Tuesday, April 10, 2007

NYC American food

Where is Jonathan's favorite place to get American food in NYC? That would have to be Toast.

I've written about this restaurant before. If only I lived a little closer to it, it would be the ideal neighborhood restaurant. You can go for brunch. You can go for drinks. And their meals are both inexpensive and delicious. As one reviewer puts it on www.menupages.com, "My goal this year is to become a regular at Toast, so that when I walk in [to] this great bar / [restaurant] -Phoebe and Alex and Lex and Suzanne...all shout my name..." Another reviewer writes, "It's unpretentious. They don't try too hard, but on the other hand they don't try too hard not to try too hard."

From reviewing my Gmail calendar and from memory, I can recollect at least twelve times I've been.

July 2006--Dinner with Clay and Zach
July 2006--Brunch with Zach and Emily
November 2006--Lunch with DavidO
November 2006--Brunch with Mom and Dad
December 2006--Brunch with Choir
January 2007--Drinks with William
January 2007--Dinner with Dustin and Mauricio
January 2007--Drinks with Justin
March 2007--Dinner with William
March 2007--Dinner with Justin
April 2007--Dinner with Dustin and Dustin
April 2007--Dinner with Justin and Clay

I suppose I'm pleased with this track record. I'll see if I can go every month this year. My favorite dishes include the Buffalo chicken salad and the Eggs Benedict. A $3 beer at happy hour is easy on the wallet.

There's another restaurant up on 181st called Jesse's Place which rivals Toast in atmosphere. Cozy, dark, and half-way below ground with lots of rich stained wood. However, the service is slower, the atmosphere isn't as lively, it's just a tad more pricey, and whereas I have several friends who live close to Toast, I don't know anyone else in the 181st Street neighborhood. I've only been a couple times, but both times the food was delicious. Turkey burger, and lamb kabob.

And then there's the Chelsea Grill. Owing to its location on Ninth Avenue and 45th Street, it will never be my "neighborhood restaurant" as long as I live in Washington Heights. However, it is a good place to take guests to if we happen to be in the Times Square area. The funny thing about visitors is that they they like to be tourists ("Let's see Times Square!") but they also like to ape "real" New Yorkers. So when I give them a choice between eating at Bubba Gump's Shrimp on Times Square, or walking over a couple blocks to Ninth Avenue where "normal New Yorkers" eat, they'll always choose the latter.

I've been to the Chelsea Grill at least four times. I've had one of the best burgers ever there, and their Bartlett pear salad consistently impresses. Their prices are fair, and the atmosphere is that of a slightly upscale and smaller Toast. The best feature of the location is a glass garage door at the front of the narrow room that opens up to the sidewalk when the weather is nice.

One last thought: I've noticed New Yorkers love eating outside. Whether the weather is 50 degrees or 90 degrees, you'll see diners happily munching and talking in sidewalk cafes. Wish more cities were like this!

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