Vince and Eddie's

Note: Vince and Eddie’s closed in March 2011. Even an investment from Lady Gaga couldn’t save it.

*

My mother, girlfriend and I had a quiet weeknight dinner at Vince and Eddie’s about a month ago. My mom described it as “the typical restaurant you imagine in New York.” She meant that it’s one of the many places that’s on the ground floor of a townhouse, and about eight times deeper than it is wide.

In a one-star review over seventeen years ago, Marian Burros admirably summarized the place: “The cooking at Vince and Eddie’s is being compared to Grandma’s, or Mother’s, depending on your last birthday. No matter. The comparison conjures up feel-good adjectives like hearty, simple, warm, comforting.” Burros also found a good deal of unevenness back then, a problem not evident to us, though I’ll admit our sample was small and unscientific.

My mom and I tried some of the tenderest calf’s liver we’ve had anywhere (above). But that’s not good enough for Vince and Eddie’s, which piles on the onion rings, baked apples, bacon, and gravy. I’ve forgotten my girlfriend’s entrée, but I recall that it too was a mountain of rich, uncomplicated food, enjoyably prepared.

The restaurant was not crowded, and I suspect that it seldom is. But it has done well enough to survive as a solid neighborhood place and occasional pre-Lincoln Center standby. The world needs more like it.

Vince and Eddie’s (70 W. 68th Street between Columbus Avenue & Central Park West, Upper West Side)

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

Neptune Room

Note: The Neptune Room closed in December 2008. Management did not confirm it was permanent, but as of January 2009 the space was for rent.

*

My girlfriend and I dropped into The Neptune Room for appetizers one night last week.

The press mostly ignored the restaurant after it opened in 2004, aside from Steve Cuozzo of the Post, who awarded 2½ stars. I have to assume that the other critics in town at least tried The Neptune Room, but weren’t enthralled enough to review it.

I do recall having an enjoyable meal there in October 2004, but I wasn’t wrting reviews in those days, and don’t recall the details. That visit was a pre-Lincoln Center dinner, but I suspect Neptune Room doesn’t draw much from that crowd — you have to be a bit of a sleuth to seek out restaurants twenty blocks away from the opera.

At least Neptune Room has survived (never a sure thing on the Upper West Side) — largely, I suspect, on neighborhood traffic. We dropped by at around 6:30 p.m. and found it mostly empty, although for the area this is still early for dinner.

The menu is virtually all seafood, with appetizers $4–15, entrées $19–32, and side dishes $7.

I loved Lobster & Crab Ravioli ($14), with grilled corn, Roma tomatoes, tarragon, and a lobster reduction. The kitchen also did well by Fried Calamari ($12).

I’m not going to issue a formal rating based only on appetizers, but we certainly made a mental note to try The Neptune Room again sometime soon.

The Neptune Room (511 Amsterdam Avenue between 84th & 85th Streets, Upper West Side)

Zeytin

Zeytin, a Turkish restaurant on the Upper West Side, has largely escaped critical notice since it opened in 2004. Robert Sietsema of The Village Voice named it Best Trendy Turk restaurant of 2006, which is funny, because I don’t think there are many others.

But Zeytin is indeed a fun place to visit, and a welcome addition to a neighborhood not renowned for fine dining. The space is quiet and classy. The photo above, cribbed from the restaurant’s website, was shot during a Mother’s Day party. We visited at 5:30 p.m. on Monday night, in advance of an opera at Lincoln Center, finding the setting far more muted than the photo would suggest.

We both started with the appetizer that had the most unusual name: Pachanga Borek ($8), five lovely, thin, triangular pastries filled with sautéed tomatoes, cured veal, mushrooms, and kasseri cheese. For the main course, I had the whole boneless red snapper ($20), broiled in parchment paper with shitake mushrooms, asparagus, dill and tomatoes. I could find no fault with it at all: the snapper was tender and moist, and well paired with the accompanying vegetables.

Several of the entrées feature lamb. My friend had the roasted lamb ($19), which wasn’t as hearty a portion as the other items we tried. But perhaps it was just as well, as she reported it was “a bit oily,” although she liked the rice.

Service was generally okay, although the serving staff shouldn’t have had to be prompted to replace our silverware after the appetizer course. The warm, soft thick bread served with olive oil before the meal was wonderful.

Zeytin is gentle on the pocketbook. Most appetizers are $5–10, most entrées $14–22, side dishes just $3. To drink, we found a quite respectable Shiraz for just $30. Coffee after dinner was just $2. The whole bill for two before the tip was $95.45, including tax. It is well worth a visit, and Lincoln Center is only 10–15 minutes away by taxi.

Zeytin (519 Columbus Avenue at 85th Street, Upper West Side)

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

Kefi

Note: Click here for a review of Kefi in its current location. This is a review in its former location.

I was a big fan of Onera, Michael Psilakis’s haute Greek restaurant on the Upper West Side. It was one of the few very good restaurants, in a neighborhood where great ones are in short supply. But I guess there’s a reason why the Upper West Side isn’t a fine dining destination: yuppies with strollers prefer casual cafés and take-out.

The new interior


Cuttlefish, Spinach & Manouri


Braised Lamb Shank, Orzo, Root Vegetables


Walnut Cake, Walnut Ice Cream

So Psilakis converted the formal Onera to the casual Kefi. Anyone who visited Onera will recognize the space. But the white tablecloths are gone, and the décor is much more informal. Reservations are not accepted.

Prices are astonishingly low, with appetizers $4.50 – 9.95, pastas $9.95 – 11.95, main courses $13.95 – 15.95, and desserts $4.95 – 7.95. Most wines by the glass are only $6, and cocktails are only $7. (I can’t remember the last time I had a cocktail below $10.)

Even at these prices, a three-course dinner for two, including drinks, is likely to go above $100 with tax and tip. So we were irritated to find that Kefi doesn’t take credit cards, and we noted other patrons taken by surprise. If McDonald’s can take credit cards nowadays, why can’t Kefi?

I started with the Cuttlefish ($8.95), which were grilled, stuffed with spinach, and perched atop warm tomatoes. It was an ample portion, and impressive at the price, as it must be a fairly labor-intensive dish.

For the entree, I had the Braised Lamb Shank ($15.95), which was just as tender and flavorful as you could ask for. It compared favorably to versions of the same dish that upscale Greek restaurants sell for twice as much.

I was also quite pleased with dessert, a moist walnut cake with walnut ice cream.

We were sad to see Onera go, but there’s no denying Kefi is more in keeping with the area. It’s doing a brisk, if not crowded, walk-in business, and also offers take-out. I hope it survives and thrives.

Meanwhile, the concept of Onera remains very much alive. Psilakis is planning a similar restaurant called Anthos at 36 West 52nd Street near Fifth Avenue, a neighborhood where high-end Greek dining should find a much warmer reception.

Update: Kefi will be moving to 505 Columbus Avenue near 84th Street, sometime around July 2008. The new space will seat 200 and will accept both reservations and credit cards (the current restaurant takes neither). Chef Michael Psilakis hopes to open a new restaurant in the existing space — “something I haven’t done before.” Psilakis gave the exclusive to a practically breathless Frank Bruni, who loves the place, although he never bothered to review it.

Kefi (222 W. 79th St. between Broadway and Amsterdam Ave., Upper West Side)

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

Pair of 8's

Note: Pair of 8’s closed in June 2007. The Chef, Matthew Hamilton, moved to Belcourt in the East Village.

*

Remember Uovo? It was a sleek restaurant in the East Village (Avenue B & 11th Street) that got plenty of buzz when it opened in June 2005. But what it didn’t get was a liquor license or a review from Frank Bruni. Fifteen months later, the place closed. Chef Matthew Hamilton has now resurfaced at the other end of town, at Pair of 8’s, a restaurant that takes its name from the nearest cross street: 88th Street on the Upper West Side, a neighborhood not known for fine dining.

That background has nothing to do with my reasons for visiting Pair of 8’s last night. It caught my eye after a reasonably enthusiastic one-star review from Frank Bruni about a year ago. It was one of the few serious restaurants close enough to Lincoln Center that I hadn’t tried yet. I don’t know what happened in the meantime, but the original chef is gone. Matthew Hamilton is now in charge of the kitchen. As of last night he’d been there less than a week.

We weren’t that hungry, so we ordered entrees only. Our server recommended Coffee Barbecue Braised Brisket ($24), which was as good as it sounds. But the accompanying homemade sauerkraut and chick pea pancake were both extremely dull.

That was nothing compared to the Pair of 8’s Burgers ($16), which my friend considered an over-priced outright disaster. Two three-ounce mini-burgers (one beef, one lamb) were more like meatballs, overcooked, and overwhelmed by two little buns. French fries were soggy.

Spiced apple bread pudding for dessert ($9) came piping hot, and was delicious. My friend played it safe with vanilla ice cream ($7).

For what is basically a modestly priced neighborhood restaurant, Pair of 8’s has far too few wines below $45. However, there’s a good selection by the glass, and each pour comes in a quartino (really a glass and a half). We weren’t that hungry, so we settled on a nice cabernet at $14 by the glass. A program of humorous themed wine pairings (e.g., “Frankenwine”), mentioned in the Bruni review, seems to be gone now.

Our server was a bit confused about the menu, telling us there were no specials, even though we very clearly heard servers recite them at other tables. He was a bit irritating in other ways too—for instance, asking us if we’d like our check, instead of waiting for us to tell him when we were ready to leave. (Though doing a good business, the restaurant was not yet full when we left at 7:30 p.m.)

The room is attractive and comfortable. What it needs is more competent execution from the kitchen. As this was Matthew Hamilton’s first week, it is clearly too soon to judge his work. On the other hand, there is no real excuse when a restaurant is charging full price. I’m willing to give Pair of 8’s another chance—but I’ll probably have to find another friend to try it with.

Pair of 8’s (568 Amsterdam Avenue between 87th and 88th Streets, Upper West Side)

Food: Fair
Service: Acceptable
Ambiance: Good
Overall: Uneven

Cafe Mozart

Note: Cafe Mozart closed in July 2008.

*

Cafe Mozart is a respectable casual dining option before a concert at Lincoln Center, in a neighborhood where many of the restaurants are over-priced. I was there last night with two friends.

I loved a Duo of Goat Cheese Tarts ($9). One of the tarts was made with herb-roasted Roma tomatoes and Niçoise olives; the other with mushrooms and onion marmelade. Plenty of restaurants would charge over $10  for that appetizer. An accompaniment of salad greens was entirely superfluous.

Pignoli and dijon crusted salmon ($22) was a far less happy affair. The fish was too dry, and it was not rescued by an overpowering tomato sauce or dull risotto. One of my companions ordered, I believe, a chicken caesar salad in which the chicken was barely more than a rumor, but my other friend was pleased with her choices.

My friend tried to make a reservation, but she called repeatedly for several days, and the restaurant never answered. The host was surprised to learn this was the case. Luckily they weren’t busy last night, but I hear the place fills up on weekends. Service at Cafe Mozart isn’t fancy, with the crew who deliver the plates not knowing who ordered what. We had two different versions of the menu between us, each with different spelling errors. However, wines by the glass are under $10, and that at least is something.

Both the website and business cards promise “World’s Finest Desserts.” We were too full to test that claim, but we noted that there are more desserts than appetizers and entrees put together, so it’s clear where the restaurant’s priorities lie. The decor is unpretentious, but adequate for a casual restaurant.

Cafe Mozart (154 West 70th Street between Broadway and Amsterdam Avenue, Upper West Side)

Food: Satisfactory
Service: Acceptable, but sometimes careless
Ambiance: Casual
Overall: Satisfactory

Jean Georges

Note: Click here for a more recent review.

The dining room at Jean GeorgesOver at eGullet, there’s a long-standing discussion thread that asks: “Has Jean-Georges Vongerichten Jumped the Shark? Or does he still have the magic touch?”

In other words, can a chef manage an empire of sixteen restaurants, and still turn out four-star food at his flagship, the eponymous Jean Georges? To be sure, many of those restaurants don’t generate the excitement they once did. JoJo has left me underwhelmed on each of two visits; I found Perry St uneven (though many swear by it); most people won’t touch Spice Market with a ten-foot pole; Frank Bruni demoted both Vong and Mercer Kitchen earlier this year; and V Steakhouse at the Time-Warner Center folded quickly. I was a fan of 66 before it closed, but few diners took it seriously.

No other elite chef has attempted to juggle so many responsibilities at once. But against all odds, most people agree that Jean Georges is still the extraordinary restaurant it was in 1997, when Ruth Reichl awarded four stars, a verdict that Frank Bruni re-confirmed earlier this year. The Michelin Guide has been the butt of every imaginable criticism, but no one disputes that the Michelin inspectors know French cooking, and the Guide has awarded its top honor of three stars to Jean Georges in each of the last two years.

That’s the backdrop to my own first visit to Jean Georges last weekend for a 46th birthday celebration. The restaurant offers a choice of four courses prix fixe at $95, a seven-course tasting of Vongerichten favorites at $125, or a seven-course seasonal tasting menu, also $125. We chose the autumn tasting menu, which was fairly close to what is now displayed on MenuPages (sure to change in the near future):

Hamachi Sashimi Fresh Herbs, Champagne Grapes and Buttermilk
Foie Gras Brulé Spiced Jam and Toasted Brioche
Wild Mushroom Tea Parmesan, Chili and Thyme
Red Snapper Lily Bulb-radish Salad, White Sesame and Lavender
Butter-Poached Maine Lobster Fuji Apple, Endive and Crystallized Wasabi
Roasted Venison Quince Madeira Condiment, Broccoli Rabe and Cabrales Foam
Dessert Tasting

(The night we were there, the first course on the menu was scallops, but we requested the Hamachi Sashimi as a substitution.)

The were two highlights. Foie Gras Brulé was one of the best foie gras preparations we could recall, with a light crisp crust covering a perfectly prepared lobe of foie gras, and the spiced jam adding a contrasting flavor kick. Likewise, the snapper was probably the best seafood dish we’ve had all year, again because of the contrast of ingredients—the fish and the radish salad. On the other hand, the Hamachi Sashimi, the Lobster, and the Venison, are all dishes I will quickly forget.

My friend and I had different reactions to the Wild Mushroom Tea (actually a soup). This dish is served tableside from a silver bowl, with the warm soup poured over parmesan shavings. My friend seems to have gotten far more of the chili peppers than I did, so whereas my portion lacked the contrast that is essential to these dishes, her portion was far more successful.

I haven’t found the desserts anywhere on the web, and after seven courses I’m afraid my memory has failed me. I do know that we were offered a trio of options, each of which was a quartet of small desserts on a square plate. I have completely forgotten what they were, but all four were excellent—and it is rare that I feel that way about desserts. This was followed up by petits-fours and servings of home-made flavored marshmallows, cut tableside from large multi-colored strips. There was also, of course, birthday cake.

The amuses bouches were also strong. As often occurs in restaurants like this, the server’s explanations went by all too quickly, but there was a trio of them—a small square of goat cheese, a small sliver of sashimi-quality fish, and one other item.

The bread service was distinctly inferior for a restaurant in Jean Georges’ class, with a choice of simple French-style baguette rolls or sourdough bread (neither warm) and garden-variety butter. Per Se, Alain Ducasse, and Bouley all have far more impressive bread service than this.

We noted that all of the serving staff are quite young. (Our primary server reminded us of Pat Sajak in his twenties.) Perhaps this explains a number of service glitches. At one point, the server started to pour my wine glass before catching himself at the last moment, as he had not yet poured for my girlfriend. At another point, plates were deposited, taken away, then brought back again. Servers were at times unsure about when to pour and clear wine glasses, and at one point in the meal we felt that the pace was slightly rushed.

We ordered a wine pairing and received six excellent choices, with contrasting varieties and regions, although at no point did we speak to a sommelier—again, I consider this a minor lapse for a restaurant in this class. It is not the wine staff’s fault that five of the six wines were white, as they were all sensible choices for the menu. But perhaps the overall effect would have been better had the fifth course (the lobster) been an item that paired with red.

There are a couple of wonderful tables at Jean Georges that occupy small alcoves, and we were lucky enough to have one of these. With a wall on three sides of us, it almost felt like our own private world. However, it meant that all we saw out the window was the Time-Warner Center across the street, instead of the more compelling park views that many of the other tables have. We noted that there is nothing particularly lovely about the room itself, although it is of course tastefully decorated, and the service accoutrements are all lavish. When we left, we were sent on our way with just a tiny paper bag, containing a tiny box, containing two tiny pieces of chocolate.

On our tasting menu, the foie gras, the red snapper, and the desserts showed how Vongerichten’s cuisine can still be extraordinary, even if (as Frank Bruni claimed in his review) not much has changed in ten years. I do realize that it’s nearly impossible for every course out of seven to be a mind-bending experience. Certainly everything we tasted was at a high level of competence. But I wanted just one or two more of those courses to be sublime.

Jean Georges (1 Central Park West at 60th Street, Upper West Side)

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

Sushi-A-Go-Go

Note: Sushi-A-Go-Go closed in the fall of 2011.

When you want a quick bite before a concert at Lincoln Center, Sushi-A-Go-Go is certainly worth a look. The brightest spot on an otherwise dreary-looking block, Sushi-A-Go-Go offers perfectly respectable sushi at a price that won’t bust the budget.

Their version of the omakase, a Sushi and Sashimi Tasting for Two ($38), came with at least a dozen different kinds of raw fish and fish rolls, with a minimum of four pieces each (sometimes six). All were competently prepared, and at $19 a person, probably one of the better sushi deals going for the money. Don’t ask for any substitutions, though. A glass of Sake Sangria ($7.50) and a Go-Go Cocktail ($8) were also bargains in a town where any cocktail under $10 seems like a misprint.

Sushi-A-Go-Go is designed to turn tables in a hurry. It seemed like we waited a long time for our sushi platter, and our server was sometimes hard to flag down when we needed her, but in the end we were out of there in about 40 minutes. As one of the few Lincoln Center restaurants you can always get into without a reservation — and also one of the better bargains of the neighborhood — Sushi-A-Go-Go is usually full, as it was last night. The bright orange interior is the perfect antidote to a gloomy autumn evening.

Outdoor dining is available in the summer, but while Sushi-A-Go-Go had already closed its outdoor tables for the season, we were surprised to find them open at other restaurants on the block. It shows what you sometimes have to endure for a pre-theatre meal across the street from Lincoln Center.

Sushi-A-Go-Go (1900 Broadway between 63rd & 64th Streets, Upper West Side)

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

Compass

Note: Compass closed in August 2011 to make way for a Greek restaurant, Loi, the brainchild of cookbook author Maria Loi, which is expected to open in the fall.

*

A friend and I visited Compass last night (previous reviews here). I believe this was the first time I’ve been seated in a booth. The upholstery is ultra-plush, and I practically disappeared into it.

The $35 prix fixe is one of the better deals in town. The amuse bouche was a small soup. A basket of several kinds of bread rolls arrived, and I could very well have spoiled dinner by eating too many of them. The appetizer was a Butternut Squash Velouté with brown butter. After it arrived, a server sprinkled a pixie dust of pumpernickel, apples and parsnips into the soup. Up next was the Pistachio-crusted duck, with roasted endive and carrot emulsion. Both first-rate. The dessert (yogurt panna cotta) was unmemorable. As always, there were petits-fours after dinner and a small coffee cake to take home.

They recommend wines by the glass to go with each course—perfectly respectable choices, varying from $9–14 per glass. We’d already had a good deal to drink before dinner, so we just had one glass with the main course. The menu on the website is up-to-date. It’s very much as I’ve described it in the past, although I see the porterhouse steak is no longer on offer.

Compass (208 W 70th St., West of Amsterdam Avenue, Upper West Side)

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

Onera

Note: Chef Michael Psilakis closed Onera in late 2006, re-opening a more casual version of itself called Kefi, which has since moved to larger digs. The space then became the short-lived Gus & Gabriel Gastropub, before morphing into Fish Tag—all still under Psilakis.

*

In a neighborhood short on elegant dining options, Onera is an oasis of calm. My friend was immediately taken by the cool, relaxing environment. The original chef, Michael Psilakis, has since expanded his empire to Dona (which he shares with Donatella Arpaia), though he remains chef/owner at Onera.

The menu has morphed since my first visit a year or two ago. There’s no longer quite as much emphasis on organ meat—a choice that had put Onera on the map, but apparently hadn’t wowed diners. The cuisine seems safer now, but it’s still plenty good.

The menu remains a tad over-complicated. There’s a choice of “meze” to start ($11 for two, or $22 for five), appetizers ($9–12), salads ($8–9), pasta ($15–17), fish ($23–26), and meat courses ($18–24). Some of those categories could be merged. It would be nice if the pastas were available in smaller appetizer-sized portions.

Anyhow, we each chose a pasta and an entrée. I had the sheep milk dumplings ($16), which were plenty of spicy fun, although slightly cloying in an almost main course-sized portion. My friend chose the Greek risotto ($16), which came with shrimp, spinach, onion, tomato, and feta cheese. I had a taste of this, and it was absolutely spectacular. I was jealous! This must be the city’s best risotto bargain.

Ah well, the haze sets in, and I’ve forgotten the entrées, except that mine was fish and hers was chicken, both well executed and enjoyable. The wine list has an impressive selection of Greek wines at reasonable prices. The bread service is bountiful, and you could easily spoil the meal if you snack on too much of it.

Onera (222 W. 79th St. between Amsterdam Avenue & Broadway, Upper West Side)

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