The NY Times' Eric Asimov highlights the proliferation of wine bars throughout the city (131 at last count by newyorkwinebarguide.com), particularly those offering snacks and small plates far beyond the charcuterie and cheese one might typically expect. And they're not all Italian either. In fact, Asimov spans the globe in his wine bar visits: Spain at Pata Negra, France at Solex, and South Africa at Xai Xai. The lower cost of real estate involved in......

The Smith: Believe it or not, the The Smith is housed in the spot that used to be a Pizzeria Uno. Virtually anything would be an upgrade. The owners of Jane and the Neptune Room, Glenn Harris and Jeffrey Lefcourt, brought the executive chef from Jane, Brian Ellis to create a hearty, seasonal, American bistro-style menu, with offerings like lamb schnitzel with parmesan crust, hot potato chips with gorgonzola fondue, and steak served in various......

We were recently asked about recommendations for good first date spots: "she's allergic to shellfish, I hate TexMex - any thoughts?" We have plenty of thoughts. The first is that a first date, depending on how well you know the person, should be limited to drinks or coffee. This way, if things become clear that you don't want to stick around, you can leave politely without having to suffer through appetizers, an entree, and possibly......

In a city that has everything, there are always a few things that we can use more of. For starters, maybe one or two more cheese shops, an extra beer garden wouldn’t hurt and who wouldn’t like another Trader Joe’s? Just saying. The same rule applies to wine bars. Sure we have a bunch, but after a while, the circuit gets old. Luckily, we have a new stop to add to our list. Wined......

Today on the Gothamist Newsmap: unusual fire at JFK, and more bank robberies in Brooklyn Heights and Carroll Gardens. The first proposals for connections between Brooklyn Heights and the new Brooklyn Bridge Park are in-- and they are ugly. Steven Johnson, the lunatic who tried to torch Bar Veloce back in 2002, drew 240 years from a judge at his sentencing today. Has it really come to this? The Hamptons Jitney will begin servicing......

The NY Times has a good article about the second trial of Steven Johnson, who unleashed his anger by shooting people and taking others hostage in an East Village bar almost five years ago. Johnson, who has AIDS, was unemployed at the time and was allegedly looking for "happy people" to "avenge the oppression of black people like himself," according the Times. We remember the incident very clearly. It was a nice June night and......

The long, narrow, striated-wood counter at chef Will Goldfarb's serves 30, but at the brand new Room 4 Dessert, previously home to Bar Tonno and Bar Veloce, it's a sweets-only endeavor. Goldfarb, the former chef at Cru, known for spontaneous and experimental creations, brings us desserts in themes, like a curry-scented concoction named "Voyage to India," cotton candy and meringues ("Infance"), a vanilla coupe glacee with whiskey sabayon, and quartets of apples in various......

Fall is here, and you know what that means -- Fall restaurant preview time. From what we've read in New York Metro and the New York Times, it looks like we've got a lot to look forward to, including openings from not one but two Iron Chefs -- Batali's Del Posto (85 10th Avenue) and Morimoto's Morimoto (88 10th Avenue). Gothamist is pretty excited about a few others, including Bar Carrera (175 Second Avenue), from......

First it was Bar Veloce, then Bar Tonno. So what's become of 17 Cleveland Place now? After a bit of a management upheaval, we ended up with...sushi. Former Morimoto chef Kyohei Fukushi continues to strut his stuff at Bar Sasa, where a large fishtank now greets visitors as they walk in to the long narrow bar. In addition to more traditional sushi, Bar Sasa features innovative Japanese small plates, like a hamachi carpaccio drizzled with......

We never realized how "on the cutting edge" we were (or possibly over the hill) until this week, when we were about to do a review for Bar Tonno. We went there Saturday night before we knew this was the cool week to review it, we swear! But, given the fact that we have a day job to hold down, we had to wait until now to review it. And despite the fact that, this......

Yesterday was the first day of the trial of Steven Johnson, who held patrons at Bar Veloce hostage, shooting at them and other people on Second Avenue, and attempted to set them on fire in the summer of 2002. The prosectors are arguing that Johnson was committing a hate crime, as he said "Get ready to pull your guns out on these crackers, son," in tape recorded before the incident (and found on his body......