Pastis

Note: Pastis closed in February 2014, as the building it occupied closed for renovations. Owner Keith McNally claims it will re-open in 2015. We shall see.

*

A colleague and I visited Pastis a couple of weeks ago. It wasn’t my choice. I have nothing against the place, but I’ve seen the long lines plenty of times, and I doubted that it would be worth braving the crowds. However, he made a 7pm reservation, and at that hour the restaurant was only just beginning to fill up.

My colleague mentioned that Pastis seems to be one of those iconic New York restaurants where you’re supposed to see celebrities—or that’s the theory, anyway. We didn’t spy anyone famous. He mentioned that he’s watched Sex and the City only four times, and twice the characters dined at Pastis.

Well, what about the food? I had a mediocre steak tartare and a decent grilled sea bass. A not unhappy experience, but certainly nothing to justify the restaurant’s reputation. Tables are both small and uncomfortably close together, the noise level is loud, and menus double as placemats. At least the prices are reasonable.

You won’t eat badly at Pastis, but we could hardly see what all the fuss is all about.

Pastis (9 Ninth Avenue at Little West 12th St, Meatpacking District)

Food: *
Service: okay
Ambiance: fair
Overall: okay

Craftsteak

Note: Click here for a more recent review of Craftsteak.

So many new steakhouses, so little time. That’s the feeling I have these days, with high-profile steakhouses opening almost weekly. Craftsteak is special, being a creation of the sainted Tom Colicchio (Gramercy Tavern, Craft, Craftbar, Craftsteak Las Vegas, etc.).

The space is comfortable and gorgeous. My friend was distracted all evening by a spectacular mural of the Chelsea landscape that takes up the whole back wall. You never thought Chelsea looked so good! I was, on the other hand, distracted by the floor-to-ceiling wine cellar that separates the dining room from the bar, where there is ample seating for the casual visitor.

The menu has undergone some refinement from earlier versions posted on the net. On a Saturday night in May, the Wagyu tasting menus, which had ranged anywhere from $115-165 per person, were no longer on offer. Gone too was the prime rib, which had carried a price tag of anywhere from $180-240. I suspect the whole lobe of foie gras ($160) may be an endangered spiecies. Our server said that it has been ordered only twice.

A normal order of foie gras is $20. Our server was not informed as to how it was prepared. “I don’t know…it changes daily” was all he could say, but he felt sure it came with toast points. Turns out it didn’t. It was still a portion of seared foie gras ample enough to be shared (as we had expected), and sinfully good, but the server ought to know what’s coming.

A ribeye for two ($72) struck us as way under-sized. This does not seem to be a problem for the restaurant generally. A glance at other tables showed that most steaks were enormous. But this ribeye seemed only slightly larger than the typical steak for one. It yielded just nine small slices of beef. Luckily, we are not huge eaters, but I suspect others would have been disappointed. (On a subsequent visit, my friend ordered a ribeye for one that was not much smaller than the ribeye for two that we had shared.)

One could find no fault with the beef itself, which was perfectly marbled and expertly cooked. We noted that it was grilled, rather than broiled, and did not have the exterior char that many steakhouses provide. It came with a bone on the side filled with gooey marrow. To top it off, we ordered the English Pea and Morel risotto ($22), which was superb.

Aside from the foie gras confusion, service was just fine. The amuse bouche was tasty, although I’ve forgotten what was in it. The bread, which came hot out of the oven, in its own cast-iron pan, was irresistible.

Craftsteak (85 10th Avenue at 15th Street, Far West Chelsea)

Food: **
Service: *½
Ambiance: **
Overall: **

Frank's

Note: Frank’s steakhouse closed in early 2008. An inconvenient location, mediocre food, and the arrival of far better steakhouses nearby, finally doomed the place.

*

Frank’s, an Italian steakhouse, has been in business in southwest Chelsea since 1912. It recently (per the website) moved to 16th Street between Ninth and Tenth Avenues, a bit closer to the Meatpacking District / Chelsea Market action.

It’s pretty tough to imagine a restaurant more empty than Frank’s was last night. I believe there were three tables occupied, including ours. Perhaps there were a couple of guys hanging out at the bar, and watching the Yankees’ game on two large flat-panel TV screens. It’s a big space, and it’s hard to see how they can survive, if this is at all typical.

I ordered the “Lamb Chop” ($32), which actually was three smallish chops. They were cooked competently, medium rare as I ordered them, but came with no condiments, and for the price I thought it was a modest portion. My friend ordered the braised veal shank ($28), which was an enormous portion partially overcooked. The appealing bread service came with a bowl of antipasto and a tasty crumble of bleu cheese.

I hate it when the waitstaff try to sell you side dishes, and neglect to mention that your entrées already come with vegetables. One never knows for sure at these quasi-steakhouse restaurants. My lamb came with hand-cut potatoes, broccoli, and carrots. My friend’s veal came with a helping of rice that could have fed the whole Meatpacking District. Yet, our server mentioned nothing when we ordered a side of asparagus ($10) on top of all this.

Service was a tad slow, especially for a place that was practically empty, and therefore had no excuse.

Frank’s (410 W. 16th St. between Ninth & Tenth Avenues, Southwest Chealsea)

Food: Okay
Service: Fair
Ambiance: Okay
Overall: Okay

Return to 5 Ninth

Note: This is a review of 5 Ninth under founding chef Zak Pelaccio. After numerous changes of both chef and format, the restaurant closed in early 2013.

*

My friend and I had dinner at 5 Ninth last Friday evening. The restaurant was running a bit late, and our 9:00pm reservation was honored at more like 9:20.

Some of the silly service quirks remain from my last visit, such as serving bread without bread plates. This seems so elementary that it defies belief they haven’t thought of it. On the other hand, the wine list is to the restaurant’s credit. We had no trouble identifying a very pleasing red for around $27, where one would much more commonly pay something in the 40’s at a restaurant in this price range.

We both started with the Berkshire Pork Belly in a garlic chilli paste. It was four gorgeous hunks of pure fat, which is of course the tastiest part of the animal, so we found it wonderful.

Anything after that was bound to seem bland. My friend had the hangar steak, and I had a baramundi (one of the day’s market specials). The baramundi had a nice crisp exterior, but it was totally unmemorable after the pork belly.

I didn’t note the prices of individual items (and they aren’t shown on the website), but the total for two, with tax and tip, was a very reasonable $127.36.

5 Ninth (5 Ninth Avenue between Gansevoort & Little West 12th Streets, Meatpacking District)

Food: *
Service: *
Ambiance: Satisfactory
Overall: *

Fatty Crab

Note: Fatty Crab closed in July 2016, ending a run of over a decade. The “Fatty” brood, with chef Zak Pelaccio at the helm, once included two Fatty Crabs, two Fatty ’Cues, and other diversions. Pelaccio left the group in 2011 and opened an unrelated restaurant, Fish & Game in Hudson, NY. The group lost its way without Pelaccio, and the various “Fatties” closed, one at a time, with this one being the last. It was fun, while it lasted.

*

Fatty Crab is chef Zak Pelaccio’s casual Malaysian spinoff. His other restaurant, the more upscale and expensive 5 Ninth, is just steps away, in the center of the Meatpacking District.

Indeed, Fatty Crab is about as casual as it gets. The restaurant is tiny, and reservations aren’t accepted. The bar serves beer and wine only. However, it has the foodie buzz, and if you get there much later than 6:30pm, you can expect to wait. A Fatty Crab meal isn’t an epic-length event, and the tables seem to turn rapidly.

The restaurant follows the irritating contemporary trend of turning out plates as they’re ready, regardless of whether you are ready for them. This can work well if you’re intending to share (as my friend and I were), but I find it presumptuous when I am informed that this is what the kitchen means to do, like it or not. Isn’t dining out meant to suit our convenience, rather than the restaurant’s?

The menu comes as several printed sheets held together with a clip board. It offers the following categories: snacks ($4-8), salads ($7-13), noodles/soups ($10-12), vegetables ($7), rice bowls ($1-3), and specialities ($6-28). All of those specialties are $17 or less, except for the restaurant’s signature dish, the chilli crab, which is $28. It was unavailable last night (worldwide shortage of dungeoness crab, we’re told).

A salad of watermelon pickle and crispy pork ($7) was wonderful, offering a sharp contrast between the cool watermelon and the warm crunchy pork. I would have liked a bit more of the pork, but I shouldn’t complain at that price. A sweet and sour fish broth with rice noodles ($10) was plenty of fun, but awfully difficult to eat.

The dish of the evening was Short Rib Rendang ($17), which is braised with kaffir lime, coconut, and chili: tender, succulent, and flavorful. A dish called Chicken Claypot ($10) offered tender cubes of meat that had all of the flavor cooked out of them.

I suspect that Fatty Crab’s menu will reward further exploration. At its wallet-friendly price, the trip will probably be well worth it.

Fatty Crab (643 Hudson St., btwn Gansevoort & Horatio Sts., West Village)

Food: *
Service: Satisfactory
Ambiance: Satisfactory
Overall: *

Posto Envy

It’s the hottest new restaurant of the season—this year’s equivalent of Per Se. Yes, it’s Del Posto. Once upon a time, it would have been madness to open an upscale restaurant anywhere on 10th Avenue. Now, it’s the home of Mario Batali and Joseph Bastianich’s “out-and-out bid for four-star recognition in a town where, as far as Italian restaurants go, three’s the max.” A $29 valet parking charge is the only nod to the restaurant’s out-of-the-way location.

Frank Bruni had a preview piece in the December 7th Times. The restaurant wasn’t open yet, although with a swipe at the overlong menu, the setup for a three-star review is in place:

Expect $240 rack of veal, $220 shoulder of pork and a $200 whole king salmon for four to eight people, to be carved within view of the table, in a flourish of high ceremony from the Old World.

The proposed menu lists nearly 20 antipasti. It has more than a dozen pasta dishes, one with a jalapeño pesto, another with a tripe ragù, another with partridge.

And there will be more than 15 other entrees, including duck wrapped in porchetta; guinea hen with pumpkin; squab with wild arugula.

One can see where Bruni is coming from: none of the current four-star restaurants has so many items on the menu. Common sense suggests that when the kitchen is trying to do so many things well, there will be a few clunkers. Here’s an early look at that long menu (hat tip: chowhound):

Antipasti —
PRESERVED TOMATOES, GRAPES, RADISHES AND BOTTARGA 17
FIRE ROASTED PEPPERS and A SARDINE 13
CAULIFLOWER SFORMATO with Skate Salad 15
COTECCHINO with Lentils and Aceto Tradizionale di Modena 18
GRILLED RADICCHIO TREVISANO with Fonduta 15
VEGETABLE FRITTO MISTO with Bagna Cauda 15
CARCIOFI alla Romana 13
FUNGHI MISTI with Puntarelle 15
SEAFOOD SALAD with Seaweed 19
SWORDFISH CARPARCCIO with Lemon and Borage 17
CUTTLEFISH and OCTOPUS in Zimino 16
RUCOLA with Shaved Goat Cheese and Three Frichi 14
TUNA, RADICCHIO, BORLOTTI and Agresto 13
VEAL SWEETBREADS Picata 16
SALUMI MISTI with Erbazzone 18
FOUR ASSAGI DI PROSCIUTTO 17

Primi —
PASTA e FAGIOLI 12
RIBOLLITA 12
SPAGHETTI with Crab, Scallions, and Jalapeno 27
RICOTTA and CHARD NUDI with Caciocavallo 21
AGNOLOTTI dal Plin 23
BUCATINI alla Gricia 18
RAVIOLI di Brasato with Brown Butter and Thyme 23
PICI with Cibreo and Black Truffles 30
FRANCOBOLLI di Sugo Finto with Tripe alla Toscana 23
GNOCCHI with Passato and Pesto 19
ORECCHIETTE with Fennel Sausage and Swiss Chard 19
PENNETTE with Skate and Fiorentina Tomatoes 19
PAPPARDELLE with Wild Boar 21
TAGLIATELLE VERDE al Ragu Bolognese 20
BIS Two Tastes of Pasta Shared by the Whole Table 21/person
TRIS Three Tastes of Pasta Shared by the Whole Table 25/person

Risotto for 2 or more —
RISSOTO with Pumpkin and Lardo 50
RISSOTO with Porcini
RISSOTO with Lobster
RISSOTO with Barolo and Castelmagno

Secondi —
ORATA in Cartoccio with Salicornia, Sweet Potatoes, and Puntarelle 27
CACCIUCCO del Posto 29
SWORDFISH Trapanese with Wild Spanish 28
COD with Hake Mantecato and Clam Salad 28
SQUAB with Wild Arugula and Sagrantino Vinegar 30
DUCK in Porchetta with Savor and Celery 29
RABBIT with Peppers Agrodolce and Eggplant 28
GRILLED PORK CHOP with Cipolline and Cardoon Puree 28
CALVES LIVER alla Veneziana with Polenta, Onions, and Brovada 27
LAMB THREE WAYS Roman Style 30
LAMB’S KIDNEYS Trifolati with Porcini, Scorzonero, and Hot Peppers 27
GRILLED ROMBO for 2 with Stuffed Onions Briciolate 70
STINCO DI VITELLO for 2 with Spaetzle and Krauti 70
VEAL RACK for 2 with Chestnuts, Shiitake, and Black Truffles 85
COSTOLETTA DI MANZO for 2 with Cesare’s Beans and Escarole 100

Per il Tavolo —
LEG OF LAMB with Carciofi, Almonds, and Rutabagas 210
PORK LOIN al Arista with Wild Fennel AND Fig Conserva
MIXED GRILL from the Macellaio for 6 with Chicory Salad 230
SALT-BAKED ARCTIC CHAR with Cauliflower Ragu and Panelle 220

Dolci —
GIANDUIA 15
Chocolate-Hazelnut, Caramelized Pears, Creme Schlag

BUDINO di Fichi 15
Warm Fig Pudding, Pomegranate Sorbetto, Zabaglione, Salty Caramel

KREMESCHNITTE 15
Semolina Mousse, Celery Marmellata, Celery-Apple Sorbetto

CROSTATA di CIOCCOLATO 15
Chocolate Tart, Orange Buttermilk Gelato, Cardamom Spuma

APRICOT CASSATA di Gelato 15
Almond cake, Brown Sugar Meringue, Apricot-Moscato Brodo

STRUDEL for 2 30
Cranberry and Apple Strudel, Stracchino Gelato, Apple Cider Concentrate

SPUMONE al Caffe e Cioccolato 15
Amaretto Crumbs, Coffee and Chocolate Cream

PALACINKE 15
Chesnut Crepes, Persimmon Semifreddo, Rum Glassato

GELATI e SORBETTI del Giorno 12
Three Tastes of our Housemade Gelati or Sorbetti

There are also two tasting menus at $120 each. I’d love to try that $210 leg of lamb, although it’s apparently a portion for six.

Gotham Gal says:

First of all, the restaurant is incredibly beautiful. You feel special the minute you walk in the door. The only other restaurant that has the intense warm high class feeling is the Four Seasons Grill room. Warm colors, great light. Everyone will look beautiful. There are few things that they did which were very clever. There is a large foyer down the middle of the restaurant which leads to a staircase and behind that is a glass enclosed kitchen. I would bet that 200 people could cook in there at the same time. It’s enormous. On the right hand side there are tables for groups of 2-4 people. On the left side of the restaurant is the bar area which has sweet couches and a long sweeping bar. Up the stairs, on the left is seating for parties of 6 or more. In essence, the loud parties can’t bother the intimate dinners for 2-4. Very clever.

5 Ninth

Note: Click here for a later review of 5 Ninth.

Frank Bruni’s one-star review of 5 Ninth did not leave me with any eagerness to visit. That all changes when you receive an invitation, and your host is paying the bill. That’s what happened one night last December.

The building’s facade conceals its intentions. It occupies an eighteenth-century townhouse that has seen better days. Amid the glitz of the meatpacking district, it’s the building that time forgot. Only the brass #5 on the door tells you that you’re in the right place. (My companion, who is not a New Yorker, had to ask at three different storefronts nearby before he was directed to the right one.)

It’s a narrow building, and therein lies part of the problem. The entire ground floor is the bar. Dinner seating is up a treacherous staircase (we saw one patron take a scary tumble during dinner). Most of the tables seat only two; all of them are small. No one takes your coat; your server just directs you to hooks on the wall.

The menu at the website isn’t much use. It doesn’t show prices, and most of the offerings have changed anyway. Prices have also gone up. The Bruni review stated that entrées are $25-32. When I visited, they were $30-34. (I don’t recall seeing any mains below $30, but if there were any, it was only one or two.) There was no amuse bouche, and at these prices I think there should be.

Dinner starts slow at 5 Ninth. It was nearly empty when we arrived (6:30pm), but nearly full by the time we left (8:30 or 8:45). An empty restaurant is no guarantee of efficient service. A basket of bread was deposited on our table, along with a heavenly homemade whipped butter, but without bread plates or spreading knives. We thought that perhaps this was part of the meatpacking ethos—who needs plates when you can eat off the table?—but bread plates finally arrived after we’d had two slices apiece. Not that this bread was even worth the effort, as it was crumbly and stale.

For starters, my companion and I were both attracted to the sardines. We each received two whole fish, quite a bit larger than usual, grilled crisp and just a bit spicy. Separating the meat from the bones required a bit of labor, although well worth it. We kept the same knives that we had used to spread the butter. I’m sure the staff would have replaced them had we asked…but you shouldn’t have to ask.

For the main course, my companion had the goat, which looked wonderful (it resembled duck breast, but I forgot to ask how it tasted). I ordered something called “Mr. Clark’s Pork.” It turns out this dish is named for the farm where chef Zak Pellacio sources his pigs. From the description, you have no idea what you’re getting. It turned out to be heaven for pig lovers: pork loin cooked in its own fat, along with another body part deep fried. This came with what could only have been a potato fritter, grilled flat, with a salsa paste on top.

At the table next to me, a young lady also ordered Mr. Clark’s pork. Unlike me, she didn’t ask the server how the dish was prepared, and she was disappointed to receive a preparation with such a high fat content. It wouldn’t hurt 5 Ninth to be a little less cute with their descriptions.

We skipped dessert, but we were in the mood to finish with some scotch. “Do you have any scotch?” we asked. “Hmmm…I think we have some Laphroig, a McCallans, a Johnnie Walker Blue, and maybe a few others.” Here again, this seems basic. Either the server should know, or the after-dinner drinks should be on the dessert menu. Anyhow, we both chose the Johnnie Walker Blue. I’m a single-malt guy, but this was so smooth that I might just be converted to blends.

5 Ninth has been open since May 2004. Service glitches should have been worked out by December. The artistry of Zak Pellacio’s food deserves better.

5 Ninth (5 Ninth Avenue btwn Gansevoort & Little West 12th Sts, Meatpacking District)

Food: **
Service: Not Acceptable
Ambiance: Fair
Overall: *

The Old Homestead

Here are two reviews of The Old Homestead (56 9th Ave btwn 14th-15th Sts, in the Meatpacking District). My first visit was in February 2005:

I’ve been taking a leisurely tour of Manhattan’s steakhouses, and last night was the Old Homestead’s turn. The décor, the service, and the menu all scream “old-fashioned steakhouse” — in both the bad and the good connotations of that phrase.

Where the Old Homestead diverges from the stereotype, it’s in their extensive “Kobe” beef selections. (Perhaps their version really is from Kobe, but I suspect it’s the American-bred “Wagyu” beef they’re serving.) You can get a Kobe ribeye for two for something like $150. Also on offer: a Kobe burger at $41 or a Kobe frankfurter (the mind boggles) at $19.

I went for the Gotham Rib Steak ($39), which they say is their signature item. Elsewhere it’d be called a ribeye. The cut of beef was practically a carbon copy of the ribeye I ordered at Wolfgang’s a month or two ago. The preparation was respectable, but not quite as accomplished as at Wolfgang’s: the char was less even, and parts of the steak were a tad overdone. The Homestead added a welcome helping of shoestring fries, which the Wolfgang’s version didn’t have.

At another table, I overheard a couple who are clearly frequent visitors. They ordered the porterhouse for two ($75), which was served just as they do at Luger’s, Wolfgang’s, and Mark Joseph, complete with the familiar tilted plate, allowing the unserved slices to wallow in juice.

The restaurant was not crowded, and there were plenty of servers hanging around. Despite that, the staff was not as attentive as it should have been, and my own server seemed rather bored with his job. I was served a piece of raisin bread that was practically rock-hard, as though it was a leftover from last Friday’s bakery run.

Although it doesn’t get my vote for top steakhouse in the city, the Old Homestead is better than many. I’ll probably be back, but not before trying a few other candidates.

I was back on November 8th, 2005:

I was back at the Old Homestead last night. I wandered in without a reservation. At 8:45pm, there was a fifteen minute wait for a table. The place was packed, and diners were still arriving as I left an hour later.

On this visit, I had the New York Strip, which was perfectly charred and bright red inside, as I’d asked for. Aside from a tiny bit of gristle on one end of the steak, it was a top-quality cut, prepared as expertly as anywhere in town.

The waitstaff look like they’ve been there forever, and they seem bored. I didn’t receive a menu until five minutes after I sat down. I was not offered a wine list. When I asked for wine by the glass, the waiter declaimed as if annoyed, “Merlot, Cabernet, Shiraz, or {inaudible},” as if that were all one needed to know. I chose the Shiraz.

On the plus side, at $36 for the strip and $9 for the glass of wine, I got out of the Old Homestead for several dollars less than one would pay for comparable quality at other Manhattan steakhouses. I didn’t order any sides, but I noticed that most of them were priced at around $7 or less, which is less than the $9–10 that many steakhouses charge.

In a neighborhood where there’s a new restaurant every week, the Old Homestead seems to be just as popular as ever.

The Old Homestead (56 Ninth Ave. between 14th–15th Sts., Meatpacking District)

Food: *
Service: Fair
Ambiance: *
Overall: *

Matsuri

Note: Matsuri closed in March 2012. A branch of the club/restaurant Tao will replace it.

*

I dined with a couple of colleagues at Matsuri in early December. While William Grimes was convinced that the sushi was in the upper third, we considered it merely mid-range — which is to say, neither bad nor particularly distinguished.

We ordered a sushi/sashimi platter that was described as a selection for five people, although the three of us went ahead and ordered a bit more after consuming all of that. A shrimp tempura roll seemed the best item on the platter, with honorable mention to some extremely tender tuna belly.

The Times review described the restaurant’s location as Chelsea. Nowadays, one would describe it as “Meatpacking-adjacent,” with the main drag of that clubby neighborhood within spitting distance of Matsuri’s door. The restaurant is lovely inside, and we had a perfectly happy time, topping off the evening with Macallan 18’s (and one of our party with an excellent creme brulee dessert).

But we won’t rush back.

Matsuri (369 W. 16th Street at Ninth Avenue in the Maritime Hotel, Chelsea)

Food: *
Service: *
Ambiance: **
Overall: *

Mad for Meatpacking

It’ll tell you how hopelessly un-hip I am, that, until yesterday, I had never been to the Meatpacking District since it became anything other than a neighborhood where wholesale meats are sold. The area is bounded roughly by Gansevoort St on the south, 14th St on the north, and Ninth and Tenth avenues. I say “roughly,” because like any hip neighborhood its boundaries are stretching. My Manhattan street atlas limits the district to the two square blocks bounded by Little West 12th, 14th, and Ninth and Tenth Avenues. But nowadays, even places on 15th St have Meatpacking aspirations.

A lot of the district’s hip nightclubs hadn’t opened their doors when my friend and I walked by in the late afternoon, but we were able to get a look in many of the restaurants. After a long walk from the Financial District, we were ready for a short break. Zitoune (46 Gansevoort St) snootily refused us an outdoor table when we ordered soft drinks, claiming a $10 minimum outside. We tried Macelleria next door, where they happily accepted our order for soft drinks and biscotti (ironically, we spent more than $10 anyway). The whole time, Zitoune never did use the outdoor table they denied us.

There’s a large triangular space where Gansevoort, Little West 12th, Ninth Ave, and Greenwich St converge at odd angles. At one of the outdoor tables at Zitoune, Macelleria, or nearby Pastis (9 Ninth Ave) you get a panoramic view of the Meatpacking crowd’s comings and goings. The intersection seems to demand a life-size statue of Mr. Gansevoort (or whoever/whatever that street was named for). If we were in Europe, it would have one.

I wanted to see what Spice Market (403 W. 13th St.), Jean-Georges Vongerichten’s latest hit, was about. From the outside, you’d barely know it’s a restaurant. Inside, the $5 million decor overwhelms the senses. It seems no one opens a destination restaurant in New York these days on the strength of the food alone. We peeked in around 6pm, as the place was just beginning to fill up, and the staff didn’t mind terribly that we were there only to gawk.

We were particularly intrigued by the sensuous private rooms at the back of the downstairs bar, where you pass through curtains of gauze into a world of your own. I wonder how those creamy white luxuroious sofa pillows will look after red wine is spilled on them a few times, but for now they look inviting. Whether or not Spice Market deserves the three stars the Times awarded, as eye candy it amazes.

Many other restaurants caught our eye, but we were struck by the friendly reception we received at Vento (intersection of 9th Ave and 14th St), which doesn’t even open to the public until April 19th. The staff are just practicing for now, and the tables were all set for a friends-and-family dinner. The flatiron-shaped building, dating from the Civil War, is all the decor Vento needs.