Good to hear! Well, good that it's useful not that California is equally expensive. I do think the one dish, one drink formula helps though difficult to adhere to if you're as greedy and inquisitive as I am!
Shameless plug for Hawsmoor, (I know your family connection. Full disclosure. )
My daughter and I were looking for a top NY steakhouse , Peter Luger, S&W, Morton’s all considered but we chose a newcomer in the upstart - what a treat, great cocktails, generous sommelier, great steak. Loved that it was a Yorkshire pudding not a popover or Dutch baby. Not cheap but totally worth it as a end of trip show stopper.
Taking my wife next month to Hawksmoor Manchester (daughter running marathon) and really looking forward to it
My current "everyday" restaurant tip is not to order wine, but instead a glass of non alcohol beer or just mineral water.
Most evenings at home I drink wine with dinner - usually a glass each of two, or sometimes three, different wines. These wines could retail at anything from £6 to £25+ a bottle. I usually open a bottle and immediately decant some of the contents, to the brim, into either/and half or quarter screw top bottles. So on my carving table, or fridge, I will always have a selection of different wines to serve. For example I could have a quarter bottle of a Chenin Blanc to start, and follow with, for comparison, say, a quarter of a Pinot Noir and a quarter of a Chianti. Nice to try some different food/wine combos. Sometimes I will ask my wife to serve some of these wines, blind, so I can see whether I can identify them, or to determine if I can appreciate the quality of a more expensive wine. This keeps me humble. All this is so enjoyable I struggle to have a night or two a week without wine!
My solution is to have my alcohol free nights when I am eating out! Hence helping my health and bank balance. To have 2 or 3 glasses of similar quality wines in a restaurant (if available) would be very expensive, and often disappointing with oxidised examples served.
If eating out, with friends, at a good restaurant, then we would splurge out a bit - often having studied the wine list online before. But for pretty ordinary meals out for two, this is my approach.
Well that's a commendable strategy, Richard! Alcohol-free drinks - and beers - are certainly cheaper in NYC as elsewhere. I can do it with some restaurants - Thai and Indian food being two examples - but some cuisines like Italian and French just demand at least a glass of wine!
Yes, agreed. And it certainly limits any journalistic ambitions. But part 2 of my strategy is my subscription with you. I can vicariously drink well matched wines in great restaurants. Keep up the good work - I am with you in spirit!
Fiona, love this. After years of long annual visits to and around the UK that I really can't afford, I follow a similar pattern. My London regimen typically consists of supermarket meal deals, Nandos, fish and chips (Master's Superfish near Waterloo is very good!), snacks in lieu of meals, and reluctant splurges when I go out with friends.
Full disclosure: I have lived in the States for four decades, visited every state in the continental US at least once, and every major coastal city (several times)...except for NYC. I like to annoy New Yorkers with this: What does NYC have that London doesn't, I ask? :)
Oooofff, you're brave Annette. Can't imagine New Yorkers taking that well. Having spent the last four days doing the rounds of its museums and galleries I'd suggest that it has the edge on London culturally. And there's no London railway terminus that beats Grand Central station!
But the new Kings Cross! Uh oh. NYC had the cultural edge on London? Clearly, this is a shocking state of affairs.... Now I'll have to go and see for myself....😂
Going to NYC for the first time in a few weeks for four nights so have been reading this and your posts about your trip with interest... any recommendations for suggested places to book for dinner much appreciated! We enjoy great food locally (Jane Baxter’s Wild Artichokes is one of our favourites so enjoyed reading about your visit to Kingsbridge) but am feeling a bit overwhelmed by choices for our trip!
Having just been to California, where the prices similarly knock you off your feet, this is fantastically useful Fiona!
Good to hear! Well, good that it's useful not that California is equally expensive. I do think the one dish, one drink formula helps though difficult to adhere to if you're as greedy and inquisitive as I am!
Shameless plug for Hawsmoor, (I know your family connection. Full disclosure. )
My daughter and I were looking for a top NY steakhouse , Peter Luger, S&W, Morton’s all considered but we chose a newcomer in the upstart - what a treat, great cocktails, generous sommelier, great steak. Loved that it was a Yorkshire pudding not a popover or Dutch baby. Not cheap but totally worth it as a end of trip show stopper.
Taking my wife next month to Hawksmoor Manchester (daughter running marathon) and really looking forward to it
So glad you enjoyed it. I'm seeing Will tonight (and eating there myself for the first time) so I'll tell him!
My current "everyday" restaurant tip is not to order wine, but instead a glass of non alcohol beer or just mineral water.
Most evenings at home I drink wine with dinner - usually a glass each of two, or sometimes three, different wines. These wines could retail at anything from £6 to £25+ a bottle. I usually open a bottle and immediately decant some of the contents, to the brim, into either/and half or quarter screw top bottles. So on my carving table, or fridge, I will always have a selection of different wines to serve. For example I could have a quarter bottle of a Chenin Blanc to start, and follow with, for comparison, say, a quarter of a Pinot Noir and a quarter of a Chianti. Nice to try some different food/wine combos. Sometimes I will ask my wife to serve some of these wines, blind, so I can see whether I can identify them, or to determine if I can appreciate the quality of a more expensive wine. This keeps me humble. All this is so enjoyable I struggle to have a night or two a week without wine!
My solution is to have my alcohol free nights when I am eating out! Hence helping my health and bank balance. To have 2 or 3 glasses of similar quality wines in a restaurant (if available) would be very expensive, and often disappointing with oxidised examples served.
If eating out, with friends, at a good restaurant, then we would splurge out a bit - often having studied the wine list online before. But for pretty ordinary meals out for two, this is my approach.
Well that's a commendable strategy, Richard! Alcohol-free drinks - and beers - are certainly cheaper in NYC as elsewhere. I can do it with some restaurants - Thai and Indian food being two examples - but some cuisines like Italian and French just demand at least a glass of wine!
Yes, agreed. And it certainly limits any journalistic ambitions. But part 2 of my strategy is my subscription with you. I can vicariously drink well matched wines in great restaurants. Keep up the good work - I am with you in spirit!
Well, thankyou! Will. do my best!
Fiona, love this. After years of long annual visits to and around the UK that I really can't afford, I follow a similar pattern. My London regimen typically consists of supermarket meal deals, Nandos, fish and chips (Master's Superfish near Waterloo is very good!), snacks in lieu of meals, and reluctant splurges when I go out with friends.
Full disclosure: I have lived in the States for four decades, visited every state in the continental US at least once, and every major coastal city (several times)...except for NYC. I like to annoy New Yorkers with this: What does NYC have that London doesn't, I ask? :)
Oooofff, you're brave Annette. Can't imagine New Yorkers taking that well. Having spent the last four days doing the rounds of its museums and galleries I'd suggest that it has the edge on London culturally. And there's no London railway terminus that beats Grand Central station!
But the new Kings Cross! Uh oh. NYC had the cultural edge on London? Clearly, this is a shocking state of affairs.... Now I'll have to go and see for myself....😂
You WILL! What’s been keeping you? Be sure to take in the NY Punlic Library …
But flustering New Yorkers is such fun! 😂
The Lincoln Centre has concerts on Sundays where you can turn up and queue for a bit and get in for $10. We saw Maurizio Pollini there one Sunday.
Great tip! Wish I'd known last Sunday!
Going to NYC for the first time in a few weeks for four nights so have been reading this and your posts about your trip with interest... any recommendations for suggested places to book for dinner much appreciated! We enjoy great food locally (Jane Baxter’s Wild Artichokes is one of our favourites so enjoyed reading about your visit to Kingsbridge) but am feeling a bit overwhelmed by choices for our trip!