United States

Highlights from wining and dining at Grant Achatz' Next Restaurant and The Aviary

We visited three 3-star Michelin restaurants in New York.  Le Bernardin was a clinical business-lunch affair where we were surrounded by suits in a no-nonsense atmosphere.  Per Se had wonderful service and offered French-American cuisine prepared with impeccable finesse.  We had plenty of expectations with both restaurants but took a bit of a chance on the third big dining experience ...

For New York’s finest hot dogs, you must go to Crif Dogs in the East Village. We found out about the Crif Dogs when Anthony Bourdain talked them up on his travel show The Layover.  You might well wonder just how good you can get a hot dog to taste?  Well, Crif Dogs pushes that envelope pretty damn far.  These ...

Thomas Keller is most renowned for his world famous Californian restaurant French Laundry.  It remains exceptionally exclusive and difficult to land a reservation.  I tried and I failed.  Per Se, its sister restaurant in New York, was a slightly easier proposition to get a table. You only have to call up at 9am local time, exactly four weeks out from ...

Chef Eric Ripert’s French seafood cuisine at Le Bernardin is some of the most highly decorated in the world.  Most recently, it was recognized as the 19th Best Restaurant In The World, in Restaurant Magazine‘s annual awards.  It has upheld a standard of excellence for an unprecedented thirty six years since it first opened in 1976 and is a permanent ...

I’m currently reading the memoirs of Roger Ebert, the famous film critic and one of my favourite writers.  I’m up to a chapter that is entirely dedicated to praising the Shake n’ Steak fast food chain. The Steakburger is a symphony of taste and texture.  Steak n’ Shake has always boasted “We grind all the select cuts – sirloin, porterhouse, ...