Restaurants in West Village

The Clam – Reviewed

Cuisine: American | Featured in Hottest Newcomers, Restaurant, Reviews

There’s nothing worse than a great, new neighborhood restaurant that opens in someone else’s neighborhood. That always happens to me. And it happened again just two weeks ago when The Clam quietly flung open its doors in the West Village (right near another great newcomer, Piora). They had me at a Parker House roll, individually baked for every diner, warm, pillowy & fresh from the oven welcome. If you had any doubts about what’s on the menu exactly, chowder’s muse is indeed the inspiration…

RedFarm

Cuisine: | Featured in Uncategorized

Restaurant Letdowns: Pagani & Villard

Cuisine: French, Italian | Featured in Reviews

If you’re a foodie, there’s nothing more exciting than discovering a great, new restaurant. And there’s nothing worse than wasting an evening at a mediocre or awful, new eatery, especially if you’ve dragged a group of friends along with you. Something about it being “new” makes it all the more depressing when hopes of a potentially fantastic find are dashed and calories wasted. But the truth is it happens all the time…

Sokerbit

Cuisine: | Featured in Best Of, Holiday Eats

Nordic cuisine has become one of the hottest and most pervasive trends on New York’s food scene, so it’s hardly a surprise that the obsession has extended to candy.  This seriously modern West Village shop exposes a sweet side of Scandinavia way beyond Swedish Fish, with Lucite trays full of Banana Bubs (banana-caramel foam biscuits), Cocosar (coconut-covered licorice), and perfect for Halloween, 8 oz. jars of teeth-chatteringly sour Gummy...

Q & A with Piora’s Chris Cipollone & Simon Kim

Cuisine: Italian | Featured in Chef Q&A, Restaurant

There’s no shortage of restaurants serving fusion fare nowadays. Chinese-Mexican. Jewish-Japanese. French-Scandinavian. But Korean-Italian? That’s a new one, even for New York. “Our approach is simple… to cook and serve who we are,” said Simon Kim, owner of the exciting new West Village eatery, Piora. “We have two different heritages, Italian and Korean, so it was a natural process to marry our two cuisines.”

Piora – Reviewed

Cuisine: American | Featured in First Bite, Hottest Newcomers, Reviews

It ain’t often a chef comes out of nowhere and knocks your socks off. But when it happens, it reminds you exactly why you love eating out in the first place. I didn’t expect to find chicken skin crumbled over an appetizer of Scallops and Corn (the last of the season) at Piora, a new restaurant in the West Village. The scallops are pan-seared and plated over corn kernels, chanterelles, and an aerated corn puree, a sweet, ethereal last glimpse of summer. But I digress from the chicken skin. It’s laced with fennel pollen and crumbled over the dish, lending an umami-like depth to an otherwise, delicate scallop and corn combination. Lest I forget the black and white sesame seeds sprinkled over the top for nuttiness. One bite and you realize something exciting is going on in the kitchen…

Q & A with RedFarm’s Ed Schoenfeld

Cuisine: Chinese | Featured in Chef Q&A

How does a local, Brooklyn boy, and a Jewish one at that, become a Chinese food expert? Add successful restaurateur and ask the incomparable Ed Schoenfeld, who is currently orchestrating the build out of three exciting restaurants alongside partner, Zach Chodorow. There’s the under-renovations RedFarm in the West Village, his top-rated, modern Chinese eatery that’s expanding to meet a growing demand. There’s Decoy, a Peking Duck spot and cocktail lounge just downstairs, currently operating as a 28-day, pop-up Steakhouse. And then, there’s the spacious new RedFarm on the Upper West Side, which will serve restaurant signatures, like Pastrami Egg Rolls and sculptural Chicken Salad, although Chef Joe Ng’s famous Pac-Man Dumplings will probably be replaced by a new, Hello Kitty version. “The way things have worked out, fortunately or unfortunately, is that everything is coming down at the same time,” Schoenfeld shrugs. “Red Farm UWS took longer and Decoy is coming together quicker, so we’re just rolling with the punches.”

Q & A with Louro’s Chef David Santos

Cuisine: Global Fusion | Featured in Chef Q&A

There are some chefs that would much prefer to hole up in the kitchen with their sauces than interact with their customers. And that’s cool… it’s just not David Santos. On the contrary, the gregarious, heart on his sleeve chef is the kind of guy who invites patrons (and strangers at that!) into his home for supper club meals. Now, you can get a taste of Santos’s cooking, a unique mix of Portuguese, American and other globally inspired cuisines in one.

The Marrow – Reviewed

Cuisine: European, Italian | Featured in First Bite, Restaurant, Reviews, What I'm Loving

There is marrow on the menu at Harold Dieterle’s new West Village eatery, of course. It comes roasted and topped with sea urchin, teeny nibbles of fried potatoes, a few wisps of baby celery greens, and a drizzle of meyer lemon aioli. Looking for a light bite? Consider eating elsewhere. But if you’re looking for some heart-warming (or stopping) cooking to cozy up to this winter, The Marrow has quite a few terrific options.

The Marrow

Cuisine: European, Italian | Featured in Hottest Newcomers

There is Marrow on the menu at Harold Dieterle’s new West Village eatery, of course.  It comes roasted and topped with sea urchin, teeny nibbles of fried potatoes, a few wisps of micro celery greens, and a drizzle of meyer lemon aioli.   Looking for a light bite?  Consider eating elsewhere.  But if you’re looking for some heart-warming (or stopping) cooking to cozy up to this winter, The Marrow has quite a few terrific options.  Perhaps you’d be interested in the  hand-cut Fettucini with Pork and Sage Sausage or the Pan-Fried Duck Schnitzel with Quark Spaetzle, Stewed Wolfberries and a Cucumber-Potato Salad?   And just what are Fettucini and Schnitzel doing on the same menu?   Dieterle’s newest venture was uniquely inspired by both his Italian and German roots, so expect the food to follow suit.  That means dishes as dichotomous as...

Mas Farmhouse

Cuisine: American | Featured in Best Of

Sure, going out to dinner might not be the most original idea, but eating is our favorite pastime and you never know what you’ll find at Mas Farmhouse.  That’s because chef Galen Zamarra changes his menu on a daily basis to include only the best ingredients from nearby local farms.  This paves the way for an innovative menu that’s included dishes such as Shrimp crusted with Spaghetti Squash and Brussel Sprouts Roasted with House-Cured Lamb Bacon.  Not that you need another reason, but the intimate space with its wood beamed walls and dim lighting is the ideal setting for February 14th.  It might be just dinner, but it’s a dinner your special someone won’t...

Perilla’s Farro Risotto

Cuisine: American | Featured in Best Of, Winter Eats

This neighborhood spot from Harold Dieterle, Top Chef Winner Season 1, has plenty in the way of whole grain options, from wheat berries served with Duck Breast, to a side of Quinoa Salad with Golden Beets or Creamy Polenta with the Pork Chop.  But the best use of grains is the Farro Risotto, which breathes new life into traditional risotto.  A firm grain similar to barley, the farro is cooked with creamy blend of artichoke confit and parmesan, and served with a chili-grape salad on top — perfect for...

Louro – Reviewed

Cuisine: American | Featured in Reviews, What I'm Loving

More people should be talking about Louro in the West Village. It opened in a space that was once home to Lowcountry, and before that Bar Blanc, which opened was ultimately a bust, too. (Ironically, Bar Blanc’s chef, Cesar Ramirez, went on to open one of the hardest reservations in town better known as Brooklyn Fare.) But the past is the past and the space now looks less flashy.

Rosemary’s Minestra Di Stagione

Cuisine: Italian | Featured in Best Of

This charming West Village trattoria was buzzing even before it opened its doors this past summer, and the excitement about this place hasn’t dissipated since. With a menu featuring a mix of classic and inventive Italian dishes, including Zucchini Crudo, Octopus Salami, and various homemade pastas, you’re guaranteed to find something delicious to fill you up. We love the Minestra Di Stagione.

Perla

Cuisine: Italian | Featured in Best Of, Hottest Newcomers

Chef Michael Toscano exercises his gift for nose-to-tail cooking at Gabe Stulman’s rustic Italian bistro, Perla.  You can find seldom-seen cuts running through his selection of antipasti (Crispy Testa and Pigs Ear with grilled onions and cannellini beans, Veal Tongue with crispy capers, Tokyo turnips, and tonnato sauce), as well as primi (Garganelli with tripe and prosciutto, Pappardelle with cockscomb stew), although oddly, not necessarily in his hearty assortment of secondi.  No matter, Lamb Breast with radicchio and sunchokes, Quail with cauliflower and brown butter sugo, and Saba Glazed Duck with pickled golden raisins and quince are every bit as interesting (and...

Frankies 570

Cuisine: Italian | Featured in Best Of, Holiday Eats

An early seating at this rustic Italian bistro will set you back $85 for four courses, but you won’t be worrying about the price once you feast your eyes on a salad of Chilled Maine Lobster, Black Ink Fusilli, Slow Roasted Lamb Loin, and a Kabocha Squash Torta.  Choices double later in the evening, as does the price  (well, almost).  $125 buys a Crudo of Nantucket Bay Scallop or Braised Artichoke Salad, Grilled Quail, and Creamy Burrata with Chanterelles, plus wine pairings, cocktails, and...

After Work Drinks – Blind Tiger Ale House

Cuisine: American, Bar | Featured in Best Of, Restaurant

Here at Restaurant Girl, we consider knowing how to select the perfect place for dinner an essential skill. Of course, picking the ultimate spot in a city so full of choices isn’t always easy – so whether you’re looking to get down and dirty with a plate of barbecue, need a romantic (but not too romantic!) place to take a first date, or just want to decompress after work with a good, stiff drink, we’ve got five ideal options for you.

Pasticceria Rocco

Cuisine: Bakery | Featured in Best Of, Holiday Eats

Don’t let your preconceived notions of fruitcake prevent you from trying Rocco’s delectable Panettone, an oversized, cylindrical sweet bread studded with candied orange, citron, lemon zest and raisins.  You needn’t worry about finishing it off in one sitting – the hearty bread makes a great vehicle for day-after-Christmas pudding, or sinfully rich French toast.  Just one warning, you’ll probably find it hard to leave Rocco’s without filling a pastry box with a variety of other holiday specialties, like Biscotti, Regina and Quaresimali cookies, sticky-sweet Marzipan candies, and...

Q & A with La Villette’s Chef Christophe Bonnegrace

Cuisine: French | Featured in Chef Q&A

At age 14, Provence-born chef Christophe Bonnegrace was convinced his cooking career was over before it had started.  His first job, as an apprentice, lasted approximately one week, and ended with the head chef thrusting his hands in the fryer.  “I got scared, escaped the kitchen and pedaled home as fast as I could to get away from this guy!” Bonnegrace remembers.  Luckily his wounds (both literal and figurative) from that grisly first experience eventually healed, setting off a career that’s taken him from celebrity-frequented restaurants and resorts in Beverley Hills (Aristoff Caviar and Fine Food), Maui (The Royal Lahaina) and Las Vegas (Little Buddha), all the way to the far reaches of Africa, where he learned to cook crickets over pit fires with primitive tribes from Cairo and Nairobi. Although his passport may indicate otherwise, at the end...

Lupa Osteria Romana

Cuisine: Italian | Featured in Best Of, Holiday Eats

It’s no surprise that noted Italian-American restaurateurs Mario Batali and Joe Bastianich pull out all the stops at Lupa for their annual Christmas Eve feast.  There are, in fact, more than seven fishes presented over a span of seven courses, including Amberjack (served crudo-style with giardiniera), Lobster (folded into a risotto), Arctic Char (accented with winter truffle), and even Eel (topped with crispy...