Different types of people are drawn to different types of restaurant and in a perfect world everyone has a place that feeds them as they like, in a room in which they are comfortable. The truth is that the price of a dish of food in a restaurant includes all the costs involved in running the restaurant. At the base level there is the electricity, gas, rent, insurance and so on, and at another level there are the publicists, consultants, and decorators. The more a restaurateur puts into a place the more the food on the plate will cost. This makes the most special of finds for foodies a place confidently making high caliber food without the added costs of adornment. more ›

Sometimes the best way to catch up with an old friend is to dine in a new restaurant. Conveniently, on my way to the Little Owl, recently announced in The New York Times, Time Out New York, and New York Magazine as being newly open, I had looked in on Lederhosen, an establishment of self-purported German goodness and thought to myself, “If I had known about that place it would have been perfect.” Discovering Lederhosen made it okay with me when I popped my head in the door of Little Owl to find out from a young man at the top of a ladder that they were not yet open, but hoped to open in the next two weeks. more ›

Eating In: Red Cat's Bitter Greens Salad with Gruyere Fondue more ›

The torrential rain almost put a damper on plans to go to the East Village's best new restaurant, The Mermaid Inn, last night, but luckily the rain subsided. We put our names on the list at 7PM and only waited 30 minutes for a table (they said 45 minutes, but ended up calling 15 later to offer a table in the garden, but with the weather so crazy, we decided to wait for an inside table). The "give your cellphone number and we'll call when a table is ready" system works well. more ›