Come for the Meatballs, Stay for the Pizza

Only two years ago, Michael Chernow and Daniel Holzman revolutionized the restaurant scene and opened The Meatball Shop in NYC's Lower East Side. Serving a variety of meatballs and sauces, The Meatball Shop has been wildly successful, and for good reason. Those meatballs are DIVINE. The atmosphere is bustling and fun, especially at 3am, as the small restaurant is a favorite amongst those who have been out on the town all night (myself included.)

Due to my intense love of the Meatball Shop, I was slightly skeptical when The Meatball Factory opened in the East Village last October. I was worried that the "meatball thing" was getting a little too trendy and that this new Factory would try to be just like the Shop.

Always willing to be proven wrong, I accepted an invitation from a fellow food blogger to try out The Meatball Factory a few weeks ago. I mostly wanted to see if their meatballs could hold a candle to Chernow & Holzman's, so I grabbed Patrick and off we went to The Meatball Factory on a rainy New York City night.

The restaurant wasn't very busy when we arrived but I instantly liked how warm and cozy it was inside. Dark wood and dim lighting set the mood for our meal, and then the food started to arrive to the table. First, the restaurant's namesake.
 
We had the Turducken Meatballs (house blend of Shady Farms turkey, Bell & Evans chicken, Hudson Valley Farms duck confit, sage & allspice) with Dragon's Lair Sauce (green curry peanut sauce with red bell pepper and thai basil)

 

and Hog Wild Meatballs (raised heritage pork shoulder, ground heritage pork shoulder, Nueske’s cherrywood bacon fat, mascarpone and a dash of red chili paste) with Pepper Monkey Sauce (Dave’s roasted poblano bbq sauce- a smokey & tangy blend of roasted chiles & tomatoes, cider vinegar, & molasses.) 

I LOVED the Turducken Meatballs. They were tender and delicious and the Dragon's Lair Sauce was one of the best sauces I have ever tasted on anything. I had to restrain myself from picking up the bowl and drinking it, it was that good. On the other hand, I wasn't crazy about the Hog Wild Meatballs. I found the consistency to be a little bit chewy and too dense. The BBQ sauce was okay, but nothing special. Needless to say, I focused most of my attention on the bowl of Turducken balls. YUM!

I did try to save some room for the rest of the food we had coming, the Shrooming Pizza with Roasted wild mushrooms, baby arugula & truffle time cream sauce and the Roasted Brussels Sprouts with maple syrup and red chili sauce.

The pizza was even better than the meatballs. I loved how thin the crust was and the mushrooms were earthy and perfectly cooked. The pizza was gone faster than it had come out, and we moved onto the Brussels Sprouts.

While Brussels Sprouts are my favorite vegetable, I tend to like them a little bit on the lighter side with just a touch of salt, pepper and olive oil. These were very tasty, but the maple syrup weighed them down and made them a bit too sugary. Don't get me wrong, we finished every last one, but I would have liked them better with less on them.

Even though this meal had us incredibly full, we knew we still had dessert coming, the Hot Tin Roof Sundae (Daves malted hot fudge & sea salt caramel along with candied nutmeg walnuts over marshmellow gelato.) I know I mention this in almost every post, but dessert just isn't my thing. This one wasn't much different, but it was still pretty tasty. The walnuts added a good amount of salt to the dessert, which I like, and mixed with the caramel I almost enjoyed it, but I left most of the dessert-eating to my sweets-loving boyfriend. But not before I had him snap a photo of me with a rare dessert that I actually liked!

Overall, I really enjoyed our meal at The Meatball Factory. I was glad we gave it a chance and was even pleasantly surprised that short of the name, The Meatball Factory is not trying to be The Meatball Shop. The Shop's meatballs are more of the rustic Italian variety and while the Meatball Factory is definitely riding on more of the trendy meatball wave, some of the food is good enough to sustain it. Some dishes were certainly better than others, but Patrick and I both liked the food we had and would go back again for more. Especially that Dragon's Lair Sauce!

How do you feel about the meatball trend? Shop or Factory? I'm still very strongly in the Shop camp if I had to choose, but it's best not to compare them, as they are two very different restaurants.

Let's Eat!

-The Fabulous Foodie

Delicious Food, Quirky Service at Craftbar

Let’s be completely honest here for a second: Sundays stink. Not only are they the end of the weekend and the gateway to the most awful day of the week, but usually I’m tired from going out Saturday night (my own fault, I realize) and bummed out that I have another 5 days of work until my next weekend. Due to these facts, Patrick and I decided that we would no longer dread Sundays, but instead we would start a tradition of Sunday Night Dinners where we’d have an awesome dinner to look forward to on Sunday nights.

Last weekend we decided to kick off this new tradition with a dinner at Tom Colicchio’s CraftBar. (PHOTO CREDIT: Blonde in the Kitchen)

It’s no secret that I’m a big time Colicchio fan, and I’ve been wanting to try this more casual version of Craft, the restaurant that Patrick took me to for my 26th birthday dinner. We made a reservation and walked downtown in the warm Sunday summer air.

When we walked into the restaurant, it was almost completely empty. This sometimes turns me off, but on a random Sunday night at 6pm in the summer I expect many restaurants to be empty. We were shown to our table and our waiter came over almost immediately. This is where things got really interesting. Our waiter was nothing short of hilarious. With an incredibly dry sense of humor and a strong opinion on what we should eat and drink, he provided constant entertainment throughout the entire meal. For diners as open-minded as us, he hit the jackpot. I could imagine anyone with less of a sense of humor or pickier eating habits being completely turned off by his personality, but not us. We were delighted.

When I told him I wanted a white similar to Sauvignon Blanc but something new, he recommended the Pinot Blanc instead. It was dry, crisp, cold and mild—exactly how I prefer my white wine. It was also several dollars cheaper per glass than the Sauv Blanc, so I gave him silent points for not recommending something pricier. When we told him we were ready to order, he let us know that he’d be right back to tell us about what else they were offering, exclaiming that he was certain we’d need to hear these menu additions. And again, he was right.

The entrée special for the evening was Berkshire pork for two. Our favorite! He described that the pork was prepared three ways, and while I again can’t recall everything he said, all I really remember are the use of phrases like “succulent,” “fall off the bone” and “you won’t be sorry.” We ordered this dish immediately for dinner. Our hilarious waiter assured me that I would be so happy with the pork dish that I’d have to resist the urge to hug him, but that he’d settle for an enthusiastic high-five.

Patrick and I decided to start the meal off by sharing the Fried Pacific Oysters with Pickled Cucumber and Old Bay Aïoli. Ever since the fried oysters we had at Beauty & Essex, I’ve been craving them. This version definitely didn’t disappoint.Enormous, flavorful oysters were lightly dusted with a crispy coating that had a really great spice to it. There were four oysters in the order, and even half the order was plenty for me given the size of the mollusks.

The next thing we shared was the Duck Rillette Bruschetta with Fried Duck Egg, Mizuna and Orange Aïoli.This dish consisted of some very tender duck meat (Rillettes is a preparation of meat similar to pate. The meat is cubed or chopped, salted heavily and cooked slowly in fat until it is tender enough to be easily shredded, and then cooled with enough of the fat to form a paste. Thanks Wikipedia!) While the meat on this dish was a bit salty, I didn’t find it to be too overwhelming and I actually quite enjoyed it. The fried duck egg introduced a nice texture to the dish but I found the aioli to be rather unremarkable. Overall, though, I definitely enjoyed the it.

As the courses came out of the kitchen and our waiter made frequent visits to our table, he continued to strike up witty banter with us. While the restaurant was empty when we got there and he admitted he was excited we were there so he’d have someone to talk to, people did begin to pour into the restaurant and soon it was quite busy. Regardless of the other patrons, our waiter supplied superb service all night. I noticed that he saw our water glasses were near empty from afar, and I saw him subtly nod to a support person who immediately ran to our table with a pitcher of water. We truly enjoyed his style.

Finally, the pork dish came out. It was a gigantic skillet that was filled to the brim with green vegetables and pork galore.There were pork cheeks braised in red wine and a hearty helping of pork trotters (pig’s feet) that were lightly fried. I can’t recall the third preparation but I remember the meat being tender and very yummy. To top the whole thing off, there were several pork rinds in there because, well, why not?! We really enjoyed the pork for two, even with the $70+ price tag, but since the dish was plenty of food for the two of us the price wasn’t too crazy. In the end, I did high-five the waiter.

We ordered coffees but skipped dessert, as per usual, and left Craftbar with a very positive feeling about the experience. Our waiter, although very unusual, was knowledgeable, friendly and quite funny. I hope he uses good judgment when laying his charm on patrons and holds back his over-the-top sense of humor if he can tell it won’t be well-received. Patrick and I were very entertained.

What are your thoughts on quirky service? Would you prefer a waitperson remain strictly professional at all times? Or are you okay with a little comedy show to accompany your meal? Let me know, I’d love to hear what you think

Let’s Eat!
-The Fabulous Foodie

Winter Restaurant Week: A Recap

As I've mentioned before, I love NYC Restaurant Week the way a 5 year old loves a trip to Disney World. As soon as the restaurants are announced on nycgo, I go into a frenzy of menu-reading, Open Table reservation-making & emailing friends to invite them to join. I changed a few of the reservations I had initially made for Restaurant Week (had to cancel Primehouse & Nobu), and here is where I eventually landed:

1. BONDST to celebrate my birthday with Lauren & Jill
2. Riverpark with Patrick & 2 other couples
3. Mercer Kitchen with some more of the girls

BONDST is a constant favorite of mine during Restaurant Week and, to be honest, every other week of the year. The vibe is sexy, the food is incredible & the drinks are delicious. For my meal, I chose the Tofu Miso Soup, the Salmon Avocado & Spicy Tuna Rolls, and the New York Strip Steak with Caramelized Shallot Teriyaki & 12-year-old Balsamic. Every dish also comes with Spicy Crispy Shrimp, Age Dashi Tofu and a Steamed Chicken Dumpling. For dessert, I had the Ricotta Cup.The flavor of the Miso Soup was rich, the rolls were the perfect ratio of rice to fish and were incredibly fresh and the steak was a medium-rare masterpiece. Tender, juicy and packed with flavor, I savored every bite of the meat. The 3 accompanying sides were also delicious, each bite was a bold new flavor. And yes, I even enjoyed my dessert, the savory (not sweet at all) Ricotta Cup.

Riverpark has been on my "must try" list as soon as I first heard about its opening last September. Tom Colicchio is my favorite chef, and since I can't quite afford to dine at Tom Tuesday Dinner (yet!), I've been dying to go. I made a 6-person reservation and drooled over the menu for the weeks leading up to it. When Patrick and I got in a cab and told them "take us as far east across 29th street as possible," we knew this place wouldn't be easy to find. And boy were we right! After wandering around lost for about 10 minutes along the FDR, we ran into 2 of our friends who were just getting out of their cab and were as lost as we were. Together, we investigated the building and finally found a security guard to ask where to go. But, let me tell you this: don't let the location turn you off. This restaurant has both a beautiful decor and delicious food. I ordered the Cavatelli, Lamb & Mint dish for an Appetizer, the Roasted Chicken with Sunchokes as my Entree and the Cinnamon Pana Cotta with Pumpkin Cake for Dessert.The pasta dish was outstanding, the combination of lamb & mint reminded me of a great rack of lamb with mint jelly and the pasta was perfectly al dente. My roasted chicken was juicy and tender and had a delicious crispy skin. While the Panna Cotta was just okay, I think I just don't like Panna Cotta. I'd never had it before, and I just didn't enjoy the texture or the flavor of the dish. Lesson learned.

Finally, Mercer Kitchen. Deep in the heart of Soho, the atmosphere here is similar to BONDST. A hip lounge with food from Jean-Georges Vongerichten, any restaurant in NYC that's been around since 1998 must be doing something right. The 6 of us arrived early for our 8:30 reservation, and we weren't shown to our table until close to 9:30. The staff offered absolutely no apology, but we did get a nice corner table in the busy restaurant. For this meal, I decided not to order from the Restaurant Week menu because I'd had my share of desserts for the week. I ordered the Pizza Bianco (4 cheese & garlic, hold the red onions) as my Appetizer & the Breast and Confit of Duck with rhubarb, preserved lemon and wild rice as my Entree.I love a good white pizza, and this one was fantastic! The crust was both chewy & crunchy and the cheeses oozed with olive oil & garlic. I didn't want the dish to end! And then when I thought I couldn't be happier with my selection, my Duck came out and I was first surprised at how much food was on the plate. When I bit into the Confit, it was incredibly tender and full of hearty flavor. The Breast of Duck was medium rare, just how I like most of my meat cooked, and the juice from the duck spread out over the plate when I cut into it. It was moist, well- seasoned and practically fell apart in my mouth. I wanted to lick my plate clean, and I wasn't even a little bit jealous when some of the other girls ordered dessert. The service was lacking at Mercer Kitchen, but the food was not.

Now that Winter Restaurant Week has been extended until the end of the month, I may try to visit a few more spots, but overall, I'm very happy with the restaurants I visited this time around. Until Summer Restaurant Week!

What restaurants did you try, in NYC or any other city you may live in? Any suggestions of places I just HAVE to try? I'd highly recommend all 3 places I went, but beware of the bad service at Mercer Kitchen.

Let's Eat!
-The Fabulous Foodie