Momofuku Noodle, New York New York

On my recent foodie retreat to NYC I knew I wanted to experience David Chang's cooking and when reservations for Ko proved impossible I opted for Noodle over Ssam simply because my sister isn't the biggest fan of eating pig. That said, 15 minutes into our meal at Noodle I found myself fighting her for the second steamed pork bun. :) Is it really possible that Chang can take such simple foods and concepts and make something remarkable? Damned right it is.

Let me preface the rest of this review by noting that we'd eaten at Babbo for dinner the night before and had the gourmand lunch at EMP the same day....the bar was set quite high. Let me also note that we arrived at Momofuku at 8:15pm having walked all the way from Saks Fifth Ave and we were starving. Seating took approximately 10 minutes and we got the end-seat looking directly into the kitchen. Nice!

While college-esque and 'sceney' for sure, having attended OSU for 4 years I can absolutely say there is nothing like this in Columbus. Water was served immediately and refilled infinitely before the glass was ever half empty...amazing considering every employee was working at a frenetic place and seemingly doing 2-3 things at once....without ever missing a beat.

For our starters we ordered the grilled octopus salad with konbu, menma, and pickled chili and two of the famous steamed pork buns plus two of the steamed chicken buns. Though I had to look up many of the ingredients later, everything in the salad blended perfectly while providing a textural rollercoaster of crisp, soft, moist, dry, salty, spicy, and sweet. While not quite as good as Babbo's Grilled Octopus, I'd order this every time I attended Momofuku. The buns? What can I say that hasn't already been said? Perfectly cooked fatty pork and moist delicious chicken with just enough spice and some crunch from the pickles...alone worth the trip.

For our next round we selected the fried veal sweetbreads with salted cucumbers, sweet chili sauce and the chicken ramen. While the ramen was pretty standard for an oriental restaurant, the noodles were very thick and hearty and the price was excellent for the size of the bowl. I especially liked the shitake mushrooms and crispy chicken skin. The sweetbreads? Good lord, why didn't someone think of this before? Think of the best chicken nugget you've ever tasted; but more moist, tender, and tasty. The cucumbers were delicious and the chili sauce, albeit unnecessary, was delectable on the sweetbreads. If you've never tried sweetbreads and are hesitant about trying organ meat (as my sister was) I'd say this is a great starting point to qualm your fears.

While eating our sweetbreads the individual next to my sister received his order of the roasted rice cakes with shrimp, tamago, and cashews....we couldn't resist. The rice cakes were fried crisp yet chewy, the shrimp lightly barbequed and spicy, the cashews crunchy and salty, and the egg sauce perfectly light and balanced. In a meal that consisted of all hits and no misses, this dish was the biggest suprise and on par with every other offering. To be fair, I cannot even rate which dish I liked best as all were remarkable in their own way.

Feeling full and wanting to take in more of the NYU scene we opted to skip dessert. The check was delivered and with tax/tip the total came out to less than $85, a steal for such a great experience. Great unique food, no reservations required, fantastic service with minimal pretense, great prices and big portions all combine to make Momofuku a hit. Going into the experience I half-thought the hype over Chang was just hype....it turns out that even if it is hype, it is justified.

Eleven Madison Park, New York New York

Arriving at Eleven Madison Park for our 2:00pm lunch reservations after a long walk from the Morgan Library, expectations and hunger were admittedly elevated. Having read glorious reviews of Chef Humm's cooking, great service, and a beautiful dining room the bar was set high....and EMP cleared it with ease.

Seating was prompt and from the moment we found our booth we were treated to a seemingly endless pampering from the staff led by our server Dayna. Cold water and bread appeared promptly and although the wine was turned down, we were never pressured to order drinks like many other wine-centric restaurants. My sister opted for a glorious Iced Tea served with 3 different syrups (mint, plain, and pomagranite/passion fruit) while I myself decided to stick with water. Breads consisted of a delectable wheat, crisp white roll, and a tangy olive roll served with an unsalted (and unfortunately far too cold/hard) butter. Both beverages and bread were replenished promptly without additional requests throughout the meal.

Wanting to experience the full range of Chef Humm's talents, the Gourmand menu was selected with a slight modification, substituting the pork main with the daily special as its description was too good to resist. The modification was made without hesitation, question, or additional charge. Less than 10 minutes later, course one arrived consisting of Heirloom Beets roasted with Olio Verde, Aceto Balsamico and Lynnhaven Chevre Frais. All three varieties of beet were served in three different styles on a beautifully geometric plate and each delivered a new experience in terms of taste, mouthfeel, and style. A great start for sure.

Course two, at least for myself, was the show stealer. Foie Gras Terrine with Cherries Lemon Balm and Sicilian Pistachios; essentially Foie Gras served in four stellar manners, the first baked in a brioche, the second a thin strip with cherry gelee, the third a foamy cherry custard with foie on the bottom, and finally a delectable pitted cherry restuffed with a cremy liver paste. The salty pistachios contrasted flawlessly in taste and texture and when the stip was spread on the brioche....heaven.

Course three entailed Mediterranean Loup de Mer Slow Cooked with Artichokes, Squash Blossoms and Sauce Amer. While this dish was actually my least favorite of the 5, it was still mindblowing in its delicacy and presentation. Perfectly tender veggetables and a rich butter sauce greatly complimented the flavorful and aromatic fish which literally melted in the mouth. While the translucent cooked Meyer Lemon was certainly attractive, I do feel it may have been a bit 'much' in terms of tartness and actually detracted from other more subtle aspects of the dish.

The final main, our substitution, was Butter Poached Skate with Cauliflower, Potato, and Rosemary Brie. In a word....sublime. I realize Skate wing isn't always easy to find, but this dish should be part of the regular menu. Soft and buttery skate and cauliflower set against the smooth brie and crispy potatoes was a culinary adventure with each bite and my only regret was that there wasn't twice the portion.

For dessert the chef provided another suprise in the Vacherin Lemon and Basil Parfait with Strawberries and Meringue. A deconstructed blend of inherent simplicity and complex flavors mesmerized on the plate and the palate as a thin strip of basil and lemon icecream, a dollop of strawberry gelatto, small cubes of gelatin, and dots of flavored gelee all blended flawlessly and equally tasted amazing seperately. Light and airy, yet clean and filling....a great cap to a great meal.

If I were to offer any complaint about EMP aside from the icey hard butter, it would be the lack of an amuse and petit fours. IMO, although the meal was great, a true tasting menu should always contain these items just as a great story often includes an prologue and epilogue. Regardless, as it had started to pour rain during our meal and we were in no hurry to leave, my sister and I ended the meal with a mellow house blend coffee that was refilled multiple times. There was no pressure to leave and although the check was delivered our serving team continually checked up on us as other tables were prepped for dinner service.

All told, amazing food and amazing service with very few oversights. Highly recommended and a great deal for such quality and quantity. Perhaps not as great as the lunch deal at Gramercy Tavern, but certainly worth the experience for Chef Humm's vision and cuisine. If you can, get the skate and the foie.

Dessert Truck, New York New York

New York City, if you can't find it here I dunno where you're going to find it at all! Seriously, a truck full of designer desserts....the concept is insane, but sure enough it is real. Using a prep kitchen by day and an old truck by night, these fellas are quite possibly the most unique dining experience I've ever seen....and coming after a meal at Momofuku....wow.

Parked conveniently outside a Starbucks near NYU, every item on the menu looked appealing but my sister and I managed to restrain ourselves and select only two. The first, a molten chocolate cake with pistachios, sea salt, and olive oil was incredible. Though not a chocolate dessert fan by nature, the smooth liquid center contrasted sharply with the salt and nuts while soaking into the cake surroundings and simply blew my mind. This is chocolate dessert as it should be!

The second, the Chocolate Bread Pudding with Vanilla Creme Anglaise can only be described with the sound Homer Simpson makes when drooling over donuts. At the time I ordered it, this was by far the best bread pudding I'd ever tasted (only to be outdone the next day by Nancy Olson's best-dessert-ever-candidate bread pudding at Gramercy Tavern) and the white cream was quite possibly a chemistry experiment in supersaturation as I'm not sure how one can dissolve that much butter in a cream and serve it so warm without it becoming gelatinous. At $5 this dish was the best value in all of NYC.

Sitting on the stairs of the small library behind the truck my sister and I simply sat and chatted as we slowly savoured the incredible desserts and talked about the long day with nearly 12 miles of hiking Manhattan from 7am till 10pm. A wonderful ending to a wonderful day.

If a dessert truck existed in Columbus I'd surely be 10lbs heavier and the OSU Ross Heart Hospital would not only be a good place to work, but also a good place for managing my lipids. :-)

Babbo, New York New York

Planning a trip to NYC on less than a month's notice, reservations were seemingly out of the question and my mother, sister, and I had planned to arriive early and sit at the bar. Driving through Pennsylvania we called around 10:20am the day of the meal and asked about cancellations. "3 people? Sure, how about 6:30" said the young lady on the phone. "Fantastic" I said, not wanting to sound as excited as I was.

Selecting 4 pastas, one appetizer, a main, and three desserts we couldn't have been more pleased with the quality, timing, and graciousness of our service. Served in courses we were first presented with a glorious amuse of spicy chickpea Bruschetta with a flawless contrast of creamy, chewy, and crunchy with just enough spice. Next came a crusty and hearty Italian bread with a smooth and balanced olive oil....I undoubtedly ate far too much of this.

For our appetizer we selected the Grilled Octopus with Borlotti Marinati and Spicy Limoncello Vinaigrette. Without carying on too much, this is the best octopus and best appetizer I've ever experienced. Crunchy and chewy, spicy and tart....flawless and a must-order, even for the seafood naive. Our second 'course' consisted of the Goat Cheese Tortelloni with Dried Orange and Wild Fennel Pollen plated on three seperate plates, plus a center plate of the Goose Liver Ravioli with Balsamic Vinegar and Brown Butter. While the Tortelloni was delicious and perfectly delicate in taste and texture, the spotlight was unfortunately taken by the incredible Ravioli that can only be described as perfect. A combination of sweet, smooth, fatty, creamy, and hefty I could have eaten this all night and will undoubtedly be attempting to recreate the magic from the Babbo cookbook soon.

Our next course began with the Braised Oxtail Gnocchi plated for three and a center plate of the Pumpkin Lune with Sage and Amaretti cookie. While I'm not a big fan of beef, the gnocchi was toothsome and delectable while literally melting in the mouth and made me rethink my take on beef in general. Like the other pasta course, however, the show was stolen by the Lune/Ravioli. Similarly delicate to the totelloni, these transparent and perfect pockets were wonderfully sweet and smooth while the filling burst forth with a complex smoothness. After the pastas, I wondered why dessert was even necessary....more pasta would have sufficed.

The main selected was the Grilled Pork Chop with Cherry Peppers, Cipolline and Aceto Manodori and like the pasta, the dish was superb. I have no idea how one cooks such a thick piece of meat so perfectly through without a bit of char, but somehow Babbo's chef did what even the masters at Mastro's could not. Perfect pork in a huge portion with a sauce that could double as a sweet beverage. Incredible.

Although full, after a dinner of this caliber I couldn't possibly pass up coffee and dessert. While the coffee was a standard drip, the box of condiments was excellent and the brown sugar sticks a real treat. For desserts, my sister went with her standard, the cookie plate, while I opted for the Strawberry Crostata with Caramel Gelato and my mom chose the Maple Marscapone Cheesecake. While all 3 desserts were excellent and the Cheesecake a truly unique representation of the genre, none were as mind-blowing as the pasta and none were as delicious as the choices at Otto a few days later. The biscotti petit fours that completed the meal, however, were mesmerizing.

All told, I had extremely high expectations walking into Babbo and all of these expectations were not only met, but exceeded. In a vacation that included meals at Gramercy Tavern, EMP, Momofuku Noodle, Otto, Norma's, and more Babbo was not only the best food, but possibly the best food experience of my life. Perfect service, perfect food, great music, and a glorious scene.....amazing.

Biaggi's, Toledo Ohio

Yes, it is a chain, but no it isn't generic.

While I did find the overly elaborate nature of 'describing' the combination of olive oil, cheese, and pepper at the table as an accompaniment to bread to be hilarious and obsurd I also realize this is Toledo and the concept of something aside from a butter packet may be foreign.

Despite the fact that much of the menu was rather generic, some unique items certainly shined through in the Batalli-esque Bruschetta Trio and the well designed and delicious Butternut Squash Ravioli. Both items were fresh, affordable, and well made with a great contrast of textures.

Less pleasing were the Capellini di Mare which, although well priced and loaded with seafood, tasted like Barilla in Prego and the Fettucini with Lobster that suffered from far too heavy a sauce and far too limp a pasta.

Desserts were spot on with an incredibly decadent Chocolate chip banana cake served with vanilla ice cream and milk chocolate sauce and Warm Apple Crostata that each rivaled desserts at far fancier restaurants in bigger cities.

Coffee was mellow yet full bodied and refilled adequately.

Certainly not "the best" Italian meal money can buy, but certainly better than Olive Garden, Carabba's, or other Italian chains.

Go for the Ravioli, Bruscetta, and Dessert and consider it $25 well spent.