Beyoglu, 81st and Third, UES

This may be my new fave place to eat in Manhattan, especially during off hours or when weather permits outdoor dining. I've been there three times in less than a year and the food has been great each time. The decor is nice, but the volume is unbearable inside when it's crowded. It's impossible to talk, and that's one of the main reasons I go to restaurants.

We ate outside on a nice spring day, which made conversation manageable, though we occasionally had to pause for street noise. We shared the vegetarian plate and a shepherd's salad. The veg plate consists of six or eight appetizers: hummus, baba ganoush, couscous, a spicy pepper and eggplant dish, spinach, thick and creamy yogurt, stuffed grape leaves, I think I'm forgetting something. The dish is garnished with olives, tomatoes and lemon wedges, and is served with a small loaf of round, chewy bread. It's divine. Such a nice balance of flavors and textures. It seemed like a vast amount of food, I'm sure we each had three or more helpings.

The shepherd's salad contained diced tomatoes, bell peppers, cucumbers, and red onions, with a mild oil and vinegar dressing with a bit of dill and mint. Again, a nice balance of flavors. Strong-flavored ingredients like dill and red onion can be overpowering if not added with a light hand, as they were in this case. Everything was crunchy and super fresh, it tasted made to order.

For dessert we had pistachio baklava, the top layers were flaky and crisp, the bottom layers honey soaked. Lots of nuts, too. Very rich and decadent. The decaf cappuccino was delicious.

The rest room is nice and clean, with good lighting. There's a table for your purse, bag, whatever. The room could use a coat hook.

Though Beyoglu was fairly busy, we didn't feel any time pressure. Service was good, not intrusive. We sat and noshed and chatted for ... almost four hours. That may be a new record. The food and the weather were conducive to relaxing, taking our time, nibbling, catching up, and no one on the wait staff did anything to discourage us, even after the bill was paid.

Wobble Cafe, Ossining

I have favorite breakfast places in locales such as Santa Fe, Seattle and even Buhl, Idaho. In Westchester? Nope. City Limits is noisy and pricey, the Star Diner has more misses than hits, El Dorado Diner is just a diner, I don't love it. In these cases, familiarity hasn't bred contempt, just boredom.

I sometimes entertain high hopes for the Wobble Cafe. I do like it, though it's kind of out of the way to be my steady hang. It's eccentric enough to be a contender for fave in the county, but not quite good enough to actually attain that status.

I went there on a whim on a wintery Sunday. It was cold inside, my companion didn't take off his cap or coat, and even kept his gloves on whenever possible. Service was spotty -- it took a while to get menus, drinks, everything. We were rarely able to get our waitress' attention and ended up asking one of the others if the wait staff pooled tips (they do), because several other people jumped in to fill the void left by our designated server.

The Wobble Cafe is a cute place, it has a counter with a handful of old-time stools you can spin around on, it you're so inclined, mismatched tables and chairs, and a kids' corner/waiting area with couches and crayons.

The food is pretty good. I always get migas: a scramble of corn tortillas, eggs, pinto beans, jalapenos and cheese, with either chorizo or mushrooms. I always want the chorizo but always get the mushrooms, that takes a bit of the guilt out of the rest of the cholesterol on the plate. There's a choice of home fries or fresh fruit. I almost always get the fruit, though the home fries are much better. It's nice to offer a lighter choice in lieu of spuds, but does it have to be under-ripe, out-of-season and tasteless?

My companion had pancakes with bacon, which rated a thumbs up.

The tea is excellent. There's an extensive choice, and it's served in a pot of steaming-hot water.

There's something about the place that makes it seem like a toy restaurant. The chilly temperature, the bumbling service, the limited menu, the good but not really good food, it doesn't feel professional. The Wobble has good qualities but they don't add up to a breakfast place that makes me want to go out of my way for just what the doctor ordered me not to eat.

Masala Kraft Cafe, Hartsdale

A cafe so nice I had their food twice this week. I had noticed Masala Kraft a couple of times when I was in the neighborhood and when I wanted a noontime walk on a recent sunny day, I headed straight in that direction.

We shared a couple of really good dishes: aloo bhindi and a falafel sandwich. The first was the daily special, a nice and spicy combination of potatoes, okra and other veg, served with dal, rice and a buttery flatbread, lentil paratha. The veg were fresh and a little crisp, each with a distinct flavor and texture rather than stewed into an amorphous mass. Garnishes included fresh ginger and cilantro. Unlike some people, I'm a huge cilantro fan.

The sandwich was made with a chewy, pillowy whole-wheat pita stuffed with crisp, hot falafel, shredded iceberg lettuce, diced tomato, parsley, and cilantro, topped with tahini and a a mildly spicy yogurt sauce. I liked the combination of textures and temperatures. Another good choice.

Customers order at the counter, and a server brings food to the tables. The service is friendly and accommodating. After we sat down I remarked to my companion that I was going to want a glass of water. The server must have overheard me, as she delivered it to the table before I got around to asking for it.

The immaculate open kitchen contained about four people doing food prep ballet: cooking, wiping, plating, packing to-go orders, never seeming to get in one another's way.

Lunch for two, including a soda, cost about $20 and it seemed really reasonable.

Masala Kraft has the most interesting decor and beautiful dinnerware of any tiny mostly takeout place that I know of: Creamy ceramic tile on the floors and the walls up to a copper colored chair rail, heavily urethaned dark-wood tabletops with crackle-glazed gold-leaf centers, and comfy chairs. Even the ceiling is interesting: copper-colored pressed metal, surrounded by a lighting soffit. The pottery dinnerware has a nice heft and artisanal look: matte black, nonsymmetrical oval serving dishes and small, square plates, all with the cafe's name embossed in the stylized logo script.

I ordered takeout the next day, it was good, but I didn't enjoy it nearly as much. The daily special, a biryani dish with green beans, cauliflower, and other veg, was spicy hot and tasty, but not amazing. $12 seemed a little steep for a dish that was mostly rice, though it did come with raita and paratha.

Tasty chana bhatura, chickpeas in a spicy tomato onion sauce, too, seemed a bit pricey, about a one-cup serving for $8.50, served with puri.

I'd definitely go there again, but I'd be more likely to eat there and enjoy the food at its hottest, freshest point.

42, White Plains

Ensconced on the 42nd floor of the Ritz-Carlton in downtown White Plains, 42 offers panoramic views from the Hudson River to Long Island Sound. It's a surprisingly interesting sight, from our secluded table in a hallway outside the main dining room during restaurant week.

Several tables were set up in the hall between the elevator and the main dining room -- we were tucked into a deuce between a party of 10 or so and a table of six. Besides the view, the decor in the area consisted of a gleaming vintage meat slicer, a gift to the chef.

The location felt kind of like sitting at the kids' table at a family holiday. It could have been intimate and romantic, if not for the bustling traffic and intrusive "dance product" -- jarring disco-esque versions of hits from the olden days, such as Dylan's "Ballad of a Thin Man."

I started with a very nice French Sancerre, and potato soup with kale and chorizo. The crispy greens and sausage topped creamy soup, a nice contrast in flavor and texture. Very tasty. My salmon fillet entree was served rare, as requested, with lentils, honey mustard sauce and pea shoots. It was nicely prepared, the sauce was more tangy than sweet, the way I prefer. The salmon was very rich and buttery, the pea shoots fresh and crunchy. I moved on to a Rhone with the entree, nice body, not overwhelming. My dessert was a mixed bag -- under-ripe fruit salad topped with a dab of wonderfully tangy grapefruit sorbet. The portions weren't generous, but the quality was excellent, I enjoyed everything, except the eh-level fruit.

One of my routine dining complaints: A teabag dangling in a cup of tepid water should not cost $5.

The service was so-so at best. A waitress took our order and the food and appropriate silverware was delivered by several servers, who inevitably gave us each the wrong thing. At one point, the waitress loudly scolded one of the servers for something he'd done wrong at another table. Hearing someone getting his ass chewed is rarely on my list of criteria for a fine dining experience.

The women's room -- or should I say "woman's," it was a single-user situation -- was nothing special. The dark wood and black fixture decor, paired with fluorescent lighting, made even a minor makeup adjustment difficult to impossible. Who looks good in that setting?! The vessel sink splashed water all over, and it's already taking its toll on the wooden vanity.

Would I go back? I'm not sure. The food was very good, we liked the view, the atmosphere and service left a lot to be desired, but the price was right. We didn't mention the restaurant week promotion when we made our reservation or before we were seated in outer Siberia. The whole thing felt a bit off. Although the food was good, the evening didn't add up to a festive, exciting dining experience.

Update: We did mention the restaurant week promotion when we made our reservation, which I feel was the reason for our banishment to "Siberia". Really, if these places really wanted the restaurant week promotion to result in more traffic, they should not make the diner feel like a poor relative. -The Grumpy Diner -

Airmont Diner, Suffern, N.Y.

This shiny chrome diner that's heavy on glass brick looks just the way a classic diner is supposed to look. Unfortunately, the Airmont is a must to avoid.

We went there twice recently. First time was kind of blah: egg-white omelette made with canned mushrooms, nice crispy home fries, tepid tea water, not much in the way of service or atmosphere, but not really offensive.

Giving the Airmont a second chance wasn't on my list of priorities, but we were in the neighborhood and it was half-past lunchtime for the Grumpy Diner ...

Even before we were seated, I knew there was a problem. We walked past several unbused tables of barely touched food.

I had been thinking about the Jefferson Diner, so I ordered a salad similar to one I'd had there: roast peppers, fresh mozzarella and grilled portobello mushroom with mixed baby greens. It arrived garnished with a hair. I should have quit while I was ahead and skipped lunch, or ordered something else, but they promised to bring me a new salad. It was ok, but my heart wasn't in it.

In the meantime, another group came in and didn't sit down for a while because they said there was butter or something smeared on the chairs.

The women's room was nasty, wet floor (etc.) and overflowing trash cans.

And on the way out, a waiter was carrying a couple of barely touched sandwiches up to the manager, who snarled "What's wrong now?"

Next time I'm in the area, I'll take my chances with whatever venue Sister Mary Ballbuster, GPS, recommends for a meal.

Jing Modern Asian Restaurant

Jing (formerly West Side Cottage)

689 Ninth Avenue (between 47^th and 48^th St)

Manhattan

A pleasant, comfortable restaurant that aspires, not always successfully, to be a notch above the typical inexpensive New York Chinese restaurant. It is conveniently located near Theater Row. Prices are reasonable.

Jing’s menu claims to offer “Modern Asian Cuisine” but the menu is really a traditional one with a few twists. The Paradise Chicken is described as “Diced chicken with zucchini, yellow squash, collard greens, and dried cranberries in a light creamy Asian herb-vodka sauce sprinkled with Macadamia nuts.”

My dining companion and I did not sample a wide variety from the menu. We shared vegetarian dumplings that were delicate and tasty. We both ordered a dish with cashew nuts; mine with chicken and his with shrimp. My dish was tastier than the usual cheap Chinese but I would have preferred more white meat. Collard greens were a nice change from the stringy spinach usually found in such dishes. The large cashews were fresh and crisp and not overdone. The price of each dish was around $11-13. The portions were generous but not so large that I felt bloated after the meal.

The Chardonnay that I ordered with dinner was refreshing but unexceptional. The waiter forgot to charge for the glass of wine and when we pointed this out to him, he merely revised the check to include the wine. An astute businessman would understand that even a modest discount would have been a wise investment in my future custom.

The restaurant décor is stylishly modern with attractive dark wood furniture and restful lighting. Water gently flowing over chains of pebbles provides a calming atmosphere. The framed pictures of chic magazine covers seem an afterthought and incongruous with the rest of the décor. There were not many diners for this pre-theater dinner so we did not feel cramped but the tables would be uncomfortably close if the restaurant were full. If they are too stingy to offer a complimentary glass of Chardonnay, one doubts that it ever will be full.

The men’s restroom was clean and had a lavabo of clear green glass. One almost expects to see koi swimming in it. The toilet was standard porcelain that spoiled any attempt at a unified design.

I might give Jing another try. The food was good and reasonably priced if not out of the ordinary. The restaurant optimistically offered a coupon for 15% off our next dine-in

meal. Isn’t a 15% discount approximately equal to the cost of a glass of Chardonnay?

The Millburn Diner Restaurant

72 Essex Street, Millburn New Jersey

An above-average diner with good food, reasonable prices and a pleasant atmosphere.

The Paper Mill Playhouse, offering Broadway-quality revivals of plays and musicals, is Millburn’s main attraction. This suburban town is a pleasant 45-minute train ride from Penn Station but train service for weekend matinees is infrequent. The train either arrives a few minutes before curtain or arrives an hour and a quarter earlier. The same is true for the return trip. One can either sprint to the train station pushing aside slow-moving, elderly theatergoers or enjoy a leisurely post-theater coffee while waiting for the next train.

I discovered the Millburn Diner on one such extended layover. Not caring to stand on the train platform for an hour, I decided to explore Millburn. I soon discovered the restaurant conveniently located just two blocks from the train station.

For my first after-theater meal, I had the shrimp basket. A shrimp basket is not always a reliable indicator of the quality of a restaurant’s cuisine but my basket had a good shrimp-to-fries ratio. Too many diners skimp on the shrimp and overload the basket with French fries. The shrimp and French fries were fried to perfection. That meal convinced me to come back the next time I was in Millburn.

On a recent visit to Millburn, I caught the 11:11 from Penn Station so that I could enjoy a late breakfast at The Millburn before going to the Paper Mill. I ordered a Swiss cheese omelet. The omelet was fluffy and not overdone. Next time, I would avoid the stringy Swiss cheese and choose cheddar. I avoid the ubiquitous, tasteless diner “home” fries for French fries. The French fries were well done and not greasy. I would have preferred the more delicate shoe string potatoes but these fries were quite tasty. With a nod to the health conscious, The Millburn also offers the option of a side of lettuce and tomatoes with their omelets. I chose the French fries but I did order whole wheat toast that was unfortunately served with the standard unappealing Welch’s grape jelly. My order was served on a brightly trimmed plate with a bold modern design rather than the dull institutional issue of many diners.

The Millburn’s coffee is a robust and flavorful blend. I always get a refill; however, on my last visit the waitress offered me a refill too quickly, and I felt rushed.

Prices at The Millburn are reasonable. My omelet was $6.95 and the refillable cup of coffee was $1.40.

Service at The Milburn is pleasant but not obsequious. I prefer a somewhat sullen waitperson over a perky, young person with a bright future; yet I cringe at the surliness of a Greek waiter who throws down the plates and spills coffee in my saucer. The Millburn staff presents an unhappy medium.

Unlike most diners in New York City, the décor is bright, cheerful and even somewhat tasteful. There are no imitation Greek vases and artificial flowers. There are colorful pendant blown glass lamps over the counter and the predominating color of the comfortable booths is an attractive dark wood. The walls are a beige faux marble with flagstone trim. The men’s restroom is clean and finished with a masculine brown tile and the sink was appointed with a stylish minispread faucet.

On Sundays the restaurant is crowded with locals, and there is often a line for a booth. When unaccompanied, I prefer to sit at the counter, which has a sparkling grayish-black finish. The counter had the usual diner cookie with its garish, phosphorescent sprinkles but they were far enough away not to compromise the enjoyment of my meal.

After my satisfying meal, I still had time for a leisurely walk around downtown Millburn before the matinee. I did not see any restaurant that matched The Millburn Diner in quality or price. The Milburn has my most enthusiastic recommendation.