King of FalaFel

I have now experienced the delectable goodness of falafel! I stopped by the Vendy Award Winner The King of FalaFel. So here is why I don't like getting street food...whilst studying abroad in London, my bff and I went to Italy on a Contiki tour. His #1 rule was not to deal with money on the street. I have carried that rule with me throughout my life nervous that people will run by, snatch my beat-up, 8 year old vera bradley wallet and covet the lack of money and ample supply of embarrassing pictures and my Beautiful Gold Starbucks Card. Damn their eyes and sneaky hands. So that is why I don't do street food. And it creeps me out. Except desserts, I'll eat those. So last week I decided, yes, this is it. This is a respected King, he deserves my money. All $6 of it. I approached the stand, in the rain, and confidently placed my order that I had rehearsed in my head probably 10 times. Here is how it went:
Him: What do you want?
Me: Chicken Platter
Him: Hot Sauce or White Sauce
(I was not ready for this question)
Me: uhhh not spicy, uhhh white, I want white sauce. yes.
Him: Yellow rice?
(what is this, 20 questions?)
Me. Yes.
(a few minutes later)
Him: $6
(I proceed to drop my umbrella on the ground, upside down, fish around my purse for my wallet, and try to find money. Stupid, I think, you should have had money in your pocket!)
Me: Thank you
Him: Go away
(just kidding, that's what he was thinking)

BUT IT WAS SO WORTH IT. DELICIOUS!!!! The medley of rice and chicken and falafel and tomatoes and lettuce and not spicy white sauce. I dipped into an intense food coma after this wishing I had consumed my food slower but simultaneously wishing I could finish my tin of food.

Also, I'm listening to Britney Spears right now.

S'more Cookie Bars

S'more cookie bar

Hi,  I have an addiction to Pintrest. Along with every other female on planet earth. Ok, now that I have acknowledged the issue at hand here is what Pintrest made me do today. S'more Cookie Bars. Very easy to make. My taste tester and I thought the only issue was that the crust was a little dry, good to note for next time these are attempted. Otherwise, they taste exactly like campfire s'mores. Just be sure to have a big glass of frothy, frosty, milk next to you as you devour these. If that didn't make you want to get a glass of milk I don't know what will.

Pizza(s)

It's ladies night! And pizza was the entree selected by yours truly. The round pizza cooked on a pizza stone was dough picked up from a local pizza shop for $3. Toppings include:
- tomato bruschetta
- fresh mozzerella
- red pepper strips
- portabella mushroom strips

Mistake I made with this one was not cooking it a few minutes before putting the toppings on so it resulted in a pooling of liquid at the center of the pie.

Pizza number 2 was Pillsbury dough on a cookie sheet:
- bali bbq sauce
- goat cheese
- sliced cipolline onions
- prosciutto 

Udon

Last night I attempted AND succeeded at making udon. This helpful recipe from The Kitchn and this video from The Steamy Kitchen helped me create my bowl o' yummy. This is a big deal because it was the first, count it, the first time I have ever cooked with tofu. I loved it! I threw it in a hot pan with olive oil and then drizzled soy sauce over it and then it was done. I'm a little salty because I wanted the big noodles but Whole Foods did not carry the thick, plumpy noodles I was seeking. I ended up with thinner, more spaghetti like noodles which were fine too.

Here is what I used in my recipe:

1 pack of udon, cooked or uncooked
2 tbsp miso paste
2 green onions, diced
1 carrot, sliced
handful of snowpeas
4 mushrooms, sliced
1/2 cup of extra firm tofu
water

Tip: cook the udon then drain the water because it gets very starchy and you don't want to be eating all that starchiness

I was getting very hangry (hungry/angry) so no pictures were taken. Food needed to get in my belly. Next time...as I still have left over of all of the ingredients, even the miso which I put in a container to use later this week.

Avacado and Oatmeal

Feeling rather ambitious today I headed to Whole Foods and then Associated. So much food. I picked up lots of fun ingredients including one that I have never purchased before...tofu. I plan on making a wild rice, edamame bean, soy sauce, tofu, carrot combo.  I'll let you know how that goes. But today I made...

Avacado with an Egg inside. What do you call
 that? Pig in a pit? Mmm I'll work on that. I heated up the oven to 475 with my little skillet inside to heat up. Then I put the halved avocado in, cracked the egg and added salt and pepper. As you can see it tipped a little and spilled. I think about 10-15 minutes is a good time to achieve a runny egg. I left it in too long so the egg actually baked. It was an ok snack. Something else could have been added...maybe cheese.






 Then I moved on to my next project. Everyday at work I get very hungry at 10-11am. I don't want to ruin my lunch but I need to put something in my belly so I found this recipe on Pintrest.
1.5 cups of oatmeal
1 cup of unsweetened applesauce
3 ripened bananas
add cinnamon to taste
Optional - anything else you have - nuts, raisins, craisins etc.

Heat oven to 325 and bake for 30 min. I made golf ball size dollops. I lined my baking pan with foil. I tried one and it was delicious! Hopefully they will help with my morning hunger.

Chocolate

As the day of love approaches I thought I would take time to admire one of the best foods on planet earth. The reason that I thought of posting about chocolate was because of Valentines day but also because of the Bon Appetit article on chocolate. I'd say that my snobbishness with chocolate began after returning home from studying abroad in London. Suddenly Hershey seemed so...watery. And bless my lucky stars that I had managed to smuggle in two large Cadbury bars from the UK.
 When I say large, I mean, well really embarrassingly large. Every night my mom and I would break off one or two squares and eat them as we cleaned up after dinner. Then came the evening that I opened the cupboard and our remaining 6 squares had disappeared. Suddenly I turned green, grew 10 feet and turned in the Incredible Hulk. Stomping through the house, leaving my mom in the kitchen I yelled 'WHO TOOK THE CHOCOLATE!?' My dad sitting at the computer, turns and said 'Oh I thought you were done with that, I threw it out.'

We have not spoken since.

Since I have dismissed Hershey's from my life I have been able to taste other wonderful chocolates. Some good staples that are dense and creamy and filled with fun surprises are always Godiva Chocolates. What I love about Godive are their very informative cards and descriptors included in each box so you know exactly what you are eating. Nothing annoys me more then wasting calories on a chocolate filled with orange liqueur or rose petals. Ok maybe not rose petals, but you get the idea. Another one that is tasty once in a while are Lindt chocolates. And of course a little Ghirardelli never hurt anyone either.

Two chocolate brands that provide delicious bars of chocolate are Scharffen Berger and Dagoba. While at the Fancy Food Show in San Francisco this year I stocked up on Scharffenberger to bring back for co-workers. One thing I really like about them is the packaging. Clean, crisp, and clear on what you are about to eat. My favorite was the salted chocolate with almonds (which I hoarded in my desk and did not share.) For Dagoba I tried for the second year in a row their lavender blueberry chocolate bar which tasted vaguely of potpourri. I gave it to co-workers to test and guess what they thought it was. They commented on the floral taste and subtle fruitiness. We neither loved nor hated it.

When I am not in the mood to have a chocolate truffle or a chocolate bar I reach for the hot chocolate. Last year I received two tins of Jacques Torres hot chocolate, the regular and the spiced flavor. I have yet to achieve the same thickness that the barista produces but soon enough I will get there.

And lastly...
About two months ago the podcast Spilled Milk did a piece on Dark Chocolate which I recommend listening to. Very entertaining. Especially interesting are the words used to described chocolate.

Cancellation Fees

One day I hope to eat at the restaurants on this list. And if I am so lucky, I would not cancel. Unless an act of God forced me to stay inside.

Ryan Sutton compiles the cancellation fees at various NYC restaurants. Don't be an idiot and cancel.

Roberta's

This lovely evening my roommate and I took each other out for our birthdays as they are only 5 days apart from each other. I suggested Roberta's in Brooklyn off of the Morgan stop. Please note if you are going here, there is nothing at that stop. It is the creepiest, look there is someone lurking in the corner but they are a hipster so don't worry place I have been to. But alas food was calling and we answered. The nondescript facade is deceiving for behind the big oak door (it may be another type of wood, who knows) is a room of long tables and pizza hearths (ok, only one) ready to make you full.

We were seated in the back room with a cozy heater in the center. I didn't love the bench seating as my back is always a little achy after hunching over an entire meal. Because it is Friday I needed my wino. So I got a red, the Di Giovanna, Norello. Delish. A full, hearty wine that left me very happy.

OK, on to the good stuff. We shared:

The Carrot Salad - smoked ricotta, radish and lemon zest.
This was an excellent first as picked by J. It was light and refreshing. The radishes were sliced to a translucent state allowing the perfect bite with all three ingredients included. Not what I would have selected but I am happy it was ordered.

Mains - 2 pizzas
The Spudnik (my choice): taleggio (mmmm), parmigiano, mashed potatoes, vidalia onions, chives

The Good Girl (J's choice) - taleggio ( mmm x 2), pork sausage, kale, garlic, chili flakes (which we omitted)

The Good Girl was the overall favorite at this hipster pizza palace. The texture of the mashed potatoes was fine for the first bite but got a little tiresome and grainy after you were done with a slice. Two pizzas was perfect to share between two people. I would like to try the simple pizza margherita next time. Perhaps a trip with the parents...

2 out of 5

The Harrison

It's the most wonderful time, of the year! That's right, it's restaurant week(s). My co-workers and I selected The Harrison as our location of choice. The beautifully decorated restaurant in Tribeca was empty when we first arrived at 6:30 but quickly filled up. We all decided to order off of the Restaurant Week menu and here is what I selected:

House Cured Salmon - Cage free egg, red onion, capers, toast
Almond crusted Bluefish - string beans, fingerlings (maybe one of the creepiest food words, besides baby artichoke hearts ever), leek puree
Banana Bread Ice Cream Sandwich - Buttermilk, toffee, chocolate

We also decided on two sides to share, the sauteed spinach and the truffled orzo. The truffled orzo was amazing!! B stated he would go back just to order those two items and I agree with him! I attempted to sneak little spoonfuls onto my plate while no one was looking but I failed. The first was good, the main was my favorite and surprisingly I do have a critique on the dessert. Don't faint but, there was too much ice cream. The whole thing is obviously prepared ahead of time and cut from a block. I would have liked to have seen the bread warm and melting the ice cream rather then have cold banana bread hugging a block of vanilla ice cream.

Our most favorite part of the meal was the crazy lady who sat next to us demanding the corner table, then a 4 top for her and her man friend/lawyer/we don't really know. She decided to keep her sunglasses on and read the menu with her summer dress screaming out of season in February. Ohh we love NY. I would recommend this place but have no need to return.

2 out of 5

San Francisco Treats

So sorry for the delay. Life has been a little crazy! After returning from San Francisco I promptly celebrated my birthday and then this past weekend unexpectedly went to Atlantic City. Let's get right to it. Where did I go, what did I eat, how much weight did I gain?

Blowfish Sushi

After going out for Burmese food the previous evening we wanted to try sushi for our next meal. We attempted to go to Sushi Zone first. I walk in as the elected representative of our group to sign out name on the board and see a long list of names. When I look around there are maybe 4 people waiting. I inquire with the hostess/waitress. 

"Oh there is a list with names on it, it will be a wait, maybe an hour"

I return to my hungry herd of two and explain. We are all confused and we enter, yet again to gain more information. We realize, no, we are not in NYC but in San Francisco. People wear Birkenstocks here, and walk slow, and have nice weather. They are not concerned with the ridged, militarized, world-clock-synchornized wait list system we have in the city. So we head to Blowfish. We are offered a bar seat and immediately take it. The restaurant is loud but the interesting people make up for it. Here is what we shared:

Ritsu Roll - maguro, bincyo, avocado, masago fl ash fried & served with citrus ponzu. Our signature roll! tempura shrimp, cucumber topped with unagi & avocado

Dragon Roll

Crunchy California Maki (my favorite)

Greedy Girl
Avacado Roll - eel, asparagus tempura, avocado
Scallop w/truffle Oil

3 out of 5

25 Lusk

I step out of the taxi. Heaven opens up and angels emerge singing praise and glory. Peter, is there to greet me at the pearly gates that is the hostess stand. OK it was a woman, but you get the idea. We were back. Back to the location of what my co-worker likes to call "The Cauliflower Incident". We are lead to the same table we sat at last year. I order the same cocktail and sip with delight. Then the waitress arrives and I tell her with the most certainty that I have ever in my soul that yes, I would like the Cauliflower Creme Brulee. 

Emotions flood my mind and heart. Will it be the same as last year? Will the truffle oil seep into my nostrils and set off an alarm of utter joy? Will the chef torch the top enough for that sweet/savory crunch leaving a layer of creaming cauliflower underneath? I begin sweating and shaking. I ignore all conversations swirling around me. What did I just say in response to my table mates? It matters not.Only that after I eat my gnocchi the pork belly and creme brulee will arrive simultaneously to take me on a culinary journey I have thought about every week, NAY every day since last year. What's that coming toward me? Could it be? It is! Both plates are placed in front of me. I take my spoon hesitantly, then with more courage and break the shell that so lovingly protects the delicious inside. 

Yes. It is the same. And yet...so...much...better.

SF Yacht Club vodka, grapefruit, cucumber, lemon, lime, mint
Malbec cedrus 2008 cahors france 

Yukon Gold Potato Gnocchi - grilled artichoke, parmesan, sunchoke, olive, lemon butter

Pork Belly Confit - kuri squash puree, thai basil, key lime, bitter chocolate reduction

Cauliflower Creme Brulee - sunchoke escabeche, white truffle oil

5 out of 5


Wayfare Tavern
Our group met a past co-worker here. It was nice to add a different dynamic to our very stale group. We sat in the booths across from the kitchen and I, as a 5'7" person felt very low to the table having to prop myself up with my foot under me to feel like I could reach my wine glass. Our goofy, San Francisco waiter was genuine and helpful. This doesn't happen often but I experience "Food Envy" or "Orderers Remorse" when I got my burger. I hate saying this but, I should have ordered the ravioli which if I can remember correctly had either butternut squash or pumpkin in it. My burger was good, but I felt uncomfortably full especially after I had to send it back because it was not medium rare but more medium done. I like it juicy! My favorite part was the deviled eggs, light and delicious.

Deviled Petaluma Eggs -  mustard yolks, capers, celery, crisp shallots

Baked Macaroni & Cheese - Vella dry jack, smoked olive oil

Wayfare Burger "Le Grand"- grass-fed proprietary grind, Marin brie, roasted onion, smoked bacon, brioche with sunny side up Petaluma egg 

2 out of 5

Commonwealth
This was everyone's favorite restaurant. Except mine. I think from reading an earlier restaurant review you can see where I wanted to be (see 25Lusk, if you needed the help). It was a hip restaurant with a very open kitchen. Literally. I drank a lot of water that evening attempting to rehydrate and balance myself so let's just say I had to visit the loo a few times. But I didn't mind because you literally walk right through the kitchen to get there. And as you sit on the pot you are faced with the most interesting art and narration accompanying it. Please do use the loo and check it out.

For a drink I elected to not have alcohol and have a house made soda of lemon and tarragon. Very, very interesting. Refreshing.
 Arancini - truffle cheese, lettuce cream
Pumpkin salad - asian pear, chicory, idiazabal cheese, almond tuile, cocoa nib
Petrale sole - wrapped in feuille de brik, nicoise olive, celery root, grape, spinach, verjus
Peanut butter semifreddo - chocolate ganache, frozen popcorn (my favorite)


3 out of 5

Flour & Water 
Our last evening we went to a no-frills, comfy place in the Mission district. 

Pasta
Radiatore with roasted hen, speck & parsnip --> literally tasted like chicken soup. But REALLY good chicken soup.
Rosemary pappardelle with wood over braised veal
Cirtrus & ricotta triangoli with olive & blood orange
Whole wheat paccheri with whey braised pork, meyer lemon & sage

Pizza
Prosciutto - garlic sausage, tomato, caper, olives, chili & smoked caciocavallo
Funghi - yellow foot & hedgehog mushroom, sunchokes, fior di latte & sage cream

Side
Root vegetable gratin with Parmesan & thyme


4 out of 5


Every meal was amazing regardless of the location. Good conversation and new experiences were had. I am so thankful to be able to try all of these amazing things. If you think you don't like something please, try everything at least once. You could be missing out on the next cauliflower creme brulee. Go outside your comfort zone and experiment with a mysterious combination as I did with the homemade soda at Commonwealth or the Ritsu Roll at Blowfish. San Francisco, thank you for having amazing food.

Pret Butternut Squash and Apple Soup

I just have to do a quick shout out to Pret A Manger for their Butternut Squash and Apple Soup. It is delicious and perfect with the little bun they give to you. At my location they only serve it on Tuesdays so call ahead and find out what day it's served. Enjoy!