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THE EARLY WORD ON 2 NEW RESTAURANTS: MEXIKOSHER AND MOTORINO

September 16, 2016 | 10:13 AM
in FOOD, NEWS
70

mexikosher3
Nick Solares and Katsuji Tanabe dig into some MexiKosher sandwiches.

We’ve been hearing some early buzz on two new Upper West Side restaurants, and frankly they’re making me hungry.

Eater’s Nick Solares headed over to MexiKosher, the new Mexican-Kosher spot at 100 West 83rd Street between Columbus and Amsterdam, to talk to chef Katsuji Tanabe. Learn about his brisket cooked in duck fat, his “naughty” French Dip sandwich, and other such low-fat low-flavor dishes.

And Motorino, which just opened at 510 Columbus Avenue between 84th and 85th Streets, received this funny and slightly profane review from Yelp.

“One could hardly be more excited for the neighborhood Subway to make way for one of New York’s most notable pizza chains. Yes, the Upper West Side is slowly being colonized by the East Village. Yes, this now means we have pizza restaurants literally on every corner at the intersection of Columbus and W. 85th St. Yes, it’s a further sign of the encroaching affluence that is gentrifying so many New Yorkers out of the neighborhood, but fuck it. Because pizza. So anyway I’ve been to many Motorinos before and this one is also pretty awesome. Beautifully designed, so small a real estate agent would call it cozy, and energetic with enticing aromas wafting in from the kitchen and yet it still manages to maintain a romantic atmosphere. I guess I’m finally at the age where I’m starting to call things ‘hip’ which literally means I’m no longer in a position to judge such things, but the place seems pretty hip. Come at least once. Also, the pizza is good. And you can pair it with chilled, sparkling red wine, which is a little weird, but it grows on you.”

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Lois
Lois
6 years ago

Threw out back so will be brief: THE BEST pizza I ever ordered in in my 16 years on the UWS

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UWS40
UWS40
6 years ago
Reply to  Lois

You missed Vinnie’s. The only authentic Pizza on the UWS.

The family was from Brooklyn and the place was packed all the time. At the end people were asking for extra cheese, which is a no, no. Obviously transplants.

Mr. Lombardi started turning in his grave. He brought Neapolitan Pizza to New York.

Now we have fake pizza.

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Richard
Richard
6 years ago
Reply to  UWS40

What pizza do you say is fake? Motorino?

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92nd street
92nd street
6 years ago
Reply to  UWS40

Gentrification refers to Big Box establishments and National Chains not tiny Pizza Joints.

Motorino is an excellent cheap-food addition to the Upper West. This part of the neighborhood with H&H on slate to open soon is looking great again. I’d love to see Lucy’s and McGlades reopen across the Ave, but after 15 years of fast food, this is a nothing less than excellence.

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Independent
Independent
6 years ago
Reply to  92nd street

Motorino is an excellent cheap-food addition to the Upper West.

Cheap? Or inexpensive?

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geoff
geoff
6 years ago
Reply to  UWS40

agreed. vinnie’s was best in its original incarnation, before it expanded. had a good juke box too.

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Christina
Christina
6 years ago
Reply to  UWS40

No! Sal’s and Carmine’s Pizza is the best! IMHO. I’ve Been going there since a kid in the 70’s.

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UWSHebrew
UWSHebrew
6 years ago
Reply to  Christina

Sal & Carmine’s = $3 for a slice that has cheese and sauce missing from the upper quarter of the slice. Extremely skimpy on the cheese and sauce application in general. Too salty for my taste as well. I see no appeal in this pizza place at all.

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adam
adam
6 years ago
Reply to  UWS40

Ah- Vinnie’s was truly excellent and I still miss it. Really great “New York pizza.” Motorino is certainly a different style but is still an authentic Neapolitan pizza. Whether someone likes that style is just a matter of individual preference.

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dannyboy
dannyboy
6 years ago
Reply to  UWS40

“fizza”

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Yossi
Yossi
6 years ago
Reply to  Lois

woww, that’s a statement

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Roger Sadowsky
Roger Sadowsky
6 years ago

Motorino…..$3.50 for an 8oz coke on a delivery order!

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geoff
geoff
6 years ago
Reply to  Roger Sadowsky

on a related note, those who drink Coca-Cola only from glass bottles—‘Mexican coke’—should know not all ‘retrro bottled’ Coca-Cola is made with sugar.

often the 8 ounce bottle is filled with Coke made with corn syrup. only the 10 ounce bottle usually contains Coke made with sugar.

also, kosher Coca-Cola will probably be made with sugar, not corn syrup.

to be certain, read the list of ingredients printed on the bottle.

$3.50 for an 8 ounce bottle of ordinary united states coca-cola is bad value.

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Independent
Independent
6 years ago
Reply to  geoff

Corn-syrup, from a kosher perspective, only poses a problem for Passover.

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Kenneth
Kenneth
6 years ago
Reply to  Roger Sadowsky

Roger, Do you make money on guitar strings? I bet you do. Simple solution – don’t buy their delivery soda.

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UWSHebrew
UWSHebrew
6 years ago

The salads you get at MexiKosher are fantastic. But the actual portion of meat you are given is shockingly small, so it’s just not worth it.

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Mary Ann
Mary Ann
6 years ago

We had their pizza and it was not to our liking. The topping were very sparce and only in the center of the pizza which left us with a lot of bread to eat. The beet/anchovy salad had one anchovy on top of some simple tasteless beets PERIOD.

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Brenda
Brenda
6 years ago
Reply to  Mary Ann

I agree about the pizza. too much bread and not enough cheese either. Didn’t have the salad and don’t intend to go back to try it. I’ll stick with Pizza Pete.

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Brenda
Brenda
6 years ago
Reply to  Brenda

Oh, and the noise level is even worse than The Smith, if you can believe that!

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Michael
Michael
6 years ago

The pizza was soggy, not crisp like it should be. Hard to believe anyone thinks this is a great pie. Good, no. Average, below average. Sorry, but no going back. Kale Caesar was too creamy and not much taste.

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Cato
Cato
6 years ago

I would have given more weight to the Yelp review were it not for the self-described hipster’s need to rely on gratuitous use of “the f word”, particularly to dismiss the fact that “so many New Yorkers [are being gentrified] out of the neighborhood”. “But f–k it”, he chortles.

I’ve long been on record as distressed about long time residents being chased from their homes by the swarms of wealthy overwhelming our neighborhood, and I don’t accept, or respect, “f–k it” as an appropriate response. But beyond that, Mister Hip, if you can’t write a simple pizza review without swearing, your opinion really isn’t going to carry much credibility with me.

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ScooterStan
ScooterStan
6 years ago
Reply to  Cato

Re: “I don’t accept, or respect, “f–k it” as an appropriate response. But beyond that, Mister Hip, if you can’t write a simple pizza review without swearing, your opinion really isn’t going to carry much credibility”

RIGHT-ON, Cato !! Way to go !!

Glad that some people, like yourself, are determined to stop this society’s ‘race to the bottom of the trash bin’

And, NO, it’s NOT an “age thing”…good manners should be part of EVERY AGE GROUP, no matter how “hip” a person is desperately pretending to be.

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Independent
Independent
6 years ago
Reply to  ScooterStan

I absolutely agree with Cato and Scooter Stan about the obnoxiousness of the gratuitous use of the “F word”.

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Miles
Miles
6 years ago

I ate there. Small, maybe eight small tables inside, a few more outside. Good pizza,fresh ingredients, continental style.

Mosr impressive six delivery guys out front, being very busy hauling pizza.

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dannyboy
dannyboy
6 years ago
Reply to  Miles

i prefer fresh pizza

never order in

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dannyboy
dannyboy
6 years ago

“Yes, it’s a further sign of the encroaching affluence that is gentrifying so many New Yorkers out of the neighborhood, but fuck it. Because pizza.”

coldhearted

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wcsnyc
wcsnyc
6 years ago

WSR – Did you really mean to say that MexiKosher’s food is “low-flavor”? If so, it sounds like a must miss to me.

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West Sider
Author
West Sider
6 years ago
Reply to  wcsnyc

It was a joke! Clearly not a great joke.

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Steve B
Steve B
6 years ago

Went to the UWS Motorino Saturday night. Place was packed, pizza was terrific. 28 chairs in the place; 14 two-tops that can be pushed together for larger parties. Lots of fun, and welcome to the neighborhood.

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Cato
Cato
6 years ago
Reply to  Steve B

I imagine I am in the minority these days, but I don’t go to a pizzeria for “fun”.

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Independent
Independent
6 years ago
Reply to  Cato

I’m glad you weighed-in here. Fun at a pizza joint? Left unchecked, there’s no telling where such decadent frivolity could lead, what depths of sordidness we could reach. Next thing you know, we’ll be hearing people talk of fun in (gasp!) ice cream parlors!
We simply cannot tolerate this depravity! Speak-out and stomp it out now, before it’s too late!

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Cato
Cato
6 years ago
Reply to  Independent

When ice cream becomes “fun” instead of a treat, we’ll have an obese nation.

Oh, yeah — right.

Food should be good to eat, not “fun”.

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dannyboy
dannyboy
6 years ago
Reply to  Cato

most have pizza available. that’s my fav part too.

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Sarah
Sarah
6 years ago

They don’t deliver north of 96th St., though, which is some 1989-level BS. (Yes, they deliver further away to the south.)

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Steven
Steven
6 years ago
Reply to  Sarah

They deliver from 72nd to 96th. Pretty standard boundaries. And they are between 85th and 86th, so that means they deliver 10.5 blocks to the north and 13.5 blocks to the south. Good luck with the lawsuit.

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Steven
Steven
6 years ago
Reply to  Steven

I take it back, they are between 84th and 85th, so it is 11.5 blocks to the north and 12.5 blocks to the south. Yeah, real discrimination going on there.

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dannyboy
dannyboy
6 years ago
Reply to  Steven

no

i was just playing

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dannyboy
dannyboy
6 years ago
Reply to  Steven

why is there such a difference in the uptown delivery boundary?

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Independent
Independent
6 years ago
Reply to  dannyboy

ONE block is “such a difference”?

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Reply
dannyboy
dannyboy
6 years ago
Reply to  dannyboy

stevieboy,

your obsession with me is becoming obvious

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Cato
Cato
6 years ago
Reply to  dannyboy

They had trouble counting because of all the noise.

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stevieboy
stevieboy
6 years ago
Reply to  dannyboy

Wow, superior AND litigious?!? You really have it all DB. What a contribution you make here.

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dannyboy
dannyboy
6 years ago
Reply to  Sarah

That could be a class action discrimination suit with a LOT of complainants.

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adam
adam
6 years ago

Oh the irony of Nick Solares reviewing a kosher place!

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mss414
mss414
6 years ago
Reply to  adam

agreed. not sure why more people haven’t picked up on that.

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UWSHebrew
UWSHebrew
6 years ago
Reply to  adam

Good call Adam. Next thing you know Mel Gibson will be stopping by MexiKosher.

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Christine E
Christine E
6 years ago

Curious, why are the reviewers wearing gloves? Will taste the food but not touch it?? And gloves may alter the foodie review experience — touch, texture, glove vs food smell, etc.

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Christine E
Christine E
6 years ago
Reply to  Christine E

If they were working in the kitchen, but now are eating, they have to change the gloves to return to the kitchen… so why not take them off to eat…

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Gretchen
Gretchen
6 years ago

Mexi-kosher sounds like a contradiction in terms. And what if you want some pulled pork in your taco? Is it seitan or Satan? I’ll stick to the real thing and enjoy hell with the Mexicans.

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Mustafah
Mustafah
6 years ago

Vinnie’s. Totally overated. It was good if you like oily pizza that was overly salty, served by crusty old men who were nasty. You had a choice to stand and eat it or you could sit in the back, if the 2 tables were open sandwiched in between the garbage can and toilet. Yum. I’m not missing it, I can’t understand why people are nostalgic for abuse

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Independent
Independent
6 years ago
Reply to  Mustafah

“crusty old men”

So what are your plans, then, for escaping the ravages of time?

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dannyboy
dannyboy
6 years ago
Reply to  Mustafah

you had me at: “served by crusty old men who were nasty.”

PIZZA!

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UWS40
UWS40
6 years ago
Reply to  Mustafah

If you give attitude you get attitude.

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Mustafah
Mustafah
6 years ago

Scratch my last comment, I meant Sal & Carmine’s. Vinnie’s was good. Sorry it’s late.

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dannyboy
dannyboy
6 years ago
Reply to  Mustafah

move my Reply down to here

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UWSHebrew
UWSHebrew
6 years ago
Reply to  Mustafah

Sal & Carmine’s = $3 for a slice that has cheese and sauce missing from the upper quarter of the slice. Extremely skimpy on the cheese and sauce application in general. Too salty for my taste as well. I see no appeal in this pizza place at all.

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RF
RF
6 years ago

I live in the 80s and love Mexican food, so I was excited about a new option. Disappointed to see that there is virtually NOTHING vegetarian-friendly on their menu. I guess I’ll stick with my cactus tacos and roasted potato enchiladas from Oaxaca for now…but if anyone has suggestions for UWS Mexican restaurants that have at least a few good vegetarian options, I’d love to hear them!

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dannyboy
dannyboy
6 years ago
Reply to  RF

RF,

as a vegetarian for over 45 years, i can give you a piece of advice.

tell the waiter which ingredients you would like left out of the preparation. if the dish is prepared fresh, that will pose no problem to the chef. often it will spur the chef to think of something better for you.

i have never gone hungry in a restaurant doing that.

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RF
RF
6 years ago
Reply to  dannyboy

Definitely a good option in a restaurant, but this place appears to be primarily a takeout/eat at the counter place…the menu has you pick one “style” (ie: rice bowl is “choice of meat over rice”) and then one “meat.” I suppose you could skip the “meat” and just eat the rice, but my guess is that a fast-casual place wouldn’t be set up for special pricing, so you’d end up paying $13.99 for a bowl of rice, or salad greens with no meat on top. Could be wrong, but not sure I’ll go out of my way to try it. I will check out Cafe Frida, though–they even have a couple of vegan options, which is nice to see.

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dannyboy
dannyboy
6 years ago
Reply to  RF

“wouldn’t be set up for special pricing, so you’d end up paying…”

yes, always

the restaurant targets a certain dollar for your bill. changing ingredients won’t lower it.

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dannyboy
dannyboy
6 years ago
Reply to  dannyboy

looked it up

re·mon·strate
rəˈmänˌstrāt/
verb
3rd person present: remonstrates
make a forcefully reproachful protest.

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Independent
Independent
6 years ago
Reply to  dannyboy

Reminds me of one of the gags that can be heard in a vintage recording of the old time radio show “Candid Microphone” that can be heard at this link. The man with the hidden microphone goes to a restaurant, requests all kinds of adjustments in the offerings on the menu and doggedly remonstrates with the waiter when he denies them. Funny stuff.

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Cat@lynn
Cat@lynn
6 years ago
Reply to  RF

Have you tried Cafe Frida on Columbus btwn 77 & 78th?

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js
js
6 years ago

I saw a truck delivering whole pizzas to this Motorino. How fresh can they be??? How about instead of yet ANOTHER high-calorie, low nutrition, over priced food joint, a health food store or a nice laundromat or … ? that better serves the REAL needs of this neighborhood.

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RK
RK
6 years ago

Motorino is real Neapolitan pizza. Do not compare to a ny slice joint. All comments – not crisp enough, not enough cheese- is characteristic of Neapolitan pizza.

Motorinos is awesome.

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Richard
Richard
6 years ago
Reply to  RK

Truth!

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lis
lis
6 years ago

Wondering….how does Motorino compare to Sirenetta (relatively new) on Amsterdam Avenue?

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mo
mo
6 years ago

The space that Motorino occupies is not the old subway it was the nail salon. The subway space is still up for rent.

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dannyboy
dannyboy
6 years ago

while we’re on the topic of pizza, i got a question.

Why does West Side Market, when they sell a variety of fresh bagels, also sell Thomas’ bagels?

is there some rarefied taste that i missed?

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Christian s Herzeca
Christian s Herzeca
6 years ago

just went to moto. outstanding. won’t have to leave nabe for lahey’s Co.

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