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All Posts Tagged: ‘balthazar’

Two for Eight

7/23/08

4:00 PM

Tables Available at Benoit; Le Cirque, Picholine, and Gordon Ramsay at the London Fully Booked

It’s 4 p.m., and that means it’s time to play Two for Eight. We just asked ten restaurants the best time they can squeeze a couple in for dinner; you need only make your chosen reservation. (As always, we make the calls but don’t guarantee the results.) Today: Gourmet French.

More: Two for Eight »balthazar, bar boulud, benoit, cru, daniel, gordon ramsay at the london, latelier de joel robuchon, le bernardin, le cirque, picholine

NewsFeed

7/21/08

9:00 AM

Delicatessen Will Go 24 Hours — We Have the Menu

The downstairs DJ booth.Photo: Patrick McMullan.

Balthazar is no longer the go-to for late-night eats in Soho. Two weeks from now Delicatessen will be open 24 hours on Thursdays through Saturdays. Around 11:30 p.m. last night there were a couple dozen folks in the breezy dining room — a mix of Chelsea homoflexuals and girls dressed for the meatpacking district. Buffa’s this ain’t. At the end of a meal that included what we suspect will be the place’s must-get — Reuben fritters! — we were surprised to get a three-page satisfaction survey asking no less than 30 questions about the service, portion sizes, décor, music, lighting, and pricing. Sample query: “What was your least favorite dish and why? Please be as specific as possible.” Um. After a $14 absinthe Sazerac, we were in no place to fill out forms, but we did have the presence of mind to steal the menu for you!

More: NewsFeed »balthazar, cafeteria, delicatessen, late-night eats, soho

Two for Eight

7/ 9/08

4:00 PM

Tables Available at Benoit and Cru; Gordon Ramsay Fully Booked

It’s 4 p.m., and that means it’s time to play Two for Eight. We just asked ten restaurants the best time they can squeeze a couple in for dinner; you need only make your chosen reservation. (As always, we make the calls but don’t guarantee the results.) Today: Gourmet French.

More: Two for Eight »balthazar, bar boulud, benoit, cru, daniel, gordon ramsay at the london, latelier de joel robuchon, le bernardin, le cirque, picholine

Two for Eight

6/23/08

4:00 PM

Tables Available at Picholine; Bar Boulud and Le Bernardin Mostly Booked

It’s 4 p.m., and that means it’s time to play Two for Eight. We just asked ten restaurants the best time they can squeeze a couple in for dinner; you need only make your chosen reservation. (As always, we make the calls but don’t guarantee the results.) Today: Gourmet French.

More: Two for Eight »balthazar, bar boulud, benoit, cru, daniel, gordon ramsay at the london, latelier de joel robuchon, le bernardin, le cirque, picholine

NewsFeed

6/17/08

5:00 PM

Bobby Flay Refuses to Eat Brains

On Serious Eats today, Bobby Flay touts some favorite local spots: Morandi’s brunch, Balthazar’s and Momofuku Ssäm’s late-night menus, JG Melon’s burger, and the ice-cream sundae at Shake Shack. The one thing he won’t eat? “Brains.”

More: NewsFeed »babbo, balthazar, bobby flat, brains, chez napoleon, jg melon, momofuku ssam, morandi, shake shack

Two for Eight

6/ 9/08

4:00 PM

Tables Available at Benoit and Picholine; Balthazar and Le Bernardin Mostly Booked

It’s 4 p.m., and that means it’s time to play Two for Eight. We just asked ten restaurants the best time they can squeeze a couple in for dinner; you need only make your chosen reservation. (As always, we make the calls but don’t guarantee the results.) Today: Gourmet French.

More: Two for Eight »balthazar, bar boulud, benoit, cru, daniel, gordon ramsay at the london, latelier dejoel robuchon, le bernardin, le cirque, picholine

Two for Eight

5/14/08

4:00 PM

Tables Available at Daniel and Etats-Uni; Gordon Ramsay Fully Booked

It’s 4 p.m., and that means it’s time to play Two for Eight. We just asked ten restaurants the best time they can squeeze a couple in for dinner; you need only make your chosen reservation. (As always, we make the calls but don’t guarantee the results.) Today: Gourmet French.

More: Two for Eight »balthazar, cru, daniel, etats-unis, gordon ramsay at the london, le bernardin, le cirque, Le Grenouille, picholine

NewsFeed

5/ 9/08

3:30 PM

JFK’s Terminal Five Could Be the Greatest Airport Food Court Ever

This way to tapas, steak-frites, and agnolotti del plin.Photo: Getty Images

We were excited to learn in a recent Observer article that Mark Ladner is consulting on an Italian restaurant at JFK's JetBlue terminal for later this year. The restaurant will be called Aero Nova, he tells us, and will be run by his former chef at Del Posto, Mario "Little Mario" Carbone. "The emphasis will be on simple, fresh, affordable, seasonal Italian food," says Ladner. "We're appealing to a large demographic."

But what if the JetBlue terminal got even tastier?

More: NewsFeed »balthazar, jfk airport

Two for Eight

4/28/08

4:00 PM

Tables Available at Picholine and Cru; Gordon Ramsay at the London Fully Booked

It’s 4 p.m., and that means it’s time to play Two for Eight. We just asked ten restaurants the best time they can squeeze a couple in for dinner; you need only make your chosen reservation. (As always, we make the calls but don’t guarantee the results.) Today: Gourmet French.

More: Two for Eight »balthazar, cru, daniel, etats-unis, fleur de sel, gordon ramsay at the london, le bernardin, le cirque, picholine

NewsFeed

4/23/08

12:50 PM

Balthazar Burns Something — and Not Blackened Fish

Someone's going to have the munchies.Photo illustration: Everett Bogue; Photos: Nataly Levich, Getty Images

Around 11:54 p.m. last night, while seated at our beloved Balthabar (you know, the bar at Balthazar?), we smelled a strong, unmistakable odor that definitely wasn’t Camembert. We weren’t the only ones: A server walked by saying, “Someone’s got some good weed.” And just like that, the smell was gone. Did it come from the adjacent kitchen, a half-hour before it closed? We’re not saying it did — perhaps the engagement party nearby was taking liberties — but, nevertheless, salmon and hollandaise aside, this bastion of gentility may have a “house smoker.”

More: NewsFeed »balthazar, soho

NewsFeed

4/21/08

11:05 AM

Mitchell Davis Stands Up for Morandi in ‘The Art of Eating’

the art of eating

Ed Behr's The Art of Eating strikes again.

We never could figure out why critics were so underwhelmed with Morandi when it opened. Not that Keith McNally’s foray into Italian food was exactly slammed, but it got no hint of the love with which all his other restaurants are uniformly showered. Was Morandi the Cable Guy of the McNally canon? An essay by James Beard Foundation VP Mitchell Davis in the new issue of The Art of Eating argues that Morandi is a victim of a double standard: Critics, he says, “evaluate French restaurants and food against an arbitrary standard of tradition or classicism, while judging Italian restaurants and food against an equally arbitrary standard of authenticity.” There might be something to Davis’ point — a lot of ink was spilled on Morandi’s phony-baloney qualities, when they were, after all, meant to be transparent. In any case, the piece is a discerning meta-review and thoughtful in a way typical of The Art of Eating, an obscure but admirable publication unfortunately not available online. With their permission, though, we're including a PDF of the essay so you can read it in full.

New York: Variations on a Theme Restaurant [PDF]

More: NewsFeed »balthazar, ed behr, james beard awards, keith mcnally, mitchell davis, morandi, the art of eating

NewsFeed

4/16/08

2:50 PM

Balthazar's Taped-Up Banquettes Are Still Fit for Snogging

Tape — caught on tape!

Gawker links to a Daily News blind item about a certain “handsome men's magazine editor” (David Zinczenko, of Men’s Health?) getting to third base with a certain “inexplicable media star” (columnist Julia Allison?). Not surprising that it happened at Balthazar — we see someone sucking face over oysters pretty much every time we're there. Must be something about those sexy red banquettes. Speaking of which — are we the only ones who’ve noticed that, in a few spots, they’ve been repaired, Holiday Cocktail–style, with what looks like duct tape? What do you think: tacky? Part of Balth’s charm? Or too busy making out to care?

Third Base at Balthazar: Men's Health's Dave Zinczenko and Julia Allison [Gawker]

More: NewsFeed »balthazar, david zinczenko, julia allison

Two for Eight

3/25/08

4:00 PM

Tables Available at Cru and Fleur de Sel; Le Cirque and Le Bernardin Mostly Booked

It’s 4 p.m., and that means it’s time to play Two for Eight. We just asked ten restaurants the best time they can squeeze a couple in for dinner; you need only make your chosen reservation. (As always, we make the calls but don’t guarantee the results.) Today: Gourmet French.

More: Two for Eight »balthazar, cru, daniel, etats-unis, fleur de sel, gordon ramsay at the london, la grenouille, le bernardin, le cirque, picholine

Celebrity Settings

3/ 6/08

5:00 PM

LeBron James and Anna Wintour Cozy Up at Waverly; Moby Makes Out at R Bar

Courtside at the game?Photo Illustration: Getty Images, johnnyz's flickr

We weren’t surprised to read in "Page Six" today that Anna Wintour dined with LeBron James at the Waverly Inn. We passed their table on Tuesday, and when the ceilings are that low, it’s impossible to miss a six-foot-eight baller extracting himself from the center of a corner booth. James was patiently sitting next to the bathroom when we emerged, causing our waiter to remark, “You made LeBron James wait!” We couldn’t tell whether he was chastising us or congratulating us for no doubt costing the man a Benjamin of his time, but either way we felt a sense of accomplishment unknown since Alex Kapranos of Franz Ferdinand queued up behind us at the Spotted Pig. The rest of this week’s sightings are heavy on the PDA.

More: Celebrity Settings »aleo, Balthazar, Benjamin steak house, bouchon bakery, del posto, gottino, Johnny utah’s, la esquina, la grainne, pershing square, r bar, ray’s pizza, rose bar, sarabeth’s, scores east, serafina, socialista, spotted pig, suzie wong, time hotel, vegetarian, waverly inn, whole foods

Celebrity Settings

2/22/08

4:50 PM

Bobby Flay a Fan of Chipotle (the Restaurant, Not Just the Sauce)?

Photo: Getty Images

Earlier today, we pointed to our fashion blog’s outrage that Orlando Bloom was seen with Victoria’s Secret model Miranda Kerr at Max Brenner, of all places. However, our combing of this week’s celebrity sightings reveals it may have been a momentary lapse, since Bloom was also spotted at the much more respectable Bobo. Phew. But what’s this — Bobby Flay filming outside of Chipotle? Is he a spokesman now? Who knows — if Rachael Ray can endorse Dunkin’ Donuts…

More: Celebrity Settings »amy's bread, balthazar, beatrice inn, bobo, chipotle, gyu kaku, jamba juice, le pain quotidien, sammy's roumanian, socialista

Two for Eight

2/20/08

4:00 PM

Tables Available at La Grenouille and Café des Artistes; Balthazar Fully Booked

It’s 4 p.m., and that means it’s time to play Two for Eight. We just asked ten restaurants the best time they can squeeze a couple in for dinner; you need only make your chosen reservation. (As always, we make the calls but don’t guarantee the results.) Today: gourmet French cuisine.

More: Two for Eight »balthazar, cafe des artistes, cru, daniel, fleur de sel, gordon ramsay at the london, la grenouille, le bernardin, le cirque, picholine

VideoFeed

2/14/08

4:30 PM

Our Valentine's Day Present to You: Balthazar Chefs in Their Bathrobes

We’ve always dreamed of scoring one of the très elegant jackets that Balthazar waiters wear (hint, hint, guys), but on a recent Martha Stewart Show, Balth chefs Lee Hanson and Riad Nasr modeled an even more stylish item — Balthazar bathrobes! (“We were going to wear teddies, but it would not have been good for ratings,” a handlebar-mustached Lee Hanson quips.) If you want to make your V-Day date a pretty mean breakfast in bed tomorrow, check out the clip in which the boys demonstrate “the French take on breakfast burritos.” Just pretend not to notice the amount of butter that goes into this dish.

More: VideoFeed »balthazar, lee hanson, riad nasr

The New York Diet

2/ 8/08

9:00 AM

How Mireille Guiliano Doesn't Get Fat: Breakfast at Balthazar

"I made scallops, roasted potatoes that I cooked in duck fat, haricots verts, and an apple."Photo: Melissa Hom

When Mireille Guiliano first came to America as an exchange student, she gained weight for the first time in her life. Many years later, after becoming a CEO of Veuve Clicquot, she penned the buzzy No. 1 best-seller French Women Don’t Get Fat, now out in paperback. After 25 years of splitting her time between New York and Paris, Guiliano is still amazed by the large portions here, and by the New Yorker’s tendency to eat on the go. “To eat your bagel and your muffin with coffee on the subway is gross,” she says. “How can you do it with the smell and the noise and the moving? I’d rather starve.” She’s also still shocked when she sees people eating on the street or standing up. “For French people, you’re supposed to eat at the table. Besides the bed, it’s the most important piece of furniture in the house.” So what’s she been eating at the table this week?

More: The New York Diet »annisa, august, balthazar, cafe cluny, l'arte del gelato, mireille guiliano, perry st, sarabeth's, veuve clicquot

Mediavore

1/31/08

10:00 AM

Starbucks Nixes Breakfast Sandwiches; Kenny Shopsin Ready for Mind-Altering Substances

In addition to slowing its expansion (finally), Starbucks will halt “sales of hot breakfast sandwiches because their smell interferes with the aroma of coffee.” [WSJ]

If Padma Lakshmi could eat anywhere right now, she’d head to a little taco stand in Mexico for some fish tacos on the beach. [Diner’s Journal/NYT]

Chelsea hot spot Stereo, which was closed by police earlier this month, will not be reopening at its current location because the landlord bought out the lease. [NYP]

More: Mediavore »balthazar, bar blanc, cesar ramirez, fabio trabocchi, fiamma, kenny shopsin, knives, nyu, padma lakshmi, shopsins, starbucks, stereo

Two for Eight

1/18/08

4:00 PM

Balthazar and Le Bernardin Fully Booked; Picholine Mostly Booked

It’s 4 p.m., and that means it’s time to play Two for Eight. We just asked ten restaurants the best time they can squeeze a couple in for dinner; you need only make your chosen reservation. (As always, we make the calls but don’t guarantee the results.) Today: Gourmet French Cuisine.

More: Two for Eight »Balthazar, cafe des artistes, Cru, Daniel, Etats-Unis, Gordon Ramsay at the London, La Grenouille, Le Bernardin, Le Cirque, Picholine

Mediavore

1/10/08

10:00 AM

Keith McNally Sued; Huckabee Serves Clam Chowder in New Hampshire

According to a new class-action suit being brought against Keith McNally, servers at Pastis and Balthazar were forced to foot the bill for customers who walked out on their checks, in addition to being denied minimum wage. [NYP]

Frank Bruni, like many other critics, believes a restaurant’s chicken dishes speak volumes about its overall quality. [Diner’s Journal/NYT]

E-mails sent by Starbucks Corp. managers reveal their efforts to prevent unionizing among their employees, although labor experts say the activity is not illegal. [WSJ]

More: Mediavore »adour, alain ducasse, balthazar, chicken, donatella arpaia, frank bruni, john edwards, keith mcnally, mike huckabee, pastis, starbucks, tony bourdain, top chef, whole foods

Two for Eight

1/ 3/08

4:00 PM

Tables Available at Cru and Picholine; Gordon Ramsay Fully Booked

It’s 4 p.m., and that means it’s time to play Two for Eight. We just asked ten restaurants the best time they can squeeze a couple in for dinner; you need only make your chosen reservation. (As always, we make the calls but don’t guarantee the results.) Today: Gourmet French cuisine.

More: Two for Eight »Balthazar, cafe des artistes, Cru, Daniel, Etats-Unis, Fleur de Sel, Gordon Ramsay at the London, Le Bernardin, Le Cirque, Picholine

Mediavore

12/18/07

10:15 AM

Rachael Ray Continues Food Network Domination; New Year's Day Brunches

With Batali and Emeril out of her way, “homegrown star” Rachael Ray has just inked a two-year deal for a new prime-time series on the Food Network. [Eater]

It’s nothing he hasn’t said before, but the wordiness of some menus gets on the Bruni’s nerves. [Diner’s Journal/NYT]

Forget turducken: British chef Phillip Corrick has created a monster that involves at least 48 birds of a dozen different species and feeds 125 people. [Daily Mail]

More: Mediavore »1 oak, balthazar, cookbooks, emeril lagasse, food network, frank bruni, mario batali, menus, milk, new year's, phillip corrick, rachael ray, turducken

Celebrity Settings

12/11/07

3:30 PM

Ben Stiller Crashes a Party at Fiamma, Penélope Cruz Makes Out at Socialista

She only got in because she knows Javier Bardem.Photo: WireImages

Every Friday a notable New Yorker tells us where they’ve been eating, but where are the rest of them chowing down? Starting this week we’ll sort through the gossip columns à la Ils Vont (RIP) to tell you who’s been seen where (casual sightings only — boring galas, vodka launches, and pluggy appearances don’t count). We’ll eventually compile a ranking of restaurants most often visited by celebs. Not that you care about that sort of thing! Oh, but if you do, won’t you please leave your own sightings in the comments?

More: Celebrity Settings »balthazar, bar martignetti, bk, bouley bakery, chinatown brasserie, city bakery, daddy-o, downtown cipriani, elaine's, empire hotel, fiamma, fresco, goldbar, huckleberry bar, il cortile, jg melon, katz's deli, kellari taverna, kittichai, le pain quotidien, le perigold, los dados, marquee, megu, morandi, nello, pink elephant, pop burger, room service, rose bar, sapa, socialista, soda shop, stanton social, tenjune, the box, the hairy monk, the plumm, waverly inn

Two for Eight

12/ 6/07

4:00 PM

Daniel and Le Cirque Fully Booked; La Grenouille Mostly Booked

It’s after 4 p.m., and that means it’s time to play Two for Eight. We just asked ten restaurants the best time they can squeeze a couple in for dinner; you need only make your chosen reservation. (As always, we make the calls but don’t guarantee the results.) Today: Gourmet French cuisine.

More: Two for Eight »Balthazar, cafe des artistes, Cru, Daniel, Etats-Unis, Gordon Ramsay at the London, La Grenouille, Le Bernardin, Le Cirque, Picholine

NewsFeed

11/30/07

5:00 PM

CB Smiles on Triple Crown, Approves Balthazar Barkeep's Bistro

Lindsey Robertson, wife of Triple Crown owner Myles Tipley, tells us that after a lot of wrestling with the community board, the hip-hop bar’s liquor license has been approved for transfer to Jeff Webber, who Robertson says is a bartender at Balthazar planning to open a lounge/wine bar/café. You’ll recall the diminutive space was at one point going to be sold to gym owner Mike Jaramillo, who’s opening Viñas on December 7.

Related: Neighbors Block Sale of Williamsburg Hip-Hop Bar to Balthazar Bartender
Openings & Buzz: Viñas, Le Lupanar, and Gottino

More: NewsFeed »balthazar, community board, triple crown, williamsburg

The New York Diet

11/30/07

9:00 AM

Singer-Songwriter Vanessa Carlton Indeed Loves Ruby's in the Afternoon

Vanessa Carlton

"I went to Ruby’s and had another espresso."Photo:Melissa Hom

In her single “Nolita Fairytale,” Vanessa Carlton sings about her love of “Ruby's in the afternoon”— a reference to her favorite neighborhood hang. “It’s the best people-watching,” she says of Ruby’s. “Everyone looks like they’re out of an editorial shoot for some hip magazine. But it’s not posey.” Other favorites near the “Nolita flat on rent control” she famously exalts? La Esquina (“I love to get takeout or to just sit at the front taco bar”), Freemans (“I think it wins the devils-on-horseback competition with the Spotted Pig”), and N (“the best chorizo I’ve ever had”). We asked her whether this week found her at any of the above.

More: The New York Diet »apizz, aurora, balthazar, beatrice inn, dean & deluca, freemans, la esquina, mexican radio, ruby's, strip house, vanessa carlton

Two for Eight

11/14/07

4:30 PM

Tables Available at Café des Artistes and Le Cirque; Gordon Ramsay Full Booked

It’s after 4 p.m., and that means it’s time to play Two for Eight. We just asked ten restaurants the best time they can squeeze a couple in for dinner; you need only make your chosen reservation. (As always, we make the calls but don’t guarantee the results.) Today: Gourmet French cuisine.

More: Two for Eight »Balthazar, cafe des artistes, Cru, Daniel, Etats-Unis, Gordon Ramsay at the London, La Grenouille, Le Bernardin, Le Cirque, Picholine

NewsFeed

11/ 5/07

4:30 PM

Neighbors Block Sale of Williamsburg Hip-Hop Bar to Balthazar Bartender

We’ve heard plenty about bars being shot down by the community when they try to open, but what about when they’re trying to close? Lindsey Caldwell sent us a desperate e-mail on behalf of her husband Myles Tipley, a co-owner of the artsy Williamsburg hip-hop bar Triple Crown, saying that “the community board refuses to allow [the owners] to sell the place.” The bar has been closed for eight months (with events here and there) after the burden of addressing noise complaints proved too much. But in the meantime, rent and bills have cost the owners $135,000, plus an average of about $7,000 per week in lost revenue, Caldwell says.

More: NewsFeed »balthazar, triple crown, williamsburg

Two for Eight

10/29/07

4:00 PM

Tables Available at Daniel and Picholine; Gordon Ramsay Fully Booked

It’s 4 p.m., and that means it’s time to play Two for Eight. We just asked ten restaurants the best time they can squeeze a couple in for dinner; you need only make your chosen reservation. (As always, we make the calls but don’t guarantee the results.) Today: Gourmet French cuisine.

More: Two for Eight »Balthazar, cafe des artistes, Daniel, Etats-Unis, Fleur de Sel, Gordon Ramsey, La Grenouille, Le Bernardin, Le Cirque, Picholine

Mediavore

10/19/07

10:00 AM

Bourdain Showing ‘Iron Chef’ Some Love; Dévi Back in Action

The worst thing Tony Bourdain can say about the new Top Iron Chef is “that Ruhlman’s hair is the scariest and most offensive aspect of the show … In every other respect, the damn thing is pretty impeccable.” [Ruhlman]
Related: Who Will Be Cut Next on ‘The Next Iron Chef’?

Enterprising chefs Suvir Saran and Hemant Mathur will have their recently acquired restaurant Dévi reopen by Monday. [Eater]
Related: Debriefing Dévi: Suvir Saran’s Suspected Side Projects

Jessica Seinfeld’s Deceptively Delicious cookbook is uncomfortably similar to another cookbook published a few months before it, which also encourages moms to put spinach in brownies. [NYT]
Related: Hey Jessica Seinfeld! What Up? [Daily Intel]

More: Mediavore »anthony bourdain, balthazar, devi, diddy, hemant mathur, iron chef, jessica seinfeld, kiosk, schiller's, suvir saran, top chef, upstairs

Two for Eight

10/11/07

4:00 PM

Tables Available at Etats-Unis and Café des Artistes; Gordon Ramsay at the Londo