Eat Here Now

When I started working at a new office in Midtown East a while back (riiiiiiight around the time posts became few and far between 'round these here blog parts), I was pumped to explore lunch options and immediately bummed by the search results.  I could either dine at restaurants requiring more time and money than I had to spare, or I could hustle through proportionately over-priced grab-and-go eateries.  But, refrigerated pre-made sandwiches?  Greasy soups that all somehow taste like chicken tinged with indeterminate seafood?  Non, merci.  Dejected, I one day ambled on side streets and avenues until I saw an awning with the words "Eat Here Now."  With no better prospect on the horizon, I figured, "Ok, awning.  If you say so."

Best awning advice I ever followed, because Eat Here Now turned out to be a reasonably priced coffee shop that gets you in and out quickly and with a smile.  Now, you might be thinking, "Fo'real?  We're talking about a tiny diner?  Lataaa," but pal, you need to kick off your shoes and relax - unless you are reading this in public, in which case, relax, but keep your shoes on.  You're not an animal.

The room is a no-frills coffee shop, and the menu is pages upon pages of straightforward (satisfying) American, Italian, and Mediterranean fare.  The real draw, however, is the people who work here.  

My first visit, I was welcomed warmly and directed to a seat.  I ordered an egg and cheese on a toasted plain bagel with decaf coffee.  The order arrived quickly, and I ate it along with the pickles that also arrived on the plate.  My second visit, I was welcomed warmly and directed to a seat.  I ordered an egg and cheese on a toasted plain bagel with decaf coffee - turns out, I am a creature of habit.  The order arrived quickly, and I ate it along with the pickles that also arrived on the plate.  My third visit, I was welcomed warmly, directed to a seat and asked, "The usual?"  In a city of so many people, in a bustling restaurant that sees crowds of locals and tourists alike, I was remembered, and I was impressed.  The order arrived quickly - this time with extra pickles.  

I have been back countless times, often alone, sometimes with friends, and a handful of lunches with my dad.  We have all been treated with kindness and consideration.  Following my dad's first visit, several people asked me to send him their regards; upon learning what I do for work, the owner put me in contact with another customer in the same field; the whole room sang "Happy Birthday" last May when a waitress noticed me putting a card in my bag.

The best part, however, is that they are this friendly to everyone.  A gentleman took a seat at the counter one day and was greeted with a flurry of "Hello, doctor" and "Good to see you, doctor."  An elderly man once asked to sit in a particular section, and the owner playfully teased that he had a crush on the much younger waitress who in turn played along by flirting.  These are small moments, but they make a big impact.

So head to Eat Here Now after a draining shopping excursion at nearby Bloomingdale's, to kick off your morning before a brisk walk through Central Park, or to escape the elements on a rainy day.  You will likely be given a plastic bag for your wet umbrella and quickly asked if you would like a hot beverage.  They're good like that.

Eat Here Now - 839 Lexington Avenue, at East 64th Street

Brunch, Part 4 - Benny Edition

The weekend is fast approaching, and you've got a hankering for some early afternoon dining. You already know where to go for cheap booze, where to find the wildly popular spots, and where to order excessively for no good reason beyond, "But I WANT it!" If you now have a laser focus on one dish, and if that dish happens to be Eggs Benedict, I've got a little something just for you (and you and you and you). The subject of today's post is: where to find a delicious twist on the Benny - a twist so delicious, you'll pronounce it "daylishwoz."

1) Petite Abeille - 44 West 17th Street, between 5th & 6th Avenues

There are several locations for Petite Abeille throughout Manhattan, but the one on West 17th Street is Goldilocks (ie, not too big, not too small. Also not too hot/cold, hard/soft, or inhabited by bears for that matter). It is a Belgian restaurant that is narrow up front, informal in back, and equipped with an outdoor space. The main room is decorated with images of Tintin and luggage racks topped with...(dramatic pause)...luggage. The overall effect is cute without being cutesy.

In addition to burgers, omelettes, sandwiches, and salads, the menu touts Belgian classics like mussels and waffles. Fab, but we're not here to talk about any of that. Today's dish is Eggs Benedict and how the Little Bee (English for Petite Abeille, mon amour) does it so well. In this version, the usual English muffin is replaced with a thick cut of crunchy country bread, and thin slices of Black Forest ham do away with the expected Canadian bacon. Topped with perfectly poached eggs and creamy hollandaise sauce, this is a tasty way to kick off your day...or just soak up what's left of last night's drinking binge. I don't know your life. The bonus is the side of stoemp. The who what huh? Stoemp is a mash of potatoes and root vegetables (often carrot or leek at Petite Abeille) and not to be confused with Schtroumpfs - the original name of the Belgian-created Smurfs. I'm guessing a side of Smurf would be less tasty and more horrifying.

2) Fred's at Barneys - 660 Madison Avenue, between East 60th & 61st Streets, 9th Floor

Next up is somewhere a little, shall we say, pricier. Located on the ninth floor of swanky department store Barneys New York, Fred's is a sprawling restaurant equipped with large windows and white linens. Waiters in aprons make sure your bottles of champagne stay chilled, and the bottles of champagne make sure you don't realize the heft of the bill at the end of the meal.

Menu items include enormous salads, French Toast, and several varieties of egg dishes, but it's that Eggs Benedict that keeps caaaaaallin' my name (much like Clarence Carter's "sassified" woman in his explicit hit song, "Strokin'"). What does Fred do to make his version so daylishwoz? He tops it with a spoonful of salty caviar. Simple, effective, genius - and at $24, more expensive than at most eateries around town. Then again, if you are one of the crowd already buying cashmere sunscreen and $145 ankle socks downstairs, this ain't no thang.

Keens Steakhouse

Perhaps there are three ways in which you are familiar with mutton:

1. As chops on hipster faces.
2. In the phrase "mutton dressed as lamb." (See, your 55-year-old neighbor with the impressive collection of thigh-high boots).
3. As the only thing greater than true love according to Miracle Max.

For those who have been to Keens Steakhouse, mutton (basically the teenager of the lamb/sheep world) is perhaps that much more familiar to you. Though the restaurant stopped selling it some time ago, it is still listed on the menu, and they will serve you something close enough for your $45 (lamb aged approximately ten months).

However, mutton is only one notable element of the storied chophouse. The history begins in London with the Lambs Club, a famous theater and literary group. Its New York branch manager was Albert Keen, a theatrical producer who opened Keens in 1885. It was equipped with a pipe room, in which men would smoke thin-stemmed clay pipes, and the Pipe Club roster reportedly contained over ninety thousand names, including Babe Ruth, Albert Einstein, and Teddy Roosevelt. The club was for men only, until 1905 when actress (and reported inamorata of King Edward VII), Lillie Langtry, took Keens to court, won, swanned into the restaurant wearing a feather boa, and ordered the mutton - as any twentieth century actress dating the married King of England would.

Today, Keens still has the feel of an old gentleman's club given the rich wood throughout its rooms, leather-cushioned chairs at white linen-topped tables, framed faded portraits, and the occasional bust and moose head. Also, since Keens owns the world's largest collection of churchwarden pipes, thousands are hooked to the ceilings throughout the restaurant.

And yes, this is a restaurant after all, so what are we eating for unsurprisingly hefty prices? Meat lovers will be pleased to find "dry-aged on premise" USDA prime grade porterhouse, New York sirloin, T-bone, lamb chops, beef short ribs, and eight to twelve ounce portions of filet mignon in addition to the aforementioned mutton chops. Pescatarians will be happy to note the menu includes oysters, Maryland crab cakes, shrimp cocktail, jumbo lump crab cocktail, Dover sole, pan-seared Loch Duart salmon, and two to six pound steamed Maine lobsters. Vegetarians are not to worry either, for Keens serves four types of salad, five preparations of potatoes, and several side dishes from creamed spinach to carrots with brown butter to sauteed escarole to roasted cauliflower and a few other prepared vegetables along the way. You'll want to stay away from the parmesan brussels sprouts, though, unless you're the kind of vegetarian who eats bacon.

So head to Keens for grandpa's birthday, for your not-so-bright son's acceptance to law school (phew), or for a seat at the bar to spy on that one hipster's blind date with your 55-year-old neighbor. If they don't find true love, at least they can enjoy the one thing greater.

Keens - 72 West 36th Street, between 5th & 6th Avenues

No. 7 Sub

The most basic of meals might be a sandwich and soda - unless you're picking it up from No. 7 Sub, in which case your lunch just got straight up cray cray. Broccoli with fresh mozzarella, thai basil pesto, and fried lemon? Roast beef with chimichurri, hummus, and potato chips? Speck with brussel sprouts, pickled blueberries, and mayo? What's happening? I'm scared!

Shhh, lamb. It's ok. Have a sip of the hibiscus ginger ale and relax.

Located in the somewhat recently opened Ace Hotel, the even recentlierer opened sandwich shop is from the same team that brought you Brooklyn's No. 7. Since they are alums of the French Culinary Institute and the respected kitchens of Jean Georges, The Modern, and Perry St, you might trust that these chefs and pastry chefs know what they're doing. Then again, you might not, but that's on you and your trust issues.

The bread is baked off-site in a bakery in Crown Heights, which was opened solely for the purpose of making No. 7 Sub's bread and the syrups for their homemade sodas. Soda flavors include berry-lime rickey, maple cream, and the aforementioned hibiscus ginger ale. They are subject to change, however, just as the sandwich options (some available for breakfast too) come and go on the chef's whim.

Also available are half moon cookies, which are similar in concept to New York's black-and-white cookies though with a chocolate cake-like base and frosting instead of icing (psst, Colgate students of the past, present, and future - they're just like those found at The Barge). No. 7 Sub also offers special half moon flavors on occasion such as brown sugar.

So, it must be stated there is no place to sit in No. 7 Sub. Given all the patrons standing in the small area, reading the menu options posted over the counter, and ordering from the cashier, it's not the worst thing to have to enjoy your meal elsewhere. Thankfully, the lobby of the Ace Hotel is right around the corner, or the tables by Madison Square Park and the Flatiron Building are a few blocks south. Come winter, outdoor seating will not be my first choice, but lamb, perhaps you're made of heartier stock than I.

No. 7 Sub - 1188 Broadway, between West 28th & West 29th Streets (in Ace Hotel)

Estiatorio Milos

I only go to Estiatorio Milos when someone else is picking up the check. The room is lovely, the food is fresh, but the prices are outrageous. Truly truly truly outrageous, in the words of eighties cartoon Jem.

Milos (Restaurant, you don't mind if I call you that, right?) is an upscale Mediterranean/Greek establishment in Midtown, specializing in seafood. Meat and vegetables make appearances on the menu as well, but at least one person at the table should try the fish...or the scallops...or the lobster...even if it costs a bazillion dollars. Most is prepared simply - charcoal grilled with olive oil and a squeeze of lemon - but that's the beauty of Milos. In a clean, white room evocative of the Mediterranean seaside, you want to taste the clean, fresh fish. Covering it in a sauce (though potentially tasty) would obscure the flavors of the sea, and it seems that's not what Milos is aiming to do.

Most of the seafood is priced and offered by the pound. If I remember correctly, some have a poundage minimum, so it helps if someone else at the table is eying the same variety to share. If you would rather your dish be cooked in sea salt with olive oil and a lemon sauce (rather than charcoal grilled), there is a 3 pound whole fish minimum and a $15 supplement per order.

One non-fish dish I must mention is the "Milos Special." It's an appetizer of thinly sliced zucchini, eggplant, and saganaki cheese that have been ever-so-lightly fried so that they almost take on the consistency of chips. In this most swanky version of chips and dip, the dip is a yogurty/tzatziki situation, and it. is. delightful. At $28.75 an order, it better be.

So where are we eating all of this? In a lovely space on West 55th Street proximate to Carnegie Hall (two blocks north) and the MoMA (two blocks south). It is a large room divided into two main sections by back to back banquettes and a sheer white curtain draping down from the ceiling. To the left of the entrance and the divider is the stone bar, some tables, a kiosk of sorts with busy chefs preparing that which requires preparation, and a lofted private dining room up a flight of stairs. This private room is comprised of two walls dedicated to wine racks and two glass walls through which you can see the rest of the restaurant, and the rest of the restaurant can see you.

To the right of the divider is the main dining room. Here you'll find the majority of the tables, the open kitchen, the bountiful display of whole fish on ice (from which you may choose and indicate to your waiter the exact one you care to have for your meal), and another private dining room up another flight of stairs. This private room, like the one on the other side of the restaurant, is partially glass enclosed, but translucent curtains may be drawn. Whereas this private room can accommodate several small tables, the other may only house one.

The restaurant is decorated in muted tones - mainly white, beige, and gray. The floors are both hardwood and stone, and dramatic elements include large open umbrellas over a select few tables, over-sized stone jugs, and columns reminiscent of ruins.

Estiatorio Milos is a great choice for an upscale seafood restaurant if you know what you're getting into regarding the prices. They do what they do well, but if you're not prepared for the wallet whomping, the shock may make you regurgitate your meal all over yourself. That would be quite the expensive mishap. and disgusting.

Estiatorio Milos - 125 West 55th Street, between 6th & 7th Avenues

Kum Gang San

Kum Gang San makes me laugh. It is a sprawling Korean restaurant featuring Korean Barbecue and Japanese food (um, sure) in Korea Town, and it is delightfully overwhelming. I have only been here once, but I am eager to return.

Upon entering the restaurant for dinner with a friend one night, I was surprised to find it was a two-story establishment with a mezzanine. A mezzanine juxtaposed with a faux rock wall. A faux rock wall that contained a faux rock ledge. A faux rock ledge on which was perched a pianist at a white baby grand piano and a guy playing a bass. Kum Gang San, what is happening? I think I love everything about you.

My friend and I stood in amazement just inside the rock cave entrance until we were beckoned up the stairs by the grand sweeping arm gesture of the hostess at the top. From our table by the railing, we could see the white-on-white 3-dimensional landscape mural spanning one wall, the golden garment bags on a stand-alone rack on the ground floor, what appeared to be a take-out station laden with refrigerated kimchi, and a mounted television airing "Seinfeld." Obviously.

We ordered our meal, and as we waited for the appetizers to arrive, many complimentary dishes were set out before us, completely covering the table. Not one was explained, but all were tasty - or at the very least, interesting, like everything else about the restaurant. My friend and I realized that although we had only ordered two appetizers and one entree to share, we now had too much food. Given that the miscellaneous pre-appetizers (which may or may not be called "banchan") are somewhat standard at Korean restaurants, we should have expected this.

Speaking of the unexpected, we perused the condiment options on our table to discover we had in our possession salt, pepper, and strawberry. Though it was probably a good move in the end, we regrettably did not sample whatever was in that last labeled jar. If the rest of the meal was any indication, I'm sure it would have been delicious, but I didn't think the already flavorful beef we had ordered required a fruity addition.

We ultimately enjoyed our meal, the live music, our OB beers, and everything about the experience. In our sated states, we passed on ordering dessert but were served complimentary cups of creamy ice chips anyway. This too was unexplained, but it tasted like shards of frozen strawberry yogurt. I guess we got our fruity fix after all.

I would recommend this restaurant for a fun night out with friends or family, with our without children. In addition to the standard service of receiving dishes from the kitchen, some entrees may be cooked in the center of the table, lending even more excitement to the already entertaining atmosphere. Service was prompt and friendly, and considering all that was complimentary, prices were reasonable overall. Bonus? It's open 24 hours, so you can enjoy your Kum Gang San experience any time it strikes your fancy.

Kum Gang San - 49 West 32nd Street, between 5th & Broadway