Burger Joint in Hell's Kitchen

5 Napkin Burger
630 9th Ave, New York, NY 10036 (map)
(212) 757-2277
(website)



Our real estate agent, Orel, recommended this place when we asked her what's good to eat around the new neighborhood (Hell's Kitchen/Midtown West). She said "five napkins". We thought she meant 5 guys burger and proceed to correct her. Well, she was right, it was five napkin.

Jenny, Kingman and I came on a Sunday, around noon. I thought this place would be crawling with tourists (close proximity to Times Square). It wasn't - only a small trace, the rest of the patrons were pretty neighborhoody. There was a full menu; breakfast, brunch, burgers, entrees. I was close to ordering the pastrami and eggs but I had to try the burger. Since it was Sunday, and they had a full bar, I started the meal with a bloody mary.

The food is good, the wait staff was attentive. Although pricey, I'm glad I found a good neighborhood burger place. By the way, my last neighborhood burger place was the shake shack.


The Original 5 Napkin Burger - cooked perfectly medium (warm and pink in the middle). Pretty good quality of meat, really melty cheese, sweet sauteed onion and very flavorful aioli (rosemary): a pretty damn good burger!


Brunch Burger - with cheddar, ham and a fried egg

$$
5 Napkin Burger

Cost: $27 each - burger, drink, tax, tip

New Orleans Sandwich Joint

Mother's Restaurant
401 Poydras St., New Orleans, LA 70130 (map)
(504) 523-9656
(website)



We've heard about this place from one of the recommendations. As soon as I walked in, I remember seeing this place on TV, on one of the travel / food shows. We lucked out because we caught them as they were about to close. Really friendly staff with lots of local flair (fat waitress with missing teeth yelling at the other staff to stop watching the Laker's Game).
The ordering system is new to me: you line up along the deli counter, order at the cashier, take the receipt, sit at the table, give the receipt to the waitress and she brings you food.
Overall, the food was good. We got to check Po'Boy off our 'to eat' list.
Also, perfect food to line our stomachs before a night of drinking.


The daily menu - I don't think they change this often.


Mae File Gumbo - good flavor, kind of watery, chewy rice, served lukewarm just like everywhere else.


#1 Ferdi Special - great sandwich! Lots of different types of meats: pulled pork, ham, roast beef. Nicely dressed in a bed of lettuce and mayo. Had to eat this fast because the bottom piece of bread got soggy.


Smoked Sausage Po'Boy


Fried Catfish Po'Boy


Grilled Catfish Po'Boy

$
Mother's

Food Make: Corn, Black Bean and Mango Salsa

Corn, Black Bean and Mango Salsa
Quick and easy to compile, always a hit.
Good with chips. Also works well over chicken or fish.



Ingredients:
2 cans of whole kernel corn, drained
2 cans of black beans, drained
1 red pepper, diced
1/2 red onion, diced
1 jalapeno, diced (optional, remove membrane and seeds - less spicy)
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1/2 bunch of cilantro, chopped
4 mangoes, diced
5 limes, juiced (to taste)
2 tablespoons of sugar
1 teaspoon of chili powder
2 teaspoons of cumin
salt
pepper

Directions:
1. Mix all the ingredients together in a bowl
2. salt and pepper to taste

Dinner before the party

Compass
208 W 70th St., New York, NY 10023 (map)
(212) 875-8600



We came here for Simon's birthday; dinner before the big party at Empire Hotel. I'm not sure who picked the restaurant but I am pretty sure it was picked because it was close to the party and could seat the 8 of us during prime dinner hours (8PM). I was oblivious to this fact but everyone made a comment about it: the patrons were mostly elderly. It's not like we're dining at 4PM in the quiet part of town - probably the Lincoln Center crowd. They gave us a parting gift of muffins, for breakfast. I didn't get to try them because I lost track of the giant bag full of everyone's muffins after a few drinks.
Most of us got the pre fixe; 3 courses for $35.
Thanks again Gina for secretly picking up the bill - you're making us look bad as hosts.


Amuse bouche - Smoked salmon in cream sauce on tortilla. Not bad.


Starter - Lobster and avocado salad. Perfectly cooked lobster. Really good dressing.


Starter - Chopped Salad. Didn't get to try it. Gina said there was too much going on in the salad.


Appetizer - Seafood tower. Not bad, seafood was fresh.


Roasted Chicken - Tender, good flavor. The eggplant drenched in balsamic, not so much.


Hake - Good fresh fish. Flaky and crispy on the outside.


Dessert - Chocolate and mint. Pretty good - like a York peppermint patty brownie.


Dessert - Pineapple cake in coconut milk. Icecream on top was good. The rest was kind of bland.

$$
Compass

Cost: Probably would have been around $60 per person for the pre fixe, drinks, tax, tip and for Simon's.

The Parisian Steak House

Le Relais de Venise L’Entrecote
590 Lexington Avenue, New York, NY (map)
(212) 758-3989
(website)



Several of my friends (Gim, Al, Jenny, Ron, Amy) have been to this steak frites place in Paris. They won't stop talking about how good it was - the food AND the experience. Gim and Al must have told the story of how they were scolded by the waiter a million times. I was excited to hear that they have a New York location and was even more excited that we're going for there for our semiannual steak dinner. Sadly, the experience did not live up to the hype. To their credit, my friends all agreed that the food at this location tastes nothing like the one in Paris. I need to check out the one in Paris.
The gimmick is that they only offer a prix fixe of salad with walnuts, steak and fries; no appetizers, no other entrees. And the steak and fries are plated table side.
The service was great. The servers were super friendly and the kitchen was speedy. The food, on the other hand, was bland. I enjoyed the mustard more than anything else. The portions were pretty small. I was still hungry when we left because I refuse to fill myself with greasy fries.


Salad with walnuts - Some of the leaves were wilted from sitting in the dressing for too long. The dressing could have used more flavor. Pretty bland dish.


Dijon mustard - If we weren't going out afterwards, I would have snuck this out. Good mustard with a nice kick to it.


Our server plating the steak


Steak Frites - The meat was not seasoned and a bit over cooked. The secret sauce has a hint of curry but was ultimately bland. The fries were really greasy.


Cream puffs - straight out of the freezer. The chocolate sauce was pretty good.


Creme Burlee - I didn't get to try it.

$
Le Relais de Venise

Cost: about $30 each

Toast the French

Petunia's
817 St. Louis Street, New Orleans, LA 70119 (map)
504-522-6440
(website)



Petunia's, another restaurant recommended by many, does not take reservations. We joined the locals and tourists alike on line for a satisfying breakfast that would hopefully dispel our hangovers. While waiting, we caught gossip of this place closing down soon - I sure hope this isn't true but we'd be so lucky as one of their last patrons. We didn't have to wait too too long as we went pretty late in the breakfast brunch lunch hours. Too bad they ran out of the Cajun corned beef hash.
Until the plate came out, I have totally forgotten that this was the restaurant that had french toast Wayne raved about. Let me tell you, the BEST french toast - ever. Of course, me not ordering it did not stop me from eating a good amount of it.
Like many New Orleans restaurants, this place feels like you're sitting and dining in someone's living room - with mismatched tables and chairs and all.


The best french toast I've had - It didn't need the syrup. Crispy on the outside, custardy on the inside. It's also airy and fluffy. I'm pretty sure it's the french bread they use - the same kind that is the base of po'boys.


Cajun sausage breakfast - Andouille, boudin, two eggs, grits. I ordered it for the grits but the boudin - wow, the boudin! A delicious sausage made of flavorful pork and rice. It saddens me that I can't find it in New York.


Crepe St. Edith - I only had a bite but the crepe has really nice texture (Cheddar, mushrooms, onions, tomatoes, ham, or chicken with hollandaise)


Crepe St. James - Shrimp, Louisiana crabmeat, onions, and bell peppers with cheese sauce


Gumbo - We just had to try it at every place we go. Pretty good, they like serving soups lukewarm in New Orleans.


Maw Maw's Cajun breakfast - it's like cajun fried rice. Pretty good.
(Bits of bacon, ham, and shrimp scrambles with eggs, rice, and seasonings, toast)

$
Petunia's

Cost: $20 each (food, coffee, tip)

Ribs Night

Apt. 5H
I just moved to a new apartment with Kingman, one of my old roommates. The kitchen has about 3 times as much a space as the one in our last apartment. The rest of the apartment isn't too shabby either. For a camping trip last weekend, Kingman suggested that I make ribs - one of his favorites. The last time I made ribs before the camping trip was a year ago, in the Hamptons. Making ribs for the camping trip and the Big Apple BBQ Block Party got me inspired. I decided to do it again for the first house warming - with the TickerHound crew.



Not to toot my own horns or anything but this was the best ribs I've ever made. It's easily one of the top three things I've made in my life. The meat comes right off the bones. I set it to braise before going out and by the time we came back, we smelled it as soon as the elevator door opened. Of course,we had to try a piece last night. We knew then that this is going to be good (I'm convinced that leaving the ribs in the braising liquid overnight makes it better). I was so giddy that I woke up at 7 in the morning and couldn't go back to sleep.


Side dish: cheese corn (I used Alton Brown's stove top mac and cheese recipe - but replace cooked pasta with corn)


Side dish: Collard greens (I boiled these for 30 minutes then sauteed in garlic and oil)



I pretty much follow Mark Bittman's recipe. This is the first time I used cinnamon and it made the biggest difference

Ingredients:
5 racks for baby back ribs
2 sticks of cinnamon
15 large slices of ginger
2 heads of garlic (cut in 1/2 horizontally)
1 bottle of honey moon (summer ale by blue moon)
3 cans of coke
1 can of coors light
4 bay leaves
cumin
couple of tablespoons of olive oil
salt
pepper
bbq sauce (blend of Eaton Jerk BBQ sauce and Sweet Baby Ray's)



Steps:
1. coat ribs with oil, season with salt, pepper and cumin
2. turn on broiler to high
3. brown ribs on both sides (about 4-6 minutes each side)
4. combine everything else in a baking pan
5. put ribs, meat side down in the pan
6. if the liquid doesn't cover all the meat, add water
7. set oven to 300 degrees
8. braise for about 3-4 hours
9. when it's done (check the meat for desired tenderness), brush with BBQ sauce and put under broiler again
10. broil until the sauce on top is a bit brown/ burnt