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blt bar and gril w hotel downtown

NOW OPEN: BLT Bar & Grill at W Hotel Downtown (PHOTOS)

blt bar and gril w hotel downtown
Food scene grows in Battery Park City with the opening of our own BLT

Are you looking for a great dinner option tonight, and have gotten tired of the restaurants around you?
You’re in luck because today marks the opening of the long awaited BLT Bar & Grill at the new W Hotel Downtown on Albany Street.

“We are pleased to partner with the W and become a presence in Lower Manhattan,” says Jimmy Haber, owner of the BLT Restaurant Group, “The BLT Bar & Grill concept was tailor-made for the neighborhood, offering a variety of dining options under one roof for friends, businesses and locals.”

The BLT enterprise has been testing our downtown palates with their GO Burger trucks at the South Street Seaport for a while, you can consider that they’ve done their homework on our neighborhood. With the rumored openings of Shake Shack and Blue Smoke in our neighborhood, Battery Park City is set to be a veritable foodie fiefdom.

According to the press release the restaurant bills itselve as “a modern tavern — offering modern American bar food with a wide selection of cocktails, beer and wine” with Executive Chefs Christophe Bellanca and David Craine at the helm of the cuiisine. The restaurant seats 23 at the bar, and has two levels of seating, including a private dining room and an outside patio area.

As BLT is billing itself as “affordable fare for everyday dining, ” that may be considered fighting words for our beloved Gatehouse, which has been the only other restaurant offering everyday pub-ish fare on Albany Street for years.

In terms of the menu, include the following selections:

Breakfast:
Brioche French Toast with cinnamon-caramelized apples
“Downtown” Burrito, cheddar scrambled eggs, peppers and onion tomato salsa.

Lunch:
Eggplant & Taleggio Panini with caper aioli
Cuban Sandwich pressed with pork belly and speck.

Dinner:
Spiced Rotisserie Chicken with cabernet honey and chicken jus
Fish & Chips with zesty tartar sauce
Filet Mignon, Bone-In Ribeye and NY Strip steaks.

There are daily specials being offered and to find out more check out their breakfast, lunch, dinner, and bar menus here.

The restaurant is open daily serving breakfast from 6:30AM -10:30AM, lunch from 11:30AM – 2:30PM and dinner from 5:30PM – 10PM. The bar is open from 11AM-1AM, which includes its own special bar menu.  Lucky condominium residents and guests of the W Hotel can count on BLT to provide them sustenance at their beck and call for “in residence dining”, including offering food options at Living Room Bar and Terrace location within the hotel.

Petite Abeille West Broadway

Petite Abeille on West Broadway

Petite Abeille West Broadway
Mussels on the menu at Petite Abeille West Broadway

Petite Abeille is a quaint Belgian restaurant most known for its Mussels and Belgian Waffles.  With four Manhattan locations, no one can deny that this restaurant has outlived New York’s Belgian food buzz, and their Tribeca location certainly does them justice.

If you choose to dine here, do yourself a favor and try a new beer- your waiter will definitely be able to find something you’ll enjoy out of their 50 different Belgian beers.  All four of the beers our waiter recommended- from the strong and heavy Scaldis ($8.50) to the sweet and fruity Lindemans Framboise ($9.50)- were delightful and a great way to start the meal.  They also had the added benefit of enhancing our appetite which we were extremely grateful for later on in the evening!

The appetizer portion of the Moules Marinieres ($9.50) were more than enough for two people to share.  I could definitely see why their Wednesday night all you can eat specials are so popular; the mussels were fresh and not the least bit grainy, and the white wine broth was divine.  Petite Abeille also provides diners with deliciously crusty, chewy, and sour bread that’s perfect for dipping into the broth.

Belgian Waffles from Petite Abeille
Belgian Waffles from Petite Abeille

For my main course, I got the Vol Au Vent, Frites ($18.50), which was basically a deconstructed pot pie with pommes frites on the side, definitely not a meal for the calorie cautious!  The pommes frites were kind of overkill, especially since they were soggy and undercooked.  The chicken, on the other hand, was slightly dry and overcooked, but the sinfully creamy gravy provided a great textural balance.  The deconstructed nature of the Vol Au Vent insured that the puff pastry stay puffy, and the bacon and mushrooms were a perfect addition to this indulgent meal.  If the chicken weren’t so dry, this would definitely rank in my top 5 chicken pot pies.

Vol Au Vent from Petite Abeille
Vol Au Vent from Petite Abeille

After that heavy dish, I definitely felt the need to unbutton my pants and call it a night, but I couldn’t leave without trying the Belgian Waffles.  This was an instance in which the masses were correct: The Gaufre Chantilly ($7.00), or the waffle with whipped cream and strawberry sauce, was one of the best things I’ve ever eaten, and I don’t even like waffles!  Actually, I don’t particularly like waffles, whipped cream, or strawberry sauce, but together these three elements create perfection!

Even if you’re not into mussels, please, take my advice and drop in for dessert, or try one of their tamer options like a burger or steak frites.  You won’t be disappointed!

Blue Smoke and Shake Shack coming to Battery Park City!

Shake Shack & Blue Smoke Combo Meal in Battery Park City! (UPDATE)

Blue Smoke and Shake Shack coming to Battery Park City!
Blue Smoke and Shake Shack coming to Battery Park City!

-=UPDATE =-
July 28, 2010 – Confirmation was made by Danny Meyer himself that Blue Smoke and Shake Shack are INDEED, opening in Battery Park City during tonight’s Community Board 1 Meeting.

Meaning — we probably will need that New York Sports Club back.

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I don’t know about you, but on more than one occasion, my friends and I have been guilty of venturing to Citi Field for a “Shake Shack / Blue Smoke Dinner Combo.”

I am happy to report that the journey for one of my favorite dinners of all time soon won’t require taking the 7 train.

It’s being widely reported by NY Mag’s Grub Street and others that Blue Smoke has been confirmed as one of the restaurants replacing the recently-shuttered Applebee’s and Chevy’s. Well done Goldman Sachs — we had our doubts — but it seems you’ve done the neighborhood a culinary favor!

We have been discussing the rumblings of Shake Shack for months, but news of this pairing would be an encore presentation of what every Met fan or visitor to Citi Field already knows is a great collaboration in one’s belly.

Along with newcomers BLT Burger at the W, Five Guys on Fulton and our summer visitor Quality Burger — our neighborhood is poised to be quite a burger and BBQ paradise.

About time!