Bonnie from BiteoftheBest.com

About Bonnie Tandy Leblang

Blogger Bonnie Tandy Leblang has been covering food since before it was hip to do so! She’s penned magazine, newspaper and syndicated food columns in addition to cookbooks. Follow her on twitter @BonnieBOTB and on Instagram@BiteoftheBest and at @BonnieBOTB "I eat for a living!” is her mantra, sharing what she’s sampled so you’ll know where (or where not) to go, plus what food products and gadgets to try. For her full bio go to the about us page.
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Casa Mono, Gramercy Park, NYC

I'm a Casa Mono devotee.  I'm not the only one as this tapas bar-restaurant, inspired by the cooking of Spain's Costa Brava, was awarded three stars from The New York Times in 2015 and a Michelin Star in 2009 and every year since. A must try. Our waiter Matt suggested the Silice, a rosè from Galicia, 2021, done Provençal style ($81). We sipped that while nibbling their olives, bathing in rich EVOO. I let my dining partner select the menu as it was her birthday. We started with roasted shishito ($16), peppers in a pimiento manchego cheese sauce, and their classic Ensalada Mono, a pile of lightly dressed friseé decorated [...]

By |2023-06-19T21:36:52-04:00June 18th, 2023|Big Apple Life, NYC Restaurant Reviews|0 Comments
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Gigino Trattoria, Tribeca, NYC + Lower Manhattan Tour with Kevin Draper

Historian Kevin Draper is our primary go-to for walking New York City tours with our ex.expat group. He's a walking encyclopedia about the history of our city. This time, we converged on the West Side of Lower Manhattan, including Tribeca and SoHo and heard incredible stories of American pioneers with examples of transformation and revitalization. After the tour, we had lunch at Gigino Trattoria, a friendly, unassuming Tuscan-inspired Italian restaurant in Tribeca with delicious fare. Almost all of their pastas and breads are house made. Our table shared a couple salads (arugula, $15 and a mix of mesclun, arugula & spinach, $14), the Margherita pizza ($20),  orecchiette with broccoli rabe [...]

By |2023-06-19T21:34:37-04:00June 16th, 2023|Big Apple Life, NYC Restaurant Reviews|0 Comments
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Heavenly Visit to Lodge at Woodloch, Hawley, PA

It was the trip that almost didn't happen. Three times. First, I was injured; second, one of us had COVID. I can't recall the third. I do, though, recall arriving at Woodloch when a staff swarm greeted us, took our luggage to storage until our rooms were ready and immediately escorted us in to register. We then were seated for lunch in the dining room, where we'd consume all our meals. Friendly, welcoming and attentive service is what we found in the dining room. Guests wore casual, active workout clothes or terry robes for breakfast yet dressed for dinner. We only needed reservations for dinner. We squeezed a four-night trip [...]

By |2023-06-19T21:32:47-04:00June 14th, 2023|Bites from the Road, USA Restaurants, USA Travel|0 Comments
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Aria Hell’s Kitchen, NYC + Summer 1976

It was my first night out since my rotator cuff surgery. We met for a bite at Aria's wine bar in Hell's Kitchen before heading to the Samuel Friedman Theatre to see Summer 1976, a new play by Pulitzer Prize-winning author David Auburn (Proof). The show starred Laura Linney and Tony nominee Jessica Hect in an insightful story about two women who befriended one summer. Summer 1976. Worth seeing. Telka, our server, handed us a wine chalkboard, told us the night's specials and pointed to the paper menu at each place. We chose a bottle of Montepulciano from their generic list of grape varieties. The Montepulciano  2017, Podere Castorani d'Abruzzo [...]

By |2023-06-19T21:30:01-04:00June 12th, 2023|NYC Restaurant Reviews, Theatre|0 Comments
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Cafe Luna, West Village, NYC

One Sunday, after the temperature turned warm, I wandered down to Hudson River Park to enjoy the weather and people-watch, ending up at Cafe Luna for brunch. I enjoyed their $23.95 prix fixe brunch special (8 am to 3 pm), including a mimosa, bellini or sangria plus an entree. I sipped their bellini — prosecco with a hint of peach. It was not that bubbly with a peach puree that I expected. Unable to use my right arm as I was still recuperating from surgery, I chose the hand-held huevos ranchero burrito, described as with refried beans, queso fresco, eggs, salsa, avocado, and jalapeño, with roasted potatoes. It begged for [...]

By |2023-06-19T21:28:29-04:00June 10th, 2023|Big Apple Life, NYC Restaurant Reviews|0 Comments
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Xu’s Public House, Union Square, NYC

I headed to Xu’s Public House to meet an out-of-town friend in town. Xu's offers a bargain ($15) lunch menu with a cup of soup (chicken corn chowder or scallion topped hot and sour) and a choice of almost a dozen entrees served with white or brown rice. I chose General Tso's chicken that came with steamed broccoli and sported one pepper, falsely indicating heat. My dining partner's Buddhist delight — a medley of veggies — is a better choice. Both soups arrived lukewarm, if that. The waiter served our entrees before we were halfway through our soup. I only chose this place for its proximity to my home, not [...]

By |2023-06-19T21:24:37-04:00June 8th, 2023|NYC Restaurant Reviews|0 Comments
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Brunch at Lillie’s Victorian Establishment + Bob Fosse’s Dancin’

I love getting discounts for theatres and restaurants. When I saw the pulsd offer for a $45 cocktail brunch in the theatre district at Lillie's Victorian Establishment, I decided to buy and finally try their service. For that price, we'd get two entrees plus either four bloody Marys or a bottle of La Gioiosa Prosecco Bottle with a carafe of orange juice for making mimosas. Sadly, the first time I booked the reservation, it didn't work out. When we arrived, there was a sign that the restaurant was closed to repair something. I tried again only because I had purchased the brunch and tried it another Sunday when we were [...]

By |2023-06-19T21:22:34-04:00June 6th, 2023|NYC Restaurant Reviews, Theatre|0 Comments
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Shopping at Union Square Market with Chef Charlie Marshal

What fun it would be, I thought, to shop at the farmers' market with a chef! I did so recently with Charlie Marshal (The Marshal). We decided to meet at Union Square Greenmarket early one April Saturday morning. That market began with just a few farmers in 1976 and has grown to about 140 regional farmers, fishers and bakers selling their products four times a week. Charlie visits on Saturday mornings. These farmers are like friends, as Charlie has been shopping at the market for ten years! His secrets: Charlie ordered ahead and gets wholesale prices; otherwise, he mentioned, he couldn't afford to shop here and pass the costs to [...]

By |2023-06-03T11:44:29-04:00June 4th, 2023|Big Apple Life, City Bites, Foodie Interviews, NYC Best Bites, Other happenings|0 Comments
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Tasting Menu at Wicked Jane, Greenwich Village, NYC

Wicked Jane's publicist recently invited me to sample New Jersey chef Zod Arifai's fare at his 3-year-old Greenwich Village 8th Street restaurant. He offers a small bar in the front room and an intimate back room with generously spaced white-linen-covered tables. I suggest Chef Zod add rugs, art or something to add warmth and absorb sound. We couldn't hear our server speak when one of the folks at the table 3-feet away from us spoke. I tried their citrusy eponymous cocktail ($18) with vodka, Cointreau and hibiscus. I liked that it wasn't sweet. Our only menu choice was whether or not to add the potato flan topped with Siberian sturgeon [...]

By |2023-06-03T10:12:53-04:00June 1st, 2023|Big Apple Life, NYC Best Bites, NYC Restaurant Reviews|0 Comments
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Sabai Thai, Kips Bay, NYC

After our first in-person Les Dames d'Escoffier Board of Directors meeting, most of us headed to Sabai Thai, a nearby restaurant, to grab a bite and continue our camaraderie. We started with cocktails and a few appetizers. Some eclectic cocktails sipped included a gin lavender rose gimlet ($18), cucumber mezcalitas ($17), a few Singha beers and some shots. The apps were all good. They included a dumpling platter ($19) with steamed shrimp, chicken and pork dumplings with a sweet soy reduction homemade curry puffs filled with potatoes, green peas and carrots (two large for $15), deep-fried spring rolls (6 poh pia tod $13) with plum sauce and chicken satay (four skewers [...]

By |2023-06-03T10:25:11-04:00May 29th, 2023|Big Apple Life, NYC Best Bites, NYC Restaurant Reviews|0 Comments
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Haven Rooftop, Times Square, NYC + Shucked

I love when out-of-towners call spur of the moment to get together as their schedule permits. So when my west-coast friend asked to grab a quick bite before heading to theatre, I jumped at the chance as it had been years since we were together. The Haven Rooftop was close to both theatres and a fun casual place to get a bite. I'd only experienced and liked this restaurant's brunch. My dining partner was seeing Hadestown, and I was off to Shucked, the corny musical about a small-town woman searching for someone to figure out why all the county's corn was dying. I started with a good Maker's Mark old [...]

By |2024-07-21T11:03:20-04:00May 26th, 2023|Big Apple Life, NYC Best Bites, NYC Restaurant Reviews, Rooftop|0 Comments
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Great Jones Distilling Co: Tour, Jazz and Food, NoHo, NYC

We visited the Great Jones Distilling Co, Manhattan’s first legal whiskey distillery since Prohibition as media one afternoon. Our tour included an overview of the story, ingredients, process and equipment used to brew the three Great Jones whiskies – Great Jones Straight Bourbon, Four Grain Bourbon and Rye. After the tour, we had a guided tasting of their whiskeys, aged four years in American white oak, and were offered $10 off any single bottle purchased after the tour.  The Straight Bourbon has a light to medium body with a creamy and peppery taste; the Four Grain Bourbon is also medium-bodied, yet oaky and better (my favorite); the Rye is complex [...]

By |2023-06-03T10:36:18-04:00May 23rd, 2023|Big Apple Life, NYC Best Bites, NYC Restaurant Reviews, Other happenings|0 Comments
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Metro Marché, Midtown, NYC

I was invited but was unable to attend, the opening of Metro Marché on West 57th. Instead, I stopped by to try their fare, sampling small portions of their entrees, salads, soups and various sandwiches all made with healthy fresh ingredients. I'd recommend stopping by if you're in the area and want to grab a bite. Metro Marché Midtown 30 W 57th St New York, NY 10019

By |2023-06-03T11:39:27-04:00May 20th, 2023|Big Apple Life, NYC Restaurant Reviews|0 Comments
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Dos Caminos, Times Square, NYC + Museum of Broadway

My Ex.expat group visited the recently opened Museum of Broadway located in the heart of Times Square. It is an interactive and experiential museum that takes you on a journey from the birth of Broadway to the present. For those who grew up attending theatre, it's a dance down memory lane. I recommend. Producer Merrie L Davis (Parade, Eclipsed, Company, Gigi) welcomed our group, sharing that the concept started as a pop-up and ended up as the first permanent museum dedicated to documenting the history and experience of Broadway theatre. We learned about Broadway's profound influence on shaping Midtown Manhattan and Times Square. After the museum, we walked a couple [...]

By |2023-05-18T11:28:13-04:00May 17th, 2023|Big Apple Life, City Bites, NYC Best Bites, NYC Restaurant Reviews|0 Comments
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Barking Dog, Hell’s Kitchen, NYC + The Thanksgiving Play

The restaurant where we were supposed to have brunch had a hastily written note saying "closed" for repairs, so I needed to scurry to find another place to eat before heading to the Helen Hayes Theatre to see "The Thanksgiving Play." That's how we ended up at the Barking Dog in the plaza between 49th and 50th Street between Eighth and Ninth. This informal, fun canine-themed restaurant serves typical brunch fare with a special menu for 4-legged friends on the heated patio. We started with their doggy-named cocktails. My dining partner chose the dog bubbles ($14) of sparkling wine, St. Germaine elderflower and pear, while I indulged in the ugly [...]

By |2023-05-12T06:45:11-04:00May 14th, 2023|Big Apple Life, NYC Best Bites, NYC Restaurant Reviews, Theatre|0 Comments
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Upscale Mexican at the new Caliza, Tribeca, NYC

I was invited as a guest to sample the new upscale Mexican restaurant Caliza in Tribeca on Greenwich Street. After perusing the menu, I knew I was in for a treat. I love that they make their classic margarita (I chose tequila over mezcal) with Combier orange liqueur and fresh lime juice ( $19); I requested the spicer version made with fresh serrano juice. Nicely done with just the right amount of spice. My dining partner went for their red sangria, thinking it wouldn't be as strong a cocktail. They combine red wine with Flor de Caña rum, Combier orange liqueur and blackberry cordial ($18). She needed to request club [...]

By |2023-05-12T06:43:58-04:00May 11th, 2023|Big Apple Life, NYC Restaurant Reviews|1 Comment
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Mediterraneo Restaurant, Greenwich, CT

While visiting my friends' new Greenwich home, we went to dinner on Greenwich Avenue one evening at Mediterraneo. This friendly, warm restaurant combined the tastes of the sea and Italy. Their breads and fresh hummus satiated us as we discussed what we'd have. We started by sharing their tasty appetizers that included steamed P.E.I. mussels in a rich red curry cream ($17), grilled squid with shaved fennel, radishes and cherry tomatoes ($17), crispy crab stuffed artichoke bottoms with tarragon-lemon aioli ($19) and grilled Spanish octopus with smoked chorizo sofrito and diced potatoes ($21). Next, we shared the black squid ink linguine with shrimp and roasted tomatoes topped with lemon breadcrumbs [...]

By |2023-05-07T07:12:06-04:00May 9th, 2023|Bites from the Road, USA Restaurants, USA Travel|0 Comments
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Return to Novitá for Lunch, Flatiron, NYC

The older I get, the more I look for elegant dining places with good food where I can hear myself think.  Novitá, right off Park Avenue on 22nd Street, fits that bill. I hadn't returned to this cozy little Italian restaurant. The pandemic got in the way. I recently met a friend there for lunch, sharing good food and conversation. Upon hearing we were sharing, I loved how the kitchen split everything for us. Keep in mind the photos are half portions! The salmon salad ($17) was as delicious as before, with chunks of moist grilled salmon with haricot verde and fingerling potatoes as was the orecchiette with spicy lamb [...]

By |2023-05-12T06:47:27-04:00May 5th, 2023|NYC Restaurant Reviews|0 Comments
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Shanghai Mong, Koreatown, NYC + Macy’s Flower Show

After wandering around Macy's flower show, we headed to Koreatown to find a spot to grab a bite. My main prerequisite for selecting a place on the spur of the moment is an "A" health grade in the window. Shanghai Mong on West 32nd had that. I liked the gratis pickled radishes and kimchi. Their small spring rolls could have used more filling ($12 for four). The chicken with broccoli and other veggies ($30) was fine atop the accompanying rice, as were the mushrooms and bok choy, although the latter could have been served hotter. Next time, I'd keep looking. Shanghai Mong Koreatown 30 W 32nd St, New York, NY [...]

By |2023-05-07T07:24:55-04:00May 2nd, 2023|NYC Restaurant Reviews|0 Comments
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E.J. Luncheonette, Upper East Side, NYC

After playing bridge one morning at the Upper East Side game, two of us grabbed a quick bite with lots of conversation at E.J. Luncheonette. We stopped there, as it looked inviting when walking by. After ordering soup and salad combos, we noticed almost everyone else at this diner was eating salads. Good-looking salads. We, though, were happy with our combos. My dining partner savored her hearty bowl of green pea soup, scooping up every drop. The half garden club was filled with avocado, tomato, cheddar cheese, cucumber, alfalfa sprouts and mushrooms on basil-mayo spread 7-grain toasted bread ($18.50). Nice. My French onion soup was too rich to finish. The [...]

By |2023-05-07T07:23:50-04:00April 29th, 2023|NYC Restaurant Reviews|0 Comments
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