Pasta & Chocolate

Oy vey, I'm full.

Now, I know you love your family. They are the bees knees and there when you need a shoulder to cry on. But do you, like me, have...a second family? Shhh don't tell my family. This second family of mine includes not one, but two best friends and their awesome parents. This past weekend they came to city to visit so of course we all needed to go out to dinner. K suggested, wait no, she didn't suggest, she demanded we go to Bianca on Bleeker St. (Please look at their website, it's super cute and easy to navigate)

With a party of five we expected to wait at least an hour on a busy Sunday night for a table in this cozy restaurant. Luck was on our side as the group before us did not have their full party there yet. Squeezing past romantic couples and laughing friends we tucked in the back corner of the restaurant next to the kitchen pick-up window. The room a little loud and our waitress a little accent-y, we had no idea what the specials were after they were told to us.

A bottle of red and a glass of white were summoned to our table top and received with joy followed by a selection of salads to start.
Spinaci - Spinach with walnuts, apples and pecorino cheese
Carciofini - Artichoke slices with Parmigiano and lemon dressing
Pomodori - Tomatoes with red onions and anchovies

At this point in my life I can't say I have ever had anchovies, but today was the day! I grabbed one of those slimy little buggers and threw it in my mouth. Salty and chewy, it was not something I would eat on it's own ever again, but with some lettuce and a tomato it made for an interesting bite of food.

Next came mains:
Me & K: Tagliatelle alla Bolognese - with meat sauce enriched with tomato and mushrooms
J - Gramigna con Salciccia e Peperoni - with crumbled sausage and red bell pepper
Mrs. H - Lasagna - the traditional one from Emilia-Romagna with Bechemel and meat sauce
Mrs. H - Tagliolini ai Frutti di Mare - with clams, mussels, calamari and shrimps sauteeed in garlic, EVOO and lite tomato sauce

Bon Appetit!

Oh, I'm sorry did you think I had room for dessert? HA.

4

Yesterday I needed to run a work errand with my co-worker and we found ourselves right by City Bakery. Hungry because...well I'm always hungry AND it was lunch time, we stopped in to grab some grub. B informed me that this place is famous for it's hot chocolate. Armed with that information I approached the counter and asked the woman, what is the hot chocolate situation here? She said they had their classes dark chocolate hot chocolate that day with homemade marshmallows. I said, get it now!

Outside I tried to walk and drink. B acknowledged the importance of this moment, had us stop and made me take a sip of my hot chocolate. I...didn't...know....what...to....say. This liquid chocolate swirled around my mouth all thick and creamy and filled my belly with happiness. Rich. So rich. I have been on the hunt for great hot chocolate for years now having tried Starbucks, Dunkin Donuts, Pret a Manger, Jacques Torres, Swiss Miss etc. but this stuff is amazing. I cannot wait for their Hot Chocolate festival where through the month of February they feature a different flavor of hot chocolate EVERY DAY.

(Later that day B came to my office and found me slumped over my desk whining that I felt nauseous. Too much sugar she asked? Yesssss, I moaned. But SO worth it.)

Astoria Trifecta

Oh glorious Astoria! How you always surprise me with wonderful treats and meals. Let's begin this culinary journey with Friday evening when I met L at Basil Brick Oven Pizza. Conveniently located off of the Astoria Blvd. stop this restaurant was easy to find. My roommate visited this location and returned home raving about it so I was eager to try every pizza on the menu. Unfortunately my wallet and intestinal track would not allow for that so I was forced to pick just one. Attempting to be a bit unconventional I went for:

Pizzucca: Herbed Pumpkin Walnut Sauce, Homemade Fresh Mozzarella, Pancetta, Parmigiano Reggiano, Extra Virgin Olive Oil & Basil

And I cannot remember exactly what L had (I was really distracted by my pizza and inability to speak Italian) but I think it was:

Porchetta: Tomato Sauce, Homemade Fresh Mozzarella, Porchetta, Arugula, Parmigiano Reggiano & Extra Virgin Olive Oil. Regardless it came with what L appropriately described as a piece of meat shaped like a rose in the center of her pizza.

We quickly ate the first two of four slices of our individual pizzas and decided that we were really stinkin' hungry so we went ahead and finished the whole thing. Amen.

Then we ended up at Sweet Afton. Dur.

 Then Sunday arrived with beautiful weather and a slight headache. Almost about to leave and go seek some Brooklyn Bagels and Starbucks, A emerged from her slumber and asked if I wanted to go to Queens Comfort. I laughed in her face because she already knew the answer. NEVERRRRR. 

After giving my name and getting the obvious musical joke from the host, A and I hurried down to the liquor store to fetch us some bubbly. Seeing that it was byob we deemed it necessary to make mimosas. Practically every table had at least one bottle of champagne sitting on it. Excited to try the French Toast Bread Pudding I scanned the menu for it practically salivating on the piece of paper. In anger and ire I screamed out that I could not find it on the list. A looked too and confirmed that yes, this dish that she had told me so much about, WAS GONE. BUAAT. 

Instead I opted for Thick Cut Brioche Custard French Toast – Cinnamon Sugar Butter, Maple  while A got Buttermilk Biscuits & Maple Cheddar Sausage Gravy – Thyme, Rosemary, Sage, Cayenne. Half-way through my meal I realized I wanted scrambled eggs so those were ordered as well. I ask you, why, for the life of me, can I not prepare scrambled eggs like those are prepared in restaurants. 

Tipsy and full we made our way back home and passed Astoria Bier & Cheese Shop . We did stop by on our way to Queens Comfort and now on our way back the restaurant/store had filled up with people eating off of Brooklyn Slate boards and drinking beer flights. This place has everything you would need: beer, cheese, bread and plenty of great foods to accompany your cheese like olives, fig spread, crackers and peppadew. Yummers. A and I selected two types of cheese and a baguette and happily made our way home. 

Now it's time to make dinner!