IMDonehere

Large in the sense of expense and ambiance, small in the sense of cost.

Large
Gotham Bar and Grill
Tocqueville
Aquagrill
Peter Luger

Small
2nd Ave Deli
Brindle Room
Xian Famous
Jing Fong for dim sum
Back Forty for brunch
Motorino for pizza
Defonte's for Italian sandwiches
Brick Lane-Indian
Rai Rai Ken-ramen
Cacio y Pepe-signature dish
La Boqueria-tapas

abram

Earlier this month we liked (all inexpensive):
Totto Ramen
Pongsri Thai
Afghan Kebab House
Sushi-ya
Thalia--Sunday brunch
Kasheval Garden

ekscrunchy

The past few months:

Large:

NoMad (one of our current NYC favorites; famous for their chicken; chicken sandwich at lunch is also terrific, as is their famous pig confit, and "milk and honey" dessert)

Gato (the new Bobby Flay restaurant surprised me with its exciting food and lack of scene during early dinner hours; loved the chickory salad; soft shell crab crostini; octopus; chocolate crema Catalana dessert)

Estela (a number of stand-out dishes on the menu including razor clams and lamb ribs; exciting flavor combinations; tiny place that gets very noisy)

Perla (Italian in West Village; small and cozy but with loud music)

Battersby in Cobble Hill, Brooklyn (Tiny place, very friendly; a few memorable dishes on small menu)

Pearl & Ash (tiny wine/food bar with music on the loud side; intriguing menu; octopus and lamb belly are exceptional; great pork meatballs, too; wine markup is among lowest in city and by-the-glass and bottle lists are lengthy and interesting)



Small:

Paulie Gee's, Greenpoint, Brooklyn (Pizza. with both classic and unusual ingredients and combinations--try the "Hellboy"; separate list of vegan pizzas; surprisingly good salad with "secret" viniagrette; congenial owner; wine and "craft" beers; plan to expand in several US cities soon)

Ivan Ramen in Gotham West market: Tasty ramen in cool new food hall on 11th Avenue (see my recent report on this)

Dollar Pizza, Lexington Avenue near 46th Street: Not bad for $1; many similar places in midtown; expect lines at lunchtime


Disappointing/large:

Momofuko Ma Peche (new format with carts, a la dim sum but not with dim sum dishes; price/value ratio not very good; a few standouts (the famous pork bun, various rice dishes including lobster fried rice; Crack Pie from Milk Bar (a branch upstairs from restaurant) is swoon-inducing for those who love sweet desserts;hope they bring back the old format/menus)

IMDonehere

Esk, I could not agree more about the David Chang restaurants, it seems to be a case of the Emperor's New Clothes but we will add Estela to our list of places to try.

Thanks Esk and Abram.

Pepper_von_snoot

I love Aqua Grill. The salmon in falafel crust is fabulous.

I haven't been to Gotham B/G in ten years, but still remember the skate wing that I ate the last time I was there.

I miss Chanterelle so much. I can't believe it is gone.

Picholine is great for a small venue.

I like Cafe D'Alsace a lot but it is so far uptown on 2nd Ave.

Thin

Pepper_von_snoot

Where is a good place to get a bahn mi sandwich.

I had one at a place on Grand Street that was also a jewellery shop.

It was pretty good but the bun wasn't as crispy as I like.

There is a new Laduree in Soho so must stop by next Monday to get some salted caramel macarons.

Lunch at L'Ecole at the French Culinary Institute is a bargain and very good.


Thin

IMDonehere

My favrorite Bahn Mi also called Nicky's.

Try Bahn Mi Zon

http://www.banhmizon.com/

Also for bao-try Baohaus on 14th Street and have the Chairman Bao and their version of French Fries.

nstevey

IMHO, the best 点心 (dim sum) is not in Manhattan but Brooklyn and Queens:

East Harbor Seafood Palace
Asian Jewels

Pepper_von_snoot

Thanks, we are going to Angelika on Sunday so Mizon is an option.

Thin

ekscrunchy

I didn't mention any Chinese places in Flushing, but that is where I head for that.

Current favorites, all in the "small" group, are these three, each focusing on foods from the North Eastern region of China; each can be reached by #7 train to Main Street or LIRR to Flushing. The second two require a walk from the train of about 15 minutes. The first is right near the train stops.

FU RUN on Prince Street

LAO DONG BEI on Kissena

GOLDEN PALACE on Cherry, off Kissena

Thisi one is more difficult to reach by public transport, but it can be done; there is ample street parking, too.

And LITTLE PEPPER on College Point Blvd, north of Northen Blvd, for excellent Sichuan

HappyTrvlr

Small:CoBa.. Vietnamese on 9th Ave (17/18) and a new branch Hells Kitchen, CoBa53. Good Banh Mi, and Vietnamese dishes.
Not small or large: Cecil's, 118th St, Harlem, delicious innovative menu with soul food and Caribbean influences .
Nice decor. Their jazz club Minton's is adjacent.

IMDonehere

Thanks for the responses.

Pepper_von_snoot

That's it?

Just some responses from a few posters?

Where is Doug Stallings?

Or does he only dine at Eleven Madison Park?


Thin

IMDonehere

I too am surprised at the dearth of responses.


Doug always pushes L'Entrecôte and Sarge's.

HappyTrvlr

It's a valuable list with input IMDonehere, Pepper and ekscrunchy as contributors.

maitaitom

Our two favorites (this is from October 2011, so don't know if that counts...although they still garner favorable reviews for the most part) were:

The Green Table in the Chelsea Market and North Square near Washington Square. Both of these restaurants would not be considered expensive by NYC standards, but we usually make them more expensive by our wine consumption.

NeoPatrick

I have to say the Le Bernardin remains my absolute favorite splurge restaurant in the city, after dining there maybe 5 times total over the years. Picholine might be second.

There are a lot of really great restaurants in the city I'd like a whole lot better if only you could hold a conversation at a table without shouting, and being drowned out by others shouting all around you. My biggest gripe about restaurants, particularly the new and trendy ones. And next to that is the fact that at so many places, you're packed in -- particularly a pair of diners lined up in a row with others with a couple of inches between each table. (Aqua Grill comes to mind -- I LOVE the food and service, if only I could ever get a good table, although honestly I'm not sure they have any "spacious" or "semi-private" doubles!)

A few of my favorite "small" restaurants? Room Service for Thai on Ninth Ave., Emilio's Ballato on Houston, Lupa on Thompson.

Florida1

DH and I are in NYC a lot these days as he has a client here. This is a valuable list!

For small place/price:
We like to pick up lobster rolls at Luke's Lobster. They are so good!

IMDonehere

Thanks Happy

A few more mid price range

Pylos-Greek- no gyros but interestingly prepared food

Mary's Fish Camp-no reservations

Turkish Kitchen

Shar

....Isabella's on Columbus at 77th is my new favorite.
... Cafe LaLo for breakfast, coffee or dessert
....Aqua Grill Spring Street
....Cesca (haven't been in awhile)so I hope it is still good
on West 75th
....Grano Trattoria Greenwich Ave.