Circo Combines Circus Whimsy With Fine Cuisine

What kind of place is Circo? It's a place to get a great meal, as I've already mentioned. But the restaurant has more depth than that. On a LivingSocial deal that felt like a hand-picked, secret discount just for us, we went back just a few nights ago to try it again. It didn't disappoint.

Circo is the kind of place where you can enjoy a beautiful meal outside watching passersby.

Circo is the kind of place that replaces your bread and water, rather than bringing in the "old" setting, when you move indoors due to the rain.

Circo is the kind of place where the Captain comes by to apologize for the rain--as if it were his fault.

Circo is the kind of place where a waiter comes by to fold your napkin in a point when you get up from your seat.

Circo is the kind of place that surprises you with a free sampling of red wine soaked cipollini onions when you show particular interest in the preparation. We are very happy when people really enjoy our food, they say.

Circo is the kind of place that gives you a free taste of Cointreau when you ask what type of liqueur you detect in the panna cotta.

Circo is the kind of place where the whimsy of the circus meets the gravitas of fine cuisine.

Casellula Is My Favorite New York City Restaurant

Casellula - Hell's Kitchen
401 W. 52nd Street, New York, NY 10019

As we walked up to this little wine bar in the rain, we almost stopped short because of what looked like paper covering all the windows, a typical sign of interior renovations. Instead, it was just fog that had clouded the glass--a veil for the patrons that kept the harsh elements locked outside.

Unfortunately, a 40 minute wait deterred us from becoming one of the carefree indoor patrons that night. We had returned to the wine bar having eaten there not three weeks prior. Sadly, we veered our hungry bellies in another direction but vowed to return again.

It was the cheese that lured us back. How could it not with a knowledgeable fromager on staff to suggest the perfect set of country cheeses to pair with your wine and food selection?

Winter is when we found this gem. And the cold, the rain, and the fog are now gone. Summer is here, and we have been back to this wine bar several times since--I've lost count. Returning not just once, but repeatedly, Casellula has made me break my golden rule of unique dining experiences in the city. How am I supposed to try everything that New York has to serve if I continually revisit old stomping grounds? But this is worth it. Time and time again, it's worth it, so I can't help but return.

What makes Casellula my favorite restaurant in New York City? For a wine bar with a fromage specialist and an ever-changing menu of items such as Goose Breast Reuben or Roasted Bone Marrow, the lack of pretension is ironic. Instead, this simple, little restaurant--far enough removed from Times Square to be considered a midtown respite--is just warm and cozy, and it serves delicious food. It's as simple as that.

One particularly memorable night entailed an epic search for chocolate dessert. Though we were in Hell's Kitchen, I was thwarted at every turn in trying to satisfy this craving. Of course, I turned to Yelp in fervor, and a number of dessert options either looked mediocre or were already closed. I identified an Italian dessert place a few blocks away that looked like it had fine desserts, and I even called ahead to confirm their dessert menu and let them know I was coming in for some chocolate cake. However, once happily seated in a booth in the back, our waiter informed us that they were sold out of chocolate cake. Though other options were available, my heart sunk, and we excused ourselves from the establishment. Next, we tried a French restaurant not too far away. I liked the look of their chocolate cake, and we were about to take a seat when I saw that almonds were baked into the cake. Allergic to almonds and quickly running out of options, I decided not to stay.

I remembered Casellula.

We walked in, sat down (with no wait, thankfully), and asked to only see the dessert menu. They had chocolate cake.

I asked the waiter, "How good is your chocolate cake?"

He said, "Very good."

As a child, my mother spoiled me with her restaurant quality baking, and she has a particularly feisty chocolate cake that would knock out most competition. So, I'm not easily impressed with dessert, and nearly 40 minutes after my search for chocolate began, I wasn't in the mood to mess around.

"I have extremely high standards for dessert, particularly chocolate cake. Are you sure I'm going to like this?" I asked, in the politest way I could given my temperament.

"Yes," he stated confidently.

The cake arrived. I was disappointed. A thick block of chocolate layer cake sat before me--chocolate cake, chocolate frosting, chocolate cake, chocolate frosting, and so on...just like one might find in a grocery store or at a child's birthday party.

But then, the waiter held up a pitcher of heavy cream and ceremoniously drenched my chocolate cake. Oh my goodness.

How was it? Heaven. Chocolate decadence sopping up smooth white cream. The cake was richer than I had anticipated with frosting that was far less sugary than a cheap birthday cake. Little bits of chocolate (were they tiny chocolate chips?) melted with every bite. And the cream? Soaked up inside every nook and cranny, making this the most moist (and caloric) cake imaginable.

While that certainly wasn't the last time I went exclusively for dessert, I wouldn't want to peg this restaurant as just a wine bar, just a cheese bar, or just a postprandial dessert spot. It's everything, and I enjoy everything about it. That's why I'll be going back--again.

Take In A View Of Manhattan From The Water's Edge

Water's Edge
401 44th Drive at the East River
Long Island City, New York 11101

Let's face it, Manhattan could be cleaner. It could be more modern. The island has moments of profound beauty, but more often I'm looking at gum-spattered sidewalks and mountains of trash bags.

Something happens, though, when you leave the city and glimpse it from the outside. The scale of the island decreases, but the grandeur becomes overwhelming. It's a spectacle that doesn't tire or fade. And what better way to enjoy Manhattan than from the Water's Edge in Queens?

With such a stunning view, I had expected sky-high fares and mediocre food. While the prices were indeed quite high, they were as reasonable as could be expected in the shadow of skyscrapers. The food, on the other hand, exceeded expectations.

I was a winner with the crab cake. Water's Edge is a seafood restaurant, after all. Yet they were able to prepare impressively delicate and light gnocchi, a textural feat we could even taste through the heavy cream, salty bacon, and general weight and gluttony of the dish.

Maryland Crab Cake. Lump crab, chive slaw, Cajun remoulade ($15)

Hand Rolled Gnocchi. Specked ham, shitake mushrooms, truffle oil, taleggio cream. ($14)

For dinner, I ate the lobster and shrimp entrée. Paler than my typical red, Main lobster, this crustacean crawled from Brazil. I recognized the difference in color immediately, asking the waiter about the lobster's origins (rather than paying attention to the menu's detail in the first place). Yet, I couldn't taste too much of a difference, though the meat was tougher and less sweet. The white wine and butter sauce blanketed the dish, blurring any flavor distinction I may have been able to make. I couldn't even finish the whole meal--the butter slowed me down and eventually became overbearingly rich.

Shrimp and Brazilian Lobster Tail 7oz. Francese. White wine, lemon butter sauce ($45)

Chilean Sea Bass. Cherry peppers, red onion, sweet corn, cilantro pesto. ($34)

View of the bar and the restaurant beyond.

We left as the staff closed up the restaurant. Despite the rocky start to the evening, it was smooth waters the rest of the night at Water's edge. Full of butter and cream, we rolled home (in a Lyft car) and slipped into a food coma that lasted to the next morning. 

Yet Another Disappointing Restaurant Week Meal At Arlington Club

Arlington Club - Upper East Side
1032 Lexington Ave (Between 73rd and 74th)
New York, NY 10022

• Food: Sadly below expectations.
• Service: Prompt and friendly.
• Ambiance: Dim, quiet, with a Gentleman's club flare (minus the cigar smell). 
• Value: Ironically low, given Restaurant Week deals. 

Restaurant Week, the twice yearly New York celebration that brings high-class (high cost) food to the masses, makes me tingle with anticipation. I look forward to these few weeks a year when I can justify dining at some of the city's finest restaurants. Yet, it seems to let me down more often than not. There were a few superb meals--Circo, Perry Street, and Brasserie among them--but other restaurants seem to have a reduction in quality that surpasses the reduction in price. Arlington Club, a mix between a Good 'Ol Boys club and a pub, won the first spot on our Restaurant Week list.

The restaurant mustered the creativity to serve not table bread but rather popovers the size of pomelos. Breaking through the crusty exterior to the doughy bread beneath became more rewarding still when we were able to slather whipped butter over each bite. What was hard to swallow was that I grew up eating lighter yet richer popovers in the tiny town of Rutland, Vermont. Was it that a Zagat-rated restaurant in America's culinary epicenter couldn't top Rutland's popovers--or was it that even the popovers get a downgrade during Restaurant Week?

Appetizers of french onion soup and a tuna tartare arrived promptly. With cheese seared to a golden brown and bread that still had some crunch despite being drowned in soup, the former was a hit. However, the tuna tartare--while good--reminded me of the tuna avocado salad I'd had for lunch that day at Kobeyaki, the Japanese fast-food chain my colleagues frequent. 

The main meal consisted salmon atop a pool of puréed peas and asparagus. The deep green color was the most impressive aspect of this culinary slight. I really don't know how the simple act of blending can remove all flavor from a food. However, the salmon passed muster--I just wouldn't pay top dollar for it.

The most impressive aspect of the meal arrived in the form of a slender cake topped with three candied pieces of popcorn. This peanut butter chocolate bar almost washed away the disappointing meal. With a bit of crunch and a hint of salt, the chocolate cake and ice cream combo threw the curve, bringing up the meal's overall average. Sadly, however, I wouldn't call this restaurant top-grade. I wonder if it's any better outside of Restaurant Week.