The Little Owl 6/18/11

Nothing was more exciting than finally snagging a reservation for the Little Owl in the West Village....and on my husband Marc's birthday, no less!  Just like Babbo, I had to call one month in advance, and I started dialing the number 60 seconds before 10 a.m. on May 18th and got a prime 7:45 p.m. reservation.  The day finally arrived and we got to the Little Owl before Joe & Jeanette who were running late.  We started to get a little worried about our reservation, but the receptionist was so nice and told us not to worry...our table would be waiting for us whenever they arrived.  They ended up getting there 5 minutes later, and he joked about how "late" they were, when we were actually a couple of minutes earlier than our reservation time.

So I am finally at this restaurant I've waiting so long for, and of course I had to get the famous gravy meatball sliders.  I've actually seen the recipe for Joey Campanaro's meatballs and it's EXACTLY the way I make them...but what made them taste so much better?  I think it was the delicious, cheesy  homemade buns they were nestled in.  Marc got the sliced big eye tuna with oysters, bibb, cucumber and avocado and he said it was fantastic.

I was hoping that someone would get the specialty of the house which is the Little Owl pork chop and I really talked it up, but no one ordered it.  I've just read and heard so much about it.  The problem is that once we see branzino is on the menu, that's what we order since we just love it so much.  At The Little Owl, it's served over string beans, tomatoes and olive tapenade, so that was a little different.  And yes, it was delicious. 

We ordered 2 desserts, the beignettes with nutella and raspberry sauce and the root beer float which was something a little different.  They brought out the beignettes with candles so we could sing Happy Birthday and it  was a great ending to a wonderful meal.

Chef Marco Canora (Hearth) 5/21/11 VS Chef Marc Forgione 6/12/11

  

So Season 3 of the Next Iron Chef had Chef Marco Canora pitted again Chef Marc Forgione and Marc Forgione came out the winner.  How would I judge them after eating at both of their restaurants, Hearth and Restaurant Marc Forgione?

We dined at Hearth on May 21st with our usual dining companions (and best friends) Joe & Jeanette.  It was  a superb experience from beginning to end.  We somehow got lucky and were seated at the table closest to the open kitchen where the chefs were busy and it was more like watching a well orchestrated show than a kitchen.  We spotted Chef Marco and he was gracious enough to come over to our table and say hi.  Actually, he checked on us again later on during our meal just to see if we were having a good experience.  Were we ever!  The servers are some of the best I've ever experienced.  The food was impeccable...and we left there satisfied, and I, personally have to admit this...now have my first chef crush.

Chef Marco at his "stage"

Whole Roasted Fish of the Day with roasted potatoes, fennel, and red onion

   Sirloin for 2 and Roasted Fish for 2

So now on to Restaurant Marc Forgione.   Wow, it's a stunning space in Tribeca.

Walking in directly in front of us was non other than Food Network star Alton Brown...pretty exciting, we're big fans.  We were seated at the table right across from him, which was pretty cool.  And on the other side of our table, we could see right into the kitchen and Chef Marc at work, also cool.  Our server...not as much.  He had about as much personality as a wet noodle, not very helpful and what seemed to be a bad attitude.  It was so disappointing and really affected our whole dining experience there.



We were given 2 amuse bouches to begin....one was a gooseberry with mustard seeds and the other was something with yogurt sauce..we weren't quite sure what it was.  For my appetizer I had the big eye tuna which was great..it was served in a bowl with an asian sauce, and it was raw.  For my main course Marc and I shared Chef Marc's signature dish, Bell & Evans Chicken Under a Brick, Yukon Potatoes, and Broccoli Rabe with Pan Drippings.  We both agreed that it was delicious, but weren't "blown away". 

Dessert was wonderful....Fudge Brownie with Coffee Hazelnut Ice Cream, Nutella, and Cocoa Marshamallows...very yummy.

Hands down, all 4 of us agreed that our dinner at Hearth far exceeded this meal in every aspect except for one, and that would be the atmosphere.  Chef Marco Canora is the winning chef in my book!

Colicchio & Sons Tap Room Review - 6/4/11

After a great walk on the high line, this was the perfect place to dine.  The high line is a wonderful way to see the city from a different perspective.

We arrived well before our reservation time and had a drink at the bar, where the bartender was happy to have me try the wines on tap after I had shown some interest in them.  There are some interesting wines by the glass and also lots of different beers presented in unusual glasses, and it was fun just to sit there and enjoy our cocktails.

When our friends arrived, we were seated at a very nice table in the corner, and ordered our dinners.  I started with the ricotta cavatelli with spring peas, caramelized onions and mint.  It was really nice....creamy and you could taste a hint of that mint.

I'm not a fan, but Marc ordered the roasted bone marrow with truffle vinaigrette and drunk onions, and he loved it.  

So since we are fairly "good" eaters, we decided that since the portions were on the small side, the four of us would share the tomato, mozzarella and basil pizza.  It was a great idea because we all got to taste another of Colicchio's items, right out of that wood fired oven.

My main course was a roasted tuna with grapefruit and it was good....just not great.  It was indeed a very small portion, and of all the courses, I'd say that was my least favorite.  I think my favorite course was the dessert, Zeppole with malted milk ice cream and butterscotch sauce...now this was killer.

Babbo - 5/28/11

So it's my birthday dinner and I have to pick a "special" place.....which is hard, because we've been to so many great restaurants in NYC.  I chose Babbo...called for the reservation exactly one month to the day and started auto dialing at 9:59 a.m. since they start taking reservations at 10 a.m.  Was it worth it?  Hell, yes!  It was an amazing dinner, truly unforgettable.  I should have known it would be special when we parked our cars (2 of them) right in front of the restaurant!

I started with the carciofi ala Romano

Marc's tripe appetizer came with more of that delicious home baked Italian bread.

Mario is known for his pasta dishes...and this is a fine example of why.....chianti stained pappardelle with wild boar ragu.

Followed by one of the best branzino presentations I've ever had

The service was great, wine was awesome too.  I guess the waiter overheard that it was my birthday, so I was presented with this dessert, which was such a pleasant surprise.