Jane

The Ladies Who Brunch are looking into matching, monogrammed cardigans for their brunching. Let's hope this happens, we would be the most stylish brunch attendees. Ever.

This week, without matching cardigans, we convened at Jane on West Houston for brunch with friends. Thankfully I made reservations a week ago for our 12:30 brunch. I say this because people were spilling out onto the street and crammed around the hostess' stand. Eventually we were beckoned in to wait there a few moments. As we all stood there a plate of donuts was on it's way past us. We all eyed it and someone leaned over to someone else and said 'how do I get one?'. I dare not name who made this inquiry. Then like magic, the kind man stopped in front of us and offered us a donut. We all stared at him in disbelief. Armed with napkins, the waiter made his way outside with this plate trying to tide waiting guests over till they sat down, tempting them with what may lay within and praying they did not decide to leave for another brunch location.

Fortunately, we were not seated by the entrance but in the back corner in a booth away from everyone waiting. As one who enjoys brunch, this one is constantly plagued with the decision to go with a sweet or a savory meal. I have spoken with others about this and they too, suffer. I decided that at my last meal at Queen's Comfort I got french toast (AND their hot chocolate, yes I wanted to throw up too) so this time I went with Eggs Florentine with hash browns and my complementary mimosa. Everyone enjoyed their meal and had a good time. I have no breaking news or insane stories, just that gathering with friends for a meal continues to be my favorite pastime and will continue to be so in this new year.

3 

Aamanns Copenhagen

Wikipedia defines a Smorrebrod as: Smørrebrød (originally smør og brød; Danish for "butter and bread") usually consists of a piece of buttered rye bread (rugbrød), a dense, darkbrown bread. Pålæg (literally "on-lay"), the topping, then among others can refer to commercial or homemade cold cuts, pieces of meat or fish,cheese or spreads. This daily practice is the base on which the art of the famous Danish open sandwich, smørrebrød is created: A slice or two ofpålæg is placed on the buttered bread, and then pyntet (decorated) with the right accompaniments, to create a tasty and visually appealing food item.

Before this past Sunday I had never head of this open face sandwich until I stepped foot in the bright, open space of Aamanns Copenhagen. The quick steps from the street level lead to an open floor plan of light woods, white walls and very expensive light fixtures (as appraised by my designer roommates). Seated in the back of the space under a huge piece of art I was able to assess the airieness of the room and the calmness that it induced upon seating.

After all five of us sat down we determined the size of these pieces of bread and how many we should order from our super, oh-so-unhelpful waiter. After being ignored for a good ten minutes he finally arrived to take our WHOLE order. Eventually we all received our coffees, teas and freshly squeezed orange juice. The tea was served in a conical mug with a cute lid with an opening on the top allowing the tea bag string to peak through. As if a cuddly baby had been placed on the table we all wanted to play with it and awed when it moved.

Our glass boards arrived with what looked like mini pieces of art, almost too beautiful to eat. I ordered:
- “Gravad laks”: cured salmon with dill, foxy sauce, pickled onions, endive and rye breadcrumbs
- Danish roasted pork belly with crispy greaves, fried apples, and red cabbage glazed in orange and warm spices

Please don't ask me what foxy sauce is. Up until this point I thought it was an egg that was on my salmon and only realizing now, it was, in fact...foxy sauce. Sigh. I eat a lot, everyone knows that. And these two pieces of rye bread filled me up. The bread was dense and piled high was food. I saw some people pick their food up and attempt to eat it (fail). I elected the traditional 'fork' and 'knife' method which worked in my favor and allowed me to go back and forth between dishes.

B, as a vegetarian ordered a cheese plate. And for $17 we thought this would be an impressive display of the cheeses of Denmark. Not so, Obi Wan. All of us received our glass boards and sat, waiting for her dish to arrive. Some people dug in but I stand firm on waiting for other's dishes to arrive so we can all start our meal together. Enough time passed that I had to sneak a bite in out of pure hangover hunger. Eventually I made 'eyes' at our waiter and that set a light bulb off that, yes, someone was still waiting for their $17 dish. And as you might expect, this plate, in my humble opinion was worth $9. I'll just leave it at that. 

In a space that emptied as we finished, and really was not that big, one would expect their waiters to, I don't know, check in on them or perhaps clear their plates when the whole party is sitting their staring off into space. At first we considered the idea of dessert but after the interminable wait we decided that it was for the best that we did not or else WE WOULD NEVER LEAVE.

Eventually I made 'eyes' again and got the guy over to our table. I think we were putting our coats on before he brought the checks back to the table. When I started this meal I thought to myself, golly, this would be a cool place to bring a visiting friend or my parents, but alas at the conclusion, even though the food was tasty and filling, I would not want to put my guests through the pain of staring into one of those beautiful light fixtures just wondering if their waiter would ever return. 

2

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! 

Some places to go

This post is from a sticky note that I have with three restaurants written on it. I asked my co-workers one day where I could go for dinner with some friends and they suggested the following:

Calle Ocho
Cafetasia
Laut

Turns out my friends and I weren't able to get together so I have yet to go to any of these places, but now they are here and ready to be visited.

Digesting the Return

Why do we keep returning to restaurants and bars? When there are so many establishments out there to try, why do we yearn for the familiarity of that same booth in the corner or the same pasta dish that fills our bellies to the perfect level?

Many shows set in NYC know about this. The cast of Friends had The Central Perk, Jerry, George, Elaine and Kramer had Tom's Restaurant, and the cast of HIMYM (if you have to look it up, I pity you) have their bar, MacLaren's. Perhaps it was too expensive for the set designer to create a new restaurant, bar or coffee shop for each episode. But oh, how I envy them! To slide easily into your seat that always happens to be free and a friend of yours happens to be sitting there waiting for you with a beer. Because all of your friends happen to live in the same part of town and have the same schedule as you.

I have found this happening to me recently. No, my dear friends are not sitting at Five Leaves or Bareburger waiting for me to arrive and no, I don't know the servers by name and they don't know my name, but I keep going back. Every trip to Five Leaves is the same trip on repeat. First I get my cocktail. Then I get my fig, ricotta & honey appetizer. Then I get my Five Leaves burger. Then I leave and roll around McCarren Park in the hopes that I digest my burger one day. My only exploration of other menu items are from my dining partners, don't worry I practice safe dining. Then at Bareburger I get my beer. Then I get the fries and onion rings with extra chipotle mayo sauce. Then I get 1 of two burgers, the California or the Roasted Red Pepper burger, bison meat, medium-rare. Then perhaps there is a milkshake to share in my future.

Wait. I see a trend. BURGERS.

Don't worry. Like the characters of Sex and the City I do go to other restaurants and check out openings. Okay, maybe not trendy, Carrie-like openings where I wear some sheer shirt and long flowy skirt with my Manolo Blahniks and wink in a flirty fashion at the cute guy standing across the room. No, I'm the frumpster that shows up 6 months later trying the things that food critics told me to try while I wipe some fancy ketchup off my pants.

So in conclusion I'm on a mission to become regular. I mean a regular. Meh. B & A suggested that a bar would be the easiest the most advantageous place to become a regular. I will select my location. Pick my seat at the bar (not the corner, because that's just creepy). And start drinking.

They better have burgers.

Elsa

I went to this bar.
Elsa
They have a drink I love.

Invitation to a Beheading: Gin, Jasmine Green-Tea Syrup, Lemon, Orange Flower Water and Bitters.

ORANGE FLOWER WATER!!
It reminds me of my non-alcoholic drink at Gramercy Tavern

Sigh.

I'll be returning for more beheadings.