New Taste of the Upper West Side: Best of the West 2015

Cafe Tallulah: Truffle Crab Salad

Last Saturday, May 28th, I attended the 8th annual New Taste of the Upper West Side, hosted by Marc Murphy and Anne Burrell at West 76th and 77th Streets and Columbus Avenue. 

For the first time ever, the celebratory event offered Best of the West VIP, which included exclusive VIP Lounge and champagne bar access, complete with special gift bags from sponsors and shops, and private book signings with complimentary cookbooks from Marc Murphy, Anne Burrell and Katie Lee.VIP access gave guests early access to 40 of the best chefs on the Upper West Side one hour before general admission. This new format seemed to benefit all attendees, as the event seemed less crowded than previous years since everyone wasn't arriving all at the same time. The book signing lines were very organized and once you received your ticket, it only took minutes to get your signed copy.

Here's a look at my favorite dishes served up by this year's Best of the West participating restaurants. 

Tavern on the Green: Maple-Braised Boneless Beef Short Rib with English peas and pomme paille

RedFarm: Chicken & Watercress Dumplings

Acacia Honey & Ricotta Crostini with heirloom tomatoes, basil and truffle vinaigrette

Calle Ocho: Ceviche Mixto

Calle Ocho: Domino cake

Candle Cafe West: Chipotle Grilled Seitan with corn salsa and avocado mousse

Dovetail: Barbecued Turnips, Avocado and Pumpkin Seeds

Cafe du Soleil: Chilled Corn Soup with Shrimp

Jean-Georges: Strawberry Tiramisu with fresh marinated strawberries and white chocolate

Katie Lee signing my copy of her new cookbook, "Endless Summer"

Caffè Storico: Pork Belly, Treviso & Charred Scallion Vinaigrette

Cafe Luxembourg: Buttermilk Fennel Vichyssoise with Kippered Salmon

Magnolia Bakery: Red Velvet Mini Ice Cream Sandwiches

Devil's Strawberry Swirl - Devil's food cake with strawberry swirl ice cream

Banana Pudding

Voilà Chocolat: Artisanal Chocolate

Alice's Tea Cup: Brookies

Mini Chocolate Cupcakes with sweet vanilla buttercream

Pumpkin scones

Jacques Torres Chocolate: Driscoll Strawberry Parfait Verrine

Lincoln Square Steak: Grilled Marinated Hanger Steak

Sysco Metro NY: Chilled Shrimp over Farro Salad with spring pea purée

Sysco Metro NY: Chocolate Pots du Crème

Nice Matin: Short Ribs Provençal

Bar Boulud: Chilled Pea Soup

Henry's: Shredded Kale Salad with red grape, toasted almond and Vermont Maple Vinaigrette / Fried Chicken "Chicharrónes" with Amish chicken, rum, soy, lime and cholula hot sauce

Atlantic Grill Lincoln Center: Faroe Island Salmon Ceviche with shaved asparagus, spring peas, saffron pickled mustard seeds, jalapeno yuzu vinaigrette

Cesca Enoteca & Trattoria: House-Made Straciatella served over fettunta with a spring rhubarb compote & fresh mint

 The Milling Room: Chilled Cucumber & Yogurt Velouté with fine herbs and smoked salmon

Bottega Liquid Metals Platinum Sparkling Moscato - sweet flavors of apple, orange blossom, honeysuckle and peach

Bottega Liquid Metals Venetian Gold Prosecco - Fresh and crisp notes of yellow apple, pear, white peach and apricot

Mille-Feuille Bakery: Remy Martin Cognac 1738 Accord Royal French Macarons

- Kim Weling

Get Your Tickets! 8th Annual New Taste of the Upper West Side

The New Taste of the Upper West Side is almost here! There's just a few days left to grab your tickets to this annual event. 

The Soirée in the Park will kick off the New Taste of the Upper West Side festivities on May 28th, to raise funds for New York City's beautiful Theodore Roosevelt Park, surrounding the American Museum of Natural History. With proceeds benefitting the park, this cocktail event will have live chamber music and feature champagne and hors d'oeuvres prepared by a host of local restaurants. 

On May 29th, Adam Richman, host of NBC's Food Fighters and author of the upcoming book "Straight Up Tasty" will be hosting Comfort Classics, and will be joined by Food Network's Katie Lee, who will be autographing her new book, "Endless Summer Cookbook." During Comfort Classics, forty Upper West Side restaurants will display their most innovative and creative "home-style" fare, while competing to win the title of "Best Comfort Food Dish."

Limited Offer: The next 50 Comfort Classic ticket buyers will receive a free autographed copy of adam's first cookbook, Straight Up Tasty! 

On May 30th, the celebratory Best of the West will be hosted by Marc Murphy, a judge on Food Networks Chopped / owner and executive chef of Benchmarc Restaurants and Anne Burrell, co-host of Food Network's Worst Cooks in America. 

Take a look at my recap from last year's New Taste of the Upper West Side Best of the West event here. 

- Kim Weling