Hotel Griffou

By grace.g.yang · February 20, 2012
Under: American,Burgers,Desserts,Dinner,greenwich village,My Life,Nightlife,seafood

A few weekends ago, David and Laura were working out in their neighborhood and asked me to have dinner with them. I originally suggested Lotus of Siam but they decided we should go to Hotel Griffou instead. I heard their drinks were good but their food wasn’t that great so I was a little hesitant but I was pleasantly surprised with their food.

David and Laura started with the octopus:

IMG_1644-1

And my friend Bianca and I started off with the veal meatballs:

IMG_1643

The meatballs were really tender and flavorful – they’re on the same level as The Meatball Shop – if not better!

For our main courses, I ordered the orecchiette pasta with kale and swiss chard and sausage:

IMG_1647-1

Bianca ordered the penne with tomato sauce:

IMG_1646-1

Laura ordered the burger:

IMG_1645-1

With a side of fries:

IMG_1649

David ordered the meatballs as a main entree:

IMG_1648-1

They didn’t say which sauce was going to smother the meatballs and since David shouldn’t eat tomatoes, we had to send it back. They were actually pretty nice about it – the waiter gave us a little lip but was nice enough to change David’s order.

For dessert, we ordered the apple crumble with burnt caramel ice cream:

IMG_1650

The apple crumble was a little too crumble-heavy (and parts of the crumble didn’t taste like they were fully cooked) but the rest of the meal was really enjoyable. By the time we left, the crowd was very mixed; lots of young people there for drinks and more people there for the food and lounge-like experience.

Griffou on Urbanspoon

Biang!

By grace.g.yang · February 17, 2012
Under: Snacks



When my mom came to visit me and Ken over Labor Day, we wanted to take her out to a fun dinner in Flushing. I’m not too familiar with sit down restaurants in Flushing but I wanted to check out Biang!, the new restaurant from the owners of Xi’an Famous Foods. We drove out to Flushing and decided to eat there (easier than figuring out which banquet hall has good food). The decor is very similar to a David Cheng-style restaurant – in fact, it doesn’t feel like you’re in Flushing when you’re in the restaurant, more like Williamsburg or the East Village!

The three of us were all very hungry so we decided to just let my mom order whatever looked good on the menu. The problem with going out to eat with my mom is that I always let her take care of the ordering (and occasionally at Chinese restaurants, she’ll ask them to make something special that not on the menu so when I go back myself, I have no idea what to order!) Luckily, we stuck to the menu and ordered a ton of food. We started with dumplings with lots of vinegar, soy sauce and sesame oil:

IMG_2735

Not mind blowing, more like dumplings that are purchased from the grocery store that you can make at home. Luckily, next was N1, the noodles with wheat gluten that I love from the regular Xi’an Famous Food stall:

IMG_2736

The food comes out pretty much at the same time, so we were presented with a ton of dishes at the same time. Next was the vegetables with more vinegar and soy sauce:

IMG_2737

A simple preparation, but flavored with lots and lots of vinegar. One of my favorite dishes of the evening was the lotus root:

IMG_2739

It was a simple preparation – just with a little sesame oil and salt, but the lotus root had a nice crunch to it and it was much lighter than anything else we had that evening. We also ordered the quail:

IMG_2740

Some lamb skewers that I thought were a little too fatty:

IMG_2741

And a savory version of very delicate tofu with hot sauce and vinegar:

IMG_2742

The vinegar taste was a little too much for my mom and Ken so I was able to enjoy the entire bowl by myself. It had a very interesting sour taste – definitely reminded me of food I had when I visited Xi’an a million years ago. Ken ordered the pork toast topped with quail eggs:

IMG_2743

And we ordered the lamb with the hand pulled noodles:

IMG_2744

After we finished all of those dishes, we ended up ordering another lamb with hand pulled noodles (just for good measure!) The name of the restaurant is one of the most difficult characters in Chinese and is actually a combination of many characters; when we arrived, my mom asked what the meaning was and the owner explained that it was the sound of the dough hitting the table. Biang! is a good spot in Flushing – definitely worth another visit!

Biang! on Urbanspoon

Miami: Wet Willie’s

By grace.g.yang · February 17, 2012
Under: Drinks

Wet Willie’s is the bar across the street from News Cafe that we were patiently waiting to open while we ate our brunch (writing that makes us sound like we’re alcoholics!) It’s actually a chain but they make everything in slushie-form and allow you to mix everything. A lot of their drinks are made with grain alcohol and they are SUPER strong – we were all a little tipsy by the time we got into our cab to head to the airport!

The four of us after a long (but fun) weekend in Miami:

wet willies

On our way home, the woman sitting next to us on the plane was escorted off by police because she was accused of threatening the flight attendants (from the way she described it, one of the flight attendants actually pushed her!) It was a fun weekend and I think the next time I visit Miami, I’d like to stay for a longer visit!

Wet Willie's on Urbanspoon

Miami: News Cafe

By grace.g.yang · February 16, 2012
Under: American,Brunch,Drinks,My Life,Travels



On Sunday morning, we packed our bags and decided to visit Ocean Drive before catching our flight back to New York. We originally wanted to walk around Ocean Drive on Saturday but were too tired and ended up going straight back to the hotel after lunch. Michelle had visited News Cafe in the past and suggested we eat there so we could have a light breakfast and people watch:

IMG_1631

We ordered calamari, yet again:

IMG_1626

The girls ordered breakfast – eggs scrambled with salmon, toast, and hash browns:

IMG_1630

I ordered a black bean soup:

IMG_1629

And a Nicoise salad:

IMG_1628

My Nicoise salad had frozen artichokes in it (yuck!) and the black bean soup was super salty (I’ve had better out of a can). The girls enjoyed their breakfast platters and we all enjoyed our drinks:

IMG_1627

We were originally just going to get coffee for breakfast but then we decided to get some drinks since we were going to get drinks after breakfast, anyway. We all ordered Miami Vices, basically a combination of pina coladas and margaritas – sweet, creamy and tasted non alcoholic but we were all a little tipsy by the end of brunch.

I wasn’t super impressed with News Cafe but our waiter was very patient with us (four girls changing their minds multiple times when ordering would drive anyone nuts!) Next time I visit Miami, I’ll stop by News Cafe for their coffee but not their food.

News Cafe on Urbanspoon

Miami: Pubbelly

By grace.g.yang · February 15, 2012
Under: American,Asian,Dinner,Korean,My Life,seafood,Tapas,Travels



After pho, we headed back to the hotel and changed into our bathing suits so we could take a nap on the beach. We napped for a while but then decided to get ready for dinner since no one really ate that much at Miss Saigon. Since we were flying back to New York on Sunday afternoon, we decided to take it easy on Saturday night. Hana’s friends, Phil and Jen, recommended we have dinner at Pubbelly, which was a little far from our hotel but definitely worth the cab ride. On Friday and Saturday morning, we went to a lot of places where the tourists hung out but Pubbelly looked like it was all locals. Their logo:

IMG_1620

When we walked inside, it was very low key and looked like a place that belonged in the East Village or Williamsburg, not showy like the other places we visited in Miami! We started with olives at the table:

IMG_1598

Pubbelly is a tapas-like restaurant so they told us to order a bunch of dishes for the table to share. We decided to each pick two items on the menu and we’d order more if we were still hungry. The dishes came out in random order so we were eating appetizers and main courses at the same time.

The miso glazed brussel sprouts were sweet and delicious:

IMG_1604

This was the third time we’d had calamari in two days and this was the best preparation – spicy jalapeno sauce and chili pepper dusted on the calamari:

IMG_1605

Rueben dumplings – I liked these but the edges of the dumplings were a little tough:

IMG_1608

The Pubbelly pork sandwiches were really yummy – they were similar to Momofuku’s pork buns but were placed on potato buns instead of Chinese buns:

IMG_1609

Octopus with potatoes and a crack-infused sauce (well, more like kewpie mayo and yuzu):

IMG_1617

More pork belly:

IMG_1615

Kimchee fried rice served in a traditional Korean-style bowl:

IMG_1618

I was surprised they didn’t heat the bottom of the bowl to make the rice crunchier, but this was the only dish we couldn’t finish and ended up taking home.

Ribs with cole slaw:

IMG_1614

Short ribs and gnudi (this was the special of the night):

IMG_1613

And the only dish I don’t remember:

IMG_1602

We were really satisfied after our meal and we were glad we arrived a little earlier (the line was out the door by the time we left!) As we asked a local to take our photo, someone told us that we made the right choice because Pubbelly is the best restaurant in Miami right now! The four of us after dinner:

IMG_1621

It’s funny – Pubbelly has a quote by Lenny Bruce on their menu, “Miami Beach is where neon comes to die” – look who’s dressed in a bright pink neon belt and highlighter blue dress specifically purchased for Miami!

Pubbelly on Urbanspoon


Page 65 of 227« First...6364656667...Last »