Antidote — Restaurant in New York

This was recommended by a friend of ours to try as most Manhattan Chinese food are either not as tasty as they should be or cater to more diverse population. I came in here with the expectation that the food would be good, but probably not 100% authentic. I'm glad I was wrong. Only the atmosphere/decorations was hipster-ish. The food that we ordered was LEGIT in flavor profile and authentic. It was packed full of umami, nice fresh hot and taste authentically Chinese cooking...I hate to admit it, but this place cooks better Chinese than my grandma...and no one cooks better than Grandma. Service was good!, despite coming at a busy time, the waiter never fails to attend us. The food we ordered was the Curry fried rice, Sliced beef in sour soup, and Fish with spicy Bean Paste.

Curry fried rice had eggs, onions, shrimp, pork, and shrimp, pineapple..but together it hits both taste sensory, the palate and the smell of the aromatic curry mixed with the aromatics of onion and the fresh shrimp balances the dish out. The rice is just right, it was soft, doesn't clump together but not overly greasy (most place drown the rice in oil to prevent it from clumping). It has a savory after taste that melds well with other dishes they serve on the menu.

The sliced beef in sour soup. Clear broth, fresh tomatoes, packed full of flavor from their bone stock (most probable chicken). Just enough salt/umami but not overbearing. This is a really good palate cleanser and that hint of sour definitely opens the appetite after eating heavy foods. BEST PART...I did not feel thirsty after drinking it... definitely likely NO MSG! If I had to further describe it. It's like the Thailand style TomYum soup, but with a really clear broth that's packed full of flavor. The dish came with clear potato noodles and sliced fatty beef that's so SOFT; it's like biting into a baby's cheeks (figuratively).

The best course of the night had to be the Fish with spicy Bean Paste. I've had similar dish before but never had the spice, savory, hot and sweet black bean garlicky sauce made me wanting more bite after bite. The whole tilapia was served, it was definitely never frozen because the meat is tender, soft and but doesn't fall apart. The fish was deep fried (unsure of the batter, but definitely the batter tasted like it had spices mixed in it), the tail/fin were fried to the point where you can eat them like chips. Then the thick black bean spicy garlicky sauce that was poured over the fish is a good contrast as parts of the fish is soft from the sauce, but underlying crispiness from the deep frying. The sauce itself as I described earlier is spicy, savory with notes of garlic, black bean, peppercorn, roasted/fried red chili and oil. Not sure what the base of the sauce was, but it was of gravy-like consistency that it clings onto the flesh of the fish so it coats every part of the meat. This is the legit meal that I know is far better than any grandma can make.

This place is an instant addiction and Antidote ...well is the antidote for the addiction. Well done! Low-key comfort restaurant with good vibes and food.

Edit: -spelling errors -update 2023: since knowing about this place, this is the only Asian restaurant my wife and I revisited (about 5-6 times) in the...

TLDR: Excellent take on modern Chinese food! Come for the dim sum, fish blossom and crash shank.

Vibe: 5/5. Situated near the Williamsburg bridge, Antidote has a picturesque setup both inside and out. The all white brick facade on the outside is eye catching, especially against the black Antidote logo. On the inside, the restaurant has an open layout, complete with a beautiful skylight that offers daytime diners boatloads of natural sunlight (not directly on any tables). Antidote also loves their flora, as all four corners of the restaurant are brimming with exotic house plants. Seating varies from your typical 4 tops to larger group round tables. Our group of 6 had no problem comfortably fitting at one of their round tables. Reservations are recommended but not required, as my group was able to walk in for dinner at 5pm on a Tuesday with no wait.

Service: 5/5. The staff at Antidote were fantastic from start to finish. As mentioned, my group of 6 walked in for dinner and the hostess was more than happy to accommodate us. Upon being seated, our waiter promptly introduced himself and began taking drink orders. After drinks, he began making several menu recommendations which helped solidify our food choices. Both food and drinks came out well paced throughout the meal which is always appreciated when dining in a larger group. Overall, only praise can be said for the service at Antidote!

Food/Drink: 5/5. Antidote has a unique menu, combining several facets of Chinese cuisine but adding a modern flair. The menu promotes a family dining style, as they offer an abundance of dim sum sized small plates as well as larger family style portion mains. We ordered a menagerie of items that our waiter deemed the greatest hits of the menu. These included the crab and pork soup dumplings, scallion pancake, cucumber salad, fish blossom, numbing beef, crash shank and tea duck rice. He definitely hit the nail on the head, because we thoroughly enjoyed all his recommendations. However, best in show had to go to the fish blossom and crash shank. Both were generous in portion size and bursting with flavor. Not to mention the presentation was A+. The fish blossom was a full head on fish expertly prepared by being lightly fried and slathered in sweet sour sauce. The crash shank was a perfectly braised pork shank that was served with a numbing 5 spice peanut sauce that tingled your taste buds. On the cocktail spectrum, we sampled several of their drinks with great delight. The deception cocktail, which uses the grain spirit Baiju, lived up to the name. The cocktail is presented in a tea cup, sporting a pink hue which can lead people to believe that it's a lighter spirited concoction. This goes right out the window on the first sip, as the alcohol forward Baiju hits hard out the gate, but is nicely balanced out towards the end with ample sweetness. Overall, we loved every dish we ordered and couldn't recommend...

while I always want to support and applauded the bravery that is opening a new Asian restaurant, I can only give my honest two cents about my experience and back them up with facts so here it goes.

this lunch was at best, on the level of Congee Village, and only the main dish deserves a praise of this kind, the dumplings and cucumbers even CV would not serve them this bare or haphazardly.

the cucumber was served with barely any conceivable appetizing presentation, just slimed sesame oiled and cut up in irregular sizes and parts too salty and parts not salty at all. not sure how you can mess this up but this they did.

the beef was good but hardly put together enough for the $25 price tag, appetizing enough but nothing to write home about and we had to ask for rice, which is quite strange considering this is a Chinese restaurant and everything was too salted to be consumed on its own it’s all meant for rice accompaniment per usual. yet when we did, we got one bowl of rice and an empty one so I guess we were meant to share. It’s fine since it’s lunch and I didn’t want to be too full but it would be nice to just be asked, especially if this is a restaurant that wants $19 for a cocktail and dinner menu prices at lunch time, so just saying, but then also wants me to use paper napkins, so there’s that dining math for everyone to consider.

then came the clencher. the playdoh-colored lumps that came out in the weirdest configuration of 4 in a steamer basket that they politely named vegetable dumplings. not only were the slurpee-colored lumps repulsive, so was the texture: overly chewy, tasteless and vegetables indiscernible. not to mention the way they looked like someone tripped while holding the basket and they all took a tumble and then got thrown back into the basket just before serving. the sauce did nothing to help the taste or texture. the most costly dumpling at $10 that felt a disgrace to all dumplings ever made.

don’t even get me started on the dead smooshed fly that randomly ended up on our table after all the dishes were cleared. I may throw up a lil even if I begin to realize it might’ve been under a plate which meant it was over a plate which meant it inevitably touched the food at some point. gag.

I’ve heard many raved reviews of antidote but you just can’t make this stuff up. hope y’all have better luck than me bc I won’t be going back, and it IS...