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All Posts Tagged: ‘eighty one’

Two for Eight

7/17/08

4:00 PM

Tables Available at Commerce and Graffiti; the Stanton Social 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: Modern American Cuisine.

More: Two for Eight »commerce, dovetail, dressler, eighty one, graffiti, hearth, lure fishbar, mas (farmhouse), prune, stanton social

Two for Eight

7/ 1/08

4:00 PM

Tables Available at Hearth and Graffiti; Dressler and the Stanton Social Mostly Booked

More: Two for Eight »commerce, dovetail, dressler, eighty one, graffiti, hearth, lure fishbar, mas (farmhouse), prune, stanton social

Neighborhood Watch

6/20/08

3:00 PM

Octopus Takes Well to the Spin Cycle; Eighty One's Deceivingly Cheap Prix Fixe

Chelsea: Appellation Wine & Spirits is hosting a summer-solstice wine tasting tonight, with help from Chelsea Market's Green Table restaurant, who'll provide the "duck rillettes on house-made blue-corn crackers, organic fresh crudités with seasonal dips, [and] cheese and grilled bread." [Strong Buzz]
Cobble Hill: The pop of the owner of Sam's Restaurant, at 238 Court Street, talks about pizza-making in this video about some of the neighborhood's old-school spots. [Slice]
East Village: Mercadito Cantina is opening on Monday at 172 Avenue B with a taco-centric menu that lets you make your own and pay by the kilo, plus specialty cocktails. [Grub Street]
Midtown West: To tenderize octopus for Kellari Taverna owner Gregory Zapantis's grilled recipe (which seems to be missing the grilling step), you should place it "in a washing machine, putting it through one cycle. Five octopuses can be done at one time in the machine." Who knew? [Restaurant Girl]
Tribeca: A potential diner is taking issue with Matsugen for not being able to hold his 11 p.m. reservation, even though the receptionist explained that "at that point [11 p.m.], it's going to be really awkward — you'll be the only people in the restaurant." [Eater]
Upper West Side: Eighty One has created a special summer prix fixe that's only $42, for two courses. [Zagat Buzz]

More: Neighborhood Watch »appellation wine, chelsea, cobble hill, east village, eighty one, green table, kellari, matsugen, mercadito cantina, midtown west, sam's restaurant, tribeca, upper west side

Two for Eight

6/17/08

4:00 PM

Tables Available at Eighty One and Graffiti; Prune and Dovetail Mostly Booked

More: Two for Eight »commerce, dovetail, dressler, eighty one, graffiti, hearth, lure fishbar, mas (farmhouse), prune, stanton social

Mediavore

6/10/08

10:00 AM

President Looks to Increase FDA Budget After Latest Scare; Pelaccio Eats Salad

• The Bush administration appealed to Congress yesterday to add $275 million to the Food & Drug Administration’s budget, so that they can try to prevent incidents like this salmonella-tomato situation. [NYT]

• Gael Greene has created an over-the-top, decadent sundae for Serendipity 3 that uses crème fraîche and 24-karat gold as ingredients. But those who indulge in it will have a sound conscience, as proceeds from the sundae’s sale go to Citymeals-on-Wheels. [NYP]

• Fatty Crab chef Zak Pelaccio eats salad with his fingers. [Mouthing Off/Food & Wine]

More: Mediavore »bar pitti, crops, ed brown, eighty one, fatty crab, fda, gael greene, mcdonald's, rocco dispirito, salmonella, serendipity 3, zak pelaccio

Two for Eight

6/ 3/08

4:00 PM

Tables Available at Dressler and Hearth; the Stanton Social Mostly Booked

More: Two for Eight »commerce, dovetail, dressler, eighty one, graffiti, hearth, lure fishbar, mas (farmhouse), prune, stanton social

Foodievents

6/ 2/08

2:30 PM

New Taste of the UWS Reminds Us to Eat Uptown

Cesare Casella slices prosciutto, and Landmarc's Marc Murphy spins cotton candy.Photo: Michael Alan Connelly

Saturday’s New Taste of the Upper West Side was a coming-out party of sorts for the neighborhood, having regained its identity as a celebrated food district. Chef Michael Psilakis expressed gratitude for Kefi’s “cult status” in the neighborhood and its resulting full dining room. But the opening of Kefi 2.0 on Columbus Avenue has been delayed, Psilakis says. He hopes the new space will open in August, but don't expect any changes to the menu. “We’re not looking to change the concept,” says the chef. “We just want a place where we can take reservations, take credit cards, and not make people wait an hour for dinner.”

More: Foodievents »bar boulud, cesca, eighty one, fatty crab, gael greene, kefi, landmarc, madaleine may, magnolia bakery, michael psilakis, new taste of the upper west side, nina zagat, randy garutti, shake shack, telepan, tim zagat, upper west side, zak pelaccio

The Other Critics

5/14/08

9:30 AM

Eighty One Earns Two Stars and a Bon Mot; the Harrison Starts Out With a Rave

Frank Bruni finds Eighty One to be busy, a little vain, but on the whole very good — although he wishes they would ease up with the duos and trios already. Great Bruni line of the week: “[The] oversize red velvet booths that look as if they were carted in from a bordello on some planet where the prostitutes are 12 feet tall.” [NYT]

Amanda Freitag's move from Gusto to the Harrison is now officially a success, as her first major review is a five-star job from Jay Cheshes. Cheshes loves the room and makes a point of praising the “ought-to-be-legendary duck-fat fries with lemony mayo.” [TONY]
Related: Psilakis, Freitag Simultaneously Reinvent Vinegar-Flavored French Fries

Dinner was okay in the early going for Restaurant Girl at Ago, with the pizzas and appetizers doing their job. But then the pastas and proteins came, and with them a string of adjectives — “gamey,” “salty,” “sloppy,” “oily,” and “overcooked” — that reduced the place to a single star. [NYDN]

More: The Other Critics »ago, alan richman, artichoke pizza, bar q, commerce, danyelle freeman, duane park, eighty one, estrellita poblana III, frank bruni, the harrison

NewsFeed

4/28/08

1:00 PM

Taste of the Upper West Side Has More Chefs Than Can Fit Onscreen

The restaurant explosion on the Upper West side has reached mushroom-cloud proportions. How else can you explain the previously unimaginable Taste of the Upper West Side, a big tasting event scheduled for May 31? Numerous chefs are involved, ranging from new arrivals like John Fraser and Ed Brown, of Dovetail and Eighty One, to name chefs like Zak Pelaccio and Cesare Casella who have jumped on the UWS bandwagon. Point of interest: Casella’s restaurant is cited as “Salumeria,” — the first glimpse of the venture’s until-now nebulous identity. Admission is two-tiered: It’s $100 in advance for the tasting event and $250 if you also want to attend the VIP cocktail hour preceding it.

New Taste of the Upper West Side [Official site]

More: NewsFeed »cesare casella, dovetail, ed brown, eighty one, john fraser, michael psilakis, zak pelaccio

The Other Critics

4/ 9/08

9:35 AM

Chop Suey Ekes Out a Star; South Gate Ravaged

The view at Chop Suey is worth a star in itself to Frank Bruni, which is a good thing, because the food is “an uneven mash of inspiration and clumsiness.” [NYT]

Restaurant Girl is happy to have Eighty One on the Upper West Side; if only they did a better job with seafood, she would have been able to give it more than two stars. [NYDN]

Randall Lane is done messing around. This week, South Gate feels his wrath for “mediocre” food such as “gravy sporting the kind of congealed film I associate with bad TV dinners.” Two stars (out of six)! [TONY]

More: The Other Critics »ago, chop suey, dovetail, eighty one, elettaria, momofuku noodle bar, south gate

In the Magazine

3/31/08

9:30 AM

Platt at Eighty One; Ago to Open

Not everyone that comes here will stay. Hear that, Eighty One?Photo: Noah Sheldon

New York's food world goes high-end this week, but with mixed results. Eighty One and Commerce are sampled by Adam Platt and Gael Greene, respectively, but neither is knocked out by their highly wrought creations. Rob and Robin report that Robert De Niro's Ago will open this week, aimed at the same power players who frequent the Hollywood, Vegas, and South Beach versions of the celebrity hangout. Even mighty Starbucks has found itself behind the curve and needs advice, which the Robs solicited from The Atlantic's Corby Cummer, Danny Meyer, and Jonathan Rubinstein from Joe: The Art of Coffee. If you cook at home, Chef Anita Lo of Annisa shares her fruit-soup recipe featuring the ugly but delicious crosnes.

More: In the Magazine »ago, anita lo, annisa, commerce, eighty one, starbucks

The Annotated Dish

3/ 6/08

5:30 PM

Eighty One’s Off-the-Bone Osso Buco Requires Grits to Clean It Up

Chef Ed Brown’s new restaurant, Eighty One, hasn’t been open long, but, along with the recently opened Dovetail and South Gate, it’s helping to lead a mini-renaissance of ambitious fine-dining restaurants in New York. One of the most popular dishes on the opening menu, according to Brown, is a “homey and rustic dish, brought up to the restaurant level”: deboned osso buco for one. As always, mouse over the different parts of the dish to hear them described in the chef’s own words.

More: The Annotated Dish »ed brown, eighty one, osso bucco, veal

Back of the House

2/28/08

9:00 AM

Women Rule the Wine Cellars of New York

Jen Lordan, beverage director at Dovetail.Photo: Melissa Hom

Two of this season’s most anticipated restaurants — the three-star Dovetail and Ed Brown’s Eighty One — launched with female sommeliers. Former Daniel sommelier and wineshop owner Jean Luc Le Dû recently remarked to Grub Street that only a few years ago, non-white males in the role were considered an anomaly. Today, only three women (and 21 men) in the United States have the coveted “Master of Wine” designation, awarded to 264 sommeliers throughout the world. But in New York, women helm some of the city’s most respected wine programs, including Gramercy Tavern, the Modern, and the entire B.R. Guest group. We interviewed several of these ladies of the cellar for their ideas on the industry, their experiences on the floor, and picks on retail value bottles. Look for them at restaurants near you. —Alexandra Vallis

Slideshow: Women in Wine

More: Back of the House »br guest, dovetail, eighty one, gramercy tavern, modern, wine

NewsFeed

1/25/08

2:20 PM

Eighty One Takes the Haute Barnyard, Locavore Thing 81 Steps Further

And also, thanks to Mr. Roboto.

In what has to be the clearest example yet of Haute Barnyard run amok, Eighty One has sent us a scroll containing a list of “81 people who bring Eighty One to life.” Rob and Robin weren’t kidding when they said the ingredients were meticulously sourced — everyone gets credit from the “mushroom expert” to the frog’s-legs purveyor to exec chef Ed Brown’s body double. There are more shout-outs here than on a Diddy album, but we suppose it’s not the worst idea — Brown wouldn’t want to be accused of making false organic claims.

More: NewsFeed »brown, ed brown, eighty one, haute barnyard

Neighborhood Watch

9/12/07

3:00 PM

Magnolia to Lure Cupcake Crazies to the Upper West Side

Chelsea: Trestle on Tenth launches weekend brunch this Saturday with a fall menu that includes bacon-and-onion rösti and banana-stuffed French toast with vanilla syrup.
Fort Greene: IHOP is making more New York moves: In addition to taking on Times Square, the chain will open an outlet on Livingston Street near Bond Street. [NYDN]
Midtown East: Bloomingdale's has moved tangy fro-yo pioneer Forty Carrots from the basement to a larger, more befitting seventh floor space. [NYT] Sherry-Lehmann wine store has completed its relocation to Park Avenue at 59th Street. [NYT]
Red Hook: You may have missed LeNell’s absinthe tasting (she drinks it up by the way), but she’ll host a tequila tasting this Sunday in honor of Mexican Independence Day. [LeNell’s]
Upper West Side: A second Magnolia bakery will open on 69th Street at Columbus this winter, and owner Steve Abrams thinks he can keep it a secret from tourists. [Eater] Juan Cuevas has left Blue Hill to be the chef de cuisine at Ed Brown’s Eighty One, which should open in December. [NYS]