May 2010
100 7th Ave S
New York, NY 10014
(212) 647-0830
Mercadito Grove used to be ahead of the curve back when it opened in 2005. At the time, it was one of the only places you could go in the West Village for authentic(ish) Mexican street food, the only place that had Baja style fish tacos and passable ceviche. Happily, the Mexican culinary scene in NYC has developed a great deal since then. By virtue of the fact that Mercadito Grove has remained more or less the same in five years, it's settled in as a solid neighborhood choice, but is no longer anything to get very excited about.
Drinks are the restaurant's comparative advantage. Cocktails, here, are strong, well mixed and interesting. Micheladas are ars-whuppingly potent -- in a good way. And there is a nice, long mezcal and tequila list for any aficionado, including blancos, reposados, anejos and extra anejos.
Food is a bit less wonderful. I still enjoy the fish tacos and many of the botanas, but other basics like guacamole and ceviche are just so-so. I have to confess to being a bit of a guacamole purist and the mango- and pineapple-inflected versions, here, are too sweet for my tastes. The mango guacamole does have a nice smokey flavor from the addition of chipotle. Even the "traditional" guacamole is a bit imbalanced. There is a great deal of onion, but only the tiniest suggestion of serrano, lime and cilantro.
Ceviches are also imbalanced and too sweet, with watermelon, mango and other fruit completely overwhelming sour and spicy elements. On the (maybe) plus side, fish and seafood seem to be added at the last minute, which prevents them from becoming mushy, though that also prevents them from picking up on the flavors of the marinade).
For vegetarians, there are a good number of inspired, well made and flavorful options, including corn masa quesadillas, tostadas de hongos, queso fundido, picadas with zucchini, rajas tacos and calabacitas tacos.
If you come, definitely come on a nice day, when you can sit outside on the sidewalk. Tables are sardine-tin tight inside and out, but inside, the music is so loud, you won't be able to hear your tablemates unless you shout. It's ear-shattering and in that respect an authentic manifestation of the casual cevicheria and taqueria genre of restaurants. Frankly, it's an authentic touch I could do without.
Service is pleasant and at times, quite thoughtful. On a recent visit, a busboy brought me a glass of water without me asking, while I waited for a friend. No one hurried us out during our long, leisurely meal, despite the fact that the restaurant was packed. Mercadito Grove doesn't serve the best Mexican food I've ever had in NYC, but when the calculation expands to include good drinks, nice staff, outdoor seating and proximity to home, I know I'll continue to come, just as I have for the past five years.
Wednesday, May 5, 2010
Takashi (New York, NY)
May 2010
456 Hudson St
Manhattan, NY 10014
(212) 414-2929
Where's the beef? If you ever find yourself pondering this profound philosophical question, the chances are good that you haven't yet been to Takashi, a one-month-old, self-designated "all beef" restaurant.
This label isn't entirely accurate, since Takashi does offer a number of vegetable sides, and delicious ones at that. We started with the seasonal namul, which included fiddlehead ferns, sugar snap peas, okra, beets, tomato, zucchini and a green that I think was edible chrysanthemum. The okra was particularly noteworthy, slightly spicy and unabashedly "slimy" (or "slippery" depending on whom you ask). It's a texture that many Asians prize, i.e. in the form of natto or grated mountain yam. The preparation, here, is delicious.
Beef is the Big Man on Campus, though, and it is unimpeachably fresh. You can eat almost any part of the cow from the tip of the tongue to the first or fourth stomach to the Achilles tendon -- and you can have it as sashimi, grilled, in hot pot, or as part of a noodle soup. Call ahead for sashimi preparations as some cuts are only served on certain days of the week. Beef liver is only available on Wednesdays, for instance.
We ordered for grilling:
- Hatsu (heart)
- Shibire (sweetbreads)
- Nakaochi Kalbi (the cut of meat between ribs)
- tongue sampler with three different cuts of tongue
The meats were all very lightly marinated in your choice of either (1) sesame oil, salt and garlic; or (2) in the miso-based house sauce. The light marination was a fitting, respectful treatment for such fresh, high quality meat, as it kept the focus on the meat's natural flavors. Sweetbreads marinated in the so-called "Takashi's sauce" are among the best I've ever had.
Purists should take note that the grills are electric, not charcoal-fired. And traditionalists should note that you will need to order your rice and vegetable plates, with lettuce for wrapping around the meat, separately. (Our meal did come with three complimentary banchan: a Japanese-style, mild gimuchi; soybean sprouts with sesame oil; and raw cabbage salad with miso-ginger dressing.) To be fair, both the rice and vegetable plates were unusually high quality. The vegetable plate included sesame leaves, red romaine, boiled cabbage, fantastically sweet baby carrots just out of the ground, chives, red onion slivers, tomato, cucumber, daikon and watercress. No garlic to my surprise.
The only dessert currently on the menu is housemade Madagascar vanilla soft serve ice cream. We ordered the one with all the toppings: rice-flour dumplings, black sesame and soybean flour, sweet red adzuki beans and green tea syrup. In part because I wasn't really in the mood for dessert and don't love soft serve no matter how well made it is, the sundae didn't really move me. But I appreciated the unusual toppings.
The sake and beer lists are relatively short, but include a few interesting options like a light, Kenyan beer. Prices are higher than you'll pay for barbecue in Koreatown and portions are smaller -- but the quality of the meat is so high that it's worth the occasional splurge, IMO. Service is friendly, efficient and knowledgeable. I look forward to coming back and seeing this place grow!
456 Hudson St
Manhattan, NY 10014
(212) 414-2929
Where's the beef? If you ever find yourself pondering this profound philosophical question, the chances are good that you haven't yet been to Takashi, a one-month-old, self-designated "all beef" restaurant.
This label isn't entirely accurate, since Takashi does offer a number of vegetable sides, and delicious ones at that. We started with the seasonal namul, which included fiddlehead ferns, sugar snap peas, okra, beets, tomato, zucchini and a green that I think was edible chrysanthemum. The okra was particularly noteworthy, slightly spicy and unabashedly "slimy" (or "slippery" depending on whom you ask). It's a texture that many Asians prize, i.e. in the form of natto or grated mountain yam. The preparation, here, is delicious.
Beef is the Big Man on Campus, though, and it is unimpeachably fresh. You can eat almost any part of the cow from the tip of the tongue to the first or fourth stomach to the Achilles tendon -- and you can have it as sashimi, grilled, in hot pot, or as part of a noodle soup. Call ahead for sashimi preparations as some cuts are only served on certain days of the week. Beef liver is only available on Wednesdays, for instance.
We ordered for grilling:
- Hatsu (heart)
- Shibire (sweetbreads)
- Nakaochi Kalbi (the cut of meat between ribs)
- tongue sampler with three different cuts of tongue
The meats were all very lightly marinated in your choice of either (1) sesame oil, salt and garlic; or (2) in the miso-based house sauce. The light marination was a fitting, respectful treatment for such fresh, high quality meat, as it kept the focus on the meat's natural flavors. Sweetbreads marinated in the so-called "Takashi's sauce" are among the best I've ever had.
Purists should take note that the grills are electric, not charcoal-fired. And traditionalists should note that you will need to order your rice and vegetable plates, with lettuce for wrapping around the meat, separately. (Our meal did come with three complimentary banchan: a Japanese-style, mild gimuchi; soybean sprouts with sesame oil; and raw cabbage salad with miso-ginger dressing.) To be fair, both the rice and vegetable plates were unusually high quality. The vegetable plate included sesame leaves, red romaine, boiled cabbage, fantastically sweet baby carrots just out of the ground, chives, red onion slivers, tomato, cucumber, daikon and watercress. No garlic to my surprise.
The only dessert currently on the menu is housemade Madagascar vanilla soft serve ice cream. We ordered the one with all the toppings: rice-flour dumplings, black sesame and soybean flour, sweet red adzuki beans and green tea syrup. In part because I wasn't really in the mood for dessert and don't love soft serve no matter how well made it is, the sundae didn't really move me. But I appreciated the unusual toppings.
The sake and beer lists are relatively short, but include a few interesting options like a light, Kenyan beer. Prices are higher than you'll pay for barbecue in Koreatown and portions are smaller -- but the quality of the meat is so high that it's worth the occasional splurge, IMO. Service is friendly, efficient and knowledgeable. I look forward to coming back and seeing this place grow!
Kee's Chocolates (New York, NY)
May 2010
80 Thompson St
New York, NY 10012
(212) 334-3284
I swore to myself I wouldn't be so sappy, but truth be told, I cried a lot at my wedding. (I guess I shouldn't be surprised, because I'm also the kind of person who cries at Disney and dumb Richard Gere movies.) One of the many happy reasons I cried was because our wedding favors, chocolates from Kee's -- in flavors like elderflower, blood orange, black sesame, champagne, green tea and honey saffron -- were So. Frakking. Good. They brought tears to my eyes.
Kee was probably the easiest wedding vendor to work with. She's an honest, reliable, bullsh*t free human being, despite being a woman with the kind of anal attention to detail it must take to make such high quality, handmade chocolates, and to run a successful business.
She delivered about 350 truffles, attractively wrapped in pairs, straight to our wedding venue the day before the wedding, without a hitch. The chocolates were still very fresh the next day and truly delicious. She didn't even require a deposit for the order and actually declined to accept payment until just prior to delivery. This is a remarkably trusting system given that the chocolates had already been made by then and if some unscrupulous (or perhaps just unfortunate) customer decided to cancel the order at the last minute, Kee would have to take the hit for the unsold chocolates.
Communication was excellent. She called several days before the wedding to confirm the order (what a relief to not have to chase a vendor down!) and then made all the chocolates fresh the day before the wedding.
As for the chocolates, themselves, each truffle was a small explosion of intense deliciousness. Flavors were assertive, but not overwhelming. Chocolates were silky smooth, had great mouthfeel and meltability. These were some beautifully made, elegant confections and IMO some of the best chocolates in this city.
Great product and great vendor!
80 Thompson St
New York, NY 10012
(212) 334-3284
I swore to myself I wouldn't be so sappy, but truth be told, I cried a lot at my wedding. (I guess I shouldn't be surprised, because I'm also the kind of person who cries at Disney and dumb Richard Gere movies.) One of the many happy reasons I cried was because our wedding favors, chocolates from Kee's -- in flavors like elderflower, blood orange, black sesame, champagne, green tea and honey saffron -- were So. Frakking. Good. They brought tears to my eyes.
Kee was probably the easiest wedding vendor to work with. She's an honest, reliable, bullsh*t free human being, despite being a woman with the kind of anal attention to detail it must take to make such high quality, handmade chocolates, and to run a successful business.
She delivered about 350 truffles, attractively wrapped in pairs, straight to our wedding venue the day before the wedding, without a hitch. The chocolates were still very fresh the next day and truly delicious. She didn't even require a deposit for the order and actually declined to accept payment until just prior to delivery. This is a remarkably trusting system given that the chocolates had already been made by then and if some unscrupulous (or perhaps just unfortunate) customer decided to cancel the order at the last minute, Kee would have to take the hit for the unsold chocolates.
Communication was excellent. She called several days before the wedding to confirm the order (what a relief to not have to chase a vendor down!) and then made all the chocolates fresh the day before the wedding.
As for the chocolates, themselves, each truffle was a small explosion of intense deliciousness. Flavors were assertive, but not overwhelming. Chocolates were silky smooth, had great mouthfeel and meltability. These were some beautifully made, elegant confections and IMO some of the best chocolates in this city.
Great product and great vendor!
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