~~~so occasionaly when I walk through the nabe

I think to myself.."self you've never gone into that store/restaurant" or "walked down that street". For yrs I stayed away from Madiba..no particular reason...now I love it.

What are the places in the nabe that you meant to check out..but have not yet gotten around to?

My list is:
Habana
that restaurant on fulton Vel (sp)

Subject: keur n'deye (sp?)-- Senegalese place

never been.

Joloff. never been and it is right across the street from me.

Never eaten at Madiba either but I have had a drink there.

The Five Spot on Myrtle.

Subject: Re: keur n'deye (sp?)-- Senegalese place

heynow wrote: Never eaten at Madiba either but I have had a drink there.

The Five Spot on Myrtle.

I heart Five Spot and Madiba.

Though my heart doesn't heart Five Spot. Neither does my weight.

Madiba is great. I have a soft spot for South Africa and that place takes me back there. I love the shop inside that sells candy and tea and other goodies that aren't usually available in the States.

For the longest time I've been meaning to go to Ici. I hear good things

amusingly, I've only been to Madiba in Miami.

I've still never been to Ici, and I've lived 3 blocks away from it for a year and a half. I also haven't tried the Dekalb location of Red Bamboo, though I've been to the one in Manhattan. I also want to try Urban Spring -- it just opened this past weekend and their menu of juices, smoothies and granolas looks delicious.

Am I the only one who thinks Madiba is totally, completely overrated? I didn't like the food much (which is probably just my own problem) and I really thought it was overpriced for what it was. Agreed that the vibe is hot, and I like walking by on a weekend night to people-watch, but otherwise I don't think it's worth much as a restaurant. Maybe I should give it another chance.

bifteck wrote: Am I the only one who thinks Madiba is totally, completely overrated? I didn't like the food much (which is probably just my own problem) and I really thought it was overpriced for what it was.

It definitely could be cheaper but I really enjoyed the traditional (south) African fare.

bifteck wrote: I've still never been to Ici, and I've lived 3 blocks away from it for a year and a half. I also haven't tried the Dekalb location of Red Bamboo, though I've been to the one in Manhattan. I also want to try Urban Spring -- it just opened this past weekend and their menu of juices, smoothies and granolas looks delicious.

Am I the only one who thinks Madiba is totally, completely overrated? I didn't like the food much (which is probably just my own problem) and I really thought it was overpriced for what it was. Agreed that the vibe is hot, and I like walking by on a weekend night to people-watch, but otherwise I don't think it's worth much as a restaurant. Maybe I should give it another chance.

no ur not the only one who thinks that...there tons of comments/reviews on the net that say the same..

there drinks are on the pricey side..but then again their huge and strong :oops:

I'm a big Madiba fan. In general, I think the Dekalb restaurants are all pretty good by the "local neighborhood dining" standard. My biggest complaint for almost all of the places is the service, which I find to be a blend of incompetent and rude on most occasions. Scopello's on Lafayette is pretty good for semi-upscale Italian dining (they make their own pasta fresh in the kitchen and it's very tasty), and Olea is medium to good Greek food. A lot of the places have one or two good dishes but are inconsistent otherwise (eg, Cafe Lafayette has great burgers but not much else).

Habana Outpost is one of my favorite places in the nabe. Not a dinner spot, but a great summer nights outdoor margarita or beer drinking cuban sandwich eating trendy people watching joint. Stonehome is also one of the best wine bars in the borough, as far as I'm concerned.

The Five Spot has a lot of roaches and they were shut down by the DOH twice. I know that this is NYC but I shouldn't be able to see the roaches on the bar and walls. Just be careful there.

so Escap and Guest..bearing in mind that this is not strictly a review thread..are there places you not tried..but keep meaning to

I walked down Willoughby and Myrtle Aves, below Vanderbilt for the first time the other day. :oops:

There's a Senegalese place and a New Orleans/Cajun place on Fulton, near S Elliot. I've been meaning to go to both those places for ages and haven't gotten around to it. Anyone have the inside scoop? Worth going?

There's a Senegalese place and a New Orleans/Cajun place on Fulton, near S Elliot. I've been meaning to go to both those places for ages and haven't gotten around to it. Anyone have the inside scoop? Worth going?

I haven't tried them yet either. Maybe I will go there some time next week.

I've been living here since 2002 and I just tried Mandiba a couple of weeks ago. I thought it was good and reasonably priced for the amount of food you get.

The place that I haven't tried but I always walk by it is:

Chez Oskar
I really don't know why. I just never had a meal there. They're opening a sister location, Chez Lola, on Myrtle Avenue in early September.

Chez Oskar is pretty good overall. Great lamburgers, not so great mussels, and most of their fish dishes are also good. Ici and Lulu's are other Dekalb stand-byes that are worth checking out. I wouldn't rate any of the FG restaurants as "great", but there are plenty of very good options by the standard of neighborhood dining. Ici is the only one with 1 star in the NYT, for what it's worth.

Also, though it's a wine bar, check out the duck dish on the menu at Stonehome. Amazing.

Larry's Liquid Love on Bedford Avenue.

Laurence wrote: Larry's Liquid Love on Bedford Avenue.

sounds like a gay strip club. what is it?