Author Archives: The Jab

Le Veau D’Or, New York City – CLOSED

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I first heard about this classic French restaurant on Anthony Bourdain’s “No Reservationsssaaah” show, Disappearing New York episode. After seeing the show it became my no. 1 must-visit restaurant on my next visit to New York. This year I made it, and I loved every minute of my visit and meal.

The 55-seat restaurant opened in 1937, four years before the world famous Le Pavillion was opened in Manhattan by Henri Soulé, introducing America to haute French cuisine. In the 1950s Robert Tréboux, who was born in France in 1924, worked as a waiter at Le Pavillion. He later operated five French restaurants, culminating in him taking ownership of Le Veau D’Or in 1985. He lives above the restaurant and is the maître d’, helped by his daughter Cathy Tréboux. The menu is a trip back in time as much as the restaurant itself, offering classics such as escargots, coq au vin, beef Bourguignon, vichysoisse, and grenouilles (frog legs), mostly unchanged since the place opened. Prices are reasonable considering the menu is table d’hôte (includes appetizer, entrée, and desert), and lunch is a bargain at $22 for three courses.

Escargots

The food was delicious, especially the rich beef bourguignon. But the desserts were just fair. The service was excellent and attentive, and the atmosphere was relaxing and quiet, a perfect getaway from the noisy streets of midtown.

Beef Bourguignon

Le Veau D’Or
129 E. 60th St. near Lexington Ave., New York, NY 10022
Open Mon-Sat, noon-3pm and 5:30pm-10pm; closed Sunday
(212) 838-8133
No website found, but the menu is here.

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Kane’s Donuts, Saugus, MA

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To continue our Boston area tour, just north of Boston on U.S. Highway 1 lies Saugus, MA. The highway is a crazy, hair-raising stretch through Saugus. Six lanes wide, but with driveways and cross-streets, and the traffic moving at 50 to 60mph while cars are trying to make left turns across the highway! The stretch is lined with neon signs that make it well worth the drive at night, including the famous Hilltop Steak House’s huge neon cactus (erected in 1964), the spectacular Kowloon Polynesian restaurant, and the Prince pizzeria with a neon leaning tower of Pisa. For dinner I skipped the Hilltop because the interior is updated and nothing special, and instead headed for the Kowloon with much excitement. Unfortunately, it was a real letdown. Greasy, bland food, watery tropical drinks with cheap rum, and inattentive service. The decor is a mishmash of cheesy, cheap decorations, ugly art, and the lighting is too bright for a tiki establishment. I’m a big fan of tiki bars and Polynesian Pop restaurants, but despite my usual lowering of standards I was disappointed.

I felt better just walking in to Kane’s Donuts, in the old part of Saugus since 1955. In 2010 Bon Apettit magazine put Kane’s on their list of the top 10 best donut places in the U.S., one of only four older donut shops on the list (the others are in St. Louis, Los Angeles, and Round Rock, TX). I ordered up one of their famous honey dipped raised donuts and a PB & J donut, frosted with peanut butter glaze and filled with black raspberry jelly that was better than any jelly in a donut I’ve ever had (more like a jam consistency instead of the usual cornstarch-filled, gummy texture). Both donuts were super delicious!

P,B & J donut

Kane’s Donuts
120 Lincoln Ave, Saugus, MA 01906
(781) 233-8499
Open Mon-Fri 3:30am – 8pm, Sat 3:30am – 5pm, Sun 3:30am – 1pm

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George’s Coney Island, Worcester, MA

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During my recent first-time trip to Boston I used a coupon from National car rental for a free day to drive around the outskirts of Boston to see some historic sites. The free days are easy to earn by renting on National if you join their Emerald Club. It’s free to join and you get discounts (which you can combine with coupons) and use of Emerald Aisle, which lets you skip the counter and go directly to the lot and pick any car you want. I used to work for the company in college and I still think they are the best rental car company around.

Anyway, I was looking to visit a real, original diner and my friend Elker suggested the Miss Worcester diner in his town of Worcester, which has stood on the site since 1948 across from the Worcester Lunch Car Company, one of the biggest diner manufacturers. The factory is closed but the diner lives on. I ate a light breakfast there to save room for the next stop.

My friend also told me don’t miss George’s Coney Island, and am I glad I took his advice! This place is an amazing time warp, mostly unchanged from 1940. The restaurant opened at its current location in 1918, but in 1938 George Tsagarelis purchased it and remodeled it in Streamline Modern style, adding a huge 60-foot neon sign designed by Romanoff in 1940. It’s still in the same family, and this is the look that remains today!

On the right is the luncheonette, which is a large room with a counter you order at and several wooden booths. I ordered their specialty, a hot dog with the works (mustard, chili sauce, and onions) and a beer. Delicious! Total cost: $3.82. (The franks come from Kayem, opened in 1909 in Chelsea, Mass., and still owned by the same family.)

Even more amazing was the bar next door! Practically unchanged since 1938.


I wished I had time to go back at night to see that enormous animated neon sign in all its glory! Next time… Meanwhile, there are pictures on their website, and a video, though it’s not dark enough to see it well.

George’s Coney Island
158 Southbridge St, Worcester, MA 01608
508-753-4362
Open Sun 10am – 7pm
Mon, Wed, Thu 10am until around 8pm
Fri, Sat 10am until around 9pm
Closed Tuesdays

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Ken’s Steak House, Framingham, MA

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You have probably seen Ken’s salad dressings in the supermarket before. This is where they originated. Ken and Florence Hannah opened Ken’s Steak House in Natick, MA in 1935 and moved to its current location along Route 9 in Framingham in 1941. Ken’s son Timothy and his wife Darlene now run the restaurant – it’s still in the same family!

Florence’s salad dressing recipes and baked goods became locally famous. The breads, rolls, cakes, and pies are still baked in-house. The Fireplace Room opened in 1941, The Lamp Post Room in 1945, and The Hickory Room in 1957. This place is huge! There is also a bar which has been remodeled.

Fireplace Room?

Lamp Post Room?

I had lunch in the front dining room (The Hickory Room?) that had dark wood walls with great stained glass windows of local fauna. Nice vintage chairs, too. My Delmonico (rib-eye) steak was good, cooked just right but a bit on the thin side. The fresh house-made rolls and breads were excellent, but the other sides weren’t particularly memorable. The prices are reasonable, so the food was a good value. But don’t go expecting upscale steak house fare. Lower your expectations a bit and you won’t be disappointed.

Hickory Room?

Ken’s is the last old business on a strip lined with chains and big box retailers, so go while you still can!

Ken’s Steak House
95 Worcester Rd (Route 9), Framingham, MA 01701
(508) 875-4455
kenssteakhouse@rcn.com
Hours: Sun 1:00pm-9:00pm, M-Th 11:30am-9:00pm, Fri-Sat 11:30am-10:00pm

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