This is like a mid-year review. A Ketchup of restaurants eaten since New Year 2007.

First, since most people can't read past two paragraphs, let's start with the absolutely wonderful, marvelous and delicious.

I've been eating a lot of Indian food. Minar - an amazingly tasty Indian vegetarian joint. My authentic Indian friends agree. Dimple, around the corner, can probably beat Minar. And a recently opened Spice Fusion isn't vegetarian, but is a strong challenger in this game too. All three are worth the visit. Max - is an East Village Italian favorite. I think Max is absolutely perfect. It's cheap, small, cute and delicious. Bond Street - you must try the fresh wassabi (18$). This is one of the strongest sushi restaurants I had a chance to eat at. Plus it was theoretically free with my new IN-NYC Amex that gives you $ back in restaurant gift certificates (they should really sponsor FoodCandy I think). Taj-Almoulouk - an authentic, cheap Lebanese joint with amazing falafel. Orchard - absolutely outstanding Lower East Side restaurant from every angle. On another note, I now get the very special bread from Kossar's Bialys and always have a jar of pickles from The Pickle Guys in the fridge. In fact, I am eating one right now. Cafe El-Portal is a little gem, Mazi's is a cute little new place and Pizzeria de Santo is where I now get pizza from at 4 AM. Also don't miss Koca Lounge and, on another note, the adorable Regate, Bruschetteria and Savorny. I liked all those very much. Check out Jin, it's really yummi and BYOB. When you're tired of fancy restaurants, go to Daisy May's BBQ for BBQ brisket. A good lunch is at Olympic Pita. They give you a very tasty warm pita and sour pickles on the side. Ollie's is a chain, but the Chinese food is authentic. Metro Marche is surprisingly good and so is the Chinese-owned Sushi - Azuki. Ribot really surprised me - this is one of the best Italian restaurants I've been to in a long time. My chicken was so succulent, I am still licking my fingers. Mayrose is an old favorite for lunch and Cafe Noir for dinner. I really liked the tiny Lower East Side Soy. 

I ate at Bright Food Shop right before it closed. That place deserves its own paragraph.

Now, let's get the bad out of the system.

Zen Palate, a vegetarian chain. I didn't like anything I ate. I am told I ordered the wrong thing. I think I chose the wrong restaurant. Marseille - what a disapointment! I had drinks at Mareseille many times before going to a Broadway show and finally tasted the food. It was mediocre at best. Ono should be ashamed of itself and should close. It's misrepresenting the great New York food to thousands of tourists. New York has cheap excellent food, not an expensive awful and tasteless waste of fish. Better Burger - I can't believe people like Better Burger. Apparently the veggie burger is very good, which should raise some eyebrows from meat eaters. They can't make a real burger to save their lives from starvation. I'd rather chew on my cat's toy. Zen - it was a random choice on a random night. I really liked my chicken teryaki actually, but I got really sick after it. The rest was average, especially considering that there're so many other excellent cheap sushi restaurants in the East Village. Tree - or how to ruin a beautiful restaurant. The kitchen was clearly struggling with a very, very long wait, bad food and careless service. There was some tension in the air between the cooks and the rest of the staff and the clientelle in the middle. Les Enfants Terribles is another popular restaurant that is a shame. It cool and packed and the bar is awesome, but the food is terrible. Mermaid Inn is so much talked about, but was so average. It's a very nice restaurant, but the fish that landed in that plate didn't score the right menu. Fig & Olive - a tourist area newcomer. Yes? No? ... No. The story that the restaurant tells is fine. But the appetizers are much better than the entrees, typical problem in these large places. I had great expectations for the Mandler's Sausage that opened not far from my office. But when Israeli's own a sausage place it can't be good. The best sausage is just like at Better Burger, vegetarian.

And more-or-less notable.

Tao - many say that the food at Tao isn't good, I personally think that it's excellent. While we agree to disagree, the restaurant is huge and the big buddha in the middle of it is majestic. The drinks are very expensive, but the food is relatively reasonable. It's a great spot to take out some out-of-town people who expect something from New York City.

Petrossian and Firebird - both are New York institutions of the very particular kind of restaurants - French inspired Russian. The end of the 19th and beginning of 20th century were very rich in Russian-French exchange in litterature and naturally food. Both inspire themselves from those times. Firebird is a gorgeous 3-story restaurant with private rooms perfect to have a formal dinner.

Blue Ribbon Brasserie - hey, I liked my bone marrow. The rest was just ok. Mangiami - is a Lower East Side favorite. I think the food is fine, nothing more. Sawa BBQ - not bad at all for a quick lunch. Obviously there's better BBQ in New York, including the very awesome Daisy May's BBQ. Supermac - there was so much hype around Supermac when Daily Candy wrote about it. The hype settled and now it's just a decent pasta joint. Keen's Chophouse - all sales people eat steak and this is a pretty good one. Thirty people eating steak is thirty pounds of meat. Jewel of India - not bad for a lunch buffet. Seemed pretty full in the non-buffet part of the restaurant, I'll go back to have a dinner to order.

The fancy row of good, but not exceptional includes InTent, InVino, Fresh, Parea, Pera, Perilla (it was good, but I think I expect more from Harold), Vento, European Union, Borough

And more in any order: Turkish Cuisine, Kabooz, Aroma Espresso Bar, Pam, Congee Village, Yuca Bar, Ashkara, Sombrero, Mangia, Taj Mahal, The Tasting Room Cafe, Cafe Grumpy, Mario's Trattoria, Kennedy Fried Chicken, Siam Grill, Pomodoro, Bus Stop Diner, Sticky Rice, Men Kui Tei, Brooklyn Diner, Lavagna, Loreley, Raku, Savoy, Momofuku Ssam Bar, N.Y. 24 Hours, Burger Joint, Tortilla Flats, Baby Bo's Cantina, Pinkberry, Russ and Daughters, Sarabeth's, Tiengarden, Rectangles, Thai Select, Zum Schneider and Three Monkeys which replaced the lovely Paul's Boutique.