Restaurant Week Takes Upper East & West Sides— for 23 Days!
Time again to strap on the ol’ feed bag and feast on the prix fixe menus at hundreds of fine city restaurants, including these glories of uptown gastronomy.
What’s big, brassy, beauteous and a no-holds-barred invitation to strap on the ol’ feedbag? That’s right, gastronauts and gastronettes, it’s Restaurant Week—the winter edition—23 days long & everyone of them a potential winner, even if there’s no established unit of time to cover its actual duration on the Upper East and Upper West sides.
No matter its fanciful branding, the facts are as follows: from Tuesday January 20 (the birthday of George Burns, nee Nathan Birnbaum, of the Lower East Side) through February 12 (the birthday of Abraham Lincoln, whose February 27, 1860 speech at Cooper Union boosted the Illinoisan into a presidential frontrunner) more than 600 participating hash slingers—more than 500 in Manhattan—are offering special “prix fixe” menus at $30, $45 and $60 price tiers.
That moolah covers two or three courses, though expect to pay more with drinks and tips. Also, while these menus generally cultivate a reduced version of any given restaurant’s offerings, they represent both a relative bargain and a chance to explore venues and cuisines that might otherwise be elusive.
Following is a highly selective guide to some of the local gems of Restaurant Week.
Patrick’s On The Hill
1635 Amsterdam Ave.
646-682-7243
Part of the veritable Patrick’s uptown empire that includes both an affiliated patty shop and bar, if you need motivation to venture to the wonderland of Hamilton Heights, here’s your chance. As the word patty strongly suggests, Patrick’s is identifiably Jamaican joint though in the spirit of pan-regional embrace, they call themselves Caribbean—which is fair enough, not least because Hamilton Grange is just down the hill and Alexander Hamilton was born in the West Indies—shout to all the Nevis Island people in the house! Pick Hits: Jamaican ‘Peppa’ Shrimp (fresh shrimp cooked in a savory, spicy sauce made with Scotch bonnet peppers, garlic, ginger, and herbs), Pineapple Jerk Salmon (tender salmon fillet seasoned with signature jerk sauce, grilled to and topped with a tangy pineapple salsa); carrot cake.
Dagon
2454 Broadway
212-873-2466
Nestled at the northeast corner of West 91st Street and Broadway, Dagon is a modern Israeli restaurant with a difference. Inspired by the famed Voice of Peace (Kol HaShalom), an offshore radio station based in a former Dutch cargo that broadcast from the Mediterranean Sea to the Middle East from 1973-1993, Dogon’s co-owners Simon Oren and David Sasson seek to bring a sense of that harmony into feeding our beloved Upper West Side. Pick hits: hummus, tuna sandwich (Harissa poached tuna, hard-boiled egg, potato cucumber, preserved lemon) and crispy roasted lamb (Cucumbers, dates, wild rice, shawarma spice).
Bad Roman
10 Columbus Circle
212-970-2033
If Bad Roman conjures visions of certain outre emperors like Nero or Caligula, well—such are the complexities of western history and if that’s still off putting, pretend it’s really a German a place name, where “bad” means spa. See, feels better already, doesn’t it? For an even bigger boost, mosey over to Columbus Circle, enter the Time Warner Center and head up the third floor. The views alone are tremendous but the feast that awaits, mama mia! Pick hits from the Restaurant Week menu: Yellowtail Crudo (with charred grapefruit, pistachio) and Roasted Branzino with salsa verde.
David Burke Tavern
135 E. 62nd St.
212-988-9021
Whether you’re East Side looking to relax or just got done running hill repeats up and down the 59th Street Bridge, David Burke Tavern, which is located on the ground floor of an old four story townhouse, has something worth stopping in for. Also, while food racket hype is often a sure way to lose one’s appetite, Burke’s big personality bio is so over-the-top (“a restaurateur; artist; philanthropist; businessperson; author; educator; art collector; puppeteer; minister; doctor of business administration, honoris causa; and beekeeper) one can’t not be charmed. Pick hits: Roast chicken “DB style” (toasted farro, wild mushrooms, butternut squash, lemon chicken jus), pork chops “clams casino” (roast garlic, peppers and peas, lemon, chorizo) and Key Lime Pie with wild berry compote.
Chez Nick
1737 York Ave.
646-429-3310
With a name like Chez Nick, it better be good. Forget the “Chez” part, whether you’re a wag and pronounce it like Fez, the popular Moroccan (or Ottoman) style hat; or “Chaise,” a light horse-drawn vehicle that Yorkville swells of yore stored in nearby stables, it makes no diffeence. Say it anyway you like—language is elastic— and it’s the Nick part that’s most important: Old Saint Nick, the famed Christmas benefactor; Nick Lowe, the great English musician; Nick Tosches, author of the 2003 Manhattan mafia / medieval art novel “In The Hand of Dante,” soon to be a major motion picture directed by Julian Schnabel; more. (Sputnik? Maybe.) Indeed, such is the evocative power of Nick, the team behind this excellent New American joint near East 91st Street (and conveniently located next to an Our Town street box) is a bit shady about their in-house Nick-ness. The lesson, it appears, is that we are all Nicks, the good Nicks, if we wish to be. Pick Hit: Missisippi Braised Short Ribs (with Anson Mills grits, braised collard greens, pepperoncini). Hail Nick!