A while back in our Kanoyama review, we talked about the three tiers of sushi restaurants in New York. This is most definitely a Tier One sushi establishment. It’s upscale, it’s expensive, and it’s good enough for me to consider earning a criminal record for. Why is it worth all that? Well to start, the fish is incredibly good. Everything is fresh and authentic, and will make you realize why people freak out over things like fresh uni and toro. It’s also a pleasant environment for a meal – a good option for a date or a business meeting…which can’t be said for many of the other elite sushi restaurants in town. Here’s the thing though – if you are dining for either of those reasons, make sure you go with people that want to get down on a serious sushi experience. If you’re bringing someone that’s going to ask for the spicy mayo, skip 15 East and go somewhere cheaper. That ain’t this how this place gets down, and you shouldn’t drop a car payment on somebody who would be just as happy with a mango tempura jalapeno red dragon roll.

Food Rundown:

Omakase
This is definitely the way to go at 15 East, and you do it at the sushi bar. Ordering omakase at the table takes the fun out of it, and you miss the presentation and description…a plate simply arrives. Things that stood out to us? The toro was incredible, as were the two types of fresh uni. The mackerel was surprisingly good (usually not a fan), and the fluke was also fantastic. The scallop and salmon are both things that we typically don’t love, but did this time. I guess it’s all about doing it right.

Tako Yawarakani
A signature dish at 15 East, this is probably the most tender octopus you will ever eat. It’s poached in sake, sliced, and served with sea salt. So good.

Soba Noodles
A stone bowl full of delicious noodles in a cold broth. We add caviar, because we’re ballers.

Kumamoto Oysters
My number one favorite oyster, and 15 East does them right and serves them with a sweet yet delicate ponzu sauce to accompany.

We certainly have an opinion on the topic, but are also equal opportunity eaters. We haven’t met too many lobster rolls we don’t like. Not the case for some. As a matter of fact, there is a rivalry that exists between fans of Pearl Oyster Bar’s roll and Mary’s Fish Camp loyalists that’s almost as heated as the Biggie/Tupac beef was before Al Gore had them both killed (we’re entitled to our theory).

We’d like to use this review to go on record and say two things: we really like Pearl Oyster Bar, and stop the violence. Pearl’s lobster roll won’t take the title of best in town from us, but the place does score high on the Infatuation meter. Almost everything on the menu is fantastic, and we love sitting at the bar with an Anchor Steam and getting into some seafood with our hands. What really keeps us coming back though, is the fried oyster sandwich. That thing is food worth fighting over.

Food Rundown:

Market Oysters
A selection of six oysters from the East Coast. Pretty standard, but tasty nonetheless. Make sure to ask for some horseradish on the side.

The Pearl Lobster Roll
This is one creamy lobster roll. Big chunks of lobster and lemony mayo are all over the place – no celery though. This comes served with a huge pile of salty shoestring fries that make for one satisfying plate of food. It’s the antithesis to the purist simplicity of Luke’s, but is still one of the best lobster rolls you’ll find anywhere.

Fried Oyster Roll
For us, this is the real star of the Pearl Oyster Bar menu. Crunchy fried oysters on top of the same soft roll that the lobster is served on, but slathered with tartar sauce. Insanely good.

Soft Shell Crab
A tasty option if they’re in season and on the menu. Nothing but two crunchy crabs on a plate with some garnish. Who needs more?

Both the food and service at Public are consistently excellent. Chef Brad Farmerie knocks out inventive, flavorful dishes that both look and taste great. It sure as hell isn’t cheap, but you absolutely get your money’s worth. Public is also a pretty well known event space. Hang out in Manhattan long enough and you’ll probably wind up at an after-party here, intoxicated in the restroom, trying to figure out how many little bars of Public branded soap you can shove in your pockets. Or maybe you can afford to buy your own fancy hand soap for your house. Must be nice.

Food Rundown:

Mushroom Ceviche
I loathe mushrooms and somehow really enjoyed this ceviche. Either my taste buds are rapidly maturing as I approach 30 or Public has some kind of magic potion in which mushrooms suddenly taste like candy. I’ll go with the latter.

Grilled Scallops
Load up on the shellfish apps, they’re all money. These grilled scallops with sweet chili sauce, crème fraiche and green plantain crisps taste as good as they sound.

Fried Barron Point Oysters
Fried oysters with a spicy Japanese flair? Yes please. We could eat these puppies all day. The wasabi-yuzu dipping sauce is real tasty.

Cured Wild Boar Plate with Garrotxa Cheese
When wild boar is on the menu, I order it. It makes me think of three things, all of which I dig: 1.) Lost (Locke) 2.) Friday Night Lights (Riggins) 3.) apizz (Wild boar lasagna). Served with olives, caper berries and crostini, this meat plate was solid, but unspectacular. Next time I’m doubling up on the fried oysters.

New Zealand Venison Loin
From one gamey meat, to another. It’s obvious Chef Farmerie enjoys a little hunting in his life. The entire table agreed that this was the standout dish of the night. Rich meat with deep flavors are complimented with cheese dumplings, mushrooms and salsa verde. It sounds like it’d be a heavy dish, but it’s not. The consistency is just right and the execution is spot on.

Roast Lamb Sirloin
Again, great presentation. The lamb roast shows up on top of a crispy goat cheese polenta with saffron braised baby vegetables. The meat is juicy, and well cooked. All love here.

Roast Duck Breast
Although overshadowed a bit by the venison and the lamb, the duck is another excellent option. We dug the accompaniments too: Korean pepper spaetzle, sautéed snow peas and a radish and grape salad. Seasonal and not what you typically see served with duck.

Food Rundown:

Selection of Spreads
Yogurt, “caviar”, chick pea, and sundried tomato spreads served with plenty of pita triangles for dipping, which did not go unnoticed. I am sick of being forced to eat artichoke dip off a Splenda packet because a restaurant was stingy with the grilled bread. Thank you Kefi, for this bounty of bread from which to enjoy your dips. They are all tasty and should be on your table. We’re not sure why “caviar” is in quotes, but we’ll leave it alone.

Grilled Octopus, Bean Salad
A brawny grilled octopus arm sitting atop a salad of chickpeas and some other very small beans. The octopus is perfect, and the salad is so flavorful that you’ll exert valuable energy trying to fit many tiny beans on one big fork. Difficult but worthwhile.

Fried Calamari
I was expecting this to be very mediocre. I had Kefi pegged as a place where grilled calamari would be the way to go, rather than the fried version you can find at any restaurant on this block. I was pleasantly surprised. The calamari is incredibly tender, and they show restraint with the batter – just enough for a crunch.

Flat Pasta, Pulled Braised Rabbit, Graviera Cheese
This is a really good dish, but you need to be into rabbit to enjoy it. If you’re not sure, don’t go there. The rabbit is really well cooked, and is delicious, but the taste isn’t for everyone. You’ll also find some bones, so be careful. Other than those warnings, this is a huge plate of food. The super-wide pasta noodles and thick Graviera cheese make this almost like a rabbity pasta casserole.

Sheep’s Milk Dumplings, Tomato, Pine Nuts, Spicy Lamb Sausage
One of our favorite things to eat at Kefi. These are dumplings made from sheep’s milk and served in a bowl with lamb sausage and all kinds of other goodness. Lighter than you might expect from the description, and something you need to eat when you’re there.

Grilled Branzino, Potato, Olive, Tomato
A perfect piece of branzino – light but tasty like a piece of grilled fish should be. The combo of olives, potatoes, and tomatoes on the plate ensure you won’t go home hungry, and it costs less than twenty bucks.

Lamb Burger
Usually a special. If they have it, order it. It’s good, and you’re going to need a fork.

One of our all time favorite La Esquina dinners was the result of an unannounced Tuesday night visit. Smooth talking and a small diversion (smoke bomb) got our group of three dudes down without a reservation, and what ensued was a great meal at the chef’s table and a valiant attempt to drink Mexico into another agave shortage. Those are the nights that make us love this place. Even despite the weekday fashionistas and weekend crowds, La Esquina can still play host to the next great time you can’t remember.

Food Rundown:

Empanadas De Chorizo
A basic empanada, but the chorizo is spicy and delicious. A simple favorite of ours.

Quesadilla De Huitlacoche
A tasty, mushroomy quesadilla with corn and Mexican truffle. This is earthy and good, but different than most quesadillas you’ve probably come across.

Cangrejo Tostada
Our favorite of the tostadas on the menu (three per order), and a must have. The cool crab meat is piled high on a half-dollar sized tostada with mango and spicy mayo. It’s one big bite of goodness.

Tinga De Pollo
Chicken might not be the sexiest tostada option on the menu, but across the board, La Esquina’s slow-cooked, shredded chicken is a winner.

Elotes Callejeros
Don’t mess around. Each person at the table needs to have an ear of this grilled corn in hand. You’ll be smiling…with shit in your teeth.

Tacos
In order of our preference: bistec, pescado, carnitas michoacan (crispy pork), cochinita pibil (pulled pork). You really can’t go wrong.

Chile Relleno
A decent chile relleno, but not our favorite. File these under tasty Mexican food item that is usually disappointing in New York City Mexican restaurants.

Carne Asada
A good strip steak served with a nice chimichurri, but nothing special. In general, you will be happier if you stick to the smaller plates.

Aldea pimps out their chef, George Mendes, New Orleans style. In NOLA, chef photos and accolades greet you at the front door and decorate restaurant walls, watching you eat. By the time your meal is finished, you know damn well that John Besh or Donald Link is the man that made it all possible. Aldea revolves its world around Mendes in a similar way. Our waiter must have dropped George’s name three or four times, and I guarantee he’s required to do that. It all feels a little desperate…if your food is that good, New Yorkers will recognize. No need to shove it in our faces. Despite all the name dropping, Aldea is a very comfortable eating environment. We lucked out and got the best seat in the house, the back booth right in front of the kitchen, which you should absolutely request when you’re making a reservation. Overall, we’re not saying Aldea is a bad restaurant, it just doesn’t live up to all the hype. We’ll go back sometime, we’re just not in any rush.

Food Rundown:

Jamon Iberico
Definitely some high quality ham, but for $21, it’s not worth the high price tag. Spend the money on something else.

Sea Urchin Toast
Ok. This was good. Really good. But it’s also incredibly rich. Chunks of sea urchin (which look like slices of mandarine oranges) sit on top of a thin toasted cracker-thing with cauliflower cream and sea lettuce. Pretty great.

Salt Cod Croquettas
Possibly the creamiest cod crox we’ve ever had. I personally enjoyed them, but the rest of the table was not feelin’ the ultra-smooth texture of these.

Wellfleet Oysters
Six Oysters, seventeen bucks. I mean, come on. That’s a bit much, especially when they suck. The oysters were quite disappointing, as was the pickled ramp mignonette. Next.

Slow-Poached Egg
This was excellent. A slow poached egg sitting in a light spring garlic broth with truffle, sweet peas and smoked bacon. Break the yolk and mix everything together for the ultimate bite.

Tilefish
Holy crap, this was gross. So bad that we actually sent it back to catch a little fire (the fish wasn’t cooked at all). It appeared that they plated and garnished the fish right out of the fridge, and this wasn’t supposed to be a sushi dish. When it came back cooked, it didn’t matter. This fish tasted like it’d been sitting around for weeks and the biggest travesty is that it came highly recommended from our waiter. Stay away from the tilefish.

Arroz De Pato
The dish Aldea is famous for, and pretty much the reason that we came. New York Magazine awarded it “Best Paella” and the Village Voice named it the Best Duck Dish of 2009. It’s definitely really good, but as with this entire restaurant, it just didn’t blow me (or the rest of my table), away. A paella of duck confit, chorizo, olive, and duck cracklings, the texture is fantastic, but the flavors are just a tad too overbearing.

Pork and Clams
Don’t let the name fool you, this really is just a pork belly dish. I thought we’d get a healthy dose of both belly and clams, but that wasn’t the case. There were maybe three clams on the plate, seemingly for decoration only. That being said, the thin strips of pork belly were quite savory and the sweet and sour glaze was really tasty.

“The” Blue Hill experience is the Stone Barns experience – a fantastic petting zoo for adults where you get to eat all the animals. Blue Hill New York is a top-tier New York City restaurant that’s equally ideal for Special Occasions, but is better suited for a fancy date night (just ask Obama) rather than Mom’s birthday or an anniversary. All the same farm-to-fork principles that you find upstsate are in place at BHNY, and the service is amazing. You’ll also still find unmatched dedication to serving quality ingredients, a great wine list, and some incredibly memorable food. Just don’t cross a trip to the Stone Barns off your list after dinner having dinner here. That’s a field trip everyone needs to make at least once. You look like you could use a day or two out of the city anyway.

Food Rundown:

Maine Sea Scallops
A tasty scallop dish, served up with a citrus marmalade and some endive. A good way to start the meal, especially for conservative diners, but we reccomend going for something with more vegetation on the plate instead.

Beet Greens and Swiss Chard Tortellini
A fantastic starter with ricotta cheese, kale, a few really delicate and tasty tortellini, and some hazelnuts. Hazelnuts make everything better.

Stone Barns Berkshire Pig
This was as good as the Berkshire pig we ate at the Stone Barns, but the shelling beans and black trumpet mushrooms on the plate don’t hold a candle to the Stone Barns carrots. A great piece of pork nonetheless.

Rabbi Bob’s Veal
We aren’t sure who Rabbi Bob is exactly, but he must really enjoy some baby cow. This is a pristine cut of veal, served on a bed of chickpeas, hummus, and root vegetables (at least in the winter).

Wild Striped Bass
Sure, the fish dishes are solid at Blue Hill…but you should be ordering something that comes out of a land mammal. This striped bass was fine, but was definitely not the star of the table.

To be honest, Sushi Seki is pretty great no matter when you go. Chef Seki is a Sushi of Gari alum, and the omakase is up there with some of the best you will find anywhere in town. As a matter of fact, everything on the menu is quite good, but going for spicy tuna rolls and some unagi is missing the point. It will still be tasty, but all the portions of sushi and sashimi are omasake size, and it’s still pricey. Service is good though, and you should leave happy. It feels strange to be rolling up to a restaurant in this neighborhood and finding anything other than bar nachos or bad Indian food. But sure enough, Sushi Seki is the real deal…a Second Dinner oasis in a neighborhood where we hardly ever eat First Dinner.

Food Rundown:

Omakase
Sit at the bar and put your meal in the sushi chef’s hands. It’s pricey as hell, but with a decent buzz and the right company, it’s undeniably worth it. You’ll get perfect bites of yellowtail with jalepeno, tuna with tofu sauce, tuna with garlic ginger sauce, salmon with blowtorched tomato skin, and who knows what else. Reach for the soy sauce and risk death by firing squad.

Shumai
A decent shrimp shumai, but not amazing. Spicier mustard and a better sauce to dip in would help.

A La Carte Sushi/Sashimi
If you’re not looking to get down omakase style, but are looking for high quality sushi in this area, you’ll get it by ordering individual pieces. Just know the dollars are going to add up, and you’re still getting one-biters.

Rolls
I actually like the spicy tuna a lot, and I’m not usually crazy about spicy tuna. Too often it just tastes like mushy chopped fish and mayo. This one is actually very good. The fish is light and the spicy sauce adds just enough kick and flavor but doesn’t overwhelm. Also good are the yellowtail scallion, seared salmon, and snow crab rolls. Word of warning: they are known to run out of some rolls, so don’t be surprised if you get rejected.

Food Rundown:

Bone-In New York Strip
The steak you should be ordering at The Strip House. It’s twenty ounces (and fifty dollars worth) of perfectly charred goodness, with the ideal balance of lean meat to fat.

Filet Mignon
A butterflied 10 ounce filet is a nice way to go if you’re looking to do anything other than sleep in the bathroom after dinner.

Porterhouse for Two
Now, we’re not going to claim that this porterhouse is as good as the famous Peter Luger’s, but it definitely does the job if you don’t feel like making the trip to Brooklyn. The filet side is about as tender as a piece of meat can possibly be.

Ribeye
Either for one or two, the ribeye at Strip House is also an excellent piece of meat. Probably our second favorite cut behind the bone-in strip.

Black Truffle Creamed Spinach
Just in case basic spinach sides aren’t getting it done for you, here comes a little copper pot full of creamed spinach with black truffle. Amazing.

Goose Fat Potatoes
Another side that Strip House is known for, this is a mound of crispy, duck fatty potatoes that probably just took a year or two off your life. Eat and pray for speedy advances in stem cell treatments.

The food is simple and very good – straightforward American, with something for everyone. Fish and meat dishes are equally tasty, and if all else fails, there’s french fries cooked in duck fat. There’s also a nice curbside patio and a huge wine list, which just so happen to work together very nicely. Order a few bottles and hang out for a while.

Food Rundown:

Buffalo Mozzarella
I haven’t met a buffalo mozzarella that I didn’t like, but this one is especially good, largely due to the balsamic carmelized onions on top.

Troutlings
Whole baby trout, deep fried and served with a tartar sauce. These are awesome. Pop them in your mouth head and all. I used to do this with goldfish in college, but they were alive and I was drinking Keystone Light out of a bucket instead of expensive wine. Otherwise not much else has changed.

Duck Fat Fries
I don’t know what to say about this other than to state the obvious. These are french fries, fried in duck fat. Enough said.

English Cut Lamb Chop
A huge cut of lamb that looks like a t-bone steak. Served with baby carrots, anchovy, and fennel. Excellent, but this is a massive plate of food, so come hungry. Those baby carrots are amazing.

Pan Seared Salmon
A really nice piece of salmon. Perfectly cooked and the peas and guanciale on the plate make it that much better.

Sauteed Skate Wing
Another great piece of fish, this one is a perfectly cooked piece of skate served with brown butter and golden raisins.