For all intents and purposes I am now on the four meal a day plan. This plan was not a conscious decision like the five small meal a day plan that is touted by many a starlet, it is more the result of me deluding myself into thinking that I can eat a meal at 5pm and then not eat for the rest of the evening. I have never--except the first 6 years or so of my life which I don't really even remember--eaten dinner regularly before 8pm, so why do I think now that it will be possible? (I will keep this as a rhetorical question because the answer is that I have no willpower and that is not something I like to admit outside of parentheses)
I'll start with my two "dinnners" on Sunday because both places deserve to be mentioned. My first dinner (roughly 6pm) was the special from BALUCHI'S which includes, an appetizer, a main course, and sides of naan, chutney and raita all for roughly $14. The amount of food is a damn good deal and the chicken curry is tender, delicious and plentiful. Mix it with the basmati rice and dip your naan into the sauce and you will feel as though you are eating a home-cooked meal from which should follow some good tv and a nap. Note: Skip the chutney because it looks like marmalade but tastes like gelatin mixed with a mango rind and assaulted with cumin, however, don't shun all sides because the raita isn't bad.
Second dinner (10:30pm) was a Grandma Slice from BLEECKER STREET PIZZA. Their grandma slices, with San Marzano tomatoes, fresh mozzerella and spices are surprisingly light and I highly recommend them to anyone in the neighborhood..with the exception of cheesy pizza lovers who may be disappointed by its favoritism of sauce over cheese.
Monday night was a Mets game, so I'll leave the amount of dinners out because who counts vending stand visits as legitimate meals anyway?
Tuesday night: #1 "I'm on a healthkick dinner" (5:30pm) consisted of Luna Bar and fruit #2 "I am watching copious amounts of television and the applebees commercial is making me hungry dinner"(10pm) was flour tortillas with melted cheese and Haagen Daz chocolate sorbet--which, by the way, is rich and excellent.
Tonight I actually did have two dinners out at restaurants which, I hope, will be the climax of the four meal trend. First was a group dinner to FUSHA (6pm) a truly fushion place consisting of Japanese, Chinese and Indian food (with french music playing in the bathroom). I had the Sashimi Salsa (I know, I know..Mexico too?) which was a ceviche of sorts--crabmeat, yellowtail, octopus,shrimp and lots of peppers--which would have been a success had it not been for the overspicy sauce which numbed my tastebuds to the fresh fish, an assumption I am willing to make based on the side order of tuna sashimi which was superb.
The second stop was AOC (on Bleecker) where I tucked into a delicious PMT (prosciutto,mozzerella, tomato and basil--which was cruelly ignored in the acronym) sandwich. In my mind's eye I was envisiong a pannini but my mind's eye is not in charge of the bread supply and therefore the sandwich came on a baguette--a delicious warm on the inside crunchy on the outside baguette-- that sprayed crumbs into my literal eye in retribution for second guessing its supremacy. What I love about AOC is that no butter is spared in the creation of its dishes and this sandwich was no exception. The butter and the basil mingled to make a more lardy version of pesto, which melted into the warm bread and smothered the delectable PMT in the sandwich. The fries there are also top notch, salty, big but not too big--think the size of what Nicole Kidman's pinky looks like-and with the proper ratio of crunchy and a bit soggy. I'm more of a soggy fan myself, but I appreciate the equal opportunism of textures.
Tomorrow is a new day and my heart as well as my waistline believe that it will mark my return to the 3 meal a day plan, let's hope my appetite agrees.
Thursday, April 26, 2007
Monday, April 16, 2007
Back From Sabbatical
It would seem from my nonexistent posts that I did not eat out during the entire month of March and half of April but looks can be deceiving (and bloggers can be lazy) and, in fact, I have tried some new places with mixed results. A quick summary:
1) CACIO E PEPE--Italian-- (2nd Ave btwn 11th and12th)
The pasta was crunchy enough to possibly send me TO al Dente, the salmon was way too fishy ( read: it had gone bad), and the osso bucco had to be sent back. This being said, however, I have heard so many good things about this place that, silly me, I will go back and give it another shot. Especially since I went on the night of the blizzard before St. Patty's Day and I'm hoping, for their sake, that the chef didn't make it in that day.
2) BOMBAY TALKIE--Indian-- (9th Ave. btwn 21st & 22nd)
Delicious. All around a great experience. The Nan was bigger than my head, light, doughy and flavorful. Beggars' purses a must, and very plump shrimp in the Five Spice Shrimp. Cheap, delicious, and sleek new york ambiance to boot. Great place to go out for a fun meal before heading out on a Saturday night. Or for an early weeknight dinner.
3) SORREL--New American-- (605 Carlton Ave., Prospect Heights)
The deal is a $25 price fixe (although there are also A La Carte options if you so desire) and the food generally falls along the lines of Appetizers:fresh and satisfying, Entrees: overcooked and confusing (I had two different types of sauces to dip my fish in, one olive tapenade and the other a mango marmalade compote--dont get me wrong I love them separately but together its kind of like daniel bolud and chiquita banana are sharing my plate) and Desserts: back to satisfying. I highly recommend the blinchiki (i.e. crepe) filled with ricotta cheese. We did have a fabulous $28 bottle of Cote De Rhone and the wine and the great conversation between friends made overcooked lamb (I tried my friend's) forgivable.
Now to today:
4) WESTVILLE--American-- (10th right off Bleeker)
Capitalizing on the Noreaster I figured I'd give this much talked about restaurant a go. Since I only live a block away it was a win/win for me--I assumed that everyone was safely tucked in their apartment, thus there would be no wait or if there were to be a wait I could return to my apartment and tuck back into the bed that I had been loathe to leave. There were three people waiting outside which was not a positive sign but I walked in and low and behold a table for two was available!Side Note: The three scaffold huddlers outside came inside shortly thereafter so don't feel badly for them. Especially since one of them ordered an egg and asparagus dish that I think I should have ordered.
On to what we ate. I got the special eggs "Scramble #2" which included chorizo, mushroom and chipotle sauce, I added gruyere for a dollar extra and it was a wise choice. It cut down a little bit on the chipotle. Fries came along with it color and texture like McDonalds fries--before transfats got sucked out--but a little meatier and a little bit lacking in salt. I also got a slice of toasted "health bread" on the side which defintiely tasted healthy, brown with lots of seeds. My friend got the Breakfast Burrito and the blue ribbon for ordering correctly. Her dish, from the ingredients to the presentation, was just a lot more exciting than my order. In the wrap was proscuitto, arugula, goat cheese and egg whites (she substituted the normal eggs for the whites, which I usually shy away from but in this case it actually ended up improving the dish by allowing the cheese and arugula to take center stage). We also ordered a plate of sauteed tomoto cherries which were really delighful. The vibrant red tomatoes set against the pretty platter made the think of one of the pictures in the Barefoot Contessa cookbook. This brings me to their market vegetables. They have an incredibly wide range of fresh produce which you can buy either as individual plates ($5) or as a combo platter where you get 4 for $13 (A steal because they really load them on) We had a homemade oreo to finish things off..think devil dogs with crunchier outsides and that same deliciously fake cream that is in oreos.
I cannot say enough good things about this meal (eventhough the burrito was better than the scramble, the scramble was 10 times better than you would get at another restaurant) but I have been put in a pickle now that I have tasted the forbidden fruit and must deal with the fact that I will never again be able to walk in and get a seat. Well, there is always delivery.
1) CACIO E PEPE--Italian-- (2nd Ave btwn 11th and12th)
The pasta was crunchy enough to possibly send me TO al Dente, the salmon was way too fishy ( read: it had gone bad), and the osso bucco had to be sent back. This being said, however, I have heard so many good things about this place that, silly me, I will go back and give it another shot. Especially since I went on the night of the blizzard before St. Patty's Day and I'm hoping, for their sake, that the chef didn't make it in that day.
2) BOMBAY TALKIE--Indian-- (9th Ave. btwn 21st & 22nd)
Delicious. All around a great experience. The Nan was bigger than my head, light, doughy and flavorful. Beggars' purses a must, and very plump shrimp in the Five Spice Shrimp. Cheap, delicious, and sleek new york ambiance to boot. Great place to go out for a fun meal before heading out on a Saturday night. Or for an early weeknight dinner.
3) SORREL--New American-- (605 Carlton Ave., Prospect Heights)
The deal is a $25 price fixe (although there are also A La Carte options if you so desire) and the food generally falls along the lines of Appetizers:fresh and satisfying, Entrees: overcooked and confusing (I had two different types of sauces to dip my fish in, one olive tapenade and the other a mango marmalade compote--dont get me wrong I love them separately but together its kind of like daniel bolud and chiquita banana are sharing my plate) and Desserts: back to satisfying. I highly recommend the blinchiki (i.e. crepe) filled with ricotta cheese. We did have a fabulous $28 bottle of Cote De Rhone and the wine and the great conversation between friends made overcooked lamb (I tried my friend's) forgivable.
Now to today:
4) WESTVILLE--American-- (10th right off Bleeker)
Capitalizing on the Noreaster I figured I'd give this much talked about restaurant a go. Since I only live a block away it was a win/win for me--I assumed that everyone was safely tucked in their apartment, thus there would be no wait or if there were to be a wait I could return to my apartment and tuck back into the bed that I had been loathe to leave. There were three people waiting outside which was not a positive sign but I walked in and low and behold a table for two was available!Side Note: The three scaffold huddlers outside came inside shortly thereafter so don't feel badly for them. Especially since one of them ordered an egg and asparagus dish that I think I should have ordered.
On to what we ate. I got the special eggs "Scramble #2" which included chorizo, mushroom and chipotle sauce, I added gruyere for a dollar extra and it was a wise choice. It cut down a little bit on the chipotle. Fries came along with it color and texture like McDonalds fries--before transfats got sucked out--but a little meatier and a little bit lacking in salt. I also got a slice of toasted "health bread" on the side which defintiely tasted healthy, brown with lots of seeds. My friend got the Breakfast Burrito and the blue ribbon for ordering correctly. Her dish, from the ingredients to the presentation, was just a lot more exciting than my order. In the wrap was proscuitto, arugula, goat cheese and egg whites (she substituted the normal eggs for the whites, which I usually shy away from but in this case it actually ended up improving the dish by allowing the cheese and arugula to take center stage). We also ordered a plate of sauteed tomoto cherries which were really delighful. The vibrant red tomatoes set against the pretty platter made the think of one of the pictures in the Barefoot Contessa cookbook. This brings me to their market vegetables. They have an incredibly wide range of fresh produce which you can buy either as individual plates ($5) or as a combo platter where you get 4 for $13 (A steal because they really load them on) We had a homemade oreo to finish things off..think devil dogs with crunchier outsides and that same deliciously fake cream that is in oreos.
I cannot say enough good things about this meal (eventhough the burrito was better than the scramble, the scramble was 10 times better than you would get at another restaurant) but I have been put in a pickle now that I have tasted the forbidden fruit and must deal with the fact that I will never again be able to walk in and get a seat. Well, there is always delivery.
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