23
Aug

Hamptons Lobster

by ccwynne812   {5:02 pm}

Summertime to me is basically synonymous with lobster. It just tastes so much better in the summer when you indulge in a heaping pile of succulent crustacean on a buttery bun after a long day at the beach. This past weekend I decided to try out a few different interpretations of the traditional lobster roll in the Hamptons (a special thank you to my hosts for this lovely lobster spree!)

Friday Night: Bostwick’s – East Hampton

Bostwick’s Chowder House isn’t technically a “restaurant”. It is a little take-out shop that conveniently has seating and a full bar (wink wink). Nevertheless, they do what they do extremely well. Seafood. What could be better than being greeted after a long train ride than a buttered potato bun heaping with large chunks of lobster, a little celery and just a touch of mayo? I typically go for hot lobster rolls but this is at the top of my “lobster salad” category.

Bostwick's Lobster Roll

Saturday Night: South Edison – Montauk

South Edison is a new restaurant on the scene in Montauk that has a very 1950’s laid back feel to it. Everything in the restaurant is beach/summertime themed and the colors are meant to appear slightly sun-bleached. Compared to the many beach shacks that dot Montauk this is more upscale casual. To continue my lobster theme for the weekend I ordered the lobster buns which featured an entire lobster squeezed into three little buttery brioche buns – one with the claws and the others with tail. As simple as that with a little drawn butter these guys pack some big lobster flavor.

South Edison Lobster Buns

Sunday Night: Back to Bostwick’s – East Hampton

Lobster tacos have recently been added to the menu at Bostwick’s and my host said they are an absolute must try. I reluctantly agreed to share an order of the tacos with her because, really, who eats just one taco? I will admit she was right and not only were they delicious but with all the other seafood we ordered, one was just enough for me. This is a larger soft taco filled with chunks of lobster tail, a salsa of sweet corn, cilantro, and tomato with some shredded lettuce drizzled with a creamy tangy sauce and a spritz of fresh lime juice.

Bostwick's Lobster Tacos

I am not going to say that any of the above was clearly better than another because they really satisfied three completely different types of lobster cravings and all were delicious!!

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22
Jul

Maison Premiere – BK

by ccwynne812   {8:07 am}

MAISON PREMIERE – WILLIAMSBURG

298 Bedford Ave  Brooklyn, NY 11211

Rating: 8.8

Maison Premiere is my latest obsession. Whenever someone asks me for a recommendation these days, this is the first name I blurt out.

First of all, the concept and the space itself are amazing. As the website notes it is “reflective of the staple establishments of New York, Paris and New Orleans.” Upon stepping inside you are transported to a different and more romantic, old world era of absinthe and artists and long philosophical discussions in cafes in Paris. Even the servers and bartenders fit the image. I found myself wondering where they could have possibly found a whole staff that all look like they are straight out of Boardwalk Empire or off the Titanic.

Raw Bar

The space is fashioned to look like a hotel lobby where people would sit and drink fancy cocktails while waiting on someone or simply to pass the time. The bar even has an absinthe fountain that was modeled after one found at the Olde Absinthe House in New Orleans. In the back there is a gorgeous walled garden with tables for dining during the warmer months.

Photo courtesy of www.maisonpremiere.com

Their cocktail menu includes both absinthe and julep cocktails served expertly over crushed ice in a silver chalice. Of course the raw bar is excellent because it is the main attraction of the restaurant. At any given time they have dozens of oyster varieties as well as some more exotic things like whole sea urchins and sometimes geoduck.

Absinthe Cocktail

I was incredibly impressed by the quality of the food. I had expected things to be hearty and rustic because the main focus is the raw bar but everything was served very elegantly and the preparation of the dishes was very refined.

We started with a basket of freshly baked pastries that came with homemade jams and butter.

Pastries & Apple Clafoutis

Our seafood platter came out next with a wide assortment of shell shapes and sizes. At the center were our gorgeous sea urchins.

Seafood Platter

As my main I had the soft scrambled eggs which were very possibly the best I have ever had. They were so carefull scrambled that they were almost like a rich creamy egg soup. On the side was a cauliflower salad that was also incredible – beautifully sliced layers of cauliflower with a tangy dressing.

Soft Scrambled Eggs

I could not help but order the apple clafoutis with cider caramel. It arrived to the table steaming hot in a little metal dish. The batter formed sort of a souffle around the tender sweet apples. Quite a decadent dish.

I also snuck a bite of my friend’s steak salad which was also fantastic. The steak was sliced medium rare and arranged in a fan around a bed of fresh greens.

Steak Salad

I cannot wait to return and see what dinner has to offer.

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21
Jul

Vinegar Hill House – BK

by ccwynne812   {8:00 am}
VINEGAR HILL HOUSE – DUMBO

72 Hudson Ave., Brooklyn, NY 11201

Rating: 7.6

Photo courtes of www.kinfolk.com

Spring and summer are the prefect seasons for notoriously unadventurous Manhattanites to visit the other boroughs. Those of us who are afraid to leave the island feel much safer during the warmer months because we don’t run the risk of freezing to death if we get lost and can’t find a cab or the subway. Over the past few months I have begun to overcome my fears of venturing too far away from my usual stomping grounds and realize just how manageable Brooklyn can be.

A close friend of mine who is also making an effort to spend more time in BK made a reservation at Vinegar Hill House and invited me to come along with a few other friends. Great idea. So I donned my very best chambray shirt and jeans look and made my way across the river.

On a quiet little street in Vinegar Hill is this tiny super low key restaurant. There is no real rhyme or reason to the décor except that nothing really matches. It is almost as if someone went to their grandmothers house and collected a bunch of potted plants stuff from her attic and then arranged it in an alley with some tables and chairs scattered in between. The chandelier is reminiscent of a tumbleweed

The story behind the restaurant is quite romantic. The couple that opened the restaurant, Jean Adamson and Sam Buffa, first met when they worked together at Freeman’s on the Lower East Side and then left to open this even more low key and quirky space.

The menu is very small and changes all the time. We decided to order a couple of things to share. For the table we had fried oysters. These were the largest oysters I have ever seen – one was actually the size of my hand. The meatiness of the mollusk nicely balanced out the crispy outer crust.

Fried Oysters

We also had the eggs benedict with smoked trout. I personally like smoked fish so thought this was an interesting interpretation of your taditional eggs benedict but might not be for everyone.

Eggs Benedict

One of my friends ordered the special french dip which was served on crusty fresh bread.

French Dip

For the dessert portion of the entrée (because you can do that at brunch) we ordered the pear pancake which was cooked in a cast iron skillet in their wood burning oven. It was not so much a pancake as a pillowey fritatta-like dutch baby with big slices of ripe pear floating in a pool of warm maple syrup. The only way to know is to try it yourself.

Pear Pancake

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19
Jul

Maysville – NYC

by ccwynne812   {1:53 pm}

MAYSVILLE – NYC

17 West 26th Street (Broadway), New York, NY 10010

 Rating: 7.8 

Glowing Bourbon Wall Photo courtesy of www.nymag.com

Maysville is an American tavern named after a Kentucky port town which is said to be the birthplace of bourbon. The entire restaurant is an ode to the spirit. The gleaming golden wall of bourbons and whiskeys above the bar boasts over 150 American varieties with dozens more from all over the world in addition to casting a warm glow over the main dining room.

Kyle Knall and Sean Josephs have done a great job in putting together a themed restaurant that does not feel at all cheesy. The space feels very clean with natural colored walls and a very neutral palate. The delicate pencil sketches of horses that cover the rest of the walls are very chic and understated. The menu is a much more refined version of traditional southern cooking. Having recently been a chef at Gramercy Taven Knall has infused the menu with sophisticated accents.

On a Wednesday night the place was packed and the clientele was mostly businessmen and couples. Our server was very friendly and helpful in selecting the very best of the dishes on the menu. She made no attempt to say that “everything is amazing” (one of my pet peeves) which was greatly appreciated.

Corn Bread Muffins

Upon being sserved our expertly crafted Old Fashioneds, the waitress immediately told us that we had no choice in the matter and we were going to be served the crispy grits. I had no objection. She was right – these were sort of a southern version of Japanese crispy rice. Little dice-like cubes of fried grits were piping hot steamy and creamy on the inside. They were seasoned with a bourbon aioli and garnished with salty thick cut ham. Delicious.

Crispy Grits

We also had the hay roasted oysters which arrived at the table enveloped in a cloud of smoke produced by a neatly arranged pile of still-smoldering hay. This beautiful presentation was not all just show but the oysters were briney and fresh from the salsify and pickled shallots with a hint of smokey countryside.

Hay Smoked Oysters

The spring salad was a neat little mound of bright green vegetables, many of which were very unusual. Some of the lettuces looked like little lily pads and underneath hid crisp chopped peas and beans atop a generous dallop of house made ricotta.

Spring Salad

The crab toast was also light and fresh and full of flavor. The radishes gave it a nice crunch without overpowering the delicate flavor of the crab.

Crab Toast

For our entrée course we split two dishes which was more than enough after all those apps. We shared the chicken which was pressed to seal in all the juices and ensure the skin was extra crispy. It was artfully arranged on the plate with a medley of grilled ramps, grains and few other greens.

Juicy Chicken

Our second dish was the braised rabbit dish served over grits with spring vegetables. The rabbit was braised to fork tenderness and the pulled apart pieces were delicately arranged over the grits between veggies and herbs. The broth that was poured on top was rich despite being clear but the grits were so creamy that they remained intact and did not become soupy.

Braised Rabbit

Maysville is a great place for a truly American meal or just a damn good cocktail.

 

 

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06
May

Pegu Club – NYC

by ccwynne812   {11:03 pm}

PEGU CLUB – SOHO

77 W. Houston St  New York, NY 10012

Rating: 6.2

Photo Credit: www.concierge.com

The Pegu Club is a large cocktail lounge in Soho that is named after a British Colonial Officer’s club near the Gulf of Martaban, Burma. One Pegu master mixologist Harry Craddock became famous for memorializing the signature Pegu cocktail in the Savoy Cocktail book in 1930 – this gin-based beverage can be found today on the menu at Pegu.

The Original Pegu Club

It is much more spacious than many other specialty cocktail bars in the city such at Little Branch, Raines Law Room or PDT which makes it easier to seat larger groups.

All of the cocktails are meticulously created and served in pretty glasses with various decorative garnishes.

Gin & Champagne Cocktail

The bar menu is also good with creative little bites. I had BBQ duck sliders which were served on buttery brioche mini buns. These were good but probably too much sauce because the duck could hav easily been mistaken for beef or any other type of meat for that matter. I also had the deviled eggs with smoked trout. These were also fine but not the best I have every had. Still some of the better bar snacks you are are likely to find but the focus is definitely the cocktails.

Duck Sliders & Deviled Eggs

 

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04
May

Chez Sardine – NYC

by ccwynne812   {1:51 am}

CHEZ SARDINE – NYC

183 West 10th Street, New York, NY 10014

Rating: 8.4

Photo Credit: www.nellyrodilab.com

It is Gabe Stulman month for me. Promptly after eating at Montmartre I asked my friend to make a reservation at Chez Sardine which had been on my radar since it opened. The tiny little West Village spot has been nearly impossible to get into since day 1 and rightly so. Several of the “dishes” we had were so delicious that a silence fell over the table (unagi and pork hand roll). I use quotation marks because nearly everything on the menu should really be labeled “bites” for their actual size. This is a double edged sword because it allows you to try most of the menu with just a small group but it also racks up a sizable tab very quickly if you are hungry. Many of the ingredients also show up several times so there is a tendancy to have overlap.

The space itself does not have much decor to speak of as you would expect your typical Japanese restaurant to look – just of few prints of fish on one back wall, big windows along the entire front and an open kitchen and bar. The vibe is definitely more laid back than the average higher end Japanese restaurant.

We sat down at one of the tables for 4 along the wall and proceeded to order up most of the menu. To start we were given a little bowl of Japanese marinated vegetables with chives – a palate cleanser of sorts. Next up was the caviar and butter toast. This singular little square of crusty bread was definitely intended for one but given that the price for two toasts was about equal to a pricey entree anywhere else, we tried to limit ourselves just a tad.

Marinated Vegetables

Caviar Butter Toast

Next was easily the best dish of the evening (as mentioned above)- pork and unagi hand rolls. These were incredible. Rich tender pork and unagi juice was absorbed by perfectly cooked rice.

Pork & Unagi Hand Rolls

The sushi arrived all together on one plate and some of the pieces were a bit difficult to identify this way. The oyster was very fresh and plump with a bright sauce of apple and chive oil.

Oyster with Apple & Chive Oil

The beef tongue was one of the two adventurous dishes of the evening. I was expecting it to be like a rubbery, chewy flank steak but on the contrary it was very tender and flavorful. The ponzu and jalapeño added a little kick and tanginess. The hamachi and the snapper were good but definitely not the most memorable pieces of sushi I have had. The fish was a bit warm as though it had been sitting around waiting to be served for too long. Their respective seasonings of ginger and horseradish did not add too much. The chopped beef with sea urchin was a very solid combination – like a little bite-sized Japanese version of steak tartare.

Assorted Sushi

We had some more beef tartare in the form of a larger plate with lime cream and horseradish. This was also very good on the toasty baguette drizzled with olive oil. The beef was neatly and thickly chopped which I find much more appealing for a tartare.

Beef Tartare

The other memorable dish was the “breakfast pancakes”. Again this is tiny so one can only really be shared between two people. The tiny blini pancakes were layered with a mixture of chopped smoked arctic char, hamachi and mackeral. The plate was then artistically decorated with salmon caviar, chives and a yogurt sauce.

Breakfast PAncakes

For the larger plates we decided on the pork belly, the miso glazed salmon head and the fois gras grilled cheese. The miso-maple glazed salmon head was a fun order and the flavor was delicious. It was sweet and smokey from the grill. It is a bit messy to eat with a group because to get all the meat it’s almost impossible not to go in with your fingers. Luckily it comes with some extra napkins.

Miso-Maple Salmon Head

The grilled cheese has had mixed reviews because it is so incredibly heavy. It is literally fat on top of fat, slathered with fat and then grilled. I say yum. The pickled cucumbers in the center added the necessary acidity. Cut into 4 I think this was pretty manageable.

Fois Gras Grilled Cheese

By this point we had so many rich dishes that a whole entrée sized portion of pork belly seemed a little overwhelming. In terms of execution it was nicely done with a sticky sweet outside and topped with a slow cooked egg and some cabbage.

Pork Belly

The one lowly vegetable we ordered was a plate of brussels sprouts. In theory this was a good idea but they were also fried and topped with toasted pumpkin seeds. While tasty, this did not do much to lighten the meal.

Brussels

To top everything off they brought us each a mini cup of white custard drizzled with maple syrup and sprinkled with a few rice crispies. If I didn’t know any better, I’d say they pureed a bunch of Eggo waffles and made a pudding out of them. This might sound like an insult but it was very good, especially if you grew up on Eggos.

"Eggo" Custard

Chez Sardine is a great place to go on a double date or with a small group of friends to catch up. Be prepared for a very rich meal!

Thank you to my friend Demetri Themelis whose valued opinion helped greatly in the commentary for this review!

 

 

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20
Mar

Montmartre – NYC

by ccwynne812   {10:05 pm}

MONTMARTRE – NYC

158 Eighth Ave. (nr. W. 18th St.) New York, NY 10011

Rating: 8.3

Photo courtesy of: www.newyork.grubstreet.com

Gabe Stulman’s newest creation is going to be tough to get into real soon.  Stulman is 3 for 3 in opening exceptionally popular spots in the past ~ year (Perla, Chez Sardine and Montmartre), and rightly so. All of these restaurants are charming with delicious food. Montmartre is located in Chelsea in an area that is somewhat of a no-man’s land of good food.  Chef Tien Ho, formerly of Má Pêche, presents an interesting menu of traditional French ingredients presented in completely new ways. The space is typically French in that it is [very, very] cozy with just a few small tables in the back half and a small bar with about 8 stools up front. This makes it easy to eavesdrop or reach onto your neighbor’s table and steal a spare pomme soufflé when they are not looking.

My friend and I decided to wander in one Friday night for a late casual dinner. 40 minutes later after a few “Mifflin street Moonlight’s” we were escorted to our tiny table.

Everything on the menu looked delicious. We started off relatively sensibly and then just drove straight off the deep end and went into carbo-overload for our mains. We simply could not decide between two of the sides. So we ordered both. I’ve never been one for moderation.

An amuse bouche is always a nice way to welcome diners in a restaurant. We had a little nibble of a mushroom crêpe with chives that definitely made us hungrier than we already were.

Mushroom Crêpes

We began with the frisée aux lardons salad with a fried egg and duck confit on top. The salad was crisp and nicely dressed, the duck confit was flavorful and the egg just runny without being undercooked. The best part were the croutons which were crunchy and absorbed some of the tang of the sherry vinegar.

Frisée Salad

We also had the hamachi with marinated apples, chili and kaffir. This was also very good but the chili did not have as much of a kick as I would have expected. The fish was also a bit too warmed which means it probably sat out for a little too long before making it to the table.

Hamachi

We ordered one entrée to share which was the lamb testaroli. This dish is what made our meal. Chunks of lamb tenderloin grilled rare on top of a buckwheat crêpe -pasta mixed with a tender lamb neck ragout, niçoise olives and dressed with a buttery gremolata. I am not sure there is much else to say here except that each bite resulted in an exclamation of how delicious it was.

Lamb Testaroli

To lighten things up a bit we ordered not one, but two sides of potatoes. The first was the pommes soufflé which are basically hot versions of the puffy potato chips you always dig around for in the bag. These little airbags were stacked like a log cabin on top of one another and served with a rich dipping sauce of artichoke and chervil.

Potatoes Two Ways

The second potato dish was so large it could have easily been its own entrée. Potatoes “Gascognaise” were crispy fried chunks of potato with a thick sauce of fois gras and carmelized onions. I think this one is pretty self explanatory too.

If you are looking for a casual date spot or just a good meal with a friend, Montmartre will certainly do the trick.

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13
Mar

Cherry – NYC

by ccwynne812   {11:13 pm}

CHERRY – NYC

355 West 16th Street, in The Dream Hotel, New York, NY10011

Rating: 8.2

Cherry

Theoretically any restaurant in the Dream Hotel should do excellently well given the location and trendiness of the hotel itself. However, Romera, Cherry’s predecessor, only lasted 6 months which may have been due in part to the elaborate tasting menu they offered which was probably too pricey and formal for the average diner. This also reminded us just how brutally competitive the New York restaurant scene is.  At Cherry, they know their audience a lot better. They know that people want to share delicious dishes and small bites while sipping well crafted cocktails and good sake to either get them in the mood for an evening out or to simply enjoy a good meal in the ambiance they have created.

Cherry clearly has a similar vibe to its sister restaurant BondSt – dimly lit with sultry red velvet banquettes along the walls. Even the stand – alone tables make you feel like you are on your own little red velvet and mahogony island. The fabric lined walls also add depth to the space and give it sort of a library feel – although without any books.

Photo courtesy of www.ny.eater.com

My friends and I sat down at our cozy table and immediately our general attitude was “screw the salads and soups”. There are so many things that look interesting and delicious, why bother wasting any room with lettuce and broth.  We ordered some cocktails and a nice bottle of sake while we dissected the menu. I was feeling a little crazy and didn’t want to go with just my normal Ketel splash of soda so I asked the bartender to splash a little yuzu in there adding some Japanese flair. Highly recommend if you like yuzu. And vodka.

We started with the kanpachi with avocado mousse, celery, cilantro and citrus soy. The fish was extremely fresh and was nicely accented by the tangy green mousse. The black sea bass carpaccio was very neatly presented in the center of a dinner plate with shiso, fennel oil, sazu, chili lime tosazu, and furikake lavosh evenly seasoning the light white fish.

Black Sea Bass & Kanpachi

Next up we had the Wagyu beef tartare with a tiny quail egg and buttery japanese pullman bread. This was just a classic tartare with very good quality beef. Sorry no pic here it was destroyed before I could snap one.

The first thing that caught my eye on the menu was the crispy rice with Uni. So simple and so incredibly delicious. The rice is (obviously) crispy on the outside and a gently warmed with a generous amount of creamy fresh uni on top, a quick brush of wasabi soy and micro cilantro greens. We also had the spicy tuna version with Korean chili mayo which is basically transplanted from BondSt (the famous tuna tart also appears on the menu for all you loyal fans out there!). We nearly ordered a second one of each.

The Tamagoyaki was not as popular. I will admit the waiter warned us about this one and I have to say he was right. The smoked trout tasted more like smoked turkey slices out of a a bag from your local deli than fish which was kind of strange.  The radish and yuzu buerre noisette did almost nothing to salvage the dish. It made quite a nice centerpiece though with the little pink flowers on top.

Crispy Rice with Uni, Tuna & Smoked Trout Roll

I had read about the uni poached egg which was delicious but maybe oversold the uni a bit. There was a lot of poached egg compared to the decorative piece of uni perched on top. The creamy tofu soy may have actually been healthier than it tasted (or at least I will let myself think that). The winter beans added a nice fresh crunch and the green tea salt was just the right amount of seasoning.

Uni Poached Egg

The MVP dish of the night was the fois gras and short rib gyoza with plum sake and sour cherries. Posing inconspicuously as your standard dumpling, this gyoza was about as far from bland flavor and colorless center as you can get. The rich earthy flavors of the filling pop in your mouth as you bite through the crispy noodle pocket. Whether or not you think you like fois gras, these are a must.

Fois Gras & Short Rib Gyoza

For those of you who actually already know you like fois gras, the next dish was a very nice rendition of a fois gras mousse. The neatly plated scoop of mousse was so smooth and rich it almost tasted like ice cream. The cherries and spiced cashews served as a nice complement but I did question the necessity of the tuna tataki. We certainly did not eat them together – although maybe we were supposed to?

Fois Gras Mousse & Tuna

Our one main course was the Sapporo braised lamb shank with parsnip tofu puree, Tokyo turnip and marjoram. The lamb was so tender it required almost no chewing. The flavors were bold and the fresh vegtables on top were much appreciated in the context of the rest of our meal.  The BBQ eel roll with avocado, crispy tofu, and candied bacon was a stepped up version of the popular roll.Braised Lamb & BBQ Eel Roll

Braised Lamb & BBQ Eel Roll

Tuna for dessert anyone? Our last dish was crispy tuna tacos with jicama, cucumber and scallions. Although I am not sure the kitchen meant to send it out at the end, the taco was a nice light finish to the meal.

Tuna Tacos

Overll we were very impressed with our food at Cherry and we all plan on returning if we haven’t already. So if you are dining around Meatpacking (sigh) definitely consider Cherry as a highly recommended option. Just make sure you are on time as they are serious about giving tables away.

The Ladies

 

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01
Mar

Mermaid Oyster Bar – NYC

by ccwynne812   {9:18 am}

MERMAID OYSTER BAR- NYC

79 Macdougal St. New York, NY 10012

Rating: 6.5

Photo courtesy of: www.newyork.metromix.com

The Mermaid Oyster Bar is a cleaned up New York version of a seaside lobster shack. With three locations in different parts of the city one does not need to travel very far to get a decent lobster roll. The Oyster Bar is the more focused on the raw bar than the other two locations and also feels a bit more modern with whitewashed wood and white plastic chairs than the darker, more rustic sister restaurants.

A big platter of shellfish is a compulsory order at an oyster bar. We ordered several dozen for the table as well as a tuna tartare with avocado which was easily overshadowed by the big beautiful trays of chilled shellfish.

Oysters & Tuna Tartare

This is a pretty good lobster sandwich which they call the “nearly famous” lobster roll. I am not sure it will ever be red carpet status because it is on a hamburger bun (albeit a brioche hamburger bun) rather than a griddled, buttered hot dog bun. While this makes it easier to discard part of the bread for the carb conscious, it also means that a fork and knife are required to eat it. The sandwich is served with old bay fries which are always good. 

Lobster Roll

To add a bit of green to our briny, salty meal we also had brussels sprouts with marcona almonds and apple smoked bacon and some charred shishito peppers.

Brussels & Marcona Almonds

The whole ambiance is very charming at all of the restaurants but the nicest touch is the little dessert they bring at the end of every meal. A little chocolate pot-de-creme in an espresso cup topped with a little dollop of whipped cream arrives unsolicited with the bill. What also arrives with the bill is a fortune telling fish for everyone at the table – a creative touch.

The Mermaid restaurants are very cute and casual with reliably fresh seafood.

Pot de Creme

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25
Feb

Super Linda – NYC

by ccwynne812   {9:30 am}

SUPER LINDA – NYC

109 W Broadway  Manhattan, NY 10013

Rating 7.4

Photo Courtesy of: www.superlindanyc.com

Super Linda is funky spot down in Tribeca that opened just over a year ago and has a lot going on theme-wise. It is a Latin inspired restaurant but has kind of Cuban vibe to it with lots of red tin and cozy booths. In the summer they like to pretend that the air conditioning (one single window unit) is working full blast but they aren’t fooling anyone. As you descend into the bar/nightclub portion it becomes increasingly more horse-themed with murals of horses running across them. The bathrooms have the names of show horses on each one. As you enter the second downstairs bar, it feels like the tidied up basement of a frat house on parents weekend. Somehow, given those involved in the creation of Super Linda, Matt Abramcyck (Warren 77, Smith & Mills, the former Beatrice Inn) and Serge Becker (Miss Lily’s, Lure Bar, La Esquina), this all comes together pretty nicely and it has been packed with reservations since it opened.

The meal begins with lots of fresh seafood – ceviches, oysters, etc. and Latin American dishes such as empanadas and arepas. Our first dishes were the ceviche verde, tuna tartare and scallop ceviche. The fish of the day for the ceviche verde was fluke with tomatillo, jalapeno and cilantro, tangy from the citrus, and it was absolutely delicious.  The tuna tartare was served in more of an Asian fashion with a soy based sauce and toasted hazelnuts and bits of cucumber. The scallop ceviche was also very good layered on top of some avocado with red onion, radishes and cucumber.

Ceviche Verde with Fluke

Tuna Tartare

Scallop Ceviche

The hearts of palm salad was also good- frisée, hearts of palm, grapefruit, avocado and toasted hazelnuts in a citrus dressing.

Hearts of Palm Salad

The favorite small plate was the crab tostada topped with pickled red onion and uni. A few of these would have made a very nice meal by themselves.

Crab Tostadas with Uni

I split the ribs as my main dish because they were pretty big. The ribs were very good and tender but even better was what they were served on – fried brussels sprouts with tangy pickled pepper rings and topped with crispy panko breadcrumbs. These sounded so amazing that we ordered an extra side before knowing how much we were going to get. This was not a problem.

Ribs & Brussels Sprouts

Brussels Round 2

The least exciting dish by far was the red and green snapper. I actually read other reviews that said the same thing that I am about to say so maybe this dish is inherently flawed. The snapper was dry and bland and definitely the weakest link.

Red & Green Snapper

We ordered two desserts to share. The churros were excellent – crispy on the outside and chewy on the inside (I am not actually sure what the criteria for a good churro is).

Churros & Dipping Chocolate

The other dessert, which seemed like a surprisingly excellent take on flan, was a caramel custard on top of a crispy meringue that had candied banana brittle poking out of it like a little Stonehenge.

Caramel Custard

Super Linda is a great place for a double date or if you are feeling ambitious, renting out the entire space for a party.

Side Room. Photo Courtesy of: http://dev.thompsonhotels.com

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