The Supper Club’s most recent outing took us to Yerba Buena, the East Village location.
The service was anything but Buena. Our group was awkwardly forced to cram in the front corner of the bar while we waited for the restaurant to honor our 8pm reservation on a Wednesday night. Four of the five us were present, and the maître d’ brashly asked how long our final guest would be, as he blatantly wanted to pass our table along to another waiting group. Our waiter too had an attitude problem, smacking his pad against his hands impatiently while we rattled off our orders. He continued to pressure each of us (five dainty females) to order more food.
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My all-time favorite chef Jean Georges is at it again, this time with ABC Kitchen juxtaposed to the well-known retail space of ABC Carpet & Home. Natural tones pervade, both cosmetically and gastronomically. White and black themes dominate the dining space, while green-style, organic cooking defines the menu. A list of local purveyors is delineated for the curious.
The cuisine is approachable and mainstream, unlike some of Georges’ higher end restaurants–though, ABC Kitchen is far from simple. I started with an innovative apple cider cocktail, a mixture of spiced cider, sparkling wine, and sparkling apple cider. Other cocktails worthy of attention are the blood orange Bellini and the vodka thyme lemonade. All incorporated exotic fruits and spices and were priced around $12. Because of the $35 corkage fee, my dining group also brought along two fine bottles of wine, an excellent way to save a few on wines that are often marked up by magnitudes of scale.
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Tucked away on an unsightly stretch of 3rd Avenue, Apiary’s sleek, modern dining room feels like it’s a world apart from the hustle and bustle of the dive bars, NYU dorms and late night pizza shops which surround it. Furnished by the French contemporary design brand Ligne Roset, the minimalist and modern décor makes for a stylish setting. Intricate touches like glass chandelier shaped cutouts affixed to the walls provide a fresh take on the classic elegant dining room.
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Just a few blocks from the bustling crowds of Union Square, Lady Mendl’s, an intimate, Victorian-style tea salon, is tucked away inside a brownstone turned bed and breakfast from 1834. Our supper club convened there on a Sunday afternoon and was immediately charmed by the beautiful and enchanting setting: a cozy fireplace, old world architecture, chaise lounges, fine china and peacock print wallpaper. It’s a girl’s tea-party-dream come true.
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Retro and hip for Vietnamese street food, Bun Soho, run by Chef Michael “Bao” Huynh, is all about small plates. Start off by diving in to the crisp, salt accented, rice puffs and place your order for artichoke tea which exudes the herbal essences of the vegetable.
Ingredients are fresh at Bun, exemplified by the crisp flavors of the papaya and beef jerky salad accented with peanuts and lime and the lobster salad with citrus, pineapple and lemongrass dressing. The hot steamed roll is prepared like a pancake noodle, bursting with fresh mushrooms and served with soy sauce.
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Traditional, Russian and majestic, Firebird fully lives up to its promise of an unparalleled dining experience. Antiques from the days of Alexander the Great and hundred year old Russian tobacco bonds line the walls of the washrooms and a white Christmas tree brings the chill of Russia into the air; however, there’s nothing cold about this restaurant except for its chilled vodka.
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For my supper club dinner I chose to take everyone to the Momofuku Ssam Bar for their signature bo ssam dinner (it’s an entire pork butt that comes with side condiments). It should be noted that the only way to make a reservation at the Momofuku Ssam Bar is to reserve a table for the bo ssam, which costs $200 dollars and is intended for groups between six to ten people. Of course this provided even more incentive to choose this restaurant for my supper club experience.
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The great thing about New York dining is that great meals often come in unusual and unexpected packages. I am an avid reader of the Urbandaddy email newsletter and when I read their write up of the Cardinal Club–a by reservation only multi-course meal served in the decadent East Village backyard of a chef and his girlfriend, Simon and Paula, I knew that it was a must try. After corresponding with the couple via email I set a date for myself and five friends to dine at the couple’s kitchen turned restaurant. Simon and Paula have been bombarded with email requests for reservations after that small bit of press, and their website even crashed for a short time because of the heavy traffic it received.
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With contemporary white walls, a white tiled floor, and white tables and chairs, somehow Falai exudes warmth in its intimate, Lower East Side, location. Falai is a wine bar and restaurant, so don’t head here looking for a cocktail, but rather expect a diverse selection of Italian varietals to choose from. Also, with a $25 corkage fee, feel free to bring your own wine.
Falai certainly earns a gold star. Given its low-key atmosphere, the greeting of an amuse bouche of fried and crispy corn in pumpkin soup was unexpected, but well received. Furthermore, the restaurant boasts a versatile menu, including three tasting menus: the nine course Menu Fantasia, the Pasta Tasting, and the three course Menu Tradizione, all of which can be paired with wine.
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Situated at the edge of Columbus Circle in the Trump Hotel, Jean Georges certainly is not understated. Despite its long history in New York (or maybe because of it), it is often, mistakenly forgotten. With a chic, modern air, it lacks a stuffy atmosphere that could overpower the restaurant’s artistic cooking style. My dining group opted for the “summer tasting” which consists of seven, heavenly courses that puts Jean Georges in my mind among the top restaurants worldwide. The prix fix runs $98 per person and the tasting menu is a more pricey $148 per person. Not only is the food perfection, but the presentation is masterful.
The amuse-bouche included a heirloom gazpacho shooter, fried corn fritter with jalapeño aioli, and sashimi topped with plum and basil. I almost swapped out the caviar and egg first course, as I am not enthused by caviar, however, the waiter likened it to the “best grilled cheese” that he has ever had. In fact, he was spot on. The toasted brioche was filled with deliberately cooked egg yolks that were almost solid, yet still soft, and topped with caviar and dill. In a blind taste test, I would never have guessed that caviar was included in this dish–only a mere saltiness could be detected. As for the egg, it certainly had the texture of cheese.
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