Tag Archives: Food

Much Ado About Fondue: Taureau

10 Jan

As soon as I heard about Taureau, the new-ish East Village (7th St btwn 1st and A) BYOB Fondue resto, I knew I was going to have to check it out.  Need me to back up?  Yes, I’m talking about a restaurant that is BYOB – with no plans of changing that status, and serves Fondue – with every intention of changing your life with its cheesy goodness.  Like what you hear? Good, let’s proceed…

Taureau’s an intimate dining experience whose seating arrangement has diners packed in at close proximity and whose cheeses pack in a major punch of flavor.  The small tables are all equipped with a heated top to keep your bowl of melted cheesy goodness at optimal temperature for dipping whatever you order from the menu – be it animal, vegetable, or mineral breadable.  Each order includes a very basic green salad, as well as an unlimited order of croutons.  Speaking of unlimited, EVERYTHING you order to dip in your vat of cheese is bottomless – as in, eat as much as you want and another order will miraculously appear on your table.

Delicious Dishes

The star of the evening was The Soprano fondue – Parmesan aged 18 months and blended expertly with White American.  The flavors of these 2 very different cheeses blended quite nicely and made for a very versatile dipping sauce.  For our veggies, we had cauliflower which was steamed to perfection, sweet potatoes (which were just OK – but could be great with a different variety of cheese) and my personal fave, the mushrooms – there were a ton of perfect bite-sized pieces and they complimented the fondue oh-so well.  As for meat, there is the option of having raw, marinated meats brought out that you cook in oil on the table, but due to my veggie status, we didn’t opt for any of those carnivorous options.  My guest researcher did have the Salami and Chorizo from the cured meats section of the menu – the Salami was apparently very good, or so I’m told.

While the cramped cozy seating would lend itself easily to multiple posts on “Overheard in NY”, the delicious situation happening in my mouth made it easy to tune out our next-door neighbors.  Couple that with servers that were helpful, plus the attentive hostess, and you’ve got a slam dunk of a resto in my book.  And hopefully, that dunk is straight into a bowl of delicious cheese at Taureau.

Know before you go: Taureau is cash only, now taking reservations for dinner (highly recommended) – call 212.228.2222. Bring your fave bottle of wine and be prepared to have your socks knocked off – our bill clocked in at under $60.  All I’ve got to say is next time, I’m leaving room for dessert…

Tags: , , , ,

Be a Foodie at Eataly

28 Dec

Benvenuti a Eataly

Whether you’re a food enthusiast or not, the culinary atmosphere at Eataly in Flatiron (5th Ave @23rd St) will have your foodie juices flowing.  The massive space that is home to several restaurants (umm Le Verdure, a veggie-only resto?!), a coffee shop (featuring Lavazza), a gelateria, and the market, which boasts a ton of specialty cuisine sections (hello pasta!!!), will knock your socks off.

Pasta for miles (or at least aisles)

The massive size of Eataly is a lot to take in at first, but pace yourself.  I suggest you start by taking the time to channel your inner cooking muse – there are recipes to take with you spread throughout the various sections (with tastings too) and there’s a place to buy cook books as well that are all signed by the chefs who penned the books.

Get ya produce on

From there, decide what you’re taking home with you; the produce section has some of the largest varieties of citrus fruits and mushrooms I’ve ever seen.  There are also sections for meats, fish, cheeses, breads, desserts, pastas, and even sauces get the spotlight with rows and rows of options.  To round out your meal, don’t forget the wine and beer (a roof top beer garden is due to open in Spring 2011).

While in practicality, Eataly would be a great place for your specialty grocery shopping (albeit a bit pricey), I have to say that its possibilities as a day out with the girls or even as a date are endless (you know how she’ll love to be wined and dined, gents).  Whatever your purpose, set aside some time for Eataly; you won’t be disappointed.

Eataly: 5th Ave @ 23rd St; open every day, 10am – 11pm

Tags: , , , ,

Deal Seeker Double Take!

5 Nov

If you plan on going out to eat this weekend – sign on to restaurant.com. If you use the code “MEAL” between now and Monday, you’ll get 70% off any resto coupon – aka pay $3 to get $25 off to some GREAT food joints!  Try somewhere new (suggestions?) or see if one of your faves is on the site – you’d be surprised!  Just make sure to check the rules to be sure you can use it during the weekend :)

Check back next week for my brunch steal of the weekend! It’s gonna be a Sunday Funday folks!

Parting is such great sorrow – till Monday, I bid you adieu!

xx

RR

Tags: , , , ,

%d bloggers like this: