Flashback Friday- NYC Restaurant Week – Bread & Tulips

Happy 2020! Can’t believe that we are halfway in the first month of the year! What’s even more exciting is next week is NYC Winter Restaurant week. One of the restaurants that will be participating during the restaurant week is Bread and Tulips.

Over the summer, my friend and I had dinner at this hot spot in Gramercy. They had happy hour until 7pm for discounted drinks. We came on a Monday evening during the summer and the place was dead. Service was on point in terms of knowledge and efficiency.

– Appetizers: To start, we took advantage of the restaurant week wine bottle special for $35. The wine was very good and the waiter re-corked the bottle to take home because we could not finish a bottle of wine. We ordered the crab cakes and Tuscan kale salad. The crab cakes were very good overall, the only comment I would say is that it was a little salty but all the components are well balanced if consumed in one bite. My friend got the Tuscan Kale Salad, which was really good, refreshing and healthy. Out of the two dishes, the kale salad was the better of the two.

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Crab Cakes
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Tuscan Kale Salad
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Restaurant Week Wine Special: $35 bottle wine – Campos de Riscas Estate Wine Organic Monasyrell – Syrah

– For the entree, we ordered the seared sea scallops and Long Island duck. The scallops was really good and the flavors were well balanced. Meanwhile my friend got the duck which was amazing and very lean. Out of the two dishes, the duck was the better of the two. That duck was to die for and personally I could see that dish become inconsistent if it was a busy night. Plus both dishes went well with the wine.

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Seared Sea Scallops with asparagus and pancetta vinaigrette
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Long Island Duck – Braised red cabbage, marcona almonds, sage and balsamic

The desserts were to awesome. The tartufo is amazing and with the lemon flavor and currents and walnut texture, the dish was a perfect end to my prix fixe. My friend got the chocolate mousse cake with hazelnut gelato, which was flawless.

Tartufo al Limoncello
Chocolate mousse and hazelnut gelato

Personal note, go on a non-busy night; given the restaurant’s reputation I can foresee regular people like us could get ignored and getting subpar service. The night we went it was dead (10 people were dining that evening).

Bread & Tulips is one of the over 300 restaurants participating in the upcoming NYC restaurant week starting from January 21 – February 7.

Stay tuned for suggested restaurants for this restaurant week….

Throwback Thursday – Taste of Hope Goes to Broadway

Early this week, I was invited by the co-chairs of the American Cancer Society Taste of Hope to attend and support the first ever Taste of Hope Goes to Broadway. It was a chill low key event filled with Broadway stars who did not recognize, but what is important is that money was raised and tickets were only $50 and it could be paid at the door. Admission included the opportunity to tour the newly renovated $6 million condo plus wines, and bites from Tolache and Delicatessen. Executive Chef Michael Ferraro led a team to present the delicious dishes that covered all types of eaters. The food presented were lean and healthy. 

Tacuba HK – Brisket Tacos

Delicatessen’s Duck dumplings and Tuna Tartare

It was great to reconnect with the management team and committee members who I’ve had the pleasure of working with during the planning of the 12th Annual Taste of Hope Committee.  

Cancer continues to be one of the leading causes of death. Funding and donations are critical to finding the cause and cure to the various cancers.  

To make a donation go to http://www.tasteofhopenyc.org. 

Throwback Thursday – Weekend Lunch for 3

Happy Thursday! Let’s travel back in time to earlier this year where I took my parents out to lunch during Valentine’s Day weekend.  We decided to return to Coco in Elmhurst, NY.  The restaurant specializes in Malaysian Cuisine.  Personally it was Malaysian fusion cuisine.  The restaurant is currently in the process of updating their menu on their website, but one of the major changes is that they deliver food now with a minimum of $10 purchase.

However, after a long cold winter day of running errands, my parents and I decided to have lunch.  Check this out, total cost for three people plus leftovers to go = $35

The Roti Canai and Singapore Rice Noodle dishes were my favorites.  The Lamb Curry was on the spicy side and the crispy duck was on the dry side.  Service could be better.  The meal was hearty, comforting and affordable especially for three people.  I would definitely return to try other dishes such as the Hainanese Chicken, Curry Laksa, Belacan Kang Kung, and Satay Chicken.