Dining with The Conti Capponi

 

CONTI CAPPONI - BROTHERS SEBASTIANO & NICOLA CAPPONI

The COUNTS of VILLA CALCIANAIA

VILLA CALCINAIA

GREVE in CHIANTI

CONTI CAPPONI

DINING with The COUNTS

      I first met the Conti Capponi in the Spring of 1997, a year that turned out to be the greatest vintage ever for not just Italian Wine in Italy, but it was so remarkable that it was a great vintage for all of the best and most prestigious wine region in the World. The vintage was outstanding in Bordeaux, burgundy, Champagne, The Napa Valley, in Austria and Germany, in Piedmont, Montalcino, Campania, Tuscany (Chianti, Brunello), and the entire World. This was the year I made my first big wine trip to Italy, were I met Count Sebastiano Capponi and his brother Nicolo Capponi, and Giovanni Manetti of Fontodi in Panzano, who produced top notch Chianti and Super Tuscan Wines as well.

     I was in the process of opening the first Venetian Wine Bar (Bar Cichetti NYC), ever to exist in The United States, along with my partner in the venture, Tom T. I had conceived the idea after reading an article on Venice that mentioned the Bacari (Venetian Wine Bars) in the piece in The New York Times Travel Section. I got all hopped up reading the article, and made plans to go to Venice and investigate in the Spring of 1995. I booked a flight to Venice, and was on my way. Over the course of 8 days, I went into every Bacaro in Venice, eating Cichetti and drinking local wine, along with other wines of the Italian Peninsula. I studied the Bacari (Wine Bars) and how each of them did things : what types of cichetti they had, and how they served them,  the wine lists, decor, and every little detail involved in each separate wine bar. I took notes, both mentally and in my notebook. I learned quite a lot, and was armed with the knowledge to set my plan in motion.

     I made a business plan for the Bacaro that I wanted to open in New York. I met Tom T. at an event at the players club in New York. It was a Black Tie Event, honoring comedian / actress Carroll Burnett. It was quite the event. I met Tom, and we took a liking to each other, and somehow my plans to open a Venetian Wine Bar in New York came up. Tom loved the idea, and said, “Let’s get together and talk about this further,” and so we did. We decided to open the place together, and so this was how one-thing-lead-to-the other, and we ended up being invited to Villa Calcinaia to meet the two Italian Counts, The Conti Capponi, Sebastiano and Nicolo Capponi, aka Conti Capponi.

     The meeting was arranged by our friend Olga, who knew the two Noblemen Flroentine Brothers, Sebastiano and Nicola. Olga had a camera shop, just feet away from the famed Ponte Vecchia Bridge of Florence, and was just a block away from The Palazzo Capponi on the other side of the bridge from Olga Shop. A few months before Tom and his girlfriend Kate were in FLorence and met Olga when they went into her store to buy some film. They struck up a conversation and became friends. And so once, it happened that Tom and I were going to open a Venetian Wine Bar, and we were all taking another trip to Italy to do business, and explore more about Italian Food & Wine, restaurant, and wine bars, Olga told Tom about the Conti Capponi who owned Villa Calcinaia, and if we wanted to visit their wine estate in Greve, the Villa Calcianaia. And so we did.

    Another friend of ours in New York, Jean Franco who was from Florence and was the Maitre’d at our favorite Italian Restaurant “Novita,” was friends with the owner of Fontodi WIne Estate in Panzano, where Jean Franco arrange a meeting for us to meet Mr. Manetti, and visit the Fontodi Wine Estate.

     At the time we went on this trip, I didn’t know any proprietors of wine estates in Italy. Once I opened Bar Cichetti, and the Italian Wine Community saw what I was doing, they all wanted to meet me, to taste their wines, and visit their wine estates, any time I desired. This was wonderful and quite a revelation. Anyway, lets go to the day in question. The day we dined with the Conti Capponi.

     It was arrange that we would meet one of the brothers, Nicola Capponi at The Palazzo Capponi adjacent to The Ponte Vecchio. Olga went inside to look for Nicola. A few minutes later, out came Olga with the Conti Cappone Nicola. She introduced him to Tom, Maurat, and I. “How do you do,” said Nicola Capponi as we shook hands. He had an aristocratic English accent. I felt as though I was meeting Prince Charles. We had two cars. Maurat went in the Fiat Panda with Nicola. We had a  driver, and Tom, Olga, and myself were in the Mercedes with driver, following Nicola in the Fiant down to the town of Greve in Chianti, and to the Villa Calcinaia, the Capponi’s family wine estate, that had been producing wine in Greve for almost 500 years.

     We left Florence, we hopped onto the SR222 ancient road, the Chiantigiana and made our way to Chianti Classico and The Villa Calcinaia in Greve. The ride was enchanting, arriving into the beautiful rolling hills of Chianti, dotted with Castles, stone farm houses, and a patchwork of Sangiovese Grape Vines, row after row, Olive Groves,Cypress Trees, and other local flora. Seeing the rows of Grape Vines and Olive Trees, I was in seventh heaven. For this is one of the most beautiful spots in all of Gods Good Earth.

   We turned off the main road and onto the driveway leading up to the Villa. Again I was astonished as the drive, just like you see in the movies, was lined with Great Cypress Trees on both sides of the driveway. It was incredible.

    We arrived at Villa Calcinaia, and again I was astonished. It was beautiful, old, and grand. Outside, Nicola’s brother Sebastiano was waiting for us. Olga made the introductions, and so I met Sebastiano Capponi. What an honored. I have known Sebastiano for almost 25 years now, seeing him many times in New York and at the Villa Calcinaia as well. We went inside, at the doorway that lead into the kitchen where there was an open hearth fire, and the cook (a lady) was cooking, and preparing our meal. Wow?

   Nicola took us on a tour of the Villa , first leading us down the hall, he said “This is Alibaba,” as he led us into the room were large Terracotta Urns were filled with Olive Oil from the Capponi Estate. Nice. Nicola took us into another room, and said, “This is ou 300 year old Mother.” The mother being a gelatinous film that you pour wine over to turn it into vinegar. And the Capponi’s have one that has been kept alive for 300 years. Needless to say, their Chianti Wine Vinegar is amazing. We would try some letter when we’d have lunch with the two Counts.

    After seeing the Olive Oil Urns  (Alibaba) and the 300 Year Old Mothers, Nicola took us into the room where a couple tons of Trebbiano Grapes were hanging on slats to dry out, to make Tuscany’s famed Vin Santo Wine. Villa Calcinaia’s is one of Tuscany's best, and we just love it.

    We were then led into a room with many large Slovenian Oak Cask filled with aging Sangiovese for making Chianti wine. Nicola is quite theatrical, and he didn’t disappoint telling a dramatic story, and telling us about the CHianti and the Wine Theif he used to take some wine out of the large oak cask for us to taste. “Wow,” this was my first time doing what si know in the wine world as a “Barrel Sampl,” tasting wine that is aging in wooden cask out of the barrel to see how they taste at any particular time during the aging process. And I was doing it at a renowned Chianti Wine Estate, being served by the Noble Conti Capponi  Nicola. I couldn't believe my great fortune. Again, “I was in 7th Heaven”

   After touring the Villa Calcinaia Cellars, Nicola took us outside to show us the Herb Garden and some Sangiovese Vines, and Olive Tree Groves of the estate. Again, “Wow”

     We then went back inside the castle and were led into the dining room. “Wow, Wow, & Wow? I was going to have lunch with the two Noble Brothers, the Conti Capponi, Sebastiano and Nicola. We all sat down at a beautiful table in the dining room. The lunch was wonderful, drinking several vintages of Capponi Chianti, as we dined on a lovely Antipasto Misti of homemade Salami, Tuscan Pecorino, Olives, and Crostini Toscano. We drank the most recent vintage Chianti of Villa Calcainaia. After the antipasto, we had Pici Pomodoro (Pasta w/ Tomato Sauce), and drank more Chianti.

    The main course was a delicious Roast Chicken with Potatoes, and Chianti Reserva that was absolutely wonderful. We finished the meal with  Villa Calcinaaia Vin Santo and Biscotti, that was one of the most magnificent pairings imaginable. “Wow? What a meal?” , Needless to say, “It was the most memorable meals of my entire life. One I shall never forget. Thank Goodness I do have one nice picture of the meal. It is of me, in the dining room of Villa Calcinaia. “I wish I had more.” Thank God I do have at least that one.

    We finished lunch, thanked the brothers for such a wonderful time, and we bid then adieu. We hopped in the car, and made our way to Panzano. We’d meet Giovanni Manetti, nibble on Salami, and taste their amazing wines. The wines of Fontodi : Chianti, Chianti “Vigne del Sorbo,” Flaccinella, and Vin Santo. 

    “What a day?”

Daniel Bellino Zwicke

January 1, 2025

Me at VILLA CALCINAIA

GREVE in CHIANTI

"LUNCH with The COUNTS"

"Wish I had a BETTER PICTURE"

With CONTI SEBASTIANO CAPPONI

MYSELF & GIOVANNI MANETTI

NEW YORK 2024

CHIANTI

CONTI CAPPONI CALCINAIA CHIANTI

BOOKS by DANIEL BELLINO

DANIEL BELLINO has authored SUNDAY SAUCE, La TAVOLA, Mangia Italiano,

SINATRA SAUCE, The RAGU BOLOGNESE COOKBOOK, Got Any Kailua ?

And POSITANO The AMALFI COAST Travel Guide - Cookbook

AMAZON.com

SUNDAY SAUCE

AMERICA'S FAVORITE ITALIAN COOKBOOK

AMAZON.com

The Brooklyn Bridge NYC

 

The BROOKLYN BRIDGE

Painting Copyright 2021 by Bellino

The BROOKLYN BRIDGE - A Brief History

The Brooklyn Bridge is a suspension/cable-stay hybrid bridge in New York City that connects Manhattan and Brooklyn. It is one of the oldest suspension bridges in United States (completed in 1883) and a first steel-wire suspension bridge in the world.

Brooklyn Bridge was designed by John Augustus Roebling. While conducting some of the last measuring across the East River ferry crushed his foot against the piling. HIs foot had to be amputated but he got tetanus from it, fell into a coma and died from tetanus 3 weeks after the amputation and just few days after he placed his son Washington Roebling in charge of the building the bridge. Construction began on January 3, 1870. First step was building of solid foundations for the bridge. That was achieved by using “caissons”, closed wooden boxes that were placed under water and filled with compressed air that allowed workers to dig the riverbed. Problem with caissons is a danger of getting so-called “caisson disease” - a decompression sickness that appears in construction workers when they leave compressed atmosphere to fast and enter normal atmosphere. One of the first victims of caisson disease was Washington Roebling, which left him paralyzed and bedridden, so his wife, Emily Warren Roebling had to step in and spend next 11 years as his assistant and supervisor of the construction of the bridge.

On May 24, 1883, Brooklyn Bridge was opened for public. Thousands of people were present and the opening ceremony as well as many ships. American president Chester A. Arthur and New York Mayor Franklin Edson crossed the bridge from the New York side to Brooklyn side where Brooklyn Mayor Seth Low greeted them to cannon fire in celebration of the opening. Washington Roebling was not able to attend ceremony so President Chester A. Arthur visited Roebling at his home shook hands with him. Nevertheless, Roebling held a banquet at his home on that day, in celebration of the opening of the bridge. On a first day after opening, some 1.800 vehicles and 150.000 people crossed the bridge. First one to cross the bridge was Emily Warren Roebling.

At the time when constriction was finished, Brooklyn Bridge was the longest bridge in the world with total length of 1825 meters. It stayed longest until 1903. Its cost was $15.5 million and 27 lives was lost during construction. On 30 May 1883, mere six days after the bridge was opened, a rumor spread that Brooklyn Bridge will collapse. That rumor cased stampede in which caused some twelve people to be trampled and killed. To remove rumors that the bridge is not stable (and to promote his circus at the same time), P. T. Barnum led 21 elephants across the bridge on May 17, 1884.

At the time when the bridge was constructed, there were no conditions to test aerodynamics of the bridge (tests of aerodynamics started in 1950s) but, luckily, there was no need for them. John Augustus Roebling designed the bridge six time stronger than it is needed and with that assured that it will last.

BROOKLYN BRIDGE Tee Shirt

BROOKLYN BRIDGE NOTEBOOK / JOURNAL

BROOKLYN BRIDGE COFFEE MUG

SALE !

Design by Bellino

.

Homemade Pizza and Dough Recipe

Make Pizza at Home

"Yes You Can" !

PIZZA

    

Italian all over Italy, as well as their Italian-American cousins in America,love to make this tasty homemade pan pizza at home. It’s absolutely delicious, and a lot easier to make than you’d think. This is the basic recipe for a Pizza with Tomato & Mozzarella, and you can add other toppings like; Sausage, Pepperoni, Mushrooms, and / or Sweet Peppers if you like. You can even make some delicious Rosemary Focaccia by eliminating the tomato and mozzarella, and adding fresh Rosemary instead. Once you know how to make this basic pizza, you can do a lot of things with this recipe. so give it a shot. Make it a few times and you’ll become a pro, and a hit at the Friday Night Pizza Party, or anytime at all. Buon Apettio!

Enjoy.

Ingredients for the Dough :

1 packet Dry Yeast (2 ¼ teaspoons)

1 teaspoon Sugar

1 cup Warm Water  (about 110 degrees)

3 cups Bread Flour

2 tespoons Kosher Salt (or Sea Salt)

1 Tablespoon Olive Oil for dough & more for pan

You will need a Food Processor to make this dough.

Place the water, Sugar, and Yeast in a small bowl, stir it a little, then let it rest at room temperature until it starts to foam (about 10 minutes).

If your food processor has a plastic dough hook use that. If it doesn’t, then insert the metal cutting blade onto your processor.

Add the Flour and Salt to the food processor and pulse for 2 seconds.

Add the water / yeast mixture and 1 tablespoon of Olive Oil to the processor.

Turn the processor on and let it run until the dough starts to form a ball, and is pulling away from the processor bowl. Then turn the processor on again, for exactly 30 seconds and stop.

Get a large glass or ceramic bowl and lightly coat the whole inside with some Olive Oil. Place the dough in the bowl and move it around so it gets coated completely with olive oil. If you need it, add a bit more olive oil.

Cover the bowl with plastic wrap, and leave the dough to rise for one hour, in a draft-space. Usually somewhere on the kitchen counter is fine.

After one hour to 1 hour & 15 minutes, your dough should have risen to double its original size. The dough is ready ro roll out and make pizza.

PIZZA TOPPING :

A jar of Italian Passata di Pomodoro (Tomato Sauce)

Olive Oil

Sea Salt

½ pound whole milk Mozzarella Cheese (Polly-O)

¼ cup grated Pecorino Cheese

8 Basil Leaves, torn by hand

Note : Passata di Pomodro is puree of Italian Tomatoes, aka Tomato Sauce. I recommend getting a good quality Italian product like, Mutti, or anything labeled San Marzano for best results.

MAKING THE PIZZA

You will need a half sheet pan (16.5” x 11.5” ) to make the Pizza.

Turn your oven on to 400 degrees.

Place 2 tablespoons of Olive Oil in the sheet-pan, and spread with your fingers so the whole bottom surface of the pan has a thin coat of oil.

Remove your dough from the bowl and place it in the center of the sheet-pan. Pussh the dough down with your hand, and push and stretch the dough until it forms into the size of the pan, and is completely covering the bottom of the pan.

Cover with plastic wrap and let the dough rest inside the pan for 10 minutes.

Take a spoon and spread enough of the tomato passata (tomato sauce) over most of the pizza dough, leaving a half inch around all sides without tomato, as a border that pizzas always have. 

Drizzle a couple tablespoons of Olive Oil over the pizza. Sprinkle a little Salt over the whole pizza. 

Sprinkel the grated Pecorino Romano Cheese evenly over the whole pizza. 

Evenly spread all the torn Basil over the pizza. 

Then evnenly spread shredded mozzarella evenly over the pie. Don’t over do it with the cheese. There should be spots where ther is just tomato and no cheese over it. You don’t want the cheese to completely cover the pied or it will be out of balance.

Place the Pizza in the oven and bake for about 16 to 20 minutes, until the crust looks nicely browned. Serve and enjoy.

Note : Naturally you can add other toppings to this basic tomato pizza, such as Pepperoni, Sausage, or Mushrooms, whatever you like.

You can make tasty basic focaccia by not adding the tomato and cheese as the toppings on the dough. Instead, add a little more olive oil, some extra Kosher or Sea Salt sprinkled on top. Then add some chopped fresh Rosemary on top, throw it in the oven and bake, and you’ll have some tasty Rosemary Foccacia.

RECIPES From My SICILIAN NONNA

AMAZON.com

CAPONATA - ZUPP -PASTA

ARANCINI (Rice Balls)

And More ... 

Sicilian Pizza 

.

.

NY Times Pete Wells 2 STARS Cherche Midi & Slams McBride

Cherche Midi

On The Bowery

Is Keith McNally's Latest New York Outpost

Pete Wells, New York Tiems Food Critic gives Keith McNally's latest New York Bistro 2 Stars and Slams Balthazar's Food under Chef Shane McBride as being Mundane! Mentioning one restaurant while doing a review of another is not totally unheard of, however it's not a normal practice is Pete Wells knocks the food at Balthazar as being Mundane under Chef Shane McBrides helm ...

BALTHAZAR JUMPS !!!

The MAESTRO

KEITH McNALLY

BRUNELLO REESES & ROCK N ROLL in GREENWICH VILLAGE

  Greenwich Village Newport Steak, French & Italian Wine Dinner on Thompson Street in "The Village."  My buddy Chris B. and I had another nice little Wine-Dinner this past Sunday with his girlfriend Maria ... It was quite the dinner ... We had some really nice wine to drink, with cheese a Steak-House Salad, and the famed Newport Steaks of Greenwich Village ... Chris gave me a call on Wedsday and said we where on for dinner this coming Sunday Night (Jan. 12, 2014) .. We were both quite phyched for a nice dinner and the prospect of drinking some great wines and The Newports, our favorite steaks. "A little Cote de Beaune" Chris uttered, immitating Miles in the greatest wine movie of all-time "Sideways" And so it was to be "a little Cote de Beuane" from Michele Bouzereau  2001 and  Sancere from Les Mont Damnes 2012, both wines quite lovely and very good examples of their prospective zones ... Chris always picks out nice White Burgundy's and the Bouzwereau was no exception, it was wonderful ... Anyway, let me get back to the Newports and the order of things as concerned the dinner which was awesome as usual, and maybe a bit more awesome than usual ...  So Friday I called Chris and asked hwo many we were gonna be for dinner as the butcher shop is closed Sunday and I was going to get the steaks on Saturday for Sunday .  We agreed on the 3 of us so I was set with the number of Newport Steaks I needed to pick up ... Oh yes, and the butcher shop in question was none other than the butcher shop where the Newport Steak was invented by one Italian-Butcher named Jack Ubaldi way back in 1947 ..  Jack wanted to able to sell his cuts of Tri-Tip Sirloin more readily, so instead of selling 



  Our THREE NEWPORTS From FLORENCE MEAT MARKET,  GREENWICH VILLAGE continued Tri-Tip in one piece which didn't sell as well, Jack cut the Tri-Tip Sirloin into 3-4 individual Steaks from the one triangular cut of beef .. He named the Steak after the Nike-like logo on a box of Newport Cigarettes and the rest is history as they say .. Florence Prime Meat Market is still open on Jones Street in Greenwich Village and that's where I get my Newports, either there or at Pino's Prime Meats on Sullivan Street which cuts a Great Newport and makes tasty home-made Italian Sauages as well .. Pino's is great, but I prefer and give an edge to Florence Market as they are the originator of the Newport and they look of the shop is much "Cooler" with all its original old fixtures ... 



OUR LINEUP of WINES For The NIGHT: 

BURGUNDY, SANCERE, BRUNELLO & SAUTERN


   

NEW PORT STEAKS In The PAN




NEWPORTS COOKING on 2nd SIDE[/caption] So I go to Florence and ask them to cut me 3 nice Newport Steaks .. One of the butchers goes to the walk-in (Refrigerator) and comes out with a nice fresh looking Beef Tri-Tip .. He puts it down on the thick wooden butcher block and starts trimming the tri-tip of some of its fat .. He then cuts me off three nice 2 1/2" thick Newports and wraps them in butchers paper .. The counter lady tells me it $18.99 for the Newports (about $6.50 a piece for 3 Prime Steaks). "A Bargain." I pay the lady, get my steaks and walk the 3 blocks back to my apartment, where I put my Newports in the frig to the next day.



The Hearts of Romain with Tomato Onion & Bleu-Cheese Dressing 
"A STEAK HOUSE SALAD"

So I get to Chris's house and as I'm climbing the stairs to his apartment I can hear some great Jazz playing . It was Dexter Gordon and quite fine . I was tired from walking up 5 flights of stairs, so I told Chris to crack open a bottle of wine, "I need to relax." Chris cracked open the Cote de Beaune Bouzereau, and it was quite nice and everything you'd expect from a nice mid-road White Burgundy. We both loved it .. Chris broke out some nice Brie Cheese and we sipped the wine, ate cheese and relaxed listening to some nice tunes before I started on the dinner; prepping the salad, the mushrooms, potatoes, and onions for our dinner to come ..

..
FLORENCE MEAT MARKET GREENWICH VILLAGE "HOME of THE NEWPORT STEAK"

Learn How To Make GREAT STEAKS, SUNDAY SAUCE MEATBALLS and More in SUNDAY SAUCE When Italian-Americns Cook by DANIEL BELLINO ZWICKE

 

NEWPORTS on The PLATE With MUSHROOMS ROAST POTATOES


REESE'S PEANUT BUTTER CUPS "THE PERFECT DESSERT"
 by DANIEL BELLINO ZWICKE
  LEARN HOW To MAKE GREENWICH VILLAGE NEWPORT STEAKS

CLICK HERE For SUNDAY SAUCE

SUNDAY SAUCE alla SINATRA alla CLEMENZA "RECIPES in SUNDAY SAUCE by DANIEL BELLINO ZWICKE"

New York 5 Best Burgers

SCHNIPPER'S Is # 1

SCHNIPPER CHEESEBURGER

JG MELON

Upper East Side Manhattan

JG MELON BURGER ROCK at SECOND BEST

"Some Would Say First. Even Me"

SHAKE SHACK BURGER # 3

"MANY SAY IT'S THE BEST"

We Wouldn't Disagree, But You Gotta Pick Some Kind

of Order .. Everyone Has Their Own Choices, and These Are Ours

"GUESS WHAT? We LOVE THEM ALL, and FEEL THEY'RE 

ALL # 1 The BEST, or DAM CLOSE To IT" !!!

The LUGER BURGER at PETER LUGER

The WORLD'S MOST FAMOUS STEAK HOUSE

Is a STEAL at Just $11.95

GET With THEIR FAMOUS BACON

"IT ROCKS" !!!

THE LUGER BURGER

With LUGER BACON & CHEESE

"DAM THAT BABY Is TASTY" !!!

photo DANIEL BELLINO-ZWICKE

MINETTA TAVERN

GREENWICH VILLAGE NEW YORK

MINETTA BURGER

TAKE The "MINETTA BURGER Over The

More Famous BLACK LABEK BURGER ...

"IT'S BETTER" !!!

The MINETTA BURGER TAHT IS !!!

And IT'S CHEAPER To BOOT !!!

"TRUST Us On THIS ONE" !!!

..............................................................

NEW YORK'S 5 BEST BURGERS

1.  SCHNIPPER'S

2.  JG MELON

3.  SHAKE SHACK

4.  PETER LUGER

5.  MINETTA TAVERN

New York's 5 Best Burgers? Wow! Who are they? Who right? Who's Not? Yes, it's not easy, and who's to say who is the best, who's not, and that they are thee authority and decider of who is # 1 and Who's Not? Well, there are any number of people, magazines, newspapers, and other intitties doing articles, stories and what-not on the Best Burger or Best Burgers in town and around the country. It's a big and popular subject.

Well, this is just ours. Not seeing that his is the definative list and list to end all. It's just ours. And of these 5, we ourselves what put any number at the Top of The Heep, they're all great burgers.

THE SKINNY On EACH

SCHNIPPERS

Schnippers is awesome. They came on the scene a couple years ago. They didn't make all that much of a splash in the first year or year 1/2, but now? They've Splashed, and in quite a big way. They just opened their 3rd location in Manhattan and seems like their expansion will lead to any number across the country, alla Shake Shack. Spaeaking of Shake Shack, Schnipper's opened their first place less than 200 feet from Shake Shacks hugely famous Flagship Burger Joint (and 1st) at Madison Park at 23rd Street and Madison Avenue.

Anyway, the Schnipper Burger is awesome. The Schnipper Burger is a classic straight forward burger. It's 5 ounces, fresh beef (never frozen), cooked to perfection and seasoned perfectly. We love it, and think it taste exactlt as a burger should, with an emphasis on the tasty beef patty.

JG MELON

JG Melon is one great old institution up on 3rd Avenue at 74th Steet on New York's Upper East Side. The Melon is a cool classic old school bar, the kind that just can't be duplicated. Great natural vibe, and un-contived. And guess what? they've got one of New York top burgers, if not thee # 1 tops .. Some say, they are the best. Their Burger, and we wouldn't give them a fight on that. We love em too, and almost picked them for the # 1 spot on our list. What do you think.

SHAKE SHACK

A Great Burger! Some say the Best. We did too for some time, but we feeel that Schnipper's has edged them out. Though we wouldn't gie anyone a hard time if they Shake Shack is # 1 ... They're Buger is Classic, just the right size, seasoned and cooked to beautiful tasty perfection. We just Love Em.

PETER LUGER

The Luger Burger is awesome. It's quite tasty, and makes our top 5 list for it's tastieness and the fact that you can go into this Mecca of Steakdom and get a Burger for just 12 Bucks .. But you probably won't. You gonna want some cheese on that $1.50 and the Bacon ($4.25) is a "Must Have" at Lugers. If you go for Fries (Only $1.95), your burgers gonna cost you about $19.00

But hey, "It Peter Luger" and that's a bargain. 

You can only get The Luger Burger at Lunch, and we just love hopping over the Williamsburg Bridge every 2 or 3 months to get one. You will too.

MINETTA TAVERN

You can't beat the ambiance and History of Minetta Tavern .. This Historical Old Greenwich Village Haunt is cool as can be. And you'll feel you are too once and if you secure a seat inside. The master of the restaurant business in New York, Keith McNally rescued this great old joint, spruced it up just a bit, retaining its wonderful origianl decor, placed a couple great chefs at the helm and opened her up to rave reviews. The menu is French Bistro Steak House, with big juicy Steaks, Bistro Classics, and a pair of New York's Hottest and most loved burgers; The Famed Black Label Burger ($24.00) and The Minetta Burger ($16.00) .. The Black Label Burger is by far the most famous of the two, made with the Black Label Blend of Dry Aged Beef from famed New York Butcher Pat La Freida .. Dry Aged Beef may be great for Steaks, such as the ones so famous at Peter Luger and Minetta Tavern, but we feel that this beef doesn't translate so well to Burgers ... We prefer the Minetta Burger. How bout you?

LEARN How To MAKE The Perfect BURGER

in

GOT ANY KAHLUA?

Its

The BIG LEBOWSKI COOKBOOK

CLICK HERE For The DUDE !