How We Ate Our Way Through NYC: Forty Four

Restaurant Name:

Forty Four

44 West 44th Street
New York, NY 10036, United States
(212) 944-8844

Cuisine: American

Price Rating: $$$$
Beach Junkies Rating (based out of 5 stars):
Food: 5 / Service: 5 / Drinks: 5 / Atmosphere: 5

One of our main goals was to try as many drinks as we could at Forty Four. After dinner we would walk back to the hotel in anticipation of what drinks we would get that night.  The drinks here are awesome!  Pricey, yes but if you go to other quality bars and restaurants around the city, the price is just right.  There is a range of cocktails and other drinks to choose from, but knowing that Forty Four bar is staffed with awesome mixologists, we knew we were going for their signature cocktails!

Drinks: Please keep in mind that we did not drink all of these in one sitting.  These were the drinks we had throughout our stay.

Creamsicle & Ginger Julep

The Creamsicle is an off the menu cocktail that Matt at Forty Four had done up for "M".  It was clean, tart, fresh and strong. If you like the taste of spirits, this drink is for you. If not, I'd stay away from it as it might be too much for your taste buds.  "A" ordered the Ginger Julep and this is where Matt introduced us to Honey Jack Daniels! Y-U-M!

Seven Spiced Cider & Agave Royale

After sitting on top of a double decker tour bus for 2 hours in the cold, we longed to sit by the fireplace at the lobby of the Royalton Hotel. Seeing that we were chilled to the bone, Jason recommended that we get the Seven Spiced Cider. It was definitely what we needed.  Hot, flavorful, and just a soothing cocktail!  It was perfect for coming in from the cold.  "A" opted to get the Agave Royale, her second crushed ice drink of the trip.  At this point I was getting really jealous of her crushed ice drinks but I'm glad she shared with me.

French Caribbean & Sidecar

I thought this time around it was about time that I ordered a crushed ice drink, so I went with French Caribbean which became my absolute favorite drink of the trip. It's pretty much a Pina Colada on roids.  It's that good.  It also comes in a clear Tiki mask mug that I thought was a perfect touch! The only thing that could've gone better with the drink is if it was called Beach Junkie lol! I definitely recommend it.  As a joke, "A" decided to order a Sidecar since Matt raved about it (inside joke). She should've ordered it when Matt was there but Merritt made one for her instead.

Merritt also made us a bunch of drinks our first night like the Alchemist and the Italian Banana Bread which were delicious as well but unfortunately we forgot to take photographs of them.

Appetizers: We don't remember what they called this bread, but we sure can still taste it.  This was the best bread we have ever eaten!  At first we thought it was some sort of danish.  The outer layer is like a danish but the inside is like bread. You really have to try this. It's unreal

Fresh Mozzarella Salad: A-MA-ZING! The roasted peppers and arugula compliment well with the texture of the mozzarella.  It was really fresh.  We've never eaten fresh mozzarella before and I can see what the difference is.  It's not hard and chewy, it's tender and slightly flakes at a bite.  Just great!

Tuna Tartar: The best tuna tartar you will ever have.  Sushi grade tuna dressed with Kimchi and mixed with Cucumbers and toasted chia seeds.  Fresh.  Flavorful. Fantastic.

Main: 72 Hour Braised Short Rib: This meal was straight from mama's kitchen.  Perfectly cooked baby carrots, peas and pearl onions. The mash potatoes was amazingly soft, fluffy and creamy and the short rib was outstandingly juicy!

As it turned out, our last meal of our trip was the best meal of our trip.  It was amazing and the service was once again outstanding.  The best part about Forty Four is that you don't have to be a guest at the hotel to enjoy this goodness.  You can walk right in and enjoy the drinks and food, like so many people we saw during our stay.  If the food doesn't lure you in, then the drinks should.  It is a bit pricey but there is a reason why and as the saying goes, you get what you pay for and we definitely got what we paid for!

How We Ate Our Way Through NYC: Bryant Park Grill

Restaurant Name:

Bryant Park Grill

25 W 40th St
New York, NY
(212) 840-6500

Cuisine: American

Price Rating: $$
Beach Junkies Rating (based out of 5 stars):
Food: 3 / Service: 3.5 / Drinks: 3 / Atmosphere: 4

We chose to have our Christmas Day dinner at Bryant Park Grill.  They offered a 3 course pre-fixe menu for $68 per person which was really reasonable considering the other prices we saw in town.  We also wanted to eat somewhere that had a very festive feel and being that the Holiday markets and ice rink were there, it just made sense.

Appetizers: Crab Cakes: We were off to a good start with this meal. It was quite delicious and perfectly cooked.  Unfortunately, this was the best dish of our seating and you'll see why below.

Main Course: Duck with Portobello Mushroom and Mash Potatoes: The duck breast was actually pretty good and so where the cranberries.  However the dark meat portion of the dish wasn't so great.  It had a really gamey taste to it and wasn't desirable to the pallet at all.  Good thing I ate it last cause I almost lost my appetite because of it.

Turkey with cranberry sauce, stuffing, sweet potatoes and vegetables. I chose to eat traditional turkey for my Christmas dinner. The turkey was moist not dry and there was three huge slices included in my entree (a little too much for me). I barely made a dent in my meal but I was full. I am not use to eating so much carbs.

Dessert: Bread Pudding with coconut drizzle and creme fresh: The savoir of the night.  If it wasn't for this, I would've been really grumpy on Christmas Night since my main meal wasn't satisfying at all.  Then again can't judge it fairly since it could've been good since my duck was so bad.  In any case, it was edible at least.

Mascarpone cheesecake with chocolate ice cream: Being lactose-intolerant, I tried not too eat too much of the cheesecake but it did taste delicious with the cookie crumb base and ice cream.

Overall this was our most disappointing dinner of our trip.  We wanted the ambiance and that's what we pretty much paid for.  The meal wasn't great and the portions were extremely huge that we didn't finish everything.  The service was your typical "get you in and out" as fast as they can. This was a good thing since we didn't wait long for our meal, but it unfortunately showed in the quality of the food.

How We Ate Our Way Through NYC: Blue Fin

Restaurant Name:
Blue Fin
1567 Broadway at 47th St (at W Hotel, Times Square)
New York, NY
(212) 918-1400

Cuisine: Seafood and Sushi
Price Rating: $$$
Beach Junkies Rating (based out of 5 stars):
Food: 4 / Service: 5 / Drinks: n/a / Atmosphere: 4

We happened to stumble upon Blue Fin on Christmas Day. We were walking around Times Square, noticed it was opened and luckily we were able to get a table. Since it was Christmas Day, they had a special menu but everything on the regular menu looked equally delicious, including the brunch.

We wanted a light lunch, therefore we only ordered two items off the menu. Let me tell you that we did get full just from the delicious warm bread they served. Both of us love seafood so we went with the shellfish tower for 2 people. This tower included maine lobster, empress crab, jumbo shrimp, littleneck clams, ceviche, marinated prince edward mussels and east and west coast oysters. The icing on the cake was the tasty sauces for the oysters: spicy cocktail sauce, mignonette (shallots and red wine vinegar mixture) and the tomato horseradish granite (cocktail sauce and horseradish mixed together, then frozen and scraped). The last sauce was absolutely to die for. We never tasted anything like it but it worked wonders with the oysters and everything else we decided to dip it in.


Balcony Shellfish Tower

We also ordered the spicy tuna maki in case all the that shellfish wasn't enough. The sweet thai chili sauce was a unique addition to the standard tuna maki.

Spicy Tuna Maki with sweet thai chili

Again, we had no room for dessert or maybe it was the fact that Baked by Melissa was across the street and was calling "A"'s name. We will save Baked by Melissa for another post.

How We Ate Our Way Through NYC: La Masseria

Restaurant Name:
Las Masseria
235 West 48th Street
New York, NY
(212) 582-2111

Cuisine: Italian
Price Rating: $$
Beach Junkies Rating (based out of 5 stars):
Food: 4 / Service: 4 / Drinks: 4 / Atmosphere: 4

As mentioned in a previous post, we had all our dinner reservation booked through Open Table. On Christmas, we had reserved at a Sake/Japanese bar but suddenly craved for authentic Italian food. We had no idea where to go and if it was even possible to get a last minute reservation on Christmas Eve, let alone figure out what would be open. What is the best solution? Ask the concierge or front desk at your hotel. Within minutes, we had a 8:45 pm dinner reservation at La Masseria. What wonders the front desk can do - we asked for an Italian restaurant walking distance around 8 pm - and we got it. There was no disappointment at all. We were satisfied and honestly, we would have never found this restaurant on our own.

We were seated almost instantly and since it was Christmas Eve and there were large family parties booked throughout the restaurant, we were seated very close to another couple (who were quite annoying but I tried my best not to let it ruin our dinner. We started off with some sparkling water and a glass of prosecco for "A" and red wine for "M". The waiter announced the daily specials for the evening and let me tell you it was a very long list.


I Cucuzielli Fritti Alla Pino


Appetizer. We were going to start off with salads but decided on trying the I Cucuzielli Fritti Alla Pino, Crispy Fried Zucchini. "A" was a little hesitant in ordering anything fried since we had fried chicken for lunch (see previous post) but after trying these slivers of fried goodness, there was no regrets. "A" had pictured sticks of deep fried zucchini. We have never had anything like it and would definitely recommend it as a starter.

Pasta special of the night - Lobster Ravioli


Mains. There are so many dishes on the menu but both of us are not big eater so we went with an entree each. "A" ordered the pasta special of the night, Lobster Ravioli. It was delicious with large chunks of lobster.

Spaghetti All Spugnito Di Pomodoro

"M" ordered the Spaghetti with cherry tomato sauce and fresh basil. Every time I go to an Italian restaurant, I always order spaghetti.  To me it's a good way to see how authentic the restaurant really is.  The simpler, the better and this was definitely one of the better ones I have had.

It would have been nice to order more dishes if we had the appetite or even if we had a little room for dessert. As you can see the pasta portions are quite large so make sure you don't over stuff yourself with the bread they give you once you sit down. If you want to eat some good Italian food in a family owned restaurant (no Olive Garden please), you must try Las Masseria and be sure to start off with the crispy fried zucchini.

How We Ate Our Way Through NYC: Bon Chon Chicken

Restaurant Name:
Bon Chon Chicken

325 5th Avenue
New York, NY
(212) 686-8282

 



Cuisine: Korean
Price Rating: $$
Beach Junkies Rating (based out of 5 stars):
Food: 4 / Service: 4 / Drinks: 4 / Atmosphere: 4

www.bonchon.com

In the same trip I discovered Koi three years ago, I stumbled upon Bon Chon Chicken.  We were at a friend's apartment and were lazy to go out and eat so we wanted something delivered. There in front of us was a menu for Bon Chon and we decided to try it.  It is now my must have while in NYC along with the Crispy Rice from Koi.  Unfortunately, we didn't take much pics of the food here since we were starving by the time we got there. I hope I can describe each thing perfectly.

Drinks: Blue Moon Beer & Coke -  We heard about Blue Moon beer from a friend of mine and thought I'd try it out and I quite enjoyed it.  It paired nicely with the food.

Sides: Kimchi Coleslaw & White Rice - Some of you might be thinking "Rice with wings?" but it's the best thing ever! Kimchi coleslaw was to die for.  Crunchy, gooey and spicy all in one bite. "A" ordered a side of hot sauce but never used it since the coleslaw gave enough kick for her.

Popcorn Shrimp & Onion Rings

Appetizer: Popcorn Shrimp & Onion Rings - This was not bad but it basically was your typical popcorn shrimp and onion rings.  Nothing special about it but the cocktail sauce that came with it had a good kick to it which was great. What we should've ordered here instead were the Bulgogi Tacos! We saw it on the menu after eating and regret not ordering it. Our server said it's her favorite thing on the menu.

Soy Garlic Drumsticks

Main: Small (5pcs) Bon Chon Soy Garlic Drumsticks - When we ordered this, we didn't know if it would be enough for the both of us since we were thinking these would be drumstick wings. Obviously we were wrong. These were the regular drumsticks and they were the larger kind too. The Soy Garlic that they glaze it with is just delicious and the drumsticks are fried to perfection.  Nice crispy layers of skin and soft white meat on the inside. Paired with the Kimchi Coleslaw, this thing will just scream flavors in your mouth.

There are two Bon Chon locations in Midtown, the second one being on W 38th Street. Oddly enough, that was the location we were aiming for but ended up at the one on 5th Ave.  We highly would recommend this place for lunch.  It wasn't busy at all and might have a harder time getting a table during dinner service.  We are definitely returning to try out those Bulgogi Tacos and I won't wait three years to have this again!

How We Ate Our Way Through NYC: Koi Restaurant | Lounge

We were fortunate enough to have found some great restaurants around Midtown NYC.  Just before we left, we had a set plan (and reservations) as to where we were going to eat and when.  Things changed when we got there.  The reality of how much traffic there was around the area was just insane.  This was Christmas weekend after all and after dealing with the crowds all day, the last thing you want to do is sit in traffic just to get to dinner or walk in dress shoes and heels.  By the end of it all, we only kept one of the four reservations we initially made, but in the process, found some excellent ones.

Restaurant Name:
Koi Restaurant | Lounge
Located @ Bryant Park Hotel
40 West 40th Street
(212) 921-3330
 
Cuisine: Japanese
Price Rating: $$$
Beach Junkies Rating (based out of 5 stars):
Food: 4.5 / Service: 5 / Drinks: 4 / Atmosphere: 4

www.koirestaurant.com

This wasn't the first time we've eaten at Koi. I first ate at this restaurant three years ago on a trip to NYC with my friends.  We then went to Las Vegas the same year and that was when "A" tried it so we knew what to expect.

We have recommended this restaurant to a few people and all came back with glowing reviews BUT we all tell them to keep it light and share all the dishes.  Koi's hot dishes can be very savory and it can be too much sometimes just to eat that one dish yourself.  Trust us, this is the 3rd time we have eaten at this restaurant and our last visit there was our best experience yet.  Practice makes perfect.

Koi-Tini and Ginger Mojito

Cocktails: Koi-Tini & Ginger Mojito - Three years ago was the first time I tasted the Ginger Mojito. In that one sitting, I ordered four of them.  That's how good they are. Unfortunately, our visits after in Vegas was Ginger Mojito free. They didn't have them on the menu there and when we ate dinner this night, they didn't have it on the menu as well.  I asked the waiter if they served it and he said no.  However, a few minutes later, he came back and said that the bartender that has been at this location since day 1 and said he would make it for me. It was even better than I remembered it. As for the Koi-Tini, it wasn't anything spectacular. It basically was a cosmo but with sparkling wine.

Koi Crispy Rice topped w/ Spicy Tuna

First course: Koi Crispy Rice topped w/ Spicy Tuna - A must order!  Our first introduction to Koi's food was this and it should be everyone else's. An explosion of soft, crispy, juicy and spicy runs through the course of your palate once you take a bite of this goodness. We swear we can go to Koi and just eat this, but of course that won't be fun at all. If there is one thing you must order from their menu, it is this.

Rock Shrimp Ceviche and Yellowtail Sashimi

Second Course: Rock Shrimp Ceviche and Yellowtail Sashimi - We had always seen this on the menu but never opted to order it until now and we're glad we did.  The yellowtail sashimi at the bottom was fresh and delicious, and the rock shrimp was just right, not too soft and not too chewy.  Eating this though can be tricky but "A" figured out a way where you slide the chopsticks at both ends of the yellowtail and as you raise it, close the ends so that the rock shrimp is being cradled by the fish. I know it seems silly, but these dishes are meant to be eaten all at once so that all the flavors combine which makes the dish.

Baked Crab Roll

Third Course: Baked Crab Roll - Tthis was the one dish of the night that we could have done with out.  It didn't have that mix of flavors and textures we were looking for but it was still delicious none the less.

Miso Bronzed Black Cod

Fourth Course: Miso Bronzed Black Cod - Remember what I said that their hot dishes were savory. Well, this is one dish well worth sharing.  The cod is cooked to perfection and the skin was just absolutely wonderful.  It was a great mix of salty, sweet and savory.  This was our favorite meal of the night and having three light dishes before this meal balanced really well.

Japanese Mochi (pistachio and peanut butter/chocolate)

Dessert: Japanese Mochi - I absolutely love mochi.  Any flavor will do it for me. "A" on the other hand hates it and it was surprising to see how much she loved her peanut butter/chocolate mochi.

As I said earlier, this sitting was our best dining experience at Koi to date.  There is much more that we want to try on the menu that we want to try so it definitely won't be our last visit.