Son Cubano & The Stanton Social

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Thursday was basically my eating day as me and 3 friends ventured out in to the Meatpacking District for lunch (at Son Cubano), desert (at Pastis) and dinner (at The Stanton Social). Son Cubano is a trendy Cuban restaurant on 14th st which is empty at lunch, but packed at dinner. I went for lunch, where the crowd was down but so were the prices on the menu. Son Cubano has tapas style dishes as well as traditional appetizers and entrees. The calamari as a tapa was very good, the calamari wasn't chewy and it didn't have an overly salty taste as some other calamari dishes do. The paella was good at the time of consumption, but I think it did have a negative effect on my digestive system and there for I'm not recommending anyone try it. The service was poor as they misplaced my friend's order and wouldn't replace it with the proper entree. The waiter also didn't speak English well. I had higher expectations of Son Cubano and I probably won't be returning soon!
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The Stanton Social on the other hand was a great dining experience from start to finish. Its located in the Lower East Side of Manhattan on Stanton street. They serve an array of cuisines which range from Japanese Tuna Tartare to American Kobe Beef Sliders. All the food is served family style in tapas form and everything is built for sharing. The best part is the menu isn't expensive for the quality of food you get. To eat well, you'll spend about $40 max a person. Anything more than that is honestly a waste. The tapas style dishes unfortunately are hit or miss. The highlights were the tuna tartare, the perogis and the snapper tacos. Some of the downfalls were the souvlaki and the duck confit empanadas. The soup dumplings were kind of in between, but had a pungent odor of feet. The Stanton Social features a crowded bar area and blasting music as well as an elegant dining area and a chic Asian influenced lounge. The waitress we had was great at recommending dishes for us to have and was quite attentive of my peanut allergy, which is always nice. The Stanton Social is a great restaurant for parties and social gatherings of any kind, and you'll eat well too!
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Neptune's Oyster Bar, Sportello & Motorino

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I just came back from my trip to Boston (if you can consider Thursday "just"), and of course I visited some pretty good restaurants. One was located in the Little Italy of Boston, but wasn't so Italian. The other was a legit Italian restaurant with a trendy and modern feel. I'll start with Neptune's Oyster Bar. Neptune's is a tiny restaurant where after 7:00 PM you feel like you're in a sardine can (fishy scent included). The decor is really nothing spectacular. It consists of dark wood walls, a raw bar, a real bar and, about 4 or 5 tables for dining. The food, is also nothing spectacular. You know the food isn't anything great when you have to check their online menu to remember what you ate. I had the fried clams, which in a New England state is almost impossible to mess up, the Hamachi Tartare and, the Lobster Spaghetti. The spaghetti sauce wasn't heavy which was the opposite of what I expected and there was a good amount of lobster in the spaghetti. The Yellowtail was good as well, the fish was quite fresh and it tasted good. My main problem is nothing on the menu jumps out at you. The dished they prepare are quite simple and would be a major issue if they didn't taste good due to the simplicity of the dishes. Neptune's Oyster Bar is a good choice for a restaurant in Boston's Little Italy, mainly because its surrounded by sleazy fake Italian restaurants.
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Sportello on the other hand is an authentic Italian restaurant in Boston as well. The downstairs is mainly for drinks and has a bar menu which consists of small dishes and finger foods. Upstairs is where the majority of the cooking gets done. The upstairs is set up with a few traditional tables, and three rows of bar style seating, all over looking the kitchen area (kind of like you're own little chef's table...that you happen to share with 75% of the restaurant). The decor is quite modern and trendy, despite its cuisine which is more refined. The potato gnocci is great as well as the papardelle. The bolognese sauce (not consisting of the dog) for the papardelle really makes the dish and the gnocci wasn't mushy and chewy (which it can be if its not cooked correctly). The steak was very good as well. It was seasoned well and was quite tender. The service was also great and friendly (and our waitress even knew of David Chang's gold mine, Momofuku). Sportello is a great choice and should be visited when in the Boston area. But, New York definitely reigns over Boston in the restaurant industry. With restaurants like Buddakan, Del Posto, Bouley and Pastis, its no wonder people come from all over to sample the best foods NY has to offer!
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Motorino of Williamsburg was named Time Out's winner for Artisan Pizza, but is a loser in my book. Motorino is located in Brooklyn and by the looks of it isn't anything spectacular. But, with all the hype one has to think the food is spectacular. It really isn't. After visiting Company on 24th street in Manhattan, I wasn't impressed. The margherita wasn't anything spectacular and the crust tasted burnt all over. The prosciutto pizza consisted of thick dry slices of prosciutto and mozzarella cheese. And that's all that looked appetizing on the menu! There is nothing really special about this place, go to Company for a good pizza, good decor and good service!
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SushiSamba Park & Co.

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Today I had the chance to have lunch at SushiSamba Park and dinner at the new "in" pizzeria, Company. I'll start with SushiSamba. SushiSamba is located on Park Ave S between 19th & 20th st and serves a Japanese, Peruvian and Brazilian cuisine; but should really focus on one and you can tell the owners put decor over quality of food. The sushi bar is under an artistic light fixture, but the rest of the celling that isn't covered by this fixture isn't attractive. However, the rest of the restaurant is appealing to the eye and is trendy enough for even the most high-brow socialite. Now for the food. In my opinion as I stated earlier, if SushiSamba focuses on serving only one type of food it would do much better; but since they decided to serve three different types of food they run into a slight problem. I only ordered the Japanese part, which was good, but not nearly as good as it should have been. I ordered the chicken teriyaki bento box. The chicken teriyaki was good, but the sushi that came with it was sub par and the miso soup was incredibly salty and if you could imagine what urine tastes like, SushiSamba's miso soup would taste exactly like that. But I've only ordered the Japanese cuisine and as I've heard their Brazilian and Peruvian dishes are much better. The service was up to par for a restaurant of this standard. For lunch SushiSamba isn't a bad choice as I could have made a much worse choice than their $14 bento box (which is actually a lot of food); but I wouldn't exactly go there for dinner as by looking at their menu, can be a bit pricey and the food isn't worth the price tag.
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Company (or Co. as it is also known as) is a small upscale pizzeria in Chelsea. Co. is owned by Jim Lahey and quite honestly is a gold mine (not as much as Pastis, but its still bringing in a lot of profit during this recession). Co. is designed as a typical pizzeria but has a bit more style and elegance to it. The wooden panelling in the back adds a nice touch, as well as the chandeliers made of material and parts of an accordion. Its a small place and can only seat 50 people (there are 2 communal tables and about five 2-person tables and another two 6-person tables) so it does get pretty crowded. Company does not take reservations so you may have to wait. From tonight, 6:30 PM is their busiest time for dinner, and the crowd dies down at around 7:30 PM. The reason why this place is packed is for the sole fact that the pizza is good...really good. Co. makes small 4 slice pizzas that are made for one person, and they basically smother it with toppings. But the chefs at Company do this in such a way that the pizza turns out to be light and enjoyable rather than heavy. The Margherita was the best pie out of all of them, followed by the Flambe pie (cheese, prosciutto and caramelized onions), the Ham & Cheese pie, and then their "Special Pie" which this evening was the "Bird's Nest" pie (cheese, asparagus shavings, black truffle and quail eggs). The Bird's Nest pie wasn't too good in my opinion as it was complicated and the quail egg was too overpowering for the rest of the flavors, but the rest of the pies were phenomenal. These pies were also relatively inexpensive ranging from $13 to $24 a pie ($24 was the special pie, the other 3 pies were about $15 each). The staff was incredibly friendly and knowledgeable and they looked like they were having fun doing their job, which is always nice to see as a patron. In conclusion Co. does live up to its hype and was worth the visit, just be ready to wait at least 30 minutes to be seated.
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New KAWS Release

KAWS just dropped its New Text and Ct Liz Tees recently. According to Hypebeast both shirts are "cheaper" than what they normally go for, but that's not saying too much as a Kaws tee usually goes for $80. But these 2 tees are available now at Anytime in Hong Kong and at local (or not so local) Kaws dealers!
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5 Ninth & A Re-Review of The Spice Market

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Today I had another food lover's paradise. 5 Ninth for brunch, then The Spice Market for dinner. 5 Ninth is located in the Meatpacking District, just down the block from the famous French Bistro Pastis. While its not nearly as crowded as its neighbor, 5 Ninth is a good contender for Brunch. 5 Ninth is a 3 floor townhouse which has a classical yet old country cabin feel to it. Its very simple yet cozy and chic. From the old wooden door, to the wooden floors, to the old logs sitting by the bar, 5 Ninth could have been located near Killington Mountain in Vermont for all I knew. The garden in the back is quaint and cozy and I'm sure would be nice for a small get-together in the summer. The brunch menu consists of things like eggs Benedict, cheese omelets, pancakes, french toast, and a few sandwiches. I had their signature dish which was called "Toads in a Hole". Toads in a Hole is basically a fried egg on French toast, accompanied by a salad with a citrus flavor to it. It was very good I have to say. Though the taste of the salad was a bit overwhelming towards the end, the French toast was very good and the egg complemented it very well. The service is great and they were quite aware of my peanut allergy (as most restaurants in the Meatpacking District are, with the exception of Morimoto). 5 Ninth is a perfect place to go for a coffee with friends, or carry out a small get together. If you're looking for large crowds at brunch time, please head on down the block to Pastis, down a block and around the corner to Merkato 55, down about 4 blocks to 202, or around the corner to Bagatelle.
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The Spice Market this evening, was packed...intensly packed...like Tao packed. Since I have reviewed The Spice Market before I won't get into great detail about the ambiance, but the restaurant is gorgeous and built specifically for the young Meatpacking District yuppies and business men. What I did notice however, is why its difficult to get a reservation past 7:00 PM. A normal dinner for 2 at The Spice Market will last a minimum of 2 hours so every table is filled. Everything takes a minimum of 20 minutes to prepare (yes this is including the sides), so there are giant lapses between dishes, which isn't too bad especially if you're with friends. Now in this review I'll go more into the food since I only had one thing on my last visit. Last time, I had the Pork Vindaloo which was good, but the amount of jalapeno could have made the dish lethal to anyone with acid reflux. This time, I had the beef skewers with a refreshing lime sauce which were decent. The crab dumplings which were very good, but the pea shoots that accompanied it were spicy (as you can tell I'm not into spicy foods, but if you are The Spice Market is a perfect place for you). The snapper was great! The fish was tender and moist and the flavors were all in tune with one another. But the short ribs weren't as good but still were nothing to complain about. The ginger fried rice was nothing spectacular as it was essentially just flavored rice with an egg on top. Personally I enjoyed the pea shoots as a side order as it had a Chinese flavor to it which I enjoyed very much. The desserts were surprisingly great. I usually tend to avoid desserts at Asian restaurants, but The Spice Market made me forget all that. The Ovaltine Kulfi was great. It was a chocolate "taffy" type pastry with Indian spices on top, with caramel popcorn, an Ovaltine puff and a caramelized banana at the bottom. The Thai Jewels was also quite delicious and refreshing. This dessert is a chilled coconut milk soup with exotic fruits. The fruits blended well with the coconut milk and all the flavors flowed together perfectly. Also, the service is great at understanding peanut allergies and does a good job of preventing potential allergic reactions. Anyone who has a peanut allergy knows how potentially dangerous going to a restaurant like The Spice Market is. But the servers really do a good job at guiding you in ordering peanut/nut free foods. All and all The Spice Market is a great place for the young as it is fun and exotic and the food is flavorful enough to captivate us for a two hour dinner!
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Hill Country

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About 2 days ago while near Union Square, I wanted to go for lunch at the Shake Shack (who's burgers are amazing by the way). I went over to Madison Square Pack only to find a atrocious line that had a wait time of at least 45 minutes. So I said nay to the Shake Shack. Then I thought to myself "Self, why don't I go to Hill Country about 3 blocks away". Hill Country is a Texan BBQ joint that I've been really wanting to try. Since my pleasant experiences at Wildwood BBQ, I've been really into Barbecue and its really becoming a trend due to the recession (young people are always looking for inexpensive good food). I've tried Blue Smoke, and wasn't too impressed but Wildwood serves up some pretty good BBQ. Hill Country is a bit different however. You don't get served by waiters and waitresses but, its cafeteria style. Meaning you go up to the 3 counters they have and order your food on a tray and bring it back to your table. Upon arrival, you will be given your "Meal Ticket". You present this ticket to all of the counters after your order your food. The server will check off what you order on the ticket, and you will present this ticket to the cashier and pay when you finish eating. After you get your ticket, you make your way over to the meat counter. The meat counter consists of 3 butchers who serve you. If you order ribs they cut them right in front of you, and same with the brisket and any other meats you order. Then they weigh the meat, and depending on the weight they'll give you a price (the average prices are written above the counter). So the sign above the counter could say $12.00 for pork ribs, but you could end up paying only $11 if they weigh light enough. After the meat counter, you make your way over to the sides counter where you pick your side dish/dishes. After the side counter, you make your way over to the bar where you can get any beverage you like. I decided to go for the pork ribs. I learned shortly after Hill Country's specialty is their brisket and beef ribs, but that doesn't mean their pork ribs were no good. Hill Country's ribs put Blue Smoke's to shame. They were meaty and tender. The butchers don't give you any sauce on the ribs, so you need to apply BBQ sauce as you see fit (in my case I use a pool of sauce). But what made the ribs was their rub. Hill Country provides you with a rub that tastes salty, spicy and flavourful and really gives a nice touch to the ribs. That is actually the one issue Wildwood has, their rub tastes like nothing. But Hill Country fixes that and actually perfects it! Their corn bread was also very good (not too much I can say there). Hill Country is a great place to go with friends for great, inexpensive barbecue. I highly recommend it!
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Craftbar

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Today I had lunch at Craftbar which is owned by the famous Tom Colicchio (also the owner of Craft and Craftsteak). I was interested in having dinner at Pipa instead, but they didn't serve dinner till later and I was pressed for time. This restaurant is basically the low-brow version of Craft, as it serves essentially the same style of food, but in a more casual setting. But Craftbar is by no means casual. The restaurant itself has a classy/modern feel to it, but isn't really anything special. Upon arrival, there is no "WOW" factor (Craftbar looks a lot nicer in photos). It just looks like what you expect, a decent looking restaurant. The food is no better however as its mediocre at best. I ordered the short ribs, and while the meat was moist and tender, the dish would have done better in a brunch menu rather than in a dinner menu. It was a piece of beef short-ribs, grits, a variety of peppers (which my body isn't digesting too well), and a fried egg. The flavor wasn't anything complicated nor was it anything I haven't seen or tasted before. It was okay, but not worth the money I spent on it ($24). On the positive side, the service is good, but then again, at a restaurant of this caliber and price range it should be good. All and all, there are much better (and cheaper) options than Craftbar, so if you just happen to walk right past it on sight, you really wouldn't have missed anything spectacular. Final consensus: Go to Craftsteak instead.
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