
I went out meeting with my friends today at Ang Mo Kio Hub. Friends I have not met for quite some time. We caught up, chit chat, spent some time playing pool, and later decided to eat here in New York New York. Now, it’s been extremely long since I came to such a place. Busy training and building myself, I have gotten strict with standards in my work…and my taste in food.
I have been given quite a good number of good feedback about New York New York, so I thought it’d be my money well spent…but no, the experience isn’t as good as it is said to be. I judge strictly because this is a business. How they treat customers and the many aspects of any restaurant MUST always have high standards. But to be fair, maybe this branch just sucked big time. Why? Well, I’ll start with the first impression service.
First off, smiling is important, and I never received that. All I got is some guy, dressed formally, looking like he just got raped and lost his virginity and won’t be getting it back anytime soon. I’m serious. His face is DEAD, and I bloody mean DEAD!!! He talks dead, looks dead, and…well I just decided to put up with it before I start getting pissed off.
I got a table with my friends in the corner deep in the restaurant and honestly it’s very cosy indeed. Light’s above our table is a little bright but it’s not big an issue. The Ambiance, the atmosphere is actually nice. I quite like it. The place is well maintained and isn’t dirty…well, we don’t know about the kitchen. But service wise, the waiters and waitress should smile more. They really lack the ability to give us an impression and in my line of work, it’s a big no-no for me. But there were 3 out of the whole lot of staff that has the potential to give us an impact, when I was observing all the waiters and waitresses serving different tables. Sadly, they didn’t serve our table. We got the worse staff to help us.

Menu is pretty thick and there is a major amount of variety from western to even modern Italian. It’s a nice decent amount in each different section they provided. A little too much on the menu, but luckily not that bad and over the top. You’ll be able to make your choices a little more faster.
So what was ordered?
Well, we had a table of 5, and we order 5 different types of food on the menu and in credit to my friends am I able to get some honest feedback from them in regards to the food. I even had a taste on some of them to to be sure.
My friends ordered:
Cheesy Chicken: $13.90
Tagliatelle Mushroom Alfredo with Crispy Fish: $12.90
Spaghetti Vongole: $14.90
Cape-Style Fish & Chips: $14.90
As for me, I ordered something that caught my attention. Crabs. Yes, Crabs…something I wouldn’t expect in a New York Menu. Not only that, but it was a highly suggested (as the menu stated) and really wondered if it is really worth it. So I ordered it, to find out what is so New York about it. Before I get to that, a quick review on the other meals.
So far, the most decent (not exceptional) meal is the Fish and Chips and the Chessy Chicken. My friends quite enjoy their meal and honestly, they practically finished everything on the plate. Nice and juicy. But of course it’s just decent, not mind blowing. But if a chef can screw up cooking fish and chicken they should quit their careers, no joke. My only complaint is the Fish and Chip, which isn’t that great. It’s just OK, but it’s taste, is truly saved by the TaTa sauce. Without it, honestly, it’s like eating cat’s piss over fish.
The Tagliatelle Mushroom Alfredo With Crispy fish? No comments. My friend finished the whole thing and nearly eaten the plate. Only complaint, small a portion. Though I was told other branches may actually serve more portion compare to the branch we were in.
The Spaghetti Vongole however, didn’t impress my other critic. The sauce was watery and the clams that came in the dish didn’t taste as fresh as it should be. It lead me to believe that the only way clams can lose their freshness is that they are dead before they were cooked. Yes, in most kitchen where there are lazy chefs, there is a possibility that the clams were already opened, and kept in the freezer…and thus, the clams die and lose their freshness. This is just speculations, but if isn’t true, the chefs then didn’t do a good job cooking the clams. But dead clams is the only deduction I’m sticking too. When you order, check with the waiters and waitresses if the Clams are fresh and stored properly. So that if it sucks, you have a bullet to drill them with.
Finally, the final course I will talk about, and was the FIRST dish to come to the table to my surprise.
Cold Crab served with Clarified Butter, Lemon,
& Spicy Mayo: $24.90

Looking at it, it really is presentable in a bad way. There’s also one bloody problem divided by 4 and multiply by 10. It’s a normal crab. Normal mayonnaise with spices inside, Olive Oil and 2 slices of Lemon. Think about it. Served in a New York Menu, at a insane price of $24.90, and highly recommended…just what in the world is this? Simple but plain presentation of food that doesn’t give me an impact, and as much as the food came fast, it’s damn bloody obvious why it came fast. Can any of you figure out the reason? Simple. It’s COLD CRAB! How long does it take to prepare the other small sides? As for the Crab, considering the taste that isn’t even close to being accepted as a 1 Star dish, its bloody obvious that the crab was pre-cooked. PRE-COOKED, kept in the freezer for who knows how long, and then served when ordered. I know how long it takes to cook a crab and this crab is served way too fast. Beside cooling the crab and cooking it fresh, it can take twenty minutes which I am happy to wait. What is unforgivable is the fact that the crab is served as shown. meaning I paid $24.90 to have a dish that is pre-cooked, kept in freezer for who knows how long, thus losing its freshness which makes it give a mediocre taste, and lastly and the most boiling point of this meal? I have to crack the crab to eat it!!!! I POKE MYSELF, THE CRAB’S DEFENCES WERE KILLING ME!!! I spent more time cracking the crab apart then eating the crab. Even the mayo and olive oil wasn’t so fresh. It only made the crab taste more like crap.
Honestly folks…if you actually looked at the menu, you’d never expect to actually have a whole crab intact served to you in a plate. I really thought and believed that the crab is neatly cut, served cold with the sides all topped over the meat, but no, fuck me, I am screw big time with this bombardment of embarrassment. I can go to the super market, buy a crab for less then $10, get the sides for less then $5, cook the crab, prepare the sides, freeze the crab for 5 to 10 mins in a freezer, out and that’s it. I get a proper, fresh ordinary crab, where-as here, I get a NORMAL crab that cost a bomb and there is completely nothing simple or special about it that makes it worth a crab the eat compared to the super market.
New York New York. It’s a decent place, and I cannot say its bad to the bone. But from previous past experiences, It’s usual western meal of Fish, Chicken and Italian Pasta are probably the hits. I know their pizza is ok, but that is last time, now I don’t know, but I will eventually check. My update to you all, don’t get anything that doesn’t sound like New York or even French in there. It’s not worth the price. DON’T EVEN attempt to believe the menu’s words if they put a star or a word or a logo or a naked woman or whatever crap they give. I have tasted 2 meals there both stating it was good…and they’re weren’t even close to me giving it a 1 star of approval.
In case you are all wondering what this second meal is? Well, to help you safe some money and let you know… I bought:
Big Apple Crepe: $6.90
To cut it short, it sucks. The combination of what I believe to be boiled apple and raisins in a sauce and wrapped in this Crepe paper sheets is a fine idea, but the sauce is too thick. I asked a waitress about this dish and was told it’s a popular seller. Fuck me, I can’t trust the menu now I can’t trust the staff. Or maybe…JUST maybe, I have different taste? No, if its good, its good, if it sucks, it sucks BALLS! But honestly, the sauce I felt is too thick. The right sauce is too little, the wrong sauce is too much. Buy it at your own risk as they come in 3 types of flavours. I perhaps got the wrong one for me. Ether way, I didn’t have a great experience from the food. To end today’s review on New York New York, I really encourage you people to demand a better service if the outlet you go to, have lousy staff. Why? Adding the 7% GST and 10% Service charge, total up alone cost a whooping $17 extra and this is not something to laugh about. It is totally day light bloody robbery for a BULL LOAD OF CRAP service which they gave.
Food: There is a balance of good and bad. In terms of seafood, no chance. They can’t screw up Chicken and Fish. But the rest is really mediocre and need some work. Will the other dishes be exceptional? Only time will tell in my next visit. Other then that, Anything that’s seafood, likely to suck. (In only this outlet I hope.) But western New York Style definately a Plus up.
Presentation: Food Presentation is simple, but some are too simple, you know exactly what is served and that just doesn’t excites me anymore. Simple may be important, but predictable is not.
Hygiene: Clean outside and there isn’t anything filthy on the floor. Tables are all properly cleaned before used. Overall, exceptional job in hygiene but we won’t know about the kitchen.
Guest Service: Most of the staff there don’t smile. Some do, and it’s thanking the stars if you get this staffs. But majority just sounded like they don’t care. One in particular had an impression of wanting to murder his guests. It’s a problem they have to work in this branch.
Staff Knowledge: Though not mentioned, Staff knowledge in food is so-so. There are some food they actually know how popular and how well it can be served, and some, they really have no idea. That aside, their ability to explain their food is lacking, showing that they have poor communication skills. Only two staffs stood out from the bunch I spoke to.
Interior Design: Interior is cosy and fantastic. It is indeed one of their strong points. It makes people want to go in, have a seat and eat there.
My Judgement: 4 / 10
Last Visited: 3rd Semptember 2008
Venue: Ang Mo Kio Hub B1
Getting There: Take a MRT Train to Ang Mo Kio Mrt Station. The Hub is located right side of the station when you exit through the ticket entry. Outlet can be found in Basement 1
Credits: Freddy, Jerome, Minyi, Heng Cheong, Myself
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