In 2020, I did not actively follow the local and international dining scene, as I had plenty of non-foodie projects that kept me busy and away from the dining world.
But as it is customary at the beginning of every new year, I am sharing with you the previous year’s Top 7 Most Viewed posts according to your hits:
In 2020, the review of Oiji in NYC was the most popular among you (read by 17.2% of all of you ). Oiji came on the restaurant scene with a bang and quickly turned into a hot topic of the food scene in NYC in the recent years, with some so-called food journalists going as far as rating Oiji with the same score they did assign to 3 star Michelin Per Se…which, as you may have guessed, is …. a bit of a stretch. Well, to be polite, let’s just say that it did not pan out the flattering way the hype tried to portray it , Lol. As someone who pays his food with his hard earned money, I go to restaurants hoping for the best, obviously. Sadly, my meal at Oiji did not live up to its billing, and my gut feeling is that this was not an isolated occurence. Given how hyped-up Oiji is on the web, I am not too surprised to see that many, among you, were interested to read about my experience there.
At 2nd position, the review of Quality Meats in NYC, read by 15.71 % of all of you, and that served as a reminder that steakhouses never stop to be popular among food lovers. Year after year, based on your hits, my reviews on steakhouses have been very popular, and QM’s review was no exception. QM was Ok enough, but if you order their rib eye steak, then I hope that yours will be better than the one I had. If that lacklustre steak was not an isolated situation, then QM really needs to step up their game as we are in NYC, a city where steak lovers are blessed with plenty of world class steakhouses, therefore a day off, at a steakhouse, is not an option in such condition . Furthermore, read the “bottom line” section of that review …..
At 3rd position, the review of Torishin – New York City ( 13.48 % of you all); In its first year, you were not interested in this review. But for the 2nd year in a row, it has been a very popular post based on your hits. Here, I don’t have a great deal to add to what has already been submitted in that review. It was just one of those rare epic dining disappointments in my long journey as a foodie. Fortunately, this is not representative of the world class dining destination that NYC happens to be, but the exception that proves the rule.
At 4th position, the review of Docks Oyster House in Atlantic City (13.21 % of you all). Millions of people flock to Atlantic City every year for its idyllic setting and iconic boardwalk. Charming Atlantic City continues to be the lovely resort destination all of us have grown to know and love, albeit not as bustling as it once was. The Missus and myself decided to pay a visit to Docks Oyster House, one of its most popular restaurants. It turned out to be, for both the Missus and myself, another one of the few disappointments that we have encountered in our recent dining years. As the meal progressed, we both felt despondent on the back of what we were eating, at the exception of the gargantuan lobster (the saving grace of our meal). Too bad, as the service was superb and the lovely sparsely decorated interior did seduce both of us.
At 5th position, the review of Mizutani in Tokyo, which can be found here. That was read by 11.45% of all of you. Bruce Lee once said “I fear not the man who has practiced 10,000 kicks once, but I fear the man who had practiced one kick 10,000 times“. I could not agree more. REAL Legendary Sushi Masters like Mizutani-San have spent their entire life repeating and perfecting obsessively the same gesture in a way that is unimaginable by most Western standards. That, ultimately and expectedly, led to some of the most technically accomplished pieces of sushi you would have sampled. Eventhough this shop has closed since a long time, I can see how nostalgia brought you here: Mizutani-San was a giant, indeed. Therefore, it is not hard to understand how the memories of his dazzling craft can transcend time. Especially in a world where making money is far more important than bothering about the quality of the supply…
At 6th position, Kelsey & Kim’s southern cafe, Atlantic City, NJ (read by 10.53 % of you all). K&K SC was a treat, a genuinely delicious treat. At that time, I was a bit upset: I was with the Missus in Atlantic City, as part of a romantic gateway at the Caesars Palace. And when I realized that K&K SC was away from our “romantic nest” (not that far though…perhaps approx 15 mins by car), I kept insisting that we skip K&K SC, especially since there are some fine restaurants inside the hotel (as well as just, nearby ….) -. But she kept insisting that we pay a visit to K&K SC. In the end, she won, Lol, but OMG… she was right: K&K SC was no joke, the food was delicious, service was perfect. Nowadays, I am so far away from this gem of a restaurant and do truly miss it, but I heard that they did so well to the point of opening a new venture right where the action happens to be in AC, meaning where you have the city Boardwalk. Good for you, K&K SC. You certainly deserved it. K&K SC, I do not know when I will cross your path again, but I am looking forward to it, my love!
At 7th position, according to your hits on the current blog, it was the turn of 3 star Michelin Le Calandre in Sameola di Rubano (that post was read by 9.25 % of all of you in 2020). It is the first time that this post features in the top 7 of the posts that you have perused the most. I was not floored by their savory recipes when I ate there, but their desserts were top class, the risotto will be remembered for a long time and the overall experience at Le Calandre was highly enjoyable. To top it off, Sameola di Rubano is located not far from Venice. 40 kms of Venice and 7kms away from the very pretty historical city of Padua. What’s not to like?
-I was not actively reviewing food in 2020, but I ate at some few places and I am seizing the opportunity of this current post to share some of these experiences with you.
In MONTREAL:
I finally tried the popular Beba which is advertised as cooking Spanish, Italian and South American food (which are, essentially, the logical influences in Argentinian cooking, Argentina being the country that is inspiring the kitchen at Beba). I liked Beba: the food was delicious in a hearty way , the ambience superb.
Vinette (Addr: 2497 Notre-Dame St W, Montreal, Quebec H3J 1N6) is a new venture opened by the folks at Joe Beef, with a focus on seafood items. Born in the Indian ocean, I was blessed with some of this globe’s finest seafood, and decades later, miles away from that same ocean, that soft spot for seafood had not faded. Therefore, Vinette was a place that did boot with the advantage of focusing on what I love the most. Vinette was a pleasant casual seafood spot, with , essentially, basic but fine seafood offerings.
Restaurant Alma — (1231 Avenue Lajoie, Outremont, QC H2V 1P2, Phone: (514) 543-1363 — cooked, during my visit there, some of the best Spanish /Mediterranean inspired food that I ever had in a long while in Montreal.
In NEW YORK,
Danny Meyer is one of the most prolific and important restaurateurs in NYC. I went to pay a visit to one of his most recent openings, Vini e Fritti. I thoroughly enjoyed my time there, with virtually everything that kept coming from the kitchen standing as good as it gets in NYC. I would have no problem inserting this place in my go-to list of eateries in NYC. Vini e Fritti, Addr: 30 E 30th St, New York, NY 10016, United States Phone: +1 646-747-8626
Kopitiam is marketed as cooking Nyonya cuisine – This was a lovely experience, the cooking remaining as genuine as it gets oceans away from its place of origin. Kopitiam gained a lot of traction among food lovers in NYC, and I could see why. Kopitiam – Addr: 151 E Broadway, New York, NY 10002, United States Phone: +1 646-609-3785
Equally enjoyable was my time at Noreetuh, a restaurant that is inspired by what is made in Hawai. As argued elsewhere on this blog, it is utterly foolish to expect food to feel and taste exactly as how it feels and tastes in its birth place, obviously, but Noreetuh is delivering some of the most thoughtful and delicious Hawaian-inspired food in NYC. Noreetuh – Addr: 128 1st Avenue, New York, NY 10009, United States Phone: +1 646-892-3050
One of the most recent hyped-up eateries in NYC is Pizzeria Scarr’s. Loved the retro feel of the place. However, the pizza I had there (took a Sicilian slice) was just Ok. When I went there, the line up was way too long for the sort of pizza that I was having. Again, not bad. Just not worth my time queueing up. I mean, there are plenty of places in NYC with better pizza and where you do not have to wait, in line, for …that long. Scarr’s Pizza – Addr: 22 Orchard St, New York, NY 10002, United States Phone: +1 212-334-3481
In Brooklyn (East Williamsburg), Win son (Contemporary Taiwanese-american restaurant) cooked some inspired food. As ever, remember to always go to a restaurant with the right expectation: if you need Mom and Pop’s Taiwanese food, go to Taiwan for that. The team at Win Son certainly knows their Taiwanese traditional flavours, there is no doubt about that. But they have clearly advertised their restaurant as being Taiwanese-american and unless you do not understand the basics of the science of food…you cannot get the full traditional taste of Taiwan … oceans and continents away from ..Taiwan, …obviously! At the end of the day, Win son was a great discovery. I hope they keep those standards as high as I found them during my visit. Win Son – Addr: 159 Graham Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11206, United States. Phone: +1 347-457-6010
Lechonera La Piraña – You may look at the upper-left corner of the current blog and see names of dining destinations such as 3 star Michelin L’Ambroisie, Pierre Gagnaire, Le Louis XV, L’Arpège and …think that I am a food snob, Lol. Not at all. I just visit those high end restaurants in search of new culinary inspirations. Inspirations that do also come from simple street fares, too, btw. My roots are humble and I am very proud of them. Consequently, the food I like the most is the simple but delicious food of my childhood: straightforward pieces of meat and seafood grilled on wood fire. I prefer a simple wood-fired piece of meat, festive in mouth, to the best food items at any of this globe’s best dining destinations. Lechonera La Piraña gets me as close to my childhood’s memories as it is possible to experience in New York. It is a tiny roadside trailer delivering simple but delicious Puerto Rican homestyle fares such as the mashed plantains (mofongo), which I love. On one visit, their lechon (roast suckling pig) was exquisitely seasoned, chopped fresh, and served with rice and plantain. On another visit, I did enjoy some freshly made chicken pastelitos (think ‘empanada’ made with a light pastry dough), a delicious rice with pigeon peas dish (arroz con gandules), . Soul satisfaction, indeed. Here’s a lovely video (compatible with FIREFOX…ie11 and edge seem to be too precious for any normal web link that is legit on the web, since I was not able to access this link from drama queens ie11 and edge…what a bummer…) on this laid back purveyor. Lechonera La Piraña – When? On saturday and sunday afternoon. Where? on 152nd Street (corner of Wales), Mott Haven, South Bronx, New York.
I also tried Crown Shy in the Financial district with, at their helm, a Chef who used to work at 3 star Michelin Eleven Madison Park and his beautiful skills shone through the technically apt cooking I was enjoying during that visit. I dropped by for their fabled citrusy, spicy grilled chicken and it certainly deserved a serious mention among the best dishes I had in 2020. Their charred octopus was another good dish, too. Right now, Crown Shy is one of the well-regarded restaurants of NYC, and, so far, that is justified. Crown Shy – 70 Pine St, New York, NY 10005, United States; Phone: +1 212-517-1932
Here is my top 5 of the best food items I ate in 2020: (1)The citrusy, spicy grilled chicken at Crown Shy, a position that it shared with the braised pork at Win son. (2)The lechon (roast suckling pig) at Lechonera La Piraña- (3) The delicious and well made crab fried rice at Uncle Boons. Sadly, UB closed in Aug 2020 – (4) The monkfish liver torchon at Noreetuh, which shares this position with the Nasi lemak at Kopitiam (5) The pork ribs Calabrian chili honey at Vini E Fritti. –
All those eateries were visited, in 2020, in the small time frame when they were still open to the public (before the Covid-19 virus forced the restaurant scene in both NYC and MTL to shutdown).
At the peak of the Covid-19 pandemic, an unusual number of people have visited my anonymous blog. Although I appreciate that you took the time to drop by, kindly remember that food assessment is utterly subjective. No one can help you to find the perfect dining experience that will reach out to your expectations.
As always, I wish you all a new year of superb food! And do not forget: oftently, a big part of extracting the most out of the pleasure of dining out is to accept things the way they are, and NOT the way you want them to be!