Newsday.com: Well-tended food

Well-tended food

More diners are choosing the ambience and intimacy of eating at the restaurant bar

BY JOAN REMINICK
joan.reminick@newsday.com

February 27, 2008

Five years ago, while having dinner with a girlfriend at the bar of a restaurant in Huntington, Lisa Cocchi first met the man who was to become her husband. Bruce Cocchi had stopped in after work for a meal and a drink at the bar. The couple, married since November, consider themselves avid epicures and, given a choice, they'd almost always prefer eating at the bar than at a table. "It's more fun that way than just waiting around for a waiter," said Cocchi. "We like the interaction."

So, apparently, do lots of other people, who are settling into bar stools and ordering everything from French onion soup to pappardelle with sausage and broccoli rabe.

"It's a kind of turnaround," said Clark Wolf, a restaurant consultant. "As restaurants become more like bars and lounges, it's only fair that bars become more like someplace to eat."

What started out as a city trend, Wolf adds, has caught on big time in suburbia, mostly because people enjoy being in the midst of the urban energy bars seem to generate.

Tony Caracci (the self-named "Tony the Wine Guy") of Hudson's Mill in Massapequa, said that lately, the number of people eating at the Hudson's Mill bar is starting to equal the number just there to drink. "A lot of people may have an appetizer and wind up staying, having the rest of their dinner at the bar," Caracci said. No doubt, a personable bartender adds greatly to the allure of bar dining.

And, according to food pundit Ted Allen (a judge on Bravo's "Top Chef" and the food expert on "Queer Eye"), it's not merely by chance that most bartenders are extremely good-looking. "Owners of bars know that having good-looking bartenders is a good idea because people by themselves get the illusion that they're in the company of somebody attractive," Allen said.

And there's another enticement dining at the bar provides for the solitary diner: "Bars are places where it's always been all right to be sitting by oneself."

And you never have to worry about catching your server's eye.

10 counter encounters

At lunch and dinner, I ate at the bars of 10 restaurants. Sometimes, I ate solo, and other times with as many as three companions. Here's what I found:

NASSAU

Brasserie Cassis, 387 S. Oyster Bay Rd., Plainview, 516-653-0090.

The scene: Lunch for two on a weekday at an authentic-looking French bistro with marble-topped tables and zinc bar.

Food highlights: A fine salad frisée aux lardons topped with an egg, garlicky mussels with white wine sauce and a rich croque monsieur (grilled ham and cheese sandwich) were high notes.

The bartender: A disengaged young man who also waited tables. We had a hard time getting his attention, and he had a harder time getting our order straight.

Novita, 860 Franklin Ave., Garden City, 516-739-7660.

The scene: Dinner for two on a weeknight at a sleek Italian spot whose wine bar offers about 100 wines by the glass.

Food highlights: Very good mussels topped with so-so "crispy" fried artichokes. A special of lobster roll sliders suffered from too much mayonnaise, but a pasta of cavatelli with crumbled sausage, broccoli rabe, pine nuts and sun-dried tomato-herb butter was supernal.

The bartender: An attentive, and knowledgeable young woman who, on hearing our preferences, offered tastes of several wines and steered us to a Valpolicella I plan to drink wherever I can find it.

Taste, 660 Franklin Ave., Garden City, 516-663-5140.

The scene: Dinner for four (not a good idea for bar dining) on a Friday night. At this casual yet sophisticated spot, the scene was dominated by a knot of young guys watching a basketball game. The men in our group watched it, too.

Food highlights: We shared small "tastes" of ham-stuffed mini peppers and fried chicken lollipops. Best were the mini pulled-pork sandwiches. House-made pappardelle with pork sausage and escarole was bland, as was the lukewarm macaroni and cheese and an odd deconstructed chicken potpie. But a banana-cream pie was pure pleasure.

The bartender: A young woman who answered our questions about wine, offered a few ordering suggestions but disappeared for long stretches.

West End Cafe, 187 Glen Cove Rd., Carle Place, 516-294-5608.

The scene: A price-fixed dinner for two early on a weeknight evening at a big, bustling and stylish New American restaurant. Several others were dining at the bar; a few were just drinking. We interacted briefly with a group, getting into a discussion about bluegrass music.

Food highlights: A fine Gorgonzola and pecan salad, followed by a thick juicy maple-glazed pork chop and then, an airy, intense chocolate-raspberry mousse.

The bartender: A friendly young woman who was helpful about wine selections.

SUFFOLK

Cheesecake Factory, Walt Whitman Mall, Huntington Station, 631-271-8200.

The scene: Lunch for three (an awkward number) at a pulsating chain restaurant, where the bar offered the only immediate seating.

The food: A cool, sprightly Vietnamese summer roll and a rich fried macaroni-and-cheese ball were followed by a nicely spiced turkey burger with guacamole and an outsize Southwestern chicken salad. But I was unable to eat my sticky-sweet miso grilled salmon, and a wedge of peanut butter cup fudge ripple cheesecake had clearly been in the fridge too long.

The bartender: A charming and attentive young man who got the job done with a smile.

Four Food Studio & Cocktail Lounge, 515 Broadhollow Rd., Melville, 631-577-4444.

The scene: Lunch for one at the bar of a snazzy supermodern New American restaurant. Also seated at the bar were two businessmen eating steak.

Food highlights: I had a quick light salad lunch, a refreshing mélange of shaved endive and fennel with blood orange, grapefruit, olives, Marcona almonds and Parmesan in a Meyer lemon vinaigrette.

The bartender: A young woman who was enthusiastic about the menu and the specials and got me in and out in a relaxed but efficient manner. We chatted throughout lunch.

Honu Kitchen, 363 New York Ave., Huntington, 631-421- 6900.

The scene: Dinner for two at this elegant, darkly atmospheric place with a very long bar and a tapas-style "small plates" menu.

Food highlights: Two of us shared short ribs, scallops with almonds and honey, a lush and velvety yellowfin tuna sashimi with cucumber and spicy mustard and, my favorite, angel hair pasta with cockles and chorizo.

The bartender: Affable and well versed in both food and wine, he worked within our time constraints and knew exactly when to interact with us and when we were in private conversation. With him, we talked about sports, politics and even the moral climate of the country.

Jackson's, 6005 Jericho Tpke., Commack, 631-462-0822

The scene: Lunch for two on a rain-swept afternoon at a casual but hip American roadhouse.

Food highlights: A juicy, .herbal turkey burger with guacamole and a "market" salad (greens, fresh mozzarella, asparagus, roasted peppers) topped with perfectly grilled salmon infused with a lovely smokiness.

The bartender: A personable and efficient young woman who chatted briefly and offered to turn the television toward us so we could watch.

Lucy's Cafe & Bistro, 135 Deer Park Ave., Babylon, 631-669- 1640.

The scene: Dinner for two on a busy night at a cozy, quirky little place. The other seats at the small bar were occupied by two young women, one of whom confided the story of her recently failed romance. We talked a while about love and healing. It was a memorable encounter I never would have had at a table.

Food highlights: Oysters with mango curry sauce, butter-poached lobster over angel hair pasta and, to conclude, a dulce de leche crepe.

The bartender: A young man who said he had just become a partner at the restaurant. At his suggestion, I ordered a fresh pineapple mojito, which was fruity and potent.

Tellers Chophouse, 605 Main St., Islip, 631-277-7070.

The scene: Lunch for two in the wood-paneled Gold Bar of a baronial-looking restaurant that was once a bank. At the copper-topped bar, we sat near a group of businessmen. The rest of the almost exclusively male crowd included several solo diners, one reading a newspaper and a few using cell phones.

Food highlights: We enjoyed a trio of Kobe beef sliders on brioche (one rare, two medium, as ordered) and pan-seared sea scallops with crabmeat, vegetables, lobster and coconut.

The bartender: A young woman who, when asked which nonalcoholic beverage to drink, suggested an Arnold Palmer -- fresh lemonade and iced tea. Great choice.