This is not so much about Holsten’s, but about how it compared to a place we went to two days later, which shall remain nameless as it is in NYC and I can’t remember the name

Monday night, Ali and I ate at what could be described as a bistro in Manhattan. We were taking a class with mediabistro.com and wanted to grab a bite to eat before sitting in a hot room for 3 hours. We walked around the block (in Soho) and found little in terms of places to eat (we didn’t have much time to explore), and ended up at a place on Broadway. It was in a narrow space, and was all windows. It had a winding staircase near the front. We sat on the first floor, near their tiny bar. The tables were really close together, but it was comfortable enough.

The prices on the menu were a bit insane even by New York standards ($16 for a burger platter). Ali ordered the burger medium and I ordered their steak sandwich (also $16). My sandwich was tasty - the meat wasn’t fatty, there were carmelized onions on top and was on ciabatta bread with a tangy, but mayonaisse-y mustard. I enjoyed the sandwhich and fries, though they were nothing special. Ali’s burger was delivered to her rare, not medium, and she seemed to enjoy it okay. However, for HALF the price of her meal alone, she could’ve gotten TWO burgers at Holsten’s. Our bill total was about the same as when three of us ate at Holsten’s. At this Soho bistro, we also only drank water and had no dessert.

I realize we’re not just paying for the food, but the service and location as well. But, frankly, if I’m going to be paying an excessively high rent, I’d like to actually live there.

— by Donna M.
Donna is both a Jersey native and recent transplant from NYC. She is executive editor and a co-founder of GoOutJersey.

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