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restaurant reviews
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I love
good food. It doesn't have to be gourmet, just good.
I was lucky enough to grow up in New York City, where egg creams were
invented,
bagels are defined and a family fast food eatery meant one of the 3
Chinese restaurants within 2 blocks of our apartment. I learned how to
eat with chopsticks before I ever heard of a Big Mac.
Later I got to live in Chicago, Paris, and Florence. Great eating
towns, all.
And now....San Francisco! The toughest part of picking a
place to eat in San Francisco is deciding whether to return to a
favorite restaurant or try one of the hot new discoveries. San
Francisco is truly nirvana for foodies.
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now serving!
The
sevilla
new york city
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 In
honor of my hometown, this
next review is of a classic old Spanish restaurant, where my parents
dated,
my family gathered to celebrate, and
I go whenever I'm in New York City:
The
Sevilla.
This perennial Greenwich Village favorite has
been packing them in for over half a
century. Nostalgia is all well and good, but so is the food at
the Sevilla. It would have to be, for the restaurant to thrive for so
long in a town where
restaurants
sprout and fall with the seasons, like the leaves on the trees.
While dining trends come
and go, the Sevilla remains delicious, hearty, and consistent. It is
not lo-cal, vegan, or fusion. There is no arugula, no mango
chutney, no octupus carpaccio. This is
classic old world Spanish (not Mexican) cuisine, with an emphasis on
seafood.
Fresh, crusty bread is served with butter, not olive oil. The
basic mixed green salad
consists of crisp iceberg lettuce with a slice of tomato and a
tangy orange dressing
(aka "French dressing"). The sangria is made from scratch, of
course, with big chunks of fruit in red wine for a mixture that is
refreshing and potent.
The menu is varied but hasn't really changed in decades. Why mess with
success?
Must-haves in my family include the appetizers of broiled chorizos
(thick slices of
Spanish sausage) and crab-stuffed mushrooms.
Popular
entrees are the paella and arroz dishes, served in small
iron pots that
seem to be bottomless -- chicken,
chorizos, and/or seafood nestled in light, fluffy
saffron rice. Prawns in garlicky white wine sauce are broiled and
presented on a long metal platter. The mariscada
(mixed seafood) in green sauce is a garlic-lover's delight, swimming in
a delectable bath of olive oil, parsley, garlic, and
onions. Spare ribs with fruit sauce are succulent and meaty.
For those who have saved room for dessert, the flan (caramel custard) and natilla
(vanilla custard) are classic favorites.
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 Sevilla
New
York City -
Greenwich Village
62
Charles Street
(corner of West 4th)
NYC 10014
212-929-3189
Open
for lunch 12 noon - 3 pm Mon - Sat;
dinner 3pm - midnight Mon - Sat;
Sunday 1 pm to midnight.
All major credit cards accepted.
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The Sevilla is popular and often packed -- in the evenings it's
adviseable to have
reservations; otherwise expect a long wait, especially on
weekends.
The restaurant is cozy, with booths and dark, glossy wood panelling;
touches like
ship's wheel chandeliers evoke a Spanish galleon. The space can
feel convivial
and/or cramped when full. Consider going for a late lunch or early
dinner -- once
the restaurant opens for lunch it stays open and serving until
late at night.
Fully air-conditioned during those muggy NYC summers.
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Recently
reviewed:
Range
(Mission, San Francisco) |
| NEXT COURSE: |
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There
are so many terrific restaurants to choose from in San Francisco, a
couple of
dozen
within 5 minutes
walking distance of my flat. So why do I so often end up at
Frascati?
Well,
it's consistently delicious, friendly, and serves a black 'n' white
bread
pudding
that sets the
standard for all those other molten chocolate desserts which have turned up on menus
arouund town.
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coming
Soon!
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Taverna Cretekou
(Old Town Alexandria, Virginia)
Buckeye Roadhouse
(Marin, California)
Ana Mandara (Ghiradelli
Square, San Francisco)
Park Chow
(Sunset, San Francisco)
Khan Toke Thai House
(Outer
Richmond, San Francisco)
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