Thursday May 20th

3pm

84 Stanton Street

After sending a few places from my “must try list” to The Wandering Foodie we decided on the recently open Meatball Shop in the Lower East Side for a late lunch. I read about it when it first opened, and the idea of being able to order meatballs at 4am was intriguing (the kitchen is open until 4am Thursday – Saturday, until 2am Sunday – Wednesday). If you didn’t guess from the name, meatballs are the specialty of the house. The space itself is small—a large communal table fills most of the dining room with a few tables running along the side wall and about a dozen seats at the bar. During warm weather there’s a few tables available outside as well. Fresh flowers are neatly arranged at each table, a chalkboard announces the specials of the day (featuring a daily meatball, sauce, side, salad and ice-cream) and black and white vintage family portraits line the red wall.

When you sit down you’re handed a laminated menu and a dry erase marker to make your selections. The menu is divided into 3 sections: Ala Carte Balls, Sandwiches – hero (served on a baugette) or sliders, and a meatball smash (served on a brioche bun).

How it works:

Step 1. Select ala carte, slider, hero or smash

Step 2. Select your meatball – chicken, beef, pork, vegetarian (made with lentils and walnuts) or special

Step 3. Choose a sauce – classic tomato, spicy beef, parmasean cream, mushroom or special

Step 4. Mozzarella or provolone

I love the idea of taking one food – the meatball – and creating an endless choice of options, but I guess this is why you get the dry erase marker in case you start to second guess. If you’re at a loss the wait staff will gladly offer up their recommendations and favorite combinations. These aren’t Mom’s meatballs (my Sicilian Mother and Grandmother used a mix of pork, veal and beef and simmered them in a tomato sauce with neck bones for flavor), but they were tender and delicious. I recommend trying the basil pesto (if available as the special) with a chicken meatball or the spicy beef with a beef meatball (beef on beef seems so gluttonous but tasted so good).

Tip: Don’t forget to save room for dessert! The ice-cream is made in-house and you can create a “custom” ice-cream sandwich from a choice of four types of cookies or a brownie.

Lunch

(I had a taste of each)

• Sliders – beef with spicy beef, special jambalaya with shrimp, andouille and rice with basil pesto (the only miss, was too salty and fishy), pork with mushroom, chicken with classic tomato
• Smash – chicken with basil pesto and mozzarella (my favorite)
• Side of white beans
• Special salad – arugula with asparagus and a creamy lemon vinagarette
• Market salad – arugula with apples
• House made tangerine, caramel and mint ice-cream with a ginger snap cookie on the side (We couldn’t come to a decision on a sandwich combination so ordered ala carte)

Good for: Meatballs, Endless Choices of Meatballs, Late Night Meatballs, Customizable Ice-Cream Sandwiches

Saturday April 17th, 2010
11:15pm
1 Little West 12th Street

A month in New York isn’t complete without at least one birthday party and/or going away party invitation – tonight it was the latter and a prime table at one of the newest Meatpacking ventures The Collective. It’s is part of The One Group, who also own STK and Tenjune, but it’s definitely got it’s own unique identity. Upon entering you really don’t know where to look first – there’s machinery on the walls, sculptures made of pill bottles, pillars adorned with jewelry, street signs, chairs made of functional crosswalk signs (see photo below). It’s unlike any space I’ve seen and kind of felt like being in the intersection where Dada meets Dali meets Dr. Suess (I’m a fan of all). Staying true to the name, The Collective is a mix of people, ages, styles, music, food and drinks. The bar area isn’t that big, and the main draw seemed to be tables that can accomodate large groups – a few of them celebrating birthdays and bachelorette parties. There’s  a small dinner menu, but it’s not really a restaurant as more of a lounge that serves food. The menu features a section called “a taste of the hoods,” which is supposed to feature favorites by neighborhood but the choices seem a little clichéd. A few people in our group ordered food and it looked average for upwards of $20 an entree. I’d recommend sticking to the cocktails while taking in the eye candy.

Cocktail

• Moscow Mule – vodka, ginger beer and lime

GOOD FOR: SINGLES, GROUPS, CELEBRATING, TABLE SERVICE, COCKTAILS, LATE NIGHT, EYE CANDY

Sunday April 4th, 2010
1:30pm
146 Beekman Street

What better way to spend a sunny Easter Sunday than dining al fresco with an English Bulldog in tow. Fresh Salt seemed like a great option – there’s dog friendly outdoor seating (only a handful of tables) and a $10 prix-fixe brunch menu that features a choice of 9 entrees with a juice or coffee included. I’ve been here for lunch and the sandwiches are great, but brunch not so much. My omelette was completely overcooked (notice the golden brown hue in the photo below), as were my friend’s over-easy eggs (the yolk was just about fully cooked). The high point of the meal was my bloody mary, nice and spicy and served in a pint glass – however my friend’s mimosa was served in a small juice glass and cost $1 more than mine. The sunshine made up for it all, but I think next time I’ll stick to the daily happy hour  - from 4pm-8pm there’s $4 drafts and well drinks and $6 martinis and margaritas. The bar is open until 4am daily – a rarity in the Seaport area.

GOOD FOR: LUNCH, HAPPY HOUR, LATE NIGHT, OUTDOOR SEATING, NEIGHBORHOOD FAVORITE

Saturday April 3rd, 2010
10:45pm
293 East 10th Street

Every now and again I love to smoke a good hookah, so when the mood strikes Horus Café is usually my go-to spot . On this particular night there was a wait and the bouncer told my group we had to wait outside. There was an early Spring chill in the air, and I was starting to second guess the decision, but I guess we proved we were serious about getting a table and were let inside after a few minutes. The space isn’t large, and the size of the hookahs along with the servers carrying glowing charcoal overhead make it seem even smaller. But once seated you can settle in and enjoy the scene—and even the occasional belly dancing show or live music act. There’s over 20 hookah flavors to choose from, and if you’re looking for a late night bite or dinner there’s a fairly extensive food menu featuring mostly Mediterranean and Middle Eastern dishes.

Note: Horus has two other locations – The Café and Kebab House on East 9th and the Lounge at Laguardia Place

Hookah

• Egyptian Pharaohs – with citrus infused water

Drinks

• Moroccan tea with fresh mint (served in a sterling silver and glass tea pot)
• Sahlab tea – a traditional Egyptian drink made from salep (a white flour-like powder made from wild orchid) mixed with milk and coconut and topped with cinnamon and nuts , served hot (a must try – it’s heavy so get one for the table and share)

GOOD FOR: Hookah, late night, groups, outdoor seating, entertaining out of town guests

Friday March 5, 2010
1:15pm
29 Cornelia Street

I set up a networking lunch and needed to find a location along the A/C line. My first thought was the Cornelia Street Café located just around the corner of the West 4th Street station. Cornelia Street is one of those quintessential New York streets, lined with trees and small cafes in the heart of the West Village. While they accept reservations, you can generally just walk in for lunch on weekdays. The menu is a mix of American Nouveau with French bistro classics. A brunch menu is available in addition to lunch every day of the week, just  in case you need a mid-week egg bennies fix. The extensive wine list is also a draw. The front dining room is a little tight, but once seated you can enjoy a good meal and conversation in a leisurely setting.

Lunch:

• Sesame-crusted salmon over warm asian vegetables with a ginger wasabi vinaigrette (served medium)

Wine pairing:

• Torrontes (Argentina, a nice alternative to Sauvignon Blanc)

Good for: wine list, business lunch, casual meal, sidewalk seating, West Village charm, brunch, late-night, prix-fixe