Tag Archives: chicken

“COVID-19” Game Plan Week 4

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It’s been almost a month since the lockdown due to this ongoing pandemic spread. The previous game plan was posted over two weeks ago. Good news was that most of the stuff listed in the ingredients section of the game plan lasted over two weeks which was why there was no game plan for Week 3.

I am slowly eating out again to fulfill my food cravings but most of time I am behind the kitchen experimenting with the food I have.

Below are the images I posted on Instagram: tablespoonsandteaspoons.

Moving forward to the present and the rest of the week here’s my game plan for the upcoming week(s). This week is going to be different because I decided to venture into the meal prep kit from Sunbasket and even support local businesses in the area.

Stay turned for posts on Instagram at tablespoonsandteaspoons.

If you are interested in trying a meal kit from Sunbasket you will get $35-$40 of your first order by clicking on the link below: https://sunbasket.com/invite/Christina3035165

Thank you Yoga Club for the connection. If you’re interested in getting an amazing wardrobe for workouts delivered to your front door, click on the link below: https://refer.yogaclub.com/ChristinaP17

Throwback Thursday – Thai Villa – NYC

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I finally made it to this amazing restaurant.  This amazing Thai restaurant gets really crowded and they do not take reservations on Fridays and Saturdays.  Plus, reservation are taken only for more than 6 people.  Therefore, I highly recommend that if there is a group make sure that everyone shows up on time or else you will have to wait a long time.  Wait time can go over two hours.  It’s a great place to have dinner with a group of friends. 

Food was amazing and service was on point for a very busy restaurant.  While I waiting for my friends, I had the mango sunrise mocktail, which was very refreshing and held me over until everyone showed up.  Once all my friends showed up, we were finally seated. 

Mango Sunrise

Once we were seated, we decided to go family style after observing other diners’ main order entrees.  To start we ordered the:

Pak Mor Puk ($9): Vegetable crepe dumplings made up of chives, cabbage, jicama, black mushrooms and bamboo shoots and served with roasted bell pepper-peanut vinaigrette dipping sauce. These dumplings are served in few Thai restaurants and is dish that is served to Thai royal families.  The dumplings are to die for.  I wish there would be more than four dumplings per order, but watching how these dumplings are assembled and made, it’s no easy task, hence the price of the appetizer. 

Pak Mor Puk ($9)

Por Pia Tod ($9): Crispy vegetable spring rolls made up of glass noodles, taro root, shiitake mushrooms and served with plum sauce. These spring rolls were standard and solid.  They come 6 rolls per order. 

Por Pia Tod ($9)

Sa Koo Sai Moo ($11): Tapioca dumplings stuffed with minced pork, peanuts and sweet turnips and served with green leaf lettuce.  Another dish that takes a lot of time to make let alone master.  There are five dumplings per order.  These dumplings are the best finger food/bite I have had and there are only a few restaurants that do it correctly, this is one of them.  Definitely worth the $11. 

Sa Koo Sai Moo ($11)

Spicy Chicken Wings ($14): Deep fried marinated tom yum flavor wings with Thai herbs garnished. These wings are a bit messy but tasty. Unsure if it’s worth $14 for 5 wings. 

Spicy Chicken Wings ($14)

Chicken Satay ($11): Grilled marinated chicken on skewers, served with peanut sauce, cucumber relish, and grilled brioche. The dish was standard, glad that the dish included the grilled brioche to make is more complete.  The peanut sauce is really good made the overall dish well balanced. 

Chicken Satay ($11)

For the entrees we shared the following:

Chicken with Cashew Nut ($17): Spicy chicken with pineapple, jicama, cashew nut, roasted bell pepper, scallions and chili jam. Served with jasmine rice.  The dish was very good and authentically spicy enough for the Thai American crowd that could handle spice. 

Chicken with Cashew Nut ($17)

Kaeng Neur Lamyai Bai Chapoo ($27): Braised jarret beef, betel leaves, curry paste, coconut milk and longan meat, served with Jasmine rice.  This dish is not served in many Thai restaurants, but it was definitely worth the price.  The dish had well balanced flavors and the right amount of spice kick which complemented well with the rice. 

Kaeng Neur Lamyai Bai Chapoo ($27)

We also ordered a side of Steamed Assorted Vegetables ($5), which was a good amount for the price and it complemented the spicy entrees. 

Steamed Assorted Vegetables ($5)

Finally, the dish I have been wanting to try and waited over 10 years is Royal Pad Thai ($24) which is pad thai encapsulated in a crepe.  In this case, this dish is made of prawns, shallots, bean sprouts, chive leaves, peanut bean curd and dried shrimp wrapped in net. The dish is beautifully presented and definitely worth the price because it could feed more than one person.  A one of a kind.

Royal Pad Thai $24

Throwback Thursday – Filipino, Italian and Eat Thai Visit Thai Restaurant Week

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Happy 4th of July! As we celebrate freedom and the birth of America, we believe that over the span of 200 years, our country has become a melting pot with a diverse group of immigrants, first/second generation children building their legacy. What better way to honor and pass on traditions through food. So let’s begin with:

Filipino Restaurant Week, which took place from May 13th thru May 26th. They have a three course lunch and three course dinner special. We chose a place called Grill 21 in the Gramercy section of NYC. They had a three course deal for $35 for two people. So below was the following:

Shanghai Lumpia

Combo set of BBQ Chicken meal

Buko pandan (young coconut and pandan leave mixture)

Combo set: Kare kare (beef oxtail in peanut and vegetable sauce)

The food was good, service was very quick and reservations were strict. It was definitely great deal plus I had leftovers for the next day.

The next place(s) we went to was for Italian Restaurant Week took place from June 1-8 of this year. It was a eight-day celebration of authentic Italian cuisine. Three course lunch was $29.99 and three course dinner was $49.99. We were privileged to have dinner at two restaurants that were participating: Felidia and Barbalu.

Let’s start with a solo dinner at Felidia which was a pretty nice restaurant. It has 3 floors, the first floor is the bar and section for regular and high end clientale. The second floor is where all the new people/tourists sat. The third floor we believe was where private events would take place. When I entered the restaurant the hostess and staff were polite but I sensed there’s a type of prejudice. The hostess sat me in the corner with my back turned to the crowd. After a few minutes, the server saw me and repositioned me to let me enjoy the ambiance of the place. The server was really nice and accommodating. So below is what I ate from the restaurant:

Complementary bread with beans and hummus

Capasante – scallops with vegetables

Vitello

Tiramisu

Complementary cookies

Service and staff needs work but the food is one of the best Italian foods ever. Everything I ate was cooked to perfection. If I had to choose, the vitello was the dish I have ever had and the tiramisu was my second favorite. I would definitely return to this restaurant for the upcoming NYC restaurant week starting July 22 through August 16.

The second restaurant we went to was Barbalu located in the South Street Seaport. This husband and wife restaurant was rebuilt after Superstorm Sandy after their original restaurant was completely destroyed. We went for dinner and their three course dinner was only $42. The food was overall good especially for a local small business spot. Service was definitely better than Felidia. So below is what we ordered:

Appetizer special: Bresaola with arugula

Pear and Ricotta Fagottini with Cream and Truffle Oil

Tartufo Gelato

My favorite out of the three was the pasta entree because all the flavors balanced out and the fagottini was freshly made. This restaurant is perfect for freshly made pasta plus they also have gluten free pasta. Personally I would come back for a group dinner.

Finally OpenTable provided a promo from Thailand Insider called #Eatthaivisitthai restaurant week which is occurring now until July 15. Thailand Insider is holding a contest where you take a picture(s) of the food eaten at the participating restaurant(s) and hashtag #Eatthaivisitthai, tag “Thailand Insider” and a foodie friend to join in. The prize is a 10 day culinary trip to Thailand. So, I went on a solo dinner to Somtum Der in the East Village to take advantage of their happy hour. For happy hour it was 1/2 price drinks and $6 fried chicken thigh. In addition I ordered the thai tea panna cotta and larb moo spring roll.

Mangosteen martini

Fried Chicken Thighs

Thai Ice Tea Panna Cotta

Po Pia Larb Moo

The restaurant is closed from 4-6pm and it opens at 6pm sharp. Since I was dining alone I had the option to sit on the stool or on a table so I chose the table. Once I sat on the table I felt that service was rushed. Other than the rushed service the food was on point. I was impressed by the mangosteen martini especially with the price the quality of the drink (balance of juice with alcohol). I would definitely return to this place with friends to try their som tum and suggested combination sets.

Social Saturday – 2019 Queens International Night Market

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Almost two months ago we were privileged to attend the preview of this year’s Queens International Night Market behind the New York Hall of Science inside Flushing Corona Park in Queens. With a small fee $5 which went to charity, we get the opportunity to taste dishes from returning and new food vendors. Founder John Wang, started the International Night Market back in 2015 in the effort to create a cultural event to celebrate the diversity of immigrants and small businesses. The Night Market was designed to sell dishes at a cap of $6 and in the beginning of this project, I’ve learned that half of the proceeds were going to be donated.

On April 27, there were 54 food vendors that participated in the event. The vendors came from various countries such as China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Japan, Philippines, Colombia, Korea, Vietnam, Burma, Mexico, Moldova, Malaysia, Ukraine and Indonesia. In addition, to the diverse food options, there were unique food creations such as the Moffle Bar and Twister Cake.

This was my fourth time I visited the Night Market and this time my goal was to taste the food at Burmese Bites. This vendor always had a long line because you get your money’s worth. Portion sizes were shareable. So finally we were able to order a dish from Burmese Bites. Burmese Bites were selling three dishes and we ordered the Keema Palata for $6. The dish tasted authentic and really good plus it fed two people, the portion size appeared deceivingly small but it was extremely filling.

During our visit to the Night Market, we sampled food from 7 out of the 54 food vendors. We just want to disclose that healthy food choices during this visit did not cross our minds as we were embracing the diversity that was celebrated through cultural and even fusion dishes. Below are the dishes that we tried that stood out from the event. The total cost of the dishes below we spent was: $40 for two people, which was not bad for 7 different dishes.

There were five other dishes we tried including the Pho Ga (chicken pho soup) from Em Vietnamese for only $5. The soup was really good especially that it was cold that night. The soup was also hot, fresh and filling.

We were already full at this point so we walked to various vendors and we spotted another vendor that we wanted to try: Jibarito Shack which is a Latin food vendor that served sandwiches using fried plaintains instead of bread. As a result we decided to split a low carb sandwich. We ordered the El Dominicano made with roast pork, pickled onions, queso frito and Dominican salami for only $5. The sandwich was definitely low carb but the first two dishes we had previously were better.

We also checked another new vendor called KINI – Korean Dakgangjeong & Ganjang Chicken. We ordered the Ganjang (not spicy) fried chicken $5. The chicken was messy but tasty however it wasn’t as crispy as Bon Chon.

The next place we tried again was Joon a Persian rice cup spot that can be filled up with various flavors. We got the Pomegranate Walnut Chicken and Tumeric Beef and Eggplant at $6 each. Personally I like overcooked rice which is a little dried but other people didn’t like it. In addition, the proportion or balance of meat with sauce to rice was uneven meaning that there was more rice leftover after eating the meat(s). The leftover rice had no flavor and once it got cold, the taste was not the same once served hot.

For dessert we went to Wembie for some awesome Farmer cheese donuts ($4). The donuts definitely hit the spot.

We ended the night with Ecuadorean dark chocolate from Element Truffles. These chocolates were raw, organic and dairy free. We ordered a small dark chocolate bar with sea salt and tumeric for $3.

The Queens International Night Market runs every Saturday night starting at 5pm until midnight starting now until August 17 and September 28 thru October 26. It’s free and prices for each food item is capped at $6.

Flashback Friday – Sweet Chick – LIC

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Five months ago my friends from college wanted to do a girls night with dinner at the new and popular chicken and waffle spot in Long Island City called Sweet Chick.  Personally I have heard how popular this place was in Brooklyn, but the one in Long Island City was said to be bigger and more accommodating than its original location.  They are also two additional locations, one in Brooklyn and the other in the Lower East Side in Manhattan.

When my friend contacted me on Saturday afternoon, she informed me that this restaurant did not accept reservations and it was walk in only.  Given my knowledge of this franchise’s popularity, I decided to take a cab to the restaurant.   I was glad I did because the nearest train station was closed for routine weekend repairs.  When I approached the restaurant, there was a line going out the door of people putting their names down on the wait list.  As I got closer to the host inside the restaurant, the host was telling each person on line that the wait was two hours.  When I heard that the wait time was two hours, most people walked out, but I stayed so I can talk to the host and even the manager about wait time, when the restaurant did not appear crowded.  Anyways, I put my name down and the host stated that they would try to reduce my wait time and as more and more people decided to leave, my wait time was reduced to 30 minutes.  Thirty minutes was definitely better than two hours.  By the time, my friends arrived and we were finally seated.  To start, I ordered the Pink Noise cocktail ($12).  The cocktail tasted really good (flavors were well balanced), but strong (there were two maybe three different liquors in this cocktail) and I was buzzed throughout the night despite consumption of the fried chicken and waffles.

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Pink Noise – White Rum, Brut, Luxardo, Rhubarb-Ginger Shrub, Lime and Grapefruit Bitters

Now to the food:

 

For the table we ordered the Crawfish Hush Puppies ($11).  The hush puppies were greasy.  The hush puppies also contained corn, which enhanced the texture.  I loved the jalapeno jam because it complemented the saltiness of the hush puppy.  If you don’t want to feel that you’re eating greasy fried fish fritters, the remoulade sauce was a great addition if you want to mask the oily exterior while embracing the crawfish flavor inside.20180428_1959136262720583375910645.jpg

Crawfish Hush Puppies – Remoulade Sauce, Jalapeno Jam

For those who can’t eat seafood, there are the pork belly nuggets ($10), but personally it was too small of a portion for the price.  It was also forgettable.  Personally it was a failed attempt to create a balanced dish of a sweet marinated pork belly with a pickled fruit and the acidic kimchi.

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Pork Belly Nuggets: Kimchi, Blueberry Balsamic Glaze, Pickled Watermelon

On to the entrees…

We ordered three different chicken and waffles dishes ($19 each); all look really good and interesting.  In addition, you can even design your own chicken and waffles meals. 

  1. Nashville Fried Chicken Waffle – my friend ordered this meal because it was one if not the spiciest meal in the menu.  My friends like their meal, I took a bite of the chicken and it was packed with Southern flavors and spice.  If you like hot and spicy, this is a choice you won’t regret.
  2. Buffalo Fried Chicken Waffle – my friend ordered this meal and tasting a piece of that buffalo fried chicken,  it definitely lived up to its name.  What I mean is that this was definitely a chicken and waffles version of Buffalo Fried Chicken. It is a twist from a classic that will leave you satisfied.
  3. Fried Chicken Parmesan – I am a sucker for cheese so when I saw fresh mozzarella on top of a fried chicken served on a little cast iron plate with tomato sauce, it was over. The mozzarella, basil and parmesan waffle complemented the tomato sauce.

Overall the fried chicken was properly battered and the texture of each bite from three different dishes was very consistent.  Plus, the dish helped alleviate the alcohol buzz from the Pink Noise.

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Nashville Fried Chicken Waffle with Milk Jam Waffle

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Buffalo Fried Chicken Waffle – Celery and Carrot Waffle, Blue Cheese

 

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Fried Chicken Parmesan – Tomato Sauce, Mozzarella, Basil and Parmesan Waffle

To end our evening of awesome comfort food, we ordered the entire desserts menu.  All the desserts were to die for.  If you want to go towards the healthy route, stick with the blueberry cobbler.  Personally I would choose the Daily Special Donut Ice Cream Sandwich, which was amazing.

I realized why service was slow throughout the evening because the chef was ensuring that every dish that came out of that kitchen was up to par and all of our orders did not disappoint.

After sharing this information here on my blog, I am craving chicken and waffles.  I definitely want to check out the other locations especially the one in the Lower East Side.

Cheers!!!

Flashback Friday – 2018 NYC Summer Restaurant Week

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TGIF — It’s Flashback Friday and it’s been over six weeks since I’ve last posted here.  Well, it’s restaurant week again and we are entering the last seven days of this high end eating on a budget event.  This year’s restaurant week started on July 23 and ends next Friday, August 17.

Did you know that NYC restaurant week started 26 years ago to welcome the Democratic National Convention (DNC)? We all know who won the election.  Anyways, back to food, NYC restaurant week started with 95 participating restaurants in 1992 to approximately quadrupling to 380 in 2018.  This season, few restaurants in Brooklyn, Queens and even Staten Island are jumping on the bandwagon for this budget friendly opportunity.  This season was disappointing because lunch/brunch meals are only two courses (appetizer with entree or dessert) for $26 and a three course dinner remains at $42.

After 3 weeks of thorough review of 317 menus out of the 380 restaurants, here are the logistics that are broken down into: best lunch, dinner and brunch for 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5+ people.  Our criteria is comparing what the restaurant is offering for restaurant week to their daily lunch/dinner/brunch menu; for example, if crudo is part of the regular lunch appetizer menu, we want to see if the restaurant is serving the same item on their restaurant week menu.  Some restaurants are even offering parts of their regular as part of restaurant week, which is a great way to go.

We will begin with the total number of restaurants that are offering the best value meals for lunch, dinner and brunch based on our criteria.

Slide1Personally one of the reasons why I have yet to participate in this year’s restaurant week is because I am on a diet, which I will disclose at some point this weekend. Therefore, we created another table that breaks down the overall number of best value meals to accommodate the vegetarians, pescatarians, people in low carb diets (that’s me) and comfort (those who want to YOLO)!

Slide2

Even though I am on a diet, I do plan to take advantage of restaurant week, which is easier said than done because there is no control of how the food is made.  However, with the comfort meal types, the appetizers are either on the vegetarian, pescatarian and low carb side.  The hard part is dessert, which in case, lunch is ideal, but due to my full time job, I can’t take advantage of the lunch offerings this season.

In the past, I have shared my experiences of eating at restaurants for restaurant week and if you need any ideas or suggestions,  below is the list of places I have eaten at for past restaurant weeks:

Capital Grille at all three New York City locations (Grand Central, West 50s and wall Street) their 14 ounce bone-in dry aged sirloin steak is still being offered for this restaurant week.  In addition from now until September 2, Capital Grille is also offering what they call a “Generous Pour”, which costs only $28 for a tasting of seven wines with the purchase of dinner.   The suggestion for this restaurant week:

– Lunch for 1: Caesar Salad & Signature Cheeseburger with Truffle Fries

– Dinner for 2: Wedge of Bleu Cheese or Clam Chowder

Bone-In Dry Aged Sirloin Steak  (14oz) w/ Mashed Potatoes & Green Beans

Seared Citrus Glazed Salmon w/ Mashed Potatoes & Green Beans

Flourless Chocolate Espresso Cake and Creme Brulee

Fonda (Comfort Food) in the East Village has awesome happy hour specials, but for restaurant week it’s a good way to get four friends to get together for drinks and happy times.  Check out my post on what the guacamole, enchilada suizas and dessert (morenitas).

Blenheim (Comfort Food) a Michelin rated restaurant offers a stipulation from my experience eating here two years ago.  The menu changes frequently for the season, which makes it exciting.  This season, a solo dinner is the way to go with the following: Fried Chicken, Pork two ways and Chocolate cremeux.

Tavern 62 by David Burke (Comfort Food) located at the beginning of the Upper East Side is one of the few restaurants that are utilizing their regular menu have new customers try their food and feel that they belong. They have great happy hour specials, where there are $10 burgers and $8 fries.   Check out the pictures and previous write up about the transition from Fishtail to Tavern62 by clicking on the “Tavern 62 by David Burke” link.  I do plan on returning to this restaurant because I feel welcomed but more importantly it’s a great deal for restaurant week and the customer will get their money’s worth.

Other restaurants I definitely want to try are the following:

Smith & Wollensky – Dinner for 4 – Comfort Food

Appetizer: Mixed Green Salad, Caesar Salad, Calamari, and Pea Soup

Entree: Filet Mignon, Lemon Pepper Chicken,  Salmon Waldorf, and Pan Roasted Branzino

Dessert: Cheesecake, Bourbon Pecan Pie, Chocolate Mousse Cake and Coconut Layer Cake with Vanilla Ice Cream

Barraca – Dinner for 2 – Pescatarian/Vegetarian

Appetizer: Ensalada de Mercado and Pulpo a Feira

Entree: Paella de Verdura (minimum 2 people) and Paella de Calamares

Desserts: Churros de Rellanos and Corte de Helado

In addition, offering a great $18 wine pairing deal for restaurant.  They are also one of the few restaurants that are offering a three course lunch meal for restaurant week for $26.  Plus, they have a great $6 happy hour menu from 4pm to 7pm.

Nickel and Diner – Dinner for 1 – Pescatarian/Low Carb

Appetizer: Smoked Salmon Chowder

Entree: Ginger Crusted Halibut

Desserts: Honey Semifreddo

In addition, they have a great happy hour menu from 3pm to 7pm.

Lugo Cucina Italiana – Lunch for 2 – Low Carb/Pescatarian/Vegetarian

Appetizer: Kale Mango Salad, Mussels Fra Diavolo

Entree: Salmone Al Forno, Eggplant Parmagiana

Although I may have disappeared here on my own site, but I am posting on my Instragram page: tablespoonsandteaspoons.  Please follow me.

I will continue to strive to post more often here.  Stay tuned….

 

 

 

Flashback Friday – ATL Wings – Franklin Square

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Over the past few weeks I’ve been craving chicken wings. According to the National Chicken Council, fried chicken wings originated in the South a long time ago. However, chicken wings became part of the food menu in 1964 at the Anchor Bar in Buffalo, N.Y. The popularity of chicken wings grew in the 80s and 90s to the point where it is now considered a staple for get togethers and game day gatherings, but more importantly it’s cost effective.

We recently heard of a chicken wings spot in the Franklin Square neighborhood in Long Island called ATL Wings. ATL stands for “All The Luv” wings. According to their website the wings chain started in 2012. The menu had a variety of sauces and rubs for the wings. I spoke and met with the manager Kisha who was so kind to provide us with her recommendations. We had a variety of flavors to try ranging from not spicy to spicy with fries and honey biscuits on the side.

Here’s our food journey at ATL Wings:

We began our wings consumption journey with the mild garlic parmesan chicken wings. These wings had a lot of garlic and parmesan flavor and the taste was well balanced. I’d ordered them again.

Garlic Parmesan Dry Rub Wings

Next, we proceeded to the lemon pepper wings, which were considered popular among customers. I can see why! It’s the balance of the crispy wings with tartness of the lemon with a pinch of pepper that pop when I bite into it.

Lemon Pepper Dry Rub Wings

Then we moved on to the BBQ Wings starting with the sweet teriyaki wings. The wings were good and sweet, but it was not as exciting as the previous dry rub wings consumed.

Teriyaki BBQ Wings

Next we moved on to the spicy BBQ wings, which were the Honey Habenero wings. These wings were really good. The sauce was well balanced between the sweetness of the honey and the spiciness of the habenero pepper.

Honey Habenero BBQ Wings

Finally, we hit a crescendo with the Extreme Honey Habenero wings. These wings were good but spicy. The initial bite had the same well balanced taste and texture between the sweetness of the honey and the spiciness of the habenero pepper. After consuming three wings the spiciness dominated over taste, which was a turn off.

Extreme Honey Habenero BBQ Wings

To counterbalance the overpowering heat consumed from the extreme habenero wings, we ate the french fries. Although the fries could have been crisper, it helped a lot as the well balanced taste of oil and potato helped with reducing the heat from the wings.

Side of French Fries

Finally we hit dessert with the honey biscuit that hit the spot and almost eliminated the heat from the extreme honey habenero wings. This biscuit was definitely made with love – cinnamon, powdered sugar and honey.

Honey Biscuits

The food experience at ATL Wings was overall awesome and the staff was very accommodating. Their food was definitely made with love.

Our favorites were the garlic parmesan, honey habenero and the honey biscuit.

I would definitely return and take advantage of their Tuesday special – 75 cents wings.

Thank you ATL Wings for great food and service.

Throwback Thursday – Eat Up Drink Up Japan

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Last weekend we have had the privilege to be invited by Japion to attend ChopsticksNY “Eat Up Drink Up Japan”.  

We attended the Dinner Session. Upon arrival, we were given a card containing circles each representing each of the six regions.  What I loved about this setup is that every attendee would have the opportunity to taste every dish as long as they present the card to the server at each station to be stamped. Once the card is stamped, a sample of each of the three dishes are served with a sake pairing of your choice or even try more sake. 

The event setup was well thought out where the attendee could feel that they are going on a food and drink journey through Japan.  

Our food journey began with dishes from Northeastern Japan – Hokkaido & Tohoku. This region is known for their seafood. Food samples paired with Gasaryu Kisaragi sake included: 

Salmon Teman-zushi – Favorite

Dashi Dofu (tofu) – vegetarian

Beef Tongue Roast

The second region we visited is the populated multicultural region of Kanto.  Food samples paired with Tsukinoi Taiyori Ginjo sake included: 

Peanut Miso atop Cucumber – vegetarian and favorite

Utsumomiya Gyoza (pan fried dumpling)

Deep fried monkfish 

We then traveled to Central Japan to experience the food and sake from the Chubu/Tokai region.  We decided to pair our food samples with Kubota Junmai Daiginjo sake. 

Sasa-Zushi (Favorite) – Rice is amazing

Nagoya Tebasaki (fried chicken wings)


Simmered Daikon with Yuzu Miso Sauce (vegetarian)

Finishing halfway through the food and sake journey, we moved on to the region called Kinki is considered the ancient capital of Japan. This region’s food also caters to the noble class. We paired our food samples with our favorite sake of the night: Umeoyado Yuzo Shu. 

Okonomiyaki (savory pancake) – favorite

Tekone – zushi (love the rice)

Nasu Dengaki – eggplant (vegetarian)

Next we head towards the warmer region of Chugoku and Shikoku. We paired our food samples with Suigei Junmai Ginjo Koiko No. 54 sake. 

Katsuo Tataki – favorite

Tai-meshi (love the rice once again)

Shoyu Mame (vegetarian)

Finally the sixth and final region is Kyushu located in southern Japan. The food presented is more common in most Japanese restaurants here.  We paired our food with the sake Yatsushika Tokubetsu Junmai. 

Roasted Wagyu Beef (favorite)

Pork Kaku-ni

Gane – vegetarian

After our six region meal, we visited the VIP section and tasted the “higher end” sake, which is unfiltered sake from the Daiginjo Counter.  The sake was served by sake sommelier Toshiyuki Koizumi of Wasan Brooklyn.  

The sake was definitely more refined and strong so the night end with consumption of three different degrees of matcha from Ippodo Tea Company and mochi ice cream. 

Throwback Thursday – Da Nico Ristorante – Little Italy 

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One of the popular festivities celebrated in New York is the San Gennaro Festival in Little Italy.  This festival last 10 days, this year the festival started from 9/14 thru 9/24.  The festival is held along Mulberry Street.  The street is so packed to the point of claustrophobia and it can be worse than rush hour.

There were a variety of food items such as sausage and peppers, pastries, pina coladas, seafood, fried oreos etc. to purchase but they are overpriced. Personally I’ve avoided eating food from the vendors.  Therefore I prefer eating at one of my favorite spots:

Da Nico Ristorante (164 Mulberry Street) is a local favorite in Little Italy and it has a garden. But with the humidity and hot weather we decided to stay indoors.

We went on a Friday night and we walked in and were seated immediately.  I’ve eaten here several times for lunch and was never disappointed.  The place as I recalled was known for their meat dishes.  Portions of each dish were perfect where there were no leftovers. Service was overall great and very accommodating given the busy atmosphere. I definitely want to return here for lunch and eat at the garden.

Here are the dishes that were ordered:

Appetizer: Mozzarella In Carrozza $13. This dish is coated in different kinds of flour and breading. The texture was light not greasy. The sauce was so good. Unfortunately, was hoping for more slices. 

Entrees: Both entrees came with sides of vegetables and a rice ball.  Vegetables were good, the rice ball, not so much.  A side of penne alla vodka was also ordered, however, there were better versions.

The star main entrees overall were amazing, the taste and texture remained the same after 13 years. 

Pollo Cardinale – chicken breast, prosciutto, roasted red peppers and mozzarella $24

Veal Marsala – veal scallopine with sauteed mushrooms in Marsala wine $25

Dessert: Zeppoles – COMPLEMENTARY

Da Nico provided complementary zeppoles. I was so full from my entree, nonetheless, they were well made not too greasy and love the dusting balance. 


Stay tuned tomorrow for another food adventure in Little Italy.

Throwback Thursday – Blenheim

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Happy Thursday so as promised and better late than never I will be posting my dining experience from NYC restaurant week.  Although it was painful to see the $4 price hike on a prix fixe meal, I want to get my money’s worth eating a restaurant with a reputation e.g. Zagat rated, Michelin starred.  In my previous post categorizing where I would eat while getting my money’s worth plus collecting bonus OpenTable points.

Well guess what, I did not include a farm to table Michelin rated restaurant called Blenheim.  The reason why this restaurant was not on my list of restaurants to eat during restaurant week was that their menu was not yet posted on their website or NYC.go’s site.  Anyways, the ambiance and West Village location, the restaurant was cozy, local and low key.

Unfortunately I missed the happy hour special, which ends at 6pm but very excited to indulge in their summer cocktail that contains a hashtag called “#WildWestVillage.  This cocktail consists of watermelon, tequila, honey and berry.  At at splurge of this $16 cocktail, one drink was definitely enough but more importantly it was very refreshing.

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Two of my girlfriends joined me in this restaurant week experience.  The restaurant week menu and the regular menu were given with instructions.  If we wanted to order from the restaurant week menu, the whole table had to participate, which we all did.  Now in hindsight, service treatment was biased because we felt that we were not treated as regular customers.  For example, bread was served to us but in a smaller plate compared with the rest of the customers.  My friend actually called it out where our server heard it and the host had to “clean up the mess”.  Anyways, back to the food, the food served during restaurant week was in small portions compared to their a la carte menu.  However the quality of food did not disappoint.  For appetizers, I ordered the poached egg served with beans and asparagus.  My friend ordered the chilled soup and my order friend got the salad.  I had a tasting of all three dishes and they were all good, but my favorite of the three was the poached egg with asparagus and bean.  The presentation was natural and pretty, but more importantly the flavors were perfectly balanced.

Salad
Poached egg with asparagus
Chilled soup

One of the major reasons why I wanted to eat here was their english pea agnolotti and was so glad it was part of their restaurant week menu.  In addition to the agnolotti my two other friends ordered the roast chicken and fish dishes.  Portion wise, the agnolotti and chicken entrees had one of the smallest, the best entree buy was the fish.  I loved the agnolotti entree and enjoyed tasting the freshness of the roast chicken and fish entrees.

English Pea Agnolotti
Fish and couscous
Roast chicken

Blenheim’s restaurant week menu dessert did not have many options so we went with the waitress’s suggestion of the honey semifreddo and the suggestion was spot on.   The portion size of this dish was also good.  The semifreddo and the fresh wholeness of the berries with honey was a great end to the meal. 20160728_202921

I would actually return to the restaurant just to have another order of the agnolotti regardless of the mediocre service.  But it would be interesting to actually see whether I would be served differently if I ordered from the regular menu than from the restaurant week menu.  Time will only tell…