Solid Italian Fare at La Carbonara

From the outside, it looks like any other New York City restaurant, so it was by the fate of the OpenTable gods that we landed at La Carbonara for dinner one night a few months ago. Patrick and I took his friends from Maryland out to dinner to this Italian spot on 14th Street between 7th & 8th Avenues and from the second we walked in the door we fell in love with it.

Now don't get me wrong, I always have been and always will be Max's biggest fan, but since we moved to Chelsea, the trek to either Tribeca or the East Village seems far when we're craving pasta, so we've found a new home at La Carbonara. Let me break it down for you. The cozy atmosphere gives diners low lighting, a noise level that is never too loud even when the restaurant is packed (and it is always packed), and small wooden tables far enough apart for privacy but close enough together to feel like you're sharing a meal with 100 of your closest friends. The staff is incredibly attentive and welcoming and the decor makes you feel like you're having a comfortable dinner in your Italian grandmother's dining room. This restaurant makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside, and I haven't even gotten to the food yet.

(photo credit: La Carbonara)

As I said, we took some of Patrick's friends here a few months ago and everything was wonderful. But the meal I want to tell you about took place last Friday night. Patrick and I (once again) both had rough weeks at work and decided we owed ourselves a good dinner date. We chose La Carbonara because we were craving some pasta and we loved it so much the last time we had gone. We were shown to our table by the same man who had served us last time, presumably a manager, an incredibly nice Italian guy with a ponytail and beard. We soon found out he'd be our waiter again, and his service was flawless. He checked on us enough times to be helpful but not so much that it was overwhelming.

We decided to split the Oven-Baked Eggplant with Tomato, Basil and Mozzarella to start. I love that this dish is baked and not fried, and was really in the mood for this savory treat. It arrived to our table in a small bowl and the aroma nearly knocked me out of my chair. I couldn't wait to dig in!The eggplant was both crispy and soft in all the right places, the cheese was melted to perfection and the sauce rivaled the best I'd had. On the whole, we made a phenomenal appetizer selection.

For some reason, I was really craving seafood. While Patrick went with the Rigatoni with Veal Ragu, I scanned the menu and was really hoping there would be a stand-out seafood special. I was not disappointed. Not only did they have a pasta dish with mussels, shrimp AND lobster, the pasta in said dish was black squid ink pasta, one of my favorites! They had it paired with a spicy marinara but I opted for a garlic white wine sauce. I couldn't wait for our food to arrive! While we waited, Patrick sipped on a crisp white wine and I indulged in a glass of Prosecco.

Our food was finally ready, and I knew it was coming because I could see the lobster on my plate from across the room! Patrick's pasta looked great:but I was very happy with the plate that was placed in front of me:And of course when the busboy brought over the chunk of Parmesean with the grater we kept him at our table for a good long time grating cheese over our dishes. What is a plate of pasta without a mound of cheese on top?

I am proud to say I finished every last bite of the incredible dish. The seafood was so fresh, the pasta was cooked exactly to my liking (al dente!) and I always have a good time cracking open lobster (even though, to this day, my dad cracks it open for me when I get lobster with my family.) I was in heaven! I tried Patrick's pasta, and it was also very good, but braised meat is not my favorite. He definitely enjoyed it though.

La Carbonara has quickly become one of our favorite places in the city. When a great atmosphere is paired with both wonderful service and delicious food, you really can't go wrong. We'll be back for sure, and we'll send new customers to this great spot too!

Where is your favorite place to get pasta in the city? Do you like fancy Italian at places like Del Posto? Or do you prefer good down-home pasta at places like Max and La Carbonara? 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

The Best Service I've Ever Had

I have eaten a lot of meals in a lot of restaurants and I truly feel that the service can greatly add to or take away from the overall experience. In my post about newcomer Ciano, I noted that the food was exceptional, but the service was bad (even though, I do realize, it was opening night.) It's no secret to anyone who knows me that Tom Coliccho is my all-time favorite chef, so for my 26th birthday Patrick took me to Craft, Collich's (my nickname for him because obviously, we're buds) spot on 19th & Park. I have been wanting to try this place for awhile, so off we went.

Upon opening the (very heavy) door into the gorgeous space, we checked in for our table and headed to the bar for drinks. I had the American Beauty (apple-infused tito’s vodka, apple schnapps, laird’s applejack, cinnamon syrup, tobacco bitters) and Patrick had the Bee Sting (maker’s mark, fresh ginger, cardamom-honey syrup, regan’s orange bitters). Both drinks were delicious, and then the bartender told us the drinks had been taken care of for my birthday by Patrick's family. Thank you again Ms. Patty & Mr. George!

We were shown to a lovely table near the bar, and we opened our menus to begin making our selections. That was when I started to notice how every single small detail was taken care of by the staff. When I dropped my knife on the ground (klutz!) the hostess was at my side immediately with a new one. When I got up to use the bathroom, a waiter walked me there and someone folded my napkin while I was gone. My water glass was NEVER empty (and we all know how I am about that!) And the service only got better as the night went on.

For our appetizer, we decided to share the Ricotta Cavatelli & Guanciale.When it came out, I was delighted to find a cooked egg in the middle of the plate. We immediately broke the yolk and let the delicious yellow liquid invade every part of the bowl. When I took a bite, the flavor was that of the most perfect bacon, egg & cheese I had ever tasted. I practically licked the plate clean.

For the main courses Patrick chose the special of the evening, the Suckling Pig Platter and I chose the Nantucket Bay ScallopsThe Suckling Pig was juicy and full of flavor with the Crispy Pork Belly as the succulent star, while the Diver Scallops were the perfect combination of tender & sweet. I have had a lot of tough & stringy Bay Scallops, so I was impressed by how good these were. After doing some research after dinner, I learned that Bay Scallops are no more tough than Sea Scallops, it's 100% about how they are cooked. So, Mr. Colicchio certainly triumphed with this dish.

Our sides were Duck Risotto, Brussels Sprouts & Hen of the Woods Mushrooms.The Risotto was packed with intense flavor and was full of tender duck meat. I found the consistency to be slightly too glue-y, but otherwise it was a perfect dish. The Brussels Sprouts had little pieces of bacon heaven scattered throughout the plate for a delightful crunchy surprise, and the mushrooms were earthy and rich. These sides perfectly accompanied the main courses, and we were happy campers.

The excellent service continued throughout the entire meal. Our waiter asked if we'd like to sit with our wine before bringing out our cappuccinos, not rushing us at all. They didn't miss a beat. This elevated our experience from great to extraordinary, and put Craft close to the top of my own personal Best Restaurants list. The waiter then brought out a little birthday treat that was the perfect end to the meal: Hazelnut Meringues.When we were done, Patrick paid (thanks again!) and we went to fetch our coats. As if the service hadn't already been stellar, the hostess struck up a friendly conversation with us while we waited and wanted to know how our experience had been. Because I (obviously) love to talk about food & restaurants, we chatted for awhile, and then she handed us both our perfect parting gifts: Two Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins wrapped in cellophane. Seriously?! A GOOD-BYE MUFFIN?! I had died and gone to heaven.

What other restaurants have outstanding service? How do you think it contributes to the overall experience? Let me know your thoughts, I'm now addicted to great service!

Let's Eat!
-The Fabulous Foodie

Ciano: The Food Shines

I'd been hearing about Shea Gallante's new restaurant, Ciano, for weeks. Email newsletters, Twitter updates, NY Times' Diner Journal articles... everything promised delicious, non-pretentious food in the Flatiron District.

When I logged onto Open Table, my go-to source for restaurant reservations, I was excited to see one single 8pm reservation left for Ciano's opening night, November 5th. The menu looked fabulous, and the restaurant seemed very promising.

As soon as Patrick and I stepped in the door, I was impressed with the warmth of the restaurant and the inviting decor: low lighting, candles, bustling but not too loud. After waiting a few minutes, we were shown to our table, a cozy two-top, and our meal began.

Right off the bat, we could tell the waitstaff didn't quite have their act together. But, we both realized it was opening night of a new restaurant, and we'd be patient. We ordered two glasses of wine and started to look over the menu.

Immediately, we both decided we had to try the veal meatballs. When our waiter finally came over to our table after waiting about twenty minutes, we were told they were out of the meatballs. No problem, we ordered the Scallops with Brussels Sprouts.

After waiting about another twenty minutes, the waiter came back over to take our dinner order: we decided to share both the Pappardelle with Duck Ragu and the Slow-Roasted Lemon-Rosemary Chicken.

When our scallops came to the table, I was impressed with how delicious they looked.

At this point, we were starting to get slightly annoyed at how impossible it was to get our waiter's attention anytime we needed anything, but then we tasted the dish. The soft, tender scallops were bursting with flavor, and the Brussels Sprouts added the perfect texture and taste to the dish. We both let out a long "mmmm" as we attacked the dish until there was nothing left. "Okay," I thought "maybe they have some work to do on the service front, but this food is GOOD."

After another very long wait, our main courses arrived to the table. The delicious smells were overwhelming, and the presentation of the food was beautiful. Patrick ordered another glass of wine and we started to dig in. At first we ate slowly to wait for his wine, but minutes ticked away and it never showed up. When we finally did get the waiter's attention, he assured us the wine was "being poured." We continued to eat, but the wine never showed up. We were finished with the food before the waiter came back to the table, at which point Patrick pointed out that his wine had never shown up. The waiter apologized, and we canceled the wine order.

In spite of the wine debacle, I must say, the food was incredible. The pappardelle was perfectly-cooked al dente, the duck ragu was absolutely delicious and the chicken was quite honestly the best roasted chicken I have ever tasted. Juicy, tender and flavorful, the skin was crispy and the taste was amazing. We finished every last bite, and agreed that the food was fabulous.

Now, we all know how I feel about dessert, but the salt from the meal actually left me craving a taste of sweet, so we thought we'd look over the dessert menu. We asked our waiter to bring some over, and he said he'd be right back with them. 5 minutes passed. 10 minutes passed. 15 minutes passed. The waiter was nowhere to be seen. Before we knew it, another waiter brought over our check, and told us to have a great night. I guess that was the end of that!

We paid the bill and still left a nice tip, because we were sure the waiter was trying his hardest and we realize that opening night is difficult.

Because the food was SO good, I decided to give my feedback to the restaurant on their Facebook page. I wrote that I was disappointed in the service, and waited to see if a response would come from the Ciano team. I only half-expected to hear anything.

Well, let me tell you, not only did they write back promptly, but I heard directly from Shea Gallante himself! He wrote me a personalized, long Facebook message apologizing for the service, assuring me that it was the pains of opening night, and letting me know that this is not the experience his team is striving for. He wanted to know what he could do to make me happy.

Mr. Gallante, you've already done it. We were initially upset with the service, but I do understand that opening a restaurant is difficult, and the service shown on opening night doesn't necessarily predict how the service will be moving forward. Your food was absolutely delicious, and your personal response to me made up for the service we received on opening night. We will be back to Ciano to again eat your amazing food, and we will certainly give the waitstaff another chance.

Chefs and restaurateurs, take notes from Mr. Gallante. He knows what he's doing in the kitchen, and he knows how to treat his patrons.

Let's Eat!
-The Fabulous Foodie

Adventures in Cooking: Italian

Living in NYC makes it very difficult to find the motivation to cook. Being Lactose Intolerant and extremely allergic to butter is often the one thing that pushes me to cook, because most delicious dishes use butter.

One meal that I absolutely love is Chicken, Broccoli, Ziti with Garlic Bread, but there is usually a stick of butter in each serving, and the pasta is sometimes also loaded with heavy cream.

But not this time.

I told Patrick (my boyfriend) that I would be making dinner a few nights ago, but that he had to be okay with "fake butter." Because he's awesome, he didn't mind at all, so I stopped at Trader Joe's to buy all the ingredients.

Here is the recipe I used:
Ingredients
1/2 cup butter
1 cup white wine
1/3 cup olive oil
1 pound boneless, skinless chicken
1 bunch broccoli
1 pound box ziti
5 cloves garlic, minced
grated Romano cheese

Directions
Melt butter in deep skillet. Add oil and garlic. Simmer for about 15 minutes. Add wine and bring to a boil then reduce heat to medium low for 20 minutes. Cut broccoli into small bite size pieces and steam in microwave for 8 minutes. Cut chicken into thin bite size pieces and cook in the butter, garlic and oil. Remove chicken when done and saute broccoli in butter, garlic and oil for 5 minutes. Sprinkle broccoli with Romano cheese. Add cooked ziti with broccoli and chicken, and add more Romano cheese.

Of course, I substituted Smart Balance Light Original Buttery Spread in place of the butter because it is dairy-free. After tasting the food, you'd never even know.

Below is a picture of the result. As you may already know, I can't live without cheese. Thankfully it doesn't affect me the way butter does, so of course I covered both the garlic bread and the pasta with tons of cheese.

I could have taken the garlic bread out of the oven a few seconds earlier, but I actually really enjoyed how crunchy it came out.

After the meal, I thankfully didn't feel sick at all. Just full & happy. Do you ever substitute ingredients when you cook? Is it for health reasons? Allergies? Can you even taste the difference? I can't wait to try some more recipes that call for butter and trying this delicious non-dairy substitute again. The recipe made so much pasta that Patrick and I both had it again the next day for lunch. Yum!

Let's Eat!
-The Fabulous Foodie

Eating Our Way Through Boston

If you know me at all, you know it's no secret that Boston is my favorite city. While the food in NYC really is incredible, Beantown will always edge out The Big Apple in my heart (the fact that both cities have nicknames with food in them is not lost on me, either).

Last weekend, my boyfriend Patrick and I took a trip up to Boston to enjoy the sights and some of the local cuisine. Our meals included the following highlights.

Dinner at Sonsie on Newbury Street, a trendy, upscale place with good food and fabulous tables for people-watching, was delicious, and I had a great roasted chicken dish. The chicken was tender and juicy and the green beans on the side were crunchy and fresh. Whenever I go to Boston, I make it a point to dine at Sonsie.

A funny food fact about me is that I say I don't like onions, but I LOVE both Onion Rings & French Onion Soup! And I LOVE Abe & Louie's! Abe & Louie's is a steakhouse on Boylston Street in the Back Bay neighborhood in Boston, and it's one of my very favorite places. They make a mean French Onion Soup, so of course we had to stop by for lunch. All I can say is "Holy Cheese!" This is my favorite French Onion Soup of all time, and I'm sure you can see why.

The next stop on our food tour was Giacomo's in the North End, Boston's Little Italy. A meal at Giacomo's feels like a huge family-style Italian dinner with a real Italian family, and they have some of the best seafood/pasta dishes in the city. I opted for the Fusilli with Shrimp & Scallops in a white wine garlic sauce, which I promptly covered in Parmesan cheese (another fact about me if you haven't already figured it out: If it's covered in cheese, I LOVE IT!

Brunch isn't as big of a big deal in Boston as it is in New York, but Zaftig's in Brookline is truly wonderful. They serve incredible breakfast dishes all day, 7 days a week. We used to go all the time in college, and this time, it was just as good as I remembered. The highlight of our brunch? The potato pancakes with homemade apple sauce.

If you've read my previous post on the topic, you'd know that no trip to Boston is complete without a delicious plate of nachos at the Sunset. I've been telling Patrick about these particular nachos for awhile now, claiming that I have yet to find better nachos anywhere in New York. Don't believe me? Read all the other reviews at that link. These nachos are epic!

As you can see in the picture, these nachos are loaded with deliciousness. A perfect distribution of guacamole, melted cheese, sour cream, shredded lettuce & crispy chips surround a delicious, hot serving of chili underneath. My mouth is watering just looking at the picture! I think Patrick agreed how great these were.

Leave me some comments. What's your favorite food city? Why? I'd love to hear from you!

Let's Eat!
-The Fabulous Foodie