Ned's Notes

Return to New York+

noreply@blogger.com (Ned Himmel) — Tue, 07 Apr 2015 03:41:00 +0000

Hello, patient readers, you few, you special. We just returned from two weeks in New York and several people have asked for suggestions for their upcoming trips and so I oblige:

OLD FAVORITES: Our trips do not seem complete with a visit to the bar at Keen's Steakhouse. On our last visit, we went to the main restaurant which was fabulous and had leftover mutton chop for another meal. The bar has a smaller cut, but the meat is perfect, juicy, pink, and loaded with flavor. Simply served with braised escarole, but all meals are accompanied by terrific small rolls and most splendid sweet butter (I asked about the brand--Grand President). The buvette steak salad had a perfectly cooked 5-6 oz. steak with a romaine salad. The added treat at the bar this time were plump chicken wings. Good wines by the glass.
The BBQ brisket sandwich at Mighty Quinn is mighty delicious and the baked beans with burnt ends is one the world's great dishes. The pulled pork is pretty good too. They now have several locations, including Battery Park City's Hudson Eats with a spectacular view of the Hudson. We love the croissants, pain au chocolat and small quiches at Patisserie Claude on W. 4th Street. Prices are amazingly low for such high quality-- each would be at least $1 more uptown. And the word is definitely out about the cookies at Levain on W. 74th St. They're still $4 per, which seemed a lot last year. Nice to see they're holding steady. The rustic baguette was also good.
Motorino on E. 10th is one of my favorite pizzas. We went for brunch and had the brunch pizza with pancetta and eggs on top and the always delicious sopresseta. Salads are great and a nice surprise was the octopus appetizer--tender and flavorful. If you can get there for lunch, they have a salad/pizza combo for $12. Always dependable is a slice from Joe's on Carmine, busy so right out of the oven. I also tried a slice from Bleecker Street Pizza down the block and it was quite good too. Crust was fair but toppings and sauce very good.
A wondrous 5-course lunch for $55 at Bouley was to me a very good deal. We got the wine pairings which were also a good deal but the total tab was quite wondrous too. The restaurant moved since our last visit and it is a beautiful French country room, but pretty formal. Reminded me of Taillevant in Paris, if I may drop a name. The coolest part was a bread cart with 10 different breads. Each of had a pile of brioche, levain, and savory loaves. Highlights: the porcini flan with crab and the forager's mushroom treasure, and the hot carmelized Anjou pear (one of the best desserts I have ever had and that's saying a lot). The highlight of the wines was a 1999 dry Vouvray, unctuous and rich almost like a sauterne.
Our deli choice this time was Carnegie Deli. Our trick is to get the food to go-- no wait and no split charges. One corned beef sandwich and one matza ball soup to go. Enough for dinner for 2 and lunch the next day. Both were incredible. It may be a tourist trap but easy to see why.

NEW FAVORITES: Russ and Daughters Cafe is a brilliant idea. A hip LES comfortable cafe featuring the great smoked meats from the mother ship. Our brunch consisted of a classic Gaspe lox on bagel with cream cheese and capers and a platter with the best potato latkes, Gaspe lox, and sunnyside up eggs.
A truly special dinner was happily consumed at NoMad, in-chef Daniel Humm's new and packed restaurant. Prices were reasonable for such great food. The chicken for 2 was the best chicken dish we've ever had. Stuffed with foie gras, truffle and brioche, every bite was heaven. The suckling pig was pretty wonderful too. The pear salad and beets first courses were perfect and the rooms are beautiful. Service was very helpful and good wines by the glass. Quite a schlep to the restrooms.
The Dutch is a fairly new Soho restaurant famous for the fried chicken which it turns out is not served at dinner. I settled for the skate wings which was perfectly cooked and adorned with crab. The foie gras terrine was scrumptious and the apple pie served 4 nicely (at $18 it should). Nice room and good service on a cold, snowy evening. All wines are American! I did get my fried chicken fix at Hill Country Chicken's branch in Brooklyn. Nicely fried but the crust is a little crackery.
Our new pizza experience was at Franny's in Park Slope, Brooklyn. I've read about it for years and the pizza is truly wonderful. A classic margherita is the test for me and it more than passed. Appetizers are very good and an interesting all-Italian wine list helps.
We chanced into 44&X for an after-theater meal. Food and wine were quite good, especially the scallops appetizer which made a good meal with a lovely arugula salad. Salmon tartare was delicious and a very fine wines by the glass selection made it a place worth a return visit. Another good find fairly close to the theater district is Taboon, a Mediterranean-Mid-eastern delight of a restaurant. Good cocktails, great bread, and an assortment of outstanding mezes made a really good meal. A standout was the teramasaleta.
I think that's it. So many more to try and so many to return to. Always hard to decide but all around a stomachful of delight. And, of course, I had to get my dozens of Ess-a-bagel pumpernickel bagels to bring home.

Chicago

noreply@blogger.com (Ned Himmel) — Thu, 07 Nov 2013 02:08:00 +0000

My kind of food town, Chicago is. Going a few days early for a family wedding, we walked and ate our way through town. Our best meal was brunch at cousin-recommended Little Goat, a sister restaurant to the Girl and the Goat, run by Stephanie Izard of Top Chef fame. We feasted on the best corned beef hash, bulls-eye French toast (egg cooked in a hole in the center of the toast) with fried chicken, kim chee bacon and eggs, oatmeal, and a terrific gluten-free pineapple muffin and a fresh and rich cinnabun. This is a fantastic informal cafe in the West Loop (820 W. Randolph).
Another wonderful dinner was an old stand-by in Greektown, Santorini (Halsted), featuring large portions, freshly made, good service, and a happy vibe. Excellent appetizers of grilled octopus and a mixed mezes plate whet our appetites for "authentic Greek chicken", shrimp Santorini, pastichio, and fresh fish. Unfortunately they were out of the daily lamb specials. Must go back.
The best pizza we had was from Lou Malnati's (439 North Wells Street, but many locations) delivered to our room, but still so good. Great as leftovers too. My new Chicago pizza favorite was the Chicago Classic with marvelous sausage and a butter crust, rich tomato sauce and a large amount of cheese. We were also lucky enough to have the rehearsal dinner at a Gino's East, which used to be my favorite Chicago pizza. Their crust has more cornmeal than Lou's but the sausage is less thrilling.
Another old-time Chicago favorite we got to enjoy was Portillo's, sort of a high-class fast food place at 100 W. Ontario. We had classic Chicago hot dogs and fries and strawberry shortcake. Also got to try their great Italian beef sandwich. We had breakfast at the also classic (85 years) Lou Mitchell's (565 W Jackson) which is great to be in, but the food is really not that special. I do appreciate the gratis donut hole as a starter. Eggs and potatoes and corned beef hash, decent but no desire to return. I did have a great old-fashioned donut at what I guess is an in-spot at 939 W. Armitage and elsewhere, Glazed and Infused. $2.50 which I think is pretty high for a donut. The incomparable Stan's in Santa Clara is still under $1.
On a recommendation, we went to Twin Anchors (1655 N. Sedgwick), another 80+ yearer, for ribs and they were great. A neighborhood bar visited by Frank Sinatra, which they never let you forget. Ribs were very tender, sauces very tasty, onion rings and baked beans superb, and service was very special. A journey from the Loop but well worth it.
Right in the heart of the Loop and very close to the spectacular Millenium Park and the ever-wonderful Chicago Cultural Center (you must go see the Tiffany ceiling), we found Heaven on 7 (111 N. Wabash), a Creole joint with a delicious soft shell crab po'boy, excellent beans and cole slaw, and an amazing variety of hot sauces. Seemingly hidden on the 7th floor of a small office building, it's definitely worth discovering.
And a classic always worth rediscovering is Frontera Grill, (445 N. Clark) where Rick Bayless offers fabulous Mexican food made with the finest ingredients. Our brunch included beef and pork tacos,
Paying homage to Frank Lloyd Wright with a visit to Oak Park, we stopped for lunch at the very decent Delia's Kitchen (1034 W. Lake St) a block and a half from both Unity Temple and the Wright homes on Forest Ave. Great soups of the day (fluffy matza ball and Mideastern lentil), a very generous Cobb salad and turkey sandwich, friendly servers who make you feel welcome, and convenience to the sights make this a great find.
I left Chicago 5 pounds heavier, well-sated, and toddlin' home.

San Diego Quick Trip

noreply@blogger.com (Ned Himmel) — Thu, 30 May 2013 04:04:00 +0000

Went for a quick trip to visit my new great-nephew in San Diego. A little over 2 days and hard decisions about where to eat. It worked out pretty well. I used Eater San Diego’s 38 Essential Restaurants as a guide and family recommendations to back them up. My nephew highly recommended Aqui es Texcoco in Chula Vista (1043 Broadway) where we had a lunch feast with out of the ordinary Mexican food. The main ingredient is lamb, which I don’t see too often on menus at cheap Mexican places. Started with a marvelous lamb broth with hominy followed by 3 lamb tacos (rib meat, grilled, and cabeza). They were joined by huitlocoche and squash blossom quesadillas and guacamole with cactus. Everything was delicious, altho in last place was the huitlocoche, of which I had very high expectations. The house-made sangria was great too and the service was so welcoming and friendly, I’d happily return any time.

I managed to fit in one fish taco from Nine Seas/ German Mariscos taco truck in South Park. One good- sized piece of fish with just the right amount of coating and served with cabbage and sauce. Everything is made fresh as you wait so you’ll probably have a little wait. Lime and more sauce are self-serve. And it’s only $1.75. They have a famous marlin taco for $4 said to be quite large. I had just finished a decent breakfast at Big Kitchen across the street (3003 Grape) so I could only handle the one taco. Big Kitchen is a great old hippie place refreshingly un-San Diego with famous breakfasts and lunches. Their old claim to fame was that Whoopi Goldberg once worked there, but it’s sustained itself on good food at good prices. Eggs done just right, good bacon, good home fries. A classic.

Another consistently good breakfast can be had at The Mission. We had brunch at the Mission Beach original (3795 Mission Blvd.). The Breakfast Rosemary is just a darn god breakfast, great rosemary potatoes, scrambled eggs, and rosemary toast. Excellent cinnamon bread toast makes a pleasant meal served with fresh fruit, and the blueberry pancakes are huge and yummy. Very good hot chocolate. Close by, in Pacific Beach, we had one ofthe best seafood dinners ever at The Fishery (5040 Cass St). We took advantage of Tuesday Tastings and would go back any Tuesday I’m in San Diego. For $28 plus $12 for wine pairings, you get a 4 course beautifully prepared menu. We adored the first course of fried oysters, the salad of faro with fresh cherries, and the just caught white sea bass. Each main ingredient has perfect accompaniment, such as tangerine slices with the oysters or a rich mayonnaise with the bass. Perfect wine pairings, a fresh fruit dessert, and excellent service put this restaurant at the top of our favorites.

I had high hopes for take-out food from Sab E Lee Thai in Linda Vista (2405 Ulric). None of the 6 dishes thrilled, although the seafood salad had plenty of seafood and flavor and the papaya salad satisfied. The pad see ewe was mediocre and the catfish larb was mainly spicy. Combination fried rice was a good foil, but the fried chicken was overcooked. We had a more satisfying lunch downtown at Lotus Thai (909 Market), where I enjoyed the mas-su-mam beef. It’s pretty close to the new main library, so both are worth checking out once the library opens in September.

New York Spring

noreply@blogger.com (Ned Himmel) — Sat, 11 May 2013 20:02:00 +0000

Ah, Spring in New York, 40 degrees, no wait 80 degrees, sunny, no wait, rainy and cold. But you can always find safe harbor in some great restaurants. So here are my 2013 munchings:

Pizza: Always have to get a major pizza fix in NY. Best pizza had this trip was at Luzzo’s (211-13 1^st Ave.). I had never heard of it atho it uses a 100 year old coal oven so I think it's been around awhile. 2 of us shared a beautiful salad and a large margherita, Highly rated in Zagat and for good reason. I returned to Motorino but this time at East Village site (349 E.12^th). Their amazing lunch deal of a choice of 4 pizzas and a fresh salad for $12 cannot be beat. The margherita was totally satisfying, with a nicely crisp crust and the right proportions of sauce to cheese. Only disappointment was their recommended pizza wine, which was lightly fruity but bland. Another new delight was at Don Antonio (309 W. 50^th) which has a mother restaurant in Neopolitan ??and known for their Montorano Starita, an individual-sized pie, lightly fried crust with sauce, smoked mozzarella cooked in a wood-fired oven. A Pontina ?? salad with spring greens, fresh mozzarella and grape tomatoes made another perfect lunch.

Since it’s always important to try new Italian restaurants, we did our duty at Locanda Verde, very famous and hard to get in. We went early and besides middling service, had some very good food. The asparagus appetizer was superb with a poached duck? egg blessing the thick and luscious spears. The Locanda salad with dried cherries and speck was delightful. We went with pastas. I had to order “My Grandmother’s ravioli” , which ended up being nothing that special besides the nostalgic naming. The daily pasta was a spinach noodle with a light pork ragu. A side of roasted carrots with olive, citrus, and yogurt was perfect.

The best dish of the trip was the crispy watercress salad with shrimp, squid, and chicken at SriPraPhai in Woodside, Queens (6413 39^th Ave). I’ve never tasted anything like this spicy, flavorful, texturally magnificent dish. I’ve been trying to find it on Thai menus in the Bay Area without success. The other outstanding dish was fried soft shell crab topped with chili, garlic and basil. Noodle dishes and curries were fine too, but the first 2 are big winners and worth the long ride to Woodside. Our other borough dining treat was at Walter’s in Fort Greene, Brooklyn (166 DeKalb), where we feasted on ceviche, fresh fish, excellent fried chicken, superb Brussels sprouts, and key lime pie. A cool, neighborhood gathering spot.

A day spent at Grounds for Sculpture in southern New Jersey included a great lunch at Rat’s, which offers a 3 course lunch prix fixe for about $25 with good choices for each course. I had a yummy onion soup and a barley risotto, a nice variation on grains. The hamburger is beautiful and they follow a farm-to-table philosophy. House made gelati were all excellent. The sculpture park is a delight and worth the hour train trip from NYC.

More Manhattan dinner highlights were: A return trip to the bar at Keen’s (72W.36^th) where we shared oysters and their unique and fantastic mutton chop. The Manhattans are nice and strong, the rolls and butter perfect, and it’s a fun scene, reasonably priced. Modern Korean fare with especially good kimchi was enjoyed at Danji (346 W. 52), an in-spot where we got seated at the bar after a ½ hour wait among young marketing mavens. The excellent bartender with good wine and food advice made it all OK. Spicy yellowtail sashimi, cool and lovely fresh pea soup, chorizo paella were highlights, altho the well-known pork belly sliders have been eclipsed by other restaurants. Everyone there seems to order them tho. The best Greek meal I’ve ever had was our dinner at Pylos (128 E 7^th) where everything was prepared perfectly, service was excellent, wines were good, portions large, prices reasonable, and the pita was unbelievable. The gigante beans the grilled octopus, and the whole bronzino were of special note. I wanted to try everything on the menu.

Lunches provided many memorable moments. The 3-course lunch at Nougatine by Jean-Georges is a fantastic deal at $32. I paid an $8 supplement for the best foie gras terrine I’ve ever had with a slightly spicy passionfruit meringue on top as my first course. Sheila had a lovely tuna tartare. Our entrees of roasted black bass and crispy baked chicken showed off the cooking expertise with the main ingredient complemented by perfect preparation and side dishes. Each bite is a pleasure. The famous warm chocolate cake and the vanilla ice cream with rhubarb puree ended almost perfect meals. We loved our wines by the glass featuring real treasures, especially a pinot gris from Alsace, even though at $17-18, they don’t come cheap. And we saw Jean-Georges himself.

A great pastrami sandwich at the classic Katz’s was the expected treat and our visit to the new location of 2^nd Avenue Deli (162 E. 33^rd) brought us terrific pastrami and corned beef, as well as matza ball soup. The pickles were better than at Katz’s although I like Katz’s pastrami better. A gift of a small chocolate phosphate made this meal at one of the last full Kosher restaurants special. One of the oldest dim sum parlors in NYC is Nom Wah (13 Doyers St—a fascinating little street) was fun but Bay Area dim sum is better. This is a no-cart place where the shrimp dumplings shine. I finally made it to Dinosaur BBQ in Harlem (700 W125^th) but was mildly disappointed by the pulled pork and brisket lunch plate. Less than I had hoped for. The cole slaw and beans were both very good.

I had a perfect and simple breakfast at Clinton Street Baking Co (4 Clinton) in the Lower East Side. The buttermilk biscuit sandwich filled with light and fluffy eggs and cheddar with tomato jam accompanied by perfectly crisp hash browns left me so satisfied I gave my thanks to the chef. Their muffins and cookies are good too. Great cookies were bought at Levain (167 W. 74). $4 each but huge and even I think worth the price. Sublime smoked sable and Gaspe nova lox on bagels came from the legendary Russ and Daughters, and some great bagels from Bergen Bagels in Brooklyn. We were disappointed in the “legendary” bagels from H&H Midtown Bagels East (1551 2nd Ave),. Everything cannot be perfect but our 11 days in New York were all in all very fulfilling, enriching, and a little nutritious.

Tastes of Cuba

noreply@blogger.com (Ned Himmel) — Tue, 12 Mar 2013 03:03:00 +0000

One doesn’t or shouldn’t go to Cuba for the food. There are too many shortages of great cooking ingredients. But with the opportunities opening up to allow for private restaurants (paladors), many in converted homes, one can have some pretty wonderful dining experiences. And it’s always an experience on top of the food. We recently spent about a week in Santiago de Cuba and Havana and had some memorable meals, along with mediocre buffets and “group” meals. I’ll talk about the highlights.

Santiago is Cuba’s second largest city with 500,000 people but it feels like a small town. Also, there was extensive damage from Hurricane Sandy so we did not see it as its best. But we had a great meal at Compay Gallo (San German 3), housed in a beautiful Art Deco home with terrazzo floors and a marvelous staircase with no banister, a la Baragan, leading up to the third floor where the restaurant is. Service, food, and presentation were great. The most spectacular dish was my appetizer of shrimp cocktail, a generous serving of shrimp and crab with homemade mayonnaise, served on top of a small fishbowl with 2 live goldfish in it. Pictures were taken! My main course of lamb stew was in a thick, rich dark sauce served with rice and malanga, a starchy tuber. Other entrees were well-executed with individual integrity, very Impressive as our group of 8 were the only customers besides 2 couples. I’d go back there.

A pizza and pasta dinner at the Ristorante Italiana la Fontana at the Melia Santiago Hotel (where 5 stars is a real stretch of the imagination) was just fine, nothing special. The breakfast buffet at the hotel is very good, including a roast pig! A lunch at Restaurante Zunzun (Av. Mandulay 159), in a restored mansion, was like a Rotary banquet meal with satisfactory grilled fish. Although those who got the curry chicken were impressed.

Havana is a marvelous city just waiting for redevelopment to explode and fortunately the restaurant scene has some stars. Our best meal was at Café Laurent (Calle M 257), near the National Hotel, a civic treasure with plumbing that makes its 5-star rating questionable. The 5^th floor of an apartment building reached by a temperamental but charming elevator has been turned into a wonderful restaurant. Our lovely and friendly server made us feel special and the fresh mahi mahi done a couple of different ways, salads with real lettuce, tasty ceviche, delicious gazpacho, and a decent albeit small wine list made our group of 7 very happy eaters. We also had a very nice meal at Dona Eutimia (Callejon del Charro) on an alley near the Cathedral, with some superb appetizers like croquettas and fried fish bites with different sauces. We expected the paella for 2 to have more varieties of seafood, but the lobster was nice and portion generous. Those who got lobster as an entree had plenty to share. Service and presentation were perfect and everyone had a good time, hoping to share cigars as we left but finding the wind coming through the alley greater than our lighting skills.

Our first tour meal in Havana was at the lovely La Ferminia (av. 5 # 18207), apparently a Castro favorite, where we ate in the beautiful garden next to the beautiful mansion with marble floors and several dining rooms. They feature brochettes with a very good chicken and a nicely flavored but tough beef. And tres leches cake for dessert, all accompanied by a music trio. I recommend it for its beauty. The group also had lunch at La Domenica (O’Reilly #108), a lovely Italian restaurant with decent pizza and spaghetti and accompanying live music. Our final tour celebratory dinner was held at the beautiful Café del Oriente appropriately on the Plaza de San Francisco. The formal dining rooms look like they should be in New Orleans or Charleston, so no reeking of local color. A nice onion soup was followed by a decent steak and a good flan. We didn’t make it there, but those in our group who went to Palador La Guarida, featured in the film, Strawberries and Chocolate, thought it was fantastic. So our number 1 choice for the return trip to fascinating, enigmatic, beautiful Cuba.

New York Tops East Coast Eats

noreply@blogger.com (Ned Himmel) — Wed, 13 Jun 2012 18:45:00 +0000

There are certain New York foods that I must have each time I go. I have a little me-conversation asking if I'm denying myself a new treasure for the sake of a beloved favorite, but then convince myself having something every 1-2 years is not overdoing anything. This trip, my return visits were to Patisserie Claude (pain au chocolat still marvelous), Gotham Bar and Grill (chocolate cake still the best in the world and the $25 2 course lunch unbeatable), Keens Chophouse (sat again at the bar delighting in the bistro mutton chop and the steak salad, both done perfectly and well-priced, with terrific rolls and excellent sweet butter, and dynamite cocktails), Grimaldi's Pizza (running late so got a cheese to go and ate in the subway on the way to a play-- they moved next door to a bigger place, but the pizza is still terrific, John's Pizzeria (always reliable with a cheap but good house wine and a big salad and a location in Times Square), Joe's Pizza for a right-out-of-the-oven slice, and Carnegie Deli (we got the meat platter with pastrami, corned beef, and brisket, enough for the 2 of us and sandwiches for our plane the next day. I went to Katz's my last trip and I vote for Carnegie's pastrami.
I went on a mini Momofuku spree with lunch at Momufuku Ssam Bar and dinner at the Noodle Bar. I had the Ssam roast duck lunch plate with an added green onion pancake. I got there soon after it opened so it was not crowded and very pleasant to sit at the bar eating excellent duck and sipping a nice Loire red. Dinner at the Noodle Bar was more of a challenge. Very good food but a noise level to cause nausea. The famous pork belly bun, a superb grilled octopus saute, and the momofuku ramen with pork, pork belly, and an egg were all great to eat. I wanted to try the soft serve for dessert, but Sheila had had enough of the bruit, so we left. The other new discovery was Coppelia, a Cuban place on 14th, with a large, reasonable menu, like a good NY coffee shop. Great fried yucca, decent calamari, a perfect roast pork sandwich, and green plantains made for a satisfying meal before an ever-wonderful walk along the High Line.
Many years had passed since I went to a few old favorites I returned to this trip. Junior's in Brooklyn features really incredible cheesecake. We shared a pastrami sandwich with it, which was so so. Service was great tho and the place has a real classic feel and very good cole slaw, pickles, and beets. Eating in the tavern area at Gramercy Tavern offers an excellent meal at half the price of the restaurant with superb service. The prix fixe is 4 courses at $48 and featured black bass with spring onions, a soft-shell crab sandwich, bavette steak with fingerling potatoes, and a delightful strawberry shortcake. You can get a drink pairing for $20, which in this case was 3 excellent ales and an Italian white for dessert. Their wine list is enormous with some fine choices by the glass, including the always exceptional Turley Zinfandel.
It had been probably 15 years since we ate at Le Bernardin, but they recently remodeled and it still is at the top of all ratings (recent 4*s in NY Times after we made our reservation) so we decided to go for the "more reasonable" $70 lunch. Yevgeny Kissin was there too after he too received a glowing review in the Times. The place is beautiful and service is excellent, a little but not too much hovering. Choices are many for each of the first 2 courses and desserts all sound good. I would have preferred to forego dessert and have 3 courses of the seafood specialties. I had a wonderful fresh thinly pounded yellowtail served over a toasted baguette slice with fois gras, chives and olive oil--simple and perfect. Sheila had marvelous raw fluke in a jalapeno-lime brroth, sublime. Her entree of beautiful Arctic char with truffled peas was the best dish we had; my roasted monkfish was delicious but not as otherworldly as the char. Sorbets for dessert were lovely and a raspberry melange with cake and ice cream was very nice. Really wonderful butter cookies were a final treat. We had a delicious Montagny, at $65 about the cheapest wine on a formidable list.
And now for bagels. NY bagels are just the best. I love the giant pumpernickel ones at Ess-a-Bagel especially filled with chive cream cheese and Nova lox. Staying in Brooklyn, tried several there and decided Bergen Bagels on Flatbush and Bergen is the best. I tried their other store on Myrtle, for some reason not as good. Le Bagel Delight is fine, Fulton Bagels, fairly new on the scene but nicely chewy, and Brooklyn Bagel Works on DeKalb was OK. Amazing to be in a place where there are 5 bagel places within 3 blocks. Ahh, New York, what a wonderful town.

noreply@blogger.com (Ned Himmel) — Tue, 05 Jun 2012 19:05:00 +0000

East Coast Rapture
Just came back from a 3 city East Coast eating/viewing/walking tour. I'll divide the blog into 2 parts: Washington D.C. and Philadelphia and then New York City.
Washington has become a much finer food city than I remember. We came for a fabulous wedding that we surrounded with some great meals. The 2 favorites were Obelisk and Thai Xing, both prix fixe but opposite dining experiences beyond the spectacular food at both. Thai Xing is a true hole-in-the-wall with only a tiny sign way out on Florida Street. It's $30 for 6 courses of distinctive, homey Thai pleasures. Starting with a stuffed cucumber soup, ending with fresh mango with sticky rice, each dish was a pleasure. Beef, fish, chicken, prawns, and squash and pad see ew were the stars of the dishes in between. BYOB, which you should remember to do cuz a liquor store is not easy to find in this semi-dicey area. The other great meal was at Obelisk in Dupont Circle. Another multi-course extravanganza at $75, which is a pretty good deal. Wines are quite high but it's a good list of atypical Italian choices. Obelisk features 3 choices for primi, secondi, and desserts, but everybody gets the same feast of antipasti along with terrific homemade breadsticks. Ours included garlicky prawns, eggplant crostini, burrata, canneli beans and prosciutto. really got the taste buds working. For the next courses, the 4 of us picked the top-sounding one and ordered 2 of those and then 1 of each of the others. Very nice agnoletti in brodo, ravioli, and tagliatelle. Main courses included veal chop for 2 (done perfectly), quail, and sea bass, everything done nicely. Entrees were followed by a cheese course, which I believe makes one feel less full, but others believe it's the theory of a fool. We then shared light desserts of chocolate, gelato, and fruit. The place is not fancy or pretentious, the focus is on great eating and service was comfortable and responsive.
Other restaurants in DC were no slouches either. Lunches at Zaytinya and Rasika were both delicious and reasonable. Rasika is one of the best Indian places I've ever been to and their fried spinach dish (palak chaat) is the best Indian dish ever. Sit in the bar area if you can't get a reservation-- same menu and very comfortable. Very nice wines by the glass. Zaytinya is also very popular and pretty loud, but the food is delicious. We were there for Saturday brunch and enjoyed the Lebanese French toast soaked in orange blossom custard with dried cherries, perfect grilled octopus over smashed potatoes with turmeric making them very yellow, and giant beans with kale. The fried calamari was OK.

Philadelphia has also improved greatly in the food arena. For our classic Philly treat, we had a brisket sandwich from Dinic's in the Reading Terminal Market. They were out of my chosen pulled pork but the brisket was tender and delicious and generously served with BBQ sauce. So many choices in the Market, it was not an easy decision, but ended up being a good one. We had a decent French breakfast at Parc, a lovely Parisian-style brasserie looking out on Rittenhouse Square. When we first sat down at our window table, a large delivery truck pulled up to block the view and spew exhaust, but it left soon and all was pleasant afterwards, although my hot chocolate took a long time to come. My eggs and potatoes were done just right. A very enjoyable dinner in spite of a very obnoxious server was had at Garces Trading Company on Locust Street, one of chef Jose Garces's well-regarded restaurants. This one is also a market with many types of olive oils and vinegars and house-made charcuterie. Our server let us know that she has worked at all of his restaurants and is a very good friend. Who cares? There is great care in the food, from olives through cheeses, charcuterie, pastas, an excellent pizza, scallops, duck, brussel sprouts, duck fat-fried frites, and desserts, all part of the $40 chef's tasting. We got the $20 wine pairings with 4 nice pours.
A higher level of Italian cuisine was enjoyed at Il Pittore on Sansom St, a fairly new star in the STARR group of restaurants, of which Parc is also part. Fairly expensive but very good and serving wonderfully cold water. Not sure why that impressed me so, but it did, as did my primo of poached lobster and entree of corzetti, pasta coins with braised goat, mint and chili oil. All pastas are made in-house. The arugula salad was nothing special, but the suckling pig as an entree was superb. We shared a Pinot Noir from Northern Italy, which was perfect with all courses. Gilato for dessert was a perfect ending.

2012 begins...

noreply@blogger.com (Ned Himmel) — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 20:21:00 +0000

High expectations as we celebrated our son's 30th birthday at Locanda, the new Valencia Street sister restaurant to Delfina. Delfina's is one of my favorites and I've heard many raves for the very-hard-to-get-reservations-to Locanda. Someone I trust had said the day before it's her new favorite. I wish I could say the same, but cannot. Service was very good with excellent explanations of each dish, although sometimes it took too long to have dirty dishes removed and as a nitpick, they served us 4 the same amount of "complimentary" pizza bianca as the couple next to us), but after trying 10 dishes, none of us was thrilled. The stars were the lamb's brains with artichokes, the Jewish-style artichokes, and the crecenza tortelle with black mushrooms. The fried duck egg, pizza bianco with bone marrow, and cuscini with burrata and gulf shrimp were very good but not life-changing, and bringing us down to earth were chilled nervetti (beef tendon) and the radiatore with lamb and pecorino. We did not get an entree but had a side of smoked mash potatoes, which only I appreciated. One dessert was outstanding, the ricotta fritta, and the date and almond tart had a very nice crust. It kept getting more and more crowded (we could only get a 5:30 reservation) and more and more loud, with the bar scene really hopping. We did have an excellent 2009 Rati “Ochetti” Nebbiolo, which at $47 was one of the cheaper wines, but rich and smooth and it went well with everything.

Our comparison for Locanda was Perbacco where we celebrated our daughter's birthday in October. Although it ended up costing more, with 2 bottles of wine, it was more satisfying and a more pleasant setting. Prices for pastas are similar at both, between $12-$20, although at Perbacco you can get primo or secondo portions. And Perbacco still offers matches. I love matches, harder and harder to find! Perbacco, located on California Street, next to Tadich Grill, focuses on Northern Italian cuisine. It's a much bigger restaurant with a much longer menu than Locanda. Our gluten-free daughter was able to enjoy quite a few dishes and the server brought her de-bread crumbed burrata. Standouts were vitello tonnato, gnocchi, pappardelli with short ribs, their justifiably famous tajarin (tagliatelle with 5-hour pork sugo), porchetta and scallops. Dishes are seasonal, so the menu does change, and the fruit desserts will be different depending on when you go. As it should be.

We've now had 2 good dinners at Gather in Berkeley. Many find their menu too politically correct, but it's great to have a restaurant that features excellent vegetarian/vegan/gluten-free choices along with a marvelous hamburger and good pizza. Very seasonal. They offer a large salad selection, veggie charcuturie with 4 or 5 choices, 4 different pizzas, and 5 or so entrees. Nice wine list including a couple of quite decent wines by the tap. Nice room, great restrooms, a little loud, good and friendly service. I'd return.

Dol Ho is my favorite dim sum house in Chinatown. Returned recently (a gift from my son) and had 2 new dishes. Their pork meatballs were light, moist, tasty almost like a mousse. I don't
know the name of the other dish, but it was shrimp paste, black mushroom, and fresh miso wrapped in rice noodles. Yummy. 3 people, $20. More yummy. Also brought home great BBQ'd pork, wonderfully seasoned fried chicken wing legs, and green beans with chicken from New Daisy on Stockton for $11. A family dim sum feast was held at Dynasty in Cupertino. The highlight dish was a whole Hawaiian papaya filled with seafood soup. Their mango rolls are teriffic, as really all their dim sum are. It's a huge, filled place and a find for the suburbs.

Gourmand quick tour of Los Angeles

noreply@blogger.com (Ned Himmel) — Tue, 06 Sep 2011 02:53:00 +0000

Returned from a Los Angeles movable feast fatter, but content. Here are the elements of my contentment... Our first meal after arrival was Langer's, at 7th and Alvarado, where we groveled at the altar of the great pastrami god. Thick-sliced meat so tender and flavorful piled high (but not too high) on thick double-baked rye. Many people order it with cole slaw on the sandwich, but we are purists and the cole slaw has bell pepper in it, shame, shame. Had a refreshing egg cream with extra soda water for a fully traditional experience. BTW, the rye comes from Fred's Bakery on Robertson. I called before we left and brought home a couple of excellent loaves. A sick friend changed our plans some for the evening, but we still had an excellent meal at Yujean Kang in Pasadena. It's kind of a fusion Chinese and yet it's not! Make sense? They create variations on classic Chinese dishes but very Chinese. Highlights were the veal with matchstick yams, the Chinese polenta with shrimp and mushrooms, and silk squash Beijing style. Combination of flavors and texture were great and unusual. The tiny dumplings were nothing special. They're famous for their beef tenderloin but amazingly they were out of beef on a Thursday evening.

The next day allowed us to explore Italian headliners. Lunch at Pizzeria Mozza could not have been better. Fried squash blossoms stuffed with ricotta, arugula salad, pizza margherita (simple is best) and butterscotch budino left us plenty satisfied but able to have a great dinner that night at Campanile. Friday nights is wine pairing night, where 3 tapas-sized dishes are paired with 3 glasses of wine for $38. Grilled shrimp and sweet potato was paired with a Sancerre, Grilled pork belly paired with a Santa Barbara Pinot Noir, and lobster mushroom with bigoli pasta and kale was paired with a really wonderful 2001 Barbaresco. We had another glass of that. We finished with an excellent cheese cake and a highly recommended but not ethereal peach tarte tatin. Campanile does not rest on its laurels and has different theme nights during the week so one can always try something new.

Saturday was international day. Breakfast was at Nickel Diner, a perfect new downtown LA institution. Pulled pork hash was meaty, nicely spicy, mixed with perfectly cooked potatoes and topped with 2 perfect eggs. I had my Zocor the night before. Two eggs baked on polenta with spinach and garlic topped with parmesan made a defining breakfast, everything cooked to perfection and balanced. A shared maple bacon doughnut, housemade with brioche dough put the diner on our must return list. Food friends picked us up at our hotel to share a few favorites. We began with great Peruvian ceviches and causa (potato salad) from Mo-chica and added interesting panuchos (a Yucatan papusa) from Chichen-Itza. I prefer papusas, but the ceviches were first-rate. A driving tour of the San Gabriel Valley Chinese cornucopia made a stop at 101 Noodle Express, a totally nondescript place in a mini-mall in Alhambra, for perfect dumplings and an incredible beef roll, kind of like a Chinese quesadilla with thinly sliced beef, hoisin suace, ciliantro, and onion. No description equals the eating pleasure of it. Wow. And then onto dinner at Park's BBQ in Koreatown, where we could not quite finish exquisite marinated galbi (short ribs), prime ribeye, and assorted mushrooms accompanied by classic renderings of Korean banchan. Go with the marinade. The servers stay in charge of the BBQ, but got a little sidetracked and did some overcooking, but still very tasty. And valet parking in another mini-mall lets you know it's an in-spot. By this point, even I had had enough and my Zocor was calling me back to the hotel.

Before our plane left the next morning we stopped at an old favorite, the Apple Pan, with its excellent hickory burger and apple pie. Thinking of what I ate the day before, I passed on the fries. The place is so wonderfully consistent and charming and you feel you're in on great insider information eating there. An excellent wrap up to good LA eats.

Below are a few of my favorites for your dining pleasure.

Sancho's, 491 Lytton Ave. Sancho's has the best fish taco and their other food is good too. The fish taco is $3.95 which seems like a lot but one taco with the free chips is enough for lunch. They will soon open another location in Midtown next to CVS.

Whole Foods Market-I've been able to do the salad/hot dish bar for $5-6. I go for heavier food that by itself would cost more than the $7.99 lb, so salad toppings like salmon, teriyaki chicken. I don't add plain salad or if I do I get it from the fresh veggies area where it's $6/lb. I'm cheap but thoughtful.

Paxti's-441 Emerson --Chicago style pizza, deep-dish. One piece for $4.99 is quite filling. Takes a while as it's made fresh, so order, do a task, and come back.

China Delight--461 Emerson-generous lunch plates with soup are $5.50-$6.00 and quite decent with a nice selection.

Rangoon--565 Bryant Street-Burmese and Chinese food with lunch specials from $5.95. Nice variety including a few Burmese specials like the coconut chicken noodle soup add an exotic touch.

Mi Pueblo--1731 East Bayshore, EPA-a great Mexican grocery with the best tortilla chips. Always some free samples. Sometimes on Fridays (I'm not sure when else), they have fresh or BBQed oysters for $1 each. 3-4 of those with a fresh tamale ($1.49) is a great $5 meal. They also have a very large prepared food counter and large burritos and tortas.

SF, Berkeley, and San Jose misc.

noreply@blogger.com (Ned Himmel) — Mon, 05 Sep 2011 00:17:00 +0000

I always enjoy returning to a favorite restaurant or cuisine and finding it as memorable as I remember. We recently had lunch at Kabul in Burlingame and the joys of Afghan food were happily made apparent. I love aushak, the Afghan leek ravioli with a meat mint and yogurt sauce; these were cooked like in a fine Italian restaurant, just enough give in the texture, each bite better then the last. We also had a vegetable sampler, featuring the fantastic pumpkin ( kadu) sweetly contrasting with fresh yogurt, sabsi (fresh spinach with onons, garlic, and assorted spices) and bodenjan, soft eggplant with onions, tomatoes, and herbs. All were served with challow, perfectly cooked rice, each grain independently clustered together. A combination kabab platter, with perfectly cooked chicken and lamb with an herbed pallow (browned rice) rounded out a perfect meal for Lisa who had just finished a half-marathon and craved meat. Salad with a very nice dressing and freshly made, yeasty Afghan bread accompanied.
Have the glory days of Chez Panisse passed? I'd say no. We celebrated our 32nd anniversary with lunch at the cafe of this 40 year old icon, and although not everything was perfect, some things were spectacular. We toasted each other with glasses of Agrapart et Fils Blans de Blanc Champagne and ate our first courses. The little gems salad was just OK, but the heirloom tomatoes tonnato salad was wonderful-- an herby mayonnaise whipped with tuna proved a perfect foil for tomatoes at their peak with Thai basil leaves. A main course pizza with bresaola and grilled squid with beans and Gypsy peppers was amazing and I'm not a big pepper fan, or I didn't use to be. we shared a lovely chocolate mousse for dessert, leaving Berkeleyized and content. Then we got to buy some cheese rolls and baguettes from the Cheese Board, always a treat. I remember walking by Chez Panisse in 1974 and reading the menu and drooling and thinking I'd never be able to afford the $6.95 meals, so lucky me to not pass out paying $160 for a lunch for 2.
Another notch in my fried chicken belt was made at Criolla Kitchen at 2295 Market. The 3 piece chicken wirh red beans and rice and salad for $13.95 was tasty, crispy, and cooked just right. A touch salty. A daily special of BBQed pulled pork po-boy was delicious as were the BBQed oysters to start. Very nice service, a good amount of noise, a simple well-selected wine list with all bottles I think being $27. Speaking of noise, we had a marvelous dinner at Serpentine on 3rd and 22nd in Dogpatch. It's loud but the cocktails are terrific (the best Manhattan I've had) and the food is fresh and well-executed. A beautiful little gem salad with sliced nectarines and spectacular chickpea flour-coated calamari combined with a bean stew got us off to a great start. We followed with a terrific burger and fries and a perfectly cooked and tender pork chop.
A couple of good San Jose downtown lunch spots have opened since I retired in 2009, although several others have closed. Punjab Cafe at 322 E. Santa Clara near 7th has an excellent Indian buffet for $8.95. There are about 8 choices served with a fabulous wheaty naan. All meats are very tender and each item has its own integrity, with delicious sauces good by themselves. The place is very small and sometimes you have to wait. Punjab is 2 doors from A & K Noodle House, on Santa Clara and 7th and was I excited to find it. It's run by the nephew of China Chen, my favorite downtown soup place and is just as good. Their shrimp won ton soup is spectacular, just a simple broth with beautiful whole slightly spiced prawn won tons for $5.75. It's nicer looking than its mother ship too.

Acquerello and other fine eats

noreply@blogger.com (Ned Himmel) — Tue, 23 Aug 2011 00:31:00 +0000

The best meal we've had recently was dinner at Acquerello, San Francisco's finest Italian restaurant, which I think is saying a lot in itself. The only unpleasantness is leaving a credit card for the reservation, but after that everything is perfect. The entry and dining room had been remodeled since I last was there (a few years ago) and it is a wonderful space. Filling a former chapel, it is elegant, quiet, and comfortable. Warmly welcomed, as we were seated we were offered a black napkin if we were worried about white lint. I noticed that some tables had little seats for women to put their purses on. We were given an orange juice, melon, and bitters refresher to help us settle in.
An incredible amuse gueule of a small arancino with a little dollop of truffled mousse was served after we ordered. It was perfection. We ordered a lovely Roero Arneis to begin and then followed with a beautiful Petrolo Sangiovese, the best I've ever had. They were 4 of us so that's just 1/2 bottle each! Both were around $80, which is high for me, but on the low-end here with an encyclopedic selection of the very best in Italian wines, and both were worth it. They have 2 wine rooms which one is welcome to enter.
Dinners can be ordered in 3, 4, or 5 courses as well as a chef's tasting menu. We all had the 4 courses at $78. Again, for the quality, prices are more than fair. Starters included a Parmesan budino on sauteed mushrooms, a perfect combination of taste and texture, smoked sturgeon over parsnip puree, just smoky and salty enough to honor, not overwhelm the fish, and grilled lambs tongue, deliciously chewy and flavored.
Second courses included a nicely stuffed ravioli of lamb shank, a baby squash risotto with squash blossoms, and a ridged pasta with a foie gras and truffle sauce. OMG, each was balanced and celebrated the ingredients. Main course highlights were a beautiful lamb tenderloin, a filet of dorade, and pancetta-wrapped scallops. Once again, the ingredients sparkled, the tastes exploded, happiness abounded.
The dessert that for me encapsulates the whole Acquerello experience is the house-made vanilla gelato with 25-year old Balsamic, and in season strawberries. It is very simple but each ingredient is perfect, and each bite ethereal. They also offer a beautiful cheese selection, which 2 of us took advantage of.
Service throughout the meal was perfect, replacing napkins if you got up, serving warm bread when needed, dishes coming at the same time but not French Laundry pretentiously. I had asked the sommelier to write down the names of the wines we had. An envelope was waiting for me as we left with an embossed card with the names. Acquerello is such a bastion of good taste and service, may it thrive forever. Multi grazie!

A few other recent great dining experiences include finally having food from the Chairman Bao food truck. Palo Alto now has a Monday night food truck gathering at Edgewood Plaza, which is fun to try. The greatest single item was the pork belly steamed bao, rich, flavor-packed, and sooo tender. Yummers. Another highlight was the bundt cake with strawberries from Butterscotch-on-the-Go. They had just run out of their famous-- and still untried-- butterscotch pudding, but this was a great substitute. We had dinner at Liaison in Berkeley before a great performance of Let Me Down gently by Anna Deveare Smith. Service was not great, but the weekday prix fixe of 3 courses and a glass of wine for $32 was quite nice. It started with a mixed green salad, followed with veal scallopine, and then ended with a fruit tart. Evrything was tasty and portions were pretty large, especially considering the price. Made it to ZeroZero on Folsom in San Francisco and I'd happily return. A happening place with a busy bar scene, the food is better than it has to be. Excellent thin pizzas, fresh salads, and wonderful appetizers like their albacore crudo with tomatoes and stone fruit and incredible stuffed squash blossoms, made for a reasonably-priced, high-quality, delicious dinner. We recently returned to A16 in the Marina after a long absence. The pizza there is also truly great and it would be a mistake to go there and not order at least the Margherita. Starters of roasted and raw figs, arugula and frisee salad were perfect while lovely burrata was slightly overwhelmed by the sea salt on top. A piccheri pasta was also too salty from the mullet bottarga on top, but the interesting fregula,a couscous-like grain, was delicious. Wine choices are excellent, but service was a little unresponsive. The server gladly agreed to things, like bringing bread, but didn't! Dinner was followed by an evening of improv at BATS, always a pleasure even when perfection is not reached.

Return to New York and some great eating

noreply@blogger.com (Ned Himmel) — Fri, 17 Jun 2011 22:35:00 +0000

It had been too long, almost 2 years, since my last trip to New York. As soon as I finished my interim director gig in Palo Alto, Sheila and I did the redeye, arriving in NYC at 7 AM. First stop on way to our friends' apartment in Brooklyn was La Bagel Delight, a mini-chain, with good plump, nicely chewy bagels, albeit an awful name. We had arrived! Trying to discover the best Brooklyn bagels became a quest. Our favorite bagels and the ones we brought home were from Bergen Bagels, on Bergen at Flatbush, just a few degrees better than La Bagel Delight. Great scallion cream cheese too. A smaller, crispier crust bagel can be found at Bagel Hole, which many think is the best, but they don't last as well. I also had a decent pumpernickel bagel from a new place on De Kalb, Brooklyn Bagel Works. I missed all my favorite Manhattan bagels, except for a stop at Kossar's Bialy, where I was horrified by a stale and bready plain bagel (no pumpernickels available of which I have fond memories), and a lousy bialy, both ending up in a trash can. Quel horreur and shame on them.
I did have an admirable pastrami sandwich from the great Katz's after disposing of the Kossar's travesties, which put me in a better Lower East Side frame of mind. But I was disappointed in the pickles, either too well-done or not done enough.
My other ever-vigilant NYC search besides bagels is pizza and we had some great ones. A dependable slice from Joe's in Greenwich Village paled compared to the Regina Margherita from Keste's Pizza and Vino on Bleecker Street. A truly incredible Neopolitan masterpiece crust with buffalo mozzarella, simple tomato sauce, peeled tomatoes, and basil. Heavenly. A pizza insalata, a pizza dough roll filled with arugula with proscuitto and artichoke heart slices, was an excellent companion. They have an interesting wine list and are open for lunch.
A very, very fine pizza lunch was also had at Motorino in Williamsburg. A $12 prix fixe lunch inlcudes a lovely mixed salad and a pizza of your choice. We had the Margherita (regular but excellent mozzarella), and the soppressata, both good-sized, crispy, but chewy crust, and defintley worth a visit. There's a branch in the East Village. We also had a great slice of pizza bianco from Grandaisy Bakery on Sullivan Street, a simple focaccia with salt and rosemary. The bakery makes incredible lemon-ginger cookies. We had to visit Eataly, the new Italian food emporium, where we had the excellent daily pizza special, 2 slices of speck and mozz. calzone, 2 slices of buffalo mozz, and 2 of arugula, and a beautiful mixed salad.
A favorite NYC avocation is eating at fine restaurants at lunch, when prices are much lower. We always eat at Gotham Bar and Grill and are always satisfied. 3 courses are $31 includng their sublime and wonderful chocolate cake. Their salads are always freshly beautiful, on this day a mesclun for me and beet for Sheila. I had the hangar steak with fingerling potatoes and Sheila had the Finnian haddock with a citrus foam. What a delighful hunk of meat mine was! Besides the cake, we had a very nice yuzu meringue tart. Both desserts had a piece of basil which added a nice flavor to both. For $29, we had amazing 3 course lunches at Del Posto. I paid a $10 supplement for Lydia's lobster salad as a first course and there was like a whole tail of lobster meat with tomato and celery in a light oil that emphasized the lobster. Sheila had tuna and raw veal "cubito", a tartare, with a caper mustard sauce. For entrees, I had beautiful orcchiette with lamb sausage, minted soybeans, and crispy morels, a really fine dish. Sheila had a nice skate with squashes in a broth. She was the adventurous one for dessert, ordering a sfera with celery and figs and celery sorbetto. I had the chocolate tortino with olive oil gelato and pistachios. The meal started with 3 amuse bouches, continued with 3 kinds of bread with butter or wonder of wonders, whipped lardo (like a sublime schmaltz), and ended with mini cookies and chocolates. The restaurant is very beautiful with tables far enough away from each other so it's pretty quiet, a nice jazz pianist, stools for ladies' purses, excellent service, and truffles when you leave. I'd go back.
The soft shell crabs at Oriental Garden in Chinatown came highly recommended so we had to try them. We always end up being disappointed in NY Chinese restaurants and it happened once again. The crabs were good, not great, in a "country" sauce that our neighboring table was raving about with their lobster. We then each had a giant oyster that was very good and the tofu with shrimp, good but not up to some we get here in the Bay Area at dim sum places. I also felt they were fried in not the freshest of oil.
I also usually avoid Mexican places here, but friends highly recommended Rosa Mexicano near Lincoln Center and we were not disappointed. Their guacamole is freshly made tableside and is delicious with fresh, crispy chips. At $14 it better be good. We had a daily special appetizer of smoked cauliflower with goat cheese and 3 types of mini corn tortillas and the tuna and shrimp ceviche. Their roasted poblano salsa is terrific. A very nice lunch.
I have always wanted to eat at an Alain Ducasse restaurant, but being so cheap, I was not sure I would, until I found Benoit, which has a $38 prix fixe dinner. This midtown restaurant was not very crowded and the reviews weren't overly positive, but we had a very good meal. I started with a twice-baked Comte souffle with a parmesan sauce. Yummers. And then followed with the skate in a caper sauce, which was excellent, and finished with a nice raspberry tart. Sheila opted away from the 3 courses and had a delicious lardon salad followed by a classic French onion soup. Everything was classically good in a beautful brasserie setting.
Another place I had always wanted to eat at was Keen's Steakhouse on W. 36th. St. and try the mutton chop. By myself, I ate in the bar and had a classic Manhattan while waiting for my bistro chop served with braised escarole and fresh rolls with perfect sweet butter. The chop was magnificent, toothy lamb with great texture and cooked perfectly. For dessert, I stopped at a Junior's and had their classic cheesecake to round a out a cholesterol-filled but tasty meal.
Lastly, a real Brooklyn treat was had at Abistro, a Senegalese restaurant in Fort Greene. It's BYOB so the check was an amazing $44 for a great meal for 2. We had the fried chicken, a breast beautifully cooked served over a sweet potato cake and collard greens with a deep, spicy, balanced sauce and the spicy salad with trout, a great balance to the chicken. Both were preceded by cod fritters with black-eyed peas served with salad. Nice to have new and wonderful food. Back at the apartment, we shared a piece of red velvet cake I bought at Cake Man Raven's on Fulton Street, a good balance of moist cake and fluffy frosting.
My love affair with New York remains strong.

New Mexico marvels

noreply@blogger.com (Ned Himmel) — Sat, 11 Sep 2010 23:42:00 +0000

Just returned from a lovely few days in New Mexico. Saw old friends in remote Carrazozo and then met up with Sheila in Albuquerque and on to Santa Fe and Taos. Sheila was there for the Asso. of Food Journalists annual conference. It's green chile season so had to partake as often as I could. An amazing sight is in front of grocery stores where people stand in line with bags of chiles waiting to have them roasted in a rotating drum. Then I guess they rush them home, chop em up and freeze them for using during the year.

The real highlight of the food conference is the taste of the host city. 8-10 chefs from the best restaurants make one of their signature dishes and one table hops trying them all. Last year in New Orleans was incredible but Santa Fe was pretty damn good. Highlights were sopapillas with ether pork, chicken, or chile/cheese from Atrisco Cafe and Bar, roasted baby pig over fresh market pickled salad from Boca, hamachi-wrapped tuna from Restaurant Martin, and quesadillas from Zia Diner. The dessert from Terra at Encantado resort in Tusuque was sublime, a cherry compote on meringue. The night before we had dinner at Terra, a really beautiful restaurant in a beautiful resort, which ended with a cherry tart that blew my socks off. A top ten all-time dessert--wonderful crust with marinated cherries bursting with deep, rich flavor-- simple yet sublime. Sheila's scallops with pork belly was also terrific as were the fresh-made biscuits.
We had excellent breakfasts at Zia Diner and Tia Sophia and can recommend any dish with green chiles. I also returned to a breakfast favorite, Tecolate Cafe, while Sheila was at the conference. Huevos rancheros were great, altho the potatoes could have been crisper. They serve fresh made muffins including an excellent corn one. I also returned for the incredible green chile cheese burger at Bobcat Bites, my 3rd visit. What a great burger, 9 oz. of cooked to order freshly ground chuck! It's 10 miles south of town in a seemingly desolate spot, but once you taste the burger, you find yourself in burger heaven. It's very small so go at off hours. When I was driving from Southern NM up to Albuquerque I had a chile cheeseburger at Manny's Buckhorn Tavern in San Antonio, voted the 7th best burger in the US and winner of a throw down with Bobby Flay. Good it was but Bobcate Bites eats it alive.
Our favorite dinner was at Boca, a tapas place in Santa Fe, where we celebrated our anniversary. A daily special was grilled peaches wrapped in serrano ham with melted Mahon cheese, which was divine. Anchovies, superb fingerling potatoes, and skewered pork were also special. The chef gets his padrone peppers from Happy Quail Farms right here in East Palo Alto!
Other restaurant highlights were Orlando's in Taos, a low-key family-run enchilada palace north of town and the classic El Paragua in Espanola, another family-run excellent restaurant with a fantastic Enchilada Suprema, a giant chicken enchilada with red and green chile sauce, lots of cheese and sour cream and lovely sopapillas. And I could not leave Santa Fe without buying some red chile sauce from The Shed and bringing some healing dirt from Chimayo.

Feeling the bread between my teeth

noreply@blogger.com (Ned Himmel) — Fri, 14 May 2010 17:57:00 +0000

I would have to say I'm not a major sandwich person. Generally I can take 'em or leave 'em, but here are some examples of recent Bay Area sandwich explorations that are worth knowing about and taking. Ike's Place, the new and controversial extraordinarily popular SF sandwich place now has an outpost in Redwood Shores and soon at Stanford. Each sandwich is made to order so the lines are often due to people waiting for the sandwich they ordered to be ready. They come out warm on a just rightly crisp roll (your choice, but most prefer the Dutch crunch). I had the justifiably famous Menage-a-trois ($8.98), with Halal chicken breast, honey, honey mustard, BBQ, pepper Jack ( substituted regular jack), Swiss, Smoked Gouda. Great texture, flavors blending into a semi-messy whole. Sheila had the pizzle, chicken with bacon and cheddar, also terrific ($6.96). There's no place to sit right at Ike's located in a non-descript office building, but right outside is a pristine Shores park, perfect for a nice day picnic.

When I worked in San Francisco, a reliable treat was the roast chicken banh mi from Saigon Sandwiches on Larkin. Nine years later and it's still true. $3.50 buys a perfectly crispy French roll filled with nice chunks of flavorful chicken pieces, shredded carrots, cilantro, peppers if desired, and caressed with fish sauce. The roast pork and pate are also good. Often a line.

The Mexican torta is one great sandwich and two of the best are: La Casita Chilanga in Redwood City and Mexico Bakery in San Jose. Chilanga has a few more choices and other Mexico City specialties besides tortas. I had the tesorito ($6.25), smoked pork leg, which is like a combination of bacon and prosciutto, with lettuce, avocado, and other fixins, large and filling. Fresh thin chips and salsa are free. At Mexico Bakery, which also offers a very decent Oaxaca tamale and a great pound cake with chocloate frosting, I had the milanesa torta, thin slices of pan-fried beef with avocado, tomato, lettuce, chilies, and mayo. Freshly made and delicious. The chicken torta is similarly thin sliced and pan-fried.
A new place in Sunnyvale that looks like it's aiming to become a chain is Adamson's French Dip, that brings new appreciation to an old classic. The Prime Rib dip at $8.95 is nice-sized and filled with medium rare slices of real prime rib. It was better than the BBQ tri-tip at $6.95. A root beer float was the perfect accompaniment. It's a small menu, but everything is cooked with attention.
Lack of time kept me from retrying two all-time favorite sandwiches but I'll still mention them: The Italian meatball at Mario's Bohemian Cigar Store in Washington Square and the Godfather at Redwood City's Woodside Deli.

Oaxaca wonders and Portland ports in the storm

noreply@blogger.com (Ned Himmel) — Tue, 13 Apr 2010 04:23:00 +0000

Oh my, I found this is my half-written posts so finished up to post.

Portland, Oregon is a lovely city that seems to get better each time I go. I love the public transportation and the walkability. Where else can you get right from the airport door to the middle of downtown for $2.30? The food there is always improving too. I just was there for the Public Library Association conference and did not have all that much time to discover dining pleasures but I did manage to have a few good meals and treats.

Small treats: after a 35 minute wait I had the famous bacon and maple bar from Voodoo Donuts, the current must eat in Portland. I was not too impressed. Good, not great. A cinnamon crown from Pearl Bakery was a great way to start the day. I got there soon after they opened so smells and treats were fresh. I also had an excellent blueberry muffin from Great Harvest Bread Company.

Meals: An excellent lunch was had at Southpark Seafood Grill and Wine Bar. One of the fresh fishes of the day was sturgeon, beautifully grilled and served over a terrific bean puree with very fresh veggies ($16.50)The bread was great and excellent wines are to be had by the glass. I had a Loire white for $8.50 that was dry, loaded with flavor. As always, I had a terrific breakfast at Bijou Cafe, the oyster omelette, not cheap at $13.50 but superbly unusual. Potatoes were perfect and an apple cinnomon muffin was nice. Another homey star was Mother's where I indulged in a grilled gruyere and bacon sandwich with fries. Oh so good on the taste meter but maybe not on the cholesterol. Another not great on the cholesterol but nevertheless very enjoyable was a thick-sliced, nicely seasoned pastrami and chopped liver on rye at Kenny and Zuke's Delicatessen ($10.50)-- filling and surprisingly authentic for this pretty whitebread city. Another Portland treat, food for the mind over body is Powell's Bookstore; it's just a pleasure to be there. Kenny and Zuke's is just a block away. An excellent Bay Area kind of meal was dinner at Ping in Old Town, featuring modern takes on Southeast Asian. Starting with large well-filled Thai pork buns and moving on to green beans, salmon, and yam yai salad. The server forgot our fried little fish and grilled octopus skewers, but we left full and satisfied. I really would have loved to try the octopus but my other 3 companions were not, so just as well. Something to add to my list for my Portland visit.

OAXACA: Here are recommendations for the wonderful city and environs of Oaxaca. I went at the end of January so there may be some memory lapses but hopfully the sensory memories are still acccurate. Oaxaca is loaded with great food so every meal was good, but some stood out. Having exit visa problems I had to stay another night but that gave the opportunity to have breakfast at Itanoni in the Colonia Reforma, where I had the best hot chocolate and best chiliquiles of my trip. I'm not sure how you know about this place if a local didn't tell you, so I'm telling you, Go there.

Oaxaca is famous for their moles so I had to try them whenever possible. The best I had was in the weaving center of Teotitlan del Valle at Tlamanalli, which Rick Bayliss swooned over. So dark and rich and bursting with deep chili flavors. They also had the best guacamole. Prices are not cheap for Oaxaca, but worth the trip. We stopped there on the way back from the Sunday market in Tlacolula, a wonderful cornucopia of food, mescal, handicrafts and local people.

Someone gave us a tip to go for lunch at Los Danzantes, a really beautiful outdoor restaurant and considered one of the finest dining experience in Oaxaca city. Had a lovely tomato soup and fish entree at a very reasonable prix-fixe (about $15). Had a delicious dinner with very good drinks at another dining star, Biznaga, where the only menu is a large blackboard. Other highlights were several stops at street food places including incredible empanadas at the Merced Market.

European Ethnic Adventures

noreply@blogger.com (Ned Himmel) — Sat, 10 Apr 2010 03:59:00 +0000

When I first moved to the Bay Area in 1973, a reliable type of restaurant to get a large meal for a great price was Basque restaurants. San Francisco had quite a few offering 5 course meals for $5-6. Most have closed but there's still a fascinating example in South San Francisco, the Basque Cultural Center, where I recently had lunch. It's a huge place with banquet rooms and a pelota court and a big restaurant. A woman who looks like she's worked there for 50 years sat us down and gave us menus. The waiter brought fresh sourdough bread with sweet butter in little silver packages. The menu has both lunch and dinner on it and daily specials. We went for the specials. V. had pork loin with the daily soup (broccoli) at $11.95. The pork was lean and tender served with potatoes and veggies. I went for the veal short ribs served on polenta and the house salad. Both the veal and polenta were delicious, the veal tender as can be, balanced well with creamy polenta and a stewed tomato sauce. We both licked our plates clean. Most dinners are around $20 including soup and salad and vegetables and a starch and each night features a family style dinner(the classic Basque experience) with 2 entrees. It's not Piperade but it's a fun and fulfilling eating experience.

Have you ever noticed Russia House driving south on 101 on the hill opposite Candlestick? I've always been fascinated by the chandeliers and odd location and wondered who goes there? Now I know after a multi-course banquet with lots of vodka. Russians go there and they have a good time when there and seem to feel at home, whereas our group felt like we were visiting a foreign country. Which is exactly what I was hoping for. A Russian scholar friend made the reservation for 8 and was told when to come and how much it cost, but nothing more. We entered the huge, chandeliered dining room, past a long empty bar, and were directed to our table, totally covered with appetizer plates. The drooling began: fresh herring, smoked salmon, sturgeon, breaded shrimp, great chopped liver, potatoes, coppa, ham, tongue, eggplant. A nice bottle of Russian Standard vodka, soft drinks, and water. We ended up finishing one bottle of vodka and another was brought. Da, I was drunk but fortunately not the designated driver. Mushroom turnovers came fresh from the oven. We ate the appetizers for over an hour and a two-man modern folk Euro-Russian group played and sang.
People started to dance; we danced. Then a course of fresh pelmeni simply served with butter and dill. More music and dance. Main courses were rack of lamb and chicken with asparagus, roasted potatoes and onions. More music and dancing but much more difficult because we were so full. Fresh pineapple and strawberries for dessert. You have an odd view over 101 that feels like you're in a highrise overlooking a big city. One of the highlights of this Saturday night was when I went into the men's room, somewhat tipsy. There was a guy plastering the wall in the restroom! As I said, it was like being in a foreign country but that really did it. We left after 4 1/2 hours for $92 a person which ain't bad for all we got, besides assuaging my curiosity about the mystical Russia House. How great that we live in an area where this exists.

Indian lunch buffets and a few others

noreply@blogger.com (Ned Himmel) — Tue, 23 Mar 2010 05:36:00 +0000

My, the days pass quickly by and the blogging falls by the way side. I had a lovely week in Oaxaca and hope to write about the excellent eating there. But in the interim, here are some food notes on one of the great cultural eating experiences: Indian lunch buffets. I had been hankering for Indian buffets where I can fill up on lunch and not eat a whole dinner. I have notes on a few but will keep trying them so there will be additional posts in the future.

I just had an excellent meal at Turmeric in downtown Sunnyvale where $10.95 gets you great vegetarian and meat (mainly chicken) dishes and a few surprises. The menu says they have dinner buffet on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday for $12.95 which is really a great deal, if similar to lunch. The two most outstanding dishes were the pakoras (perfectly crisp) and the mango pudding for dessert (oh so smooth and tasty). Kadi pokadi (little dumplings in a fantastic yogurt sauce), stewed spinach and mustard greens, and chicken makhani were also wonderful, but nothing was bad and everything was plentiful.

Also excellent was Sakoon, one of the new fancy Indian places in downtown Mountain View. Beautiful furnishings and floors. I loved the floors! And a bounteous buffet for $12.95. Among the highlights were samosas, palak paneer, butter chicken, and an exquiste basil chicken. I love to at first try a little of evrything and then come back for the special dishes, but the offerings are so varied here that it's hard to have room to go back. It costs more than most buffets in the area but I thought it was worth it.

The cheapest but not the worst was Taj Palace on Blossom Hill Rd. in San Jose. $5!! No price posted so I was happily surprised to see the almost non-existent bill. They only offer about 8 dishes but a good balance of vegetables and chicken dishes. Nothing was outstanding but everything was decent. Decor is spare but all in all an incredible deal. It ws pretty full so it's no secret to budget-conscious families and others who realize they can have the big meal of the day so cheaply.

Darbar in downtown Palo Alto is reliably fine both for lunch and dinner. Their $9.95 lunch buffet has a good assortment of favorites, varying in spiciness. If the chicken vandaloo is offered, get some. Everything tastes fresh and usually refilled as needed. Janta, on the other hand, was a disappointment, with empty serving dishes and no refilling happening. The host said it had been especially busy and someone didn't show up for work, but I had much higher expectations and left very unsatisfied (full, of course, but unsatisfied) for my $9.95 lunch. The samosa was quite good.

New Saffron in Mountain View across from Lozano's Car Wash is worth a visit. It's been several different Indian restaurants in the past. Their $9.95 buffet is good, not great, but there's enough selection that everyone leaves satisfied. And there are meat as well as chicken dishes. A nothing decor but a good buzz in there. Across the street in the Village Court Center is Spicy Leaves with a $10.95 buffet. They also suffered from depleted serving platters that were slow to be refilled and a mediocre selection. They do offer a couple of Sri Lankan dishes, such as their dal, which makes it worth a try. They seem to not want to take a chance to put out food that won't be eaten but it makes the buffet look too meager for the price. Maybe it's a place better suited to ordering a la carte.

A month of eating notes

noreply@blogger.com (Ned Himmel) — Sat, 23 Jan 2010 22:19:00 +0000

Nothing ultra special since the last blog in early December except for another greal meal at Nopa for my son's birthday. But here are the highlights. Starting south, in San Jose, went to 2 Chinese places for lunch. One, Hong Kong Kitchen, on Monterey Road in the Edenvale Shopping Center, is incredibly cheap. A group of 9 went and each ordered a different lunch. Most were $3.60 with pretty generous portions. Honey Walnut Prawns were $6.50. Timing was not too good so we never got all the dishes but all left filled for $4 a person including tip. Food was really pretty decent. It recently changed hands and apparently was really good before.
Not too far away from there is Fat Wok, Snell and Santa Teresa, where I had the Tuesday lunch special of Honey Walnut Prawns for $6.50. Most lunches are $5.50-$6.25. The special included a wonton of crab ragoon besides egg roll. I really don't understand the attraction of crab ragoon but the prawns were very good. Atmosphere was pleasant and worth trying again. A third Chinese lunch experience took me to Jade Palace on California Avenue in Palo Alto, in a jinxed location near the Caltrain station. Nothing ever lasts there but I thought this had possibilities. They have a large menu and many items are available for lunch for $6.95 served with soup, rice and an appetizer, in my case a decent eggroll. I had the spicy fish filet with tofu and was able to take half of it home. Nicely spicy, delicate and fresh; a nice surprise since I assumed it would be a loser. They say they have dim sum too but didn't try and worry it's not busy enough to be really decent. But I'd go back to try more dishes.

In Campbell, I had a decent slice of pizza from Sal's Pizzeria on E. Campbell. Tasty, slightly crispy crust, good amount of cheese and just enough spinach (not soggy). One slice is 1/4 of a 19" pizza so it's huge and less than $6. It could feed 2 people. It's right by the entrance to Los Gatos Creek trail, so I happily walked and ate.

Finally made it to a couple of San Francisco places I've been wondering about for years. Cinderella Bakery on Balboa is a Russian icon. It's just been remodeled. It used to include a restaurant which isn't there any more. Not sure if it's coming but the remodeled bakery is open. They make Russian breads and pastry both savory and sweet. We tried a couple of sweet ones and I was not swept away. A cherry cheese roll was kind of blah, not enough of either and the pastry tasted a little too shortening-filled. A poppy seed sweet roll was better but nothing to shame the memory I have of my grandmother's baking. Near there on Geary is Brother's Korean BBQ, which is often the top rated BBQ in Zagat. I went for lunch where they do not offer the BBQ your own, but the food was quite tasty. My friend and I shared pork bulgogi and kim chee with beef and tofu, both $9.99 and including the usual Korean small plates. Both were nicely spicy with very different sauces. Simple decor and fast service. I think Santa Clara has better Korean food but worth a stop if you're in the area.

We had a really fine rainy day lunch at Fish in Sauselito. They serve only sustainable fish and organic vegetables. The white clam chowder was superb, one of the best I've had, and a tuna melt was great. They poach albacore from San Diego and serve a generous portion on grilled bread with a huge amount of really good fries. Prices are fairly high but you know the quality is high too. No frills but on a nice day, you would not only get top quality food but be at an amazing location right on the water. Service was friendly and efficient.

And to end with an excellent meal in San Francisco. First Crush on Cyril Magnin and Ellis, around the corner from the Hotel Nikko, home of the Rrazz Room where we saw Andrea Marcovicci, always a treat. A small place with an excellent wine list, offering 3 taste samplers of many interesting selections. Appetizers included very nice asparagus with Serrano ham and a stuffed delicata squash with fall vegetables. My coq au vin had some really terrific baby purple potatoes and cippolini onions. A generous portion of loch duart salmon was covered in a light horseradish sauce and served with chantarelles over potato gratin. Another great dish was the short ribs. It was part of Dine-Around so 3 courses were $35. Normally the appetizers run $9 and entrees $19-29. A great looking burger for $14 passed by. Spice cake and chocolate brownie were 2 really good desserts.

No hats off to Chapeau

noreply@blogger.com (Ned Himmel) — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 05:27:00 +0000

One of the most consistently satisfying dining experiences in SF has been at Chapeau. The restaurant was very small, very reasonably priced with excellent service and food. It was on Clement just west of Park Presidio and you could always get a parking space along the frontage road there. Chapeau recently moved to the former Clementine site on Clement and 2nd and we just had a disappointing dinner. The food was still great and prices remain most reasonable for the quality (3 course meal selected from the menu is $38), but basically the service stunk. The chef/owner was at the door to overly greet everyone. He shook my hand twice. When you leave, he bestows a kiss on the cheek of the ladies and heartily shakes the men's hands. What he wasn't doing was keeping an eye on the service and the movement of food. I was reminded of the old Le Cyrano on Geary where madame kept her eye on all aspects of the food and service. You felt you were in excellent hands. We did not feel the same at Chapeau. A majority of our party only ordered entrees so I expected the service to speed up for those of us ordering appetizers; it did not. Drinks were slow to come and it felt certain tables were getting better treatment. Once the food came, it was great, although I had to calm down a little from my waiting furor. The mussel soup was delicious, the skate wing beautifully presented with excellent flavors. Desserts are OK (we were comped a couple of desserts, which was nice but unfortunately did not make up for the evening's shortcomings). Monsieur deeply apologized for the lapses in service and said he would be talking to the staff the next day. I held back (until now) saying the problem was him since he was emphasizing affect over effect.

Palo Alto is now home to a Sancho's Taqueria and the world's best fish taco is right downtown. Sancho's started in Redwood City and became an instant success, soon moving to larger quarters. The owners also ran the taqueria in an East Palo Alto market, but have now switched to Lytton and Cowper in Palo Alto. Although they have most of the standard Mexican fare done satisfactorily, their fish tacos, either fried or grilled, are just superb ($3.95). 3 make a good meal for 2 people. The ceviche is also excellent and their chips and salsas are fresh and tasty. They use sustainable ingredients and biodegradable paper products, which is very commendable for their reasonable prices. I wish them lots of success.

A few more great San Francisco meals

noreply@blogger.com (Ned Himmel) — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 23:18:00 +0000

Had a rash (in a good way) of some fine SF eating. We had dinner last week at The Richmond, a small, chef-run dinner spot in guess where, the Richmond. On Balboa, near 7th, we met cousins for a 6 PM dinner and had no probem finding a parking space, although we hit lots of traffic getting there. Plus #1. A delicious amuse bouche of creamy leek soup left a nice mouth feel and opened the senses up for more. Plus #2. Shared appetizers of beet salad and ahi carpaccio were fresh and delicious and served with La Brea baquette and 3 kinds of butter. Bread was quickly replaced. Plus #3. Menu changes with what's fresh. Plus #4. Entrees included a chicken scallopini with chicken ravioli and a fresh Pacific cod with calamari. Entrees are all under $20 and just the right size. Plus#5. Service was excellent as were desserts, including an ethereal panna cotta. Plus#6. And a superb wine list, very reasonably priced. I want to come back and sit at the bar with a nice glass of red and order a burger with fries for $9.95!

We returned to Nopa Thanksgiving weekend and were thankful we did. Nopa is one of our favorite SF restaurants, reliably excellent and the service is always great. We know the owner- chef, but it's so great not to have to fake our enthusiasm for this restaurant. When we made our reservation we asked for a quiet table as it's noisy in there, but a few tables are under a balcony so you can hear your tablemates. Sheila calls it the senior section. We started with mussels (all open and very plump Penn Cove), flatbread with butternut squash, baked egg with tomato gratin, and litle fried fish. All superb. If you like pork, you must order their pork chop, consistently perfect, the best in the Bay Area. The lamb shank was also good but pales next to the pork; the swordfish was done perfectly. Warm chocolate cookies with sweet milk made a homey dessert and a thing I love about Nopa is you can get hot chocalate after dinner. I'm not a coffee drinker so it's quite a thrill having a rich, dark cup of cocoa. Vahlrona too! The wine list is superb, almost too long. Our server talked us into 2 great but for us pricey wines, an incredible white, Mathiessen sauvignon blanc-ribolla cialla-semillon, and an excellent red, a 1999 rioja from Lopez de Heredia. Both worth it and key parts of a great meal.

And now, presenting a fabulous breakfast, at Brenda's French Soul Food on Polk near Eddy. Small and mighty, Brenda's serves the best biscuit I have ever had and it came with a really fine hangtown fry(eggs, oysters, bacon), a daily special. The weakest part was a large serving of potato hash, but that would have been a star at another restaurant. Sheila had Bananas Fosters French Toast, another special, each under $10 (prices are great too), and it was wonderfully buttery and carmelly. I didn't try their beignets and hope to soon, although I may not be able to resist that incredible biscuit. A trip to the restroom takes you through the little kitchen, by Brenda cooking and past the biscuit and beignet stations. What a find!

And lastly, a good, cheap dinner in the Mission: Limon Peruvian Rotisserie, a sister to Limon which recently reopened on Valencia. This one's in a small corner buildng on So. Van Ness and 21st. The free-range rotisserie chicken is cooked perfectly and you know, there's nothing like a good roast chicken. A whole chicken is $16.95 including 2 large sides (we opted for excellent fried potatoes and sweet potatoes) and 2 dipping sauces. Our group of 4 also split a ceviche mixto, with prawns, halibut, and calamari (delicious) and an unusual but tasty ensalada de vegetales, cooked seasonal veggies in an orange/Dijon dressing. Also enjoyed the mango mojitos made with sake. We skipped dessert there and walked to Bi-Rite Ice Cream on 18th for my first taste of their famous ice creams. Wow! Salted caramel and brown sugar with ginger swirl both immediately entered my pantheon of great ice cream.

noreply@blogger.com (Ned Himmel) — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 03:18:00 +0000

I've been away now, but now I've come back home. A week in Japan with many culinary delights. Unfortunately I don't the name of most of them. We were lucky enough to go with friends who lived in Japan and knew places and we just followed and enjoyed. Here's what I remember. In Tokyo we had donburi from the restaurant that supposedly invented it in the late 18th century-- Tamahide! Fresh and delicious with only about 5 versions on the menu and only open for lunch. Great home-made noodles are to be had at Sanuki served with tasty appetizers like smoked tiny sardines and tofu salad. We went to the Tsujuki Market and had really incredible sushi at Daiwa at 6:30 in the morning with beer. I learned beer goes great with sushi. Our last dinner was at a wonderful kaiseki restaurant near Rappongi, Nanao. The first course of chawan (egg custard) with fish sperm sac was divine and each course after nicely balanced. The woman owner/chef was one of the first in Tokyo and has been in business 25 years.
In Kamakura, we had a delicous soba with tempura lunch at Nakamura-an. In Nara, we had terrific okonomiyaki, a new favorite dish, at Okaru. A homey pancake-omelet filled with seafood or assorted meat and vegetables is made on a tabletop griddle. In Kyoto, we had a nice meal in a private room at Mame-cha in the Gion district where we stayed in a lovely, small ryokan, Uemura. Mrs. Uemura serves a fantastic American or Japanese breakfast. We had lunch in Ryoan-Ji temple at a tofu restaurant, Yudofu Seigenin, beautiful setting, pure food.
Other food highlights were a great fish cake from the Kyoto market, roasted gingko nuts and chestnuts, yakatori, lots of miso soup. But I'm not wild about sitting on a tatami mat while eating-- so uncomfortable. At one restaurant we asked if they had chairs and they were so insulted, they turned us away. We also learned to love saki and the nice induced drunken state.

And now, back to home territory. A lovely day today to go to Half Moon Bay where I found myself returning to Mezzalune. Their Mezzalune Salad with home-made focaccia and a glass of wine makes a perfect lunch and I always find myself ordering it. Their pastas are nice too, but for $8.50, you get very fresh greens topped with lots of just cooked and cooled calamari, shrimp, salmon, and a scallop. A perfect seaside lunch.
I was very excited to take a walk around San Jose State and spot a Korean taco truck on 10th near San Carlos. They're the rage in LA. I had just bought a good lengua burrito from the old stand-by, Super Taqueria, but I knew I had to return to the truck and try it. So I did and got a bulgogi taco and one spicy chicken taco, each $2. Bulgogi BBQ has a sign that says 2 tacos for $4 (duh) or 3 for $5. They were both OK, no Wow factor and nothing to make me think what a great combination Korean and Mexican food make. The truck kitchen is very clean. They also serve burritos and burgers for $5. I enjoyed my lengua burrito more.

A breakfast to remember

noreply@blogger.com (Ned Himmel) — Sat, 31 Oct 2009 20:07:00 +0000

Whenever I have a really great breakfast, I want to immediately move to where that restaurant is. I want to be a regular so the staff know me and what I like and I know them. I just ate at Linda's Seabreeze Cafe on Seabright in Santa Cruz and I definitely want to move close to it. I had a perfect breakfast, the Scrambler for $7.50: 2 eggs scrambled with green onions, mushrooms, and cheese, served with home fries and a cinnamon roll (I chose that over a muffin). The eggs were done just right, ingredients balanced, not runny but a little soft. The potatoes, by which I always judge a breakfast place, were red potatoes cooked through and nicely crispy with lots of onion. I gobbled them up with the scramble and left the roll for dessert. It was filled with chopped pecans, very cinnamony but not over the top, layered and buttery and so satisfying. I also had a large glass of Odwalla orange juice for $2.50, pretty good these days. After this great breakfast I walked 2 blocks to the ocean where it was clear, sunny, but not too hot. Oh what a beautiful morning!

A few recent eatings

noreply@blogger.com (Ned Himmel) — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 00:12:00 +0000

I'm always looking for a place to shine in the Palo Alto-Mountain View area where mediocrity rules. Often the tops are Mexican places and I recently had a couple of excellent tacos at Mercado Marlen Taqueria, attached to a Mexican grocery on California near Showers. I only had $3 with me, but was able to get one tongue and one chili verde taco for $1.39 each. Both had lots of lean, tender, flavorful meat in 2 small corn tortillas with good texture. The place appears to be run by a mother and her 2 daughters and they keep everything clean and efficient. They have a fairly large menu for a small place. Burritos are $5. 50 and I'll have to come and try more. I did notice they have a breakfast burrito for $8.50 which seems pretty pricey.
I also recently stopped in at Dittmer's on San Antonio. I adore their paprika sausage and also like to get a couple of turkey, chicken, and/or duck legs which are nice to have around for a quick lunch or snack. Everything is of very high quality, it's family-run, and a food highlight of the mid-Peninsula.
Xanh's in Mountain View is a beautiful neo-Vietnamese restaurant on Castro that now has only a buffet at lunch, but it's one of the best deals around at $12. Almost all of the favorites from the dinner menu are there. Things are refreshed regularly and everything is good, some great, and it feels like healthy dining. Highlights were the fried chicken wings, 2 soups, short ribs, papaya salad, brown rice, catfish, and different rolls. Their excellent shaking beef and eggplant are not on the lunch buffet so it's worth coming back for dinner.
We met friends in San Francisco for a walk through the Presidio to take advantage of a beautiful day and see the Andy Goldsworthy tree tower. It and the view were really beautiful and the Presidio is a great place to explore. We wanted to stay near there for dinner and found a great Burmese/Chinese restaurant, Mandalay, on California. I had never been there but it's been around since 1984 and says it's the first Burmese restaurant in San Francisco. It's 2 blocks away from the wildly popular Burma Superstar, but service was friendlier and we found parking close by (maybe just lucky). Service was so friendly we felt like longtime patrons. We had excellent fish chowder, tea leaf salad, chicken with pumpkin (actually kambucha), eggplant in basil sauce and seafood in a basket. The last 2 were more Chinese than Burmese, but everything was fresh and delicious. For me a new discovery I'll go back to.

San Diego and Los Angeles remembrances and new roots

noreply@blogger.com (Ned Himmel) — Sat, 24 Oct 2009 20:31:00 +0000

The Hungry book tour took us to my hometown of San Diego and my school town of Los Angeles. Sampled old favorite haunts and new food discoveries. I love returning to Balboa Park and walking across the Spruce Street suspension bridge west of the park. We ate deep dish pizza slices from Lefty's Chicago Pizzeria in North Park. It's nice to be able to get slices of deep dish pizza and the sausage slice was very good. The spinach/mushroom less so, but 2 slices and a drink for $6 easily feeds 2. I've been hearing great things about Point Loma Seafoods for a long time and finally got there to enjoy a fresh fish sandwich, a delicious crab sandwich, and a soft-shell crab sandwich. The bun had too much bread for the soft-shell crab and I don't like red bell pepper in my cole slaw. It was a nice day so it's great to sit and watch the boats and enjoy fresh food. They have a great selection of smoked fish which we took to go. The other downside is they only take cash or checks.
We were going to go there one evening but they close at 6:30 and did not think we would make it, so we ended up at Cafe Athena in Pacific Beach with no regrets. Excellent Greek food in a pleasant setting with good service. Prices are very reasonable and portions are large. The fried calamari was excellent, the Greek salad fresh and satisfying with lovely pita (must be homemade). The moussaka's eggplant was well-cooked and the Bechamel sauce perfect. The Cretan Salmon was broiled just right and served with 2 incredible sides, spanaki lemonato (cold spinach) and skordalia (garlic with mashed potatoes). The Shrimp Scorpio, broiled large shrimp in a tomato-herb sauce, was delicious. For dessert we shared a perfect galacto-boureko, rolls of filo filled with custard and orange zest.
We had a good lunch at DZ Akins, a real delicatessan, which seems to expand each time I go. It's no Carnegie Deli, but it has very decent corned beef and brisket sandwiches and each table had a great bowl of pickles at different ripenesses. They have a huge menu so there's something for everybody. It's also fun to see the photos of what passes for celebrities in SD.
Before the book talk in La Jolla, we had an always delightful meal at George's Ocean Terrace. One feels on top of the world looking out over beautiful La Jolla Cove. We stick with appetizers and end up with a reasonably-priced, delicious meal. The chicken and bean soup has great depth of flavor, the roasted mussles are superb, the fish tacos are OK, and the salads are fresh and lovely. The cocktail and wine lists are good and service is pleasant,
The other fine meal we had was at Kensington Grill. It's in a part of town where I had several relatives living and always seemed dull, but now it's a great neighborhood. Their hamburger is about the best I've ever had and really puts the one at DB Bistro Moderne (see NY restaurants) to shame. Their macaroni and cheese is superb with just a hint of truffle oil, but richly cheesy wirh orchiette which provide the perfect vessel. Their bruschetta appetizer is a great idea-- your choice of 3 different global types served on baguettes, such as fresh mozzarella with tomatoes, smoked salmon, or pancetta and fava beans. The ribeye steak is perfect and all accompaniments are really good. Very nice wine list with an especially pleasant Vouvray by the glass.
We hit LA in time to have lunch at Tito's Tacos in Culver City, truly one of my all-time favorites. It has been the same since I first went there in like 1976 even though they moved 30 years ago. Always a line and most get tacos ($1.70 without cheese, which I prefer). They are fried and then filled with lettuce and yoou get a cup of this incredible salsa that just makes it come alive. I also love the meat only burrito with large chunks of tender meat in a rich chili sauce. They always give you lots of chips to dip in the salsa, but their guacamole is substandard.
After the booktalk in West Hollywood, a group of us went to Angeli Caffe on Melrose, owned by Evan Kleiman. We have her coobook, Mare. Their pizzas and pasta were great, especially the gnocchi. They serve an amazing pizza bread. That plus a salad would be a nice meal and I suspect their sandwiches must be great. We also had eggplant croquettes and aggplant rotinis, both excellent.
We cannot leave LA without stopping at Beverlywood Bakery on Pico. I adore their chocolate chip Danish, mandel brot, and corn rye. Their bagels, however, are awful, bready and dull. Sheila's gone there since childhood. We miss the old Jewish ladies who used to work there and always say, "What else? no matter how much you ordered.

New Orleans-- pig meets pig

noreply@blogger.com (Ned Himmel) — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 14:58:00 +0000

What a great place for the Assn. of Food Journalists conference, so I had to accompany Sheila to New Orleans. Early October is supposed to have the best weather, but alas, it sucked. Hot, hot, humid, rainy, humid, hot. Thank goodness for air conditioning as I did a lot of walking finding what I hoped would be an ultimate fried chicken. And that I did. Willie Mae's Scotch House is justifiably famous for their perfect, thick-crusted, tender-meated chicken. They have other things on the menu like fried pork chops, but everyone I saw was eating the chicken. It's $10 for 3 pieces and a side. I had a very fresh and welcome romaine salad. Not a lot of green greens in NO. The place which really looks like nothing from the outside is cheery and clean inside with very nice service. My first fried chicken was a walk to McHardy's, which is basically a to go place with only a bench to sit on, which I did. 5 pieces of nice, thin-coated, peppery chicken was $3.80. Brought some back to the hotel and Sheila had some after being refrigerated and it was still good. And it was just fine until I tasted Willie Mae's. Our last meal in NO was at Dooky Chase, a classic Creole institution, also creepily not much on the outside but elegant and tasteful on the inside. They have a buffet lunch for $17 that includes fried chicken so I had to do that. Chicken was a nice midpoint between the other 2, nicely peppery and nicely crispy. Again not as earthshaking as Willie Mae's, but very decent. The catfish, potato salad, gumbo, and okra were all delicious too. Some pretty large folks take advantage of this stylish buffet.

Several people recommended Stanley, right on Jackson Square, where we had eggs benedict with and without fried oysters. Very good, but not awe-inspriing. We did partake of the famous beignets at Cafe du Monde and there really is something special about eating there. We were on our way to try Elizabeth's which many say is the best Creole place in town and a 2 mile walk from our hotel so Cafe du Monde was a good stopping place. Alas when we finally arrived, Elizabeth's does not open until 11 AM and we were there at 9:30. Check the hours at New Orleans restaurants!

Our first dinner, after an 11 hour flight from New York (don't ask!) was at NOLA's, an Emeril restaurant that I've eaten at each of my trips to New Orleans and it is consistently good. Locals seem to sneer a little but food combinations are great, portions are large, prices reasonable, and service strives to be excellent. We shared appetizers of barbequed shrimp, flatbread with duck confit, an arugula salad, and an entree of smoked duck over grits. We took home about 1/3 of the duck to leave a little room for a wonderful chocolate pecan tart, each bite better than the last. I had screwed up our reservation but they were very accommodating.

While Sheila gave a booktalk through the Garden District Book Shop, I took advantage of the conference's A Taste of New Orleans. Large tastes from some of the finest NO chefs, such as pickled shrimp from Susan Spicer's Bayona, Pork cheeks over dirty rice from Emeril (himself was there), pork belly with a mint sauce from Donald Link's Cochon, seared ahi from del Porto, Drago's BBQ'd oysters, and my 2 favorites, sweetbreads with bacon jus over truffled grits from MiLa and short rib over sunchoke/cauliflower puree from Patois. Famous cocktails like the Sazerac were also served. And a lovely pear cake from Milette was for dessert. I was so full that when Sheila got back from the book talk and we walked to the Roosevelt Hotel to have a drink and get her some food, I could only have a small portion of lovely fresh cold heirloom tomato soup, while Sheila had bresaola with arugula and octopus carpaccio at Domenica, John Besh's latest restaurant.

Speaking of Besh, the awards dinner was at his flaghsip restaurant, Restaurant August, in a beautiful banquet room on the 3rd floor. We started with fried oysters and caviar served in a spoon French Laundry-style, Fricos (a light pastry cup) with andouille mousse (the best), and rabbit boudin. First course was white shrimp carpaccio with a remoulade sauce and mache (what a ton of work thinly slicing the shrimp, but a great way to spread a few shrimp over many plates). The next course was my favorite, featuring pumpkin agnolotti served in a roasted quail pho with porcini-- elegant contrast of textures and flavors. Main dish was slow cooked venison over grits wth elderberries and graine de paradis ( a flavorful pepper-like spice). No thrill but pleasant. Dessert was a brown butter quince tarte. I'm a sucker whenever I see those words "brown butter" together. It was tasty but the crust was so hard it was almost impossible to cut with a fork. Each course was served with a matching wine; we ended with a reserve Muscat de Beaumes Venise, which always leaves me very happy.

A last New Orleans treat was Angelo Borcato ice cream where I had a deliciously creamy panna cotta gelato. It's right off the Canal streetcar line and worth a little trek. One needs weeks to try all the great eating possibilities in this unique, recovering, and special city.