Sunday, June 3, 2007
Bloom in Hastings
I have to say I had fair warning. Our friends wanted to try Bloom, a newish organic restaurant in Hastings. It had a very favorable New York Times review recently. After the reservation was made, I read the New York Times review (and was really psyched for a great dinner), and then also read some comments on Chowhound.com. One of the comments pointed me to another website - the blog of Liz Johnson, a food critic for The Journal News, whose blog about restaurants are posted on a website called lohud.com.
Saturday, June 2, 2007
F.I.S.H. in Port Chester
Last weekend, four of us had dinner at F.I.S.H. in Port Chester. The photo in the Sunday Westchester section of the NY Times (May 27) looked so enticing. We wanted to be those people, sitting on the deck, sipping cocktails, feasting on shrimp, and watching the boats go by in the harbor. And surprisingly, I was able to get a reservation for the same night.
So the question is, how was the food, service, and ambiance compared to the "very good" review penned by M. H. Reed? The drive to get there was definitely, as M.H. suggested, "daunting." The road ahead twisted and turned, going through an area of Westchester definitely off the beaten track. There are signs pointing in the right direction - so we just kept going, and ultimately arrived in a vacation-like setting, right on the water.
The service was friendly and attentive. We liked our waitress. She joked with us, and offered suggestions of the foods she liked.
We ordered appetizers. Our waitress suggested the spicy tuna flatbread, which M.H. had also recommended. We all liked this - a huge rectangular plate of very thin sushi-quality rare tuna sprinkled with wasabi and ginger - over what was called flatbread, but appeared and tasted much like matzoh! It was delicious and very filling. The calamari was okay, nothing special. To be daring, we ordered the grilled octopus with white beans and arugala salad, which the reviewer really liked. Us, not so much. The octopus was as we had feared -- we likened the experience to chewing fish flavored rubber bands. The white beans were nice, though.
By the end of appetizer time, we were actually kind of full. But we soldiered on.
I had the black bass en barigoule. I did not know what barigoule meant when I ordered this dish, but I can tell you now after having consulted a dictionary - it is some kind of French braised artichokes. The bass was very tender and flavorful and was served with artichokes (duh!), mussels, olives, and feta cheese. An interesting blend of flavors. One of our party ordered risotto, which although I didn't taste it, appeared to be kind of soupy. One of us ordered paella, and one ordered a shrimp dish. We ordered a side of fries, which were okay. Our fries were of the thick steak-fries variety. We coveted the ones at the next table, which seemed to be much skinnier and crisper fries. There weren't two kinds of fries on the menu, and we were confused.
We ended the meal with cappuccinos for all.
So the question is, how was the food, service, and ambiance compared to the "very good" review penned by M. H. Reed? The drive to get there was definitely, as M.H. suggested, "daunting." The road ahead twisted and turned, going through an area of Westchester definitely off the beaten track. There are signs pointing in the right direction - so we just kept going, and ultimately arrived in a vacation-like setting, right on the water.
The service was friendly and attentive. We liked our waitress. She joked with us, and offered suggestions of the foods she liked.
We ordered appetizers. Our waitress suggested the spicy tuna flatbread, which M.H. had also recommended. We all liked this - a huge rectangular plate of very thin sushi-quality rare tuna sprinkled with wasabi and ginger - over what was called flatbread, but appeared and tasted much like matzoh! It was delicious and very filling. The calamari was okay, nothing special. To be daring, we ordered the grilled octopus with white beans and arugala salad, which the reviewer really liked. Us, not so much. The octopus was as we had feared -- we likened the experience to chewing fish flavored rubber bands. The white beans were nice, though.
By the end of appetizer time, we were actually kind of full. But we soldiered on.
I had the black bass en barigoule. I did not know what barigoule meant when I ordered this dish, but I can tell you now after having consulted a dictionary - it is some kind of French braised artichokes. The bass was very tender and flavorful and was served with artichokes (duh!), mussels, olives, and feta cheese. An interesting blend of flavors. One of our party ordered risotto, which although I didn't taste it, appeared to be kind of soupy. One of us ordered paella, and one ordered a shrimp dish. We ordered a side of fries, which were okay. Our fries were of the thick steak-fries variety. We coveted the ones at the next table, which seemed to be much skinnier and crisper fries. There weren't two kinds of fries on the menu, and we were confused.
We ended the meal with cappuccinos for all.
Hello Westchester Foodies!
I live in Westchester County, New York, in a suburb about 30 minutes north of Manhattan. I am really tired of people disparaging the restaurants here. It seems the first thing that new transplants from the city do is moan about how they will never find good Italian; a terrific bagel; a gourmet dinner.
Well grow up! I am here to tell you that like anyplace else, Westchester has its share of good food, mediocre food, and yes, great food. I have my favorite restaurants, of course, that I return to frequently and order the dishes I crave. But I do like to explore new restaurants and find new favorites. I rely on word of mouth, newspaper reviews (particularly the weekend Westchester section of The New York Times), and websites such as Chowhound.com.
I like to enter a new restaurant armed with the latest review that I have torn from the paper. I will often order what the reviewer has recommended, although I can't always stop my companions from ordering what the reviewer has hated. And sometimes an unreviewed special will beckon, and I order it, hoping for the best.
This is my journey among Westchester's gems and duds. I hope you will join me, and tell me what you think.
Well grow up! I am here to tell you that like anyplace else, Westchester has its share of good food, mediocre food, and yes, great food. I have my favorite restaurants, of course, that I return to frequently and order the dishes I crave. But I do like to explore new restaurants and find new favorites. I rely on word of mouth, newspaper reviews (particularly the weekend Westchester section of The New York Times), and websites such as Chowhound.com.
I like to enter a new restaurant armed with the latest review that I have torn from the paper. I will often order what the reviewer has recommended, although I can't always stop my companions from ordering what the reviewer has hated. And sometimes an unreviewed special will beckon, and I order it, hoping for the best.
This is my journey among Westchester's gems and duds. I hope you will join me, and tell me what you think.
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