Where to Eat For Lunar New YearCelebrate the Year of the Rabbit with traditional dim sum, contemporary Asian-inspired dishes and a Peking duck surf and turf burger.
Chris Cheung’s Foie Gras Bao Resurface in Midtown EastWhen chef Chris Cheung told us “Chinese cooking is cloaked in secrecy. I know those traditional recipes, but I also have been trained in the new, cutting-edge techniques that a lot of Western chefs are using” after leaving his post at Almond Flower last July, he simultaneously had us pining over the loss of his modern Chinese dishes and anticipating his return to the city’s dining landscape. Well, the liquid–foie gras–squirting bao are back — along with sweet-chile baby back ribs — and now available at Cheung’s newest post, Monkey Bar. The Glazier Group hired the Nobu alum as a replacement for chef Patricia Yeo in hopes that he will have better luck revitalizing the chronically buzz-lacking restaurant. With the Chinese New Year starting tomorrow, Cheung informed Gothamist he’ll be cooking dishes designed for prosperity, but his new permanent menu, which includes sliders in bao buns and wok-fried noodles with short ribs in house-made abalone oyster sauce, might just be all the luck he (and Monkey Bar) needs.—Alexandra VallisMonkey Bar Menu
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The Best New Noodle Shop in Chinatown, and Where to Go for Chinese New YearEddie Schoenfeld is a bubbly fellow who lives in Brooklyn and happens to be an expert in Chinese-restaurant cooking. After years studying with exiled Chinese chefs in France and here, he went on to help open Shun Lee West, Pig Heaven, Auntie Yuan’s, Chinatown Brasserie, and many other restaurants. We asked him where to celebrate Chinese New Year, the eve of which is February 6th.
Mediavore
NYSRA Fights Calorie Law Again; Bovine Waterboarding Video ReleasedThe New York State Restaurant Association filed another suit in federal district court yesterday to prevent a law requiring some restaurants to post calorie information on menus and signs from being enacted. [Grub Street] Was theTimesguilty of scaremongering with its slew of mercury-in-tuna stories? [Slate] With the recent spate of wine bar openings, it’s worth considering what really constitutes a wine bar. A good wine list is a good start! [Mouthing Off/Food & Wine]
Back of the House
Restaurants Not Feeling the Love Last Night; Menu Secrets Kept From RiffraffA brutal Valentine’s Day for New York restaurants, battered by cancellations owing to the lousy weather. [WCBS] Many of the city’s best restaurants have off-the-menu specials: foie gras donuts at Telepan, Daniel Boulud’s lobster ravioli at Le Cirque, and more, all revealed here. [Restaurant Girl] Chocolate, of all things, turns out to be New York’s No. 1 specialty-food export — if you eat it on the East Coast, chances are it came from here. Food processing is “by far the most stable major manufacturing sector” in the city, and one of the last. [NYT]
