasantly surprised to find some decent grub to satisfy my lunchtime Mexican cravings.
The chips and guacamole ($12 serves 2) are a must, for that guacamole is a standout. It is great!
My dining companion really enjoyed his chicken quesadillas ($16), with chicken breast, chipotle barbeque sauce, chihuahua cheese, crema, and pico de gallo. The two bites I tried, were dry, passable, and did nothing for me.
My grilled cheese and short rib torta ($14) with chile and beer braised short ribs, chihuahua cheese, and baby arugula was really good and tasty. A definitely enjoyable sandwich I could get behind.
The other day I stopped into Liquiteria, a healthy juice spot in the East Village. They have all sorts of healthy concoctions, and I went with the "Grasshopper"; pineapple, pear, apple, wheatgrass, and mint. This drink was outstanding! It cost $8.50, which I thought was a tad pricey for a drink, especially without any vodka or gin in it, but it was damn good. I could see drinking one of these as a healthy lunch. So, drink good, and feel good!
Liquiteria
170 2nd Avenue (and 11th St.)
New York, NY 10003
212-358-0300
www.liquiteria.com
