East Coast vs. West Coast

I ordered the chopped salad at Bonita on Bedford for my last day in New York before heading back home to the Bay Area. I was totally happy with my salad and it's slightly spicy lime vinaigrette, but I can't say it was necessarily all that related to what I think of as Mexican food. Of course, maybe I should have ordered the tacos or a quesadilla in order to really experience this place, but I'd been hearing all week about how much better Mission burritos are back in San Francisco as opposed to anywhere in New York and how nothing will ever compare to eating Mexican food in California.

I'm betting maybe Mexican food in Mexico.


Chopped Salad:

It's All Greek To Me

As we explore our area in Brooklyn more, we also develop favorites. We headed back to Tai Thai for some of that great green papaya salad. I tried a new item, the veggie dumplings, which were so soft and plump you could just eat them up. Which I did.

Dinner was at Kefi, a big beautiful Greek restaurant on Columbus. It was spacious, airy, and they had divided the eating area up into three sections, so no matter where you sat it felt like a smaller, more intimate space. The food portions were large and filled with feta. My favorite was probably the tomato salad that came with croutons, cauliflower, onions, and of course, lots of feta.


Green Papaya Salad (Som Tum):


Veggie dumplings:


So much Greek food:

Lemonade?

My friend Sandra plied her friends with promises of watermelon and watermelon-themed drinks for her birthday party, so I made sure to eat well before heading over. I started the day with the Simple Cafe again, and ordered another delicious meal with a lot of liquids. This time it was french toast with coffee, orange juice, and a mango mimosa. I haven't been able to go wrong there yet. Our next stop was the Greenmarket in Union Square. I searched high and low for lemonade here. Then I expanded my search to the neighboring cafes and to a kiosk that called itself a juice bar. No lemonade to be had anywhere in Union Square in the middle of summer. Amazing. I settled for some cold mint tea from one of the farm vendors that actually hit the spot perfectly. Dinner was at a great Japanese place, Go, in Greenwich Village. The highlight here was some rice with ume (plum) that you pour a savory green tea mixture over, but we also got some really good spicy tuna rolls.

Starting the day right:


French toast:


I love Japanese food:

Here Fishy Fishy

I skipped lunch because I wasn't feeling so good. I rallied for dinner, though, since we were meeting my friend Hilary in the West Village for seafood at Fish. It was totally worth it.

The sign that got us in the door:


The oysters themselves:


Lobster bisque:

Apparently I Eat a Lot of Eggplant

We had lunch at New York Google's cafeteria with our friend Greg. I reverted to my old Google cafeteria behavior of just making a salad at the salad bar to avoid lines at the grill and to avoid the temptation to eat way way too much. Of course I also grabbed one (or two) of the desserts at the end, which included a cake-like vegan cherry cookie. The food was good and the view of the city was amazing.

We met up with my friend Mike for dinner on St. Mark's after visiting the Museum of Sex where we learned about homosexual penguins. We went to an Afghan place, Khyber Pass, and sat at the window table, which was raised up on a platform so you could sit cross legged on long pillows to eat. The atmosphere was cool (literally and figuratively) which was a welcome break from walking the avenues in hot humid weather. I had eggplant with yogurt, which was a nice consistency and filling without being heavy. I can't remember ever having eaten Afghan food, but I would definitely seek it out again.

Eggplant:

All Your Wheat Are Belong To Us

I had visions of going to Coney Island today and only having ice cream and deep fried oreos to eat so I decided to stock up on my typical snack while here: cereal with milk and blueberries. Once at Coney Island we stopped in at Tatiana, a Russian place along the boardwalk on the Brighton Beach end. I ordered the mini-pastry plate since I wasn't in the mood for a whole fried fish. The little canoli-like bites were good, but I liked the fruit that came around it best - blueberries, raspberries, and a strawberry.

Dinner was at PT near where we're staying. I highly recommend it. It was magical to go into the back garden (which really does have a garden) and sip red wine next to a lavender plant with fireflies starting to flicker as the sunlight disappeared. We ordered only starters, since that way you get to try more things, and the portions were delightfully big. I ate crostini with eggplant, asparagus with parmesan, and a beet salad that also came with raisins, pine nuts, thin strips of carrot, and gorgonzola. And since Damian is gluten-intolerant, I also got to eat the entire bread basket.

The wheat is all mine!


Beet salad with gorgonzola and raisins:


Asparagus with cheese:


Crostini:


The scenery at PT:

Food!

We started the day walking along 6th street where all the Indian restaurants are. I decided on Raj Mahal because this one had a table on the porch in front of the recessed doorway. It was a good deal, something like 5.95 for soup, samosas, pita, dahl, and an entree. It was good. I especially liked the soup, which apparently is one of those kinds of dishes that everyone has their own special recipe for. I approve of this restaurant's recipe.

I finally found the Van Leeuwen ice cream truck after we descended from Highline Park, right next to a film shoot with Chris Kattan. I had a heaping coneful of hazelnut ice cream. The ice cream was delicious, as was the cone (I don't think people usually notice the cone, but this one was definitely noticeably yummy).

We met James for dinner in Astoria at the Kabab Cafe. No wait, make that the Kabab Cafe! Because that's what the sign outside the restaurant says, and everything is clearly better when you add an exclamation point to the end of it. It's just one guy making all the food and only a few tables. We sat for three hours, which was fine since we ordered a few courses, including sardines and beet salad. I had hawashi for my entree, and it was super good - a mix of ground up mushrooms between thin pita with homemade yogurt, veggies, a fresh piece of fruit, and fried greens. The greens were fried to a crispy crunch, which I love. Homemade yogurt! Beet salad! Kabab Cafe!

View from our table at Raj Mahal:


Samosa:


My table at the Kabab Cafe was looking at me:


Beet salad:


Hawashi (for those not ordering large plates of meat):

Pretty Much Just Pictures

We went to Nobu. It was overwhelming, and if you want to read more details about the dishes included in these photos, check out Damian's post from this day, which is not quite a thousand words, but getting close.

The wasabi sauce around the fish was really hot and delicious:


Seared tuna:


New-style sashimi:


Shrimp:


Miso-marinated (a signature dish):


Variety of sushi:


Miso soup with clams:


Scrumptious smore:


Damian's chocolate and shiso cake with green tea ice cream, both of which I ate too:

Matter in General

Brunch was at The Rabbit Hole, which is the other eating place across the street from us. My goat cheese and lox omelet was delightful. I had requested fruit instead of a side salad from the waiter at the counter, and asked if that was possible. He said he would check. I heard nothing more and the dish came out with a beautiful arrangement of currants on top of banana and apple. A few minutes later, the woman who was working in the back came out to let me know that they don't normally do this sort of thing, and not in a nice "you're special" way. She told me not to expect this, nor to let anyone else expect this. I assured her I did not live in the area and she did not need to worry about me abusing the brunch substitutions. Nonetheless, the food was good.

We then headed to Astoria and to Socrates Sculpture Park to watch the sun set over Manhattan. According to our friend Erin, it was one of two days out of the year when the sun sets directly between the buildings along the grid of the city. We picked up some snacks to tide us over from Bakeway. I got a surprisingly good mix of thick plain yogurt with berries on top of granola, which I ate with my reusable spork. We enjoyed the sunset, sculptures, snacks, and a bottle of cheap champagne. We also enjoyed the sculpture that was just a sign that said "Matter in General: 937. Deep Fried in Oil, 938. On a Stick". Damian and I have often talked about how things on a stick are the universal food. I bet deep frying is pretty high up there too.

Dinner was at Philoxenia. The first thing I noticed were the candles. They were short and thick, like many restaurant candles, and they were made of wax. But the light was coming from a battery-powered source somewhere inside the candle itself. It looked very authentic until you looked at the wick and saw it wasn't burning. Food-wise, the best part was the beets with pureed potato and garlic, a mixture called skordalia. It was a delicious combination I would not have thought of, despite loving both beets and mashed potatoes (when asked on my college application if I wanted to include any additional information, I wrote that mashed potatoes was one of my favorite foods). The other highlight was the olive dip for the pita - very flavorful and a rich purple color. We definitely asked for seconds.

The bamboo spork makes another appearance:

Sculpture on a stick:

Philoxenia:

Champagne Goes With Everything

Started the day getting lost trying to find Five Points, a brunch place near the West Village. There were six of us eating together for brunch, and only two of us claimed we wanted mimosas, me being one of them. We were able to convince one more member of the table to be indulgent with us, which meant we could order the full pitcher of mimosa, which at this place consisted of orange juice, champagne, and triple sec. Thirty dollars bought us so much mimosa that all six of us each had two glasses. The food around the table all looked good, but I was totally engaged in my brioche french toast that was soft like delicate little pillows on my plate. It came with pecans and a side of whipped mascarpone cheese with shredded basil on top. I left the restaurant feeling luxurious, sated, and, I’ll admit, a little tipsy.

After spending the afternoon watching They Might Be Giants in Prospect Park, Sandra and I headed back to Hilary’s apartment so the three of us could go to Pinto, a classy Thai restaurant. Deciding that prosecco would be appropriate for a girl’s night out in an area known for being the setting of Sex and the City, we ordered a bottle and toasted. The green papaya salad and crunchy fried mushroom rolls with dipping sauce were a good start, but the basil and tofu main course I got really filled me up without feeling weighted down. It was a nice mix of tofu, veggies, and lots of basil. Although, for a dish named “Basil”, I was actually expecting just a bit more basil. Can you have too much basil? Okay, you probably can, but nonetheless I was expecting a dish that was primarily green.

Continuing the Sex and the City theme, I stopped at Magnolia for a cupcake. Now, I have never actually watched an episode of Sex and the City, but that did not make the cupcake any less yummy. The type of cupcake was called “hummingbird” and had cream cheese frosting with nuts. Unbeknownst to me, while I was in the store my two friends were buying me a present at the bookstore across the way. Back at my sublet I opened the present on the pretense that since it had been pouring rain on the ten block walk from the subway I should really make sure it hadn’t gotten too wet. The New York Restaurant Cookbook: Recipes from the Dining Capital of the World. Thank you!

Pinto (you can tell it's classy from the sign):

"Basil":

Cheers:

Eggs and Borscht (But Not At The Same Time)

Lunch today was at Ella Café. My order was pretty boring, I have to admit – two eggs over medium, toast, and side salad. What I received was exactly that. Nothing more, nothing less. Good, but nothing special (but still more palatable than lukewarm reheated spanakopita). Dinner, though, was at Odessa, a Russian place in the East Village. I tried a bit of the borscht, which was hearty and of course bright red. The Greek salad was heavy on the feta, which is not usually a problem, but I was really trying to save room for the pirogis. I tried the spinach pirogi, sweet potato pirogi, and the cheese pirogi. All with applesauce and sour cream. I could have eaten ten (and I think James did). As we were finishing up, the waiter was walking from light to light in the restaurant, unscrewing three of the four bulbs in each hanging fixture. “Mood lighting”, I guess, for when the place turns into a bar around 8pm. We took that as our cue to exit, and left satisfied and happy.

The last pirogi:

In Which Kirstin Gets Her Wish

We had a delicious brunch today at the place that is right across the street from where we’re staying. It’s called Simple Café. I ordered a goat cheese and tomato omelet with sides of green salad and fruit (no watermelon). It came with homemade bread in the form of little bready dew drops perfectly cooked. In addition, I ordered a raspberry mimosa. The waitress with a French accent asked if I knew that the breakfast plate also came with coffee and orange juice. Oh yes, I knew. I knew that this meant I was getting three drinks, not even including the cucumber-infused water provided at the table. We sat on the porch of the café both facing out toward the street and I was so happy with my wonderful breakfast that I didn’t mind the car alarm going off right in front of us.

Dinner was at Tai Thai on Bedford. After swearing we were going to try a place that didn’t serve Asian cuisine for another straight night, we wandered up and down the main drag reading menus, and finally decided that we could always do non-Asian on another day. This place had a really good green papaya salad without too much fish sauce, well-prepared fresh spring rolls that were denser than usual and covered in tamarind sauce, and some great pad thai that hit the spot. I kept looking up at this sign that said “cocktail room” in neon lights, so we ordered the first cocktail on the menu – something with vodka, honey, and ginger, I think. Sweet and fresh-tasting like lemonade, but not so much that your mouth tingled. And at the end of the meal, while looking for the bathroom, I followed the sign for “cocktail room” down the hall and found another big room in the back with a bar (presumably this was said “cocktail room”), and a back porch for tables. I would probably want to sit there next time, but in this nice summer weather, the front room where we sat had the large glass doors to the street open, making it also very airy. The other thing I have to mention about this place is the staff. The fast service was absolutely remarkable. We had barely even put in our order when it was on our table.

We finished the evening with friends at a bar nearby that also had bowling, although we didn’t bowl. Someone knew someone who knew someone (or something like that) so we each were given a large pretzel stick dipped in chocolate on the house. An unexpected treat at the end of a day filled with good food.

So much liquid:

Brunch food:

Thai food:

I <3 My Utensils

I love my non-disposable utensils. I have a very convenient and lightweight bambu spork which you can see in the pictures at the bottom of this post. I also have a set of sturdy Papyrustick chopsticks made from recycled paper that my sister gave me for my birthday. Both came into play in these meals.

I also love The Cloisters. They make you feel like you aren't in New York anymore. I'm also a sucker for tapestries with unicorns woven into them, stained glass, illustrated manuscripts, and simple stone columns. In the courtyard cafe right next to the herb garden, we decided on a salad. Damian ate the meat while I grabbed the spork out of my bag and ate the greens, dried cherries, candied walnuts, and creamy dressing. A foamy latte helped wash it all down and gave me a chance to linger, holding the warm cup in my hands, and admiring the bees hanging out on the thistles in the overgrown yard.

Our next culinary stop was Village Yokocho. It's mostly small dishes, so it's great fun to go with a group of people (we had five at our table), and order a ton of things to try. We had too many things for me to list, but the best part for me was a deep fried creation put together kind of like an its-it. They took two slices of lotus root, put ground shrimp between the two slices, then breaded the outside and fried it. And I ate it all with the chopsticks I carry in my bag. At the end of the meal after we walked out and were standing on the street, I suddenly realized that for the first time ever, I had accidentally abandoned my chopsticks on the table. Running back up the stairs I glanced anxiously at the table where we'd been sitting, which had been cleared and was already set for the next people. I was envisioning sifting through trash bags in the back kitchen, but instead, the waiter was standing there with my chopsticks safely set aside. Who says New Yorkers aren't the nicest people in the world?

At The Cloisters:

Mustard at Village Yokocho:

Not Breakfast

I always wake up ready for breakfast. I love cereal, eggs over medium, scones, mimosas, toast with jam, mochas, fruit, home fries, omelets, you name it. Well, okay, not bacon or sausage obviously. Something about meat kind of grosses me out - especially the texture. That's why I don't like substitute meat products either. The more they taste and feel like meat the less I'm into them. There's always a debate when we get up in the morning about where we're going to get food. I'm all about brunch places, but there is usually nothing Damian can eat there since he isn't able to eat gluten, lactose, or eggs. So yesterday I decided I would hold off on my inevitable insistence that we try the brunch place across the street from where we're staying. Instead we headed to Oasis, a middle eastern place right near the Bedford subway station, and I scanned the section titled "Vegetarian" in the menu above the counter. For having a whole section of veggie items, my options consisted mostly of sides like dolmas and yogurt with cucumbers, so I opted for the spanakopita. That was the closest thing I could find to something I might want as the first thing in my stomach for the day. It doesn't matter what time of day it is, if it's the first thing I'm going to eat, I want it to be breakfasty. Damian's pile of meat, pickled cabbbage, and baba ganoush looked really great. I think that's why people go there - it's not the spanakopita. Of course the spanakopita was already doomed in my book since it wasn't a crispy belgian waffle with fresh strawberries and home-made whipped cream.


Later on we went out for Malaysian food at Nyonya. Damian enticed me with promises of mangos. I loved the pickles, which were heavy with sauce but still fresh feeling (in a way that only pickled veggies can feel fresh). The shrimp with okra was doused in shrimp sauce, which I found funny. Shrimp with shrimp sauce. The roti was nice and the lychee drink was satisfying especially because they didn't skimp on lychees. The highlight, though, was the whole mango fish which was well worth the time it took to pull the bits of fish off the bone. I think there was not a speck of white meat or crunchy skin left by the time I let the waiter take it away. A nice ending for a day that did not begin with breakfast.

Malaysian pickles:

No Alligator For Me, Thanks

I'm sure we'll be eating plenty of Japanese food while we're here in NYC, but for our first night, we decided to visit Natori with our friend James. Near Village Yokocho, which we're saving for another night, the only thing I knew about this place was that they served alligator meat. I'm mostly vegetarian (I eat seafood), so the alligator was not a big draw, but I do love all things sushi. The door to the place only allowed one person in at a time because they put a table right in front on the porch. You have to squeeze past the people at the table, open the door, let yourself in, then close the door so the next person has room to squeeze past the people at the table and start the process over again. Oh, you want to know about the food? Right. So, I tasted more sauce than spinach in the gomae and the yellowtail roll was nothing special. Of course, I'm from the San Francisco Bay Area where fresh sushi isn't hard to find, so maybe it takes more to impress me. There were some yummy stewed mushrooms that I wish I could remember the name of, but the highlight was the deep fried munster cheese. Quite unexpected on the menu next to the avocado rolls and tofu, but seriously delicious. Bite-sized, cheesy, fried, and delicious. Deep fried munster cheese.