ACTIVITY PLANNER

   Find out what is happening in NYC when you come and visit.

Arrival: Departure: Category: All Activities Auditions Awards Shows/Banquets Cabaret Charity Events Comedy Cultural Arts Film Food and Drink Fun for Kids Galleries Holiday Celebrations Lectures/Debates Literary Marathon Museums Music Nature/Outdoors Parades Scavenger Hunts Shopping Signings/Appearances Sports Street Fairs Theater Tours Trade Shows   Featured Listings Crystal Cruises· Doctor Travel and Cruises for Less... Rose Crossing· Immerse yourself in culture, art and history on an art adven... Liberty Helicopter Tours· ... ProTravel· A wide selection of vacation services, for both corporate an... Delta Vacations· ... Related Articles NY SKYRIDE - $5/$4.50 Off Admission New York City Dining - Authentic Greek, Italian & Japanese Favorites New York Water Taxi - Free Round of Miniature Golf Most Popular Articles on CGNY Things to do in NYC: Labor Day Weekend Shop NYC: Sex and the City Gifts, Fun for Kids at Build-a-Bear & More NHL Stars Jonathan Toews & Patrick Kane Launch EA Sports NHL at the NHL Powered by Reebok Store Wed., Sept. 8th Vince and Eddies is my kind of restaurant -- and if you’re like most Americans it’s yours, too. It’s a father-and-son operation that serves superior versions of familiar American comfort food with some Italian spins. If the likes of rack of lamb, rib eye steak, pork chop, meat loaf, duckling and beef stew appeal to you, so will Vince and Eddies. Desserts like berry cobbler, homemade ice creams and sorbets, ginger cake and warm apple pie keep the beat going. Although there is no Vince or Eddie, there is a Peter Digiuseppi and his son, Eric. Peter is the kitchen commander while Eric watches over the front of the house. Peter has been Executive Chef since its 1989 opening, when a Laundromat near Lincoln Center was converted into the warm, convivial restaurant it is today. His affable, eager-to-please, 20-something son Eric signed on more recently. Vince and Eddies’ longevity is no fluke. There aren’t all that many 21-year-old restaurants in Manhattan. It’s a rough, tough, competitive, volatile venue. More fail than succeed. There are reasons for this restaurant’s long run: First, it looks good and feels warm and welcoming. Diners enter through a narrow, cozy bar, a quaint nook that exudes conviviality. They are then escorted to one of three rooms with crisp, white cloth-covered tables. Two of them -- the red and green rooms -- are comfortable and carpeted with soothing art on the walls. The third, the charming atrium garden, is a place of brick and glass with a greenhouse-like ceiling that opens during the warm-weather months. The second of the restaurant’s virtues is its staff -- down-to-earth, nice folks who do their best to watch over every diner and table without being intrusive. They seem to have a knack of anticipating diner’s needs. Finally, and most importantly, there is the no-nonsense food. No, it’s not fancy, frou-frou, trendy fare -- but it’s packed with robust flavor. Crab cakes come perched on a tasty bed of corn and salsa; the rack of lamb, done to a medium rare turn, is a heavy-duty, Colorado-raised pleasure; the Tilapia is given a boost by its Parmesan crust. The tender, 16- to 18-ounce rib eye steak is on the level of a prime steakhouse; that warm apple pie sports a thin crust of pecans and peanuts; and the fresh berry cobbler is a marvelous meld of blueberries, strawberries, shortbread, real whipped cream, brown sugar and warm berry compote. All those desserts are made in-house, as is some of the city’s best ice cream. Try the creamy, fudgy chocolate and the slightly yellow vanilla (indicating the use of real vanilla beans not artificial flavoring.) 70 W. 68th St. (Columbus Ave.), 212-721-0068; www.vinceandeddiesnewyork.com Richard Jay Scholem was a restaurant critic for the New York Times Long Island Section for 14 years. His A La Carte Column appeared from 1990 to 2004. For more “Taste of the Town” reviews, click here.   FEATURED LISTINGS Crystal Cruises· Doctor Travel and Cruises for Less... Rose Crossing· Immerse yourself in culture, art and history on an art adven... Liberty Helicopter Tours· ... ProTravel· A wide selection of vacation services, for both corporate an... Delta Vacations· ... Archives: New York City Dining - Authentic Greek, Italian & Japanese Favorites Downtown Dining - Great Restaurants Below 14th Street Victor’s Cafe: Traditional & Creative Cuban Cuisine New York City Dining - Simply Sensational Dishes at Simply Pasta New York City Dining - Mars 2112 New York City Dining - The Capital Grille New York City Dining - Darbar Indian Restaurant David Burke's New York City Restaurants Celebrate National Lemonade Day on Friday, August 20th New York City Dining - Transcendental Indian, Great Steaks, Late-Night Noshes & More Benjamin Steakhouse in New York City Is Seeing Stars! Lychee House: Fresh Spins on Oriental Favorites Summer Specials at Bangkok House in New York City's Times Square Patsy's Italian Restaurant Presents 'Swingin' Italiano' Tuesday, July 13th, 2010 Cuisine Corner - Cuban Cooking, Dining on the Water & More Salute! - Sophisticated Italian on the East Side

Reader Feedback - 0 Replies

Be the first to kick-start this discussion Join the discussion To register, please click here