FOOD FRIDAY: Bright Lights, Bigger City

Those who know me well know my long standing love affair with The Windy City.  But given the opportunity, would I leave Chicago for New York?  The answer to that is:  “In a New York minute!”  I love everything about New York:  its style, its energy, its people.  I love exploring its neighborhoods, seeking out the hidden gems, getting to know its face and its underbelly.  While I can wax nostalgic about New York for hours (and believe me, I have!), I would like to share with you some of my dining finds.  What would my perfect New York date be?  You can bet it would involve some crazy delicious food.  Are you ready?  Are you hungry?  Let’s go!

Our first stop would be the most unusual lunch experience at Fatty Crab, a tiny, funky Southeast Asian joint in the West Village.  Trust me, skip the usual burger and fries in favor of green mango spears with salt-sugar-chili dip and fatty duck with pickled mustard greens.  I will order my favorites:  crispy pork and watermelon pickle salad and the whole dungeness crab in sweet and spicy coconut chili broth.  We can share it all and request extra napkins.  Delicious, messy, exciting carnival of flavors!  Lunch has never been this much fun!

Whole Dungeness Crab at Fatty Crab (Photo by Gourmet Rambler)

After walking off lunch around the Village, we can find our way to West Chelsea around Happy Hour time.  Our hour is about to become very happy indeed.  Because, my friend, we are approaching El Quinto Pino.  This just may be the tiniest tapas bar I have ever encountered.  I bring you here at Happy Hour because later scoring a stool would be very difficult.  There are only 16 of them – and no tables.  But take my word for it, El Quinto Pino is not to be missed!  Start your evening right with gin spiked lemon-basil slushy, brandy infused horchata, Madrid martini (dry vermouth on the rocks with an olive and twist) or opt for bartender’s choice of sherry.  While you are at it, grab some pork cracklins, ham croquettes, garlic shrimp, or split a sea urchin sandwich.  The food here is spectacular in its simplicity and robust flavors.  El Quinto Pino is a true tapas bar.  It doesn’t encourage you to linger too long (though you could, by all means, stay all night).  It’s the “in & out” kind of a place.  So, after a drink and a nosh, we are off…

el quinto pino (Photo by Gourmet Rambler)

We are back in the West Village?  Why, yes, we are.  And allow me to introduce you to the highlight of our evening:  Gottino Gastroteca.  I fell in love with its rustic interior, extensive all Italian wine list that encourages exploration, delicious bites coming out of the kitchen and its spectacular staff.  This is a place to linger over a bottle or two of wine.  And ordering the entire menu here isn’t just tempting, it’s necessary.  Let’s start with some prosciutto, translucently thin, piled on the plate.  You may eat it on bread, but believe me, ham of this caliber begs to be unadorned and eaten with fingers.  Crostini of salted anchovies with butter almost made me cry, it was so delicious: salty and creamy and rich.  Let’s share some salumi:  speck & endive, cacciatorini, wild boar pate.  Rabbit pot pie, Brussels sprout salad with pecorino, roasted beets?  Yes, please! 

Salumi at Gottino (Photo by Gourmet Rambler)

In lieu of dessert, let’s have an after dinner drink at Raines Law Room, a true speakeasy below street level.  Follow my lead and ask to be not seated but led into the kitchen where the bartenders are busy preparing drinks around a large island.  This is where the magic happens.  This is where you can ask any question you have about the drinks they are crafting, while sipping on their latest creations.  Try Paper Airplane or Alice’s Evidence.  As our date with New York winds down, let’s sip our cocktails and plan the next one…

Where to next time, my friend?  Perhaps, Brooklyn?

Hungry?  Want more?  Follow me on Twitter at Gourmet Rambler.