Restaurants

Recently opened on Pine Street in Long Beach, Federal Bar has taken an old bank and turned it into a swagged out gastro pub, restaurant, and lounge.  The with a selection worth its weight in gold, menu is worth investing in. The columns outside the entrance of the Federal Bar, Long Beach. Outside, granite columns give a clue of the building’s former glory as the home of Security Pacific National Bank.  Inside, more columns, walls covered in polished wood, and gilded ceilings are signs that Federal Bar is embracing the big-money décor of the previous tenants. The cavernous interior of The Federal Bar, Long Beach. Towering columns, wood paneling, and chandeliers add to the ambiance. The kitchen must be equally decked out.  The dishes turned out by Chefs Anthony Overton and Vector Lopez were superb during my visit, with left overs being more worthy of a safe deposit box than a doggy bag.* Appetizers Labeled as “Pass-Arounds” on the menu, the appetizers could stand alone by themselves.  Lamb chops and short rib poutine should excite the carnivores while the veg heads will delight in the grilled artichoke or the kale & Brussels sprout dip.  If there’s a toss up, both parties will quickly agree to the mac-n-cheese (which can be enhanced with bacon or short rib! #teamcarnivore).  Prices for appetizers range from $9-12 with a $2 discount in effect during happy hour (3-6 PM). Grilled Artichoke The mac-n-cheese is certainly shareable. Kale and brussels sprouts dip.  Yes, those are cripsy bacon strips for dipping! Entrees with an Emphasis on Burger The big courses in the menu offer just as much selection as the apprtizers:  flat breads, salads, and sandwiches/wraps offer plenty of options for entrees.   Vegans will be especially happy to find a hot dog (The Gevan Weena) and a burger made with them in mind. I opted for the namesake Federal Burger during my visit: a beef patty with garlic chips, smoked cheddar, bibb lettuce, black peppercorn aioli, and balsamic onion, all stacked up on a brioche bun ($11).  Burgers are served with house salad or fries but I found the perfectly sweet  accompaniment to the savory burger in a side of maple-glazed sweet potato tots ($6). The Federal Burger carries the name of the place without effort. But the Maple-glazed sweet potato tots are a good back up. Dessert The seasonal dessert menu can sway even the most health conscious folks to temp a bite.  Classics are present like “old fashioned” apple pie and red velvet cake.  Dishes to spark curiosities include a sweet bacon cristo (chipotle peanut butter and chocolate, deep fried) and the Elvis Pie: a peanut butter mousse over a graham cracker crust, topped with chocolate and bananas. Elvis Pie is everything the King would wish for. Happy Hour, Too While an epic meal is par for the course with a menu like the one at The Federal Bar, a short happy meal can certainly take place too.  In fact, it might be worth it to just put in for a drink and a bite while checking out the scene on Pine Ave. But with the convention center and other entertainment just a few blocks away and plenty going on in the surrounding area, the line to make a withdrawal from the Federal Bar is likely to be a long one. The Federal Bar, Long Beach http://lb.thefederalbar.com/ 102 Pine Ave, Long Beach, CA 90802 562-435-2000 Hours of Operation: Monday-Saturday – Open 11:30 AM; Sunday – Open 10 AM; Call for closing times * Some items mentioned in this article were provided on a complimentary basis for the purpose of this review. Prices and menu items mentioned are subject to change without notice. This story was accurate when it was published and reflects the uninfluenced opinion of the reviewers.

~ For the past five years, Christopher Kostow, chef of the three Michelin-starred The Restaurant at Meadowood has hosted an extraordinary series of dinners known as the “Twelve Days of Christmas.”  Every December, it brings a holiday wish list of the world’s best chefs to the restaurant, which is located on the breathtaking property of Meadowood Napa Valley, a Relais & Châteaux resort in St. Helena, California. Last year, when Kostow invited me to attend the Twelve Days of Christmas (here’s a recap, with links to all twelve dinners), he told me that it would be his last year hosting the event.  I didn’t say much about his decision until the end of the series, when, impressed by the experience, I urged him to reconsider (I’m sure I was not alone in doing so).  I’m glad he did. The chef alumni of this dinner series comprise an amazing collection of the most relevant and current names in kitchens across the world: Enrique Olvera, Mathias Dahlgren, John and Karen Shields, Sean Brock, Gabriel Rucker, David Toutain, and April Bloomfield are among the dozens of names that this event has brought to Napa Valley over the past five years. I am happy to announce that this year, Kostow adds eleven more to the list. ~ ~ The Twelve Days of Christmas has not only become a showcase of food and wine, but, more importantly, it has become a platform for building awareness about the Napa Valley community that surrounds and supports Kostow and his restaurant. In past years, part of the proceeds of the dinner series benefitted Share Our Strength, a national, nonprofit organization dedicated to eradicating childhood hunger.  However, this year, Kostow decided to move the cause closer to home.  Twenty percent of the dinner ticket proceeds of the 2013 Twelve Days of Christmas will benefit two Napa Valley organizations: the Holly Cranston Memorial Fund, an organization that assists local families whose special needs are not met by traditional sources of assistance; and NEWS (Napa Emergency Women’s Services), which provides a refuge for women and children suffering from domestic violence and/or sexual assault. As well, this year’s eleven guest chefs will spend time getting to know the community and relationships that are important to Kostow.  The chefs will visit a Montessori school, where Kostow and the school are teaching students about sustainable agriculture by growing vegetables on land set aside by the school.  The guest chefs will be invited to hand-pick produce for their dinners from this garden. Kostow’s community also includes the Culinary Institute of America, which will again host a special lecture series at its Greystone campus in St. Helena, where some of this year’s guest chefs will be invited to speak. ~ ~ This year’s Twelve Days of Christmas welcomes a diverse group of chefs to Napa Valley.  They come from every corner of America, as well as two other continents.  Familiar with all of them, some more than others (I have visited the restaurants of ten of the twelve chefs, and have eaten the food of eleven of them), I’m particularly excited about this year’s dinner series.  I look forward to spending more time with each of them, and experiencing more of their cooking in December, when I will, again, be attending and photographing all twelve dinners. Each of the multi-course dinners will be the product of a collaboration among the guest chef, Kostow, and a guest vintner, at The Restaurant at Meadowood.  In addition to the sixty-eight seats in the dining room, this year, Kostow will, again, make four seats at the chefs’s counter in the kitchen available.  For all pricing and reservation information about these dinners, please visit the The Restaurant at Meadowood’s events page. Without more, I am pleased to have the privilege of announcing the guest chefs, vintners, and schedule for the sixth annual Twelve Days of Christmas (I’ve hyperlin

• Black Tree on the LES is launching a summer "Slip and Slide-r" happy hour from 4 to 8 p.m. A slider-size sandwich board ($9) offers three sandwiches with daily changing fillings like ale-braised short rib. Chase your sliders with local craft beers on tap ($4) or a glass of wine. [Grub Street] • Momofuku restaurateur David Chang, Andy Ricker of Pok Pok, Carlo Mirachi of Roberta's and Blanca and the Del Posto crew are among the all-star lineup of chefs who'll join Christopher Kostow's Twelve Days of Christmas dining series in December at Restaurant at Meadowood. Tickets range between $395 and $750, and the restaurant donates a significant portion of all sales to nonprofit organizations. Email reservations@therestaurantatmeadowood.com for more information or to secure your spot. • To celebrate its new cookbook, Greenmarket to Gotham, the venerable Gotham Bar and Grill is offering a special vegetarian lunch this Saturday. A $75 ticket includes a three-course meal featuring recipes from the book, wine pairings from New Zealand Fine Wines, and a copy signed by chef Alfred Portale. Tickets can be acquired online or by phone. Seatings will be from noon till 2 p.m. [Grub Street] • Jason Dady, the up-and-coming San Antonio chef, will cook a City Grit dinner this Friday. Expect dishes like blue-crab bahn mi and roasted papusa with duck carnitas. Tickets are $75. [Grub Street] • The Center is kicking off Pride Week this Monday on Hudson River Park's Pier 84 with food from Acme and the Standard Grill, along with many others. [Grub Street] • Ditch Plains is offering a $40 crab boil this Thursday, June 20, at the UWS location. Don't worry if you miss it: Subsequent shellfish bonanzas are scheduled for July 18 and August 15. [Grub Street] • This Saturday, Brushstroke is having a "Summer Kaiseki & Cocktails" dinner. Only eight seats are available, but chef Yamada is planning on making this a monthly event at the restaurant. [Grub Street] • Tocqueville's new Greenmarket menu will be available for the rest of the summer season, featuring an array of local fruit and produce. It's $39 for lunch, $55 for dinner. [Grub Street] Filed Under: leftovers, black tree, brushstroke, crit grit, ditch plains, gay pride, gotham bar and grill, jason dady, tocqueville

This week New York Times critic Pete Wells files a very positive two-star review of the new location of Kajitsu, the Japanese restaurant specializing in shojin ryori cooking. Writes Wells: "Each time I go to Kajitsu, which recently moved from the East Village to a tranquil and luminous new home in Murray Hill, I am still surprised by the variety of flavors that [chef Ryota] Ueshima coaxes out of meals that Westerners would call vegan." [NYT]

It doesn't look like much now, but soon this space will be Han Dynasty, the first New York restaurant from Han Chiang. The chef has six restaurants in Philadelphia, all of which serve peppery Sichuan fare. In interviews, he's made it clear that he has no interest in dumbing down Sichuan food for the masses. For what it's worth, Anthony Bourdain hung out with him on last year's Philly episode of The Layover. EV Grieve notes that Han Dynasty scored a beer and wine license last month. · All Coverage of Han Dynasty [~ENY~]

It's on again. The restaurateur behind the 5 Napkin Burger chain and many other French-Mediterranean spots has been given the green light to open his planned 200-seat, full-service restaurant called Chef Driven Market on the north side of Union Square, the Post reports. Earlier, a nonprofit called NYC Park Advocates had been successful in its bid to stop the restaurant from opening, along with its "eye-popping brunch prices of up to $19.95 a plate." In January, a judge denounced the Bloomberg-backed plan, along with a Union Square-set holiday market, but today the five-judge Appellate Division reversed the ruling. The advocacy group may still appeal the decision. [NYP, Earlier, Earlier] Read more posts by Hugh MerwinFiled Under: lawsuits, chef driven market, new york, new york restaurants, simon oren, union square

It's been a long road in the dispute between the parent companies of Le Cordon Bleu in Pasadena and the students who filed a class action suit alleging fraud against the culinary school. Accordin...

The world was shocked to learn yesterday that Dressler, the seven-year-old South Williamsburg stalwart, had suddenly closed its doors after a final weekend of service. A goodbye notice posted to the restaurant's website referenced an inability to come to terms with the landlord on a new lease, although many commenters referenced an abundance of empty tables during their recent visits which may have factored in to the move. Either way, it's still a big loss for the neighborhood. Eater stopped by yesterday to check out the carnage. · South 'Burg Shocker: Dressler Suddenly Closes For Good [~ENY~] · Dressler Coverage [~ENY~]

Chef Christopher Kostow, of the three-Michelin-star Restaurant at Meadowood, has announced the chefs that will take part in his annual 12 Day of Christmas dinner series this winter. Among them: Pok Pok's Andy Ricker, who's slated to cook on December 6. The epic dinners (priced from $395 to $750) benefit two charities: the Holly Cranston Foundation and the Napa Emergency Women's Services. [-EN-]

Eric Ripert tells Dana Cowin that he didn't necessarily want to be the executive chef at Le Bernardin when tragedy forced him to take the helm. "I was working as a chef under Gilbert Le Coze and he died of a heart attack. I was 26 at the time and I was happy doing what I was doing, but I had to take over. The New York Times critic Ruth Reichl was not so sure about me and she came in 12 times before we got our review." Of course, when that review finally did come out, it was a solid four stars, and the rest is history. [NRN]