Looking for Cool Amazing Place to eat. $$ No Object
Ok, No bragging, but my wife and I want to celebrate a huge business deal we just made What are the coolest, hippest places to eat. We are not looking for fancy like Daniel or Per Se. Something a little more livelier.
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Per Se
10 Columbus Circle, New York, NY 10019
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Morimoto is trendy yet has a finer feel to it. The sushi is really great. I've heard mixed reviews of SD26. Maybe the spotted pig? Spice market would actually probably be a great fit.
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Morimoto
88 10th Avenue, New York, NY 10011SD26
19 East 26th Street, New York, NY 10010›2 Replies -
Minetta Tavern seems to have the lively and hip vibe to it. I have not yet been.
Cool and hip are always very "in the eye of the beholder" type designations that can vary greatly over things like age. Cool and hip for 20 yr olds is not the same as 40 yr olds. etc....
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Minetta Tavern
113 MacDougal St, New York, NY 10012›3 Replies-
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re: metfan630
My understanding is that non-VIPs only ever get offered the less desirable time slots.
http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/678717
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Spiritchaser
Apr 6, 2010 11:52 AM
I am basing this only on something I read and second hand info from a friend but isn't the Breslin suppose to be very "in". It didn't seem like my kinda place so I have never dug deeper in to it but you may want to look at it.
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The Breslin
20 W 29th St, New York, NY 10001›1 Reply -
Can you give a few more specifics? When do you wish to dine (will impact availability of reservation)? Where do you usually like to dine for a celebratory meal? How much are you willing to spend, including tax, tip, and drinks/wine? Any specific cuisines you like or want to avoid?
How about a "hidden" or "underground" spot?
Monday Room -- wine bar with small plates inside of Public
Kyo Ya -- kaiseki style Japanese, in the basement, also a small sign by the gate, no obvious signage
Bohemian -- Japanese restaurant inside a butcher shop-----
Kyo Ya
94 E 7th St, New York, NY 10009The Monday Room
210 Elizabeth Street, New York, NY 10012›4 Replies-
re: kathryn
Kathryn, did you try Bohemian and how was it? I've been looking for a CH review of the place but haven't had any luck other than your rec (http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/672614 - apologies for reiterating the question - just terribly curious).
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re: kathryn
i've been to bohemian and am in fact going again this week. it's definitely cool and tasty and fairly serene - they had great jazz music playing the night i was there, coltrane and monk. depends what OP likes in a celebration factor but as for the restaurant.....some dishes were absolutely great and some tho beautifully presented, fresh and quite good, were missing something to brighten them up a bit, bring them to that apex that makes you crave returning asap just to have that again. that being said - the roasted branzino with beautiful, tiny vegetables was fabulous. served in a big cast iron pan with sugar snaps over a little bed of anchovies, asparagus, morels and after all that sake, not sure what else. the oysters were a mix of west and east coast and briny, sparkling, perfect. the vege fondue which one could assume to be less than interesting was delightful. gorgeous purple carrots, lotus root, etc etc all presented like a piece of edible art with an anchovy dipping sauce - each flavor popped. a friend said his soba noodles were just so so but the grilled fois gras served on top was stellar (i don't eat that)......the rice with uni and salmon roe was very comforting but really could have used some spice - some yuzu really.
it's all mid century danish modern - one piece of art on one wall, a tiny zen garden at the end of the room, about six tables i think and a few seats along a small bar. so simple, so spare, very comfortable. the service was impeccable, the lavatory is a trip, it's all incredibly pleasant and fun. add to this an insane and interesting sake list. they offer a tasting menu and probably if you get that plus maybe an addtl appetizer or two it might be less pricey than a la carte. for three people with a la carte choices and two bottles of sake it came to 130$ pp with tip.
it's just so nice to be there, tucked away behind that butcher shop, feels like you're on a fun little adventure out of nyc with people who are incredibly nice and feed you very well.
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re: kathryn
i visited and my impression is: pleasant atmosphere (seated in armchairs under a skylight, as if in a friend's apartment), good service (very patient with all our requests and questions), but fairly simple hearty food (i probably expected more kaiseki-like detail) at very moderate prices for the portions. to illustrate, the one dish i would return for was a whole, deep-fried sweet potato: wonderfully crisp caramelised skin, buttery and slightly salty, sweet and rooty flesh. but the rest was not as interesting, so it's a bit disappointing after the easter egg hunt for the no.
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daffyduck
Apr 6, 2010 01:14 AM
if its you and your wife i like degustation. go for the 10 course tasting menu
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re: daffyduck
as fantastic as degustation is, i wouldn't categorize it as cool hip or lively.
we're going to SD26 at the end of the month so i can't comment on the food yet but i hear it's definitely cool, hip & lively.
congrats on the business deal!-----
SD26
19 East 26th Street, New York, NY 10010-
re: todc1996
SD26 is definitely striving to be cool and trendy. One of the ways they think they can achieve that is by playing thumpity, thump, thump music at an extremely high volume. Is that considered "cool"? For me, it's a total turn-off. Too bad! Because the food we had was very good.
SD26 Photos: http://www.flickr.com/photos/11863391...
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re: RGR
Hey RGR,
I don't doubt that you experienced loud music, but how long is it since you were there? I suspect this may have been true earlier on, but that they have since toned it down. I went for the first time two months ago and have been back twice since, and the music has not been played at high volume at all. In fact they might as well just shut it off as it neither enhanced nor intruded on the ambiance.
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re: rrems
Hey rrems,
Actually, we went the Saturday of the week they opened in September. We almost never go to brand new restaurants, preferring to let the kinks be worked out before trying them. However, SD26 is just a few blocks from us, we had stopped in earlier in the day to check out the interior (which we liked) and look at the menu. Everyone on the staff was extremely pleasant and welcoming (unlike the rather chilly reception we encountered the one time we had dinner at San Domenico), so we decided to take a chance. We arrived at around 10 p/m/, and the dining room was pretty full. I was willing to cut them some slack for the minor service glitches. However, even though we didn't have to shout to converse, that music got on my nerves!
Given that your experiences have been so recent, it's good to know that they've toned the music down. That was the only thing keeping me from returning since the food was really good. It's now back on my "return to" list.
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re: todc1996
SD26 is, as RGR puts it, STRIVING to be cool and trendy. From my observation, it is not succeeding. It is busy and lively, but the clientele is mostly groups of business diners in corporate attire, and the age range skews to upper-middle. I get the feeling that many of them may have been customers of the old San Domenico. I've seen only a few young people (including a jackass in a backward baseball cap). The food is wonderful and I highly recommend it for that. Degustation may not be the epitome of cool either, but it does attract a young, casual (but not sloppy) clientele, and the open kitchen and counter seating give it a lively ambiance.
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