New York Dinners: Briciola, Gato, and Babbo

Our first night in Manhattan, we wander over to Briciola, on 51st Street, recommended by Jennifer as she had a memorable meal there earlier this year.  The place is packed, with a large crowd at the front door, but they hand us a glass of wine at the door and tell us that a large group is finishing up and it should only be a few minutes.  We wait as it it very cold outside the door and it is warm, inviting, smells really good inside, and they are very friendly and welcoming (and, the glasses of wine in our hands doesn't hurt).

Waiting at the bar (crowded)

Soon, we are seated at the family table in the dining room where we squeeze in and share the space, wonderful smells, convivial atmosphere, and great meal.

One table, shared by all

We are hungry, but pause to search the menu for octopus.  Success, they have two dishes!  We start with barbequed octopus, then an appetizer of octopus salad, accompanied bruschetta.   For entrees, we choose branzino and ravioli with spinach and mushroom.  Yum!  And, we eat family style, sharing it all.

Barbequed octopus

Octopus salad and bruschetta

Branzino, ravioli

We are challenged to top our first great dinner with our second dinner.  We've made a reservation at Gato, Chef Bobby Flay's Mediterranean restaurant on Lafayette Street, between Bleeker and Houston, and arrive early, but they seat us and we start again with barbequed octopus.  Yes!

Barbequed octopus

To accompany our meal, we order a trio of 8-layer potatoes, tomato and burrata, and eggplant.  What a great, complementary assortment.

 The trio

For the main act at Gato, we choose the steamed mackeral  in a saffron-tomato broth and charred beef in brown butter with broccoli rabe.

 Entrees

We truly enjoy the meal and make a reservation to come back to Gato for the next night, but Babbo, Mario Batali's flagship restaurant near Washington Square Park still calls.  We've tried a few times and have not been able to get a reservation (it's really small), but we don't give up.  We are walking by in the afternoon and stick our heads in to ask if there is any chance (we were ready to beg, but they give us good advice, which we shouldn't share because we want to go back and get in again.  DO NOT TELL ANYONE THIS SECRET!).  They tell us to come back early, say around 6, definitely before 7, and wait for a seat at the bar.  This sounds feasible, we do it, and have an incredible meal.

Babbo is beautiful.  It is intimate, with a warm, classic Italian ambiance.  The bar area has great seating both at the bar and at tables and booths and also brings an interesting people experience as we strike up conversations with those next to us.  We get the best seat in the house, on the end at the window in the bar.  Don't ask, don't tell!

 Main dining area

Our seat in the bar area (with a Manhattan and prosecco to start)

 Wonderful appetizer

For our entrees, we share papperdelle with wild boar and duck with braised red cabbage and juniper berries, in a vinagrette.  They divide the portions for us in the kitchen and serve the incredible meal. I've seen many of these dishes in Mario Batali's cookbook, Molto Italiano, and it's a fabulous experience to actually have them made his way.  The pictures don't give justice to this incredible meal!  Wow, Mario, please let us come back.

 Papperdelle with wild boar, duck leg and duck breast

 And, for desert, a cheese plate.  It doesn't get much better than that!

 Cheese plate

We have great New York meal experiences, but now, reality strikes, and it's time to go home and cook for ourselves for a while (but we take a little bit of New York home from Eataly, squid ink pasta, to savor the experience and make the transition back home a little softer).

Walking the High Line in New York

We walk over to the Standard Hotel to check out the ice skating (and potentially participate), but get sidetracked by the High Line, an elevated walking path on the West Side of Manhattan.  The High Line was originally opened for trains in 1934, travelling down the center of blocks to carry goods to and from Manhattan's largest industrial district.  The last train ran in 1980 and the argument about whether to demolish the elevated line or not ran for years in the courts.  In the early 2000s, an effort began to save and reuse the line, resulting in the High Line walking path, the first section of which opened in 2007.  Yes, the High Line is not a holiday experience, but it's a true New York experience! We walk from Times Square (47th street) down to 14th street and cut over to the Standard Hotel, at the lower end of the High Line, climb the stairs to the trail, and start walking north.

 Starting at the lower High Line, near 14th street

 The path continues along and through buildings

 Continuing more blocks north

 Art along the path

 "Smart Tree" by Nari Ward

About 30th street (16 blocks north from where we started), the High Line turns west and heads to the Hudson River, with New Jersey across the way.

 Looking toward the Hudson and New Jersey

We turn around at the Hudson and walk back the 16 blocks to the Standard Hotel and check out their rink.  It's really small (we knew that part) and only occupied by kids and their parents (we didn't know that part).  We pass on the skating.

Ice rink at the Standard Hotel

Inside the hotel, we're back in full holiday experience with extensive holiday decorations, and, oh no, Laura is taken hostage by the frozen holiday monster!

Laura (or monster) at risk

But, eventually Laura is released, after the monster pays me the reverse ransom, and we head into a holiday treat at the hotel, a Biergarten, full of happy people, good food, and hot drinks (the monster must have known that Laura needed something warm to drink or, maybe, expected us to bring one back, too bad).  We go for the hot rum and cider.  Unfortunately, we already had lunch, the bratwurst and hot pretzel plates look really good (and me, with all that ransom money to spend)!

Biergarten at the Standard Hotel

Warm again, we head out into the winter weather for our walk back to Times Square, stopping for a minute at Babbo Restaurant near Washington Square Park to beg for a  reservation and they tell us to come back early and try for a seat at the bar (good advice, as we'll see in a few hours, we've been trying to get into Babbo for years, but could never get a reservation).   As we continue toward Times Square, we run across a real treat, someone playing a piano in the middle of Washington Square Park, next to Babbo and Otto Enoteca.

Winter ad hoc concert in Washington Square Park

And, we continue "Walking in a Winter Wonderland" (no snow, but it is really cold).  

Playful Sculptures on Broadway and Lights of Times Square (A little bit of not Christmas)

The best way to explore a city (or at least our favorite) is to randomly walk around, sometimes with a goal, sometimes just in an interesting direction.  This trip is about a New York holiday experience, but we unknowingly wander into an outside museum on Broadway as we head south from Times Square.  That stretch of Broadway has been converted to accommodate walking space, sitting areas, and playful sculptures, titled "Fancy Animal Carnival" by Chinese artist Hung Yi.  We follow this outside exhibit along the several blocks of exhibits as we continue our exploration.

 

When staying in Time Square, we enjoy the crowds, the madness, the lights and the "ball" which is already set for the New Years celebration!  In the cold, it is great to experience much of this from inside, our favorite locations are the bar at the Marriott (how great is it sitting above Times Square, watching the world go by) and the bar at the Renaissance at the north end of the square, from which we can also watch all the lights and action.

 Times Square at night

It's good to be inside on this cold evening and watch it all go by (great people watching).