"Eat now?"
Deborah
43 Carmine St. (West Village)
New York, NY
(212) 242-2606
I am not complicated. I enjoy an occasional fine dining experience, but more often than not I prefer to walk through a residential area and find a hole-in-the-wall type establishment that locals flock to. New, exciting and trendy spots have their place, but small unpretentious venues that have been around for years are still there because they are doing something right. They are the foundation of a city’s culinary culture.
Deborah is a great neighborhood haunt that is as welcoming a place that a visitor can find in New York. The staff was terrific, the small space lent an air of “homey-ness” and the menu was full of familiar favorites with twists and turns that promised to be surprising and satisfying at the same time… As a good friend of mine said: “Rule #1 of dining - If you see lamb on the menu, order it; it's a great indicator of how much they care about preparation." I would have preferred a leg of lamb as opposed to the chops that were served on the night that we went (more meat, please), but the flavor was wonderful and the accompanying salad topped with goat cheese was a great addition. The Seafood paella was fantastic, with enough spices to give it a hint of exoticism, but not so much that it drown out the subtleties of the various fish included… As for dessert, both the Nutella chocolate cake and the Dutch chocolate and Tahitian vanilla sundae sated our sugar cravings… Service was incredibly friendly and stayed comfortably away from the edges of overbearing, though the intimate atmosphere created a sense of disappointment when the night ended without a visit from the chief. (You have to squeeze by her and the open kitchen to get to the seating area in the rear.)
Rating: ***1/2 (out of 5)
Final Word: I'll definitely have to go back and try more items on the menu.
Listings: Zagat & NY Magazine
43 Carmine St. (West Village)
New York, NY
(212) 242-2606
I am not complicated. I enjoy an occasional fine dining experience, but more often than not I prefer to walk through a residential area and find a hole-in-the-wall type establishment that locals flock to. New, exciting and trendy spots have their place, but small unpretentious venues that have been around for years are still there because they are doing something right. They are the foundation of a city’s culinary culture.
Deborah is a great neighborhood haunt that is as welcoming a place that a visitor can find in New York. The staff was terrific, the small space lent an air of “homey-ness” and the menu was full of familiar favorites with twists and turns that promised to be surprising and satisfying at the same time… As a good friend of mine said: “Rule #1 of dining - If you see lamb on the menu, order it; it's a great indicator of how much they care about preparation." I would have preferred a leg of lamb as opposed to the chops that were served on the night that we went (more meat, please), but the flavor was wonderful and the accompanying salad topped with goat cheese was a great addition. The Seafood paella was fantastic, with enough spices to give it a hint of exoticism, but not so much that it drown out the subtleties of the various fish included… As for dessert, both the Nutella chocolate cake and the Dutch chocolate and Tahitian vanilla sundae sated our sugar cravings… Service was incredibly friendly and stayed comfortably away from the edges of overbearing, though the intimate atmosphere created a sense of disappointment when the night ended without a visit from the chief. (You have to squeeze by her and the open kitchen to get to the seating area in the rear.)
Rating: ***1/2 (out of 5)
Final Word: I'll definitely have to go back and try more items on the menu.
Listings: Zagat & NY Magazine
posted by Unknown at 7:57 AM
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