DBGB: Life During Wartime
By Sam Sifton
And so it begins: My first review as The Times’s restaurant critic has been published, of Daniel Boulud’s DBGB Kitchen & Bar, on the Bowery down near Houston Street. It’s a neighborhood I know well, having covered it back in NYPress days as a cub, and it’s still slightly shocking to see now, with John Varvatos selling clothes in the old CBGB space and Daniel Boulud pushing hot dogs and tripe on a block that was better known for Thunderbird wine and dope. Above you’ll see some photographs taken in the restaurant, and of a few of the dishes I most admired. How about you? Post a comment below. Be civil!
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The Morning After
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From 1 to 25 of 89 Comments
1 2 3 4 Next »
1. October 13, 2009
7:13 pm
Link
You can’t put your arms around a memory,can ya?I’;ve visited DBGB,feeling like a traitor…the boudin rocked ,but starting with the building itself,It all makes me too sad to return,for a while anyhow.Good food,but not my crowd…
— M.K.
2. October 13, 2009
7:55 pm
Link
Spot on review! What a year for Boulud and he deserves it all!!! For those of us who know how hard he and his team works to constantly innovate, push the boundaries, and go above and beyond for their customers, major kudos!
— Sarah
3. October 13, 2009
9:25 pm
Link
I enjoyed reading the review, I found it to be lively and informative. I’m looking forward to checking out the restaurant the next time I’m in NYC.
— Gillian
4. October 13, 2009
10:15 pm
Link
Love the review, reads like a recommendation from a fun outgoing old friend who likes to eat a lot. No big culinary vocab, no flowery descriptions. Just plain english. Thank god. Keep up the good work.
— Cecilia
5. October 14, 2009
1:18 am
Link
Sam
Welcome! A great first start! Good luck to you. Welcome to the blogosphere.
Zach
— Zachary Cohen
6. October 14, 2009
7:37 am
Link
Very nice review. I look forward to trying this place. My only dining experience in this neighborhood has been Katz’s deli, which I love, and the local pickle place. Now I have some sausage to look forward to. Keep up the good reviews. I would suggest online reviews have detailed descriptions to accompany the photographs, to help your mind taste the dishes, rather than to put the descriptions just in the article, and the pictures more by themselves.
Thanks. S.
— Steven Philips
7. October 14, 2009
7:38 am
Link
As I. B. Singer said so well, “In their behavior towards creatures, all men are Nazis.” When
will all you carnivorous orgiasts develop a
sense of shame?
— Peter Heinegg
8. October 14, 2009
7:40 am
Link
Sam - for your debute, a very safe review of Boulud’s DBGB in the Bowery. I can imagine you loved the fact you needed to visit all of Daniel’s other restaurants (smile). So glad you are finally writing, and your writing made me want to visit. Job well done. See you next week.
Scott
— Scott Cohen
9. October 14, 2009
7:42 am
Link
I just had sausage, biscuits, grits and some eggs and a good cup of coffee! I like eating in my bathrobe!!!
— Miss May
10. October 14, 2009
7:44 am
Link
Great, gentrification of the Bowery is giving me the EBGB’s
— ken
11. October 14, 2009
7:45 am
Link
I concur, great first review.
Looking forward to what follows.
— Zunaid
12. October 14, 2009
7:48 am
Link
sam,
smart move picking dbgb for your first review. it was a no brainer. daniel expected two, you gave it two & two is what it deserves. as for the way your review read–well, that too rates a two. a good & easy to read**.
best of luck.
— sam lefkowitz
13. October 14, 2009
7:48 am
Link
Sam - Welcome and best of luck in your new role. Loved your “quail/offal” word play. Eager to see how you distinguish this very, very enthusiastic ** response from a *** review.
— Dan Jacob
14. October 14, 2009
8:17 am
Link
I worked in that neighborhood for a while, and while most times it was unpleasant to see our young kids whacked out on drugs and booze this is surely a great turnaround for that area of N.Y. can’t wait to visit the place. Good Job.
— bob parno
15. October 14, 2009
8:18 am
Link
A wonderful review that was a delight to read. It makes me long to get back to the city. Sadly, the four star rating system undercuts your message. Two out of four is still only half way there and that was not the impression I thought I was supposed to have reading your beautifully-crafted description.
— William Black
16. October 14, 2009
8:20 am
Link
Normally I do not venture below Cafe Boulud, not a snob just a preference, but the way you wrote it…I’ll be there this Friday, 16 Oct, to try it out. Thank you.
— Tere
17. October 14, 2009
8:30 am
Link
So wonderful! More of the beautiful animals of this earth tortured and killed for a few succulent bites and few dollars. Congratulations, I guess, for expanding on this misery.
— Michael
18. October 14, 2009
8:37 am
Link
This Boulud restaurant is in the ground floor of the northern-most new Avalon apartments just south of the old CBGB. I wish there were a law against this kind of brand rip-off. The milieu of Daniel Boulud is about the farthest thing from CBGB as you can possibly get and here he is exploiting the name on the same block as the old club. Good to see you last night and thanks again for the In Treatment DVDs. Really special. Talk soon, All best, Paul
— Jason
19. October 14, 2009
8:38 am
Link
Hi Sam, thank god you’re at the helm. Someone with a Brooklyn sensibility. Someone who understands and appreciate(d) the old Mooney’s vibe. Can’t wait to visit this place — keep up the great work; love your writing style. Go get ‘em, Sam!
— marty
20. October 14, 2009
8:46 am
Link
My experience at DBGB was not a good one. Ordered a cheeseburger. What I was served: a small, overcooked patty (asked for medium rare) topped with a tasteless (and not local) slice of tomato. The fries that came with the dish were soggy and only warm. Service was rushed. I realize a one time only visit is not the way to judge a restaurant. Still, with so many great burger joints popping up, I’ve already crossed DBGB’s off my “return” list.
— hal2009
21. October 14, 2009
8:55 am
Link
welcome, Sam! enjoying your style.
— brooklynite
22. October 14, 2009
8:55 am
Link
Excellent review - but you forgot the signature sausage - The Coronary Dawg - assorted morsels of prime animal trimmings bound by 125% pork fat, rolled in white flour, deep fried in clean lard transfat, dip’t ‘n covered in 70% dark chocolate, and mounted atop a Krispy Creme glazed donut. Yummy. Number 9-1-1 on the menu.
— Natalie
23. October 14, 2009
8:56 am
Link
Mr. Boulud: Please bring one of your DBGB’s to San Diego. Put it in the Gaslamp District and it will be an instant hit! You will see me there dily.
— david wayne osedach
24. October 14, 2009
8:56 am
Link
This isn’t your Bowery anymore! They razed an entire block which houses this restaurant. However those memories can wait. Time to fish the long black 80’s jacket and boots out of the closet and stomp on by DGBG - with my kids of course. “See here, Billy, daddy vomited in this alley…” Looking forward to illuminated bartenders and the lamb roll which if I remember correctly was a means of protecting yourself in a mosh pit.
(I heard the Varvatos store pipes in authentic pre-show sniffing and drinking from backstage. Any truth to that?)
Keep them coming, Sam for the old NY Press.
— Dietz
25. October 14, 2009
9:02 am
Link
Alas, Sam, those of us stranded in the provinces will suffer most grievously at your hands. The tasty prose and photo confections only add salt (or was it Sriracha sauce?) to the wounds of distance and keen appetite!
thanks a bunch– and welcome!
trish in hollsopple, pa
— trish beatty
1 2 3 4 Next
By Sam Sifton
And so it begins: My first review as The Times’s restaurant critic has been published, of Daniel Boulud’s DBGB Kitchen & Bar, on the Bowery down near Houston Street. It’s a neighborhood I know well, having covered it back in NYPress days as a cub, and it’s still slightly shocking to see now, with John Varvatos selling clothes in the old CBGB space and Daniel Boulud pushing hot dogs and tripe on a block that was better known for Thunderbird wine and dope. Above you’ll see some photographs taken in the restaurant, and of a few of the dishes I most admired. How about you? Post a comment below. Be civil!
E-mail This Print Share
Close Linkedin
Digg
Mixx
My Space
Yahoo! BuzzPermalink
Daniel Boulud, dbgb, reviews Related Posts
From Diner’s Journal
In the House of the Claw
Latest Boulud Outpost — Singapore
Coast-to-Coast Coffee
Eating Around Town
The Morning After
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Previous post
Timing Becomes an Issue in Tavern on the Green Dispute
Next post
"Billionaire's Vinegar" Lawsuit Is Settled
From 1 to 25 of 89 Comments
1 2 3 4 Next »
1. October 13, 2009
7:13 pm
Link
You can’t put your arms around a memory,can ya?I’;ve visited DBGB,feeling like a traitor…the boudin rocked ,but starting with the building itself,It all makes me too sad to return,for a while anyhow.Good food,but not my crowd…
— M.K.
2. October 13, 2009
7:55 pm
Link
Spot on review! What a year for Boulud and he deserves it all!!! For those of us who know how hard he and his team works to constantly innovate, push the boundaries, and go above and beyond for their customers, major kudos!
— Sarah
3. October 13, 2009
9:25 pm
Link
I enjoyed reading the review, I found it to be lively and informative. I’m looking forward to checking out the restaurant the next time I’m in NYC.
— Gillian
4. October 13, 2009
10:15 pm
Link
Love the review, reads like a recommendation from a fun outgoing old friend who likes to eat a lot. No big culinary vocab, no flowery descriptions. Just plain english. Thank god. Keep up the good work.
— Cecilia
5. October 14, 2009
1:18 am
Link
Sam
Welcome! A great first start! Good luck to you. Welcome to the blogosphere.
Zach
— Zachary Cohen
6. October 14, 2009
7:37 am
Link
Very nice review. I look forward to trying this place. My only dining experience in this neighborhood has been Katz’s deli, which I love, and the local pickle place. Now I have some sausage to look forward to. Keep up the good reviews. I would suggest online reviews have detailed descriptions to accompany the photographs, to help your mind taste the dishes, rather than to put the descriptions just in the article, and the pictures more by themselves.
Thanks. S.
— Steven Philips
7. October 14, 2009
7:38 am
Link
As I. B. Singer said so well, “In their behavior towards creatures, all men are Nazis.” When
will all you carnivorous orgiasts develop a
sense of shame?
— Peter Heinegg
8. October 14, 2009
7:40 am
Link
Sam - for your debute, a very safe review of Boulud’s DBGB in the Bowery. I can imagine you loved the fact you needed to visit all of Daniel’s other restaurants (smile). So glad you are finally writing, and your writing made me want to visit. Job well done. See you next week.
Scott
— Scott Cohen
9. October 14, 2009
7:42 am
Link
I just had sausage, biscuits, grits and some eggs and a good cup of coffee! I like eating in my bathrobe!!!
— Miss May
10. October 14, 2009
7:44 am
Link
Great, gentrification of the Bowery is giving me the EBGB’s
— ken
11. October 14, 2009
7:45 am
Link
I concur, great first review.
Looking forward to what follows.
— Zunaid
12. October 14, 2009
7:48 am
Link
sam,
smart move picking dbgb for your first review. it was a no brainer. daniel expected two, you gave it two & two is what it deserves. as for the way your review read–well, that too rates a two. a good & easy to read**.
best of luck.
— sam lefkowitz
13. October 14, 2009
7:48 am
Link
Sam - Welcome and best of luck in your new role. Loved your “quail/offal” word play. Eager to see how you distinguish this very, very enthusiastic ** response from a *** review.
— Dan Jacob
14. October 14, 2009
8:17 am
Link
I worked in that neighborhood for a while, and while most times it was unpleasant to see our young kids whacked out on drugs and booze this is surely a great turnaround for that area of N.Y. can’t wait to visit the place. Good Job.
— bob parno
15. October 14, 2009
8:18 am
Link
A wonderful review that was a delight to read. It makes me long to get back to the city. Sadly, the four star rating system undercuts your message. Two out of four is still only half way there and that was not the impression I thought I was supposed to have reading your beautifully-crafted description.
— William Black
16. October 14, 2009
8:20 am
Link
Normally I do not venture below Cafe Boulud, not a snob just a preference, but the way you wrote it…I’ll be there this Friday, 16 Oct, to try it out. Thank you.
— Tere
17. October 14, 2009
8:30 am
Link
So wonderful! More of the beautiful animals of this earth tortured and killed for a few succulent bites and few dollars. Congratulations, I guess, for expanding on this misery.
— Michael
18. October 14, 2009
8:37 am
Link
This Boulud restaurant is in the ground floor of the northern-most new Avalon apartments just south of the old CBGB. I wish there were a law against this kind of brand rip-off. The milieu of Daniel Boulud is about the farthest thing from CBGB as you can possibly get and here he is exploiting the name on the same block as the old club. Good to see you last night and thanks again for the In Treatment DVDs. Really special. Talk soon, All best, Paul
— Jason
19. October 14, 2009
8:38 am
Link
Hi Sam, thank god you’re at the helm. Someone with a Brooklyn sensibility. Someone who understands and appreciate(d) the old Mooney’s vibe. Can’t wait to visit this place — keep up the great work; love your writing style. Go get ‘em, Sam!
— marty
20. October 14, 2009
8:46 am
Link
My experience at DBGB was not a good one. Ordered a cheeseburger. What I was served: a small, overcooked patty (asked for medium rare) topped with a tasteless (and not local) slice of tomato. The fries that came with the dish were soggy and only warm. Service was rushed. I realize a one time only visit is not the way to judge a restaurant. Still, with so many great burger joints popping up, I’ve already crossed DBGB’s off my “return” list.
— hal2009
21. October 14, 2009
8:55 am
Link
welcome, Sam! enjoying your style.
— brooklynite
22. October 14, 2009
8:55 am
Link
Excellent review - but you forgot the signature sausage - The Coronary Dawg - assorted morsels of prime animal trimmings bound by 125% pork fat, rolled in white flour, deep fried in clean lard transfat, dip’t ‘n covered in 70% dark chocolate, and mounted atop a Krispy Creme glazed donut. Yummy. Number 9-1-1 on the menu.
— Natalie
23. October 14, 2009
8:56 am
Link
Mr. Boulud: Please bring one of your DBGB’s to San Diego. Put it in the Gaslamp District and it will be an instant hit! You will see me there dily.
— david wayne osedach
24. October 14, 2009
8:56 am
Link
This isn’t your Bowery anymore! They razed an entire block which houses this restaurant. However those memories can wait. Time to fish the long black 80’s jacket and boots out of the closet and stomp on by DGBG - with my kids of course. “See here, Billy, daddy vomited in this alley…” Looking forward to illuminated bartenders and the lamb roll which if I remember correctly was a means of protecting yourself in a mosh pit.
(I heard the Varvatos store pipes in authentic pre-show sniffing and drinking from backstage. Any truth to that?)
Keep them coming, Sam for the old NY Press.
— Dietz
25. October 14, 2009
9:02 am
Link
Alas, Sam, those of us stranded in the provinces will suffer most grievously at your hands. The tasty prose and photo confections only add salt (or was it Sriracha sauce?) to the wounds of distance and keen appetite!
thanks a bunch– and welcome!
trish in hollsopple, pa
— trish beatty
1 2 3 4 Next
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