Restaurant Week: Le Périgord in New York, NY

One of the first things I do for Restaurant Week, before looking for the menu, is to look for the cost. Opentable has this $ sign that goes from $ to $$$$, the latter meaning expensive. So I decided to apply a filter and picked Le Périgord, a French restaurant located Midtown East, that has been on my list for a while now. 

Périgord is a region in the South-West of France, known for its cuisine often made of duck or goose, such as confit or foie gras. Well, Interestingly, the family who started the restaurant are not from there! George Briguet, who opened the restaurant in 1964 is from Switzerland and his wife, Marie‑Thérèse, that I met after our meal, from Brittany. 

This is an old school place: fresh flowers on the table, white tablecloths and upholstery on the walls that transported us back in time.

Menu wise, they only brought us the Restaurant Week menu and I wondered at that time if it was some kind of profiling, restaurant bringing usually the regular menu as well as this one...

They first brought us some bread

And butter.

I admit that I was disappointed with the bread: it is a French restaurant bon sang! I mean serve a good baguette, not a bread that seems to have been store bought and is not what you would expect for this type of restaurant.

For her entrée, Jodi ordered the salade mélangée that is baby mixed green salad and goat cheese.

Restaurant Week: Porterhouse in New York, NY

There is no doubt what Porterhouse, located on the fourth floor of the Time Warner Center, is serving: steaks, steaks and steaks. 

With seafood, but steaks. It has been a while since I went to a steakhouse for restaurant week, as I typically tell people to avoid these types of places during that period, the quality of the meat being often sacrificed. I even did a test with my favorite steakhouse in Hoboken, Dino & Harry's: while the steaks have always been sublime, they were not good for Restaurant Week (see the post here). Why did I change my mind? Because my friend Julien convinced me that I would not be disappointed at Porterhouse. 

So, we booked the place on Opentable for a Sunday, for lunch. We arrived a bit early and got seated fairly quickly in this incredible 140 seat place that overlooks Columbus Circle.

To give you am idea of the place, it all started in 2006, when Chef Michael Lomonaco took the bet to replace Jean-Georges Vongerichten's V Steakhouse place by a more traditional and more successful restaurant. The decor, designed by Jeffrey Beers (The Wynn in Las Vegas, DB Bistro Modern in NY) is very elegant with its leather banquettes, polished designed and the restaurant feels roomy. Contrary to most of the steakhouses, there is a lot of light, thanks to the large windows. 

So we were there for the Restaurant Week menu that was printed on the bottom of the regular menu, replacing their business lunch and eliminating the awkward moment when you ask for it and can see in the eye of the waiter an expression that says "I should have guessed". 

Right after we ordered, they came with a bread basket that had three types of bread: French white, raisin-pecan and whole wheat. 

Jodi went for the French white

Dovetail in New York, NY

Chef John Fraser, the owner of Dovetail, is no stranger to me. Well I do not know him personally and would love to meet him; it is more that I have a personal story related to one of his restaurants that unfortunately closed few years ago: Compass, located few blocks down from Dovetail. That is where Jodi and I went for a drink on our first date. We went back few times to celebrate our anniversary or other occasions, always having a great experience there.

Anyway, Chef Fraser has an impressive resume: he worked at the famous French Laundry and Taillevent, an award winning restaurant in Paris. I was so thrilled to see how he works his magic.

So, this time I was at Dovetail, located few steps from the Museum of Natural History. I like the place: the decor is simple and elegant. I went with some friends on a Monday night and, to my surprise, the restaurant was packed. 

Menu wise, they offer seasonal dishes. For dinner, you have a choice between the vegetarian menu and the Chef's menu. I went for the latter. 

To accompany the meal, we decided to order a bottle of red wine. A Crozes Hermitage 2010. 

At first, they brought us some amuse. It started with truffled arancini, rosemary crackers and white cheddar corn bread that were all very good and a great way to open our appetite. 

Then, they brought us a delicious leek panacotta topped with honeydew. 

I think the most difficult part of eating that was the tiny spoon they give you...

For the appetizer, I decided to try the steak tartare that one of my friends recommended.

Verde Vita Toscana in Hoboken, NJ

When Choco-Pain opened downtown Hoboken, it was like bringing a bit of France to the city: delicious bread, pastries and viennoiseries, made traditionally and tasting like it should. I hate when I buy a croissant and it is not buttery! So, we were wondering when they would open Uptown. But no, it did not happen yet. Instead, Verde Vita Toscana, an Italian café opened few month ago, replacing a beauty salon, with the great idea to get its bread from Choco-Pain!

It is a great place with a very European feel and a relaxed atmosphere: ceramic tables, brick walls and a long counter where one can sip a delicious espresso with a croissant. 

Besides this, they sell different olive oil

Bareburger in New York, NY

As my cousin Sandrine was in New York, she could not leave without having a burger. This time, we proposed to go to Bareburger, at their location in Hell's Kitchen. I heard a lot about this place that serves organic meat, but never went before, so you can imagine my excitement. 

I was surprised to see that it was full table service, more used to the fast casual restaurants, where you order at the counter, get a number assigned to you and, they either yell that number when your order is ready or bring it to your table. No, at Bareburger, you can sit and relax. 

Decor wise, there is a play on words between bare and bear that translates not only on the walls, but also on their packaging. 

Menu wise, they have a large choice of dishes, whether appetizers, entrées or desserts. If you do not want a burger, they have a large choice of salads for instance. And, if you are vegetarian, they have a black bean patty or, again, salads. 

For burgers, you can either order one of their specialty ones or built your own. We went for the latter. 

To build your own, you pick the bun, the patty, the "bacon", the cheese, the toppings and the sauce. So, I had a beef patty on a brioche bread, with grilled onions, sautéed mushrooms, brisket as my "bacon", sharp cheddar cheese, ketchup and mayo. 

Revisit: Taka Taka in New York, NY

Taka Taka characterizes itself as a Mexican Sushi and Japanese Tacos joint. I guess you understand: this is a Mexican / Japanese fusion restaurant with a very interesting menu, branching out to these two distinct cuisines. It is not our first time there (previous review here) and we were looking for an original place, close to the heart of Tribeca, to celebrate my cousin Sandrine's visit.

Another originality of this place is its conveyor belt or kaiten sushi. It is like a fun way to eat: dishes with a number will pass in front of you and you decide to pick them or not. The number refers to the menu on the table set, so it quickly becomes a game. First you will look at what is passing by and then quickly try to know what it is, and then, it will be the reverse: you will be waiting for that number 5 to come. But do not worry: if you really want a roll, you can just ask them and they will make it for you.

Each plate has a color that corresponds to a price, so be careful: it can be a fun game, a pricey game...

To start our dinner, we decided to order some mocktails. Sandrine and Jodi got  Kiiro that is tangerine juice, basil and a touch of lime.

I ordered the Gogo, a mango frappé with macerated blackberries:

Restaurant Week: David Burke's Fishtail in NYC, NY

We took advantage of Restaurant Week to enjoy a delicious dinner, at a discounted price at David Burke's Fishtail. It was on my list for a while, being a fan of Chef Burke and looking at his mouth watering food photos on Instagram with always a bit of drool. For sure, we had to book quickly and used Opentable as this place was a popular spot for Restaurant Week.

We got our reservation at 7:30pm and I thought the odds were against me as there were issues with the subway and I was worried that they would not hold our table, Jodi having to come from downtown by train. I arrived on time, explained the issue and reassure me that there was no issue. It would have been such a bummer to have to come another time, especially as my mind and stomach were prepared for a nice meal there. 

So, Fishtail is all about fish (you can get a steak if you want, but it is not the point) and everything in the decor will remind you that, whether it is the walls that mimic fish scales

Or the art. 

The restaurant has been built in a townhouse, with the bar on the first floor

And the dining room on the second floor. 

You can also have a glimpse at the kitchen, on the first floor, where all the magic happens. 

For restaurant week, they offer a menu for $38 that includes any appetizer, entrée or dessert from their regular menu. I love that, because it means that you will get dishes that are served on a regular basis and not created for that event, totally embracing the spirit of Restaurant Week. I guess the catch is in the quantity, but, at Fishtail, you will not leave hungry for sure. Well, at least I did not. Know that, similar to many restaurants, some dishes require to pay a supplement. 

They started off bringing us some bread and butter.

Don Coqui, Puerto Rican restaurant in Astoria, NY

Please note that the meal was complimentary. However, the opinions expressed in my blog are 100% my own!  

Astoria surely has some great gems that should not be ignored, and Don Coqui, a Puerto Rican restaurant is one of them. I discovered it last Sunday when we went for a tasting for dinner. This huge place is a restaurant and lounge with multiple rooms:

A first one, small, at the entrance, with a nicely furnished bar:

The lounge with its impressive lighting:

The two dining rooms that can cater approximately eighty guests each:

They set the mood with not only Latin music, but also a blue lighting in the dining room that kept the lounge-y feel. 

Don Coqui opened in February 2011 in Astoria (they have several locations such as The Bronx or New Rochelle that is their flagship). The restaurant got its name from a small frog that makes a sound like "coqui, coqui", that is quite a funny anecdote. 

The menu, crafted by Executive Chef Jack D'Angelo, had so many mouth watering dishes that I admit that I was not sure what to order; so we followed the advice of our server, Andres, who was very knowledgable about the dishes, describing them in detail. 

I started by ordering a drink. I chose the mango Mojito that was delicious, refreshing and original. 

Restaurant Week: Hakkasan in NYC, NY

My next target for Restaurant Week was Hakkasan, a modern Chinese restaurant that originated in London in 2001 and opened its doors in Hell's Kitchen in April 2012 and earned a Michelin star. I was thinking that the $38 deal for dinner was a good way to try out that place as, the lack of prices on the menu often indicates a pricey meal...

This 11,000 square feet place is pretty impressive with its modern decor and deep blue lighting. The photo above is the lounge area and the one below part of the dining room.

Even more impressive is the long corridor at the entrance that reminded Jodi of a scene in The Shinning. Scary!

They sat us fairly quickly at our table and I admit that I really was not sure what to order as lots of dishes seemed very appetizing.

For instance, for the appetizer, I hesitated between the steamed dim sum platter and the fried one. Well, first I did not know what har gau was and discovered later that it was a shrimp dumpling. Then, they had a fried dumpling with duck and, as I love duck, I decided to go with the fried platter.

There were three dumplings: shrimp, mashed duck and pumpkin, scallops. The presentation was beautiful, especially the duck dumpling that had the shape of a pumpkin. They were delicious: slightly crispy and tasty, the dough was perfect, not too greasy. My favorite was the scallop one, then the shrimp and last the duck (I did not get as much duck taste as I would have loved to).