at the sign of The Pink Pig

Butcher Bay: Better Than They Say

[Pigging by Wilfrid: March 30, 2009]

Butcher Bay, which opened in the former Seymour Burton space on East 5th Street after prolonged reconstruction, has had less than a fair deal from some critics.  It's as if it has failed to be what they wanted it to be.

Taken on its own terms, it's what is known as a "useful addition to the neighborhood."

Uncle Jack's Facsimile Steakhouse

[Pigging by Wilfrid: March 30, 2009]

Why did I let myself become intrigued by this place?  I happened to stroll by one day recently.

When I got home, I looked up the website.  Same as the sign on the front of the place: "New York's Best Steakhouse."  Immediate reaction?  No it's not, of course.

Flying To New Orleans: Ten Years Ago

[Pink Pig Time Machine by Wilfrid: March 30, 2009]

It was vacation time ten years ago (and soon will be this year too).  Flying back down to New Orleans, heading out into the Bayou, then a stopover in Texas on the way home.  I think we'll take this slowly and savor it.

Atria: A Voyage Into Uncertainty

[Pigging by Wilfrid: March 23, 2009]

I was a staunch supporter of Grayz, the midtown small-plates concept which began as an outpost of the Gray Kunz empire, but finished remote from the chef after which it was named.

Grayz never quite shook off the consumer confusion resulting from the fact that it was really a restaurant serving very good dinners rather than a cocktail bar with snacks.  Nor, apparently, was the events program for which the downstairs area was reserved a resounding success.

Return To Redhead

[Pigging by Wilfrid: March 23, 2009]

Redhead, the little restaurant that could, has long been a favorite of New York-based Mouthfullers.

 

Its progress was eagerly tracked from its early days as a bar serving a prix fixe dinner just once a week to its opening as a full-scale, Monday to Saturday restaurant.

Robert Mangold At PaceWildenstein

[New York Peasant by Wilfrid: March 23, 2009]

It has been a quiet few weeks for openings, and little of interest going on - especially for those of us left cold by Futurism and/or Martin Kippenberger.  So I gambled on a show by an arist whose work I hadn't previously known.

The Decadence Part Two: New York

[The Cunning Tower by Wilfrid: March 23, 2009]

The doomed poets of the 1890s, the Yellow Book, parties at the Café Royale, Oscar Wilde at the Cadogan Hotel, Salome, Dorian Gray, Zuleika Dobson.

Pausing In Manhattan: Ten Years Ago

[Pink Pig Time Machine by Wilfrid: March 23, 2009]

After the excitement of Norman's and sunburn and tacos in Florida, I returned to Manhattan ten years ago this week to prepare quietly for the next trip: New Orleans.

Vibrant, Yes?: Ramsay At The London

[Pigging by Wilfrid: March 16, 2009]

Difficult, but necessary, to banish mental images of Big Gordon, all bogbrush hair and shoulders, bouncing on the balls of his feet as he introduces his menu.  "Simple, yes?  Fresh, vibrant, yes?"

Because, of course, he's somewhere a long way from the London Hotel in midtown Manhattan.  And the place is refreshingly free of Gordon pin-ups and paraphernalia, and the staff don't swear.  Audibly, anyway.

Quick Bites: A Party At Allegretti

[Pigging by Wilfrid: March 16, 2009]

As I mentioned last December, among the many virtues of Allegretti is the manner in which the menu has been evolving with the seasons.  I could eat here a couple of times a month without getting bored.

A recent, lively dinner party featuring a swathe of Mouthfuls stalwarts offered the opportunity to try several dishes which were new to me.