It's All Greek (Good) to Me

How quick I am to judge a restaurant by its cuisine. Italian=there in a second. Mexican=any day of the week. Greek=avoid at all costs. Another work dinner was scheduled and the restaurant on the itinerary was Pylos, a Greek restaurant in the East Village. The wheels in my head started turning thinking of excuses to get out of this dinner. While my evil side pondered, my curious side decided to check out the website. I was intrigued—intrigued enough to go through with this dinner.

First step inside, and I was hooked...on the decor that is. If the food was terrible, I didn't mind because I was head over heels for the sea of pots on the ceiling. One of the guests, who happens to be Greek, informed me that Pylos means "things of clay" in Greek. 

Luckily we had said guest because she guided us through each dish and each course. She started us off with Poikilia, a trio of dipping sauces paired with warm pita bread (my fav was the char-grilled eggplant).

To further fill the table, we ordered the stereotypical Greek salad (they call it horiatiki), piperia gemisti me kafteri feta a.k.a. roasted red pepper filled with spicy feta and kolokythakia kai melitzanakia tyganit, which is known as fried zucchini with tzatziki sauce. Not only were the names a mouthful but so were the flavors. The spicy feta made that dish and is one not to be missed. 

Since we didn't think eight appetizers were enough (I didn't even photograph three of them), we split a few entrees. I was adventurous and tried paidakia galaktos stin schara me imam kai mora patates (even the name is adventurous). For my non-Greek readers, the dish was marinated baby lamb chops served with mini stuffed eggplants and potatoes. I can only say this dish solified my opinion on lamb—I love it. And to fully establish my opinion on Greek food, we decided to order dessert. Our guest suggested christos’ towering galaktobourekakia (phyllo triangles with Greek custard), krema mastiha (Greek yogurt with berry compote) and Mouzo (chocolate mousse). All judgement had been thrown out the window at this point. Those Greeks can even make mousse, a French dessert, taste good.

Places of Interest:

Pylos, 128 E. 7th St. (between 1st Ave. & Ave. A)

http://www.pylosrestaurant.com/

Crumbs: It Takes Two ( x Two)

Welcome to the newest addition of Double Toasted: Crumbs, a toasty blurb about a delicious dish, interesting art exhibit, cool new boutique or whatever else excites me. The first installment is on a lunch date I went with my coworker and publicist extraordinaire Roxanne.

Feast For Your Eyes

Fine Dining

No Standard Paper Menus Here

4 apps = 1 meal

   

















The lunch deal is initially what drew us to Duo, a new restaurant in Gramercy Park. It was not your typical $9.99 entree but rather their version of a lunchbox—albeit a classy one. With four variations on their light up menus, we both went for the Flatiron box consisting of mini sirloin burgers, Parmesan truffle matchstick fries, tomato and mozzarella and a market salad. IF my lunchbox tasted like this in elementary school I would've never tossed, traded or accidentally "forgotten" it. The meal was scrumptious from section to section and definitely lives up to the term 'lunch special'.

Places of Interest:

Duo Restaurant, 72 Madison Ave (at 28th St.), 212-686-7272

http://duonewyork.com/

A Foodie Continues to Dominate but Gets Schooled Along the Way

The Entrance to Hudson Clearwater (secret is it's in the back)

Is it an office or furniture store? Guess Again.  It's the restaurant Bohemian.

Hello Moto.  Moto in Williamsburg on the corner of just passed it and where is it?

You won't find this apt. on Craigslist.  The Campbell Apartment in Grand Central.

Once a bonafide picky eater, I now consider myself a foodie.  Okay, before my family and friends start to roll their eyes, I mean a foodie in the terms that New York turned me into a person who loves to go out to eat and discover new places, cuisines, and dishes. (I still possess a hint or two of pickiness hence the blog's name and my original post). So when Refinery 29, one of my fav blogs, came out with a list of 10 restaurants to impress one's foodie friends, I accepted their challenge.  

Dubbed "hard to find, hidden gem" restaurants, I became intrigued with the thought of playing detective and having an assignment (as well as more blog material).  I went through the guide restaurant by restaurant.  The guide was off to a good start with a burger joint kicking things off and an elusive restaurant in one of Warhol's old buildings.  Then I started to doubt my ability to find, pick, research, and read about new and special restaurants in the city.  Why hadn't I heard or more importantly been to these restaurants before? Just as I was about to give up my self proclaimed moniker, lucky # 4 came along. The restaurant was Hudson Clearwater, and I had written about it back in February (pat on the back for me and read the post Shhh! It's a Secret for you).  Happy to have visited one of their secretive finds and to having devoted a post on it, I was sitting pretty on my high horse.  Then their last pick happened to be another place I had the pleasure of visiting despite the location's stigma of being a place only delegated to commuters (score one more for me).  Tucked into one of the corners of Grand Central Station, The Campbell Apartment was once the office owned by twentieth century tycoon John W. Campbell.  After attending a fabulous book party, my friend I decided to pay a visit-more so due to its history rather than try the food.  What we found was a dark lit lounge with mahogany wood, a fireplace, and rich colors ala a room in a mansion in Scotland.

But one can never know it all so I was happy there were some contenders on this list for my next meal.  First one that sparked my interest was Bohemian, a blink and you'll miss it Japanese restaurant in Noho.  Not really my taste in decor as it appears to be very simple with a touch of retro, but I think the lack of knickknacks, artwork, and visual stimulation is what draws me to the restaurant.  Next one on the list was Moto in Williamsburg.  I technically had this restaurant in the back of mind, but I can share the credit with Refinery 29.  The locale, with its grungy appeal underneath the subway and an old fashioned bike hanging above the entrance, give this place its allure.  Inside it's rustic and quaint with an old school charm.  The menu is easy with cafe type dishes like salads and paninis, but it all adds up to a place I want to visit.  In the end, I was impressed with the list, and my ability to know a thing or two about the NY restaurant biz.  Now it's time to continue my education and go live up to my new found nickname.

Link:

http://www.refinery29.com/nyc-best-hidden-restaurants?utm_source=email&utm_medium=editorial&utm_content=new-york&utm_name=110601-secret-nyc-restaurants#slide-1

Places of Interest:

Hudson Clearwater, 447 Hudson St., 212-989-3255

http://hudsonclearwater.com/

Moto, 394 Broadway, Brooklyn, 718-599-6895

http://www.cafe-moto.com/

Bohemian, 57 Great Jones St., no official phone

http://playearth.jp/

The Campbell Apartment, 15 Vanderbilt Avenue, 212-953-0409

http://hospitalityholdings.com/