Eat This Before You Die: BIRTHDAY TOUR OF THE LOWER EAST SIDE, ENDING AT SCHILLERS
After the pleasurable NYC agony over where to dine, my birthday dinner destination was determined to be ultra hip, and as-yet untried Freemans. They don't take rezzies, and our lengthy agonizing meant their clever clientele got there before us, and we declined the hour-long wait.
So we headed for Sammy's Roumanian, a venerable holdover from the real Lower East Side, before the tweebs got there (cross between dweeb and twink -- see wiki). Inside Sammy's, an old man at a large keyboard was playing a highly amplified and electronically accessorized version of "What a Wonderful World." It might have been, if he had turned down the volume. We felt terrible for not staying, and vow to return very soon, since clearly Sammy's may not be in the wonderful world for much longer.
On to Schiller's. A quick call to my former sous chef Lin, who is the chef there, granted us a wonderfully royal treatment upon entering.
When Jim Beard was asked which was his favorite restaurant, he answered, "Anywhere I am known". This probably left Mr. Beard a large selection. We dined on a fine roast lamb in a setting only my former employer and restaurant design wizard Keith McNally could have mis en scene.
And they treated us!!! It is good to have friends who cook.
www.schillersny.com
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As great as the food is in NY, the difficulty in getting reservations and the coolness of the greeting when you arrive dampen my enthusiasm. Although I have to say that on my last visit to the city, I stopped by David Chang’s restaurants just to take a look. The profile in the New Yorker and Mark Bittman’s articles made him sound very interesting. Much to... more >
I love that James Beard quote. I always try to be known!