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Top Noms of 2014

Every year, we compile our favorite meals of the previous 12 months. (For previous years, check here: 2013, 2012, 2011, 2010, and 2009). It is always hard to choose the best, and this year especially so when 2013 ended with our number one meal of all time at Alinea in Chicago, and then 2014 started with the previous #1 (and still #1 in NYC), Eleven Madison Park for the second time. But enough about previous tops, and onto the tops of 2014:

As for great food that weren’t specific restaurants, I had an incredible experience at the New York Magazine Taste Event, getting to sample a bite from some of the best restaurants around the city. My favorite recipe that I shared (and have now baked over and over again) was the Nutella Stuffed Salted Chocolate Cookies (note: I have since removed the caramels and find the recipe is perfect even without this extra indulgence). And then my favorite day of the year is the day we went on a veritable treasure hunt around NYC to #followtherabbit to get free cronuts and cookie shots from Dominique Ansel in honor of his cookbook launch. What an amazing time!

As for our top 10 Restaurants of 2014…

#10: The NoMad Bar

We had a great meal at The NoMad (#5 on the Top Noms of 2013) and we were excited to see that they launched a slightly more casual (and very sexy) “Bar” version. We have since been back a few times and each time we enjoy the food and the cocktails, which are very expensive but some of the best in the city. It’s hard to beat as a place to impress guests or a date.

#9: Carbone

We had heard the rumbling about the new restaurant from Mario Carbone, Rich Torrisi and Jeff Zalaznick, Carbone. The buzz about the Veal Parm was especially loud, referencing the ridiculous price ($54) and the equally ridiculous deliciousness. The veal was certainly delicious, but it was actually the amazing pasta dishes that pushed this into the top 10.

#8: Brunch at DBGB

We were surprised at how much we enjoyed brunch at DBGB, though I really shouldn’t have been since I have always been a big fan of David Boulud restaurants. We have enjoyed ourselves at many including Boulud Sud (#6 on the 2012 Top Noms List) Daniel (#3 on the 2011 Top Noms List), Cafe Boulud (#5 on the Top Restaurant Week list), and Bar Boulud (a favorite brunch spot). Our brunch at DBGB was with a big group and everyone left raving about the food, and the French Toast was the best I’ve ever had.

#7: Root & Bone Opening

We had a great time at the pop-up preview of Root & Bone in 2013 and then visited the new permanent location in the East Village during the first few weeks of opening. It was opened by Top Chef alums Jeffrey McInnis and Janine Booth and brought us the fried chicken that no one can stop talking about. I loved the corn dish (which combined “Grilled Sweet Corn Cob… Husk and All” with cornbread butter, giant hominy, and popped corn) though I’ve heard that it’s not as consistent from other reviewers. I also adored the short rib meat loaf. I loved that the menu had a lot of memorable dishes that were a little bit different.

#6: Bodega Negra at the Dream Hotel

Another surprising meal was at Bodega Negra in Chelsea. Perhaps it’s because I don’t get to eat Mexican food very often due to my allergy, so this was novel. But the dessert alone put this squarely in the top 10 and it was an incredibly memorable meal. (Video of the dessert’s metamorphosis here)

#5: Decoy: Peking Duck Dinner

I love a Peking Duck dinner. Something about that crispy duck with all the fixins wrapped in the little pancakes just make me happy. But this dinner was pretty epic in that not only was the duck dinner included, but also 4 small plates, 2 main dishes, and 1 fried rice or side dish. The grilled wagyu beef pieces are still a taste memory stuck on repeat in my brain and it’s a great meal to share with food loving friends.

#4: all’onda

A restaurant I have recommended again and again is all’onda. Eater called it the biggest restaurant opening of 2014 and we could not disagree. Each dish was very unique and had a special flare to it that everyone really enjoyed. We loved the sea urchin pasta (which I think has gone off and on the menu a few times depending on availability) and I still think of the arancini balls with beautiful squid ink rice.

#3: Sushi Nakazawa

What a surprise! Mike made an impressive choice for my surprise birthday dinner and our meal was fantastic from start to finish. A whole lot of chef chosen sushi in the Omikase, with the uni that will forever leave me chasing that uni dragon. Do yourself a favor and make a reservation, be sure to watch Jiro Dreams of Sushi before you go, and then visit this restaurant to taste what Chef Daisuke Nakazawa learned after a 10-year apprenticeship at one of the best sushi restaurants in Japan.

#2: Per Se

After quite the exciting meal at The French Laundry during out honeymoon, it was hard to resist trying Per Se on our first wedding anniversary. I was excited just to be in this NYC institution, and I could not wait to wrap my tongue around the Oysters and Pearls dish again, a tiny bowl of heaven that is famous in both locations. While still not as great as other restaurants we have loved, it was undeniable why this is commonly referred to as one of the best (and most special) restaurants in New York City. The meal was perfect (just like our French Laundry meal) but not quite as creative as some of our favorites. Still #2 for the year!

#1: Liquid Art House

The surprise of the year. I went to Boston on business but was able to spend my first night in the city with a good friend. A quick search of top restaurants in the city near the Boston Back Bay station led me to Liquid Art House. The space opened in May of this year and it was incredible and impressive with art hung like a gallery. The food is also a work of art on each plate. Usually you expect food that beautiful to be more aesthetic than substance, but the food absolutely, 100% delivered. Each flavor was incredible and the ingredients were so fresh. I was actually suffering extensively from morning sickness during this meal, but I managed to enjoy every single bite. I wish I had room for dessert, because I can only imagine what creations they came up with, but I left this meal in awe of how much I enjoyed it. I also just found out that Chef Stacy Cogswell from the current season of Top Chef (the Boston native) just came into the kitchen under Executive Chef Rachel Klein. Since we do love our Top Cheftestant restaurants, I look forward even more to bringing Mike back to try this place as soon as we can make a trip back to Boston.

Another incredible year of eats! I cannot help but reflect back on how fortunate we are that we get to live this life. We joke that our biggest fear for our baby is that he will not love food. But I have to think that can’t possibly be feasible with us as parents. We just love this way too much.

Thanks for another great year!

Onto the adventures of 2015.

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Categories Celebrity Chefs, Eating Out, Food Events, New Restaurants, The Best Of The Best, Travel

Carbone and the $54 Veal Parm

2 Mar

Of all the restaurants that opened last year, few got as much buzz as Carbone. A restaurant from Mario Carbone, Rich Torrisi and Jeff Zalaznick, parts of the team that brought us Torrisi Italian Specialties and Parm (which are two places that New York holds dear but I, sadly, haven’t had the opportunity to try yet).

We actually live across the street from the OTHER Carbone (I blogged about it years ago) which caused a good deal of confusion and made headlines for having a few rather famous people waiting in the completely wrong restaurant in the completely wrong side of town (for the record, that Carbone is “Carbone Ristorante Italiano” in the Garment District but THIS Carbone is in Greenwich Village on Thomson between Bleecker and West Houston. Their website URLs are even nearly identical as CarboneNewYork.com and CarboneNYC.com)

We found ourselves in the dining room after making a reservation exactly 1 month (to the day) ahead of time. The restaurant has a combination of old world Italian and trendy industrial, thanks to the steel doors, in combination with the elegant yet simple decorations. It was elegant but a little edgy, and I liked it. The only thing that was a bit tough for me (and now for you) is that the lighting wasn’t great for photos, so apologies ahead of time that these aren’t my best work.

I was especially amused by the rooster paraphernalia.

Even in the bathroom.

(Another note on the bathroom… there was an interesting piece of art there that I actually returned to take a picture of. This is a piece of white paper in a lit white box with a candle on top… W… T… F…)

As soon as we ordered, we were served some starters from the kitchen, including a nearly transparent, thinly sliced place of prosciutto that tasted as flavorful as it was delicate in texture. It almost melted in porky fatty goodness right on your tongue.

We were also provided some cauliflower (which Mike said was great, but I couldn’t have due to my allergy to peppers) and a bite each of one of the best pieces of crystally parm I’ve ever tasted. It was nutty and rich and was lovely with the prosciutto.

And some incredible bread, that was fresh and flavorful, with a bread “stick” that had all the flavors of pizza but in a soft, doughy bread.

For being a huge fan of wine, and traveling to three different areas in Italy, I still feel utterly clueless when it comes to picking out Italian wines. French wines, I know exactly what I like, but for some reason, I cannot get Italian wines to stick in my head. So we relied on their sommelier to pick one out for us, and he did a damn good job with this gem of a bottle.

We began with the Fettuccini con Funghi, and even though we ordered one dish to split, they nicely divided it in half and provided us with our own plates.

This was really aromatic, with the deep, rich mushrooms complimented effortlessly with fresh herbs and spices. And that pasta was perfectly cooked and textured to support all the components of the dish.

We also had to try the infamous veal parmesan which was rumored to be served on a pizza tray (it wasn’t) and very large (it was, though I guess my expectations were a wee bit grander).

Luckily, the flavors didn’t disappoint. It was a full, very vealy flavor with the right amount of breading and cheese to be slightly crispy but very moist and cheesy.

The sauce was classic and a perfect foil to the richness.

Mike really appreciated that they included the bone and went to down scraping off each delectable morsel.

As much as we loved the veal, however, at $54 (yes… fifty four dollars) I feel like it just didn’t live up to expectations and price. I’m glad we split both the pasta and the entree so the expense for both of us wasn’t too crazy, but at $54, that should be the best damn veal parm I’ve ever had. And it wasn’t. It was damn good. But it just wasn’t $54 good. But I’m glad we had the opportunity to try it.

We were then given lovely biscotti as we decided on dessert.

And shown a lovely dessert tray to choose from.

We went with the chocolate cake (may have been chocolate cherry, not sure). It was epically moist, rich, and flavorful. I’m not a cake fan but this was very nice. Then again, it didn’t make me into a cake fan. I wished it had some crunch to it, like some chocolate pieces.

As we went out, we saw them preparing a basil and persimmon dish table side. The smell of the fresh basil and precision of preparing this dish in front of us was pretty amazing. I have no idea what dish it was, but I wanted to sit down again to try it.

Overall, our meal was really fantastic. Everything was flavorful, prepared well, and a little different from the typical. But now that I’ve tried the $54 veal parm, I don’t think I need to have it again, and I can’t even say I would recommend it as a “must.” But the food we had was really great and I would go again in a heart beat to try some of their less famous dishes. Especially some more pasta dishes because ours was really phenomenal.

Total Nom Points: 8 out of 10 (docked a half point or so because that veal parm is just too expensive for what it was)

Tags: $54 veal parm, basil, biscotti, carbone, carbone restaurant, carbone ristorante italiano, chocolate cake, expensive dishes, fettuccini con funghi, greenwich village, jeff zalaznick, mario carbone, mushrooms, NYC, parm, parmesan, pasta, persimmon, restaurant review, restaurants, rich torrisi, torrisi italian specialties, veal parm, veal parmesan

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Categories Celebrity Chefs, Eating Out, New Restaurants

Carbone- For Lunch

8 Nov

I have reviewed Carbone before, however, one of the highlights of working next to your apartment is getting to know the local restaurants even better. Looking back at my review now, I’m really surprised by how underwhelmed we were there. When I went for lunch with my coworkers, we had a great experience. Everything felt very authentic and while not plated all fancy, was just easily delicious.