JoJo, UES - He says...

We hadn’t gone to brunch in a while so I wanted to go somewhere nice.  After some research, we decided to go to JoJo, Jean Georges Vongerichten’s bistro-themed restaurant.  We’ve been to a couple of his restaurants before (both times with my parents actually).  ABC Kitchen was pretty good and his flagship, Jean Georges, was outstanding – I still remember the foie gras brulee with candied pistachios…  We knew it wouldn’t be like that, but we still had high expectations.

One thing I didn’t realize was the lack of egg in the brunch.  There was a little section of traditional brunch dishes, but it didn’t look like a main focus of the menu so we turned a blind eye to it.  Instead, we got the $26 pre fixe with an appetizer, entrée, and dessert.

For the appetizer, I ordered the tuna tartare.  For the most part, it was pretty standard except it came with a potato gaufrette, a thinly fried potato wafer.  It kind of just tasted like a potato chip.  I thought it overpowered the flavor and softness of the tartare.  It also didn’t have much acid, which is unlike most tartares, but it did have a mild spiciness that I liked.  She had the three cheese ravioli.  I’m not sure what exactly the cheeses were but there was definitely goat cheese, which went well with the thick dough of the ravioli skins and the starchy red beets.  The sauce was a balsamic vinaigrette that seemed to be coupled with brown butter, giving the ravioli a nice buttery, tart interplay.

Our entrees were literally like night and day.  I had the hangar steak with broccoli rabe.  The dish had a dim hue with dark brown, red, and green colors.  The steak was cut into little medallions, each perfectly medium rare.  After each bite, I realized that the meat and veggies were just vessels for the tasty soy caramel sauce.  The sauce started with a strong saltiness but had a sweet finish.  When the gingered minced mushrooms sopped up the sauce, the taste was distinctly Asian, which was a nice surprise in the bistro setting.

She had the shrimp risotto, which was a pretty plate of bright white, pink, and green colors.  We’ve had a lot of risotto in our food adventures, but I honestly can’t remember having one with shrimp.  The shrimp were pretty big and added a mild seafood flavor to the risotto.  I think what really made the dish stand out was the caramelized fennel.  You typically expect a standard creamy texture and taste with risotto.  But the fennel really added this mild crunch and bitterness that to me was a genius contrast to add to something like risotto.  Along with the hints of lemon, I thought this dish was pretty amazing.

The one sad note was the dessert.  I got the warm chocolate cake with oozing fudge in the middle.  It was good but pretty pedestrian.  Unfortunately, she got the cassis cake with a carrot cake crust, which the waiter sold very well.  It sounded good in theory but the cassis was overly sweet and sour and the cake was definitely full of cinnamon.  It didn’t really come together.

Overall, JoJo impressed us and we were not let down.  I was definitely into that risotto.  It was the kind of brilliance I’d expect from a chef like Jean Georges Vongerichten.  It’s probably worth trying again, but I’d rather go to the main Jean Georges or try another of his restaurants.

Alcala, Midtown East - She says...

He's always good at motivating us to go out when we're about to give in to the temptation of Seamlessweb. It also helps that we have some very decent restaurants just a few blocks from home. We decided to go to Alcala on Friday night, a neighborhood Spanish tapas restaurant.

As I've mentioned before, small plates are my favorite way to eat. I love tapas in particular because it encourages everyone to try different dishes. We'd been to Alcala a few times before, so we ordered a mixture of favorites in addition to a few new dishes. Croquetas are usually a staple for us. At Alcala, the dish comes with both bacalao (dried salted cod) and ham croquettes. The ham croquettes are good, but it's the bacalao filling that's really special here. Extremely smooth and creamy, the bacalao is subtle but retains the distinct saltiness of the fish. The croquette "shell" is super crispy, which contrasts nicely with the creaminess of the filling. Another favorite of mine is the baby squid (chipirones) in squid ink, primarily because I really enjoy the flavor of the squid ink. The black ink-covered mounds don't make for the prettiest dish, but the chipirones are succulent and the squid ink is sweet and faintly fishy. It's even good as a dipping sauce for the warm house bread. The only meat dish of the meal were the grilled baby lamb chops (chuletitas), which were juicy and perfectly simple.

The llescas catalanas, pieces of toast rubbed with a tomato spread and covered with either anchovies or marinated salmon, was a new dish this time and certainly worth ordering again. I've only recently started to like anchovies, and I generally need something to balance their strong flavor. This dish matched the intensely salty fish with a fresh, cooling tomato spread on nicely toasted bread. The salmon, marinated in olive oil, was simple but also very tasty. The other new dish of the night were crepes stuffed with a Spanish cheese and shiitake mushrooms, topped with shredded jamon serrano. The cheese and mushroom filling was nice, but the crepe was eggy and chewy. So the overall bite was a bit bland and lacked texture.

We ended the meal with a trio of desserts: tarta de Arrese, leche frita, and what tasted like a chocolate mousse. The custard pie and chocolate mousse were good, and it was the first time I've tried leche frita. The leche frita, similar to the croquetas, had a crispy exterior shell and a gooey sweet milk filling. It was sweet, but not overwhelmingly so, and surprisingly very light. It would have paired perfectly with a latte, but unfortunately we were still working on finishing our wine. At least I know better for next time.


Alcala is not one of those trendy, chic tapas spots, which we didn't have the energy for after a long work week. There isn't any loud music, the decor is charming although slightly dated, and each dish's presentation is simple, plated with barely any garnish. The service at this restaurant is also quite special. Granted it was almost 10pm when we arrived to eat, so the dinner crowd was just finishing up, but the staff was warm and attentive without being awkward or intrusive. The restaurant's focus is clearly on the food and quality, comforting service. It's a great place for an easy, delicious meal.

Alcala, Midtown East - He says…

I wanted to have something simple and yummy with wine for dinner, but in a low-key setting.  I would have been just fine with some cheese, cured ham, and wine on our couch in front of the TV.  But the markets were already closed and I don’t have enough foresight to prepare for nights like these.  So we decided to go to Alcala, a Spanish tapas restaurant that’s not too far from us that we’ve been to before. 

You don’t really think of tapas when you want to avoid crowds.  But unlike other bar-like tapas places, Alcala has a more classic, laid-back dining room.  It’s definitely a more conventional sit-down restaurant.  It may not be the typical tapas experience, but it definitely hit the spot for me on this particular night.

The first tapas we got were slices of toasted bread topped with a tomato jam, anchovies, and smoked salmon.  I really loved how this dish woke up my taste buds.  When I took my first bite, I was surprised by the burst of competing flavors and textures that worked so well together.  The salmon and anchovies had a borderline heavy acidity that was simultaneously mellowed out by the sweetness of the tomato spread.  The toasted bread also gave the dish a hard crunch against the delicate toppings.  When I have tapas like this, I’m amazed at how much diversity you can fit in one small plate with such ordinary ingredients.

Another tapas we had was this crepe.  The pancake was nicely browned and filled with minced mushrooms that really packed a lot of umami essence.  It was surrounded by shreds of jamon Serrano, which added a salty meat component.  I appreciated the fact that they didn’t add it in the filling and chose to keep the integrity of the ham; it made sure that you could fully distinguish its taste and bright red color.

For the rest of our meal, we had more traditional tapas, which were just as delicious.  The croquetas, bacalao stuffed piquillio peppers, grilled lamb chops, and squid in squid ink sauce were all simply prepared and tasted so clean and distinct from one another.  And that’s what I love about tapas.  Each dish is clearly Spanish and yet so different from one another.  It’s like a little buffet of flavors every single time we have tapas.

For dessert, we got the ‘postres variados’, which is literally a variety of desserts.  It was a scoop of chocolate mousse with 2 kinds of custard in cake and fried square form (I always expect some custard for dessert in a Spanish restaurant).  Again, I’m not much for dessert, so I wouldn’t do it much justice describing it (I know she will).  The one thing I did like was how they weren’t very sweet – that’s my kind of dessert.

Like I said, there isn’t much of a “scene” at Alcala like other tapas restaurants in NYC.  But it is a quaint, neighborhood restaurant with friendly service and great traditional tapas.  Which for me is great, because I'm starting to have a lower tolerance for crowded restaurants.  The ambiance and food definitely make Alcala one of my more favorite comfort food restaurants I'll frequent.

Kin Shop, West Village - She says...

Our Top Chef dinners have become a delicious tradition for us and a few friends. It started with a meal that I won, albeit in a shamefully lopsided bet, at Le Bernadin, followed by a pasta tasting at Babbo where we went Dutch because none of us correctly predicted that season's winner. Now, it was my turn to treat a friend who had chosen the winner of Top Chef All-Stars, Richard Blais. Unable to try the new Top Chef's food, we opted for season one winner Harold Dieterle's new Thai-inspired restaurant, Kin Shop. We'd been to Perilla before, and I loved Dieterle's new American food. I was excited to see how Kin Shop would combine traditional Thai flavors with his contemporary style.

The meal was served family style, which gave us an excuse to over-order. To start, we had diver sea scallops with snap peas, fried pork belly and crispy oyster salad, roasted bone marrow, and an eggplant chutney. The scallops and bone marrow were easy choices, and both were as tasty as expected. The snap peas added a nice fresh crunch to the scallops, which were served on top of a sweet coconut sauce. The bone marrow was standard - delicious bites of rich, decadent fat. It was served with crispy roti instead of bread, a savory Thai pancake that's slightly chewy and greasy. The grease took away from the marrow flavor a bit, and I missed the crunch of toasted bread, but it's hard to find fault with nicely roasted bone marrow.


The biggest surprise of the appetizers was the salad, which we rarely order. The crispy pork belly was juicy, and the oysters were large and deep fried perfectly. The best part of the dish was that the salad actually made the crispy proteins taste better. The vinagrette was fresh and acidic, celery added additional freshness and crunch, and the greens were just peppery enough to balance the heartiness of the fried ingredients.

For the entrees, we ordered stir-fried wide wonton noodles with chicken sausage, braised goat with massaman curry, chiang mai sausage with steamed duck egg over a red onion congee, chiang mai curry noodle soup with grilled lamb, and a side of stir fry aquatic vegetables. The wonton noodles with chicken sausage was a tasty, clean version of pad see ew. It was mildly sweet and could have used a bit of spice, but the noodles weren't oily or heavy. The chiang mai sausage was the most unique dish that we tried. The sausage was savory, moist, and spicy. We broke the duck egg yolk over the red onion congee, which created the perfect gooey base for the dish. My favorite dish of the night was the chiang mai curry noodle soup. It was a simple dish with very comforting flavors. The yellow noodles were served two ways: al dente and crispy. The al dente noodles absorbed the delicious curry sauce, while the crispy noodles served on top provided a great textural contrast. The grilled lamb, cut into bite-sized pieces, was the perfect meat to complement the curry. If it had arrived earlier in the meal, I could have finished the entire bowl. The main downside to the dish was that it was our most expensive plate, $24.

Overall, Kin Shop preserved the sweetness and spice of traditional Thai food well and presented dishes that were both creative and elegant. I should probably have started with the disclaimer that Thai is one of my favorite comfort foods, so I wasn't looking for fancy dishes or impressive techniques. The flavors were delicious and bold, yet balanced. The restaurant achieves a neighborhood atmosphere that I really enjoyed. If we lived in the West Village, I would probably be visiting this place more than he would like. Dieterle is 2 for 2!

Kin Shop, West Village - He says...

This past week we went to Kin Shop with a friend.  We owed him a dinner for winning our 3rd ‘Top Chef’ bet (i.e. he chose Richard Blaise to win).  We thought it appropriate that the dinner be at the latest restaurant of the first Top Chef winner, Harold Dieterle.  Kin Shop is his homage to Thai food.  It’s not Thai food per se, but it’s definitely Thai inspired.

One of our 3 appetizers was the fried pork & crispy oyster salad, which was my kind of salad.  Together, the hunks of pork and oysters were perfectly rich and salty for me.  It was topped with a chili-lime vinaigrette that had a sharp spicy and sour accent that I also liked.  The celery added a light crunch that was refreshing with all the strong flavors.  We also had the diver scallops in coconut curry.  The scallops were cooked perfectly but the sauce was a bit too sweet for me.  Bone marrow was also on the menu and of course we had to get it (we’re suckers for it).  For the most part, it was prepared traditionally: cut in half, roasted, and simply seasoned.  The changeups were a creamy yellow bean sauce and some puffed rice pellets.  And instead of toast, it was served with roti.  It’s all that fatty goodness we loved with a touch of curry, a light crisp, and a Southeast Asian bread vessel.  The changes weren’t major and, to some, maybe not that ambitious or creative.  But I appreciated the minimalist treatment, especially when dealing with bold Thai flavors. 

Our main courses were a bit more traditional.  We ordered the massaman curry with braised goat, a curry noodle soup with grilled lamb, and wide wonton noodles.  As tasty as they were, the sweetness was a bit much for me and probably not something I’d order again and again.  But one entree I did really like was the sausage and steamed duck egg in congee with razor clams.  The dish was simple but very pretty, especially when we mixed the runny egg in with the congee.  The sausage had a pronounced meaty taste, almost a little gamey.  The congee was a bit more subtle but its savory flavor still managed to stand out, even against the sausage.  It reminded me of breakfast at home – meat, eggs, and rice – with a little more kick.

For dessert, we were excited to try the Thai iced tea ice cream.  The ice cream seemed like it was freshly made and the Thai iced tea flavor was perfect in this solid form.  We were pretty full after everything but I don’t think a Thai dinner would have been complete without the taste of a Thai iced tea.

I definitely enjoyed the food at Kin Shop but I don’t necessarily see myself going back very often.  There were definitely dishes I’d go back for and other dishes I still want to try, but I’d rather not to have too many sweet elements in my meals.  But despite my preferences, I can still appreciate the food at Kin Shop and recommend it to anyone looking for a new and exciting contemporary Thai restaurant.

Fishtail, UES - He says...

I was pleasantly surprised at how good Fishtail was.  She got an unbelievable deal from Gilt - an exclusive 4 course tasting, wine pairings, and a signed copy of David Burke's cookbook for $200.  But to be honest, I was a bit pessimistic about going.  I hadn't heard such great reviews about the food at Fishtail.  And I was a bit overwhelmed with the whimsical decor and busy dining room at David Burke's flagship restaurant, Townhouse.  The food at Townhouse also had strong flavors, so I wasn't sure if that would be too much for a seafood theme.  But Fishtail is much different.  The dining room wasn't cramped or hectic.  The service was also a bit more comfortable yet still very professional.  As expected, the decoration was vibrant with bold red walls, fun chandeliers, and interesting fish paintings, but had an element of reservation that seemed elegant.  And the food seemed to fit with it all.  I found our experience at Fishtail to be very zen.  Fishtail definitely impressed me. 

The meal opened with champagne - always a good start.  It was paired with our amuse bouche, a spicy tuna tartare with creme fraiche and caviar in a jar.  The spicy tuna wasn't the mayo heavy stuff we're used to having in Japanese-American restaurants, but was simply mixed with finely minced peppers, which added some heat and acidity.  The creme fraiche provided a comforting cooling quality.  The caviar was a perfectly rich way to add some saltiness.  Unfortunately, I failed to portion each bite out - I can't help myself with caviar.  It was a big portion for an amuse bouche but the simple, well-balanced dish with the champagne was a great start to the tasting.

Our next dish was the Angry Lobster Cocktail.  We've had the famous Angry Lobster from Townhouse and it was indeed angry.  The full portioned Townhouse version was in your face with salt and spiciness.  It was also a bit messy to eat with the sauce because we had to use our hands to really get into it.  So when we saw this on the menu, we were kind of bracing ourselves for the rage.  But when it came out, it was more muted in a good way.  It was half a lobster with more accessible meat (even the brains, which she loves).  The powerful sauce was replaced by a more complex lemon basil chili oil.  I thought the basil really made the dish stand out.  The earthy, herbal tone combined with the heat and acidity from the lemon and chili really created a round flavor I've never really had with lobster.

Our entree was a dover sole with pineapple brown butter topped with brunoised vegetables.  Aside from the cut of the vegetables, the dish seemed pretty standard for a fish dish but delicious nonetheless.  The fish was perfectly cooked - light, flaky meat with some faded brown char on the outside.  The highlight was definitely the sweetness from the pineapple and citrus cut in the vegetables.  It was a subtle flavor but it really anchored the buttery richness of the sauce and the bitterness of the vegetables.  I think it also foreshadowed the big finish at the end.

The dessert was quite a production.  We were served a plate of metal mixers with chocolate frosting.  Our waiter explained we were supposed to lick them like when 'you were a kid'.  As we enjoyed our chocolate with our paired port, our waiter rolled over a cart with our dessert: the Fishtail Can O' Cake.  It was a medium-sized chocolate cake still in the tin.  The waiter topped it with caramel, rice crisps, and bits of Heath Bar Crunch.  He scooped it out on our plates along with ice cream and fresh cream from a canister.  He then left the remaining 3/4 of the cake with us along with the cream.  The chocolate cake was amazing with the crisp, salty, and gooey toppings, but the whipped cream was the dangerous one.  It was thick yet airy and you could easily eat a bowl of it with a spoon; that's coming from a person who doesn't even really like whipped cream!  Shocked by the size of our dessert, we offered some of it to the table next to us and were still unable to finish; but luckily, we were able to take it home.

I think I really liked Fishtail because it wasn't your typical fancy seafood restaurant.  These restaurants are exemplified by crudos and light sauces.  But Fishtail isn't afraid to pair bold flavors with delicate meat.  What you get is a flavorful dish that still stays true to the flavors of the fish.  David Burke definitely does seafood right.  Special thanks to Gilt for offering this deal to her and opening our eyes to Fishtail.

Fishtail, UES - She says...

I've been curious about David Burke's restaurants, known for his creative, bold flavors and whimsical restaurant decor, but we haven't really made an effort to try them. When I saw a three-course tasting menu at Fishtail featured by Gilt City, I thought it would be a good way to see what his food was all about. Shortly after I purchased the certificate, we were surprised with an impromptu trip to Townhouse. After experiencing his "mad hatter" style, I was even more curious about how it would translate in seafood. We made a reservation for Sunday night. We'd already done some pretty serious eating on Saturday, so I was looking forward to a good meal to finish off the weekend.

The tasting started with a glass of champagne, followed by the amuse - a spicy tuna tartare topped with horseradish creme fraiche and a dollop of American sturgeon caviar. It came in an egg-shaped glass jar and was served with several pieces of salted toast. Aside from the toast being slightly cold and under-toasted, it was a really tasty bite. The pepper in the tartare (he thinks they were red peppers, I say jalapenos), provided a good amount of heat and crunch to the tuna, which was fresh and well-seasoned. There were also sea salt crystals toasted into the bread, a nice touch that accented the flavors of the tartare, horseradish, and caviar and also added more crunch. I was surprised by how clean and simple this dish was, and appreciated the little note that came with it.


The second dish, technically our first course, was the Angry Lobster Cocktail. I tried the Angry Lobster appetizer at Townhouse and was overwhelmed by the presentation and spices. But the Angry Lobster Cocktail at Fishtail had a balance that I really enjoyed. It was a half lobster served on a bed of mashed potatoes and a lemon basil chili oil. The spices were bold and had caramelized nicely to the lobster shell, yet I could still taste the sweetness of the lobster meat. The lemon and basil in the oil added freshness to the plate, while the mashed potatoes provided a textural and flavor contrast. I managed to clean out the shells using only the small lobster fork provided, although I was definitely tempted to eat with just my hands (the way lobster is meant to be eaten, of course). It was a fun dish, and paired nicely with a Chablis that stood up to its angry flavors.

The next dish was a dover sole meuniere in a pineapple brown butter sauce that smelled amazing. It was a large filet that was cooked perfectly and topped with pineapple, brioche croutons, and occasional wedges of a citrus, possibly grapefruit? Regardless, I didn't quite understand them - the acidity and sourness were overwhelming. Overall, the sole was a nice, mild finish to our savory courses.

Before the dessert course came, we were served these egg beaters dipped in chocolate:

I was expecting them to be a component of our dessert, but our server told us that they were simply there for us to enjoy - as is! Awesome and so fun. The actual dessert course was equally as whimsical - a canister of chocolate cake that was topped, tableside, with caramel, rice krispies, and heath bar. Served with vanilla ice cream and fresh whipped cream, it was a fun, decadent way to end a great meal. And we even got to take home the leftovers in the original canister.

This tasting was such a pleasant surprise. In addition to the delicious meal, the Gilt certificate included a signed cookbook and a box of David Burke's cheesecake lollipops - all in all a great deal! It was the perfect ending to a truly memorable eating weekend. Special thanks to our server for patiently waiting as he took pictures of every step of the chocolate cake plating, and for making our experience at Fishtail a lot of fun. We'll be back!