Two Wanderin’ Fools

NYC food blogger Tina Wong from TheWanderingEater.com will be accompanying me on the journey of 93 Plates. Yesterday, I tweeted about needing some restaurant suggestions, and she sent me this. It’s a cross section of her favorite places with a few wish list ones:

Eleven Madison Park – Must have their foie gras and pork belly dishes
Gramercy Tavern – My personal favorite of the bunch even though it’s not a 4-star restaurant
The Modern – Dining Room: more upscale and formal than the Bar Room, obviously by name. I find the food cooked with a bit more care and a bit more interesting than the Bar Room. Bar Room is casual, a bit loud, especially during Happy Hours and if you’re into beignets, get some here.
Shake Shack – I am a devoted fan of their burgers. It’s all about the beef (from Pat LaFrieda) and the additions to the burger enhances the glory of that burger.

Enough about the Danny Meyer/Union Square Hospitality Group restaurants . . .

Little Owl – I love their meatball sliders; they’re juicy, meaty, fireworks full of flavors with the most awesomest homemade bun encasing that meatball. OMG. Everything else served there is very solid. It’s a small casual restaurant with a lovely down-home vibe to it.
Momofuku Ssam Bar – Yeah, everyone is talking about David Chang. I’m not going to judge him but I like this particular branch of his empire very much. It’s the most interesting food and it’s the most different in NYC.
Fatty Crab – I like their robust, Malayasian-inspired food. Most recent visit, about 2 weeks ago, to the Upper West Side location for lunch, I liked their pork buns and the Fatty Duck.
Jean Georges – Best lunch deal in NYC if you’re looking for upscale food and decor.
Kefi – Very good Greek food for very moderate prices; good for groups.
Otto – Mario Batali-owned restaurant; good pastas, griddled pizzas (I’m not a fan of their pizzas though they ain’t bad), LOVE their gelato, especially the olive oil. If you never tried their olive oil gelato, you have not lived yet.
Shopsins – Owned by the sometimes grouchy, f-bomb dropping Kenny Shopsin; it’s all about comfort food in odd combinations (think silver dollar pancakes topped with scrambled eggs and bacon).
Terroir – A nice wine bar that I enjoyed in terms of it’s unusual yet appealing wine list and the food is fantastic.
Baoguette – For inventive banh mis. If you want the old school banh mi, go to Saigon Bakery in Chinatown.
Blind Tiger – Heard good things; known for its microbrews and bar food.

For tapas: Casa Mono – More raciones than tapas; the serving size is slightly larger than the average tapa. I love almost everything I ate there except for cockscombs (because of their gelatinous texture.)
Tia Pol, Alta – More eclectic, tapas inspired kind of places. Fun, lively atmosphere, good for groups, excellent food
Boqueria, Txikito – I haven’t been but read/heard around that it’s awesome

For brunch: go here

Corton – The next to-eat on my list. I would love to eat there on the shoot if you could wrangle that!

Hope that helps!