So as I have dined at Vittorio's once before and was definitely blown away by the food, I decided why not go again. There was a restaurant.com gift certificate available, definitely necessary since the restaurant is a bit expensive, and it was my anniversary so a great time to go.
We got there pretty late and were asked to wait for our table. I was confused since it was not packed and also 8pm on a Tuesday, but we were seating in 10 minutes. Turned out they wanted to seat us at the window since they felt it was the nicer area to sit, which was perfectly fine with me. I am the slowest at making decisions about food so I was happy to be a little more secluded with no table next to us so I could really just enjoy my time. The menus came out but we decided we should start with a new bottle of wine for a toast. The wine variety is very large, but also gets expensive quickly, so we chose a moderately priced mine that sounded like something we would really enjoy (I don't recall the exact bottle but it was from Spain).
The waitress came to our table to see if we were ready to order, before the wine came out, but I told her I am the slowest person at ordering so it may take a bit of time. She told us no rush, its not crowded, and take our time which was nice to hear.
Once our wine came out we decided to get an appetizer on the table and went with the special of the day, a cold calamari salad. I have had this many times in Italy and haven't seen it much around home so I really wanted to see the comparison. We were brought out bread, they get it fresh daily from brooklyn and serve it hot out of the oven, so we enjoyed some wine and bread. Bonus points to Vittorios for having the fresh bread!
Our app came out and I still wasn't sure what I wanted for dinner so we just picked and talked for a bit. The cold calamari salad was delicious. Calamari perfectly tender, and the vinegar sauce was perfect. We both were ready to order round two, but decided to wait on a dinner instead. I went with a pear salad but added jumbo grilled shrimp to it. My boyfriend ordered sea scallops. What was a bit ridiculous was when ordering my salad, it is on the appetizer side and for $12, not expensive out all, but I wanted to make sure it was large enough for an entree. She said to add the shrimp would make it so, so I trusted her. She told me, though, the charge per shrimp ordered and I thought that was beyond crazy!! At first she said she believed it was $2 per shrimp, but wanted to check, and came back to tell me it was actually $2.50. I have never, ever seen a restaurant do this. They should really feature more salads with shrimps at a fixed price and quantity.
The food came out and that was when we both were completely disappointed. My salad was a mile high pile of lettuce with a minimal of other ingredients. And the shrimp, definitely not worth $2.50. My boyfriend's scallops were tiny for the price and he said the rest of the meal was sub par. After we ate we both decided we were not going to even bother with dessert or coffee or anything. We just wanted to get out of that restaurant.
So after time two, I have made my final decision. As I knew from time one, the restaurant is over priced. But after time one I was very impressed by the food. Now after the second time, no the food was not horrible but the reputation that make for themselves, charging for individual shrimp, has turned me off completely. I do not plan on returning to this restaurant.
Friday, October 19, 2012
Thursday, October 18, 2012
Sante Fe Tequila, Hicksville, NY
I enjoy going out to Mexican restaurants, but I am really picky with where I go since most Mexican food I don't eat. So when this coupon came about on Groupon (25$ for 50$ worth of food) I decided why not look into it. Reviews online noted they made the best frozen margaritas with a large variety so I decided to check out the menu and decide if it was worth trying. The prices were low and variation of the menu was great so I purchased the Groupon and made reservations for that Friday, as reservations were recommended because it is a small restaurant.
After work, I went to the restaurant straight from the train station. The restaurant had a very small front and small parking lot shared with multiple stores. But there was ample parking on the street behind the restaurant, so we really did not have to walk. We entered in the back and saw how small the place really was. It was very narrow and not too long, maybe a total of 9-10 tables. The colorful bar was in the back and the whole restaurant did have a Mexican theme to it. It was not crowded at all, which did make me weary since I heard it is always packed on a Friday night!
When seated it took a while, like really long, to give our drink orders but I did not mind since I was unwinding from work still. Once our drink orders were placed, I ordered a frozen raspberry guavarita ($11) and my boyfriend a coronarita ($12), we took a little bit of time to look at the menu since it is an extensive menu. We decided to order the baked mexican egg rolls as an app and I wanted to wait to order the entree but the server told us they prefer to take the order at once. This was a bit of a turn off because when I go out to eat, I prefer the food to be spaced out and to really enjoy myself. I always feel that ordering apps and entrees together will be served one after another. But the waitress was more than receptive and asked how long between each course would we like to wait, which was accommodating and nice. I told her fifteen minutes and went on ordering entrees, for me the Fajiti Veggies lettuce wrap ($10) and my boyfriend ordered the Costillas de Cerdo (slow roasted baby back ribs) ($16).
First our drinks, the frozen margaritas were really large and delicious, well worth the wait that it took to order and be brought. Our app came out pretty soon with the drinks. The portion was huge, and only for $9. What the were were baked egg rolls filled with smoked mesquite chicken, black beans, roasted corn, chiles poblanos, onion, and Oaxaca cheese with a side of creamy avocado dip. It probably was three egg rolls cut into slices. This was the BEST appetizer I have ever ordered from a Mexican restaurant. They did not even need the dipping sauce at all. The flavor was strong, smoky and delicious. Both me and my boyfriend said we could've just ordered that with another appetizer and been set. We ended up not finished all the pieces, to make sure we had room for our food.
Next we decided to order sangria, ordering a craft of it for $20 since a craft is always more than enough. Now I know I wanted spacing between meals, but boy was it a mistake to ask! It took about half an hour for our entrees to come out after we finished our appetizers! I was fine with that but it was too funny, so I would never recommend asking this restaurant to go slow.
Out came our Sangria followed by our entrees. My entree was two lettuce cups filled with grilled mixed veggies, and additional sauteed onions, mushrooms, and peppers served with pico de gallo, crema, guac, black beans, and shredded cheese. I really enjoyed all the grilled veggies but I was not too much of a fan of the lettuce cups, but that is also my own preference since it was prepped the way it should have been. The portion was huge so I only ate one.
My boyfriends entree was hickory smoked, slow roasted baby back ribs with caribbean seasoning and mango chipotle bbq glaze. It was served with fries, fire grilled corn on the cob with chili-lime butter and mango jicama slaw. There was a lot of ribs and fries for the small price we paid! He said the ribs were tenders and the seasoning was right on. The corn was smoky and the butter was really well seasoned. I ate the slaw since he hates mangoes, and the slaw was amazing as well. He too was not able to finish all his food.
We did not go with dessert since we were both really full, and we left a bit of sangria left since the craft was much bigger than expected, but we both left happy and will definitely return to this small, mexican gem.
I highly recommend all to try Sante Fe Tequila!
After work, I went to the restaurant straight from the train station. The restaurant had a very small front and small parking lot shared with multiple stores. But there was ample parking on the street behind the restaurant, so we really did not have to walk. We entered in the back and saw how small the place really was. It was very narrow and not too long, maybe a total of 9-10 tables. The colorful bar was in the back and the whole restaurant did have a Mexican theme to it. It was not crowded at all, which did make me weary since I heard it is always packed on a Friday night!
When seated it took a while, like really long, to give our drink orders but I did not mind since I was unwinding from work still. Once our drink orders were placed, I ordered a frozen raspberry guavarita ($11) and my boyfriend a coronarita ($12), we took a little bit of time to look at the menu since it is an extensive menu. We decided to order the baked mexican egg rolls as an app and I wanted to wait to order the entree but the server told us they prefer to take the order at once. This was a bit of a turn off because when I go out to eat, I prefer the food to be spaced out and to really enjoy myself. I always feel that ordering apps and entrees together will be served one after another. But the waitress was more than receptive and asked how long between each course would we like to wait, which was accommodating and nice. I told her fifteen minutes and went on ordering entrees, for me the Fajiti Veggies lettuce wrap ($10) and my boyfriend ordered the Costillas de Cerdo (slow roasted baby back ribs) ($16).
First our drinks, the frozen margaritas were really large and delicious, well worth the wait that it took to order and be brought. Our app came out pretty soon with the drinks. The portion was huge, and only for $9. What the were were baked egg rolls filled with smoked mesquite chicken, black beans, roasted corn, chiles poblanos, onion, and Oaxaca cheese with a side of creamy avocado dip. It probably was three egg rolls cut into slices. This was the BEST appetizer I have ever ordered from a Mexican restaurant. They did not even need the dipping sauce at all. The flavor was strong, smoky and delicious. Both me and my boyfriend said we could've just ordered that with another appetizer and been set. We ended up not finished all the pieces, to make sure we had room for our food.
Next we decided to order sangria, ordering a craft of it for $20 since a craft is always more than enough. Now I know I wanted spacing between meals, but boy was it a mistake to ask! It took about half an hour for our entrees to come out after we finished our appetizers! I was fine with that but it was too funny, so I would never recommend asking this restaurant to go slow.
Out came our Sangria followed by our entrees. My entree was two lettuce cups filled with grilled mixed veggies, and additional sauteed onions, mushrooms, and peppers served with pico de gallo, crema, guac, black beans, and shredded cheese. I really enjoyed all the grilled veggies but I was not too much of a fan of the lettuce cups, but that is also my own preference since it was prepped the way it should have been. The portion was huge so I only ate one.
My boyfriends entree was hickory smoked, slow roasted baby back ribs with caribbean seasoning and mango chipotle bbq glaze. It was served with fries, fire grilled corn on the cob with chili-lime butter and mango jicama slaw. There was a lot of ribs and fries for the small price we paid! He said the ribs were tenders and the seasoning was right on. The corn was smoky and the butter was really well seasoned. I ate the slaw since he hates mangoes, and the slaw was amazing as well. He too was not able to finish all his food.
We did not go with dessert since we were both really full, and we left a bit of sangria left since the craft was much bigger than expected, but we both left happy and will definitely return to this small, mexican gem.
I highly recommend all to try Sante Fe Tequila!
Saturday, September 15, 2012
Aztec Emperor, Wantagh, NY
I have been wanting to try this Mexican restaurant after hearing only positive things, and I am glad I finally had the chance. I went out to lunch on a sunday with a group of people and was nothing but satisfied with my experience.
We started off by ordering a pitcher of sangria for the table. The sangria was not too sweet and not too fruity, just perfect. We could have easily ordered another! The table wanted to order apps so we went with guacamole and jalapeno poppers. I am not the biggest fan of fried food so I did not eat the poppers but I did try some guac, one of my favorite mexican accompaniments. The guacamole was chunky with enough garlic, but not too over powerful. I would not necessarily recommend someone to order it as an appetizer, there are mexican places that are a much better choice where the guacamole is actually made table side, but the guac was still tasty.
Being lunch, I was not too hungry so I wanted to order a salad. There were two options I was looking at, the house salad and the aztec salad. I was told the house salad had more fixins while the azteca was primarily greens. I went with the house salad; being that it was also only 6.25 I did not expect much. The salad that came out was over sized in a tortilla shell with lots of avocado slices, cheese, tomato, and onions. They also give oil and vinegar, which works perfectly for me. The avocado was fresh and overall the salad was tasty, especially for the price. I have had much better Mexican salads before, but those were all double the price of this one. This was perfect for a lunch.
My boyfriend ordered something that had tortillas wrapped with chorizo in it and he said it was very very good and the sauce on top was delicious. I tried some of his beans and they came out very good, with a bit of mexican cheese melted on top. Others at the table had quesadillas, enchiladas etc and no one had anything negative to say.
Aztec Emperor was very delicious and inexpensive for lunch and I will definitely be back to try it for dinner so I can get a better idea of the inside acoustics of the restaurant as well as the dinner portions and of course, the margaritas!
We started off by ordering a pitcher of sangria for the table. The sangria was not too sweet and not too fruity, just perfect. We could have easily ordered another! The table wanted to order apps so we went with guacamole and jalapeno poppers. I am not the biggest fan of fried food so I did not eat the poppers but I did try some guac, one of my favorite mexican accompaniments. The guacamole was chunky with enough garlic, but not too over powerful. I would not necessarily recommend someone to order it as an appetizer, there are mexican places that are a much better choice where the guacamole is actually made table side, but the guac was still tasty.
Being lunch, I was not too hungry so I wanted to order a salad. There were two options I was looking at, the house salad and the aztec salad. I was told the house salad had more fixins while the azteca was primarily greens. I went with the house salad; being that it was also only 6.25 I did not expect much. The salad that came out was over sized in a tortilla shell with lots of avocado slices, cheese, tomato, and onions. They also give oil and vinegar, which works perfectly for me. The avocado was fresh and overall the salad was tasty, especially for the price. I have had much better Mexican salads before, but those were all double the price of this one. This was perfect for a lunch.
My boyfriend ordered something that had tortillas wrapped with chorizo in it and he said it was very very good and the sauce on top was delicious. I tried some of his beans and they came out very good, with a bit of mexican cheese melted on top. Others at the table had quesadillas, enchiladas etc and no one had anything negative to say.
Aztec Emperor was very delicious and inexpensive for lunch and I will definitely be back to try it for dinner so I can get a better idea of the inside acoustics of the restaurant as well as the dinner portions and of course, the margaritas!
Thursday, September 13, 2012
Bond St, New York, NY
It has been awhile since rating a restaurant, since I have been busy with work, but I am going to review a few I have visited in the last month and a half.
First stop Bond St. This Japanese restaurant is located on Bond St in NYC. Hint, know the red dot logo because otherwise you will never find the restaurant!
Entering into Bond St you are greeted by a fairly dark lounge. It is a cool place to hang out and have a drink if waiting for your table, but since it was a week day and 7:30 we had no problem getting in. With our table being ready immediately, we were escorted down the hall and told to take the elevator up to the second floor. It was pretty cool and unique to enter into your dining experience via elevator.
Right off the elevator is the next host who promptly seats you. The inside of Bond St is definitely just eh.. I am not in love with the layout and you really don't feel like your expectations are met after taking an elevator to the private dining floor. The tables were way too close together and we tried to move them but told we weren't allowed to due to reservations.
We decided to order a nice bottle of sake while looking through the menu. The waitress was nice that she let us try a sake before choosing it (especially since the Sakes are so expensive) but she was not the most helpful nor informed on the sake choices.
We wanted to relax take the time with the menus but where given a rushy impression. I am the type of person who orders a couple of apps before really looking at the menu but the waitress said they prefer taking the whole order at once (ugh annoying). She told us that she will space out the order instead for us to accommodate (which in the end the order was spaced out nicely so this I did appreciate).
For an appetizer we shared the Toro Tartar. It was very tasty but the portion size was eh. We also ordered the grilled octopus. That was very good and worth the amount it cost. For an entree we shared two special rolls the jalapeno scallop roll and hot ell dice roll. The hot eel dice roll was out of this world but the other roll we could have done without.
We weren't getting the best vibe from the inside of the restaurant, maybe we just went too early, and the sushi was not really up to the expectation we expected. In the end we will not be returning, and advice, save the special sushi dinner for Nisen in Woodbury, much much more worth it.
First stop Bond St. This Japanese restaurant is located on Bond St in NYC. Hint, know the red dot logo because otherwise you will never find the restaurant!
Entering into Bond St you are greeted by a fairly dark lounge. It is a cool place to hang out and have a drink if waiting for your table, but since it was a week day and 7:30 we had no problem getting in. With our table being ready immediately, we were escorted down the hall and told to take the elevator up to the second floor. It was pretty cool and unique to enter into your dining experience via elevator.
Right off the elevator is the next host who promptly seats you. The inside of Bond St is definitely just eh.. I am not in love with the layout and you really don't feel like your expectations are met after taking an elevator to the private dining floor. The tables were way too close together and we tried to move them but told we weren't allowed to due to reservations.
We decided to order a nice bottle of sake while looking through the menu. The waitress was nice that she let us try a sake before choosing it (especially since the Sakes are so expensive) but she was not the most helpful nor informed on the sake choices.
We wanted to relax take the time with the menus but where given a rushy impression. I am the type of person who orders a couple of apps before really looking at the menu but the waitress said they prefer taking the whole order at once (ugh annoying). She told us that she will space out the order instead for us to accommodate (which in the end the order was spaced out nicely so this I did appreciate).
For an appetizer we shared the Toro Tartar. It was very tasty but the portion size was eh. We also ordered the grilled octopus. That was very good and worth the amount it cost. For an entree we shared two special rolls the jalapeno scallop roll and hot ell dice roll. The hot eel dice roll was out of this world but the other roll we could have done without.
We weren't getting the best vibe from the inside of the restaurant, maybe we just went too early, and the sushi was not really up to the expectation we expected. In the end we will not be returning, and advice, save the special sushi dinner for Nisen in Woodbury, much much more worth it.
Saturday, July 21, 2012
Lobster Roll (lunch), Riverhead, NY
After living on LI and going out to Montauk so many times, I have been very behind by not visiting Lunch (or Lobster Roll as its known). I have passed the location out eat many times but usually not at lunch time. I always forgot that there is another location in Riverhead that is much closer to get to.
I decided that I wanted to take a trip to the outlets and to experience having lunch at Lobster Roll. Going out to Riverhead, the perfect itinerary to make is stopping at the outlets, than off to Briermere for a pie and ending you day at Lobster Roll for a bite to eat. When we first got to the restaurant, I really liked how it was in a converted house. We requested to sit outside and were promptly seated on the wood deck. Lobster Roll is a casual hangout with a very beachy, laid back atmosphere.
Our waitress came to the table rather quickly and told us about the specials, including a drink called the Pink Fizzy, a pink lemonade and zinfandel drink topped with seltzer. Of course I was tempted to order it, which I did, and my boyfriend ordered a lobster ale. The service was a bit slow, granted it was not too packed in the restaurant, so that is something they can definitely work on. After our drinks came, I decided to order a crabcake which was actually grilled not fried, very rare to find, and my boyfriend ordered the signature hot lobster roll. The difference between the hot lobster roll and the cold one is that the cold one has mayo mixed in it while the hot is just fresh, steamed lobster.
Our food came promptly, much faster than the drinks. My entree was actually a crabcake sandwich with one medium size crabcake on it, a bit over priced for what you got. It also came on a white bun, something I am not too keen on, with a pickle, coleslaw and kettle chips. I focused on eating the crabcake plain and it was not too bad. I wouldn't really recommend ordering it to most though. Even though it was grilled, a nice alternative, it was missing a lot of crab flavor. I was not too impressed.
My boyfriend's lobster roll was a nice size but very very overpriced, which we didn't find out the price until the bill came ($25!). He got a pickle and coleslaw and he said everything was good, very fresh. But honestly for the price paid, not worth going to Lobster Roll for a lobster roll.
Overall, the atmosphere was nice, I enjoyed eating at the restaurant, but would I return again? Probably not. The food was greatly overpriced and service was below par. Maybe the original one in Amagansett is better? I am not too excited to really try.
I decided that I wanted to take a trip to the outlets and to experience having lunch at Lobster Roll. Going out to Riverhead, the perfect itinerary to make is stopping at the outlets, than off to Briermere for a pie and ending you day at Lobster Roll for a bite to eat. When we first got to the restaurant, I really liked how it was in a converted house. We requested to sit outside and were promptly seated on the wood deck. Lobster Roll is a casual hangout with a very beachy, laid back atmosphere.
Our waitress came to the table rather quickly and told us about the specials, including a drink called the Pink Fizzy, a pink lemonade and zinfandel drink topped with seltzer. Of course I was tempted to order it, which I did, and my boyfriend ordered a lobster ale. The service was a bit slow, granted it was not too packed in the restaurant, so that is something they can definitely work on. After our drinks came, I decided to order a crabcake which was actually grilled not fried, very rare to find, and my boyfriend ordered the signature hot lobster roll. The difference between the hot lobster roll and the cold one is that the cold one has mayo mixed in it while the hot is just fresh, steamed lobster.
Our food came promptly, much faster than the drinks. My entree was actually a crabcake sandwich with one medium size crabcake on it, a bit over priced for what you got. It also came on a white bun, something I am not too keen on, with a pickle, coleslaw and kettle chips. I focused on eating the crabcake plain and it was not too bad. I wouldn't really recommend ordering it to most though. Even though it was grilled, a nice alternative, it was missing a lot of crab flavor. I was not too impressed.
My boyfriend's lobster roll was a nice size but very very overpriced, which we didn't find out the price until the bill came ($25!). He got a pickle and coleslaw and he said everything was good, very fresh. But honestly for the price paid, not worth going to Lobster Roll for a lobster roll.
Overall, the atmosphere was nice, I enjoyed eating at the restaurant, but would I return again? Probably not. The food was greatly overpriced and service was below par. Maybe the original one in Amagansett is better? I am not too excited to really try.
Saturday, July 7, 2012
Nisen, Woodbury
So after work, at my old job, one night me and my friend's Dan and Doug decided to go out to eat at Nisen Sushi as a bday/grad/end of work celebration for me, it was about 8:30pm. I went to the one in Commack, mistakingly, and loved the food but did not like the atmosphere (too much like a shopping mall feel) and was excited to try the one in Woodbury since I have heard so many good things.
Walking in, the environment is completely different. The tables are still plenty, with not too much room in between them, but the lighting/atmosphere/people are different. It is much darker, a much more trendy feel, with most people being in the 20s and up. Everyone is dressed city casual and a lot of the inside decor is trendy. I already liked the feel of the Woodbury one more than Commack.
As we sat down we waited quite a bit of time for our drinks order. It was a Thursday and seemed that the place was most crowded Thursday-the weekend. When our drink orders were finally taken, after maybe 20 minutes, I decided to go with the Sake sampler (something I had in Commack). We weren't sure of what to eat so asked for the waiter to come back but he took a bit of time to even bring out the drinks. One thing I would highly recommend to anyone would be to try the sampler. The sake in it is much more friendly to those who drink to much as it is sweeter, but with some increased intensity.
For food we decided to just order apps for the table, and ordered seaweed salad, sesame crusted calamari with sweet chili sauce, toro tartar and chilled kumomoto oysters. Everything was amazing. The seaweed salad had a freshness to it that you look for when ordering it. The calamari was hardly fried and went well with the dipping sauce. The toro tartar was fresh, not fishy, and sliced perfect. The oysters were delicious served with a kick with some jalapeno. After all this food we still definitely needed to order sushi, even though we already ordered more than enough food.
We decided to order a sushi platter, something we were told was recommended for 2-3 people max. Dan, as he does best, ordered more rolls just in case it was not enough, the mango hawaii roll and a classic roll as well i just don't recall which. Our food came out a little quicker than prior service (probably because it was 930 already). To start, the sushi place was definitely enough for more like 3-4 people not 2-3. But the assortment was great and everything so fresh that we didn't care how much we ordered. The mango specialty roll was amazing, I ate almost the whole thing! And the other classic roll was fresh and big. We also ordered 2 more sake samplers for the table, making a perfect end to a great night.
Overall, the food at Nisen is a+++. I would never be nervous to order something different there and you are always provided with quality, but it does match the price don't get me wrong. The service was not the greatest, granted the place was really busy and hard to navigate, but we did go at 830 on Thursday so i am a little surprised they were slow. But I prefer slow restaurant eating and with the people I was with, the service was great. The atmosphere for Woodbury is much better than Commack. In the end I would recommend going to Nisen in Woodbury with friends, boyfriend/girlfriends, even parents and I would say that you would not be making a bad choice.
Walking in, the environment is completely different. The tables are still plenty, with not too much room in between them, but the lighting/atmosphere/people are different. It is much darker, a much more trendy feel, with most people being in the 20s and up. Everyone is dressed city casual and a lot of the inside decor is trendy. I already liked the feel of the Woodbury one more than Commack.
As we sat down we waited quite a bit of time for our drinks order. It was a Thursday and seemed that the place was most crowded Thursday-the weekend. When our drink orders were finally taken, after maybe 20 minutes, I decided to go with the Sake sampler (something I had in Commack). We weren't sure of what to eat so asked for the waiter to come back but he took a bit of time to even bring out the drinks. One thing I would highly recommend to anyone would be to try the sampler. The sake in it is much more friendly to those who drink to much as it is sweeter, but with some increased intensity.
For food we decided to just order apps for the table, and ordered seaweed salad, sesame crusted calamari with sweet chili sauce, toro tartar and chilled kumomoto oysters. Everything was amazing. The seaweed salad had a freshness to it that you look for when ordering it. The calamari was hardly fried and went well with the dipping sauce. The toro tartar was fresh, not fishy, and sliced perfect. The oysters were delicious served with a kick with some jalapeno. After all this food we still definitely needed to order sushi, even though we already ordered more than enough food.
We decided to order a sushi platter, something we were told was recommended for 2-3 people max. Dan, as he does best, ordered more rolls just in case it was not enough, the mango hawaii roll and a classic roll as well i just don't recall which. Our food came out a little quicker than prior service (probably because it was 930 already). To start, the sushi place was definitely enough for more like 3-4 people not 2-3. But the assortment was great and everything so fresh that we didn't care how much we ordered. The mango specialty roll was amazing, I ate almost the whole thing! And the other classic roll was fresh and big. We also ordered 2 more sake samplers for the table, making a perfect end to a great night.
Overall, the food at Nisen is a+++. I would never be nervous to order something different there and you are always provided with quality, but it does match the price don't get me wrong. The service was not the greatest, granted the place was really busy and hard to navigate, but we did go at 830 on Thursday so i am a little surprised they were slow. But I prefer slow restaurant eating and with the people I was with, the service was great. The atmosphere for Woodbury is much better than Commack. In the end I would recommend going to Nisen in Woodbury with friends, boyfriend/girlfriends, even parents and I would say that you would not be making a bad choice.
Wednesday, July 4, 2012
Mercato, Massapequa, NY
I know that I have not been up to date posting restaurants but I have written all restaurants I ate at the last two months and am planning on posting them now and keeping up to date with it. First stop on the list, Mercato.
I went to Mercato for my friend's bday, the biggest reason is everyone loves their frozen drinks! Getting there, we were seated right away and given a minute to look at menus. I have been here before many times, one of my favorites, but I will comment on the atmosphere anyway. The inside is very trendy casual, with nice decor and lighting and mainly being a place you can go with a group of your friends to enjoy food and just talk. They have a small bar inside, which I have never been to but heard that it gets busy especially when there are drink specials. As always, the waitress took our drinks order very quickly upon sitting down.
I had to order my Italian Love, amaretto peach puree frangelico creation. Everyone was ordering the frozen margaritas/daquiris... they are so so good here and very big sized. We than looked at the menu and this menu is the easiest to highlight. A) Always order a flatbread as the first thing you ever try there. The flatbreads are the best I have ever tasted and the toppings get creative (chicken ranch, Hawaiian..etc) Past the flatbreads B) Panini is a second great option. Everything is great quality with really great choices of fillers. C) If you want a combo of a+b, try a flatzone. Remembers me of a flatbread + panini, the bread not too thick but the fillers are just like as if you were to order a sandwich. D) IF your like me and have had all of that already, go with a salad. They are very large portions and I promise you you will not be able to finish it. Last time I dined there my friend got pasta, papparedelle and mushrooms (something rare since most restaurants do not offer that cut of pasta). She let me try a forkful and I must say, it stood up to the quality of any good italian restaurant. I did not expect that because I would never recommend Mercato for food such as pasta or meat entrees, I would definitely suggest it as a sandwich/pizza type of restaurant but with a bit more class. But for choice E) I would say if you come with an appetite, don't exclude trying one of their entrees!
I decided to order the grilled calamari salad while most others at my party ordered flatbreads, one person ordering penne alla vodka. Our food took a bit to actually come out, which I did not mind because I appreciate a wait but it did get close to the point of being ridiculous. But either way I was with a group of friends I haven't chatted with in awhile so the wait made no difference. Once our food come out, piping hot, everyone was okay with the wait. First comment, wow my salad was big. There was a pile of grilled calamari greater than if you ordered a fried calamari appetizer at an Italian restaurant. The dressing it came with was a honey ginger dressing and alone, that dressing made it the right decision to try the salad. Everyone else loved their flatbreads and the person who ordered the penne even said it was very very good. It is a place like this where you can't go wrong with what you order you will always come out happy.
We did not order dessert this time because it was a bday and we were picking up ice cream cake but one dessert comment, since I have ordered it, is definitely if you have room try it. Me and my friends ordered the peanut butter chocolate fondue last time and I am a bit picky and did not like anything the fondue came with, so I waitress made it her goal to present us with a mix of dippers to satisfy me. She even gave us a scoop of ice cream! It was very good.
My comments about Mercato... a must try. If you want respectful servers (and you don't mind a little slower time to get your food), if you want great drinks (especially frozen ones and a must try Italian Love), if you want great food (especially a menu where no matter what you order you can't go wrong with), and you want a casual fun ambience, just go to Mercato. Whether it's girls night, or dinner with you brothers or sisters, this is the place to try to Massapequa. Enjoy!
I went to Mercato for my friend's bday, the biggest reason is everyone loves their frozen drinks! Getting there, we were seated right away and given a minute to look at menus. I have been here before many times, one of my favorites, but I will comment on the atmosphere anyway. The inside is very trendy casual, with nice decor and lighting and mainly being a place you can go with a group of your friends to enjoy food and just talk. They have a small bar inside, which I have never been to but heard that it gets busy especially when there are drink specials. As always, the waitress took our drinks order very quickly upon sitting down.
I had to order my Italian Love, amaretto peach puree frangelico creation. Everyone was ordering the frozen margaritas/daquiris... they are so so good here and very big sized. We than looked at the menu and this menu is the easiest to highlight. A) Always order a flatbread as the first thing you ever try there. The flatbreads are the best I have ever tasted and the toppings get creative (chicken ranch, Hawaiian..etc) Past the flatbreads B) Panini is a second great option. Everything is great quality with really great choices of fillers. C) If you want a combo of a+b, try a flatzone. Remembers me of a flatbread + panini, the bread not too thick but the fillers are just like as if you were to order a sandwich. D) IF your like me and have had all of that already, go with a salad. They are very large portions and I promise you you will not be able to finish it. Last time I dined there my friend got pasta, papparedelle and mushrooms (something rare since most restaurants do not offer that cut of pasta). She let me try a forkful and I must say, it stood up to the quality of any good italian restaurant. I did not expect that because I would never recommend Mercato for food such as pasta or meat entrees, I would definitely suggest it as a sandwich/pizza type of restaurant but with a bit more class. But for choice E) I would say if you come with an appetite, don't exclude trying one of their entrees!
I decided to order the grilled calamari salad while most others at my party ordered flatbreads, one person ordering penne alla vodka. Our food took a bit to actually come out, which I did not mind because I appreciate a wait but it did get close to the point of being ridiculous. But either way I was with a group of friends I haven't chatted with in awhile so the wait made no difference. Once our food come out, piping hot, everyone was okay with the wait. First comment, wow my salad was big. There was a pile of grilled calamari greater than if you ordered a fried calamari appetizer at an Italian restaurant. The dressing it came with was a honey ginger dressing and alone, that dressing made it the right decision to try the salad. Everyone else loved their flatbreads and the person who ordered the penne even said it was very very good. It is a place like this where you can't go wrong with what you order you will always come out happy.
We did not order dessert this time because it was a bday and we were picking up ice cream cake but one dessert comment, since I have ordered it, is definitely if you have room try it. Me and my friends ordered the peanut butter chocolate fondue last time and I am a bit picky and did not like anything the fondue came with, so I waitress made it her goal to present us with a mix of dippers to satisfy me. She even gave us a scoop of ice cream! It was very good.
My comments about Mercato... a must try. If you want respectful servers (and you don't mind a little slower time to get your food), if you want great drinks (especially frozen ones and a must try Italian Love), if you want great food (especially a menu where no matter what you order you can't go wrong with), and you want a casual fun ambience, just go to Mercato. Whether it's girls night, or dinner with you brothers or sisters, this is the place to try to Massapequa. Enjoy!
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