Where Colin Ate: Anton's, Fish Cheeks, il Mulino
Plus: the West Village's most underrated brunch?
Colin Camac (aka @resyguynyc) is officially Blackbird’s “Strategic Sales Lead,” and unofficially is our resident insider’s insider. He is out, on the town seven nights a week, sniffing out the city’s best joints, skateboard in one hand, martini in the other.
Unfortunately, Steak Club was another bust last week (that’s two in a row!). I think the whole club is going to have to pick a safe one for next month so that we can get back into the W column.
That said, I did have a win with not one, but two brunches, and in the West Village no less. A rarity, indeed. I’m a longtime resident of the West Village and I love it. It truly feels like a real neighborhood, and I see many of the same faces every day. That is, until the weekends. It seems like over the last couple of years the kids have taken over my quiet little oasis on the westside and turned it into a bloodbath Saturday-Sunday. Radio Bar even has a full-time bouncer. RADIO BAR! Is nothing safe? Anyway, old man rants aside, last weekend consisted of the aforementioned two stellar brunches, and at both I was able to walk right in and grab a seat at the bar. Read on for details, as well as a few other hits.
Colin
Commerce Inn
📍West Village
🍽️ American
On the first gorgeous Saturday afternoon of the year, the neighborhood was predictably buzzing. I wasn’t sure what I was in the mood for, but decided I needed to leave the house anyway as it was just too nice to spend another moment inside. On my walk through the neighborhood I decided to check back in on Commerce Inn, which sometimes gets billed like the afterthought in the brilliant Sodi/Williams group. The place is seriously underrated. Anyway, I was lucky enough to walk right in and snag a solo seat at the bar around primetime, which seemed like an impossibility at many of the other spots in the neighborhood. The menu (not offered online) was a fun mix of eggs and pancakes as well as a few more surprises like a patty melt that looked fantastic. I ended up going with a delicious smoked fish plate served with smoked salmon, whitefish salad, crème fraîche, pickled green tomatoes, and a side of brown bread. It was exactly what I needed and something that you don’t see on many menus. It reminded me of my favorite dish that used to be served at Gabrielle Hamilton’s Prune (I still miss that spot, but it is open for amazing private events!) called the LES smoked fish plate. I also ordered a lamb pasty which was one of the specials for the day and it, too, hit the spot.
Anton’s
📍West Village
🍽️ American
On Sunday, which was not nearly as nice out, I met up with a friend before she started her shift at a restaurant nearby. As it was on the later side for brunch (2 p.m.) I hoped we’d be able to sneak into the bar at the perennially packed Anton’s for two seats at the bar and was excited to be able to get right in. The room felt great with that post frantic energy of the end of a busy brunch service. It felt like everyone finally took a deep breath and were happy to connect with guests without being rushed to their next table or to make the next drink. It is a hard feeling to explain, but anyone who has worked in service before knows the feeling. As I had a big meal on the books for dinner (Steak Club) we went pretty light for lunch with the arugula salad as well as the mixed chicories with hazelnuts and stilton (my favorite). We also had an amazing omelet with cheddar and ham that was as good an omelet as I’ve had in a long time. Brunch is a pain in the ass, but happy to see that there are still great places you can get into relatively easily when walking around the Village.
il Mulino
📍Greenwich Village
🍽️ Italian
New York Classics are classics for a reason. It isn’t easy to make it work in the restaurant industry, let alone make it work in NYC for any real period of time. That’s what makes the classics so special. Even when they are out of style, as long as they are still staying true to who they’ve been you will most likely have a good time. This brings me to my most recent meal at the OG il Mulino (it’s honestly the only one). When I first moved to the village full time in ‘03, il Mulino was well into its run as being one of the best Italian restaurants in the city, topping the then coveted Zagat lists year after year. Opening in 1981 it became an instant hit and one of the hardest reservations to get well into the early aughts. A good friend of mine had some family in town on a recent Monday evening and decided it would be the perfect place to try. I’ll admit, even though I’d been before I had no idea what to expect walking into the dining room on a rainy Monday night for an 8:15 p.m. reservation. To my surprise, the room was buzzing! Almost every seat was filled with families, old timers and young people on dates, all lit perfectly by the soft overhead light and candlelit tables. Is this still the best Italian restaurant in NYC? By today’s standards, maybe not, but it was a fantastic New York experience. The servers were charming and the service was on point. By the time you have your first cocktail in hand, the first round of complimentary items hits the table to get you started. The bread basket, a lovely bruschetta, chunks of parm with salami as well as a plate of fried eggplant. The old school way they read out the specials from memory sets the tone for the whole experience. Also the fact that you can pretty much order any of the proteins interchangeably from the menu, meaning it’s not the normal dish, and they are happy to prepare it for you. Don’t see veal parm on the menu? They’ll make it for you. Only see veal francese but want chicken? No problem, you’ll get a beautiful pounded out bone-in version that may even be the highlight of the meal. The classic hospitality and feel was on full display through every part of the meal, including the ad hoc dessert sampler and the offer of limoncello or grappa on the house to finish up. This place is a gem and I’m happy it’s still doing its thing.
Fish Cheeks
📍Noho
🍽️ Thai
Fish Cheeks is one of the most consistently delicious meals in Noho. Last week, we had our full company onsite and I was lucky enough to get Fish Cheeks for my small group lunch. As I have previously extolled in this newsletter, I absolutely love Thai food and when presented with the option will more likely than not eat it. Fish Cheeks has been around for several years now, both expanding in their own space as well as opening the equally delicious Bangkok Supper Club in the West Village. I have gone many times over the years so our table decided to make me the official orderer (an honor I do not take lightly). We went a little light due to it being the middle of the day, but my order here is usually some variation on the same bunch of dishes. This meal we had the crispy rice salad and pork — always one of my favorites dishes in any Thai restaurant that serves it. The crispy rice bits mix so well with the herbs and acidity, as well as the sour pork, which rounds it all out. It really is a must order. Zabb wings are always a crowd favorite with a little bit of spice and lime to balance. Then we went with both crab dishes, first the curry and then the fried rice, both of which I like to eat together for maximum crab flavor. We closed out the meal with the steamed fish, served whole in a broth of lime and herbs that is not only a great presentation, but one of the very best bites on the menu.
Quick Hits & Pop-ups …
See You Soon at Rhodora
📍Fort Greene
🍽️ Wine Bar
I met Kevin and Michael from See You Soon—a Toronto-based “creative culinary studio”—briefly on my birthday in Paris, but more formally about a year ago when they were a trio and popping up at what is now Ha’s Snack Bar. It seemed like everyone I knew went to their month-long residency there, and I was lucky enough to get to know them and hang out a few times while they were in town. Over the course of the last year I was able to see them in NYC again for a short stint a few months back and also follow them to hang out during their residency in Paris back in February. Coming from Toronto they somehow always seem to be hooked up with all the best people at all the best places and it has been so fun to watch their success. Now a still formidable duo, I was excited to see them announce a two day pop-up at Rhodora about a month back. A few friends and I immediately snatched up a few seats and I couldn’t wait to eat their food again. They cook in their own style, using familiar Asian flavors but doing it their own way. Some of the highlights of this meal were the pho spiced chicken pate that was reminiscent of a banh mi in style, grilled snow pea tips with dan dan, and an incredible filet-o-fish topped with XO and an unmelted slice of American cheese for the full fast food experience. Such a great meal and an amazing spot to have a pop-up. Can’t wait to see what these guys do next.
Empellón Cocina Reunion at Empellón Midtown
📍Midtown
🍽️ Mexican
Empellón Cocina was the second Mexican restaurant from Chef Alex Stupak. The restaurant was located on 1st avenue in what is now Mister Paradise and was, in my opinion, the first time the Empellón restaurants started to flex their creativity (no tacos) by using Mexican flavors more as a canvas for outside the box ideas. Personally, it was my favorite restaurant in the group and a lot of the ideas from this restaurant seem to be the base of what Empellón Midtown is today. They even did a four person chef’s counter that was one of the more fun high-end experiences I have had to date and still wish that would come back in some shape or form at some point. Another really cool thing about Empellón Cocina was how many great chefs came out of that kitchen. I love the idea for a throwback pop-up, one that not only celebrates the restaurant it was, but also the people that came out of there and made it so special to begin with. The guest chefs were: Jackie Carnesi the Chef of Kellogg’s Diner, Hisham “Ham” El-Waylly, Chef/Partner Strange Delight, Matt Conroy and Isabel Coss of Lutèce in DC. It was awesome to taste a few of the old dishes again, specifically the chilled red shrimp with “masa waves” that brought me right back to the time and place when I’d first tried it. A dish I didn’t remember from the original that ended up being the highlight of the night was a fantastic version of chilaquiles with sea urchin. I really dig the idea of bringing old restaurants back from the graveyard and getting one last hurrah — I would love to see more of it.
Chez Fifi
📍UES
🍽️ French
I know, I know. Yes, I went again, still a really fun experience. I had this one on the books for a while now and a few weeks back got a surprise invite. Either way, I think this is a great new spot. Is it expensive? Yes, but it’s not pretending like it isn’t. The place feels great and the food is really delicious. I’ll definitely be back again, but it’s still too far uptown to really be in my heavy rotation. If you find yourself in the neighborhood, see if they’ll let you grab a drink and snack upstairs, they make a great cocktail as well.
Commerce Inn is absolutely underrated! They seem to have oysters that are a little meatier, a little fresher than anywhere else. And their house martini (50/50 or "fitty-fitty") is as perfect as any martini anywhere.
But the thing I love most is that my wife and I can walk in seemingly anytime and get a great table. So don't tout them too much! ;)