437015 Fri Aug 31 12:29:41 -0700 2007 19 18 Manhattan 0 2900982 Me and the wife will be in NYC soon. I'm trying to go and grab a nice meal somewhere, although we're not on the Per Se budget... I've sorta come up with some options. They may be different as hell but I'd like opinions or suggestions. Thanks... Here's the list. wd-50 DB Bistro Moderne Aquavit P-Ong The Modern Nobu (Lunch) Bouley Babbo Cru Fri Aug 31 12:29:41 -0700 2007 90508 cookiejesus 1 2900986 Do you want us to choose ONE of these places? Is this for one meal only? Fri Aug 31 12:30:40 -0700 2007 2900982 110996 LeahBaila 2 2901022 Yeah, I'd like help to make up my mind. Most likely it will be one meal only... so yes and yes... Fri Aug 31 12:41:29 -0700 2007 2900986 90508 cookiejesus 1 2901049 You've got sushi, Italian, French and Swedish on your list. Is there one cuisine, in particular, you'd like over the others? Personally, of those, I'd knock out: Nobu (there's even a Nobu in Texas!), wd-50, DB, Aquavit and P.Ong. Fri Aug 31 12:49:08 -0700 2007 2900982 110996 LeahBaila 2 2901092 Additionally, what's your upper limit? Does that include wine? Why did you write "Nobu (Lunch)"? How special do you want this occasion to be? Fri Aug 31 13:01:03 -0700 2007 2901049 10936 kathryn 1 2901107 To be a little negative, I would skip all of the places on your list if that is an option. Do some research on chowhound and newyorkmetro.com to pick a few other places to pick from. Fri Aug 31 13:03:44 -0700 2007 2900982 15142 MIKELOCK34 2 2901168 From your above list I guess I would choose either Bouley or Aquavit. Definitely NOT WD-50!!! Fri Aug 31 13:19:03 -0700 2007 2901107 95060 idia 1 2902218 Bouley or Babbo. The other ones are not of the same caliber (Price-wise they are probably the most expensive as well). You may not be able to get a reservation at Babbo if you are coming really soon. If that's the case you can either walk in at 5:30pm or pick Bouley for French. Fri Aug 31 20:44:40 -0700 2007 2900982 54254 kobetobiko 2 2916114 I'm guessing I'll try babbo as a walk in, however, I've been around some other topics here and two other suggestions have come up: Blue Hill and Five Points. Thu Sep 06 09:19:14 -0700 2007 2902218 90508 cookiejesus 3 2916156 Five Points is good, don't get me wrong, but it is NOT in the same league as Blue Hill Thu Sep 06 09:27:23 -0700 2007 2916114 110996 LeahBaila 1 2916214 id only go to bouley on your list. its a beautiful room and a great night out. go to brandy library for drinks before or after...great scotch selection...very friendly too. for other high end dinners, please go to veritas...incredible meats, incredible wines. also, wallse in the fall is a nice place for upscale austrian. Thu Sep 06 09:40:21 -0700 2007 2900982 14393 sam1 2 2919246 I hadn't heard of Veritas since reading Bourdain's book... thanks for the reminder. Fri Sep 07 07:41:33 -0700 2007 2916214 90508 cookiejesus 3 2920735 Veritas has always been one of our favorites. However, Chef Scott Bryan, who has been in charge of the kitchen since the restaurant opened, is about to leave to become chef at a new restaurant downtown. Until we know who will be replacing him and how the cuisine fares, I've stopped recommending Veritas Fri Sep 07 14:07:46 -0700 2007 2919246 13867 RGR 1 2916246 Your last three are your best bets for a memorable meal. Got to Bouley if you want great high end NY French food, Babbo if you want the star chef experience and some adventurous pasta dishes, and Cru if you really love wine. Five Points is a really nice place with good solid food, but it's more of an everyday restaurant, not a special occasion place. Thu Sep 06 09:47:58 -0700 2007 2900982 16011 oolah 1 2919313 Try otto..batali restaurant, more reasonable...Sit at the bar...Great experience. Fri Sep 07 08:02:38 -0700 2007 2900982 123164 kcijones001 2 2919722 Aquavit is a good choice.. but also another fabulous one is Oceana. Amazing! Fri Sep 07 09:50:30 -0700 2007 2919313 125415 MatawanChick 1 2979431 In case anyone stops by... This is what I ended up doing: Fiamma with newcomer Fabio Trabocchi at the helm... he's still doing his awesome food he used to do in Maestro. Tom Well's peach soup is an excellent dessert. DB Bistro Moderne... wd-50... I enjoyed it a LOT. Roasted foie was very good, as was the wagyu. Alex Stupak's desserts are top notch. Wed Sep 26 14:21:07 -0700 2007 2900982 90508 cookiejesus 2 2979620 Thanks for reporting back, cookiejesus. Fiamma is definitely on my "go to" list, so I'm happy to hear that Chef Fabio's cuisine is as superb as reputed. Since you've not included any comments about dbBistro, does that mean you found it disappointing? Wed Sep 26 15:01:51 -0700 2007 2979431 13867 RGR 3 2979880 I second RGR's thanks, a follow up report is always such a great addition to these posts. Even though I don't particularly care for WD-50, not that you can't get a good meal there, it's just that I feel like a guinea pig. Now, if they want to pay ME for eating there - like some sort of sleep experiment - that would be different. Wed Sep 26 16:17:55 -0700 2007 2979620 57025 fgf 4 2981352 I've never been interested in going to WD-50 because I don't want my meal to be a science experiment. Thu Sep 27 07:19:35 -0700 2007 2979880 13867 RGR