Frank - New York

So one of New York's best restaurants is a well-kept secret hidden between 5-6 St, 2nd avenue. Curious? I sure was and so me and a few others headed there the night after Brasserie on the recommendation of a native New Yorker who used to live down in Soho.

The neighbourhood isn't the best, admittedly, but the food was delicious. Frank is a small restaurant which, from the outside, is pretty forgettable. It's like a little osteria plonked in a huge, vibrant city and yet oddly enough, it works. Opened over a decade ago, it's still going strong and judging by the crowd there on a Thursday night, it's a people pleaser whatever the night.

So the food... What's it all about? Good, honest Italian nosh is the only answer I can give you. It's not poncy, it's not twiddled about with. It's fresh pasta, melt in your mouth pasta in fact, and the sauces are rich and infused with so much flavour it makes your taste buds tingle. We sat on a table with a couple of other diners and yet didn't feel like we were being fobbed off, the big scrubbed wooden table, low lighting and casually dressed staff only added to the experience.

First off was some bruschetta which was delicious although there was a tomato overload on my plate. Next (and this was the niggle, I'd barely eaten two bites of my starter before the mains came) was 'Uncle Tony's' gnocchi with 'tomatoes, basil and parmigiano'. Honestly the best gnocchi I've ever ever had, probably because it was fresh, spongy and full of goodness. I finished it all even though we had to stay there for ages to allow me to do so. Others tried the penne with mushrooms, a chicken dish (daily special) and the gnocchi like me. All of us were in consensus: Great Food.

The damage was also minimal: Less than $40 inc. tip and wine. Brilliant value and we were all extremely happy customers when we finally left and found a cab back uptown. Frank is somewhere I'd definitely take people to - Happily take people to in fact!

Vitals

Frank
88 2nd Avenue, New York City
Tel: + 00 1 212 420 0106
Website: http://www.frankrestaurant.com/

Brasserie - 53rd St, New York

A couple of weeks ago, I had the awesome opportunity of going State-side and, naturally, I answered with a 'hell yes, when and what do I need to pack?'. Soon enough we were headed across the pond and landed in a sunny New York just shy of midday.

After a bit of a disorientating time (still being up at 11pm EST when your body knows it's 4am is murder!) I'd soon settled in and with a cup of Earl Grey and a bagel, I was a New Yorker by 8am the next day and looking forward to dinner by that night. Brasserie was the destination we had in mind and after a short cab ride, we were soon at the rather understated entrance.

It's like a big white cave, that's the only way to describe it. You're underneath a building and it's a huge space yet it still feels cosy and achingly chic with white chairs, very suave waiters and a long white bar filled with glamorous folks sipping at their Cosmopolitans. Way to feel like a hick! The restaurant has been there since 1959 and I'd love to see past decors to see how it's changed over the last fifty years.

Luckily I soon got over it and settled down with my fellow diners to peruse the French-fusion menu which offered a hell of a lot of choice ... Fantastic! I opted for the Foie Gras au Torchon followed by a 10oz Filet Mignon with chips (sorry, fries!) and a red wine jus. The Foie Gras was pretty vile; whatever they had done to it had diluted the taste completely and made it taste like putty. I didn't enjoy it at all and the waiters, noticing this, took it away and brought me a gazpacho soup instead which was delicious if a little strange as gazpacho isn't for everybody!

My steak was one of the best I've ever eaten. The knife slid through it like butter, the fries were super crispy and the sauce was smooth, rich and a perfect accompaniment. Especially with the garlic undertaste which complemented the steak and how it had been cooked (medium-rare). Everybody else at the table seemed to have a great main course too; there was tuna, branzino, chicken paillard and mountains of chips and a lot of 'mmm' and 'delicious!' from our table.

The experience was great and for those who had dessert, it didn't end at the main course. The sorbets were fantastic, deemed 'perfect' by somebody if I recall correctly. All in all, the meal was great, the experience was brilliant and the staff should be commended for their attentiveness. Neither wine nor water glass ever reached empty until we reached the end of our meal. They also didn't rush us so we had plenty of time to talk and catch-up, something I wasn't expecting in the Big Apple.

If I was going there again, I don't know if I'd go again but merely because I want to experience as much of New York as possible. I'd like to go to all of the hot spots and the known classics because when it comes to food, variety is the key. A favourite restaurant is all well and good but why not branch out and go elsewhere every once in a while?

Brasserie is a great place for a date or a group catch-up, however, and therefore if you head NY-way, stop by and have a great meal. I didn't pay so I don't know what the damage was but I'm guessing about $80/head including the tip.

Vitals

Brasserie
100 East 53rd St, New York 10022
Tel: +00 1 212 751 4840
Website: http://www.patinagroup.com/restaurant.php?restaurants_id=55

Bengal Tiger, St Paul's, London

A boozy shopping trip turned into dinner for three at the Bengal Tiger towards the end of March. I had Indian food on the brain and as soon as somebody suggested dinner, I was the first to put forward an Indian as an option! Thankfully it was 2 against 1 and we were soon walking (or weaving) our way to Bengal Tiger, an establishment not far from St Paul's.

The waiters were very solicitous and took no time in sitting us down at a nice table which wasn't too noisy and allowed us to talk without having to lean in to hear what the other was saying. Menus and poppadoms quickly followed and we all decided to have the set menu as it seemed a reasonable price and, even better, allowed plenty of choice. I always find with a set menu that I'll either like the starter or the main, never both, and therefore I was overjoyed to find that all three of us liked everything on the set.

Our platter of starters came first with Onion Bhajee, Paneer Tikka and Chicken Tikka. As we had a vegetarian amongst us, we gave her first dibs on the veggie offerings and stuck in to all of it. It was truly delicious and I particularly liked the delicate currying of the Bhajee. All too often it's just deep fried with too much curry and it tastes like fried curry powder. Yuck! However, these starters were great and my favourite was probably the Paneer Tikka, something I would never usually pick.


For main, two of us had a chicken tikka masala and the other had a vegetarian curry. I never have vegetarian dishes but hers was brilliant; I suppose I forget that in India, a vegetarian curry can quite often be more the norm than a meat curry. It was all truly delicious and although I found my chicken tikka a bit bland & the curry sauce more fruity than creamy, it was still tasty and I enjoyed it enough not to make a fuss. The bombay aloo was my favourite part and was incredible; the potato was really soft and the flavours were blended just enough to make it spicy but not 'hot'.

We didn't have pudding - far too full! - and the bill was reasonable; about £20 each if memory serves me correctly. This isn't a Brick Lane cheap eat but the food is far superior to Brick Lane (watch out for my next review!) and the service/clientele was also much better. I enjoyed it immensely and would go back if I wanted a curry near the office.

Vitals

Bengal Tiger
62 - 66 Carter Lane London, EC4V 5EA
Tel: 0207 248 6361
Website: http://www.bengaltiger.org.uk/

Nearest tube: St Paul's / Bank

Carthage - Covent Garden, London

So it feels like forever since I last updated! However I have still been out and about, eating away, I've just not had much time to spend uploading photos and writing reviews.

First on the list is a little Greek/North African place in Covent Garden called Carthage. After watching the Woman in Black, a group of us were absolutely starving and after walking along for a bit, spotted this little restaurant. As most places were busy with it being a Saturday night, we were overjoyed (well, our stomachs were!) to hear that they indeed had a table although we weren't expecting to be led into what was effectively a rather cramped cellar!

The waiters were of mixed quality; some didn't speak any English, which, whilst great if you were Greek, wasn't if you weren't. One waiter did speak English (hurrah) and after a struggle to get the menus and a drink, we had ordered some food and were waiting expectantly.

The girls who were with me had also been to Crete with me earlier in the year and so we got bitten by the Greek food bug whilst there. Moussaka, Kleftiko, Gyros, stuffed vine leaves... We were practically drooling in preparation for what might come! The hummus was middling at best and the odd tasting sausage chilli sauce was... Well, odd. However, we were starving by this point – it had taken a long time to arrive – and therefore were dipping our breads in the dips left, right and centre.

We were rather miffed to order more bread and then have it delivered to the next table. We had to actually ask them to take it off the bill; they'd put it on ours at the end despite our complaints! The main courses came quite quickly – whilst we were still eating the starters if I recall correctly – and they got one order wrong and so the plates were delivered at random times and we couldn't all truly eat together.

I had a very yummy dish which was basically diced pitta bread, tender grilled lamb and chicken with a tomato & garlic sauce on top. I'm not sure how they came up with it but it was utterly delicious and the portions were huge! I started to regret having that starter as soon as I tucked in...

My friends fared differently. Two girls had moussaka which was really quite tasteless and, as there was so much of it, really hard to stomach. Our other friend had calamari which apparently tasted delicious; she finished the lot and said that it was really fresh and had lots of flavour.

All in all, it isn't somewhere I'm dying to go back to. The food was okay but with other restaurants around Covent Garden, I can think of plenty of places to go to before I have to think of Carthage. I think if they have more multi-lingual staff, a better understanding of their own menu (are they Greek? Are they North African?) then they'll fare a lot better and have more repeat business.

Damage: ? About £20/person for a shared starter, main & an alcoholic drink.

Vitals

Carthage

9A King Street, Covent Garden, London, WC2E 8HN

Tel: 020 7240 5178

Nearest tube: Covent Garden