After catching the majority of Top Chef Season three, I’ve slowly become a fan of the crazy reality show (they’re currently taping season 4 in Chicago). I watched a couple episodes from season one and season two, but it’s one of those shows you watch when they have marathons, you know? Anyway, Harold Dieterle won season one and used his prize money to open Perilla in May 2007, a stylish restaurant in the west village. I’ve walked by Perilla a bunch of times (on my way to John’s Pizzeria or Pearl Oyster Bar), but I didn’t notice the small restaurant lining Jones Street until recently.

Large booths, a couple of four-top tables, and a small bar make Perilla for a small get together or a first date. The interior decor is minimal and welcoming and is a great addition to the west village. The hostess seated us immediately (not many people go to Perilla for lunch, apparently, because the restaurant was almost empty). The menu has a couple of options of unpretentious items, but there were only three things that interested us: the duck burger, the cubano, and the french toast. We ended up choosing the first two:

The duck burger has a layer of perfectly melted cheese (don’t you hate it when there’s a layer of grease on top of the cheese?), pickles, tomato, and Boston lettuce that all sits perfectly on top of a big bits of spicy duck. YUM. I’m used to Peking duck and have been disappointed with other ways people prepare duck, but Harold’s burger definitely makes me rethink the way I eat duck.

I ordered Harold’s Cubano:

To tell you the truth, I wasn’t impressed with the pressed sandwich AT ALL. It tasted like something I could ordered at Zabar’s a while back. Also, once you try the Spotted Pig’s cubano, there’s no way to eat another sandwich without getting the feeling that it’s inadequate. I didn’t really enjoy the sandwich but the side salad that came with my order was nicely dressed. I can never get my greens to stay so fluffy after I dress them - they always end up wilty looking (it looks like I cooked them or something). How do restaurants do it?

Overall, the experience at Perilla was very nice and I’d go back for dinner in the future, but probably not again for brunch. It’s convenient to make a reservation through opentable.com, but you can always call to make a reservations as well (I like opentable because I’ve thisclose to getting something for free!!)

How to get to Perilla:

Perilla
9 Jones St between 4th Street and Bleecker
New York, NY 10014
212-929-6868

Anyone that follows this blog on a regular basis knows that I am a huge fan of cheeseburgers. When I was in college, there was a McDonald’s right outside my dorm window - everyday after class, my friend Susanna and I would order the number 2 (two cheeseburgers, fries, and a drink) with no onions, extra ketchup, and a diet coke (hey, let’s try to keep it healthy here). When the McDonald’s closed (their service was absolutely terrible and sometimes we’d wait half an hour to get our order) I would make my best friend, Brian, drive me to Chili’s so I could indulge in their cheeseburger with seasoned French fries. Brian doesn’t eat cheeseburgers anymore, he lives in Chicago, and I don’t know of any Chili’s’s in New York, so I’ll explore other burger joints around the city (woe is me). On Saturday, Chris and I hit up Rare Bar and Grill.

After reading numerous positive reviews and hearing that it’s great from Chris himself, I decided to indulge a little. I haven’t really been eating too many burgers this month (I’m still trying to work off THANKSGIVING). We decided to order two burgers and share the fries sampler (with no dessert, even though they have FRIED OREOS).

Our M and M burger:

I read a lot of positive reviews about the burger and it sounded like the most popular burger that Rare serves (well, next to the Murray’s cheese burger, but the two sounded very similar). The M and M burger is Rare’s classic burger flambéed in whiskey, topped with caramelized shallots, cheddar cheese & apple smoked bacon. I didn’t taste any difference in the meat because of the whiskey, but the caramelized shallots brought all of the ingredients together. The apple smoked bacon was all fat and salt (yay!) and the cheese was another salty item, but the caramelized shallots were sweet enough to give the burger the kick it needed. Chris and I DEVOURED the burger.

We also shared the Rare classic burger (with American cheese):

I really like the classic cheeseburger; the meat is juicy, the cheese is perfectly melted, and each bite is almost the perfect size to fit into my mouth…the only thing I disliked was the top bun - it was a little too tough for me.

Fries sampler:

The fries sampler is $10 and comes with all the different fries Rare serves (waffle/cottage, sweet potato, and regular shoestring). For an extra $1, you can switch the shoestring fries to the truffle oil fries, but we decided against it. The fries sampler also includes four dipping sauces:

L-R, clockwise from top: regular ketchup, chipotle aoili, honey maple dip, and New Mexican Chili Ketchup. The sweet potato fries worked well with the honey maple dip, which reminded me of Clinton St. Baking Company’s maple butter. Mmmmm sweet butter. The New Mexican Chili ketchup tasted like it had tea leaves in it (Chris said he didn’t think it did but he knew I was going to write it in my review anyway). The fries were really good (my favorite were the cottage/waffle fries).

After our meal, Chris and I were discussing the experience and the overall rating (we always do this so I can bounce ideas off him). Initially, I was going to give the place four Grace faces, but then he said, “Yeah, I was thinking four Grace faces too… but then I was like, ‘Why not five? This place is really good!’” The service was good, the restaurant is cute, and the food is delicious. The place is pretty expensive (in my opinion). The M and M burger will set you back $15 and the classic cheeseburger costs $10 (with cheese). A little expensive, but definitely a treat.

How to get to Rare Bar and Grille:

Rare Bar and Grille
228 Bleecker Street between 6th and Carmine
New York, NY 10014
212-691-7273

On our third date, Chris took me to Pearl Oyster Bar for Rebecca Charles’ lobster rolls and clam chowder. Since then, we’ve been back many times to enjoy the lively atmosphere, the wonderful service, and of course, the amazing food. Pearl Oyster Bar quickly shot up to one of our favorite restaurants in the city and I always bring friends by when they visit. When it comes to lobster rolls, we’ve also tried Mary’s Fish Camp and two places in Martha’s Vineyard, but they don’t even compare to the amazing seafood that Pearl has. We wanted to give Ed’s Lobster Bar a chance; there was so much news coverage about Ed, Rebecca Charles’ former sous chef, replicating POB that we had to see what the fuss was about. We went with two friends, Felicia and Tom, on a Saturday night to compare lobster rolls.

When you walk in, Ed’s looks very similar to POB - same decorations and New England feel, but the people eating are definitely different. The crowd is much younger and European - on the night we went, it seemed like there were tons of out of town visitors. We decided to give Ed’s a fair chance and ordered a wide range of options from their menu. We started off with muddled lemonade (which was named by New York Mag as one of the best lemonades in the city):

The lemonade is supposed to be prepared in a similar way mojito’s are prepared to give it more of a fresh lemony flavor…I thought it tasted the exact same as regular lemonade (maybe it tasted better with vodka). I didn’t think it was anything special and it was really watered down. Chris thought it had a natural, unique flavor (but in my opinion, it tasted like tap water with a couple lemons squeezed in!!).

Next, Chris and I ordered clam chowder and mussels to share. The mussels came with a white wine sauce and a light mustard:

The sauce was way too thick and the mussels were all over-steamed, making them too chewy (Chris agreed). The sauce was also too heavy for the mussels and we couldn’t even finish our order because we were grossed out by the taste.

Chris’ clam chowder, unlike most clam chowders, came with ONE clam instead of many clam bits interspersed within the soup:

Is that even considered clam chowder? We were seriously disappointed with the soup; not enough clam flavor and it tasted like we were drinking a straight vat of cream. The chowder was also over-seasoned with salt and it was definitely nothing special…or even mediocre.

Oysters:

Tom ordered the oysters and seemed to enjoy all of them. I didn’t have any, so I can’t really comment on how they tasted.

So for our main course, Chris and I decided to both order the lobster roll. We were expecting something very similar to Pearl’s. Here’s Ed’s take on the lobster roll:

Well, to put it nicely, it’s not something I’d ever order again. And that’s me being NICE. The lobster was really stringy and didn’t have any flavor to it. Also, there wasn’t enough mayo (this coming from a person that absolutely despises mayo!). The lobster tasted like it was too chewy and there were just little scraps of lobster, no big chunks like the stuff they give you at Pearl Oyster Bar. The pickles were also disgusting (Ed’s own) and the fries tasted like regular fries (I think the cut was too big, too).

Felicia and Tom both ordered the lobster burger because Ed’s ran out of lobster pot pie. Ed’s lobster burger:

The lobster burger is actually more expensive than the lobster roll (I think $30 vs. $26). The lobster all tasted second rate and I don’t think either of them finished the burger.

Initially, it seemed like a good idea to go to Ed’s and try it out to see what the fuss was about. After our terrible meal at Ed’s, I don’t want to go anywhere else but my beloved Pearl Oyster Bar.

I hate Ed’s Lobster Bar.

How to get to Ed’s Lobster Bar (although why would you ever want to go there when you have POB):

Ed’s Lobster Bar
222 Lafayette St
New York, NY 10079
212-343-3236

If you’re a loyal reader of gracenotesnyc, you’ll know that I am a cheeseburger fanatic. After reading about Five Guys opening up in Manhattan, I had to visit opening weekend. Five guys was started by a dad and his four sons (using their college fund to start the place). Five Guys is famous for their burgers and fries and their goal is to sell the best quality burgers possible, so I knew I was in for a treat.

When we arrived, I was surprised to see the place was completely empty, especially since earlier in the week, it took an hour and a half to get your order. The place reminded me of a Jimmy John’s (same checkered tiling around the walls):

The bags around the cash register and along the walls are full of potatoes (everything is really fresh). 5 guys has been compared to In N Out, and since I love their burgers, I was hoping for the same experience. Their menu is simple and they offer premium toppings for free - mushrooms, onions, relish, jalapeño peppers, green peppers, and your normal tomatoes, lettuce, pickles, and mayo. We placed our orders for two cheeseburgers and an order of fries (half Cajun, half normal) and while we waited, we munched on FREE peanuts:

Why do they offer free peanuts?!

10 minutes later, our cheeseburgers and fries arrived and I couldn’t believe how large the burger was:

I didn’t realize that the cheeseburger was a double patty (so much meat, such a little stomach). The burger was cooked and seasoned well but the bun was too soft. It tasted more like a Chinese pastry than a burger bun even though it was toasted. The burger wasn’t too messy and it wasn’t that greasy (I’ve heard stories that in the Philadelphia branch, by the time your burger gets to you, the bun is completely soaked in grease).

The fries were greasy and a little soggy, not crispy:

AND there was no Cajun seasoning on half of the fries (even though we requested it). The fries tasted like they were drenched in grease and there were a lot of little pieces (which I HATE). We eventually got some Cajun seasoning and mixed it with the fries in a paper bag, but I didn’t think the seasoning was anything great (Chris, on the other hand, liked the seasoning a lot).

Five guys’ burger was good, but not great. I’m sure it’ll be popular with the folks that work around midtown and it’ll give the Burger Joint some competition, but I don’t plan on returning.

How to get to Five Guys:

Five Guys
43 W 55th St between 5th and 6th
New York, NY 10019
212-459-9600

One of my favorite restaurants in New York, The Green Table, is located in the Chelsea Market and serves great foods that are purchased locally (meaning all ingredients are purchased within driving distance). They have simple ingredients and simple items; grilled cheese, burgers, macaroni and cheese, chicken pot pie, and other comfort foods. I went with the chicken pot pie:

The chicken is really tender, the vegetables are cooked but not overdone, and the seasoning is near perfection. Also, the crust is flaky but not too buttery. Another great thing about The Green Table - their salads are always dressed SO well. There’s just enough oil, lemon juice, and pepper on every piece of arugula!

Chris ordered the Green Table burger:

The burger had an interesting tomato relish instead of pickles - just the right amount of tanginess to add to the well-cooked burger. I really love eating at Greenmarket because everything is so fresh and well-prepared. The only complaint - it’s not large enough; it only seats around 15 (including the communal table outside) so you might end up being turned away on a busy night.

How to get to The Green Table:

The Green Table
Inside Chelsea Market
New York, NY 10011
212-741-9174