I have enlisted the help of some tools to help me pick a restaurant, get there and report it. These items are really no different than ones I would use on a regular dining experience nor are they unusual. They do require some explanation and, perhaps, justification.
I have proclaimed my fondness for Zagat's food rating. The book helps influence my restaurant selection. Being a bit of a food snob, I want to eat at the highly rated restaurants. However, I am not adverse restaurant not in Zagat's, but there has to be good "user reviews" or buzz associated with that restaurant. There are a lot, and I mean, A LOT of crappy restaurants in New York City. I am not just talking about Times Square and its plethora of chain restaurants and tourist traps, but all over the city. Which brings me to my next tool, my "StreetSmart Manhattan" map.
You can get a "StreetSmart" map anywhere in the city. I love mine and use it often, mainly for subway stops and how far I have to walk from there to my destination. I refer to it all the time. I don't care if someone thinks I am a tourist. Once you get below 14th street things start to get a little more complex that the familiar grid configuration. It gets me to my next reservation. Which brings me opentable.com where I will likely reserve my next lunch.
Opentable.com is great to reserve your spot at a terrific restaurant. I actually got a reservation for Per Se off opentable. If you plan early enough in advance to go out to dinner (a couple weeks), you can get reservations at some of the hardest to get into restaurants. Lunches are easier. I usually have a place in mind for my next Prix Fixe lunch and try to make the reservation a week in advance. There are also points you can get for using opentable.com which translate into cash after enough reservations are made and kept on your account. It is a free service, so you really can't go wrong. There are some restaurants that do not take reservations and some that do not participate with opentable, camping outside a restaurant or picking up the phone are also options. I like reservations best either by opentable or phone. I will go to a restaurant before peak time or Monday, if they don't take reservations.
After repeated advisement from my friends, I take picutres of each course of my party's meal. I also use someone else's pictures to illustrate my dining experience. Sure, you may get some curious looks as you snap a shot of your dish, but there are far worse things you could do at a nice restaurant that would get unwanted attention or an injury, like falling down the steps. I actually did that at Daniel going to find the bathroom. I had not been drinking. . . really, I hadn't. Thankfully, no one saw, but maybe a secuirty camera. I arranged my big feet a different way down the remaining short, steep steps and limped to the toilet.
The items listed above are my tangible tools. My palate, personality and organization skills pave the way for new reviews and commentary. I have written about my palate's resume in "Let's Review". As far as my personality, most of you know me or will get to know by reading this blog. I try to be pretty easy going and a lover of food. My organizational skills are strong, but still evolving. These last traits are what make these reviews worthwhile, fun and educational.
zagat.com about.com and search Manhattan map opentable.com
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