Bumps in the road, a glitch in the kitchen in pursuit of 2 bargain Manhattan lunches

FOR SEAFOOD LOVERS: A whole local Black Sea Bass (Spigola Nero in Italian), above, and a Mediterranean Sea Bream, below, were highlights of bargain lunches at Manhattan fine-dining restaurants during the NYC Restaurant Week promotion -- 2-courses for $26 and 3-courses for $32, plus tax and tip.  

MOB SCENE: The service at Estiatorio Milos, a Greek restaurant in midtown Manhattan that seats about 200 on three levels, was excellent despite a packed and noisy dining room. I was impressed that the whole fish I ordered was butterfield and deboned, and loved the bread service with extra-virgin olive oil and fresh oregano.

By VICTOR E. SASSON
EDITOR

HACKENSACK, N.J. -- Twice a year, I get such a big kick out of making reservations for bargain lunches at some of Manhattan's most expensive restaurants.

The NYC Restaurant Week promotions in January and July are intended to drive business to hundreds of fine-dining restaurants during their slowest periods, and I've been a loyal fan of these great deals since the early 1990s. 

In keeping with the low prices, I have always taken mass transit into the city, but this time, I encountered a couple of bumps in the road -- literally -- when taking NJ Transit buses from Hackensack to the midtown Port Authority Bus Terminal.

The round-trip fare for seniors is a mere $4.10.

Milos and Esca

I met a friend for lunch at Estiatorio Milos, a Greek restaurant where fresh whole fish is displayed on a bed of ice and sold a la carte for more than $60 a pound.

And I took my son to lunch at Esca, where seafood dishes that normally cost $27 each "are rooted in Italian flavors," according to the website.

In 2019, Esca's Executive Chef David Pasternack parted ways with Chef Mario Batali, who had a financial interest in the restaurant until reports that Batali had sexually assaulted and harassed women.

Esca closed, then reopened last September after Pasternack found new partners. 

Overcooked fish

During Restaurant Week, 2-courses lunches are $26 and 3-course lunches are $32, plus tax and tip. Dinners are $42, but the menu is similar to what is served at lunch and they aren't as good of a value.

The winter promotion ends on Sunday.

The only glitch I experienced was that the kitchen at Esca overcooked the monkfish in my entree, reminding me of a disastrous Restaurant Week meal I had there in July 2011.

At that 3-course lunch, which cost $24.07, my entree was a whole John Dory, one of the ugliest and boniest creatures in the sea. 

Bad news. After I posted this, I got an email from Esca, which is unveiling a 2-course lunch for $34 on Feb. 18, and the first fish entree listed is "Whole roasted John Dory." 

NJ Transit

Despite the astronomical property taxes we pay, our streets and roads are in terrible condition, and I felt every bump and pothole riding what appeared to be a decades-old NJ Transit 165 local bus with screeching rear brakes into Manhattan on Jan. 30 for lunch at Milos.

The return trip was equally agonizing, and the beaten-down seat cushions provided no comfort on the noisy, herky jerky ride.

This week, the express bus to Manhattan and the local bus returning to Hackensack my son and I rode were in a lot better condition, and the seats far more comfortable.

Neither here nor there

Speaking about great food, did you see The New York Times' Food section on Wednesday?

In a clear sign of desperation among the editors, the cover story focuses on nudists in Lutz, Fla., who cook, and there's a big color photo of three men and and a woman at a dinner party from more or less their sagging midsections up.

I stopped reading after the woman, who looks like she is in her 60s but still eats artery clogging bacon,  is quoted as saying this:

"Embracing the nudist lifestyle has given me permission to feel my feelings."

This ridiculous article "gave me permission" to turn the page, and shake my head over another Times pasta recipe with 2 tablespoons of artery clogging butter that the dish absolutely, positively doesn't need (Page D3).

GRILLED CALAMARI: At Esca, my son loved his appetizer of grilled local squid with hot red pepper, arugula and radish.

SARDE: I chose House Marinated Sardines with a Salad of Italian Greens dressed in a Caper Thyme Vinaigrette.

PESCATRICE: The kitchen at Esca overcooked the relatively small pieces of local Monkfish in my entree, in contrast to the juicy whole Sea Bass served to my son, who gave me some of his fish. And there was a long stretch of time between appetizer and entree I hadn't encountered at previous Esca lunches. Below, my son wanted a 3-course lunch, so I paid $6 more for his dessert, Chocolate and Blood Orange Cake with Cocoa Whipped Cream and Roasted Hazelnuts.

OLIVE SERVICE: We were served a dish of olives at Esca and 2 kinds of bread, but the complimentary crostini with white beans I had enjoyed in the past was missing.

MORE SEATS: The renovation at Esca opened a wall to a second, smaller dining room, and added seats, but I guess I'll have to warm up to it.

GREEK MEZE PLATE: My appetizer at Milos -- tzatziki, taramosalata and htipiti (whipped feta cheese and roasted red peppers) -- with warm pita and marinated vegetables. I followed with that butterflied whole Mediterranean Sea Bream, and didn't have room for a 3rd course.

TOASTED BREAD: Fresh oregano was snipped at the table as part of the bread service.