Category: Restaurants and Bars

Locanda Verde, New York, NY

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It’s taken a while to do this particular review. The problem is that when I started this blog with Nate, I planned to NOT review things I didn’t care for. That is, no negative reviews. Having worked in the service industry for many years I know everyone has a rough night here and there and, at any rate, people like different things. However, I’m laying this down as a marker just so that I (and my friends) don’t fall for the hype again.

Upon returning from a truly decadent trip to Spain over my birthday, we wanted to have a fancy dinner out to celebrate the aging that happened while I was gone. After a bit of research, I settled on Locanda. We had a 9pm reservation on a Saturday night in July – obviously the place would be busy. However, I was not prepared for how jarringly loud and mall-esque the place was. Look up the antonym for “intimate” in the thesaurus and there should be a picture of this place. I almost ran back out the door, if not for the exciting things I’d read about the food, I would have.

It was hard to eat anything between screaming across the table at one another over the din of the people seated six inches to each side of us. Of course, the eating came to a halt when I pulled a huge long blonde hair out of my lamb – actually, out of my mouth. I’m not blonde and my date has black curly hair. This came from the kitchen. It was foul. The server seemed to need a lengthy explanation of the situation. I attempted to oblige him as discreetly as possible as I saw no reason for all the other folks sitting on top of us to be grossed out as well. In the end, the only thing comped from my check was the chocolate sundae thing that they give free to anyone who claims birthday. It took forever to get the check, pay and get the heck out of that place and I will certainly never go back and cannot recommend a visit. What a bummer.

Address: Locanda Verde, 377 Greenwich St., New York, NY

Bowery Meat Company, New York, NY

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I had read about this place in Bloomberg and checked out their website. We stopped off here at 9pm on a Saturday night. It was no shock that waiting for a table for two would take an hour. We were able to snag two seats at the small bar, which are full menu service, first come, first served.

The bartenders, Steve and Brendan, were great: excellent service, well-made Manhattans (I’m a bit particular about those), sincere menu suggestions, and just plain good fun. Brendan kept us primed with amuse-bouches: house cured salami with a bacon-infused crostini and great little arancini. After a short deliberation (and another cocktail) my buddy and I split the 20 oz. chateaubriand, medium rare.

When the food came, we felt brilliant! The steak had the perfect crisp saltiness, almost crust-like, on the outside and gorgeous red in the center, laid out in six perfect slices with white baby potatoes and brussel sprouts and a side of a magical, piping hot mushroom sauce. The potatoes in particular were a hit for me, with a lite “whang” (as my dear old Papaw would say) of garlic on the outside, rich and buttery inside. The steak itself was just perfect: a great piece of meat, rich, delicious umami flavors, succulent and easy to cut and chew. We almost fought over the last piece. It was that good. They could have charged me double and I would not have complained (at $125, maybe just a little).

From start to finish – the greet stand, the barkeeps, the décor (including the huge canoe hanging over our heads), the cocktails, and most especially the food – it was a fantastic experience and I will go back soon. If you have the time (because it’s worth making an experience of it) and appetite, I strongly suggest you stop in.

Address: Bowery Meat Company, 9 East 1st Str., New York, NY

Virgola, New York, NY

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Blink and you might miss it. I’m very hesitant to review this little gem because, well, it’s so tiny I’m afraid I won’t get a seat next time I go. They don’t take reservations – they don’t have to. Their menu consists of charcuterie, cheese, vegetables, and a few seafood small-plates to go with the featured oysters. Usually, I order a few rounds of the oysters of the day – $1-1.50 for the chef’s choice of whatever they got a good deal on. The oysters are properly shucked, fresh, and accompanied with fresh grated horseradish, as well as the usual cocktail and mignonette. The place is a no-brainer and one of my favorite little spots for now and I can’t wait until they open up a location in the East Village.

Address: Virgola, 28 Greenwich Ave, New York, NY

Tertulia, New York, NY

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Tertulia is what happens when a celebrity chef feels hemmed in by his creation (Boqueria) and longs for a place of his own. Seamus Mullen went for it with Tertulia, which claims to focus on cuisine from the Asturias region of Spain. I’ve never been to that part of Spain, but the menu is full of dishes I do recognize. And love. This is also the only place outside of San Sebastian that I’ve found proper Spanish sidra, poured correctly, no less. They do a fine pulpo, albóndigas, and the best arroz negro I’ve had . . . other than mine, of course. The tapas and tablas are well chosen and executed. I’ve always wanted to get the chuletón – beef rib steak – but have never been able to muster the appetite for its girth. If you have a real love of Spanish food and drink, you can’t go wrong here. Make your reservation today.

Address: Tertulia, 359 6th Ave, New York, NY

Bar El Vallado, Pamplona, Spain

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When you are in Pamplona and it is San Fermines and you are dancing, running, singing at the top of your lungs with a bottle in one hand and a stranger’s hand in the other, you will need jamon. You will need jamon worse than you ever thought anyone could ever need jamon and you will need it now. There’s no other place to consider.

Address: Bar El Vallado, Plaza Consistorial, 2, 31001, Pamplona, Spain

Casa Marí y Rufo, Barcelona, Spain

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Down a small side street along Mercado Santa Caterina in Upper Borne (yes, I made that up), I found this place only because I was taken there by locals who literally had to step into the street, wave and holler at me, to find it the first time. It doesn’t get any more local than this. Don Rufo stands behind the bar, cooking and pouring cañas with a healthy dose of old bartender spice. The first time I went we sat at a table next to the bar and carried on with him all night – our first query about the freshness of the langostinos resulted in Rufo waving at a bar patron and saying “hell, I don’t know, ask that lady – she just brought them in off the boat!” Seared whole on his flattop grill and dressed with salt, olive oil from the cooking, and lemon – limón y sal indeed – just fantastic. The grilled octopus here usually starts with a fight at the table, then ends with a second or third order. Closing out the tab is an iterative process with Rufo asking what we had – and estimating so low we had to adjust our tab up quite a bit. That first visit ended with dueling magic shows from, on one hand, a gentleman from LA who just happens to be the famed cinematographer of the upcoming Batman vs. Superman flic, and my friend Luis on the other. Luis won by all counts with his “Portuguese Magic” bit.

My second visit, though a little less eventful than the three-bottles-of-wine-and-magic-tricks dinner, was so excellent we forgot all about our budding hangovers. We covered much of the same ground – fresh shrimp and octopus two ways – as my earlier visit. It was all just as excellent at lunch, as dinner. The back room service from Rufo’s son was as hilarious as the front room, with plates and curses flying on occasion and food and drink coming fast and delicious. I can’t get enough of this place and hope Don Rufo stays in business for years to come, but never changes.

Address: Casa Marí y Rufo, Carrer de Freixures 11, 08003 Barcelona, Spain

Bar del Pla, Barcelona, Spain

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Be not afraid. Although in the ever-so-trendy neighborhood of El Borne, Bar del Pla will reward your efforts. This is probably the best tapes I’ve had in Barcelona. The chorizo y asado and squid ink croquettes were simply amazing. As in, crispy outside, smooth inside, flavor bombs. Their octopus bombas were great, though eclipsed by the grilled octopus. And of course they have the fantastically fresh l’Escala anchovies – is that even a question? You can get on tap local favorites like Estrella Damm, but they also carry one of Barcelona’s on-trend craft beers in rotation. Although I’m a craft beer fan for the most part, when in Spain I want the traditional offerings – some of the best clear beers on the planet. A real revelation here was the xampis wasabi: a salad of paper-thin mushrooms with strawberries and a well-balanced wasabi dressing. Sounds crazy, looks crazy, tastes awesome. This place is a must – it was hard to resist eating there every day. Most recent visit July 2015.

Address: Bar del Pla, Carrer Montcada 2, 08003 Barcelona, Spain