Manhattan gets another mechanical bull at Mason Dixon
(Credit: Noah Kalina)
Frederick Twomey has a need for speed: The transportation- obsessed restaurateur—he of the race-car-monikered Bar Veloce and Bar Carrera—zips through a sleek trilogy of East Village wine bars with his latest pit stop: Solex, an homage to the varietals and flavors of France. (So much for the fast lane: It’s actually named after a French motor-powered bike.) But there’s a twist. “France, in New York, is Balthazar,” Twomey tells us. “It’s the bistro, big mirrors that are faded. I wanted to explore a different side of France: that modern, bullet-train side that isn’t stuck in the Belle Epoque.” This forward- thinking philosophy carries over to the kinetic, Scandinavia-esque design—with its curved, undulating ceiling—and a progressive wine list that highlights “wine-makers that take risks in breaking the rules, in terms of the kind of yeast that is used, the kind of grapes that you can grow,” he says. The piece de resistance, however, is a classical menu from Eric Hubert, who provides an almost Baroque-like contrast to the restaurant’s modern vibe with dough-centric offerings such as beef Wellington eclair; a souffle of blue cheese, bacon and pear; and salmon-and-cream-cheese quiche. “I wanted a little bit of soul, I wanted a little bit of fire, not all sous vide,” Twomey says. Given the runaway success of Bar Veloce and Bar Carerra, expect Solex to quickly pick up speed. 103 First Ave. at E. Sixth St., 212-777-6677
Mason Dixon
2007 will go down as the year Gotham ran with the bulls. Or, well, at least a pair of them: Following last summer’s debut of Manhattan’s first mechanical bull at Johnny Utah’s in Midtown, urban rodeo junkies get a sequel of sorts on the Lower East Side with this swank saloon from the same folks behind Spitzer’s Corner. The intriguing, flipped-up interior makes you wonder if the place is spinning after you've downed one too many tequilas: Wooden boards line the ceiling, not the floor. Then again, that’s probably the effect you’ll get after taking a whirl in the bullpen, which could raise the Puke-O-Meter if you’ve already noshed on Mason Dixon’s strictly Southern fare. Expect the usual pulled pork, fried steak, short ribs and homey sides (creamed corn, collard greens) to go along with the predictable gaggle of beer-guzzling bro types and giggling gals flashing their thongs while trying to keep that bull in check. 133 Essex St. at Rivington St., 212-260-4100
Maxie’s Bar and Grill
The phrase “casual dining” often brings to mind the likes of (shudder) Applebee’s or Olive Garden. But when Peter Kay, co-owner of the popular Angelo & Maxie’s Steakhouse, uses the phrase to describe his new bar/restaurant offshoot, he’s certainly not aligning it with any soul-sucking chain restaurant. “It’s for our clientele who aren’t looking for a heavy steak dinner, or don’t necessarily want to wait in line too long,” he says. So, even though the venue’s bright lighting, loud music and flat-screen TVs may evoke a Midwest sports bar, the menu is more philosophically aligned with its A&M counterpart. A “burger tier” ($55), a take-off on Angelo’s seafood tier, features 30 different sliders stacked on a triple-tier serving dish; meanwhile, Kay’s specialty dish, a coffee burger topped with roasted shallots and encrusted with a herb-coffee coating, also has upscale roots. “We tried it at the steak house a little while back and it worked, so we wanted to bring the same concept over,” he says. Caffeinated beef? TGIF can only wish it thought of that. 233 Park Ave. S. at 19th St., 212-979-7800
Ilili
Lebanese cuisine gets an upscale contemporary spin at this north-of-Flatiron restaurant-cum-lounge from chef-owner Philippe Massoud. While the menu offers the usual melange of mezes, kebabs and shawarmas, the ingredients are anything but typical. An appetizing duck shawarma comes stuffed with pomegranate molasses and fig, while a Wagyu kebab blows every other skewer out of the water. Ilili’s version of a falafel includes the customary chickpeas, but it juices things up with fava-bean-puree dumpling. The loft-like space itself is dramatic: think Mondrian meets Frank Lloyd Wright, with geometrically shaped partitions and ceilings amid a profusion of gold, red and earthy textures. 236 Fifth Ave. at 27th St., 212-683-2929
