Blue Ribbon Bar

34 Downing Street off Bedford
212/691.0404
$86 for two with four beers and a glass of wine, with tip
♥ ♥ ♥

So there’s Blue Ribbon Sushi and Blue Ribbon Brasserie on Sullivan; the Blue Ribbon Bakery on Bedford and Blue Ribbon Market around the corner. Of course, there’s the other brasserie in Brooklyn. I wasn’t surprised when I heard the Bromberg brothers have opened Blue Ribbon Bar on Downing Street because they have been in the business even before the Lambs started taking over the East Village and way before David Chang started attracting other chefs at his restaurant during its after-hours. What I like about any of the Blue Ribbons is that they go past the food trends. People who still wait in line are most likely customers who have been following the empire for the last ten years. I know that when I go, I will get more than just a decent, civilized meal; that I’ll get a tried dish that only a select few will appreciate.

It’s their dependable reputation that made me order the pickled tongue, the wild mushrooms with sweetbreads and the steak tartare with capers. I like that a restaurant, even a tight bar space, will be adventurous enough to offer those items. I like it even better when they can do them right. The pickled tongue, which reminded me of wd-50, was so tender that it made me happy to be eating it even as it discombobulated after a bite. The steak tartare was classically Blue Ribbon and put in mind one of my favorites from their roster, roasted bone marrow with oxtail marmalade. The mushrooms were so fragrant that my companion didn’t mind the sweetbreads even after I told him what they really were. They have a great wine list and less expensive flights for their sparkling wines, Pinots and Reislings. It’s also the same reputation that makes their employees less obnoxious–I was going to use an eight-letter word starting with an “a”–than other waitstaff in the city. Our bartender was very accommodating even after more people squeezed in and he never forgot us sitting in the corner, refilling our water glasses and serving us a complementary flight of wine after already several drinks.

Related post/s:
Blue Ribbon Sushi
Blue Ribbon Brooklyn
David Chang’s Momofuku Ssam
The Lambs’ Degustation
The pickled tongue at wd-50

Where to eat in Las Vegas: Mon Ami Gabi

I was in Las Vegas for a two-day-long work conference. Everything was set up for us. They took care of our flights, hotels, transportation and food, and everything was done half-aSsed. I didn’t think I would hate the idea of a buffet until after the first night’s dinner at the Bellagio Buffet. Everything looked liked they’ve been picked over by the time we sat down at 8pm. The lamb loin was so boring. The chicken was dry. The squid salad was chewy. I walked past the sushi station and the lamps made the fish look so unappetitizing that I didn’t even bother. I wondered why everyone makes a big deal of the Bellagio Buffet. The only thing that was worth eating was the quail, which was surprisingly moist, stewed in red wine. The sundae looked promising for dessert, but the taste disappeared as fast as it melted. I looked around me and understood the type of eaters buffets attract. They most likely come from smaller towns that don’t have as many food choices as New Yorkers. The buffet to them is a splurge because it’s in a nice hotel and they’re in the middle of their dream vacation. There were so many choices, but I really would rather have two good courses than fifteen mediocre ones. I had read reviews about the long wait and the view of the Bellagio fountains from Mon Ami Gabi before I left New York. I was adamant to eat something delicious while in Las Vegas so when we finally had some time to ourselves, we took a cab from The Luxor to the Paris Hotel.

Mon Ami Gabi, which means “My Friend Gabi” in French is tucked next to the Eiffel Tower replica. It was dark when we first walked in and the tiles reminded me of the more intimate bistros in Paris, but then it opened up to an atrium bathed in sunlight. It was too windy to sit outside so our table next to the patio was perfectly situated. If the group of ladies next to us with big hair and white shorts weren’t there, it easily could have been Paris. I ordered the potato soup as an appetizer. The chicken broth was subtly flavored and the small potato chunks floated delicately with the chives. The duck confit sat on lentils. The skin of the duck was golden and crispy while the dark meat tenderly came off the bone when poked and nudged with a fork. The fries were a different kind: they were thinly sliced and deep-fried and came with my companions’ orders of steak, chicken and salmon sandwiches. Two others ordered the spinach crepe and the lobster bisque. From the looks of their empty plates at the end of our meal, they liked them, too. I visited Las Vegas for the first time three years ago. I had dinner with some friends at Nobu and I remember that the omakase was excellent. Returning this year, I realized that the country’s top chefs have at least one branch on the strip and that the food being offered have come a long way in the desert, but the buffets still have a long way to go.

Mon Ami Gabi is inside the Paris Hotel, 3655 Las Vegas Boulevard. Call 702/967.7999 to make reservations for dinner inside the restaurant. Otherwise, there is a long wait for the tables outside where diners have the view of the Bellagio Fountains.

Ed’s Lobster Bar

222 Lafayette Street between Spring and Broome Streets
212/343.3236
$90 for three with Birch beer and two glasses of sparkling wine, without tip
♥ ♥

Ed McFarland, another Pearl Oyster Bar graduate, has opened up his own seafood restaurant and rawbar. (Ex Pearl partner, Mary, left to open Mary’s Fish Camp.) The location is great because it’s quite hard to find a decent place to eat in SoHo without straying away from Broadway. Ed’s Lobster Bar is narrow in front and opens up in the back. There is wainscoting on the walls and bricks are painted white. The space and the menu reminded me of the many seafood places I’ve tried during drives around New England. Three of us were seated in the back during its opening weekend where it was busy and pretty tight. We were next to the bathroom and the kitchen but the collective buzz contributed to a happier ambiance than not.

Press writeups laud the lobster rolls and everyone around us ordered them, but I just couldn’t get into all that mayo even after picking the fresh lobster pieces in it. The fries were a bit soggy and I ended up pushing the boring greens that came with it. The best thing on the plate were the homemade pickles. They were perfectly salty and briny. I know I’ll be back for a jar of them and skip the $19 roll altogether. All those years visiting New England never taught me what proper clam chowder is. I liked Ed’s version because it was runnier, but my companion told me she would have prefered it chunkier, Brooklyn style. We also ordered three oysters from Blue Point and three from Pine Islands. They were fresh, sweet and salty just like the ocean. We would have appreciated the scallops better if we weren’t painfully full because they tasted like they were seared in glorious bacon fat. We had visited two other places beforehand, so we called it an early night as if we were actually in New England.

Related post/s:
Mary’s Fish Camp
Brooklyn-style clam chowder

Cafe Falai

265 Lafayette Street, off Prince
917/338.6207
$50 for two, BYOB for now, with tip
♥ ♥

I remember loving Falai when I visited two years ago. A panetteria has opened down the block since then, and now a cafe on the west side. Cafe Falai is BYOB and closes at 8pm while they wait for their liquor license. The waiter entertained me while I waited for my two dining companions. They were so late he lent me his cell phone so that I can play Boggle. He told me he had only been working there for three days, but as soon as my group showed up, it seemed it was his first stint as a waiter, ever.

The menu is not much different from the original Falai. Our beautiful bowl of caramelized onions came with a dot of yolk. Before we finished raving about how it looked, the waiter grabbed a spoon, stirred the yolk and scooped up the onions to distribute in our small bowls. He left and returned with a small pot of consommé and poured the broth in our bowls and then left again to take everything away. Our delicate onion soup looked abused. It looked like we were eating chunky tea, but the waiter obviously thought he was giving us extra love. Fortunately, he left us mostly to ourselves the rest of the night. (We tried to laugh with him when he burped while giving us our check.) The breaded and fried mozarella was incredibly light and the balsamic dressing over the frisé was exceptional. I was just a tad disappointed that it came with only five small golden beets. The pappardelle with mushrooms was good, served with buttered sauce and sage. The branzino was perfectly cooked. Its crisp skin gave way to the tender white meat. I loved that it soaked in soupy pesto with mini Brussel sprouts and grape tomatoes. The veal meatballs were less adventurous, however, and the octopus, I thought, was undersalted and too soft. Because chef Iacopo Falai was a pastry chef at Le Cirque 2000 back in the days, we didn’t want to skip the cafe’s dessert offerings. We ordered a citrus tart which I loved because of its gingery taste, but my companions preferred the light and flaky apple pastry. I would like to go back for their baked goods and cup of illy coffee the next time I visit. I just hope that the waiter is not there before dinner service.

Related post/s:
Iacopo Falai’s first restaurant