Monday, November 24, 2008

Keepin' it Local

I have been traveling a lot for work recently and when I come home around 8pm on Thursday, starting the oven is the last thing that me and Mr. Broad want to do. So we stayed around our area for a cheap(er) meal.


4710 Vernon Boulevard

This is on the main drag in LIC (Long Island City) and is also rated "best hipster burger" by ohso fun websites that also declared White Castle is the best fast food burger. I've never been there but judging from Mr. Broad, that's an accurate claim soo the burgers at Lounge 47 MUST be hip too!

There was quite a crowd already at the place (fist pumping for LIC- Hell yeah!) but no problem getting seated. So onto the more important stuff- dinner and the review.

We were both famished so we started off with one of the cheaper appetizers- Taquitos. A bit different than what we normally would get but always up for trying something new.

It was much different (and dare I say, healthier?) than what we expected...

But very good. Loaded with onions (things to mention on your MENU) I spent a good 3 minutes picking them all off. More like mini tacos but very good.

Dinner-

I went with the Shrimp and Avocado salad. Presentation sure was pretty... or shall I say... Hip? Guesses for what the hole of the avocada was filled with? At first I thought it was cheese and mmmm how I love cheese but then realized that it was the salad dressing. It looks a lot "thicker" in the picture than it really was. The salad was good, shrimp was yummy, however I think the salad needed a little something else. Cheese maybe? ... (PS- I realize that glob on the avocado doesn't look that appetizing. It was I swear!)


Mr. Broad went for the Burger with some bacon on top of course. Talk about food envy. And so Mr. Broad? How was it? He could barely stop to open his mouth to declare the greatness of burger. Cooked exactly how he wanted it, I gotta say it looked mighty fine.

Review:
Score one for LIC! Service was friendly, food was great, and the place was hoppin'. Definitely a great place to go locally for us. Not sure if I would go out of my way for this place but if I was in the area (or eh hmm live down the street)... worth it for sure.
Grade: B+

Read more...

Sunday, November 23, 2008

Watch out Ice Cream!

Before I give a full scale review on where we went on Friday night, I wanted to run home and tell everyone out in blog world about this amazingness place we found in SoHo today. (Technically I think it was in Nolita- North of Little Italy- but walked a lot today and starting point was SoHo, so we're going with that).


Mr. Broad and I decided to get out of our apartment today (novel concept) and go to SoHo. He enjoys shopping (for him, not for me). Meanwhile, I always have the problem of going into one of these cutesy boutiques that sell 3 sweaters which are all about $450 each (no joke). To me if you are paying that much for a sweater (and no it's not cashmere although that shouldn't matter) it should also include the pair of pants, the purse and just maybe a nice belt to tie it all together. What I am getting to is that I didn't see anything I liked... amongst the clothing stores that is!

BUT.

What I DID find?! And I regrettably have no photos to show you (but stole some off our friend the world wide web)...

May I present Rice to Riches.

37 Spring Street (btwn Mott and Mulberry)

A couple of years ago I found Rice Pudding. I had always known of it, and liked it sure enough but I had my wisdom teeth pulled and rice pudding and me became really good friends. (Until I got sick from my meds in which case rice pudding and I had a very unpleasant breaking up, but all is now forgiven). Well. Rice pudding.

A close friend of mine told me about this place in NYC ages ago- it's like an ice cream shop but instead of different flavors of ice cream, you guessed it- lots of different rice puddings.


Mr. Broad was not nearly as impressed as I- if it wasn't once alive (and preferably moo'ing or snorting) I'm convinced he could go through life just fine. But regardless, he enjoyed watching me in my super duper excitement.

There were a zillion flavors and if you look on their website, their prices were grossly underestimated from what we saw. A small was around $6.50 (website says $5)... Luckily I found a prepacked even smaller size available and got two flavors to taste - cheesecake and chocolate chip.
The cheesecake one tastes identical to a cheesecake filling and actually has pieces of cheesecake in it! Yes there were bits of rice in there too, however, it didn't really matter. It was gooooood.
The chocolate chip I will have later on but from what I can tell it's a bit more "traditional" while still sweet with chocolate chips in it.
No, I didn't get to try their classic flavors (boring!) but will definitely have to come by and pay this place a visit... sex, drugs, and rocky road is calling my name.


Rating: B+ (would be higher if it wasn't so expensive!)

Read more...

Monday, November 17, 2008

"I Don't Do Mild"...

That's a quote the chef said about his restaurant in a review we read in New York Times.
So guess who haaad to check that out.

Los Dos Molinos
119 E 18th St. (between Park and Irving)

Mr. Broad and I have been eating and cooking (yes, we cook!) a lot of Asian recently so Mexican was a nice change. While researching this restaurant after the fact I found out that it's actually a Phoenix based restaurant in 3 other locations there. Mr. Broad, cover your ears! Did we just go to a CHAIN RESTAURANT??

This place didn't take reservations and it was raining last Saturday night so we were really hoping for luck to be on our side. And ... we were seated right away! Circle gets the square! This is a novel concept for New Yorkers when you do not have a reservation.. One more time to brag... we were seated right away! Already we're off to good things. I think the food tastes better already...


We were given two types of salsa and chips (chip refills- $2.95. Of course they are...)
And then we ordered.

Nachos to start- it had the proclaimed spicy machaca beef sauce.
Waitress: Are you okay with spicy?? It only comes one way.
Us- Yes
Waitress (with concerned look in her eyes): Ok... it's very spicy.
Me: umm..
Mr. Broad: Perfect!

And how were said Nachos? Spicy! But REALLY good. They were still edible despite making my nose run and had a FAB sauce on it. Also- please take note of the cheese to chip ratio in the picture. Perfect. While many restaurants may skimp on the cheese or only get those top chips which either 1) leaves said chips soggy or 2) madness ensues amongst those eating by fighting for the "superior" chips covered with the toppings... This nacho platter need not worry.

I think Mr. Broad commented about licking the plate that had the leftover special sauce. He settled for a spoon.

Dinner:

Me- Grande Burro. Pretty standard in terms of what it was. I liked it a lot, was definitely grando but would probably try the fish tacos next time.

Mr. Broad- Red or Green Chili with Beef Burro
Order was placed like this:
Mr. Broad: I'll have the Green Chili with Beef Burro
Waitress (again scared): Are you aware that this is one of our spiciest dishes we offer?
Mr. Broad: I like my mouth to bleed.
Waitress (confused): Umm
Me: It's fine.
Waitress (runs off afraid)

And the item:
Result- AND... it wasn't *that* spicy! Maybe they didn't use enough of the "sauce" or the waitress got confused by his sarcasm because even I had no problems with it. The nachos were mucho spicier. However even if our mouths were not on fire and we weren't downing lots of margarit- I mean water- it was goood.

Review:
This place definitely has atmosphere- and not in the romantic way. It's loud, but lights are dimmed, and there's the feeling like there's a party going on at every table. And when they bring out the fried ice cream to sing happy birthday, the whole restaurant chimes in. The food was a bit expensive for Mexican. The margaritas while huge, strong, and soo good- came in many fun flavors however, they were not recession-cheap. Looking around it appeared that no one at the restaurant cared. Well if everyone else is doing it... We'll take 2.
The food was good, Mr. Broad thought it was a bit expensive for what it was, however, reflecting back I think it was really only our alcohol tab that might have been the factor. Oops. Oh and they messed up the bill for us. They were very apologetic but when you see an extra $16 margarita listed on your bill, you notice these things.
Grade: B+

Read more...

Thursday, November 13, 2008

One of those "Top Chef" Restaurants...

Perilla

9 Jones Street (btw. West 4 and Bleecker)

So after the fun, amazing, and drank a wee bit too much salami class, we went to Perilla. As Mike said, "I view that as an hour and a half of appetizers. Bring on the entrees."

About three blocks away from Murray's is Perilla, which Susan and I have been wanting to try. It has gotten rave reviews on boards and was opened up by Harold Dieterle, the winner of the first season of Top Chef. However, interesting note, the entire Perilla website has no mention that he won Top Chef. Dietrech's bio doesn't even mention it at all. (Hmm, sounds familiar to Kelly Clarkson forgetting her roots).

We immediately order a bottle of wine; which was fantabulous. Kudos to Susan and her pick of BenMarco Malbec Mendoza 2006. (We wrote it down we all loved it so much). Ordering while drinking can sometimes lead to splurge purchases or everything tasting "Oh wow, this is sooo good". That being said. We had a great meal.

We started off with:
-Seared Diver Sea Scallops, parsnip puree, pumpkin seed praline & orange-hearts of palm salad (Is that what that was?! I thought I didn't like hearts of palm. Oops). The scallops were great, and had a nice grilled flavor. With only 2 scallops, though, it was fine for us but don't expect it to be at an all you can eat buffet.
Foie gras was ordered as well however both were eaten so fast that no pictures were taken. Oops, I have to remember that one.

Onto the entrees and more wine. Excuse the pictures, I am really new to the whole taking pictures in the dark thing. You can tell this place had some "ambiance".
Susan and I both ordered appetizers for our entree.
Me: Spicy Duck Meatballs, mint cavatelli, water spinach, quail egg

Susan: Tai Snapper Tartarcucumber, rice pearls, tom yum broth gelee & pickled green papaya puree

Mr. Broad: Roasted Hampshire Pork 'Porchetta'flageolet beans, escarole, concord grape-chili ragu & green mustard

Mike: Roasted Bacon Wrapped Game Henspaetzle, chestnuts, persimmons & pomegranate molasses

Oh and brussel sprouts for the table-- Roasted Brussels Sprout Leaves dried cranberries, toasted nuts & seeds.

The great thing about going out to dinner with Mike and Susan is that we all pass each other's dishes around so we get a good taste for the restaurant. And that taste was divine.
Review: This restaurant is apparently hard to get into, but leave it for a Wednesday night it's well worth it. I almost wish we didn't have all that salami beforehand so I could try more dishes and appreciate it better! Their wine list was extensive and the service was very attentive. The chef was not there- don't think we didn't ask!- he was in Thailand presumably coming back with other fun concoctions. We can't wait to see what they are...
Rating: A

Read more...

How Do You Like Your Meat?

Murray's Cheese

Salumi Class 101
Greenwich Village 254 Bleecker St. (between 6th and 7th)


So this past Wednesday night was an event that Mr. Broad and I were looking forward to for quite some time. We went to a salumi tasting class at Murray's in Greenwich Village. For those not familiar with Murray's Cheese- it's one of these old timer NYC shops (has since expanded) that has been around since 1940. They now specialize in cheeses from all over and cooked and cured meats with lots of other fun specialty foods in between (olive oils, nuts, etc).

Mr. Broad and I went to this much anticipated class from a recommendation from our new friends Mike and Susan. Not much arm twisting was involved in this one. There were about 15 people in our class and Mike came prepared with his Charcuterie book.
Oh it was game time.

Numerous questions were asked (mainly by our corner)--

What are your thoughts on nitrates in meat?
How many days are necessary to age cured meat?
Can you please go into the types of casing used for sausages?
(I have the answers to all of these questions if you are ohso interested).

Actually they were so in tune to the class that several people came up to Mike and Mr. Broad afterwards asking them if they were opening up a store, or doing this at home! Seriously?! What apartment do YOU live in? (And can we have an application?) Actually one of the people we talked to was from the New York magazine who is interested in doing a piece on the class/enthusiastics. Mike got her card so will keep you posted if he gets interviewed!

This is what we tasted.

And this is what it really was.

Also involved were many glasses of champagne and red wine. So the verdict-- AWESOME. Eight different tastings of either pig, cow, or duck. We had one of those tasting sheets to fill out (similar to what you get at a wine tasting), however looking back, my notes reflect "So Good" and "Brown." Man I am good at this.

I am not going to replay what they all tasted like- just a couple.

-Porchetta Primata Pig- words like herby, rosemary, yummy were written on my sheet.
-La Quercia Lardo- the one that may make others squirm. It's lard. Yes. Fat. Suprising, not my first time having lardo. Being with Mr. Broad, things just don't surprise you anymore. They wrapped it up around a breadstick which was honestly a nice pairing. So how does fat taste? Like you'd expect. Amazing. Smooth and a bit like butter. Clearly eaten in small quantities but if you go to Mario Batali's restaurant he has Lardo Pizza on it. Because everything is better with lardo...
Close up of the lardo:



-Surry Farms Surryano- this one was from Virginia so already I'm a little partial. Smelled a lot like bacon and had a similar texture to... lox! Clearly not the official flavor of the pig (although what a controversy that would be!) but it helped me remember it.

-Other highlights- one that was made with truffle oil, another that was spicy with cumin/chili powder flavor, and a pate.
Review:
Murray's Salumi tasting class. So. much. fun. This was their first class they have offered on Salumi. They liberally keep your glasses fill of wine/champagne while you are tasting different types of meat. Plus with little tastes of bread, nuts, and pickles to supplement it was definitely worth the coast. Oh and we also got quite an education in cured and cooked meats. Did you know that pate started out as peasant food as a way to preserve left over meat?
There is anticipation of cured meats becoming more approachable over the next years. Looks like we're ahead of the curve. Mr. Broad and Mike are now discussing how much a whole pig costs. Who's excited!
Rating: A

Read more...

Monday, November 10, 2008

Not Your College Ramen...

Restaurant Rewind...


Neighborhood: Manhattan/East Village
654th Ave(between 2nd Ave & 8th St)

Remember those days when you were hungry and had no money? I'm talking about college not yesterday. Well, we used to eat ramen. For $1 you could buy not one, not two, but SEVERAL packages and it came in many artificial flavors. What's not to love? Take that Rachael Ray and your $40 a day challenge! Clearly one serving pretty much satisfied your weeks worth of sodium intake. But that's besides the point I digress.


Apparently ramen is Japanese soul food. No really, check the ippudo website. Ramen in NYC however is soon becoming the new black, the new cupcake, or last year's skinny jeans. Not yet, but soon. I'm pulling out the "soon to be trendy" card. So sign me up.

And maybe because I've only had "fresh" ramen at Ippudo but I get it. It's amazing. Apparently one of the best places to get ramen in the city. I've now been there twice- once with Mr. Broad for lunch and another time when our friends J + T and my cousin went to dinner. Mr. Broad out-ramens me by going there also with his brother. Yeah we like this place.

If you can deal with the wait (hell yeah! who's got stamina at 2 hours??) you're in for a real treat. And may I also suggest the pork buns?? Ah.mazing.

Pictures for your enjoyment:
Pork Buns (They look similar to tacos but ohso much better.)


Ramen- There are a couple of different types- we went for the Ramen Modern which had a much longer name that wasn't all English but let's just call it the Modern for this post. It's also their most popular. Mr. Broad got his with extra pork belly. Of course he did. Basically, freshly made noodles in a meat sauce with something about garlic oil, cabbage, scallions, pork...

Review: There is a lot already written praising Ippudo of which I would be repeating. Mr. Broad said things like, "Aah that's right!" And lots of slurping. (Sidenote. If people advise not to have soup on a first date in the US, I wonder if they say the same about ramen in Japan? Ponder... ) Okay. So the ramen was great. Mine had one piece of pork in it while Mr. Broad smiled smugly at his "extra pork belly" request. Oh and the pork buns? Wow. Best I've ever had but some of that may be due to the 2 hour and the I WANT FOOD NOW wait. Still. Awesome. And the cost? The bowl of ramen was $13 and the pork buns $8 for 2. Pretty good by NYC standards for dinner, however, perhaps a bit more than the ramen conessiur would pay? Eh, did I mention it's right near my office. Two hour lunch anyone?
Rating: A

Read more...

Sushi for Experts

One of the many restaurant rewinds to come... I've been taking pictures of our food long before I started writing, but with the intention of posting about it eventually. So bear with me as you hear about some of our past restaurants we went to in the next posts ahead.

Soto
357 6th Ave (between 4th St & Washington Pl)

Mr. Broad: Where would you like to go to dinner tonight?
Me: Hmm, I'm feeling in the mood for sushi.
Mr. Broad: Ooh, there's this sushi place I've been wanting to try in Greenwich Village.
Me: Perfect!

And enter the most unlikely sushi place I've ever been to.

While they had your typical sushi rolls it was clear due to the placement on the menu that this was not the highlight of the menu. Chowhound boards gave this place high reviews so we were eager to try it out. And I definitely knew why Mr. Broad picked this place out as well- one of their specialities was uni (sea urchin), his favorite.

And so we ordered. The waiter told us we had to order lots of food because they have small portions. Umm, okay. Of course you do.

Anyway. We ordered several dishes most of which I don't remember. But WOW for presentation. And yes, it was sushi in that there was raw fish in there but if you wanted say a California Roll? HAH! I laugh at your sushi ignorance!

May I present to you:

Uni Ika Sugomori Zukuri- sea urchin wrapped in thinly sliced squid and shiso served with quail egg and tosa soy reduction

And Chyu Toro Tar Tare chopped fatty part of big eye tuna with avocado coulis, garnished with caviar, chive, served in sesame ponzu sauce


And I was craving an actual sushi roll, so I got a - Tuna Tartar roll



And trust me because the plates were so small there was plenty of room for dessert- my favorite; mochi! (Japanese ice cream made with rice) I think it was strawberry, green tea, red bean, mango, and banana. Sounds about right.



Review:

Overall the meal was really good. While probably not the sushi meal I had expected, it definitely was "interesting". The plating itself was gorgeous and we had many other dishes than the ones above. The portion size was small and more expensive than I think either of us realized heading into it. Was it good sushi? Yep. Would we come here again? Probably not. It's not your everyday sushi place (mainly due to cost) and besides that- there are too many sushi places to try out!

Rating: B (Mr. Broad gave it a B+)

Read more...

Matzoh ball soup with a side of Danny Tanner

2nd Avenue Deli


Sunday morning we decided to go see my brother and his girlfriend in the city at a good ol' Jewish deli. Having been to the famous Carnegie Deli, we wanted to try out the other much talked about NYC deli- 2nd Avenue.

The deli experience started off similar to others we've been to but with some fun "perks". You almost hope for a long wait because they give you samples of their famous chopped liver. Good thing the woman made a couple of laps where we were!

Sitting down we got the typical pickles, cole slaw, and gribenes (fried chicken skin). Mr. Broad and Mrs. Broad's brother were happy...


And that is where most of my food review stops. And pictures for that matter.

Because. In walks. Bob Saget. And sits. Yes, right next to us. He was there with his 2 daughters but that did not stop me from gawking or talking loudly and OMG THERE'S DANNY TANNER and What ever happened to predictability?!

So while my half sandwich/soup came-- Matzoh Ball with pastrami sandwich- I was busy texting many, many of you all. Eventually I stopped to realize my soup may just be getting cold and WOW look at the size of that matzoh ball!!

Review: Food was great, seeing Bob Saget was clearly better. It's a bit expensive though which is probably due to the added cost of those "perks" and it being kosher. Many sandwiches hover around $20.

Mr. Broad had a tongue sandwich (more Jewish soul food) which he proclaimed was "Excellent". My brother's girlfriend had blintzes which also were also very good. The stuffed cabbage was awesome too. The food has large portions but maybe not as large as Carnegie (not that we needed it). And it's definitely nicer than Carnegie. Plus. With the Bob Saget sighting?? Just hand me a thing of Tums and we're in business.
Rating: A-

Read more...

Sunday, November 9, 2008

Well, hello there!

Yep I did it.
After getting asked numerous times to start a blog I finally caved. I just moved to NYC with my husband and we are having fun exploring the city. Self-proclaimed foodies, basically this blog will be highlighting the good (and bad) restaurants we go to, along wth all that other married stuff in between we do.

Oh, and for blog anonymous purposes; I'm going by Mrs. Broad and my husband will now be referred to as Mr. Broad. I work on Broadway; you get it...

Read more...

People who visit and do not leave comments

  © Blogger template Psi by Ourblogtemplates.com 2008

Back to TOP