Interested in ramping the board activity up? Please register your interest here:
The purpose of this thread is to connect folks from this geo so they know 1) there is mutual interest in building up the board and 2) that if one start posting there will be others who join in at the same time, to avoid the ‘are there others here?’ syndrome.
You may say, well why not just start posting? Please do that too, but please comment your interest in this thread as well. The problem is that if interested user A post a review on the 1st. Interested User B sees the review on the 15th, doesn’t comment. Interested user C sees the review on the 30th, doesn’t comment. Users A, B, and C may all individually think that there is minimal interest in such a board.
But if users A, B, and C all express their interest in this thread and start talking around the same time, we can avoid the problem of ‘the illusion of lack of interest due to time lag in interested users coming onto the site.’
With this thread, trying to see how many NYC folks want to post about NYC but are deterred currently because they think the board is quiet.
I check the board frequently but haven’t contributed…from the CH version, I was put-off by the constant encomiums to EMP, Betony, et.al rather than Jim Leff’s original perspective on the off-beat, interesting, unusual. I also would like to see this board focus not just on restaurants but also on markets, neighborhoods, farmer’s markets…On CH, there were some excellent contributors focusing on Chinatown but beyond that, it was often ongoing repeat experiences at high-end places…Of course, I realize that those with money to burn (or an inability to cook for themselves) have every right to do what they please, after a while, the posts became tiresome.
I eat out a lot, so I’m more interested in restaurants than places selling ingredients for me to cook, but otherwise, I’m very much on your wavelength.
I was one of those who posted on CH about EMP and other upscale restaurants though by the time Betony opened and we began going there with some regularity, I had long since stopped posting on CH altogether. But it seems to me that there were always plenty of posts about moderately priced and cheap spots as well.
Though we’re not exactly in the category of “having money to burn,” and I do cook a lot, at this stage in our lives, i.e., retirement, Mr. RBI and I are extremely fortunate to be comfortable enough to afford upscale dining. So, no apologies from me for that. But we don’t eat out at that high level all the time. There are many moderately priced restaurants – at least by our standards – in our dining rotation, and a few of our favorite places offer bargain prix-fixes. We also enjoy pizza, burgers, and pastrami sandwiches. We don’t do much ethnic dining which is more my fault than Mr. RBI’s since he has way more eclectic food tastes than I do.
All that said, I’m interested in reading about all kinds of restaurants at all price points.
I always enjoyed your comments, Roz, and you always managed to capture the feel of the place by virtue of your prose and your photos.
I guess my hope would be for more comments about places (not just restaurants) that contribute to NYC’s food-life. For example, I recall reading about a place on the far West Side that combines peculiar but arresting spicing for chefs (and retail customers, too.) Where was it? Duh, I forgot…maybe someone knows…and this article from the WSJ about a Queens food maven brought to mind the Arthur Schwarz kind of obsessives who bring gusto to exploring the nooks and crannies of NYC’s gastronomic tableau.
I’d love to see more NYC chat but I tend to be more of a lurker than a poster - we have cut WAY back on eating out in the past few years for health reasons, and when we do eat out it’s mostly in Queens. I do still appreciate hearing about the latest and greatest in Manhattan, though, and not just in terms of restaurants - food shopping tips are also appreciated!
I agree that a food-related forum should include more than just restaurant-related posts.
The article you linked to is interesting. But as I’ve mentioned, I’m not the most adventurous eater, so the ethnic spots and foods described in the article are not for me. However, those kinds of places should be posted about for those who would find them appealing.
Whoa! Nice to know someone else remembers Arthur Schwartz, “The Food Maven.” I was a regular listener to his radio program and have several of his books.
Re: the place for spices. That would be Spice by Lior Lev Sercarz. Here’s the website. I noticed that in addition to his 11th Ave. shop, his spices are also sold at Dickson’s Farmstand in Chelsea Market and at Eataly.
With so many restaurants in NYC, one appreciates recommendations from a wide audience to find the gems. With all the different cuisines and neighborhoods, you need a team working on it.
Specialty shops, food trucks, hard to find ingredients are all subjects of interest.
