Barn Joo

35 Union Square West

(between 17th Street and 18th Street)

Earlier this year Barn Joo moved from their Flatiron location to Union Square (to the building formerly housing the Heartland Brewery).

 

Restaurant still featured their signature bamboo décor.

 

Went for a birthday lunch. I ordered the Kimchi Fried Rice ($17), which came with caramelized kimchi, pickled cabbage, and, of course, an egg sunny-side up. VERY spicy. Even just looking at the photo, makes my lips tingle!

My friend went with the Tofu and Mushroom Bimbimbap ($18). Decent bibimbamp, but nothing memorable.

 

Both meals came with a starter of either a salad or oden soup (fish cakes in vegetable broth). She went with the salad and I went with the soup. The soup was surprisingly refreshing and particularly liked the veggie crunchiness.

We also ordered a side of Garlic Truffle Fries ($6). Deliciously crispy and you can definitely taste the truffle!

 

To accompany our Korean meal, we of course ordered beer. I went with a bottle of Kloud ($8) from Korea.

 

The highlight of the meal, though, was our dessert: Bibim Bingsu ($16). The dessert is specifically prepared for two (2). It’s honey milk, seasonal fruit, condensed milk served over shaved ice and goguma (similar to red bean) ice cream. Best of all, it looked like a bowl of Bibimbap (my friend’s favorite Korean dish)!!

Perfect dessert to end a spicy Korean meal. Would also be great to have on a hot summer day as it’s super refreshing.

And since it was a birthday celebration, we paired out dessert with a glass of Riesling Dr Konstantin from the NY Fingerlakes ($12), which the restaurant kindly comped us (knowing that it was a b-day lunch)!

Cheers!

Pros:

Bibim Bingsu dessert!

Cons:

Relatively pricey.

Service was a bit confusing. We started off with one waitress and then ended up with another midway through the meal without any explanation. But on a positive note, both waitresses were friendly.

Final Thoughts

Would definitely return just for the Bibim Bingsu dessert!

Notaro Ristorante

635 Second Avenue

(between 34th Street and 35th Street)

If you find yourself in midtown on the East Side and looking for a relatively lunch spot, Notaro is a decent choice.

The restaurant is quaint and definitely old-school Italian.

Their $13.95 lunch special comes with an appetizer, a main, and coffee/tea. The main dishes are pretty varied from lasagna to salmon.

We both started with their Caesar Salad as it was highly recommended by our waiter. The salad was of decent size. Appreciated that it came on a large plate as opposed to a small bowl.

For my main course, I went with the spaghetti and meatballs. Can’t go wrong with spaghetti and meatballs in an Italian restaurant!

My friend ordered the Pollo Marsala (chicken breast stuffed with mushrooms). Decent-sized portion, but not loving the presentation.

And even though it wasn’t offered with the lunch special, we ordered their homemade cheesecake ($9). Decent, but not memorable.

Their Montepulciano ($9 per glass) did pair very well with both the pasta and dessert.

Pros:

Decent lunch special.

The waitstaff let customers linger without rushing them out (at least from what I could witness from their lunch service!).

Excellent coffee!

 

Cons:

Wished the lunch special offered a dessert. Even a simple choice of ice cream/gelato would have been nice.

Final Thoughts

As was noted throughout my review, the word to describe the experience is “decent,” but I don’t consider it a must-return-to dining experience unless I’m in the neighborhood.
 

Turntable Chicken Jazz

314 Fifth Avenue, 2nd Floor

(between 31st Street and 32nd Street)

If you are in the mood for delicious KFC (Korean Fried Chicken), make a trip to Turntable Chicken Jazz.

The bar/restaurant pays homage to their name by hanging retro turntables on their walls.

 

We immediately ordered their Medium Wings Half & Half (hot & spicy, soy garlic) for $17.95. It came with twelve (12) pieces. The wings are cooked to perfection. So tasty: the skin has that perfect crispy factor and the meat is juicy. And don’t even get me started on the soy garlic sauce! Addictive. The hot & spicy was VERY spicy. Luckily my dining companion ate up most of the hot & spicy wings, so that I could enjoy most of the soy garlic wings.

And they offered a small bucket (pictured on the right in photo) to discard the bones. Brilliant!

Now, since they actually cook the wings to order, it takes a while for you to get your wings. I think our wait was about fifteen minutes.  So to while away the time, we ordered draft beer. What other drink goes better with wings??? I ordered an Asahi lager ($8). I’m not a big beer drinker, so I went with a light beer that actually lasted me for the entire meal.

We also ordered the Seafood and Scallion Korean Pancake ($14.95). Sometimes I find Korean pancakes to be overcooked, where the bottom of the pancakes are burned to a crisp. Not in this case. It was deliciously greasy goodness.

Overall, a very filling and satisfying meal!

Pros:

Memorable yummy wings!

Cons:

Hard to find! Must emphasize that the restaurant is located on the second floor. The street entrance is very narrow and many (including my friend!) walk by it. I had arrived early and had to go down to meet her at the front of the restaurant so that she could find it.

Narrow, dark stairs. Once you do find the restaurant, be careful walking up the narrow stairs. I can’t imagine after a night of hard drinking how hard it would be to walk down the stairs without stumbling. Keep those stiletto heels at home!

Final Thoughts

Will definitely return the next time I get a hankering for KFC!