Le Verdure, Eataly, Again

Had a satisfying lunch at Le Verdure, the vegetable-centric restaurant in Eataly.  One of the daily specials was Ribolleta Soup with a Mixed Mushroom and Robiola Panino.  The soup was a simple vegetable with a tomato base, served in a small bowl.  The panino had the perfect ratio of mushroom to cheese, with neither overwhelming the other.  A glass of the Bastianich Rosato was a suitable accompaniment.

Sit at the counter or at one of the inside tables.  Sitting on the aisle at Le Verdure or at any of the eateries at Eataly is not relaxing with shoppers and browsers walking back and forth.  For lunch, or solo dining at any time of the day, I prefer the counter where you can watch what is going on in the open kitchen.  People watching is part of the fun of Eataly.

The service was excellent, attentive, but not intrusive.  Eataly must hire only people who genuinely want to work there, and who understand that a welcoming demeanor makes everyone's day better.

Malevich and the American Legacy. Gagosian Gallery

Hats off to the Gagosian Gallery.  Instead of displaying art for the sole purpose of selling it, the Gagosian has organized an exhibit of art that educates and enlightens the viewer.  Yes, the gallery does represent many of the American artist appearing in this show.  However, a real attempt, and a largely successful attempt, is made to show how Kazimir Malevich influenced, either directly or indirectly, these artists.

Not only is it a pleasure to see so many of Malevich's works in one place, but to see it in an uncrowded environment is a treat.  You can stand and look at a painting without getting in anyone's way.  I wish I could live with at least two of his works--"Suprematist Painting: Rectangle and Circle" and "Painterly Realism of a Football Player-Color Masses in the 4th Dimension."

The exhibit is mounted on three separate floors.  Be sure to pick up a copy of the exhibit plan for each floor, because the individual paintings are not labeled. The security guards will surprise you with their insights, if you take the time to chat with them.  Another advantage the Gagosian Gallery has over MOMA, the Whitney and the Met, etc.  However, the gallery staff does have just enough of that art gallery "hauteur" to remind you that you are not at a museum.

Thanks RR for joining me for this exhibit.

Musings from Ferran Adria, 92nd Street Y

Ferran Adria, Spanish chef, creative, innovative, risk taker.  Adria epitomizes the chef who welcomes you to eat what he has prepared.  No menu--do you offer a menu to people invited to dine in your home?  Chef as artist, unwilling, or perhaps unable, to repeat himself night after night.  Does a musician play the same music night after night?

If you accept raspberry sorbet as a valid way of serving a raspberry, even though it no longer has the look or texture of a fresh raspberry, why criticize Adria's olive essence which has been encapsulated?  It still tastes of olives.  (People who criticize his innovation have forgotten that innovation has been the hallmark of all the great chefs, from Careme to Escoffier to Daniel Boulud, Jean Georges Vongerichten, etc.)



ElBulli will close this summer to be replaced by the elBulli foundation, a place for ideas, creativity, innovation, and perhaps the public.


For more insights about Adria find Adam Gopnick's article in The New Yorker several months ago.

Cascabel Taqueria

The hunt for Mexican food continues.  Cascabel Taqueria,  1542 Second Avenue (80/81).  UES taqueria, not quite a restaurant, but not a joint either.  Tasty Avocado Pummelo Ensalada with grape tomatoes, fresh cilantro and plenty of red onions.  The avocado was ripe, generous, and a perfect foil for the red onions, slightly sour pummelo and sweet grape tomatoes.  Nice mix of textures.

Two tacos to an order, each served on two fresh corn tortillas.  The Tacos Pescardo consisted of a crispy fried piece of yellowfin tuna belly, topped with sliced hearts of palm, chopped olives and onions.  I am not a big fan of deep frying fish.  Perhaps a less delicately flavored fish should be used.  All ingredients tasted fresh.  Definitely want to return to try the tacos carnitas, and to sample the churros.

The staff is hospitable, from front to back.  A busy place, even early on a Thursday night. 

Ditch Plains, UWS, delivered.

After a long day at the computer, cooking was the farthest thing from my mind when I got home.  Am longing for the beach, so I ordered from the recently opened, Upper West Side branch of Ditch Plains.
(Ditch Plains is an East Coast surfing "mecca" on Long Island.)

The Lobster Roll is a generous portion of lobster salad served in a long, toasted potato roll.  While lightly spiced with an Old Bay-type seasoning, the lobster was a little salty.  The  accompanying Sweet Potato Chips were greaseless and appeared homemade.  The Beef Chili with beans was meaty, but not the least bit spicy.   The portion was a little small.  Even if you added the Cheddar Cheese that comes with your order to the chili, you would have to add a salad and a roll to make the Beef Chili into a meal.

Delivery was prompt, perhaps Tuesdays are not busy order-in days. 

"Hammer Guy" loves the fact that the menu is in rounded dollars, none of those silly $0.95 in each price. 

Bittman's "Braised and Roasted Chicken"

NYTimes Sunday Magazine, 3/13/11.  Worth the effort if you have a free afternoon and a staff of prep people.  The idea is good, but the cooking times need to be reduced to avoid mushy veggies and dried out dark meat.  Even when the veggies were cut in 3/4" dice, they became too soft.  Hate to admit that the yummiest part of the 3-part recipe (Quick Chicken Stock, Chicken-Skin Croutons, Braised Chicken w/Vegetables), was the chicken-skin croutons.  If you love the crispy, fatty skin that you find at the neck end of your Thanksgiving turkey, you will love the chicken-skin croutons.  They are in my fridge.  I would feel guilty if I just ate them as a snack.  Bittman suggest crumbling them on a salad, think bacon bits; or serving them as a snack.

This recipe is good practice for improving your knife skills.

Pear Oyster Bar

Still drawing crowds.  Eat early and avoid the mob.  Sit at the bar, if you can.  If you cannot, sit at the counter which runs along the left side of the restaurant.  If a place at the bar becomes available, before your food comes, the staff will move you without you having to ask.  Strayed away from the traditional  lobster roll served on an open-topped, New England style hot dog bun, and accompanied by shoestring fries, which were perfect last night.  The green leaf lettuce garnish, at first seemed like a frill, until I realized that it reminded me of all those lettuces you find at summer framers' markets.  Ah, summer.

The bouillabaisse was very good--a bowl of mussels, a few clams, a shrimp, a grilled sea scallop, a grilled piece of sea bass, and half a lobster tail swimming in a delicious broth.  While the broth was not the one you will find in the south of France, it was delicious.  A bit of toasted bread with a smear of aioli was a nice touch, even though I would have liked more aioli.  Fresh crsuty bread is served with a pot of butter to soak up that broth.  Too full for dessert, but the ice cream sundae looked yummy.

It was nice to see Rebecca Charles expediting the evening's meals.  Too often these days, the chef whose dream has come true is not present, and both the dream and the patrons suffer for this absence.

How to Meet Men

Wear a football (soccer) scarf.  All types of people, but mostly guys, will call out to you ("Go Hammers"), give you the thumbs up, or even strike up a conversation.  Football fans, living in or visiting the U.S. are so desperate and thankful to find a "fellow" fan, they will try and get your attention even when you are walking hand in hand with your sweetie.

Caterers in the City

If my food last night at Chelsea Piers is any indication, then Abigail Kirsch caterers has really gone down hill.  Hot Hors d'Oeuvres either ran out when the cocktail hour was only half over, or the kitchen decided in advance to limit the amount served.  The one hot Hors d'Oeuvres I tasted was a tasteless Smoked Salmon Croque Monsieur.  It was really a smear of smoked salmon on toast triangles half the size of an old fashioned book of matches.  No evidence of any traditional Croque Monsieur elements.  Cold Hors d'Oeuvres sampled include the Baja Fish Taco, the Banh Mi Slider and Waves & Foam--"roquefort foam on a wispy cracker with a port wine fig reduction."  The fish tacos were minute, the size of two thumb nails and the fish under-seasoned.  The Banh Mi Slider tasted of bread alone.  I guess that cracker was the Waves & Foam, another insipid bite.

The best thing about the Roasted Beets & Goat Cheese Brulee appetizer was the currant sunflower seed sliver of flatbread served with it.  The Peppercorn Steakhouse Beef was a round chunk of meat, not a filet mignon, cooked variously from well-down to what I heard was bloody, although I could not see a piece of rare meat at my table.  The best thing was the confit of slow roasted shallots.  This was served on about an ounce of cauliflower creamed spinach, although I could not detect any cauliflower.  The fingerling potatoes advertised as "smashed" were not.  The best part of the meal was the bread basket.  Everything tasted fresh.

For $300 a person you would think a better dessert than Bananas over Chocolate would be served.  I did not have the heart to stay for dessert.  The description was a bit over the top.

It irks me that caterers can still get away with exclusive arrangements with all the larger venues in the City.  This provides them with no incentive to keep the food good.  I am not even asking for spectacular, just good. 

Peter and the Starcatcher, Broadway bound?

Last night, I saw an entertaining new musical at the New York Theatre Workshop, "Peter and the Starcatcher, based on the Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson novel of the same name.  It was fun, clever and a delight.  It is a bit bawdy, a play for grown ups.  Should it live beyond its limited run downtown?  Most definitely, but should it make the broad jump to Broadway?  Less sure.  Aspects of the production that seemed clever, fun, and sweet might get lost on a gargantuan Broadway stage.  Perhaps an off-Broadway house would be a better venue to let this production maintain its air of intimacy and fun, while giving more theatregoers the opportunity to enjoy it.

It reminded me of "Spamalot" with its primarily no-name cast performing multiple roles; its occasional anarchy, broad acting style, and adult humor.  However, "Spamalot" came to Broadway with legions of Monte Python fans that would and did fill its Broadway house.  This production of "Peter and the Starcatchers" does not seem appropriate for the younger readers among the novel's fans.  One of this play's delights is that it is decidedly for adult fans of that iconic childhood hero, Peter Pan.

Eataly, Observed

Yes, Eataly is one of my favorite places in NYC.  If you must go on a Saturday, the best time to go is in the morning.  It opens at 10 a.m. and you can have an espresso, browse, or even shop without being trampled.  Did you know that there are even chairs near Manzo that are available just for sitting?  Every time I have been there, 9 times and counting, I have observed an employee going out of his or her way to  be helpful to a customer.  Why is it such a shock to be in a retail establishment where you are welcomed?

Parenting in the 21st Century

What has happened to parenting, that a pizza parlor has to post a sign that parents/adults should not leave young children unattended while in the restaurant?  I guess some people have not seen those faces on milk cartons, OR believe their children are so "smart" that they know how to handle themselves when alone in a restaurant.  I even have to remind myself to use my "restaurant voice," and I am well past childhood.

Cafe La Fortuna--random thoughts

While waiting for my lukewarm Starbucks coffee, my thoughts wandered to the past when there was a real cafe in my life.  Cafe La Fortuna.  Vincent and Alice.  Alice's sister who waited tables, and went to Italy for a visit and never came back.  Opera music.  Exposed brick walls full of opera memorabilia.  The first decaffinated espresso I ever drank that tasted like espresso.  When it opened it was half a store front, two steps down from the sidewalk with a garden in the back.  The regulars who sat at the first table inside the door, when Vincent wasn't sitting there himself, included Joe who always had something to sell.  My first taste of Veniero's Italian Cheesecake.  It put the cream cheese type to shame and out of my life forever.  I never baked another one again.  Walking to La Fortuna from the West 80's taught my boys how to walk.  A half mile or more was nothing.  Summertime, iced cappucinos with homemade coffee flavored Italian ice.  An uncomfortable afternoon in the garden bearing witness to a couple breaking up.  Sideways glances at the occasional celebrity who lived in the neighborhood.  The two Gregorys, waiters, one an aspiring poet and the other a caterer to be.

It was not Starbucks or fame that claimed the life of Cafe La Fortuna.  It was love.  The love a parent has for a child, that would trust the child to be able to take over a business the parent had built.  Unfortunately, we are sometimes blinded by this love, and do not realize that our children are not capable enough.

It was heartbreaking to see Vincent come out of retirement to sit at the cash register once again.  Even sadder when he was there after his beloved Alice had passed away.  A place that love built had to end when those two lovers died.

Chocolate Chip Cookies

Best crispy chocolate chip cookie--Jacques Torres', ask them to warm it up, a bargain at $2.75.

Best soft chocolate chip cookie--Levain Bakery, ask for a fresh one from the oven.  Connie and her staff could not be nicer.  If you do not like chocolate chip cookies, try a hot oatmeal raisin scone, better than mine.

Food Trucks

Why are The Treats Truck and the Super Tacos Truck the only decent food trucks on the Upper West Side, south of 96th Street? 

Did our indifference drive away Rickshaw Dumplings and Dinges and Wafels?

Street Sweets truck--baked goods not any better than what you would find at the Gourmet Garage.

Do not patronize the food cart in front of Trader Joe's.  Lo Mein is not spaghetti!  Prefried dumplings are an insult. 

Do you wear a fragrance?

Do not wear so much fragrance that it arrives in the room before you do.  If you must call attention to yourself, do everyone a favor and do not go to a restaurant where the food is the focus.  Your scent should not be competing with the aroma of the food.