Dining out

All posts tagged Dining out

Dining Out: The Nocciola Experience 2016!!!

Posted by THEJNSREPORT on March 5, 2016

Posted in: Food & Drinks. Tagged: Dining out, East Harlem, Food, Food & Drink, Nocciola, NYC, restaurants. Leave a comment

Welcome to THEJNSREPORT’S: Dining Out: The Nocciola Experience 2016!!!

In our last food experience we talked about eating at home and saving some green. This time around we visit East Harlem’s Nocciola Restaurant for a dining experience out. Located between 2nd and 3rd Ave on E 116th Street. Nocciola gives the neighborhood a much needed upgrade to the stereotypical barrio restaurant experience. The food and service at Nocciola is also a significant upgrade versus restaurants past. Nocciola Black Board B+W Upon entering Nocciola you see this blackboard above Nocciola Menu The concept of housemade pastas and only wines for consumption with no hard liquor is a good alternative to most of the food options in East Harlem’s restaurant scene. We started our dinner off with complimentary bread and olive oil with pesto for dipping our bread in. Nocciola Bread The Bread is very very good here. Olive oil and pesto You just want to soak up all that delicious olive oil based dip into the bread and slowly savor the flavor.

Dinner @ Nocciola

To get things started for an appetizer after the bread I opted to share a side of creamy polenta with mushrooms & shaved parmesan cheese. This was so delicious. I’ve had polenta numerous times at various places but this was the creamiest polenta I’ve ever had. The contrast in textures to the meaty mushrooms on top really livened things up. Creamy Polenta & Mushrooms w Shaved Parmesan 2 A closeup on that creamy polenta & mushrooms. Pappardelle @ Nocciola For our main course we chose whole Branzino and Pappardelle pasta. Pappardelle @ Nocciola Close Up This is yet another great pasta I’ve never tried before now. It’s a meatsauce with broad long strips of pasta. Pappardelle on fork I thoroughly enjoyed fork full after fork full of this dish. I recommend going with the full portion plate. Branzino @ Nocciola The Branzino was cooked to perfection. There were grilled potatoes, asparagus, & a grilled lemon wedge adorning the plate. A nice bottle of Pinot Grigio helped us wash down our meal before desert. Wine & Food Nocciola has quite an extensive list of wines. If your not sure of what you’d like the servers can definitely point you in the right direction and allow you to taste a wine before deciding whether or not you will have a glass or the full bottle. Pannacotta @ Nocciola The pannacotta is rich and pairs well with the fruit and powdered sugar & chocolate sauce. It’s not a heavy desert which is perfect after everything we ate. On a scale of 1 – 5 dinner plates. Nocciola gets 4 1/2 out of 5 dinner plates. We recommend Nocciola to anyone interested in changing from the “usual” dining experience and give your palate something different. The menu boasts more than what you have seen here and I’m sure will not fail to please.

Till next time this has been dining out with THEJNSREPORT: The Nocciola Experience 2016!!!

Brunch At Agave

Posted by THEJNSREPORT on October 22, 2014

Posted in: Food & Drinks. Tagged: Agave, Brunch, Dining out, Food & Drinks, Food Reviews, frozen Margarita, NYC, restaurants, round of drinks. Leave a comment

Welcome to THEJNSREPORT’S: BRUNCH AT AGAVE…LAST SUNDAY Feeling like the perfect day for brunch out. Agave was suggested as our landing spot. My baby and I got ready to head to Agave and the weather was absolutely perfect. A light breeze in the air with the sun shining strong made for memories of glorious Summer days gone by.

Arrival at Agave found us wanting to eat outside. And before it could be suggested our hostess took us to an outdoor table. Pretty f&*^%n cool!! Once outside we noticed the cute setup of Two giant umbrellas giving shade to the outdoor space.

Agave’s Pre Fixe menu for bottomless brunch drink special was the logical choice to select. We planned to be there for at least a couple of hours. As I scanned the page my selection sat glaring me in the face. I couldn’t believe it…It said Hand Hacked…Three Beef Hash!!! Without a doubt I knew it was going to be about getting that Roast beef son!!! Mmmm mmmm!!! We sat in semi quiet moments waiting to be noticed by our server.

After what seemed like an eternity (10 minutes waiting) our server approached. We immediately selected the bottomless brunch and started off with a mimosa & frozen margarita to accompany a plate of calamari. It took a little while for our drinks to arrive but when they did arrive it wasn’t too much longer that our calamari came out of the kitchen.Agave’s fried calamari!!! In a word… Uh yessuh!Now that there is how you do fried calamari RIGHT!!!

I have to admit the frozen margarita at Agave is very good. However this is where the experience began to annoy me a bit. It is bottomless brunch for 2 hrs only and yet for literally half an hour from the time we were served our first round of drinks till second round our server was completely inattentive.

We couldn’t get his attention for anything. He had a tray of drinks and got them semi haphazardly correct to whom each drink belonged for fellow outdoor patrons in our section before turning and keeping his back to our table ruling out the possibility of us getting an opportunity to ask him anything.

It turns out he had been working there all of two weeks. And our table wasn’t the only one neglected it seemed as he was learning his industry.

A group of girls had no table paper to cover their table. And when an adjacent table full of girls orders came they had to ask the server how they were to eat their meals with out utensils.

Despite the miscues everyone seemed to be in good spirits and tolerant of the fact that our server was new. When our food arrived a sense of calm and patience began to permeate my dissatisfied with the service mind set.The steak and eggs with potatoes.The Hand Hacked Three Beef Hash with Scrambled Eggs. Just what I needed to see. By the time I finished my Three Beef Hash & Scrambled Eggs I began to feel thirsty. What I needed was another frozen Margarita but alas where was our server?

We ended up asking a busser if he could get us our next round of drinks which wasn’t his job but he appreciatively obliged us. From this point on our server actually got better and began to pay more attention to us. I know in part because he was told of our displeasure with the level of service we were getting.

We received our next round of drinks in record time almost whimsically overdone as our server would refill our glasses when they were barely half way done. To be honest I didn’t mind this at all after we had been ignored earlier.

It’s common knowledge that our moods tend to perk up once we’ve eaten a meal. I passed on desert but my baby ordered this.

It was a desert burrito filled with what looked like vanilla and chocolate custard/ice cream accompanied by a handsome dollop of vanilla bean ice cream and sliced strawberries in strawberry sauce.Looking at it now I wish I had tasted this delectable desert. We had our final round of drinks before asking for our check.

In a nutshell Agave is a pretty good restaurant to eat at when the service is on par with the quality of fare that they serve. Service gets 3 out of 5 dinner plates. OOO

Ambience is OOOOO 5 out of 5 dinner plates thanks to to glorious weather out. Dining outdoor is always a plus when it’s sunny.

My Hand Hacked Three Beef Hash did the job. Roastbeef!!! The eggs I wasn’t too crazy about but the frozen Margarita left me with a more copacetic attitude.

My baby gave the desert a perfect 5 out 5 dinner plates OOOOO. Overall the experience was a good one. Agave we’ll be back. Till nex time this has been the THEJNSREPORT’S: Brunch At Agave.

Brick Lane Curry House

Posted by THEJNSREPORT on August 30, 2014

Posted in: Food & Drinks. Tagged: Biriyani, Brick Lane Curry House, Chicken Tikka Masala, Dhal Puri, Dining out, Food, Food & Drinks, Ghost Chilli, Indian Cuisine, Indian Food, NYC, Phaal, restaurants, Samosas. 2 Comments

Welcome to THEJNSREPORT’S: The Brick Lane Curry House Experience 2014!!

Location: Manhattan, NY

ETA: 1:30pm

I remember years ago watching one of my favorite Travel Channel Shows to watch “Man V Food” with host Adam Richman.

On one of the episodes Richman visited Brick Lane Curry House in Brooklyn, NY. The show showcased the Indian cuisine Brick Lane is known for.

Being a lover of Indian food I said to myself one day I’m going to eat at Brick Lane and see whether it delivers on the enthusiastic endorsement of its cuisine and the hottest curry on the planet known as Phaal.

Now, while I enjoy spicy food my threshold is far lower (not to mention wiser) than those who would try to eat Phaal. In my visit to Brick Lane there would be no thought of attempting the Phaal challenge.

Instead I went to my go to favorites when dining on Indian Cuisine. Chicken Tikka Masala, Naan bread, A biriyani, Basmati rice, and some Samosas.

Behold Brick Lanes Chicken Tikka Masala. This is very good I must say. The spices and flavor were pretty spot on. The last time I had really good Chicken Tikka Masala was in San Fransisco over a decade ago.

The Chicken Biriyani: To me this would have been perfect if they could have forgone the cilantro on top.

Naan: This bread is good and reminds me of pita bread with olive oil drizzled on it. However, I prefer Dhal Puri Roti skins to Naan.

Basmati Rice

Samosas: These yummy minced meat deliciosities were had in a few bites.

Yogurt dip for the naan bread.

I of course ate the chicken tikka masala with both rices before completely devouring my samosas. If you’ve never had indian samosas you’d definitely being doing yourself a favor by having this as an appetizer. Brick Lane offers both vegetable and meat samosas.

The decor of Brick Lane (Manhattan location): is not too shabby. Overall I enjoyed my stay and the afternoon atmosphere was quiet versus say a night dining out. The wait staff was very polite and attentive.The rear of Brick Lane

Pricing $$$ is what you would expect for a Manhattan location but the food is worth the price in my opinion. Overall I give Brick Lane Curry House 4 out of 5 dinner plates OOOO. I’ll have to continue my search of good to great Indian Cuisine restaurants in the city. Till next time this has been THEJNSREPORT’S: Brick Lane Curry House Experience 2014!!

Costanera Pt. II

Posted by THEJNSREPORT on March 25, 2014

Posted in: Food & Drinks. Tagged: Bronzed Fish, Causas, Ceviche, Costanera, Costanera Dining Experience 2014 Pt.II, Delight, Dining out, Food, Food & Drinks, Food Experience, Gourmet, Lamb Shank, Meat, Peruvian Cuisine, Plaintain, Rice & Peas, Seafood, Steak & Eggs, Tequila, Wine. Leave a comment

Welcome to THEJNSREPORT’S: THE COSTANERA EXPERIENCE 2014 PT II!!!

Location: Montclair, NJ

Last visit to this establishment had me completely impressed and excited to eat. This time around was no exception and we managed to bring several more friends along to experience what dining is like at Costanera.

Costanera 2

After toasting with wine and tequila we ordered our respective dishes for the night.

Quinoa Crusted Catfish

Anticucho (Beef Heart), Quinoa crusted Chicharon de Pescado (Fried Catfish)

Ceviche

The Seafood Ceviche

Maduro aka Fried Plaintain

Maduros (Fried Plaintain)

Lamb Shank

Bronzed Whole Fish

Steak, Eggs, Maduros, Rice

Steak & Eggs, Maduros, & Rice & Peas

Tres Leches

Tres Leches soaked cake

Ice Cream

The IceCream

Costanera Pt.2

Once again Costanera took care of us and as last time the place was packed. Our food was expertly prepared and almost nothing that we ordered remained on their respective plates except for some of the Bronzed Whole Fish which one of our friends took home in a doggy bag. 😛

5 out 5 Dinner Plates yet again goes to Costanera Peruana Restaurant. It’s official Costanera is one of our favorite Restaurants to visit when dining out. Definitely worth every dollar spent. Pay Costanera a visit, believe us you won’t regret it! Till next food experience. This has been Costanera Peruana Restaurant Experience 2014!!! Pt.II by THEJNSREPORT.

Welcome to THEJNSREPORT’S: COSTANERA COCINA PERUANA RESTAURANT EXPERIENCE 2014!!!

Located in downtown Montclair, NJ.

Costanera 1

I was invited to attend a dining experience of upscale Peruvian cuisine in this uniquely decorated Peruvian restaurant along with my significant other, my significant other’s sister and a friend. What a treat! We ended up eating something I never ate before. However, before I get to that allow me to introduce you to Costanera Cocina Peruana Restaurant.

Costanera 2

When we arrived inside the entire restaurant was packed except for our reserved table.

The table

We began our dining experience with our gracious hosts /owners Tatianna & Andre dining alongside us. We started off with a bottle of red wine, some toasted corn kernels and wasabi sauce. The menu at Costanera is extensive and we left our sampling choices up to our hosts.

The Table 2

Red Wine Glass

Tiger Milk

What you see above is a shot of leche de tigre or “Tiger Milk” which tastes outstanding! We all took our shots of leche de tigre and toasted before tossing em back. Next we had two different ceviches( not pictured here) along with a plate of mussels & calamari in sauce. That was followed up by salmon on crustini, and chicharron de pescado which was insanely goood!!! Try Costanera’s chicharron de pescado against any cornmeal crusted catfish you’ve ever had and see if Costanera doesn’t come out the clear winner.

Calamari & Mussels

Salmon on Crustini

Chicharron de Pescado

Over the course of the next several hours plus we enjoyed glasses of wine and shots of Hornitos Silver 100% Agave Tequila which we brought for our meal since in this area of Montclair most of the businesses don’t have liquor licenses. The staff of the restaurant was on point always ready to fill a glass that was low as our conversation about the decor & ambiance of Costanera turned our attention to the walls and bar of the establishment before our next course was presented. Costanera Int. 3

Costanera Int.

Our gracious hosts told us that the previous owners of this space told them no matter what they did to the interior, they had to keep the bar. True to their word Costanera’s proprietors kept the bar intact while renovating the rest of the interior which was completely bare white walls. All the design and color scheme were completely those of the owners. And in case you’re wondering, yes that is real wood on the walls as well as the carved pieces across the room from where we sat.

Anticucho (Beef heart)

Up next was what I alluded to earlier as having never eaten before. Anticucho (Beef Heart). The heart was cooked well and skewered on kebabs. Big kernels of corn and sauce adorned this dish and surprisingly it didn’t taste gamey or minerally at all. The consistency of the beef heart was close to that of hanger steak and yes I finished all of my Anticucho. 😉

Braised Beef

Speaking of Hanger steak that’s what you see above. Again perfectly cooked steak served with fries, onions and red peppers garnished with a little cilantro if I’m not mistaken. Delish!!!

4th course

At the top of the pic above you see Causas (Classic mashed potato cakes with avocado, and lump crab meat) topped with drops of Huancaina sauce. Below the Causas are more Korn Kernels and roasted potatoes medley with crispy yucca also drizzled with Huancaina sauce. Uh Yassum!!! We liked our starches. The Huancaina sauce really brought everything together nicely.

Fried Sweet Plantains

Fried Sweet and Green Plantains followed. I’m a fan of both but the fried sweet plantain won out.

Green Plantain

Another round of tequila shots with lime wedges helped cleanse our palletes before we perused the desert menu.

Desert Menu

Naturally we chose the first three deserts on menu to share between us.

Mouse w Icecream & berries

That there above is Costanera’s Mousse de Chocolate with a scoop of chocolate icecream accompanied by bananas, blueberries, and raspberries. Mmmm mmm Son!!! 😀

Flan

Next we had the Crema Volteada (Flan) that looked like a heavenly sliced piece of cheesecake topped in a rich caramel sauce. The Tres leches is obscurred by the chocolate mousse regrettably, but it too tasted out of this world amazing!!!

3 desserts

In all honesty everything we sampled was beyond reproach. I could find absolutely nothing that I didn’t like. The ceviche’s were incredible, all the meats, and sides more than satisfied. This truly was an experience to be had. Costanera gets 5 out of 5 dinner plates in every category, taste, presentation, price, service and food quality. OOOOO

This is a must try restaurant experience!!! Thank you again to Tatianna & Andre our gracious hosts of Costanera. Till next time this has been the Costanera Cocina Peruana Experience 2014 by THEJNSREPORT.

Socarrat Paella Bar Experience 2014!!!

Posted by THEJNSREPORT on January 24, 2014

Posted in: Food & Drinks. Tagged: Black Rice, Chelsea, Comida, Dining out, Fava beans, Food, Food & Drinks, Meals, NYC, NYC Nightlife, Oysters, Paella, Paella Bar, Rice, Scallops, Seafood, Shrimp, Socarrat Paella, Socarrat Paella Bar, Squid Ink, Veggies. Leave a comment

Welcome to THEJNSREPORT’S: Socarrat Paella Bar Experience 2014!!!

Located in Chelsea around the corner of 8th Ave & 19th St.

Socarrat Entrance

Socarrat Paella Bar Int.

Socarrat Paella Bar’s interior layout reminds me of a “RailRoad” apartment. I ventured into this place on a Saturday night with a couple of friends who raved that the Paella here was a must try for Paella lovers. Having eaten Paella in Spain once upon a time. I figured now was as good a time as any to see if NYC could and would measure up to that experience.

Socarrat offers a nice atmosphere and complimentary coat check which just makes sense considering the limited seating space inside. Not having to worry about where to place one’s jacket or bag while trying to dine in is an important part of any dining out experience.

We decided to start our dining experience off with some appetizers while looking over which Paellas we were going to try. After some thought we settled on having white anchovies, in olive oil with black & green olives, sliced plum tomatoes and bacon wrapped dates.

White Anchovies

The White anchovies actually tasted better than anticipated and were quickly laid waste to along with everything else on the plate. That being said, ladies and gentlemen…Behold the power of Bacon son!!!

Bacon Wrapped Dates

Whoever came up with this creation to quote Epic Meal time is “F’N Smart!!!” Salty sweet cravings get satisfied and then some when having one of the above bad boys let me tell ya. Once again, I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again. Yassum!!!

After toasting with cocktails of Milagros Tequila with lime…. out came our Paellas.

Paellas

Paella with Squid Ink

We chose one Paella with Black Rice colored with Squid Ink. The second Paella had no ink in it. Both were equally well cooked and very delicious.

Paella II

Portions more than satisfied and caused us to have to request a doggy bag.

Doggy Bag

Exit

The next day I was able to enjoy some left over Paella that tasted even better the second day especially when coupled with scrambled eggs. Yes Ma’am!!! It was gooood!!! Socarrat in terms of presentation and taste gets 4 1/2 dinner plates out of 5. OOOO [. We had a great time dining here and ultimately ended up closing the place down.

While Socarrat is definitely a cool little spot to dine be warned this is not a cheap place to eat. Our tab for 3 people came in at a bit over $200 with tip. Drinks definitely contributed to the bill perhaps more than the Paella and appetizers.

Even so, I’ll definitely be back to sample more Paella from Socarrat in the near future. Till next time this has been the Socarrat Experience 2014 by THEJNSREPORT.

The Pounds & Ounces Experience

Posted by THEJNSREPORT on October 15, 2013

Posted in: Food & Drinks. Tagged: Bars, Bartenders, blue moon, Bottled Beer, Calamari, Chelsea, Cooking, Dining out, Drinks, Eat, Eating Out, Food, Fried Calamari, Grissly, Lemon, Lounges, Night life, NYC Night life, Pounds & Ounces Experience, Quality, restaurants, Servers, Service, Service Industry, Sliders, south east side, Waiters. Leave a comment

Welcome to THEJNSREPORT’S: The Pounds & Ounces Experience 2013

Pounds & Ounces 1

Written by guest reviewer Ron Ron.

Location: 160 8th ave south east side of 18th street in Chelsea, Manhattan.

Pounds & Ounces 2

Feeling hungry, thought I’d stop for a quick bite and brew at this trendy Chelsea bar restaurant. It’s an attractive bar with impressive carved wood back bar. I was all set for a beer or two and a quick bite, but uh oh a little trouble getting the bartender’s attention. Afterall this is Chelsea…more interested in fraternizing with co-workers and texting than being attentive to patrons.

I stay patient being cool knowing that sending a bad vibe could result in a longer wait time! Bartender finally gets to me and I order a Blue Moon bottle and a glass. Decided on the calamari w chilli sauce and another Blue Moon.

The calamari came out quickly enough but the portion was on the small side. Despite this they were crispy and tasty with a good presentation. I liked the lemon slices arrangement with the calamari. Finished the calamari but still hungry…wait…the bartender is still texting. May I see the menu again? Bartender stops texting long enough to give me a second look. Thank you.

I order $12 Sliders but no sides. Ask for it cooked medium well and substitute cheddar for the blue cheese. Not a fan of blue cheese. When my sliders came, once again, trendy presentation. Surprisingly, the sliders underwhelmed. You would think for a place called “Pounds & Ounces” they would have quality meat. Instead the beef was grissly.

Time to get out of here and head to my wed night sports spot. There I get my bartender who knows how to take care of patrons. Still waiting for the bartender here to finish texting. Uh yeah check please?

When the check arrives I leave over a 20% cash tip while I pay the bill on my card. I get barely a thanks from the bartender as I exit. Overall impression is food is hit or miss. Calamari was good but poor quality meat used in their sliders means they’re definitely not up to par. The interior design is very nice but service is lacking. Overall was ok but nothing to write home about.

Pounds & Ounces 3