Lookout Hill - Closing Tonight

Vaca frita, yum... Hey, J0518, have you tried the vaca frita at Cafecito on Avenue C & 10th St.? My favorite.

Never really understood why no one can get it together to offer good Cuban food in NYC. Victor's is way too expensive & too touristy. Every other place I've tried has its own deficiencies. You can usually tell just from the rice & beans that they're not getting it right. Then you get improper marinading. Even the coffee is typically wrong - real Cuban restaurants don't give you sugar on the side; the coffee should be super-sweet to start with.

Zebra wrote: Vaca frita, yum... Hey, J0518, have you tried the vaca frita at Cafecito on Avenue C & 10th St.? My favorite.

Never really understood why no one can get it together to offer good Cuban food in NYC. Victor's is way too expensive & too touristy. Every other place I've tried has its own deficiencies. You can usually tell just from the rice & beans that they're not getting it right. Then you get improper marinading. Even the coffee is typically wrong - real Cuban restaurants don't give you sugar on the side; the coffee should be super-sweet to start with.

the issue, to me, is simple: there aren't that many Cubans in NYC, and too many non-Cubans tried to cash in when Cuban themed things were cool.

I've been to Cafecito twice. got served yellow rice and black beans the first time, which is usually sign #1 that there ain't any Cubans running the operation. i talked to the owner, though, and he was a pretty nice guy, and of Cuban descent, if i remember correctly. i think i remember the food being ok the second time i was there.

you're right on every single point, though. no one, other than the two village spots, and the overpriced Victor's, gets it right.

i haven't tried Rincon Criollo, but i did try El Sitio in Woodside once and liked it.

i'd like to see something along the lines of Cuba or Havana Alma de Cuba in the neighborhood. I think it'd do really well, and wouldn't interefere with Bogota's business, since they're off doing something completely different.

I will say that one of the best places I've EVER been to is right across the bridge....Azucar in Edgewater and Jersey City. As good as the best Miami spots.

<---Cuban

would that actually make FOUR of us on here, or are you all kidding?

Dim Sum, Cuban or (please god) Vietnamese!

does four and a half quality as a gang?

btw....whoever mentioned a salad place......that's another winner for me.

OTB or cash checking place.

Just kidding.

I vote for good Cuban.

a faux dive bar would be cool with me.

seems like there would be a huge market for vietnamese sandwiches in this hood...

or how about a beard papa?

Chinese deli!

eatshoplocal wrote: :roll: wouldnt it be great if some regular on this site (some with over 1000 posts!!) finally opens a business themselves instead of whining and criticizing and complaining and suggesting everyone else do it. Have any of you? im not talking about making pottery here or creating websites or whatever most of you do for a living - those are jobs - im talking about an actual brick and mortar business.

by the way, thanks Lookout Hill for everything!

Lookout sucked just like Buscuit did. So, eatsshoplocal are you offering up the $$ finacial backing for us to open a shop? If so a bunch of us will take you up on it.

Are any of those ideas researched?

"Playa Cabana Bar" - that's the new face of Lookout Hill/Biscuit/Night&Day/BiBis. Have to say, it doesn't sound super promising but maybe they'll have good reasonable drinks and fresh grilled fish tacos. That being said, I will leave immediately if Jimmy Buffet comes on the sound system.

If it is the same owners/chef and they execute as well as they did the last 3 or 4 versions of this restaurant, it is sure to stink. Too bad - it is a good spot. I will give it a try when it reopens and hope for the best.

I think Raw & belzjm have a very good point. Can anyone else find the posts in the past where locals have voiced their opinion of what the nabe needs and what type of shop should open up here. I seem to recall this is a common topic. A store closes/we write out our wish list/and store turns out to be something else...

Does anyone else have examples of this?