Steve R.

Since I'm almost 60, I have a somewhat more "longitudinal" experience with NYC restaurants and their histories. In the late '60s and early '70s, many of us left leaning students could think of nothing more romantic and appropriate than frequenting places that had both Chinese and Cuban pedigree (and were inexpensive). After all, these places represented revolt and revolution by 2 very current "People's Republics" (c'mon, cut us some slack... we were young and impressionable). Then we started going reasonably regularly and got into conversations with the staff and owners (several were small mom and pop places). Nothing could have brought us down faster from our zeal than hearing the heartbreaking stories of those who had to flee mainland China and then, after they settled in, had to flee Cuba as well. Sorta made us think a little. I've never stopped leaning left, but a little broader perspective didn't hurt any.

Thanks for all the info. Izakayas are definitely on the agenda (we have some in NYC but not at that level for a reasonable price). Highway Inn is new to me, as is Jane's and Violet's -- we'll find them. By the way, not only are we "adventurous" enough to eat poke, it's been my go-to food in Oahu since we starting going in the mid-80s. I greatly miss the fresh fish/poke market behind Ward's Warehouse, as that was our first stop to stock up our refrigerator w/poke and to buy crack seed. Second stop was Chinatown. Funny story about our first meal at Sidestreet -- we didn't pay any attention before going and did not realize how large every dish was going to be. I thought our waitress was chuckling to herself as we each ordered appetizers, then entrees (the fried chicken was great), then added some sides. When we received everything, I think she had told the guys at the bar about our order because most of them turned around to see how we would react. Of course, I finished more than they expected but we left over enough for a family of four. Wont be making that mistake again.

Thanks again. We've been there quite a few times, have some (non-foodcentric) friends living there and know the island restaurants pretty well. I was just checking to see if anyone had any newish ideas or would jog my memory (as Anna Phor did upthread about Irifune) or come up with something out of the norm. Your idea about contacting Martha C at Honolulu Mag. is an excellent one and I'm going to do that. By the way, I basically agree that expensive places are not the best ones on Oahu; however, we already have our Alan Wong reservation made and we're thinking about a couple of other splurges, as well as sitting outside drinking mai tais and listening to music at House Without a Key. And there are some middle range places (Town, 3660 On the Rise...) that we like as well. Generally though, I like the shrimp trucks, Helenas, Ono and some of the other low key places. Since you're moving there soon, feel free to let me know if you want the results of our eating in Oahu throughout May. I figure that, given an entire month, we'll be able to hit quite a bit... working it off with a lot of tennis of course. Thanks again for the ideas.

It's still there according to yelp and trip advisor & it sounds great. I'm not sure why we've never been there as its close to where we stay & we've passed it by regularly on our way to many other places. Thanks for the tip.

Thanks. There was some chatter on CH awhile back about "underground restaurants" that I would love to know more about. Also, if there are any "Dining Clubs" or other "private home dinners" that are open to outsiders. Any idea? If it's not something to be posted publicly about, I can be e-mailed at martinowitz@aol.com Thanks. (mahalo).

Anyone going to be there next month (May, 2012)? &/or Any updated info?

Random notes from 3 days spent in Austin last month (just after the SSW Festival ended): Franklin's is worth the wait! We got there at 10am on a weekday, meeting 2 food board friends who live in Austin and whom we hadn't seen in awhile (& who hadn't ever met each other) so there was much to talk about and the line wait went quickly. By 11am, it was halfway down the parking lot (long). Once in, we ordered brisket, ribs and pulled pork (you order by the pound), with sides of potato salad and cole slaw. The sides are forgettable, the pulled pork was good enough but the brisket/ribs were unforgettable and the best I've ever had (& I've had me some ribs and brisket over the years, including those from the Lockhart area). Wow. I'd be on line once a week if I lived anywhere near there. A very good meal was had at Parkside (on 6th St)... we sat at the bar and all was very nice. They seem to be the place to go for oysters but that wasn't what we had. All was good. Recommended if there for a week or so, but probably not one of the top 3-5 choices in the area. We went to Foreign and Domestic for another very nice dinner, albeit not perfect. We sat at the kitchen counter (the chef was out of town, but it was left in obviously capable hands). Some of the dishes were inspired and not to be missed (heart tartare app!) and others suffered from the "one too many main ingredient" syndrome that I believe many upcoming inventive chefs suffer from. It also became apparent that the chef loves to use egg as a part of most dishes, something we actually like but which can detract from the overall if used so often. In addition, the gnocchi were waaay too big (each could have been cut in 4 pieces), leaving them too doughy and overwhelming the chicken in the dish. But, even given the weaknesses, this is a place that's worth trying and I think it'll get better with time. A visit to Easy Tiger on 6th St. for coffee and to visit a Chowhound friend from NYC now working there as a baker was nice. The baked goods look uniformly excellent. Hanging out, sitting outdoors, for mid afternoon beers and chips at Guerros on S. Congress was great. The beers are $2, the chips are free and they are all friendly. We also tried lunch there another day... nice enough but not a stand out by any stretch. Serviceable Tex-Mex, which makes it fine for us New Yawkers who can't get any here. A non-food note: the Eastside of Austin has come alive and we stayed at a new hotel called the Heywood on Chevez. Stylish, reasonable, only 7 rooms, free parking and with very friendly owners/staff & personal service. Worth a look when compared with the large downtown places and to stay off the main drags. Considering that one of our friends is opening a pizza/wine place down the block "soon" (we walked thru the space being renovated) and that a good Bklyn cocktail bar (Weather Up) is also opening a block away "soon", this location may well be hot in the not too distant future.

I sent you a pm in response. And it's Brooklyn (not Brooklin).

In a funny (well, to me at least) twist, Yogi Berra might actually be correct on this one: "no one goes there anymore.... it's too crowded". With the proliferation of great places for other styles of pizza throughout Manhattan and Bklyn, Dom is not the only destination anymore and the lines have been almost nonexistent and the wait quite short the last several times I've been there. It's still a pain in the butt, but probably worth it especially with his advancing age.

Ok, that's pretty far from "downtown Brooklyn" (Bklyn Heights, Carroll Gardens, Cobble Hill, etc) but, with a car, nothing is inaccessible. It is, in general, a beautiful residential area of Bklyn and there are several restaurants around Cortelyou Road that are very nice and child friendly. My favorite is The Farm on Adderley: http://thefarmonadderley.com/ but there are others. DiFara pizza is also very close by on Ave J and E.15th. No real seating area but one of the best pizzas in NYC and usually, for others, too far away to be accessible. But not for you.... 5 min car ride or the Q to Ave J (toward Coney Island by 4 or 5 stops). In addition to Franny's, mentioned by others, Park Slope (just on the other side of Prospect Park from you... 7th Ave and 5th Ave are the main streets... use map quest) is "stroller city" and almost all the good places are used to having kids around... enough to irritate the rest of us, but good for you. Applewood comes to mind as a real family oriented place with serious farm to table food -- http://www.applewoodny.com/ If you plan on being in Manhattan a lot, you've chosen a pretty inconvenient location. But, for exploring Brooklyn, you're dead center in the borough and you can easily get to all the ethnic neighborhoods (and Coney Island) by car from there. Park Slope is the best area to explore given the density of shops, restaurants, etc but Prospect Heights (where Franny's is) and other neighborhoods are close by as well. Don't worry about hipsters... Williamsburg, Bed-Stuy, Greenpoint, etc are pretty far away (north of Brooklyn Heights). Have fun... hope this was helpful.

Geographically, Brooklyn is huge. Where in Brooklyn are you staying? If it's around Cobble Hill, then you'll find many, many places on Court St and Smith St where kids are a part of the scene. Same in Park Slope. However, if you're in Wmsburg or surrounding areas, it'll be a little more of a challenge. And, of course, there are many other areas with restaurants as well. So... where are you staying and I'll give you some places.

Apparently, this is one of the last Cuban Chinese places still in existance and this fading "genre" is pretty much as you describe. Growing up in NYC, I spent quite a bit of time eating in one of the many like this, my favorite being a place called Mi Chinita (later Sam Chinita) in what is now a trendy corner in Chelsea. There were many of them throughout Manhattan (but not anywhere else to my memory). Although not "fusion" (as you correctly state), they give/gave the opportunity to combine Chinese American dishes (noodle soup with raw egg on top is sorta Asian I guess... I know greasy lo mein is) with Latin American dishes (fried chicken pieces with garlic, rice & black beans) and you come away very happy. I actually wasnt aware that this place was still there, having no real reason to be on the UWS much any more. Thanks for the heads up.... I can foresee a visit very soon.

Actually, Im not exactly sure what I meant (or what I feel) about Co. It certainly had nothing to do with location, as I'm around that area as much, or more, than the other places I do go for pizza. If anything, it's more of a destination type place (yes, definitely go) but less of a place to satisfy my pizza urge (even my non-traditional pizza urge). Born and raised in Bklyn, I have a pretty fixed subjective definition of what I want when I want pizza. My travels have widened what I love about pizza to include quite a few variations, but there's something about Co. that just doesn't ring a "pizza" bell. However, what they are making (however my mind wants to classify it) is excellent and I'd go back easily as a destination for a meal. Obviously, given Lahey's history and talent, the dough is great. A very nice chew, great crust and a nice base for ingredients. Add to that very good ingredients (we had morcilla and apples on one pie) and the result is very tasty. But it just wasn't "pizza" to my taste buds. Does this make sense? I'm not sure it even makes much sense to me, especially since I wound up liking Forcella (as pizza) and they fried the dough first on one of the pies we ordered & put cream and corn on the other. By the way, consider that another b-line. Excellent. If it's any help, here's a short list of pizza I like/love: DiFara, Lucali, Roberta's, Motorino, Keste, Arturo's, Forcella And a list of known places that are pizza to me but which I can take or leave: L&B, Luzzo's, Johns (can't stand it), Grimaldi's, Lombardi's, Artichoke

I also just got there recently, as part of a Manhattan pizza crawl with some other food board NYC regulars, inspired by someone coming in from Ohio who wanted to do this. Although Co. was not my overall favorite place, I liked it better than I thought I would. As a matter of fact, the crust and the ingredients were real stars. However, I remarked to my friends that, if someone said "lets go get some pizza", Co. is not a place that would come to mind. But, if someone said, "lets go to Co.", I would gladly say yes.

I don't think that I've never been to Shanghai Cafe either, although I'm never sure since I tend not to pay attention to names of the places, only the addresses, in C'town. A lot of them change names too frequently and sometimes are known by several different names at the same time. Do you happen to know the address? Most of the time that I eat Chinese food, in all its varieties, I do it in Flushing Queens. The small stalls in the malls there (which make Weinoo's places seem like Per Se, if you get my drift) are usually pretty great. So are some of the mom and pop storefront restaurants. If you ever have time to go exploring....

Glad you liked Trestle. And now that I know you also liked Mei Li Wah Bakery and Vanessa's, I can easily recommend more little places like this for your next visit (as I'm sure Weinoo can as well). Just say when.

Don't know you (or your tastes) so this may not be too helpful but, based on what you've said, here are a couple of places that may not be on the radar but are good (check web sites for more info.) & that we go to: -Trestle -Barbutto Several good, interesting ethnic places are in both Chelsea and Midtown areas as well if you're interested: for example, Lan Sheng is Szechuan in the 30s, Tulsi is a high end innovative Indian. Use Opentable.com for easy reservations but, if they don't have openings when you want, call the restaurant directly as well and don't just assume no availability. Welcome to NYC.

Nope... not that I know of. My wife and I used to take my mother (now gone for 4 years) out to local Brooklyn eyetalian places for lasagna and ziti and all things tomato-y. But she, in her 80s, wanted to branch out and expand her horizons. So, although we made many recommendations, she insisted that Applebee's was the place to go. She cut out the ad with the address of the nearest one and off we went. Ginny and I downed several frozen (poorly made) drinks to get thru the dinner, but my mother happily finished her honey sweetened chicken and exclaimed "they have a really good chef here". Not much for us to say to that other than "waiter, we'll have another round of drinks please". Thankfully, she didnt ask for a kitchen tour. Just sayin'.

Nice review. I havent been there for brunch yet but we liked our dinner. I guess its time to return. And, by the way, I've been to the other 2 places as well ("...And speaking of craziness, if you feel a need for a mental tune-up, Bellevue is a short 5-block walk. In fact, as you walk down 29th to the river, you pass the original Bellevue on your left - it is now a homeless shelter".)

It's going to get more interesting. When Grimaldi opened there in '90, leaving his uncle's place in E.Harlem, the pizzas (and the overall place) were great. The homemade mozz., the upscale ingredients, the knowledge of how to use the coal oven and the solid training of staff all contributed to a very nice place, beloved by a lot of us locals (I live 10 blocks away). When he sold it in '98, it immediately went downhill and it appeared (to me at least0 that the ingredients being used were cheap and the labor unskilled and unsupervised. It's remained a well publicized tourist trap for the past 13 years but, as Yogi once said: "there's no there there". Now that the original oven will be used by the original owner (with his wife making the mozz once again), I anticipate Juliana's will become the destination place and Grimaldi's will get even worse. We'll see.

Ginny & I were there several (well, a little more than several actually) years ago. At that time, you couldnt just go on your own but needed someone local (a b&b or inn) to get you in. Can you now just call and reserve? And, by the way, I agree.... very nice place and excellent wines.

Otto, at 1 Fifth Ave (at 8th St) is right there. Small terrines of great veggies and seafood, as well as cheeses/meats at reasonable prices. With a great wine list. Sit at the bar if its just 2 of you... same menu at the tables in back or at the stand-up tables near the bar. Pizza is okay, nothing more. Pastas are good. Plate of fennel is very nice. Lupa is closer but I dont like the food as much.

The proliferation of small, modestly priced very good places in Brooklyn and parts of Manhattan (E.Village especially) over the past several years has kept me fat and happy. I'm glad you've been to (& enjoyed) Traif, a place even I havent gotten to yet. Roberta's is another one that's worth a visit while in Bklyn these days. And Queens seems to be beginning to get new, good openings in Long Island City and surrounding areas as well.

Probably true but when we were there it looked like they had expanded the upstairs somehow (at least that's what our friends said). Lots of room to spare up there but it was a Tuesday night so...

I know it's a wine bar w/food and not a proper restaurant, but hit Terroir (either location) for both the wine (list is great) and the food.