STIR THE POTS

10 Downing street

No, I haven't been to London in years. But I was asked to make a reservation for a young  friend of ours to celebrate his eighth year on our planet. And so relying on my inner food guide, I thought of my food blogging friend Shuna Fish Lydon, who is also the pastry chef at 10 Downing street in NYC.

Shuna and I met up online, both mutual fans of each other's blog. And when she returned home to the United States (her native home) from London where she had been baking professionally, we moved from the virtual to the real world, specifically New York City! While we're planning to do an interview here for Stir the Pots, for now we're waiting for the time in between both of our work schedules.

Anyway, for the birthday party, Shuna told me to get in early. "The place gets loud," she said. With people or piped in soundtracks, I wondered. Personally, I still don't know why music is needed in restaurants these days. The sound of forks knives and conversation should be the choral background to eating. But... I digress. It's the food we are talking about, and what wonderful tasting food it was... Starting with Shuna's basket of seeded and plain soda breads,and a light,crisp  foccacia. Not the wild yeast formula that I gave her, mind you, but excellent. 

Chef Jonnatan Leiva, who hails from the Bay Area, serves up a farm friendly market oriented menu. He kindly sent us some delicious tasting samplers; a demi-tasse of potato leek soup, and my favorite a simple but flavor filled beet salad with Castelvetrano olives, and burrata. Honestly, I almost ate the whole thing myself!

I could of had the foie gras or some other meat, but I wanted fish. So I ordered a delectable scallop ceviche and some local albacore tuna with sepia in a light ginger broth, it was light and lovely and allowed for some desserts later...

With two eight year old kids, you wonder if they can or will eat what they've ordered. But our young friends had good ideas on food, going for the roasted Bobo chicken and the Painted Hill Farms beef burger with truffled fries.The tuber on tuber frites were such a hit, the uneaten portion went home with our guest who was adamant when instructing the waitstaff to package them. "Truffles are expensive you know", she said!

Our server, sporting a a pierced tongue and a commanding knowledge of the food and wine selection, had me a bit hypnotized. Whether it was her striking looks or the wonderful wine, I found it hard to remember what I had ordered when Shuna came out to say hello and started quizzing me on the menu.

Shuna then let me sneak back into the kitchen to squeeze off a few candid photographs... including her and the restaurant's Sous chef Matthew Wilbur making gnocchi for a wonderful Striped Bass my wife had for dinner.

I would be remiss also if I didn't mention her wonderful desserts that our table literally devoured, leaving us all with a dessert high, I couldn't remember a thing and I didn't get a focused photo, just too busy enjoying it all!

Thanks Shuna!

Public...a slight return

Yesterday we decided to go out on the spur of the moment, and ended up at Elizabeth Street, between Prince and Spring, and home to Public, one of my favorite spots in the city. No calls ahead to the chef, we managed to get a table just as they opened at six.

Chef Brad Farmerie was doing a photo shoot in the main dining room, so we started in Public's wine tasting annex called "The Monday Room", popping a bottle of Malbec and some treats of popped corn flavored with a dusting  of porcini, parmesan and truffle oil. Then brought to a table, our waiter asked if we wanted to order off the menu or would we like to try the Chef's special tasting menu. Apparently, Brad recognized me. Thanks, Chef.  Who wouldn't go for the chef's special treatment?  With so many good offerings on the menu, it's so hard to pick from this chock full of goodies, why not just indulge?

Here is just some of the food we sampled.

Grilled scallops with sweet chili sauce, crème fraiche and green plantain crisps

Marinated white anchovies on quinoa croquettes with spicy saffron aioli

Fried Barron Point oysters with shiso, sansho pepper, and wasabi-yuzu dipping sauce

Our main course was a venison, though I was hoping for the pork belly, but I was just as happy with the perfectly cooked meat with a salsa verde and goat cheese polenta disk, it's more then likely that I will be back for that pork belly dish!(mark my words!)

Desserts were  just as good, an all time favorite  sticky toffee pudding and a really interesting play on "old school" flavors with new, apple crumble with cheddar soy ice cream, spot on!

I didn't take one picture of my meal. I was too busy eating!

WD-50, what I can't say...

While just off the operating table a few weeks ago, I invited Susan of wild yeast out to dinner at WD-50. I have been curious  about all the fuss made about these new "nouvelle" style restaurants. Failing to get a table for my first choice at Le Bernardin, I opted to try a cuisine that's less known and, perhaps even controversial in some cooking circles.

Keeping my mind open to something new sounded like a good idea, albeit with one of the leading senses not working, namely my nose due to recent surgery. As I chewed and tried to decipher flavor, it proved virtually impossible. Regardless, I had the genuine pleasure of watching Chef Wylie Dusfrene and his staff go about doing what they do, specifically their reputation for alchemy around molecular gastronomy. Most of my fellow chefs and foodies (from mainstream critics to online bloggers to just passionate eaters) are just curious about what they are conjuring from mysterious and odd sounding ingredients.

Combining new  methods and techniques that sound more like something out of a science class, these folks are not "old school" cooks and chefs  in the Fernand Point traditions of food preparations, the latter focused more on traditional flash in-the-pan rather then crayovac packets and meat glue. Trying my best to cast reasonable and grounded judgment  on this new school of cooking, I have decided to come back in the future and smell and taste - as well as see - what it's all about. Meanwhile here are some pictures to let you in on what we had that evening.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It's the nose that knows, Bar Boulud revisted!

Yes I know, my nose is back in action, so I had to get it into some more pâté, terrines, and the like.  Today when my wife suggested we celebrate out 22nd wedding anniversary at an impromptu lunch, I couldn't say no!

First she wanted to go to Aquavit, claiming it was the food but I secretly knew it was to see that handsome chef, Marcus Samuelsson. But lunch there was finished at 2:30 in the afternoon. At two o'clock, we were still in Queens, so initially we settled for a less interesting location. But wanting to give my beautiful wife something special, I Googled a few more places on on my i-Phone. Thank you technology! It turned out we could still make Bar Boulud since they served lunch till 4 o'clock!

Pop, off we went into the taxi across Central Park. There in front of  Lincoln Center was the red canopy of the outdoor tables of the restaurant. I felt like I already knew everything about the place. Boy was I in for a surprise!

The wine list, a short one or a leather bound book of paper filled pages  was offered. We opted to do things by the glass rather then the bottle. God knows I could knock one bottle back myself if it were my choice!

 

For every bottle or glass of Summer Rose, Daniel gives a portion of proceeds to Breast Cancer Research Foundation. So my wife aptly picked a floral scented gem of a wine, Thierry Puzelat, "VDT" Touraine, FR 2008. I am gonna get that for my mom as she will love it. So will you!

I didn't snap a shot of my own wine, too busy sniffing it, a Clos Du Mont Olivet, Cotes Du Rhone 2007. The first sip was a nectar, pure cassis and fruit explosion.

The service was attentive, the staff really knowledgeable, and they were happy to hear I was blogging about my second visit as the promised to make sure I would enjoy this visit. They kept their word. First things first; nice sliced wheat bread served with butter with a flurry of salt crystals. Terrific! And to think, it's just bread and butter.

Then the choices. It's a small menu, and that makes it even more difficult to choose.The last last visit, my heart ached as I couldn't make out a morsel from the platter of charcuterie we had ordered. At the time, I was just through nose surgery. All I could sense were textures. And then I couldn't recognize any of the nuances and perfect feel to the mouth. This time was different.  I went with the braised beef cheeks. Wonderful. It  reminded me of the picnic me and my wife had on the Seine a few years ago with a bottle of wine. Just closing my eye's I could almost be back in France.

My wife had gazpacho drizzled with both  basil oil, cucumber dice and olive oil.

My entree could kill a cat, croque Monsieur, a lactic overdose of enrobed ham, bread , melted golden brown crusted cheese with an obscene bechamel oozing from the inside out!

All the while I envied my wife's choice of Boudin blanc, an airy saucisse that lay over truffled pomme puree encircled by a meat jus. Next time!

I knocked off my first glass of wine. My wife and the server suggested another to burn off the artery clogging dish I just devoured. No problemo!

A change of terroir. I chose,Terre Nere, Etna Rosso, Sicily 2008, a spicy and cherry and vanilla scented bouquet. Nice!

Then onwards to dessert. The waiters suggested the gateau Basque. Okay!

 

The missus ordered some multilayered coupe de something with cardamom mousse, brioche and chocolat.  I helped her knock it off as she nibbled the remains of my brandied cherry and anglaised gateaux Basque...whew!

Between appetizers and entrees, I quickly snapped some pictures of the bar area where the pâté, sausages and terrines are well displayed behind a glass case.  In the front of the case a large shiny slicer, conspicuously clean and well preserved. Perhaps an antique.

 

 

 

 

The visit was worth the return. This time I could taste everything. Delicious. Spot on. Before leaving I noticed the staff gathered, perhaps having a wine tasting. It made me wonder if perhaps I should moonlight and work here on the weekends. We'll see.

Savoy

Savoy

Instead of just going to my local joints or picking up my own pots to cook, my wife and I have made an effort to visit certain restaurants we've been gathering on a list in recent months. Prior to my operation, we stopped in and had lunch at Savoy.

Having passed it a million times while stomping around Manhattan's downtown section of Broadway, and seeing a story about this particular restaurant on the Colameco show, I just had to try it.

From the tiny dining room filled with sunlight from the windows open to the street, this quaint and unpretentious restaurant is by far the most relaxing environment I have eaten in New York. My wife ventured upstairs to the second story of the restaurant, where they have another dining area used in the evening. 

The menu though light for lunch, was just that - a lunch menu, market driven with surprising flavors and textures. The small plate appetizers can be ordered as a single order or as a mixed choice of three.  They're simple dishes, rooted in just two or three ingredients that lean to vegetables, with the exception to my favorite fried duck livers! These nuggets had a perfect texture and served with a deliciously spiked chive buttermilk sauce.

 

Even with a small menu of just six main courses, the various dishes all caught my eye, making it difficult to decide. Finally, I gave in to the Corned duck leg sandwich. Served with purple mustard on rye with home made potato chips flavored with black pepper and coriander, it was delicious.

Following that lovely sandwich, we shared dessert, an upside-down rhubarb cake with beet sorbet flavored with hyssop. 

The butter rich cake studded with rhubarb was a perfect foil to the earthy and yet not overwhelming sorbet that soaked up the buttermilk cream and poached rhubarb pieces.  I scarfed this baby down, no problemo!

Venture to say I am going back to this great spot with wonderful food and wonderful service. Next time for dinner.

Academia di Vino

After working a full week of Christmas parties, last Saturday my wife decided I needed a break, along with some lunch. Meaning, she thought we should go out! The weather was dismally cold and I wasn't quite in the mood for the schlep, but...when we reached an almost empty Academia DI Vino that late afternoon, it offered me a delightful surprise. Not to jump the gun, but believe me, that long walk had been worth braving winter in the city.

The restaurant's wine cellar, robust with over 500 bottles, surrounds their  subterranean dining room. It's a great space. Alan Garcia the chef is an alumn of Del Posto, Prime Steak House and Al Forno. The menu is filled with all sorts of delicious offering, from crudo's to thin crisp pizza's and of course pasta. My starter was a carpaccio of Manzo (beef) perfumed with truffle vinaigrette,fennel, mint and shaved parmigiano, delicious. Not deterred by the fact that the pizza I ordered was just taken off the menu due to seasonal issues (pumpkin, pancetta and caramelized onions - only apparently, pumpkins were out of season), I succumbed to the Spaghetti Carbonara. Studded with  guanciale, it cried out to me, wooing with its comfort-food ingredients.

My wife had a salad of escarole and toasted hazelnuts, mint and pecorino. It was wonderful. She followed the salad with a linguine Pescatore with a shellfish ragu, also good. I actually was forced into finishing it off for her, it was too much after all the bread from Sullivan Street Bakery  slathered with virgin olive oil.. We polished off the pasta and ordered a ricotta cheesecake as the coup de grace, covered with concord grapes. Not too difficult too finish especially with café macciato.

Garcia's restaurant was the site of many previously failed business's. All to say, we're rooting for you, Alan. Hopefully if they keep making the food friendly and wine list full, this restaurant will be around serving delicious food for a long time to come.Service is particularly friendly and also professional.

Dee Thai Restaurant

DEE Thai Restaurant

46-17 Queens Blvd
Sunnyside, NY 11104  (718) 786-3137

DEE Thai Restaurant is the new kid on the block, in this case the blocks of my Queens neighborhood of Sunnyside. Hungry for lunch and not inclined to cook, I suggested to my wife that we go out for a meal in the neighborhood. Sunnyside is not what I would call gourmet central, though there are a few bright stars such Quaint restaurant. I hope there will be more opening soon. Safe to say the economy is not exactly promising, but hell the President has a check in the mail for you, so go out and shop or eat. No? Anyway, Sripraphai Thai Restaurant is the restaurant I visit in neighboring Woodside. It's a good place. And getting there isn't hard, but my wife suggested trying Dee Thai because it is local and Sunnyside seems to have limited choices, save perhaps El Rey Del Taco Deli.

So off we went. Upon entering, I was impressed with the interior. It's airy and reminds me of a Buddhist Temple. Or what I imagine a Buddhist Temple looks like in Thailand. Only with an aura that doesn't inspire prayer, but did make me want to meditate over something heavenly, like what was offered on their menu. Let's just say that for me Nirvana is manna on the plate, not in the sky. Anyway, the hostess offered us a table in the sun and a menu that reminded me of a school notebook covered with metallic plates. Hmmm. Interesting, as was the giant photo-mural on the wall of a Thai dragon boat. Made me think of the movie the King and I. But before I could even peruse the lengthy menu, the hostess offered us a separate drink menu, a variety of beverages ranging from exotic fruit juices to equally exotic teas. Always craving fermented liquids, I looked at the luscious list, then ordered a beer.

To start off our meal, the hostess suggested a dish of grilled striped bass Pla Plow, Thai herbs in the fish wrapped in banana leaves with a special sauce. Intriguing but I craved a curry. Heat. Spice. Fire. Something to give me an excuse to order a couple of more beers. And boy, did they have curries, a variety with options of proteins or vegetarian,a build your own curry palace!

Anyway, my wife ordered the Pla Plow which was beautifully garnished with flowers carved of carrots and the charred banana leaves covered the steaming fish inside, and suddenly curry seemed a bit... well, commanding but undistinguished. Thankfully the mussels, I had ordered  for an appetizer definitely satisfied. Cooked in clay pot they were laden with fragrant Thai basil, lemongrass and served with a spicy lime garlic and chili sauce. We shared a fresh vegetable roll, crunchy and well seasoned with a honey tamarind dipping sauce. OH,(her name actually!); our hostess, was very pleasant and helpful, she really wanted to please and lets just say I think…. no I know I will be back for another visit, so go out and support your restaurants in Sunnyside or anywhere in NYC.On my next visit I should try the jungle curry  to see if it is as hot or hotter than at Sripraphai's!

Sripraphais Jungle curry to make a grown man cry!

Sustained@Quaint

Quaint is my neighborhood local, Chef John McGrath and the boys in the kitchen like to let there ya ya's out  occasionally. Funny part of the whole thing was a recent night out Tim; the owner of Quaint was the dreamer of good organic sustainable menu with organic wines to boot! Surprise, no just a new approach to what should be a wave in restaurants and hopefully a wave of new eateries in this beleaguered part of Queens! Brooklyn is the current hub of the food conscious and trend setting after Manhattan, but people live here too! So give a hand to the guy’s with an affordable menu and some good tunes too boot!
Seems like everyone is labeling what is already a proven, more nature less processing is safer and better for you, enjoying a meal and some wine is also a part of that balance. Good slow manual labor can make the best meals taste so good, maybe it’s the love or thought process’s that combine with the natural ingredients harvested by farmer and chef give meaning to an event like this evenings at Quaint, and hopefully more often!

My choice was the Homemade Paparedelle with Cedar River Farms Short Rib Ragu with Asiago cheese. You know I wanted more but after I finished it off with 3 glasses of wine from Vermonte Vineyard of Chile I couldn’t put my mind into a dessert, I was full and but not to the point of splitting in two!
Sure it costs more to grow and to serve organic products, but if we all pitch in it will become the norm? Support your local Chef and farmers for a good meal!

Public slight return

A while back I promised  Chef Brad Farmerie I would bake a Miche for  him, Lazy baker that I am I haven't yet, but I visited his restaurant last night with some friends and my Sous-chef.

Public is a great restaurant and Brad is a great host. He has the pulse of  world cooking, the ingredients range from chorizo, chinese broccoli, Tasmanian sea trout, boniato to name a few of the world ingredients that are sprinkled through out his menu. His wonderful wine list are now showcased in his new "The Monday Room" with tasting dishes provided from his kitchen.

My Sous-chef and I were curious to try the wasabi and boniato, since we borrowed the idea for our current menu.As a chef once told me steal with your eye's and your ears, thanks Brad! Still want to know about the quinoa croquettes and Peter Gordon already clued me in on the quinoa hash!

It's intimidating to say the least to not drool or scratch your head when looking over the menu, so many choices you could go with, but they offer an exquisite tasting menu at a good price. Everyone at the table was a bit challenged by some of the raw items,so we went for a la carte, as well because I like to have a larger choice!

Appetizers

Butternut squash soup with spiced marshmallow, crispy chick peas and pumpkin seed oil

Mushroom ceviche with miso aubergines and ginger ponzu sauce

Salad of herby lentils, green beans, avocado, toasted pecans & baby gem with pomegranate molasses and avocado oil vinaigrette

Marinated white anchovies on quinoa croquettes with spicy saffron aioli

Grilled scallops with sweet chili sauce, creme fraiche, and green plantain crisps

Fried Barron Point oysters with shiso, sansho pepper, and wasabi-yuzu dipping sauce

Cured wild boar with Garrotxa cheese, marinated olives and caper berries

Pan-seared foie gras on spiced french toast with pineapple chutney, maple glaze and crispy bacon

Grilled kangaroo on a coriander falafel with lemon-tahini sauce and green pepper relish

Main course

Truffled beet and ginger risotto with a rocket, cotija and hijiki salad

Baked cod with sepia, long beans, cipollini onions, and chorizo emulsion

Pan-seared Tasmanian sea trout with vanilla celeriac puree, Chinese broccoli and saffron quince compote

Pan-seared New Zealand snapper on wasabi-boniato mash with poached conch, pickled ginger, and yao choy

Roast duck breast, citrus-soy kimchee, daikon puree and confit duck gyoza

Roast lamb sirloin on crispy goats cheese polenta with saffron braised baby vegetables and harissa aioli

Snail and oxtail ravioli with pickled shiitake mushrooms, oven dried tomatoes, pea shoots and smoked paprika oil

Pan-seared New Zealand venison, purple potato hash, minted pea puree, Yorkshire pudding, and espresso hollandaise

Sides

Steamed edamame


Green leaf salad


Roasted brussels sprouts with maple and vegemite glaze

Sweet potato and miso mash

We ordered a great Shiraz from the Yarra valley, Greenpoint. Our waiter Chris, happened to be from that area and was really knowledgeable and helpful throughout the meal!

So I  started it out with the cured wild boar with Gaxrotta cheese wild caper berries and olives. The dish is wonderful, the wild boar sliced thinly and the caper berries marry so well with the Gaxrotta cheese, fabulous!

The photo's are from a wine tasting dinner that Brad did  at The James Beard house. Usually I like to take my own pictures but I felt a bit self conscious  taking photo's in the restaurant, so you won't see my main course which was perfectly cooked and light. The main was a duck breast with kimchee and fried gyoza which went really well with the wine and was polished off without hesitation! Though the portions looked small we were just fine and left I would say full! It's better leaving wanting a bit more, that way you want to come back again!

My Sous-chef had the Oxtail and snail ravioli, which some of the squeamish at our table  were  quite surprised after tasting how good they were, besides they are supposed to be an aphrodisiac.

My dessert was that classic English sticky toffee pudding with an Armagnac ice cream, very light and not at all sweet, I often use it for work for parties because it is so good!

I went to the kitchen to thank Mason, Brads Sous for a job well done, wonderful food nice restaurant!

Go to Public and try it!

The Modern

It's been years since I worked at the MOMA or even went to an exhibition. It's Strange how I remember that place, it was the first kitchen I cooked in New York city. The restaurant  or dining room where my brother and I worked at is no longer there,though they still have a cafe on the second floor for the masses and downstairs the sleeker and stylish restaurant, The Modern. Initially when the review for the restaurant came out in the NYT I remember noting some interesting dishes and the name of the Chef,but I never really read the  reviews as a reference,as they can take away from a personal choice or perspective.It's like when a movie is critiqued, how can someone tell you how you will feel unless you see it for yourself, just like a wine or food, it's personal. So we went yesterday after trying to make a making a reservation last weekend. This time we left our name and while we had to wait and hour to be seated we went window shopping at the museum store across the seat. Returning to the still busy dining room we were seated by the very crowded bar in the lounge area of the restaurant, the room has fine acoustics so you don't feel overwhelmed by noise level, it's rather serene actually, even with it's modern look. While perusing the wine list,(pricey but filled with some good choices.), I looked up and saw Chef David Bouley walking into the restaurant, you couldn't miss him, he seemed to be taking in all the atmosphere and later ventured into the kitchen, hmmmm...was he spying? ( I desperatley wanted to ask him for an interview, it didn't happen though!)

The service was very good, we did get the wrong wine but that was resolved, as the manager said they have over 600 hundred wines in the cellar. The dining room was closed but the lounge restaurant was full, and we looked over a menu with so many choices that it was hard to choose! The menu was filled with worldwide ingredients and had hints of Alsatian dishes which were what I wanted to try. It seems the best thing when ordering. My chef once told us to always order salad, that way you could judge a chefs skill by the vinaigrette he made. I always try something that doesn't seem to overworked or difficult, simple is better and so I went for Modern liverwurst, not that it looked modern but I think it's a homemade wurst. It came with pickled vegetables and some toasted rye bread accompanied with whole grain mustard. It was divine, how can you go wrong? My companions at the table I was with tried a salad with coach farms cheese and pumpkin seeds, and a mushroom soup that looked foamed with a side of some sort of fried chorizo ravioli,really delicious! Main course was a Gaeta olive crusted quail with a chorizo, barley, toasted almonds, and pickled ramps. Quail was pink and moist and the garnish was earthy and married well with the Syrah from Morrocco. The other mains at the table were,Loup de mer with cockles and organic vegetables in there own jus, a duck confit with pommes Lyonnaise and frisee and finally an upsidedown tuna tartare with fennel, Japanese cucumber and aioli! Whew, the portions were just the right amount as desserts we ordered finished us off were also just as good! I had an apple strudel with prune armaganac ice cream, a Modern cheesecake with almonds and passion fruit sauce. The manager graciously gave us a wonderful serving of beignets with two sauces compliments of the house, he said they were a gift from his predecessor who had once been my boss!

So now that I have enjoyed a meal where I once worked, it's nice to feel welcomed back. I am sending  chef Gabriel Kreuther a thank you and an invitation to speak with me at stirthepots, stay tuned!