Categories
italian

Desy’s Clam Bar

It’s interesting reading the reviews of this place on Yelp. People either love it or hate it. But some people even come from far away to eat here, which is weird because it’s always empty every time I pass. My boss is one of those people who take the trip out to Williamsburg for this restaurant. Weird. But apparently, this place is related to the old popular Little Charlie’s Clam Bar in Little Italy.

Sam and I went to try it out right after I had some dental work. My mouth was numb and drooling. The place was empty. I had very low expectations.

They have relatively cheap beers. $3 Domestic and $4 Imported. Nice.

The waiter asked us what type of sauce we wanted with our bread. I said hot. But he was like, “Um, let me bring out the Medium and Mild first.” Cool, medium was decent, but I still wanted to try hot. Dang. Hot came out and it was basically hot chili oil. Like imagine if you ordered your pasta with that hot chili oil think it would be like spaghetti sauce. Weird. I mean, it’s cool they serve that because I like to dab a little. But no way is it a “sauce.”

The Calamari was pretty good. But that biscuit it comes with was hard as a rock. We couldn’t figure out how to break it. Just know that if you order meat or seafood, you should pay the $3 extra for the pasta. Because otherwise, you get that hard biscuit.

Which brings us to our entrees. Sam ordered the Angel Hair Frutti di Mare (Seafood) $17 and I got the Chicken Eggplant Parmigiana over Linguini $16. Sort of pricey, but it was a ton of food. I ate maybe 1/3 of it and was full.

You know, it really wasn’t that bad. A lot better than I expected. It even got packed. So much that people were waiting for like forty minutes for a table and even bussed the previous tables so they could sit down. Yeah, the one waiter was overwhelmed. He didn’t they’d be so busy. I thought it was weird that people were willing to wait that long even after getting pissed off. But I think they came all the way from Staten Island.

Desy’s Clam Bar – 562 Grand St (btwn Union Ave & Lorimer) Brooklyn, NY 11211

…So coincidentally I had some dental work done and Crest emails me to see if I want to give away some Crest 3D White products that whitens teeth in two days. I was going to a before and after video, but I later realized I’ve been using Crest 3D White Toothpaste for a while now. I’m actually on my second tube in a 2-pack. I didn’t know. I just usually buy what’s on sale. Anyway, I guess it works. The lady who cleaned my teeth said she was surprised I haven’t been to the dentist in six years, because my teeth were pretty white.

Well I know how it important is to take care of your teeth. I was dying of tooth pain. Like ready to smash my head against the wall. So I do have some Crest 3D toothpaste, toothbrushes and mouthwash for you guys that I’m supposed to give away on this food blog. But dang, it’s really not worth my time to walk twenty minutes to the post office, wait in line and pay $3 for you to get it. So if you ever run into me, just ask. I might be carrying. …That toothbrush is surprisingly really good. A lot of brush surface, like using a BBQ grill brush.

Crest 3D White

Categories
burger restauranting

Guy’s American Kitchen and Bar isn’t That bad

The NY Times review of Guy Fieri’s Times Square restaurant is trending. The review is over the top. It reminds me of those snarky Pitchfork reviews from a few years back. I don’t know if they still write that way. I got turned off.

Anyway, Sam, Chris and I really wanted to try the restaurant after reading the review. Can it really be that bad? There were a lot of people there for lunch today. I imagine the review sparked some interest. A lot of young hipsters and business folk in suits.

The place is huge. The front of the building has a big loud television screen and fits right in with Times Square. They sat us in the back. It kinda looked like a nicer Applebee’s or Outback with some Tin Can Alley Disney feel.

I gotta say, after reading the Yelp and TripAdvisor reviews, I was a little scared of the service. But they were really attentive today. I felt like our waitress was smiling at me a little too much maybe. But I did look pretty cute today. Also I’m sure Guy came in and whipped everyone into shape after the NY Times review. So I wonder if that also carried over to the food.

We started off with the Fried Calamari. Right after I ordered it, I saw the party next to us leave with a pretty full plate of the Fried Calamari still left on the table. I thought, “Oh shit, it must suck.” But it was actually pretty good. We enjoyed them. I like the Garlic & Pepperoncini Chili Sauce that came with it …which I think is just mayo, mustard and shredded cabbage/coleslaw. It was really good for dipping. I saved the rest for my burger and fries that were to come.

Chris ordered the Cajun Chicken Alfredo Pasta ($21.50). The plate in the photo makes it look really small. I guess it was kinda small for the price, but this photo makes the food look ridiculously tiny or the plate looks ridiculously huge.

Sam ordered the Rotisserie Roasted Garlic-Rosemary Chicken plate ($17.50). It came with mashed potatoes. I think this looked the best and probably the best value out of all our meals.

I ordered the Guy’s Big Bite Burger with Rojo Ring, where the Rojo (onion) ring is on the burger ($17.50 …although it said $19.50 on the bill. Maybe it costs more with the Garlic Fries? I’m not sure. I thought it was coming with the fries, because I had a choice of Seasoned Fries, Garlic Fries or Onion Rings. Maybe their computers are messed up. Anyway, the menu says it’s cheaper). The burger has the Donkey Sauce on it that the NY Times review makes fun of. It was a little squirt on it. I think it was kind of like a sweet BBQ sauce, but less BBQ and more Hoisin. Burger was decent, but maybe seems like a waste to use Pat LeFrieda meat and cook it well done. Burger was better with that Fried Calamari Dipping Sauce. They should just put that sauce on everything. I love mayonnaise.

Overall, the food was pretty decent for the type of restaurant it is and where it is. Much better than other touristy restaurants I’ve been to in the area like Bubba Gump, Jekyll & Hyde and Red Lobster Times Square. The food at Guy’s is overpriced, but in line with those other touristy restaurants.

We had a decent meal and finished everything. The experience was nothing like the review. But maybe they turned everything around after Guy came back to crack the whip.

Here’s Guy’s response to the NY Times review on MSNBC this morning. What’s with the tourist that calls us pompous New Yorkers? Why the hell are you visiting New York if we are so pompous? He really loved the Pretzel Chicken Tenders.

Was the NY Times article unfair? Maybe. But I haven’t eaten here four times yet. I would have liked to see this guy’s review of Mars 2112. I thought the critic Pete Wells was a comedian at first, but I’m thinking of Pete Holmes.

Guy’s American Kitchen and Bar - 220 W 44th St (between 7th & 8th Ave) New York, NY 10036