NEW YORK'S TOP 3 FRENCH BISTROS

Number 1:    RAOUL'S, Prince Street, Soho, New York, NY

Number 2:  MINETTA TAVERN,  Macdougal Street, Greenwich Village, NY NY

Number 3:  BALTHAZAR,  Spring Street, Soho, New York

NEW YORK'S BEST BISTRO "Raoul's"

Raoul's, is without a doubt New York's coolest and best Bistro. Yes, there's Baltahzar and Patis, which are quite good, if a little commercial and without the charm and total package that makes Raoul's in my book, the city's top Bistro. Total package, Raoul's has it. Maybe not the best food, but it is quite good with just about all the Bistro Classics either on the menu or showing up as specials. On the menu you'll find classic Frisee Sald, Oysters, Pate Maison, Duck, and the best Steak au Poivre in town.

 But although the food is good, if a bit expensive, what really makes Raoul's is its perfect Bistro atmosphere and ambiance, which not only includes the decor and great music they always play, it's also the clientele, this is the total ambiance package; the decor, music, crowd, and the wait staff. We love the decor, but as well, all through its history and as long as I've been going there 

(25 years) the music at Raoul's is the best in the city. The music at Raoul's is a perfect mix of Jazz, American Standards, Rock, and R&B  .. If the music is great, it goes a long way in creating a pleasant ambiance, whether you're in a restaurant, cafe, bar, cocktail lounge or wherever. If the music is awful as with the "Horrible Rap Crap" they play all over the place these days, it will completely destroy the atmosphere and ambiance .. That is unless you are one of the many millions of "tasteless morons" who happen to think that kind of NOISE "Hip Hop Rap" is good., 

So yes, as far as French Bistros in New York go, Raoul's stand atop the list as Gotham's Best. It's the Food, Ambiance, the Music, all ways great and devoid of any "Rap Crap" what-so-ever, and Thank God for that, and thank you Raoul's ...

Daniel Bellino Zwicke

NEW YORK BURGER WEEK And NEW YORK'S BEST BURGER

ONE BURGER BRACKET MATCH-UP THAT HAS THE WINNER of NY'S BEST BURGER

Shack Burger going up against Burger from Burger Joint, no competition! Shake Shack's Shack Burger Wins Hands Down, the taste and execution is Superior. In fact the Shack Burger is better than any other Burger in New York. Better than Minetta's Black Label Burger, better than 5 Guys, better than PJ Clarke's, better than Luger, and any other comers. It's The Best, the Shack burger from Shake Shack is made with top quality meat, the burger is just the right size, not too small and not too big (Bigger is Not Better Here) cooked to perfect, and super tasty. Nuff said!!!

DBZ

If You're a Betting Man, or lady, Bet on This One for NEW YORK'S TOP BURGER

It's "The SHACK BURGER" at SHAKE SHACK ... Hands Down!!! 

NEW YORK'S MOST CLASSIC BURGER JOINTS

PJ CLARKE'S , CORNER BISTRO, 21 CLUB

The BAR at The 21 CLUB

BEFORE DANIEL BOULOUD and His DB BURGER, "The 21 Burger" at NEW YORK'S Famed 21 CLUB was The WORLD'S FIRST LUXURY BURGER .. SINCE The 1950's

PJ CLARKE'S

STILL STANDING

AFTER ALL THESE YEARS

David Kreiger put it well on PJ Clarke's and their Burger,

"Although the burger does not land on many "best-of" lists anymore, it's still a classic. Check out the weekday lunch scene at P.J. Clarke's above. "

photo Daniel Bellino-Zwicke

CORNER BISTRO

As far as The Bistro Burger at the famed Corner Bistro which was voted for almost 30 Years New York's Top Burger goes, as David Kreiger said of PJ Clarke's Burger, "It won't land on many Best-Of Burger List anymore, but it's still a Classic. The Burger at Corner Bistro, and Dollar-For-Dollar New York's by-far Best Burger and Beer Deal, with Burgers only $6.50 and a mere $2.50 for a Mug of McSorley's Ale .. This is a Deal That Can't Be Beat, and No Place in New York Does ...

21 BURGER

The WORLD'S FIRST

LUXURY BURGER

THIS IS NEW YORK'S TRULY BEST BURGER

The SHACK BURGER

From SHAKE SHACK

Daniel Bellino Zwicke                                       NYC  April 19, 2013

CARBONE NOT ONE of THEM "GREAT RED SAUCE RESTAURANT"

"There may be great red-sauce joints out there, but Carbone is not one of them."

says Joshua David Stein in his Review on New York's Hottest new restaurant "CARBONE"  for The NEW YORK OBSERVER

THIS seems to be the Sentiment of many. Time will tell if Carbone IS or IS NOT  "One of The Great Red Sauce Restaurants"  in the mold of RAO'S, the old GINO'S Lexington Avenue, and ???

SINATRA DRINKS

FRANK SHIRLEY And DEAN

SINATRA McLAIN MARTIN

"DRINKIN IT UP"

SINTRA'S FAVORITE DRINK 

"JACK DANIELS on The ROCKS"

Dean "Scothch on The Rocks"
Shirley "We Don't Know"

The "BURGER JOINT" IS EXPANDING

The Burger Joint is expanding. The have finally opened another Burger Joint, their first expansion. The 2nd ever Burger Joint of the famed Burger Joint in The Parker Meridien Hotel on 57th Street Midtown 

New York.

We've been around for 10 years, and we really were the first guys to say that we were going to focus exclusively on burgers., says the Parker Corporation President Steven Pipes who owns The Burger Joint. And, he's right, these guys were the first to focus on a create an upscale burger place, devoted to the Hamburger. Kudos for that.

So, they've opened a Burger Joint in Greenwich Village on 8th Street between 6th and 5th Avenues. The first Burger Joint has been hugely popular, selling as many as 1,000 Burgers a day. Dam, that's a lot of Burgers! And people just love them.

Pipes says, the company plans on opening more Burger Joints around the country in places like Cambridge, Washington DC, and Chicago, and will sell licensing for Burger Joints abroad.  Sounds like a plan. Let's hope they don't get too big and ruin the good thing they are now. If they do, there will always be other little guys to come along, but we think they do well.

BURGER JOINT

In The BASEMENT

of The PARKER MERIDIEN HOTEL

57th STREET NEW YORK

ARTICHOKE PIZZA COUSINS To TV

The Pizza Empire Cousins (Cujinos) from Staten Island, New York getting a TV Show. Sal Basile and Fran Garcia of the wildly successful Artichoke Basile Pizza are the latest culinary guys to get their own show. Unlike many of the awful host of most of the Horrible Food Network, these guys have actually made something and are culinary professionals . They have a couple Pizzerias called Artichoke Basile Pizza. They opened Artichoke Basile Pizza on East 14th Street which was a huge instant success. Almost from day one, people have been lining up for the cousins Sal & Frans Pizza, and I do mean line-up literally, and day and night. Many celebs including Keith Richards, Gerad Butler, and Jim Carey are big fans of their Pizza. These guys work hard and put out a good product and the people love them. They have also opened a great sandwich shop that sells Pastrami and Roast Beef Sandwiches. Awesome!

Now the boys are getting their own TV Show on The Cooking Channel called Pizza Cuz. Sal and Fran will be traveling the country, checking out Pizzerias in Portland Oregon, Brooklyn (Pizza Capital of America), and Oakland, California and other spots around the country. Sounds like a great concept, as these guys know food, especially Pizza, they have personality, and passion, and this should be a winning combination on TV as it is in Fran and Sals establishments. We wish them well and are looking forward to the first episode. Buona Fortuna Sal and Fran.