Category Archives: Instagram

Il Pesce

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Instagram Post 3/3/2018

Feasting on fantastic fish with fabulous friends at Eataly’s Il Pesce, 200 Fifth Ave, Manhattan. Sometimes you go out to enjoy the cuisine, sometimes it’s to enjoy the company; this was one of those times when both were delightful.
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I could have made a meal of the just-baked bread and imported olive oil (and wine, of course) but somehow I managed to exercise restraint as each dish came to the table prepared to perfection. Here’s what we devoured: (Click on any image to view it in high resolution.)

• Ostriche al Forno – broiled oysters with artichokes, basil, parsley, bone marrow breadcrumbs, and black winter truffle butter
• Razor Clams with lemon, parsley, and chili
• Fritto Misto alla Ligure – assorted fried seafood Ligurian style

• Cavoletti di Bruxelles – pan seared Brussels sprouts with capers, anchovies, and oregano
• Zuppa di Pesce – Amalfi style fish soup with gulf shrimp, Atlantic cod, and spicy tomato crostino
• Grilled Wild Tiger Prawns with Polenta and Salsa Verde

• Cavolfiore al Forno – roasted cauliflower tossed in anchovy butter and lemon juice
• Seared Gold Trout with potatoes, leeks, and parsley
 
 

Vintage Curry

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Instagram Post 2/25/2018

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It was our second lunch of the day (these things happen) and I wasn’t particularly hungry (that never happens), but my dining buddy had been eager to try Vintage Curry “British Style Halal Indian and Chinese Restaurant” at 87-77 168th Place in Jamaica, Queens. Now, I’ve consumed more curries in my time than I can remember and most have been just fine if unremarkable, but a menu boasting 48 varieties gave me pause. Ultimately, we landed on Balti Bhuna with Shrimp (luxuriating in a thick curry sauce of balti paste and fenugreek leaves) and Dumpakth Curry with Lamb (featuring red pepper and curry leaves in a heavy cream sauce).

The bucket in the photo is a balti, basmati rice on the side; dumpakth refers to a cooking technique in which meat slowly braises in its own juices in a handi (a shallow cooking vessel) that has been sealed with a crust that translates to incredibly tender meat.

The presentations were my first clue that we weren’t in Little India anymore. I tasted both dishes. Stunned, I found them to be a flavorful cut above what I was accustomed to and absolutely delicious – and that was a judgment rendered on a full stomach! Regrettably, I didn’t get a photo of the Peshwari Naan; suffice it to say it was the best I’ve ever had. It’s a trek, but I think I need to go back for a follow up. And next time, I’m bringing my appetite!

h/t Dave Cook, Eating in Translation
 
 

Chef Guo

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Instagram Post 2/22/2018

Now firmly ensconced in the former digs of Henan cuisine champion Uncle Zhou, Chef Guo at 83-29 Broadway in Elmhurst, Queens, is the new kid on the block. Featuring some items that were similar, at least in name, to those of the avuncular hero plus many new ones, they’re boldly striking out with a menu of less familiar offerings and that always makes me happy. Chef Guo hails from Liaoning province in China and I suspect some of the new dishes may represent that cuisine.

(Click on any image to view it in high resolution.)
Dial Oil Hand Drawn Wide Noodle (if the quirky name sounds familiar, it was on Uncle Zhou’s menu as well). Thick noodles with a properly sassy chew, the sauce was the kind of soy-vinegar-chili oil mixture that often accompanies dumplings.


Stewed Pork Noodles with Pork (“pork broth” is my interpretation). Cellophane noodles in a tasty broth with an abundance of extremely tender and flavorful chunks of pork belly. Probably our favorite dish at that lunch, but the menu is extensive and deserves further exploration.


Sautéed Pig Kidney, again very tender (the kitchen has this trick down). I’m a fan of organ meats, so no complaints from me on this one. Very mild flavor without the oft present overtones that are off-putting to offal skeptics.


Crispy Lamb with Chili Pepper. Dare I say tender again? Because it was lusciously so. Not overly spicy – it could have used a bit more punch – but they may have been playing it safe with us. New kitchen, new patrons, you get the idea. But the dish was quite good nonetheless.


Okay, this was one of the “less familiar offerings” I referred to earlier. The menu calls it Minced Meat Mashed Potatoes, the photo captions it Meat Foam Mashed Potatoes, but either name would have been sufficient cause for me to order it with a wink and without hesitation. It was pretty good and certainly filling – mashed potatoes drowning under a savory, meaty sauce. I didn’t ask what kind of potato they were using but my guess is that it wasn’t the standard issue American spud since it had a slightly sweet flavor that elevated the dish.
 
 

Ba Bao Cai

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Instagram Post 2/21/2018

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More of my home cooking, this time from China 🇨🇳 by way of Brooklyn 🇺🇸!

One of the dishes I like to make for Chinese New Year is Bā Bao Cài (Eight Treasure Vegetables) 八宝菜. By way of identification, the object that looks a slice of potato in this photo is arrowhead (sometimes called Chinese arrowroot), easy to find in Chinatown this time of year; behind it is a chunk of gluten (seitan) – it soaks up sauce like a sponge; a bean curd knot – you can buy these fresh, frozen, or dried and they’re adorable; up near the chopsticks is a piece of sweet & spicy prepared bean curd; peanuts; and less obvious in this photo are dried lily buds, an indispensable ingredient in Moo Shu Pork; dried bean curd skin; smoked tofu; dried shiitake mushrooms; and wood ear (black fungus). Trust me, they’re in there; dig for buried treasures if you like. You could almost play Where’s Waldo with it! Lots of seasonings went into the savory sauce, too many to list here. (You think I’m gonna give away my recipe?! 😉)

So there’s my spin on Eight Treasure Vegetables. Oh wait. That’s ten treasures, not eight. So I guess I made Shí Bao Cài!

恭喜發財!
 
 

South of the Clouds

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Instagram Post 2/13/2018

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Cuisine hailing from southwest China’s 🇨🇳 Yunnan province is underrepresented in New York City, but South of the Clouds at 16 West 8th St in Manhattan recently stepped up to the plate (or bowl, more accurately) to help rectify the situation. Not long ago we sampled most of the menu, and the rice noodle soups turned out to be a perfect foil for that evening’s cold snap.
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Broth that has been simmered for four hours is the base for their signature soup, Yunnan Crossing Bridge Noodle, which comes with its own charming fable recounted on the menu. Shown here is the palette of ingredients that would be added tableside. Cilantro, scallions, bean sprouts, silkie chicken, egg, tofu skin, pork, and chicken would customarily be sufficient to run the gamut of components, but the spotlight here was on the noodles.

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Pigs on a Stick, Cucumber Salad, and Yunnan Ghost Chicken (nothing to do with ghost peppers BTW) kept us busy until our Tofu Pudding Rice Noodle arrived. Minced pork in fermented bean paste along with pillowy tofu and a selection of vegetables cloaked the rice noodles, all of which, when stirred together, complemented each other perfectly. Cold Stir Rice Noodle was a less elaborate (i.e., no tofu), and slightly spicier, rendition.
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We finished with Tomato Soup Rice Noodle, probably the spiciest dish we ordered but far from incendiary. As you’d expect, this dish is half a world away from Mom’s lunchtime bowl of Campbell’s, but given the bitter cold awaiting us outside, it was assuredly mm-mm-good! 😋 😋
 
 

Speedy Romeo

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Instagram Post 2/11/2018

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Occupying a space that was once a former auto parts shop that was once a liquor store that was once a bar, and named for the co-owner’s champion race horse 🐎, Speedy Romeo has become a dining fixture at 376 Classon Ave in Brooklyn’s Clinton Hill neighborhood (“neigh”-borhood?). Their wood fired oven turns out tasty Neapolitan style pizzas from the traditional to the imaginative like the three winners shown here. (All equally good so there was no win, place, or show this time around the track.)
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The Dangerfield with béchamel, pork-veal meatballs, ricotta, basil, and garlic chips
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The White Album with béchamel, roasted garlic, mozzarella, ricotta, provel, pecorino, and parm, with additional pork sausage
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The Anton Ego with smoked eggplant, summer squash, tomato concentrate, onion, basil, and mint
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Riding their galloping Clinton Hill success (Michelin Guide’s Bib Gourmand list) they opened an outpost on Clinton Street (of course, of course) on Manhattan’s Lower East Side. Speedy Romeo trots out other offerings too, and one of these days I’ll kick my unbridled appetite for pizza and harness the willpower to sample them!

(Um, about all the puns…just horsing around. 🙃 )

 
 

Tashkent Supermarket

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Instagram Post 12/20/2017

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There are numerous markets that feature prepared “Russian” food along Brooklyn’s Brighton Beach Avenue, otherwise known as Little Odessa, and I admit to having more than a few favorites. Each features a wealth of dishes hailing from the Baltic States, Eastern Europe, the Southern Caucasus, Central Asia, and mother Russia herself and each boasts its own renditions of this first-rate fare.
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Named for the capital city of Uzbekistan, Tashkent Supermarket at 713 Brighton Beach Ave, Brooklyn, NY, a relative newcomer to the strip, has a focus on Central Asian cuisine, but not exclusively. Shown here are three of my favorites from their salad bar. At the top there’s Lagman, a savory noodle dish (also found as a noodle soup) of the Uyghur people, an ethnic group living in East and Central Asia. Linguistically, the Chinese influence is easy to identify: lo mein → lagman. Moving clockwise there’s Khe, raw fish marinated in onion, spicy red pepper and vinegar. Russia and North Korea share an 11 mile border; the Korean culinary character of Khe is obvious. Finally, there’s Norin (aka Naryn), a dish I have yet to find at any of the other markets. Very fine noodles and a generous measure of cumin accompany thinly sliced beef, although in Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan it’s made with horsemeat!
 
 

Indonesian Tempe Day

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Instagram Post 12/17/2017

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I recently attended Indonesian Tempe Day sponsored by the Consulate General of Indonesia at New York. 🇮🇩 The founder of the Indonesian Tempe Movement, Amadeus Driando Ahnan, created and presented an impressive slide show and video session highlighting the nutritional and worldwide economic advantages of this remarkable superfood. Made from fermented soybeans, the versatile Indonesian staple was featured in about a dozen dishes for us to sample, each one different from the next, and all delicious.

Shown here are a few of my favorites including a Tempe Salad, Sambal Goreng Tempe Cabe Hijau, Taoge Goreng Bogor, served over beansprouts and noodles, and Oseng-oseng Tauco Tempe.
 
 

Linzer Cookies

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Instagram Post 12/15/2017

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Homemade Christmas Cookies – Day 5
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Linzer Stars. Finely ground almonds figure into in the sweet, tender dough; the filling is made from red currants that I bought when they were in season and preserved in anticipation of this maniacal operation. Why maniacal? Look closely and you’ll see that the powdered sugar blankets only the outer section of the star, yet the inner red star shines snow-free. Follow along to see how I do it:
(1) Start with solid backs.
(2) Add preserves around the perimeter but not in the center. (Neatness doesn’t count.)
(3) Match tops to bottoms.
(4) Let it snow, let it snow, etc.
(5) Squirt a blob of preserves into the cutout.
(6) Now here comes the maniacal part: For each cookie, use a toothpick to draw out the five points of the star.
(7) Et voilà!
(8) The cookies are complete and packed up. Here’s the negative space that was left behind!
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
HAPPY HOLIDAYS!!!
🎅🎄☃️❄️