Hung Ry

...is a new restaurant locateded at 55 Bond Street in NYC's East Village that specializes in homemade/handmade noodle soups.

"M" had a Laos beer and I had a ginger Bionade (German all natural soda).

"M" and shared two appetizers: the short rib with daikon and shiso ($6.50) which was enveloped in foam and the squid, guajillo and pumpkin seeds ($6.50).

For soups we both opted for the thin noodles:

"M" had the smoked pork belly with tongue, brussel sprouts and roasted radishes ($16). The pork belly just melted away when you took a bite.

I had the duck breast, gizzard and roasted peppers ($16). The duck was served medium and very good.

And we had to try the dairy/gluten free chocolate and coconut ice cream. It had the same cream flavor and texture as regular ice cream!

Well worth another visit to try some other dishes.

DOB 11.1

...is located at 115 St. Mark's Place in NYC's East Village.

"M" and I had a great dinner and saw the chef/owner overseeing the front of the house.

We shared the following dishes:

Seared Sea Scallops with warm cauliflower almond coulis, xo, chinese bacon, green curry ($11)

Duck fried rice side - duck confit, foie gras, duck bacon and egg ($11)

Curry Shrimp with ear mushrooms, chinese celery, spicy coconut sauce ($13)

Spicy Oxtail Stew with curry parsnip puree, lotus root vegetable, horseradish cream ($16)
Crispy Pork Belly, taro sausage mash, pickled vegetables, caramel sauce ($17)

The restaurant is BYOB and doesn't offer any other beverages (even non-alcholic) so unless you do take along something you have to settle for plain old tap water!

But the wonderful food more than makes up for their lack of beverage options. All of the dishes we tried were wonderful, flavorful and delicious.

We want to return to try other dishes on the menu, but are afraid we will end up ordering the same foods because everything was so good during this visit.

Primehouse New York

....is located at 381 Park Ave. South in NYC's Gramercy area.

"A" and I tried their NYC Restaurant Week Menu: 3 course prix fixe for $35.

"A" started with a White Russian ($12). I had a Sommerwind - Montecristo rum, Reisling, lychee and cucumber ($12).

"A" ordered the Baby Field of Greens with Sherry Vinagrette and I had the Crispy Pork Belly with smoked cherry barbecue sauce. The pork belly was good, but not as tender as other places.

We both had the Creek Stone Farm's aged 7 oz NY strip with duck fat fingerling potatoes and house made steak sauce. The steak was chewy and disappointing.

We shared the Strawberry Shortcake - Cheesecake Ice Cream Sandwich, Farmer's Market Strawberries and Mint - this mediocre and pedistrian; and the Bittersweet chocolate tart with chocolate custard, toasted meringue and s'mores ice cream - very good and worth ordering again.

Kampuchea

M and I visited this Lower East side Cambodian fusion restaurant at 78 Rivington Street.

We each had a cocktail: ($12 each)

M - The Bamboo Train - gran Centanario tequila, cucumber-lime zest puree, lime juice, maraschino cherry liquer, kaffir leaves infused with agave nectar and a splash of absinthe

Me - Coconut Monsoon: flor de cana rum, young coconut pureer, lemongrass syrup, lime juice and white tea spice

For small plates we shared:

- Crisp pork belly with honey, cider glazed, scallions and toasted lemongrass $11

- Fried chicken with basil, spiced fleur del sel and lemon $10

Large plates we shared:

- Numpang Cambodian sandwich - oxtails with tamarind and honey with sweet potato chips $13

- Braised beef brisket soup with green papaya, okra, pickled baby carrots and herbs $19

and sides:

- Jasmine rice $3

- Brussel Sprouts with chinese sausage $7

Everything was very good and flavorful. The brisket was very tender. We were disappointed that the dessert menu was not as interesting as the rest of the menu so we skipped dessert.

Publican

For a porkcentric meal Publican is a must for any visit to Chicago. Located at 837 West Fulton Market the area still has a ways to go in terms of ambience, but the trek is worth it.

Diners sit at long communal tables in high back chairs with various paintings of pigs decorating the large, open room.

"C", "I", "T", "W" and I shared the following dishes (each was delicious and worth the cholesterol):

Spicy pork rinds Slagel Family Farm, Forest, Illinois $5/order (we ordered 2 because these are more addictive than any potato chip I ever tasted)

Red and gold beet salad with buratta

Hamachi crudo Sea of Japan; golden beets & peas $14 (we ordered 2 because it was so light and delicate we could easily have devoured one order each)

Manila clams with pancetta and lima beans - wonderful sauce.

Grilled squid with pancetta - great smoky, charred flavor.

Charcuterie plate pork pie, head cheese, duck & foie gras galantine,morteau sausage,saucisson sec, pickles & mustards $21

Farm chicken Slagel family farm, Fairbury, Illinois: whole chicken with summer sausage and frites $27 - wonderful tender chicken with the BEST fries I have ever tasted (golden and crisp)

Pork belly with artichokes - melt in your mouth tender

The desserts were anticlimatic after all that pork, but were still good:

Eclair with dark chocolate, maple & vanilla malt ice cream $7
Rhubarb crostada with yogurt sorbet $7
Waffle with blueberry perserves & honey butter $7 - the waffle tasted like toasted butter is it was buttery.

32 oz coffee press

This is defintely worth a return visit!