I agree that the food at Milling Room is special. I remember when it first opened, how the owner hovered around each table making sure that everything was perfect. It's a big space and probably very expensive to run. In the 70's and 80's, The Endicott was a very different place: it was a notorious welfare hotel, with a murder reported every month or so. People stayed away from the area. Then it was bought, refurbished and turned into a co-op, and the area became gentrified. Before the Milling Room, the space was a popular meeting and dining place called Calle Ocho, but the rent probably was too much for them. Calle Ocho moved a block away to The Excelsior, an upbeat hotel on 81st Street. In the past year or so, however, one floor of the Excelsior became a homeless shelter! Plus ca change!
Kudos for your report.