restaurant week - where are you going?

[kennycandy]

upcoming restaurant week - where are you going?

[kennycandy]

report on plaza cafe - they were nice enough to give us an earlier reservation than when they actually opened to help us get to a later appointment on time -dining room is very pretty and comfortable, makes you feel relaxed - service excellent - our group had the seafood soup and shrimp wrapped in proscuuto as appetizers. entrees we had were the horseradish crusted cod and one person had a steak dish. desserts included creme brulee- delicious and a very generous portion and apple cobbler with dulce ice cream on top. our group raved about everything we had! going back next week for a special occassion dinner!

plaza cafe
61 hil st
southampton, ny
631-283-9323

report on blackwell restaurant - our final restaurant week stop - fireplace going in the dining room - waitress very friendly and upbeat - appetizers included calamari (not hot enough) and a delicious salad with goat cheese and dried cherries. entrees included linguini, duck and steak. desserts included fall fruit cobbler and chocolate macadamia gelato. definitely a top notch meal!

blackwell restaurant
141 fairway dr
wading river, ny
631-929-1800

would rate our four restaurant week dinners-
#1 (best) plaza cafe
#2 starr boggs
#3 blackwell restaurant
#4 stonewall restaurant

all four did an excellent job and we'll be back!

[GCGuy]

Heads up...

Wife wanted to go to Mim's in Rolsyn last night. Pretty good...STILL have RW menu until end of month. Must have been 6 app, 12 entree, and 4 dessert choices.

Pecan chicken was truly excellent, lobster bisque quite good, chocolate cake dense and fine.

Tilapia was not very good, though.

[synergy]

I am a big fan of Mim's and have been going to the one in Syosset for years. While I love their menu, I don't order the tilapia...too fishy tasting every time I've tried it which to me says "frozen".

[GCGuy]

Yes...exactly...but, I tell you, some of the best chicken I've had. I also loved their spin on the rice ball...made with risotto, very good. Love that they have the RW menu all month...nice job. It doesn't seem like they need the business, do they?

[synergy]

They are always packed so the fact that they extended the RW menu says a lot about them. I like their paper thin crust pizzas. Tried their new one, shrimp scampi. Had it twice. LOVED it the 1st time. The 2nd time it was way too oily. I like how Richie is always trying new menu items and will always make what you want, even if it isn't on the menu.

[jonathankavner]

Went to Coach Tavern and Grill in Oyster Bay. Had the lobster ravioli (yes I know it came in frozen) which were very good; sauce was very good.

Rice pudding for desert needed about a tablespoon of sugar/serving.

[kennycandy]

our group of five went to starr boggs thursday night for restaurant week- we've been here numerous times before - dining rooms are attractive and service is always professional - appetizers we had were the portugese chowder and baked clams - main's were the striped bass - 2 people very happy - liver - 2 people absolutely raved about this dish and 1 medditerranean fish soup - person felt the portion could have been bigger. desserts were chocolate chip creme brulee, apple crisp and pecan pie. this restaurant has an excellent reputation and lived up to it. offered an option to upgrade to anything on the menu for $8.05 more. also, is offering the restaurant week promo thru sunday nov 18.

starr boggs
6 parlao drive
westhampton beach
631- 288-3500

[kevinh]

Went to Redfish in Painview last night....pretty good. Looking foward to trying Taste in Garden City.

And, foodie08...Tupelo is not on the list of restaurants participating. Too bad, that is our favorite.

[abu applesauce]

I have reservation for Thyme in roslyn friday night
How's Bistro M?

[kennycandy]

went to Stonewalls with 4 others and was impressed. appetizers- vol au vent - seafood puff pastry got rave reviews. entrees - trout was excellent - roast tenderloin, 1 person liked, 1 felt it was tough - long island duck excellent. dessert - everyone had napoleons which were very good. dining room is very attractive and comfortable - service professional. dining room manager personally checked on our table to make sure everything was going well. overall felt this restaurant really wanted to put out it's best products and impress the restaurant week customers so that they would return. bill included an offer for 15% off next visit.

Stonewalls
967 reeves ave
riverhead, ny
631-506-0777

[GCGuy]

Went to Thyme on sat. Very nice...much of the menu was on the RW deal...I mean, most entrees were $22! Had an excellent salad special...best orange/apple cider dressing. Had a great potato leek soup, very good pork chop w. a tremendous fruit tart (could have been dessert), and a vanilla poached pear with really nice cinnamon ice cream. Very nice, good service, really like Thyme.

[abu applesauce]

I had a similar experience on Friday night. I had lentil soup, pork chop with giant tart and pear/ice cream dessert--all were great, and a good malbec too. My wife had brie pastry, hangar steak and I don't recall the dessert. She was happy and the little piece of steak I sampled was tasty. Service was good too. Much like GCGuy, I really like the place.

[GCGuy]

apple tart or banana bread pudding??

[abu applesauce]

Banana bread pudding--she liked it-I didn't try it.

[foodieforthought]

Although I always feel like Restaurant Week is usually filled with struggling sub-par restauarants, there are a few that I might try to hit up this week, in this order:

Honu (Huntington) ( I love this place)
Four Food Studio (Melville)
Jonathan's Ristorante (Huntington)
The Gatsby (Islip) -- this place is a little cheesy, but romantic nonetheless

[gnocchi]

Looking at the restaurants that have been mentioned in this thread, I wouldn't classify any of them as sub-par or struggling. Most have been around for years and are highly regarded.

In my opinion the problem you can run into with RW are restaurants that either cheapen-down the level of the offerings to way below their normal menu, or offer a few low-price items and then try to kill you with supplements. A place that does RW right earns my respect.

There are also always a few participants where you could eat there most anytime for $21.95 so why bother with Restaurant Week.

[gnocchi]

1. Jamesport Manor Inn
2. Mirabelle
3. Bayview Inn & Restaurant

[gnocchi]

Did RW at above 3 in reverse of order listed. I would say that quality of RW experience increased in order visited as well, ie. Jamesport Manor Inn being the best, then Mirabelle followed by Bayview Inn.
Party of three at Bayview, 2 had duck breast w risotto, one short rib w polenta.
All food was tasty but kind of just plopped on plate running together with some veggies.
Short ribs were grizzly. Wines $9+/glass, bottles starting over $30, no vintages listed.

Mirabelle 2 diners, 1 seared cod, 1 veal stew blanquette. Cod was good, veal tasty but tough/grizzly. Apps onion soup and lyonnaise salad were fine as were ginger tart and poached pear deserts. Portions here were most miniscule of three restaurants, service rushed and some confusion, place was jammed.
Apparently they are continuing RW thru NOV 15. http://www.restaurantmirabelle.com/re...

Jamesport Manor, best experience of the three. Careful, efficient service but not rushed.
Good wine list with some decent drinkable under $30. 4 diners, 3 had hangar steak, 1 salmon, all very good, nice portions. Hangars were all ordered medium rare but one plate was significantly tougher than the other 2, just meat variation I guess. I think there were 5 entrée offerings and several deserts. Many of offered apps also appeared on regular menu in $8ish range. All in all a better experience since they didn’t cheapen down the menu offerings significantly from reg menu.

[kennycandy]

yes, long island restaurant week

[MisterBill2]

Restaurant week WHERE? Hudson Valley Restaurant Week is not being held until next March (as opposed to November last year). Makes little sense to me given that they want to emphasize fresh ingredients, and there will not be any fresh local produce in March (unless you have a greenhouse like Blue Hills.

[jonathankavner]

Long Island Restaurant Week
November 4-11
longislandrestaurantweek.com

[anned]

Hi Bill, I'm helping to organize HV Restaurant Week again, and can guarantee that there most certainly IS plenty of fresh produce in March, and all restaurants will be provided a list of local purveyors who work with restaurants and what they carry. there are many farms now with greenhouses and high tunnels, and several restaurants are doing their own preserving already. There's a lot of effort going into the use of local produce, meats, cheese, etc, and it's really our main focus. I don't think you'll be disappointed. Lots of restaurants are already signed up! www.hudsonvalleyrestaurantweek.com cheers