One of the best NYC has to offer - Babbo
110 Waverly Place
New York, NY 10011
(212) 777-0303
www.babbonyc.com

I have been going to Babbo for the last five years and to this day it remains my favorite restaurant in NYC. The combination of warm and attentive service, the cozy yet elegant setting and the amazing food result in perfection as far as I'm concerned (Yes, I like the music too) . My wife and I have eaten together here many times, and if I'm having a nice sit down meal with her, I prefer sitting upstairs under the skylight. However, lately with her having a more hectic schedule and not being as obsessed with place as I am, I have discovered a new way to enjoy Babbo that has made being and eating there a new joy - eating a full meal at the bar. I find that the bar staff is always knowledgeable, friendly and make the experience more enjoyable. Eating at the bar has a way of making you forget that you are eating at a place that people from around the world come to and instead makes it feel like a more intimate local joint.

I started with a glass of Grasparossa Lambrusco, something that I have been enjoying a lot lately. The fruity, slightly sweet, effervescent red wine is nice to relax at home with or in my case, to enjoy before the meal. I decided I would indulge tonight and started off with a duck egg on top of toasted, crusty bread and covered with shaved truffle. The oozing yolk with the bread moistened lightly with olive oil and the earthiness of the truffles (which I normally don't care too much for) were a decadent and delicious combination. This starter only served to rev up my appetite and soon my Lamb Brain Ravioli was in front of me. I've eaten almost everything on the menu and this was probably one of the last pastas I hadn't tried. Many people might be intimidated because the hear a lot about how offal is used in many dishes, but again, part of what makes this place perfect is that if you actually order the "scary" sounding dishes, you find they are prepared in a way that allows you to enjoy and savor the flavors without being freaked out by some overly organic presentation. These chefs don't want to scare you off; it is obvious they want you to experience new foods and expand your horizons beyond the norm of what Italian cuisine is perceived to be. Bottom line - my Lamb Brain Ravioli was wonderful - the ricotta and lamb filling were moist and the pasta was perfectly cooked. I don't like overly firm or squishy pasta and I don't like large amounts of firm filling...that is never a concern at this place.

Despite telling the bartender that it was just me eating tonight and that I needed to make my way home, she thought it would be better for me to enjoy a quartino of red by myself. I smirked and let her go for it. Unfortunately, I don't really remember it too much about that red. I do remember the Veal Loin wrapped in Pancetta that I had as my main. I haven't had Veal for awhile and had been craving it. The veal was served as several small loin medallions wrapped in meaty, salty Pancetta (cooked with the veal). I know it is cliche to say that anything wrapped in bacon is better, but it is true. The veal was medium rare, tender and has a more subtle flavor than beef - the pancetta didn't overpower this. I ended with a dessert of Bomboloni served with Maple Custard. Babbo's Bombolonis are light and sweet and the maple custard was pretty good. It was thick and had a bit of an overly sweet taste. Maybe I should have stuck with my all time favorite of whatever Torta they have on the menu...or the Apple Budino.....ahhhh, next time. During my dessert course, the bartender was kind enough to provide me with two complimentary glasses of a muscato. She must have been having fun watching me have so much fun and descend into a drunken state. Like I said, the bar staff is awesome.

So once again, I had another memorable and wonderful meal at Babbo. The total bill with tax and tip was $185.

Pros: Good service and decor and excellent food
Cons: Can be expensive
Overall user rating: 10

Tamarind - My mother-in-law is tough to please

We took my mother here to celebrate Diwali on Saturday, 10/21/06. She is a cook and of the several Indian places we've taken her in the city, she only enjoyed one (that was Ada). Zagat07 said Tam was tops for Indian food and several guys at work said they enjoyed it very much. The decor was bland - just that bland NY indian restaurant look. The service was good - attentive and accomodating...except for the fact that we were seated at a tiny table only inches from the next table. We asked to be moved and were (kindly) told that a lot of people were expected soon and couldn't be moved. As for the food, my cod and crab cakes were moist and enjoyable but nothing distinctive...kind of plain. My wife had pori and it was on par with the delicious pori that my in-law makes. My in-law had shrimp balchau and it was basically a few shrimp in some tomato sauce. We order some sweet nan-e-tamrind and my wife loved that. We ordered 2 rices - tamarind rice and vegetable pillau - neither was anything special but I guess they were being compared against this delicious rice our family had been eating for the last few days which we got from an israeli restaurant. Both ladies ordered some crab soup - my in law said it was too milky and I agree, from what I tasted it was milky with no flavor. For dinner we had chicken tikka masla, chicken biriyani and lamb pasanda - all were pretty normal and nothing spectacular. I feel like this place is toned down for the american palate in a way. Kulfi, rice pudding and ghujjia for dessert were also not that great. Overall, I can see why most Americans like this place...to them the flavors are probably not that threatning and they feel like they are eating unique and special food. I guess for us it was a harder sell because we eat such similar food with the flavor at the level it is supposed to be - not hot or spicy necessarily, but flavorful. I would have liked it if they could have been less restrained and brought some of that to the table.

Pros: Good service, nice selection
Cons: Flavors can be bland
Overall user rating: 6.5

Avoce - Good italian that you've had before and yet haven't

Went to Avoce on Sunday, 10/22/06 and it was a lot more sophisticated than I expected. The decor is modern, belying the rustic cusine (I really like the swivel chairs). Our server was friendly and pushy...but in a friendly way - she was a good saleswoman. She convinced us to order the ricotta, but honestly I don't need much convincing to eat fresh ricotta. This was smooth, as if it was whipped and the touch of sea salt and olive oil was nice. My fig salad with duck bresola and asiago was good and my wife's polenta fries were moist but just OK. My wife also ordered crostini with chicken liver/foie gras spread. It was creamy and seasoned well - very homogenous in texture and flavor. My Fall Pasta of ravioli stuffed with ricotta&brocolli rabe, covered in apples and walnuts in a butter sauce was good as well. Maybe a little too firm and perfect...a little more oozing of the insides and softer pasta would have been nice. We shared an order of suckling pig which I sense is going to be, or is already on, many menus this Fall. It was high priced and a small portion - which I actually didnt mind by this point - but it wansn't worth it as far as value vs. taste in my opinion - lower the price and it was 'taste' much better (unless that's what rare, suckling pigs cost). The wife's tiramisu was decent and I've had better bomboloni - they were bigger than I like and too much like regular donut holes. Overall, the dishes were decent to good and the service was good but on the 'hard-sell' side. I felt like I knew all of the dishes but they were new in a way. The flavors were nice and balanced but I was left hoping for an extra something special. The bill was $191 with tip, tax, food and wine.

Pros: Good service, nice decor,
Cons: Hard-selling tactics may be a turn-off depending on your mood, ,
Overall user rating: 7

A possible contender in crowded NYC - Lever House, NY, NY
We had wanted to go here awhile & tonight (11/7/06) seemed to be as good as any. We arrived & my wife was impressed by the decor-kind of reminded me of some old-fashioned post-modern situation, if that makes sense. We were given a nice booth in the back w/ a view of the entire place. After much debate, due to many delicious sounding choices on the menu (I wanted to try the veal) we went w/ the autumn tasting menu w/ wine pairings. I was hesitant about the TM because it seemed pricy & not enough offerings to justify-turned out to be plenty. She started w/ blackbery limeade cocktail & couldnt stop raving about it. 1st course was vitello tonnato & bresaola w/ avocado relish-the flavors were clean & meaty, just as I wanted them to be. 2nd-cod & braised brisket w/ mushrooms & carrots. Doubts faded as I savored the crispy, well-seasoned skin of the juicy cod mixed w/ the tender meatiness of the brisket. My wife thought the dry red w/ the cod/brisket (2003 piedmont cascina ca'rossa) was wonderful. 3rd-beef tenderloin w/ grilled foie gras & black truffle sauce. I thought the tenderloin was a bit chewy & we agreed that the meat overpowered the FG. She enjoyed it separate from the meat & didnt finish the dish. I was feeling full by time I ate my last bite. 4th-a plate of pear, quince & concord grape sorbets-all very nice & refreshing. The quince was especially creamy. Finally, dessert was a caramel almond cake w/ roasted apples & vanilla ice cream. I enjoyed the caramel dots around the dish & thought the cake was moist & wonderful like toffee. It was very good w/ the ice cream. The other wine pairings were very good, but due to lack of space here I cant go on. Total bill was $410 w/ tax & tip. Service was friendly but the staff was young, a bit sloppy & unpolished. Overall, I think the food is pretty good but could get lost in the competitive food world of NYC especially considering the high prices.

Pros: Interesting decor, friendly staff, good food
Cons: Can get noisy, high prices, a bit unpolished
Overall user rating (1-10): 7