Photo by Scott Matthews.
December 28, 2015 Weather: Mostly cloudy, with a high of 40 degrees.
Notices:
A free concert by “the sort of indie rock band your grandmother would love” and many more events are on our calendar.
Sign up for a workshop to learn how to make your own TV show on Manhattan Neighborhood Network. Orientation info here.
News:
Two men were shot in an attempted robbery early Christmas morning. “Police say two men were sitting in their car on West 116th Street and Morningside Avenue when a third man walked up to them, pulled a gun and tried to rob the pair. One of the guys in the car also pulled out a gun and a shootout began.”
Gothamist argues that there’s no good affordable Chinese takeout left in the neighborhood. Ate they right? “My fellow UWS residents, both temporary and permanent, and I have tried many Americanized Chinese places in the neighborhood, and all have failed. New Asia on Amsterdam Avenue serves trash dumplings. The subpar sesame noodles at Concord Garden on 109th Street can’t hold a candle to the good stuff whipped up at Hunan Balcony, and Ollie’s To Go on Broadway is just…not Ollie’s. It is JUST NOT.”
It was the warmest Christmas in New York in recorded history: 66 degrees in Central Park! Anyone play beach volleyball?
Luxury real estate set new records this year, including a $100 million sale.
I am pleased to read your of your renewed interest in Cold Sesame Noodles. I look forward to the Discussion.
Please clarify whether the noodles currently being “whipped up” at Szechuan Gourmet (previously known as Hunan Balcony) are the good stuff.
I thought we lost Hunan Balcony / Szechuan Gourmet to the Vietnamese place with the same owners. Not sure why they made they change. It’s a sorry looking place with a long history. The food at Hunan was good. Loved the old photos on the wall with the famous people. Now just a mish mash of faded signage out front and poor execution in the kitchen.
Hunan Balcony was disgusting, and that foul, old rug made eating there impossible. Haven’t ordered from he vietnamese place since it keeps closing and reopening and getting B grades.
Their reason for making the change was the availability of the chef from Saigon Grill.
Wow – that photo! Thanks for these images, Scott Matthews.
Idea / request for a year-end post? I know it’s all about looking forward, but how about an annual In Memoriam style post to track the UWS places that closed over the year. I’m still missing Andy’s, the coffee and sandwich shop at 80th and Columbus. And don’t even get me started on Josie’s…
Great idea! We’ll get to work on it now. WSR
Andy’s on 80th/Columbus did not close, unless it did this morning!!!!
Oh- you’re right! I meant World Coffee, on the south corner.
Scott Matthews is absolutely amazing.
Thanks kindly, it’s a nice honor to get to share them with the WSR community.
Thank you for moderating the comments. Although sadly it will probably not be easy.
The Chinese restaurant on 105 and bway next to the Abbey has been pretty good. It’s less Americanized though. And since you mentioned dumplings specifically, I have to say the dumplings were a little disappointing. But I like everything else I’ve had there so far.
BTW, Narutto Ramen is amazing and has great Japanese dumplings.
New Yorkers should eat less. They will look and feel better.
There hasn’t been any good Chinese takeout on the UWS for the decade I’ve been living here, if not longer. Had high hopes for both Han Dynasty and Grand Sichuan; both were disappointing. The various Ollie’s permutations became intolerable ages ago. Heck, until it closed a few months ago, I was known to go to Charlie Mom in Greenwich Village and carry *good* Chinese takeout all the way home on the subway.
I now alternate between Pearls, when I just want some good roast pork fried rice, and Shun Lee, when I want Chinese but not crap. Neither is what the area needs.
Personally, I think that Han Dynasty is the best Chinese on the UWS. Most of the rest is pretty much hit or miss, mostly miss. Legand was good for a bit, then slipped.
I like Han Dynasty but they make it *so* hard either to eat in or take out.
They won’t seat you without a reservation, even when half the tables are empty (and it’s a humongous place). And they won’t take a reservation within two hours of the time you want to go. So forget about dropping in; you have to make dinner there a specially planned event.
And they’re not on Seamless but instead use some proprietary on-line ordering system that I have been unable to penetrate (and I’m fairly tech-savvy). Granted, I haven’t tried phoning in for delivery – the good old-fashioned way – but have been reluctant without knowing of others’ experience.
Good food, but just too hard to get it. With a place that large, shouldn’t they *want* more customers?
There are no good Chinese restaurants on the UWS, takeout or eat in. I heard Shun Lee was good but expensive. If I want good Chinese food, I go to Chinatown. It’s worth the trip.
UWS Chinese is what Olive Garden is to Italian cuisine. With no real good places left, I end up at La Caridad on 78th & Bwy., and order from their Chinese menu (with a side of yellow rice, of course). It actually seems more authentic than the rest out there (sigh).
Yes, you can never go wrong with La Caridad.
Sezchuan 105 is excellent, although sometimes a little oil-heavy. And if you like pig’s throat and duck’s bladder, you’re in luck! (I don’t even know who on the UWS eats those dishes, but it sure is fun to show the menus to our Xmas Eve dinner guests) When they opened Sezchuan 98 in Hunan B’s old space I thought we had a Chinese Takeout Renaissance in the works, but that ended quickly.
I used to enjoy many of the dishes from Ivy’s on 72nd Street, but since it morphed into Amcook it’s really gone downhill.
Try Canteen on Columbus, 83 -84. So fast it’s a little scary.
The old Canteen 86 was actually fantastic. Since it re-opened as a fusion restaurant it is not as good but I think it is one of the better ones around. I gave Szechuan Gourmet another chance and it was vastly improved from my first bad experience there when it first opened.
Oops, I meant Canteen 82. Still decent.
My boyfriend and I have tried many UWS Chinese restaurants and agree most are not worth much. The one spot we found that so far has not disappointed in take out is Zhong Hua New Chinese on W 100th. So far it’s the only place we order take out from.
I agree that Han dynasty is the closest thing to quality chinese food in the uws, but a often forgotten jewel is xi’an famous foods on broadway and 102. Xi’an started in the basement of the food mall in flushing and has developed its product into a nyc chain. It’s pretty darn authentic. The lamb noodles are spicy and delicious. It’s essentially take out or cafeteria seating. i do not know how anyone could utter the word ollies and not prioritize xians as a far superior option.
The problem with Xi’an (if you can consider it a problem) is that they don’t do delivery and in fact do everything they can to encourage you to eat in the establishment. This is because the owner/chef strongly believes the food is best when consumed immediately, in the style of street food.
That said, the food is astonishingly tasty and very different from your bog-standard UWS Chinese.
Xi’an Famous Foods on 102 & Broadway. Awesome noodles and lamb dumplings.
For excellent Chinese that’s affordable try the Han Dynasty on W85 just East of Bway!
Responding to several comments: I sit at the bar at Han Dynasty without reservations. No problem.
I think the dumplings at Han Dynasty are very good. The Sesame Noodles are good. I’ve never had anything bad.
Is the complaint that the Chinese food is not American-style? That’s okay with me.
GREAT PHOTO! When and where was it taken?
Thanks, John! Shot from 106th & Broadway looking mostly east, and a bit north.
Legend 72 has been very good on occasion as recently as this fall but it seams like the food is hit or miss. Maybe it depends on who is cooking on a certain day.
Over the past 12 years I have gone from liking the cottage and Ivy’s a lot to almost never ordering from them now because the food seams to have gone downhill.
I haven’t tried Grand Sichaun on 74th and Amsterdam for some reason.
Legend on W 109th was out favorite, hands down. But they stopped delivering to us (we’re on 92nd) once Legend on 72nd got up and running.
We’ve had some really good food form 72nd St and some terrible dishes as well. Even when it’s good it’s still not as good and consistent as Legend on 109th.
I have a crazy fantasy about opening an organic and free range beef, pork and chicken Chinese restaurant some day. The prices might be high but at least the food would be healthy and delicious, anyone want to fund me?!
The best two spots for Chinese food on the UWS are as follows. Han Dynasty. Han is from Taiwan and offers exquisite cuisine reflecting his personal taste prepared by cutting edge chefs culled from his empire of 5 or 6 restos. A great time to go is the first Monday of the month for a multi course communal feast. Szechuan Gourmet. SG is sister to a well-regarded place with the same name on 39th St. This group produces extraordinarily accurate renditions of dishes from around Cheng Du, hence its great popularity with people who understand what they do and pack the place. It’s the real thing.
I agree with your choices, Douglas. But actually, Szechuan Gourmet on 105 lost its link to the 39th Street restaurant some months back and is now called Szechuan Garden. The food is still excellent, though, and it attracts a big Asian clientele. Definitely worth a try.
Anyone know if Han Dynasty allows corkage?
Try Canteen 82 on Columbus between 82&83!
Pearls on 99th and Amsterdam is consistently decent.
Folks:
The UWS is not the place for take out Chinese. Sichuan something or other on Amsterdam between 74th and 75th was closed by the Board of Health, and consistently get lower than an “A” rating no matter how many times it has been inspected.
If you really want real authentic Chinese food you have to eat at one of the restaurants in China Town that cater to a Chinese clientele.
I have been saying this for years!!! There was one on Columbus between 87/88 which made some great scallion pancakes and great beef lomain and my children loved it, good chicken wings – were there for years and had to leave because of the high rents. Now – there is NO GOOD CHINESE anywhere near there. Spice (on Amsterdam) had some lomain that when I opened it, it smelled like a rotting corpse!!!! BEST PLACE I had Chinese (other than Chinatown) is at WOK 88, which is on 88 and Third – everything is SOOOO fresh, not greasy, and truly Chinese. I so wish they would open on in the UWS. I take the bus to the East Side, buy the food and cab it back home (sometimes I just stay and eat there). Nice service, humble place, but is always packed – and the take out line goes out the door – FOR A REASON, PEOPLE WILL WAIT!!!