Immaculate Infatuation

At first, I didn’t know what to make of Ardesia. Situated at the bottom of a giant new West Side condo, this place looks like something a developer thought up so they could add “wine bar” to the list of building amenities, right next to “rooftop pool”, and “monthly singles mixers”. But after a few (five) glasses of wine, and some food, it became apparent that there is much more going on here.

Ardesia is first and foremost a wine bar, and a good one at that. The food is decent, but it’s secondary to what they do best, which is selecting excellent “mineral-driven” wines from all over the world. There are a ton of options to order by the glass, the prices are reasonable, and the service is super friendly. Go to drink, but when you inevitably need some food to soak up the wine, stick to a few simple things on the menu like the cod cakes and the pretzels. It’s a good hang for sure, and a perfect place to kick it with a friend or get to know someone. Better put that singles mixer on your calendar.

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La Lucha isn’t just another taco joint trying to capitalize on the throngs of drunk college kids quickly migrating to the East Village. Now that Avenue A is essentially turning into Bourbon Street, a place like San Loco gets by because those kids are so wasted they think that garbage actually tastes good. I know, I’ve been there. Young and stupid. Late night catfish tacos from The Loco. Why? “Cause it’s four o’clock in the fucking morning…”, (the single greatest screamo song ever). Thankfully, La Lucha is here to raise the bar and learn those kids a thing or two.

La Lucha is serving tacos with a purpose. They’re putting their Mexican street food on full display, and having fun in the process. The whole experience is supposed to emulate what going to a wrestling match in Mexico City would be like (insert your favorite Nacho Libre joke here as every other review of LL has). Influenced by what La Lucha’s owners would eat with their friends and family before a match, this is authentic Mexican street food refined a bit for NYC. A different kind of taco than East Village favorites like Mercadito Cantina and Mercadito, this is down and dirty, south of the border style with more flair, wrestling paraphanlia and toys. It’s kind of like eating Mexican street food at Kid Robot.

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Known to most simply as Frankies 457, this is the flagship restaurant from “The Franks” who (see it coming?) happen to be two guys named Frank. The Franks are also the proprietors of Prime Meats, and 457’s Lower East Side clone, Frankies 17. Not that Frankies needs another glowing review, but this place really is a fantastic restaurant if you can manage to get a table. It’s a tiny, cozy joint with simple Italian cooking, and the food is pretty damn great. Also adding to the awesome is a very reasonably priced wine selection and playlists that are heavy on The Stones and Zeppelin. It’s a nice place to linger, especially in the summer when the back garden is open. Downside? Tough to linger when you can’t get a table. Waits can push well past an hour during prime time, sometimes close to two. Every once in a while you’ll get lucky and sit sooner than you expect, but there isn’t a ton of bar real estate, even if you get sent next door to Prime Meats. The bummer of it all is that without those unpredictable waits, both 457 and 17 would be absolutely ideal date spots. Did you both have “unimaginable patience” listed as a quality on your match.com profile? Welcome to the best night of your life.

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I once witnessed Rachel Ray making it rain $100 bills in Peasant like she was Pacman Jones at a strip club. In her standard not-so-subtle way, she worked the room for everyone to see, slipping hundreds to the chef, waiter and even bus boy. I remember asking our server if I was seeing correctly. “Yeah man, she just slipped me an extra bill on top of the tip she left on the check. She does it all the time.” Hey, if you got it, spend it, right? Hopefully the Infatuation will be rolling into our favorite spots with duffle bags full of cash in the relatively near future. Until then, we’ll leave the balling to Rachel and Pacman.

Peasant is a classic spot, a spacious room that feels more like a rich person’s Tribeca loft than a Nolita restaurant down the block from Cafe Habana. Baskets of apples, potatoes, firewood and produce line the kitchen in the back, where everything is cooked over an open fire. The food is consistent in the sense that some dishes are always excellent and others always mediocre, but if you order right, you can have a solid meal. Whatever you do, eat the spaghetti vongole which will be gushed about in the food rundown below. While Peasant isn’t an Infatuation go-to, it’s definitely a spot we enjoy. The quality service, welcoming space and addicting bread help make up for Peasant’s hit-or-miss menu and inflated prices.

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Danny Meyer. Gobbling up screen time on this site just like he’s gobbling up restaurant space all over town. We finally got around to a review of The Modern, and it’s about time, they needed more good press. Or wait a minute, no they didn’t. Along with a Michelin Star and constant raves, Chef Gabriel Kreuther was honored this past year with a James Beard award for Best Chef: NYC. We’re actually still waiting to find out if we won for Most Influential Food Website: Earth. They’ll call or something right?

The best way for us to give you the lowdown on this place is to explain that it’s really two different experiences: the bar, and the dining room. The dining room is a beautiful, formal space overlooking the MoMa garden with a three course prixe fixe menu. It’s fine dining for sure, and it’s incredibly good. Think of it as a more “modern” Eleven Madison Park. The bar area is quite a bit different. It’s sleek, more relaxed, and on a good night, you’ll find some Action at the Bar. The plates are smaller and a bit more restrained, but you will still get A plus service and have a decent meal. We like the bar just fine, but what it really comes down to is this: … read more