Immaculate Infatuation

On a recent trip to the West Village we were stopped dead in our tracks. Whoa. What on God’s green earth do we have here? The bar standing in front of us was truly immaculate. We couldn’t look away. There was some kind of Daniel Faraday/Lost island style frequency sucking us inside even though our lives were supposed to go down a different path that night. We couldn’t resist it. We bailed on our plans and hit the Highlands.

As we suspected, Highlands is an Infatuation kind of joint. Rows of whiskey and bourbon line the exposed brick walls behind the bar. A packed house of put together, good looking locals sip on dark drinks, specialty cocktails and international beers with high alcohol content. Everyone is feelin’ it and having a grand ol’ time. Although we haven’t been on the weekend, we hear it’s slammed shoulder to shoulder, Spotted Pig style.

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Writing this review made me realize we need to call out restaurants that are greatly enhanced by a nice view of the surroundings. Join us in welcoming Eats with a View as the newest “Perfect For” tag. With a backdrop of the NYC skyline and both the Manhattan and Brooklyn bridges, this bi-level brunchplex/event space is home to one of the dopest views in town. You’re so close to the water you might even be able to trick Four Square into unlocking the “I’m On A Boat” badge.

I was working in Dumbo some six years ago when Bubby’s docked near Water Street. It’s arrival couldn’t have come soon enough. Back then, Dumbo was a complete wasteland in terms of food. With the exception of Grimaldi’s, it was slim pickins for eats – it was either Front Street Pizza, Peas & Pickles, a sushi spot that’s probably closed now or the dirtiest DIY salad place you’ve ever seen. Midtown lunchers have no idea how good they have it. I would have killed for a Cafe Metro. But thanks to the arrival of Bubby’s, I finally had a lunch routine worth looking forward to. My gangster move was a soup/sandwich combo and then a drive by at Jacques Torres around the corner for dessert.

If you live in Dumbo or Brooklyn Heights, Bubby’s is your go-to Chronic Brunch spot. The two restaurants are nearly identical, sans the constant Celebrity Sighting at the Tribeca location. The best you’ll do around these parts is Mos Def, who lives in the building next door.

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A few things to note before we get into it. First, this is a review of the Boqueria on 19th St., not of the newer SoHo location, and not of both. Boqueria Soho has a different dynamic and clientele. Second, let us preface this by saying that we’ve been coming to Boqueria for a while now, and we generally enjoy the place. The only problem we have is that it’s slowly becoming to Spanish food what Sushi Samba is to Japanese. What does that mean exactly? It means that it’s on the short list of venues for Girls Night Out, and that the food is hit or miss. Don’t get us wrong, we’re absolutely fine with going to a restaurant loaded with girls, but consistency is what we crave and Boqueria seems to be all over the map these days. The best bets on the menu tend to be the more simple items like Brussels sprouts, pan con tomate, and anything with chorizo. The wine list is good and reasonably priced (plenty of bottles priced under forty dollars), and the churros are pretty excellent. Maybe even better than the ones that dude sells on the L train platform. At the end of the day, the good at Boqueria is definitely good, and if you stick to the right things, you’ll probably walk away happy. Then again, when we’re craving some Spanish food we’re probably headed to Bar Carerra, Mercat, or Casa Mono instead. For the purposes of this food rundown, we’re going to stick (mostly) to the stuff we liked.

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Brought to you by the proprietor of Balthazaar and Pastis, Schiller’s is the cheaper, louder little brother in this family of stylish brasseries. What Schiller’s brings to the table that the others don’t is its youthful personality. This is the kind of place that you hit when you are looking to kick off a big night. The bar scene is a good one, though usually a few people deep, and the food is simple and consistently great. A perfect spot to bring a date who likes to have a little fun, or a bunch of friends before you head out in the neighborhood and wait in line outside Fat Baby (you know who you are). Schiller’s is full of energy and will make you want to suck back drinks and soak up the steak frites with a forkful of fries. Also, this place gets points in my book for my most recent visit. I had a reservation for three and rolled in with (literally) twelve people. The manager actually rearranged a few diners and happily seated our party within ten minutes. Nice.

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While the East Village currently thrives on next level pork and ramen noodles, the West Village has become the epicenter for downtown NYC’s New American explosion. It feels like every week a new spot opens to rave reviews and an immediately packed house. 10 Downing is the latest of well received restaurants in this hood, and is conveniently situated on a diagonal corner just south of the melting pot that is West 4th St. The space that houses 10 Downing is fantastic, and features an open, triangular dining room with a separate bar area, plus a solid fifteen tables for outdoor seating. The walls are completely covered in fun, colorful artwork and lined with black and white PR shots of random celebrities, including some well known fictional characters (shout to Paddington Bear). Overall, the vibe is great and the restaurant has a nice downtown feel to it. In addition to dinner, it’s the kind of place I’d come to just hang out and have a drink. We rolled in on a Thursday evening without a reservation and were seated within 10 minutes, even with people lined up two deep at the bar. I feel that. The service was great, but overall, the food was a little underwhelming. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoyed my meal very much, I just didn’t think the food we ordered met the great expectations I had going in. That being said, I really liked the space, the scene, and the vibe at 10 Downing, and will definitely be going back again. Hopefully they have the short rib on the menu next time because I’ve heard it’s RIDICULOUS.

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