Peachy Picks Good Enough to Eat Our Coverage Sponsored by Cosmopolitan Dental, Official Dentist of Whom You Know
Executive Chef and Owner Carrie Levin
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30 E. 40th Suite 1001
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Dr. Garo Nazarian is a Mover and Shaker:
To know Carrie Levin is to love Carrie Levin, and all that she represents and excels at in life in her vocation as Executive Chef and Owner of Good Enough To Eat. The immense pride Carrie takes in what she does was immediately evident and typical of many restaurant owners, however, what sets the quite intense Carrie apart from the rest is her sincere determination and mile-high standards for what she achieves with flying colors and what everyone around her accomplishes when she is at the helm. Carrie goes beyond regular standards raising all to phenomenal: not only does she source all of her own ingredients and make seven different kinds of bread every day on premises-everything you will consume at Good Enough to Eat is absolutely made on premises. When we asked her about her produce, she wouldn't merely go to a green market. No, not Carrie. Carrie is authentic and original. What Carrie does is acquire a whole farm in Litchfield, Connecticut so she can grow them ALL HERSELF. Good Enough to Eat is open from 8am (9am on the weekends) to 10:30pm (11 on weekends) and the hours that they are closed for serving, they are working away at what they will serve: all 24 hours of the day something is happening at Good Enough to Eat to make something delicious to serve. What else do we love about Carrie? She gets everything right and has 27 ingredients in her meatloaf alone. She does not rely on ridiculous trends or crazy concoctions to shock you. She lets her excellent obvious classics wow you with their fresh originality. She has a great love for asymmetry and has a philosophy of culinary pursuits being 1/3 of each of the following: flavor/taste, smell and visual attributes. And, do not let the casual interior of Americana that we loved trick you into thinking this is a simple place. Rather, it is a simply amazing place that takes dishes that may be basic at other places - and then with the Carrie Factor, they are each kicked up a notch into astounding masterpieces. Good Enough to Eat was first featured in Tasty Tidbits:
The extraordinary commitment to excellence by the intense owner Carrie, the simply fantastic American cuisine, and the atmosphere that will leave you feeling like you are at home make Good Enough to Eat the latest entry in Peachy's Picks. And, she may want to consider a name change to Phenomenal Enough to Eat! It is also notable that Carrie is an extremely nice person who even gives tours to schoolchildren who absolutely adore her as you will see on the walls of the bathroom, which was spotless.
Peachy Deegan began with the Philly Cheese Steak Quesadilla: Hanger steak, roasted bell peppers and spanish onions and Velveeta served with g.e.t.e. salsa and sour cream. You will not be asking where is the beef at all; as you see it is thick, juicy, and plentiful:
...and if you are Peachy, you also know it is delicious! Be sure to make your reservation now because there is a line out the door of people clamoring for tables. Every ingredient was fresh as it should be and it was crisp and appetizing. When you go, be sure to chat with Carrie as she has fantastic stories about her mother Joan who had ambitions of being an American football player and founded The Yummy House in Europe with her father Ken during Carrie's childhood, producing the first burgers and ice cream shop in Europe in 1963. Another example of how Good Enough to Eat really cares is that they put a comment card on each table:
Quite nice, and very smart too:
In all of our reviews, this is something we rarely see. At Good Enough to Eat, it is just another component of their success which has made them a staple since the day they started: August 13, 1981. You should know they also know what they are doing in terms of wine-it is Good Enough to Drink too. Peachy Deegan sipped an ideal Bordeaux-Baron des Chartrons France 2009 60% Merlot and 40% Cabernet Sauvignon. Smooth, deep and evolved, this wine was the perfect rainbow at the end of a stormy day, akin to the drive and spunk of Carrie herself.
The onion rings are not to be ignored and characteristic of all that we found at Good Enough to Eat, they were authentic, fresh and terribly original. Everything is made with love and nothing is "manufactured." The piece de resistance for Peachy was the Fish of the Day: Grilled Atlantic Salmon, which arrived exactly as ordered: medium. Every bite of the wonderfully textured poisson was highlighted by the incredibly delectable mustard dill sauce served with cauliflower mashed potatoes and sauteed white asparagus, string beans and carrots.
Do not miss the German Chocolate cake which might be the most moist cake you've EVER, ever tried thanks to Carrie's knowledge of souring agents. Carrie is also the fairy godmother of desserts and if you click your heels together she'll grace you with a wave of her Callebaut Belgian Chocolate wand, so to speak, embodied in the below-pictured concoction. It tasted even better at the business table we were seated at and with every moment we spent with Carrie we became more impressed with her winning, modest attitude. This is not a simple neighborhood place: it is an extraordinary accomplishment by a woman who sees every last detail as her true vocation and it would be your incredible loss not to experience it for yourself.
Our esteemed panelist adds:
It’s easy to become accustomed to excellent meals in Manhattan. Let’s face it: there’s plenty of competition, so if a restaurant’s offerings are subpar, chances are, it’s not going to stick around that long. However, once in a while, one encounters a meal that is not just a meal, but an experience – something that eases the mind, lifts the spirits, and more than satisfies the stomach – and recently, we had just such an experience at Good Enough To Eat – a 31-year old bastion of the Upper West Side. Known for its comfort food and small-town America vibe, this restaurant is a true gem in the sea of Manhattan eateries. Much (if not all!) of its success can be attributed to Owner/Chef Carrie Levin. She created Good Enough To Eat in 1981, and has devoted her heart and soul to it ever since. Carrie was born in New York, but moved with her family to Brussels when she was five years old, and spent much of her childhood in the two small restaurants her family owned there. During vacations from school, her grandparents would take the family on “eating tours” of different countries in Europe, which literally introduced Carrie to a whole world of food! These formative years spent eating some of the best food in the world influenced her decisions as an adult, and after training at Pru Leith’s School of Food and Wine in London and working as an apprentice under Seppi Renngli at the Four Seasons, she had the opportunity to open her own restaurant in 1981, and thus, Good Enough to Eat was born. She brought in Ann Nickinson, a talented cook she knew, as a partner (Ann left the restaurant in 1991), and together, they opened the first Good Enough To Eat on August 13, 1981. Carrie’s idea in creating the restaurant was to celebrate American food, which nobody was doing at the time! There were French restaurants, Italian restaurants, all kinds of international cuisine – but nothing distinctly American. And, having spent her childhood tasting food from countless different countries, she fell in love with traditional American food when she moved back in 1979 – and that’s what she wanted to celebrate with her restaurant! From the start, Good Enough To Eat was a hit – and 31 years later, it’s easy to see why! First of all, Carrie sat with us for our entire meal, shared her stories with us, and even shared some baking tips with us! Choosing our dishes was a daunting task, as the menu is full of delectable-sounding items (and I WILL return for the burger, which Carrie told us took 20 years to perfect!).
However, I ultimately decided to start with the salad special for the day, which was a Mexican chopped salad with romaine, grape tomatoes, scallions, corn, avocado, and crumbled feta, served on a bed of tortilla chips and drizzled with a lemon cilantro vinaigrette. Carrie had told us that her philosophy of cooking is based on three main things, and the way in which they interact: color, texture, and flavor…and this salad had it all! It was as fresh as fresh can be, and the crispy tortilla chips and lettuce were the perfect contrast to the soft, creamy avocado and soft feta cheese, with the scallions, corn, and tomatoes filling each adding their own distinct texture. Great combination of flavors and textures, and a virtual rainbow full of colors! For my main course, I decided upon the Vegetable Mountain topped with grilled chicken breast.
And, true to its name, this dish came out with a heaping mound of all kinds of stir-fried veggies, including carrots, zucchini, red bell peppers, scallions, radish, broccoli, and green and red cabbage. Served atop a bed of brown rice and accompanied by a side of ginger/watercress sauce, this was one of the tastiest, most interesting dishes I’ve had in quite a while. And again, the interplay between colors, flavors, and textures was simply outstanding. The grilled chicken breast was perfectly tender and a great addition to the mountain of veggies. Throughout the meal, I sipped on a perfectly-made Manhattan, which was the perfect cocktail for a summer night in the city. Although we were plenty full from our meals, there was no way we could refuse the desserts (I’d been eyeing the dessert case throughout the entire meal)! Although there were some pretty amazing-sounding options I was trying to decide among (Banana-Walnut Cake, Lemon Meringue Pie, Pecan Pie), as soon as I heard there was Pumpkin Pie, I knew I had to have it! And boy, was I happy I did. First of all, the crust was outstanding, but the pie itself was simply out of this world! Creamy, flavorful, full of spice but still pumpkin-y enough – it was just perfect (and made even better when topped with the homemade whipped cream)! It was a wonderful ending to a simply outstanding experience. Highly, highly recommended by this panelist (who is planning to stop by again sometime soon to try their renowned brunch)!
Peachy Picks Good Enough to Eat!
Good Enough to Eat is Highly Recommended by Whom You Know!
