I had a wild night on Friday night - very rare for me, which meant I woke up on Saturday morning remembering why I usually leave going out to Saturday nights. We were meeting friends in the East Village so we chose KGB Bar as a meeting spot after seeing it was a Critic's Pick on nymag.com.
After reading the rave reviews, I expected greatness but was a little let down. It just seemed a little sketchy with no one inside the bar save for a few of the costumed performers from the theater downstairs. However, I now realize that we were there at 9 PM, post-happy hour (though it doesn't strike me as a happy hour spot) and pre-going out. This is why I now conclude it is really weird to go to a bar before 10 or 10:30. Otherwise, you just feel like a loser.
I would like to check out the bar late night, though. The 2nd floor dive is communist themed and everything is red. Under the right circumstances, it could be a cool place.
Once everyone arrived at the bar, we headed to Mayahuel for dinner and more drinks. We ordered a ton of dishes and my pork belly was as good as I remembered. I also had a bite of the hanger steak and thought it was great. Tender and served with a sweet plantain mash, I may actually order it next time over the pork belly. Coincidentally, everything in Mayahuel is also red...except the politics.
Monday, July 12, 2010
Friday, July 9, 2010
Nuts About Norma's
My coworkers and I decided to take full advantage of the lazy Friday by heading to one of my favorite spots during our lunch break. Norma's is located in Le Parker Meridian hotel and is sadly open for breakfast/lunch/brunch only. Let's break it down:
The only complaint I heard was that our tight (but cute) outfits restricted how much of the ginormous plates of food we were able to eat. Bummer. So sorry I didn't take pictures - I should not deprive you readers like that. Double bummer. Don't expect a loud, crazy brunch, but the food is great and it's very light and airy inside (think: all white with a single fresh flower on each table), which is why I suggest bringing your parents here for brunch next time they're in town. They'll love it as long as you avoid the $1,000 caviar frittata.
- Food: Delicious
- Presentation: Gorgeous
- Portions: Huge
The only complaint I heard was that our tight (but cute) outfits restricted how much of the ginormous plates of food we were able to eat. Bummer. So sorry I didn't take pictures - I should not deprive you readers like that. Double bummer. Don't expect a loud, crazy brunch, but the food is great and it's very light and airy inside (think: all white with a single fresh flower on each table), which is why I suggest bringing your parents here for brunch next time they're in town. They'll love it as long as you avoid the $1,000 caviar frittata.
Pat Conroy is a Prince
Pat Conroy has wowed me once again with The Prince of Tides, his novel about a family's tumultuous home life and their conflicting feelings toward each other. I love everything about Conroy's writing style and how he makes me yearn for my own Lowcountry.
The novel follows Tom Wingo as he relays the complex story of his upbringing to the shrink of his sister who has been institutionalized following her most recent suicide attempt. The story of the Wingo family is simultaneously comforting and heartbreaking. Even after they heal, they still seem a bit broken, which I suppose is realistic.
8 out of 10 stars. The Lords of Discipline slightly edges this one out as my Conroy fave, but just barely.
The novel follows Tom Wingo as he relays the complex story of his upbringing to the shrink of his sister who has been institutionalized following her most recent suicide attempt. The story of the Wingo family is simultaneously comforting and heartbreaking. Even after they heal, they still seem a bit broken, which I suppose is realistic.
8 out of 10 stars. The Lords of Discipline slightly edges this one out as my Conroy fave, but just barely.
A Doozie of a Deal
New Yorkers, it's time for y'all to to give a collective "thank you" to the deal gods because Scoutmob just launched in NYC yesterday!!!
What's Scoutmob and why should I be excited, you ask? Basically, it's a coupon site (a deal a day) with all the deals being hyperlocal. It's similar to Groupon, which I have blogged about before, but my humble opinion is that this is way better. On Groupon, you pay to play - for example, you pay $25 to get a coupon worth $50. On Scoutmob, you just get the coupon...free. Are you picking up what I'm throwing down?! I said FREE!
Another great thing about Scoutmob is that once you click on the deal it goes straight to your phone so you just need to show the text or email to the friendly waitress or cashier when you want to redeem your deal. You never need to print anything out from your computer, which is highly convenient because I never go anywhere without my phone, but I'm not usually seen bopping around town with my laptop and printer. Ain't technology grand?!
I've already gotten my first coupon - 50% off at Hill Country. I'm gonna go NUTS on the sides. I love the greenbean casserole, mac and cheese, and sweet potato bourbon mash. That's another point for Scoutmob - the deals are all for places locals love to go. And if you peruse the site, they have all sorts of local info in the Scoutfinds section where they showcase local artists, pics, hotspots, etc.
If you're reading this from the ATL, I hate you because you've been able to use Scoutmob for quite some time now. I'm jealous that you've been wheeling and dealing way longer than I have. If you live outside of Atlanta or NYC...tough noogies for now, but it looks like they have plans to expand. I'm also not happy with you iPhone users because you get the snappy Scoutmob app. I hear they're developing one for Blackberries and Androids soon, so I'm holding my breath.
What's Scoutmob and why should I be excited, you ask? Basically, it's a coupon site (a deal a day) with all the deals being hyperlocal. It's similar to Groupon, which I have blogged about before, but my humble opinion is that this is way better. On Groupon, you pay to play - for example, you pay $25 to get a coupon worth $50. On Scoutmob, you just get the coupon...free. Are you picking up what I'm throwing down?! I said FREE!
Another great thing about Scoutmob is that once you click on the deal it goes straight to your phone so you just need to show the text or email to the friendly waitress or cashier when you want to redeem your deal. You never need to print anything out from your computer, which is highly convenient because I never go anywhere without my phone, but I'm not usually seen bopping around town with my laptop and printer. Ain't technology grand?!
I've already gotten my first coupon - 50% off at Hill Country. I'm gonna go NUTS on the sides. I love the greenbean casserole, mac and cheese, and sweet potato bourbon mash. That's another point for Scoutmob - the deals are all for places locals love to go. And if you peruse the site, they have all sorts of local info in the Scoutfinds section where they showcase local artists, pics, hotspots, etc.
If you're reading this from the ATL, I hate you because you've been able to use Scoutmob for quite some time now. I'm jealous that you've been wheeling and dealing way longer than I have. If you live outside of Atlanta or NYC...tough noogies for now, but it looks like they have plans to expand. I'm also not happy with you iPhone users because you get the snappy Scoutmob app. I hear they're developing one for Blackberries and Androids soon, so I'm holding my breath.
Wednesday, July 7, 2010
Halibut in a Hurry
Now that I'm back from my vacation, it's time to re-acquaint myself to normal life. Back to the real world. I figured the best way to drag myself out of vacay mode was to prepare myself a home-cooked meal for dinner tonight. I had halibut but didn't quite know what to do with it. While I was picking up a few ingredients at the bodega, I decided to get a little adventurous. I grabbed some coconut milk, bamboo shoots, a red bell pepper, onion, and asparagus. When I got home, I mixed it with some red pepper and curry powder and voila! A new (to me) dish was born! I'll need to play with the quantities a bit, but it was definitely a good start. The halibut was substantial, but the dish still felt light. I served it over rice and was definitely satisfied. The best part was that it cooked up really fast and after getting back late last night and working at full speed all day, I wanted something quick that would leave me the majority of the evening to relax (and blog, of course). Not too shabby for only having been back 20 hours!
Happy Birthday 'Merica
What a fabulous long weekend I just had! I now plan to give you the full play-by-play so you can be insanely jealous. Let's begin.
Dave and I landed in Savannah just before midnight and were welcomed by my loving parents who were cool enough to drive us through Krystal on the way home. Three cheese Krystals later, I was in a great mood and falling asleep in my old twin size bed. We woke up on Friday ready to go and ran a couple errands before lunch at Smoke Station for some juicy pulled pork. I ordered mine with brunswick stew and fried okra on the side. The stew was good but a little watery and the okra was legit. It was nice to be reminded what real BBQ is like.
Friday night we went to what is probably my favorite place in Savannah, Bonna Bella Yacht Club. Bonna Bella started life as a marina around the riverbend from my house. We were patrons then, and we are certainly patrons now. It's close by automobile but even closer by boat, so we made the 2 minute trip down the river for dinner. I started the meal in the best way possible: with a really good drink. The bartender mixed up a Bloody Pirate, which is a bloody mary made with horseradish infused vodka and an Old Bay rim. While we were waiting at the bar, the manager walked around with a Super Soaker filled with whipped cream infused vodka. I'm going to remember that for my next party - it was a crowd pleaser. We had the crab, black bean, and corn fritters for an app, which were basically hush puppies but better. For the entrees, all the boys ordered jambalaya and all the girls ordered fish tacos, each with a different sauce. All the food was delicious, but I would have licked my lips over cardboard in that setting. They have corn hole and ring toss set up, two bars, and fabulous seats on the river so you can enjoy the food while watching the sunset.
It's hard to believe you can top that, but we certainly tried. On Saturday, while the boys were playing golf, I did some damage at the Polo outlet and headed to the Hilton Head house for lunch and a few hours around the pool. Did you know deviled eggs are a Southern thing? I didn't, but apparently they are because Dave had no idea what he was looking at. Rather than explaining, I ate about 2 dozen with a side of my Aunt Sally's gazpacho. We headed back with just enough time to shower and get ready for dinner at the new hot restaurant, ele. Were we in LA or Savannah? I couldn't really tell when we handed our keys to the valet in front of the swanky new fusion restaurant. Dave and I split the ele roll as an appetizer, which was filled with salmon, tuna, white fish, grouper, yellow tail, crab, scallions, cream cheese, and asparagus. It was a perfect roll. Mark and Allison also shared a sushi roll for their app and we did a little trade. Theirs was good, but ours was better. Ha. Point 1 for Tess and Dave. My parents shared a dungeness and blue crab salad that looked great. I'll bet it tasted great, too. Unfortunately, we'll never know since they inhaled it before we had the chance to taste. Daddy realized no one else tried it, so he offered up a bite, but we opted against the remaining piece of cucumber skin. I suppose that's a good sign. All the entrees looked tasty, but I was mostly concerned with mine. I ordered two appetizers as my main course, the fresh rolls and the lobster soup with curry and coconut. Both were good, but the soup was large and very rich. By the end of dinner, I was nearly comatose after a day in the sun and an evening full of discussion of [now former] UGA Athletic Director Damon Evans' DUI indiscretion. Tip to future Athletic Director: if you're the guy who does a "Don't drink and drive" PSA at the end of every football game, don't get caught behind the wheel, wasted and clutching the red panties of a girl who is not your wife.
I woke up the next morning ready for some serious 4th of July pool and boat time. Mission accomplished. We grilled out for dinner and then Dave and I went with Mark and Allison and a few of their friends to watch the fireworks from the top of City Hall. You didn't know I was such a VIP? Well take note. We had an amazing view of the show and felt pretty bad-ass to boot. Before we left, we made sure to take a sharpee and sign the wall of the dome alongside our predecessors in 1906. After the fireworks we headed to Rocks on the Roof, the bar in the Bohemian hotel that may just be Savannah's hippest spot. It was there that I was reminded how cheap alcohol is when you don't live in a big city. I miss $3.50 beers.
Monday was more boating as we took Dave to Tubby's Tank House for some fried seafood and then to River Street and City Market to show him the sights. I knew I had to bring a little treat back, so I bought a bag of taffy from River Street Sweets, which my mischievous dog promptly ate the moment I turned my head. We grilled out again on Monday night (fish and steak tacos) with a cheese plate and watermelon-feta skewers for apps. We capped off the night by watching Hot Tub Time Machine, which I am surprised to say was much better than I would have guessed. I can't believe I'm about to recommend it, but here I go - rent it, you just might like it.
Tuesday was a little gloomy because I knew I would be on the plane back to the city before the day's end. I made sure to get in another good restaurant so we went Rancho Alegre for a Cuban lunch. I think I was 15 when this place opened and 10 years later, I still order the exact same thing every time, the ropa vieja. The meat is simmering in spices next to a pile of black beans and rice and the most amazing sweet plantains. We chilled for a couple hours and then stopped by Chick-fil-A before a tearful goodbye at the airport.
I'm happy to be back in NYC, but I'm definitely missing Savannah. But admit it, if you had a weekend like that, you'd be pretty sad to leave, too. America, I think we celebrated your b-day with style.
A refreshing, summery app
Dave and I landed in Savannah just before midnight and were welcomed by my loving parents who were cool enough to drive us through Krystal on the way home. Three cheese Krystals later, I was in a great mood and falling asleep in my old twin size bed. We woke up on Friday ready to go and ran a couple errands before lunch at Smoke Station for some juicy pulled pork. I ordered mine with brunswick stew and fried okra on the side. The stew was good but a little watery and the okra was legit. It was nice to be reminded what real BBQ is like.
Friday night we went to what is probably my favorite place in Savannah, Bonna Bella Yacht Club. Bonna Bella started life as a marina around the riverbend from my house. We were patrons then, and we are certainly patrons now. It's close by automobile but even closer by boat, so we made the 2 minute trip down the river for dinner. I started the meal in the best way possible: with a really good drink. The bartender mixed up a Bloody Pirate, which is a bloody mary made with horseradish infused vodka and an Old Bay rim. While we were waiting at the bar, the manager walked around with a Super Soaker filled with whipped cream infused vodka. I'm going to remember that for my next party - it was a crowd pleaser. We had the crab, black bean, and corn fritters for an app, which were basically hush puppies but better. For the entrees, all the boys ordered jambalaya and all the girls ordered fish tacos, each with a different sauce. All the food was delicious, but I would have licked my lips over cardboard in that setting. They have corn hole and ring toss set up, two bars, and fabulous seats on the river so you can enjoy the food while watching the sunset.
It's hard to believe you can top that, but we certainly tried. On Saturday, while the boys were playing golf, I did some damage at the Polo outlet and headed to the Hilton Head house for lunch and a few hours around the pool. Did you know deviled eggs are a Southern thing? I didn't, but apparently they are because Dave had no idea what he was looking at. Rather than explaining, I ate about 2 dozen with a side of my Aunt Sally's gazpacho. We headed back with just enough time to shower and get ready for dinner at the new hot restaurant, ele. Were we in LA or Savannah? I couldn't really tell when we handed our keys to the valet in front of the swanky new fusion restaurant. Dave and I split the ele roll as an appetizer, which was filled with salmon, tuna, white fish, grouper, yellow tail, crab, scallions, cream cheese, and asparagus. It was a perfect roll. Mark and Allison also shared a sushi roll for their app and we did a little trade. Theirs was good, but ours was better. Ha. Point 1 for Tess and Dave. My parents shared a dungeness and blue crab salad that looked great. I'll bet it tasted great, too. Unfortunately, we'll never know since they inhaled it before we had the chance to taste. Daddy realized no one else tried it, so he offered up a bite, but we opted against the remaining piece of cucumber skin. I suppose that's a good sign. All the entrees looked tasty, but I was mostly concerned with mine. I ordered two appetizers as my main course, the fresh rolls and the lobster soup with curry and coconut. Both were good, but the soup was large and very rich. By the end of dinner, I was nearly comatose after a day in the sun and an evening full of discussion of [now former] UGA Athletic Director Damon Evans' DUI indiscretion. Tip to future Athletic Director: if you're the guy who does a "Don't drink and drive" PSA at the end of every football game, don't get caught behind the wheel, wasted and clutching the red panties of a girl who is not your wife.
I woke up the next morning ready for some serious 4th of July pool and boat time. Mission accomplished. We grilled out for dinner and then Dave and I went with Mark and Allison and a few of their friends to watch the fireworks from the top of City Hall. You didn't know I was such a VIP? Well take note. We had an amazing view of the show and felt pretty bad-ass to boot. Before we left, we made sure to take a sharpee and sign the wall of the dome alongside our predecessors in 1906. After the fireworks we headed to Rocks on the Roof, the bar in the Bohemian hotel that may just be Savannah's hippest spot. It was there that I was reminded how cheap alcohol is when you don't live in a big city. I miss $3.50 beers.
Monday was more boating as we took Dave to Tubby's Tank House for some fried seafood and then to River Street and City Market to show him the sights. I knew I had to bring a little treat back, so I bought a bag of taffy from River Street Sweets, which my mischievous dog promptly ate the moment I turned my head. We grilled out again on Monday night (fish and steak tacos) with a cheese plate and watermelon-feta skewers for apps. We capped off the night by watching Hot Tub Time Machine, which I am surprised to say was much better than I would have guessed. I can't believe I'm about to recommend it, but here I go - rent it, you just might like it.
Tuesday was a little gloomy because I knew I would be on the plane back to the city before the day's end. I made sure to get in another good restaurant so we went Rancho Alegre for a Cuban lunch. I think I was 15 when this place opened and 10 years later, I still order the exact same thing every time, the ropa vieja. The meat is simmering in spices next to a pile of black beans and rice and the most amazing sweet plantains. We chilled for a couple hours and then stopped by Chick-fil-A before a tearful goodbye at the airport.
I'm happy to be back in NYC, but I'm definitely missing Savannah. But admit it, if you had a weekend like that, you'd be pretty sad to leave, too. America, I think we celebrated your b-day with style.
My signature in city hall
A refreshing, summery appThursday, July 1, 2010
Cheftestant Showdown: Top Chef Recap, 6/30 Episode
Last night's episode saw the demise of Tracey who, as a self-proclaimed clairvoyant, shoulda seen it coming. The chefs were practically shaking when Padma told them they had to make desserts, which was less about the cheftestants, more about promoting the new "Top Chef: Just Desserts" spinoff. "But I'm not a pastry chef," Amanda whined. To which the guest judge responded by basically calling her an idiot because even his grandma can make a pie. I guess Arnold's theory that pastry chefs live in a magical world with unicorns is off-base. Maybe he's been taking all the drugs Amanda did in her 20s (did anyone else find that to be a really random time to bring that up?).
Then it was off to the park for a picnic where Alex would like to "take advantage of an intern" Lewinsky style. It's not the mile high club. That's not an item to cross off your list if you're not in politics. For a more detailed account of the episode and to see which chefs are rising to the top, keep reading.
Then it was off to the park for a picnic where Alex would like to "take advantage of an intern" Lewinsky style. It's not the mile high club. That's not an item to cross off your list if you're not in politics. For a more detailed account of the episode and to see which chefs are rising to the top, keep reading.
- Arnold:
- Innovation: 3
- Drool Factor: 5 - Probably the best looking dish I saw. It's also nice to have a chilled soup on a hot day - good thinking.
- Chef Likeability: 3 - In episode 1, we learned he prepped for the show by getting a stylist and a facial. Now we learned he doesn't grill because it clogs his pores. We get it; you're gay. But you don't need to keep pointing it out; the cat's outta the bag. That said, he was far less annoying this episode than before.
- Angelo:
- Innovation: 4 - I'm intrigued by "smokey" egg salad and lettuce wraps are an unconventional picnic choice
- Drool Factor: 4 - High score when you combine his elimination challenge dish and his quickfire pie
- Chef Likeability: 2 - This is a big step up for Angelo who never eclipses 1 in this category, but he was all magnanimous while extoling Amanda's ribs so I figured I'd throw him a bone.
- Amanda:
- Innovation: 2
- Drool Factor: 2 - Accoding to the judges, her asparagus was simply to die for...but I could make that at home. Over it.
- Chef Likeability: 2 - I don't like her use of "prison rules"
- Kenny:
- Innovation: 3 - Pie was unique, picnic was just ok
- Drool Factor: 4 - All points go to the pie here. I love bananas foster. Love currents. That pie was BANANAS. Very glad he finally got a much deserves win.
- Chef Likeability: 5 - All points here are due to the fact that his girlfriend goes by the name JUICY.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
LinkWithin
