Immaculate Infatuation

Restaurants like Torrisi are the reason that we spend all of our free time eating and writing about food. If you enjoy consuming as much as we do and aren’t held down by underdeveloped taste buds, allergies or religious beliefs, you’re going to love Torrisi Italian Specialties.

By day, Torrisi is the best new sandwich shop in Manhattan. Eat in or take out a gangster roast turkey or chicken parm. At night, all twenty seats are available for $50 a pop, at one of three frustratingly tough to attain prix fixe seatings: 6pm, 7:45pm and 9:30pm. The catch is, there are no reservations. The restaurant opens at 6:00, and it’s first come, first serve. People start lining up to stake their claim on a seating around 5:30. If someone in your party can get there early, you’ll have the pick of the litter. But by 6:30, it’s not uncommon for the restaurant to be sold out for the night. You can always roll the dice and do a drive by – just be prepared for rejection. Luckily, Nolita is stacked and you can always try your luck at Public, Peasant, Cafe Gitane or Café Habana if you can’t get in. We’d been trying to get here for a while now, but it’s a hard place to plan for unless getting out of work early isn’t a problem and your night is wide open.

If you’re lucky enough to score a seat, your only choice will be between two entrees, usually a fish and a meat, and which bottle of fairly priced wine to pair with it. Other than that, your fate is in the hands of the kitchen. Four small appetizers arrive at the table, one at a time, followed by a pasta, main and dessert. It sounds like a lot, but really, it’s the perfect amount of food. The service is excellent, food outstanding and overall experience truly unique. In theory, a prix fixe dinner at a low key Italian sandwich shop might not seem like something to get in line for, but trust us, it is. It’s all worth it.

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When news broke last week that Lamazou’s owners Aziz and Nancy (Lamazou) had leased space to open a restaurant, we thought two things: hell yes, and we are stupid. How on earth had we gone so long without posting this review?

Years ago when I lived in the neighborhood, I wandered into this nondescript cheese shop and ordered a sandwich off the list. I quickly realized that what I held in my hand was a perfectly assembled fistful of cured meat, cheese and bread that would be the start of a long and fulfilling relationship with Lamazou. From that day forward, this place was a three day a week meal stop, and over the years I managed to eat my way through damn near everything in the deli case.

What you’ll find at Lamazou is not only an incredible selection of cheeses (there is a cheese cave in the basement), but also various high quality cured meats. Both selections are incredible in their own right, but the real magic comes when the two are combined to make bomb ass sandwiches. Aziz is always happy to recommend something from the menu, and he’ll also point you in the direction of what goodness in the cheese case is particularly off the hook…whether you ask or not. That’s exactly the kind of personality and passion that makes this place amazing. Also present are various imported snacks and candies from around the world that I can neither pronounce or identify, but they’re all interesting and tasty. Especially Taytos. Thanks England for giving me a way to order your potato chips without having to say the word “crisps”.

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When Gail Simmons hit us with her Friday Fives, she listed August as her Chronic Brunch pick. Smart woman. She made us realize that even though August has long been a staple in our lives, a review seems to have slipped through the cracks. It’s time to rectify this situation right now.

Everyone loves August. It’s impossible not to. The same way I’m always down to watch those movies that are endlessly on TV like Any Given Sunday or Empire Records, I’m also always down for brunch at August. This little European bistro is perfectly located in the heart of all the good West Village action. The friendly space smells of firewood and has an awesome glass enclosed garden that gets tons of sun. August is really a better brunch/lunch spot than it is a dinner spot. The dinner entrees are never as exciting as the eggs, sandwiches and pizza you get during the daytime hours. Plus, the prices on the dinner menu are a little steep. One dinner option we do like, however, is the Sunday night “Pizza & Peronis” meal: one pizza and four Peronis for $25. Not necessarily the Gray’s Papaya recession special, but we back the idea and the pizza is really good. Speaking of pizza and beer, dudes, listen up – August is a great First/Early In The Game Date spot. Considering that her and her friends already love it, you’ll score extra points right off the bat by taking her to the location of her last Book Club meeting. Trust me; it’s a better option than the new Dos Caminos in the Meat Packing district.

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We’re not usually crazy about wine bars. There are a few on this site that we can get behind, but generally we stay away. Why? Well first of all, there aren’t many that serve good food, and it’s rare that we’re heading out to drink without some serious eating on the agenda as well. Second, wine bar crowds are usually a room full of awkward first dates, and that girl who turns bright red after two glasses and spends an hour telling her friend and everyone else within thirty feet how ugly Becky’s bridesmaid dresses were. Inside voices please.

So it’s not often that a wine bar comes with an enthusiastic Infatuation Approval, but Terroir’s new outpost in Tribeca most certainly does. Yes, we love it because the food is awesome, but we also love it because owners Paul Grieco and Marco Canora clearly don’t take themselves too seriously. Just watch this video. These guys are enjoying themselves, and so are the people that come to their establishments. We found no sign of the typical wine bar crowd, but rather a full house of happy people tearing into some food and drinking (a lot). That’s more our speed. The menu has all the snacks and charcuterie that you might expect to find, but there are also some gems like the meatball sandwich and pretty much anything with the word “balls” in it. Check the Food Rundown for our favorites, and also take a look at this wine menu next time you have a few hours to kill. That sh*t is crazy.

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It’s always a challenge for us to properly rate an establishment that specializes in one thing. Our rating system is a complex algorythm (developed during my tenure at MIT), that assigns numeric values to countless variables like food quality, menu options, service, atmosphere, and the probability that you will get laid after dinner. It’s science.

What we have noticed though, is that a lack of variables consistently produces the same result…most of the restaurants that specialize in one thing earn high marks from us. The following evidence supports our hypothesis: Burger Joint, Luke’s Lobster, Bark Hot Dogs, Flex Mussels, Mercadito Cantina, and Caracas.

Another test of this theory brings us to The Meatball Shop, a restaurant on the Lower East Side operating with the sole purpose of turning out ridiculously good meatballs and presenting you a few options in which to consume them. There are meatball sandwiches, meatball sliders, meatballs in sauce, and meatballs on pasta. Other than a few sides and a nice wine list…that’s it. The result? We love it. A concept that could easily have been a divey storefront serving late night heroes is instead a wonderfully executed and surprisingly nice restaurant where you can enjoy a glass of wine while you get fatter by the meatball. The staff is friendly, it’s a lively atmosphere, and the food is solid. Another specialist restaurant beats our formula. Oh well. We suck at math anyway.

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