Aldea

I kicked off summer restaurant week this year with my first visit to Aldea, the small, elegant, Portugese-inspired restaurant of Chef George Mendes.  George, who was recently a contestant on Top Chef Masters Season 3, opened Aldea in 2009.  Only two years later he was awarded the coveted "Best New Chef" title from Food & Wine magazine.

Chef Mendes knew from a very early age that he wanted to become a chef.  He now sources fresh ingredients that are in season and builds a daily-changing menu at Aldea to showcase them.  Over the past three years Aldea has been named one of the most cutting edge restaurants in New York City today.  It this reputation which caused me to come in this afternoon.

While walking down 17th street the blue and white "Aldea" sign gives you a soothing welcome.  Once upon entering through the clear door the hostess greeted me and asked me where I'd prefer to sit.  To my surprise Aldea has an open kitchen, and now knowing that information, had no hesitation in saying I would love to sit at the dining counter overlooking it.  As she lead me to my seat I walked past Chef Mendes himself leaning over the bar making some phone calls.  It's always a good sign when you have the presence of the chef in the restaurant.

At first glance the restaurant evokes a feeling of warmth.  The blue and white color scheme stretches into the restaurant from front to back, and is said to be designed after the Iberian coastline.  Images of air, water, land, clouds, and wind bring you on the same journey Chef Mendes embarked on as a young man through that very coastline.  On this visit I also noticed that not many people were embarking on that journey.

Boqueria

Boqueria is a small Spanish tapas-style restaurant with two locations in NY.  I’ve eaten only at the Flatiron location, and having worked in the area for the past few years, I can tell you this restaurant is always packed.  If you are going to go, go early, as reservations aren’t accepted and the line is out the door as the night progresses.

The proprietor is Chef Seamus Mullen, who is not Spanish himself, but has worked his way around Spain and fell in love with Spanish cooking.  You may have heard of him as a contestant on the first season of “The Next Iron Chef”, on the Food Network.  Chef Mullen doesn’t spend too much time with the restaurants anymore, and now leaves it in the hands of Chef Marc Vidal, who is of Spanish background, and has been running Boqueria for the past year.   

After wanting to come here for years, I finally made my way in last week for lunch.  From the outside the restaurant was seemingly quiet, to the point I thought they were not even open that day, but that thought quickly changed as I walked in and saw every table was full.  Let me also mention, I walked in just 15 minutes after they opened.  The décor is very simple, with beige and dark brown colors running through the room, from the floors to the tables & chairs, and even the waitstaff uniforms.  Serrano hams hang by their legs in the window, and the bar area up front displays a variety of Spanish cured olives and cheeses.  

Bone marrow at Casa Mono

It really is amazing when you think about the NYC food scene.  With close to 25,000 restaurants, it is very hard not to find what you’re craving.  With new restaurants popping up all the time (close to 5000 in just 4 years), anything you can’t find will soon become available. 

So what’s my favorite dish in NYC?  It’s the “Roasted bone marrow with radishes”, on the menu at Casa Mono. 

Roasted bone marrow, pan con tomate, parsley and radish salad

Casa Mono is a small Spanish restaurant in Mario Batali’s huge Italian empire.  It has about ten tables, and a handful of bar stools overlooking an open kitchen, or a wine bar depending on which way you’re facing.  If you decide to try it out, I recommend going during lunch or off-peak hours between 3pm and 5pm, because the line is out the door once dinner starts.