Benjamin R.'s Profile

I stopped in today for a burger, and it was done well.  I don't mean it was overcooked, I mean they did a good job and it was good to eat.  But nothing special.  I'm giving them four stars even though the name is "3 Star" because it is really just a modest place.

I grew up in a small town outside of Pittsburgh and got my hair cut at a no-frills barbershop for most of my life.  Astor Place is the closest thing I can find in Manhattan, judged by the fact that I don't feel like I've been scammed when it's time to pay.  On top of that, my most recent haircut has gotten me a lot of compliments, so that's proof enough for me that I don't need to be forking over $50 to look nice.

Trying to pronounce her name may be intimidating (it's "ET-TOO-FOO") but Dr. Etufugh is anything but.  I went to her to have my wisdom teeth extracted ten years later I probably should have had the procedure done.  She did a great job of explaining the risks in a reasonable way and made the whole affair manageable.  It's hard to choose a doctor, you ultimately have to go with your gut.  Dr. Etufugh is the third oral surgeon I have consulted with and was by far the only one I was comfortable with.

Twice I've ordered the Sesame Chicken, telling myself to eat half and save the other half for later.  Twice I've eaten the whole damn thing in one sitting, followed by a feeling which is wonderful and terrible at the same time.

Update:  CLOSED!  I went there on March 5 and it looked like they were taking the place apart.  Some dude inside (not a staff member I recognized) said they were closed for good.

I want to like this place, mostly because it is so close to my apartment, but everything tastes just a little... off.  As though maybe they don't move product fast enough to keep the pizza relatively fresh.  I don't know how to describe it.  I'm not a picky eater.

THIS IS NOT A DINER.  It is a restaurant masquerading as a diner.  Shame on them!

The Tick Tock Diner looks like a diner from the outside but it's just a restaurant.  Big Daddy's Diner is a great place to get tater tots but it isn't a real diner.  The Malibu Diner and the Skylight Diner are almost but not quite real diners.

The Cheyenne Diner is a REAL diner.  It is rough around the edges.  It is not ironic.  It is open 24 hours.  I am glad to have found it.

I only come here to buy cookies, not because I prefer to shop for groceries elsewhere, but because I'm not a "shops for groceries" type of person.  I have tried some of their prepared foods and they were disappointingly bland, but the cookies are delicious.

A TIP YOU CAN USE:  Since I'm only buying cookies and usually carrying my man-bag, I tell them I don't need a store-provided plastic bag: it turns out if you do so, you get a five cent refund!

The venue is a lot smaller than I expected, especially given the grandiose name.  I'm not a frequent stand-up audience member, however, so my expectations may be out of whack.  Good acts on the night I went, which was impressive since they had to deal with the unexpected attendance of an underaged Jewish youth group from New Jersey.

Fans of the Da Vinci Code will enjoy trying to make sense of the meaning behind four murals on the walls: Andrew Dice Clay, Rodney Dangerfield, Jim Carrey (as Ace Ventura), and Eddie Murphy (as Dr. Doolittle...WTF?).

Substantial sandwiches ordered by number.  What do I mean by substantial?  Their "Vegetarian Sandwich" contains a long list of ingredients including chicken.  Also, it's not clear from the labeling on the display case, but I think you could buy an entire ham if you wanted to.

My only complaint is that sometimes my sandwich is toasted and sometimes it is not and I haven't figured out if the difference is which sandwich I am ordering or which guy is taking my order.  (I suppose the obvious thing would be to just ask for a toasted sandwich, but I haven't seen anyone else do this, and the last thing I would want to do is draw attention to myself.)