Chow Down in Lower Manhattan, there is an immense range of delicious spots to frequent. According to Explorer In Chief Josh Katz, there are five restaurants where you go as soon as humanly possible.
Caravan Uyghur Cuisine
Manhattan’s only Uighur restaurant is located in the heart of Lower Manhattan. Their noodle dishes (above) strike the perfect balance between exotic spice profiles and hearty comfort food. (200 Water Street)
Temple Court
Tom Colicchio’s excellent farm-to-table, American-style restaurant is set within the beautiful atrium and cozy corners of The Beekman Hotel. (5 Beekman Street)
Tom Colicchio Photo by Philippe Reynaud
Temple Court IG
Bao Bao + Suspenders
Bao Bao makes delicious, authentic Chinese food out of an endearingly small restaurant with limited seating. Their pho is fantastic. Immediately next door you’ll find Suspenders, a beloved local watering hole that’s been open for 33 years. For a wonderful experience, take advantage of either spot’s outdoor seating and combine the two. Just ask nicely first! (106 Greenwich Street)
CUT by Wolfgang Puck
Their menu is creative, the presentation is artful, and the meals are scrumptious. While most steakhouses seem stuck in the 19th century, CUT has designed both their menu and interiors with a modern twist, tastefully balanced with a respectful nod to tradition. (99 Church Street)
Makina Cafe
Makina Cafe serves up incredible Ethiopian cuisine from their food truck in Governors Island. While I love the family-style spreads of typical Ethiopian fair, this place has perfected the personal injera plates full of delectable sides like miser (red lentils), Gomen (collard greens), and Tikel Gomen (cabbage with carrots and potatoes). This place is an unbeatable start to a delightful day. (Governors Island)
After feasting and partying with friends on Christmas Eve, many want to go out for a nice meal on Christmas Day, whether it be prior to opening presents or after. Downtown Manhattan contains some of the best restaurants that’ll give your palette the merriest Christmas ever.
This Downtown New York City staple will be opened on Christmas Day which is such a delight because what better place to be at with your family on this special holiday? Both the Meatpacking and Tribeca locations will offer their brunch menu. Of course, their fluffy pancakes, finger-licking good fried chicken, as well as some holiday goodies such as Swedish pancakes with lingonberry, eggnog pie, and roasted duck cranberry hash will be served from 8 AM to 4 PM.
Photo Credit: Cititournyc.com
73 Gansevoort Street, 212-219-0666 and 120 Hudson Street, 212-219-0666
Strut over to this quaint Michelin-starred East Village restaurant. A one of a kind three-course Christmas menu will be offered and is priced at $82 per person. You’ll have the opportunity to order dishes such as persimmon with scallop, amaranth, calamansi, the “Pig Out” with Berkshire pork and spicy peanut noodles as well as beignets with goat’s milk caramel on Christmas Day!
This steakhouse brought to you by the prominent butchers at Smith & Wollensky and Quality Meats will be opened on Christmas Day and will showcase a Chinese family-style dinner for $48 a person. Come on down and have some Dim Sum, Mott Street “Hot” Chicken, Beef Short Rib Char Siu, some Crab Cake Fried Rice, and so much more.
A fantastic fact about Harold’s is that it’ll be offering an A La Carte menu on Christmas Day. The most amazing part is that there is no need for a hotel reservation to take advantage of this! This special Christmas menu will feature a tortellini stew with squash, kale, and beans, a roast Christmas duck à l’orange, prime rib, Parker House rolls, and a delectable Gingerbread Cake.
This LES hot-spot is offering a prix fixe for $125 a person. The Christmas Day menu will feature dishes such as the Bourguignon, grilled oysters with garlic and parsley, Tuna Tartare, the restaurant’s prestigious Chicken with dijon and chanterelles, Steak Au Poivre with green peppercorns, and so much more. Make it one of the finest Christmases ever by dining at Dirty French!
This Jean-Georges seafood locale is doing it up by offering the typical three-course prix-fixe for $108 per person. This menu is featuring some favorites from the regular menu, such as the Faroe Island salmon, longevity noodles, warm octopus and mozzarella. Seasonal desserts such as the special buche de noel will be offered as well. Of course, you cannot go wrong with some of the best views in the house!
Tom Colicchio does it again this holiday season at Temple Court. Located in The Beekman, Temple Court will offer a three-course prix fixe menu for $125 a person. This glamorous menu will give you the option to choose holiday favorites such as the Waldorf salad, potato gnocchi, and seared foie gras to begin your feast. Main dishes such as the Strip Loing and Duck a l’Orange will be offered. As for dessert, a Honey Custard Tart and Gingerbread Yule Log are two out of the four options that’ll provide you with that sweet ending.
Downtown had the pleasure of interviewing Guitar Mash’s musical director Mark Stewart to preview last year’s event at City Winery. After hearing how well the event did, and that the 5th Annual edition of Guitar Mash was booked for a Dec. 11 return to City Winery, it was obvious that another feature had to be done by Downtown.
Taking place from 12:00 PM to 3:30 PM, this year’s lineup not only features Mark, but also singer/songwriter Dar Williams, newgrass pioneer Sam Bush, blues master Bill Sims Jr., singer/songwriter (and Sting backing musician) Jo Lawry, Steely Dan sideman Jon Herington, singer/songwriter Joseph Arthur, and the voice of the Tunisian revolution, Emel. Prior Guitar Mash events have featured the likes of Kaki King, The Roots’ “Captain” Kirk Douglas, Wilco’s Nels Cline, Living Colour’s Vernon Reid, and The Patti Smith Band’s Lenny Kaye.
Q&A with conducted with the aforementioned Mark Stewart, Jo Lawry, Emel, and event producer Rebecca Weller over e-mail, as arranged by GreenHouse Publicity’s John Seroff. Tickets to “The Best Concert You Ever Headlined” can be purchased through Eventbrite, while more info on Guitar Mash itself can be found at www.guitarmash.com.
Jo Lawry: I was invited by the wonderful Mark Stewart, who I met when we toured together with Sting and Paul Simon.
Emel: They got in touch with me about two months ago, I think. I hadn’t heard of such a thing before. It sounded funny to me at first to be performing while people will be jamming, but it’s just wonderful. I think it’s a very cool concept.
What is your favorite part of working with Guitar Mash?
Mark Stewart: Everyone playing and singing together.
Rebecca Weller: Ear to ear smiles. Great songs are irresistible. And I LOVE when someone who came without a guitar one year, comes back the next with an instrument in hand.
Jo Lawry: Well, I can’t say for sure yet, as it’s my first time! But the house band is mostly made up of guys I know and love, like David Cossin and Rob Schwimmer, so I’m really looking forward to playing with them again. And Mark Stewart is able to turn anything into a magical party!
Emel: Interacting with people. We never connect enough with each other, the musicians as well as the crowd and with the live-streaming people from all over the world!
What else is coming up for you besides Guitar Mash?
Jo Lawry: I’m currently deep in the thick of making my third solo album, and I’m running a PledgeMusic campaign for that, which is super-fun, and is giving me a chance to engage a lot more with my audience. I’m also going to flee the New York winter in a few weeks for my homeland of Australia, to enjoy the summer there, to hang out with my awesome family and do a few shows.
Emel: I will be releasing my new album Ensen on Partisan Records on Feb. 24. An album with very modern sound experimentations, marrying berber and north african inspirations and percussions with electronic and cinematic soundscapes. I co-produced it with four different collaborators, such as Iceland’s Valgeir Siguròsson. The release party will be held on the release day at Joe’s Pub and a U.S. tour will start in May.
When not busy with music, how do you like to spend your free time?
Mark Stewart: Walking and digging — what is actually going on? Swimming, too.
Jo Lawry: We just adopted some stray kittens, so they are providing a huge distraction from all the musical and non-musical things that I should be doing! Also, I have my own backyard for the first time in my life, so I am getting way into gardening. Also, I like to needlepoint. Yes, I am aware of how much like a grandma those last two make me sound.
Emel: Discovering great visual art, whether in real galleries or on Instagram. Watching independent movies — I saw an excellent one recently, two trains running about the parallel of great blues musicians stories and the black rights movements in the 60’s.
Do you have a favorite restaurant in New York?
Mark Stewart: Our kitchen. My wife Karen and I love to cook.
Jo Lawry: Supper in the East Village is an old favorite of mine, and in my Brooklyn neighborhood of Bedford-Stuyvesant, I love Saraghina.
Emel: Hot Jalapeño, a great Mexican spot in Harlem where the food the music and the service are good, which is a real rarity in New York!
Finally, any last words for the kids?
Mark Stewart: Play and sing music with your buddies. It’s cool. Then make a meal together. Just as cool.
Rebecca Weller: Well, as a mom, I tell my kids to PLAY MUSIC like other people tell their kids to EAT VEGETABLES. I don’t care what instrument, I don’t care what kind of music, just play something. And listening is really important. Listen to all kinds of music, even if you think you’re going to hate it. If we only ate Italian food all the time, think of what we’d be missing out on!
Jo Lawry: Don’t be afraid to look or sound stupid! Here’s a dirty little secret: I only started playing guitar at age 33! To be honest, I’m still pretty scared every time I have to play it in public, but facing those fears is so worth it for the things I learn each time. Keep at it!
Emel: Believe as much as you can in yourself, in your power, in your ideas, in who you are. It might sound easy, but I think that’s where it all starts and that’s what events, people, and societies try to steal away from you all along the way.
