My dad would love the Mega Mussels Linguini I ate last weekend in Long Beach. Some friends and I were at The Whale’s Tale, one of the many restaurants that dot Beech Ave, the main drag in town.  It doesn’t look like much from the outside — kind of like your typical dive bar.  Looks can be deceiving.

My friend Phoebe’s fiance Steve asked if I liked seafood.

“LOVE seafood,” I answered.

“The mussels linguini are awesome,” he said. “The sauce is spicy, kind of like a fra diavolo.”

Fra diavolo… Ding!  Cue the Pavlov’s Dog reaction.  That was easy  – I had no more use for the menu.

But first, a cup of New England clam chowder. (And yes, it’s the middle of a hellaciously hot summer and I ordered chowder.)

As a snobby New Englander, I tend to look down on New Yorkers’ attempts at making our chowder, but I’ve gotta give props where props are due: this was excellent. It was chunky, the creaminess was spot-on, and the flavor of briny clams unmistakable.

And here’s the Mega Mussels Linguini (a very reasonable $14), which I requested to be “extra spicy.”

You can’t even see the linguini under that mountain of mussels, but it’s there, along with a tomato sauce that had a definite kick to it.  Just right, not too much.  The linguini itself was a hair overcooked; more than made up for though with that great sauce and the generous portion of mussels.

We had a basket of garlic bread on the table, and I used the last few pieces to scoop up the extra sauce.

Never mind that I was sweating now like I’d just run a race.  No matter. If you’ve got to sweat a little for a spicy fra diavolo, then so be it.

The Whale’s Tale
916 W Beech St.
Long Beach, NY
516-432-9587

Having said that, had I gone in knowing nothing about the place, I still would have thought the food rocked.

But let’s start with the building itself.  I, er, had a problem.  I couldn’t figure out how to get in.

There are French doors in the front, connected to the dining room. I walked to the left, but that was the parking lot and the back side of the restaurant.  I walked to the right, went up to a door, and whoops, that’s a hair salon. What the hell, I thought. Finally, I saw a woman open a different door and step out of the restaurant.  I don’t know why I missed it; we’ll blame it as usual on stupidity.

My dining companions Katherine Curry and her friend Amy, made the great suggestion to sit at the bar and dine there, rather than try to snag a table on a busy Thursday night.

Dining at the bar is a far different experience than sitting at a table, and in many ways more enjoyable — less structured, more relaxed and lively, closer to the drinks. In fact, you definitely tend to drink more at the bar, because well, jeez, the bartender’s right there, and… why not, bring another round!

Here’s a look at the dining room.

The menu at Restaurant North has Eric’s touch all over it: rustic, un-fussy seasonal dishes using top notch local ingredients.

Normally I don’t take a picture of butter, but this isn’t any old butter.  It’s strawberry butter, and we slathered it all over our warm, crunchy rolls.

Katherine, Amy and I shared a bunch of dishes, like this wild mushroom flatbread with truffle and lardo.

If you’re not familiar with lardo (cured and spiced strips of pork fat), read the book Heat. There’s a story in there about Mario Batali arriving at a dinner party, home-cured lardo in hand, and seductively feeding it to guests by placing strips of lardo on their tongues.

See the lardo draped over the flatbread?  Intense and out of this world.

Next, a crabmeat risotto.

Creamy but light, bright with summery flavors, and drizzled with what tasted like a chive, garlic oil.

This next one was a killer — the Madura Farms Black Dirt Mushroom Tarte Tatin with polenta and caramelized fennel.

“It looks like an Egg McMuffin,” Katherine joked.

A tarte tatin is a tart served upside down with the pastry on top. We cracked through the crisp pastry with our forks, into the meaty and earthy mushroom below. Throughout the meal I really noticed how skilled Eric is with the yin and yang of contrasting textures.

Did I mention we were sitting at the bar?  The drinks were deadly good.  Amy and I couldn’t get over the smooth Mutu, a cocktail of Pinot Grigio, elderflower, soda and grapefruit bitters.  I don’t even know what half of that is.

In case you think I’m just throwing out blind praise, the mussels flatbread were an issue. No problems with either the tender mussels or the flatbread, but the sauce was overwhelmingly salty, and it detracted from the taste.

My favorite of the night, crisped soft shell crabs.

How gorgeous is that?  Don’t you want to bite the computer screen?  Perfect summer flavors — lightly crisped crab, delicate corn coulis and tomato confit. This is a dish I could imagine eating if you’re a bazillionaire lounging oceanside in a hammock at your Nantucket estate.

For dessert, the “Super Awesome Chocolate Chip Cookie.”

A chocolate chip cookie baked in a cast iron skillet until the bottom of the cookie became brown and crisp, and the chocolate chips warm and gooey.  With a big scoop of vanilla ice cream placed on top.  Hot and cold, crisp and creamy, oh my. Seriously.  Oh my.

Katherine, Amy and I stumbled out with big smiles on our faces. “Let’s do this every Thursday!” we exclaimed, only half kidding.

Maybe it was only a third kidding. If you’re at Restaurant North one Thursday night, you may see the three of us sitting at the corner seats of the bar.  We’ll be the ones oohing and aahing, and sipping Mutus.

Restaurant North
386 Main St.
Armonk, NY
914-273-8686

Good luck struck again in Philadelphia. Thank you to Courtney for recommending Almaz Cafe in Rittenhouse Square.  Quick, ethnic, inexpensive, easily accessible — and Ethiopian, one of my favorites!  Exactly what I was looking for.

I had the foule, a mashed bean stew with injera (Ethiopian bread), cabbage and sour cream.

The foule was delicious — creamy, hearty, piping hot, flavorful with spices and perfectly sopped up by the spongy injera. Eating it put me in a content state of mind for the drive home.

The staff at Almaz were also very friendly, and I got a good vibe from the place all around.  Great recommendation.

Oh, and if you’re planning a trip to Philly and are hoping to see the Liberty Bell, I’m not sure it’s viewable right now.  There’s some major construction going on at the Liberty Bell Center, but I drove by too quickly to see what it was.

Almaz Cafe
140 South 20th St.
Philadelphia, PA
215-557-0108

On Monday I’ll be near Philadelphia for work; rather than head straight home at the end of the day and become homicidal sitting in bumper-to-bumper traffic, I think I might pop into the city to wait out rush hour and grab a bite to eat.  What do you think, do the touristy thing and pick up a cheesesteak, or try to find a cheap eat hidden gem?  I’m leaning toward hidden gem, but could use a few recommendations, especially for spots that are easy to get to. Help!

Also, I dread the GW Bridge.  Is there ever a time when it’s not backed up?

Now I know I can make them too, just not as well.

They’re quite fun, actually — maybe because at least until the point of taking them out of the pot, preparing them is fairly idiot-proof.

I found this recipe at the blog, Budget Bytes. You can fill your dolmas with ground meat, currants, pine nuts… there are several variations.  I forgot to buy pine nuts and ended up sticking to the basic recipe.

Here’s what you need:

1 jar grape leaves
1 medium onion, minced
4 cloves garlic, minced
4 tbsp olive oil
1 1/2 cups rice, uncooked
6 tbsp lemon juice
1 tsp salt
2 tbsp mint, minced (parsley would probably work too)

The grape leaves I picked up at Yaranush in White Plains.

The prep’s pretty straightforward: saute the onion and garlic in 2 tbsp of olive oil until soft. Mix them in a bowl with the rice, 4 tbsp lemon juice, salt and mint.

The fun part’s in the rolling. Take out the grape leaves and gently pull them apart, because they’re going to come out of the jar stuck together.

Depending on the size of the leaf, place 1 tsp-1 tbsp of the filling down at the base near the stem.

Fold the leaf up from the bottom, then fold in the sides, and roll like you would a burrito. (Only, this is ten times easier than rolling a burrito. The grape leaf is wonderful to work with: strong, yet pliable.  And none of my filling spilled out the sides).

Pack the dolmas tightly in a pot, seam side down, and create a second layer if necessary.

Drizzle the remaining 2 tbsp olive oil and 2 tbsp lemon juice over the top, and fill the pot with water until the dolmas are covered.

The author of Budget Bytes gives a good tip here.  You need to cover the dolmas and pack them down with weight while they’re boiling.  I used two plates and the top of a small pot to provide enough weight.

Boil for 40 minutes, or until the dolmas are soft.

The tricky part’s getting them out of the pot.

There was still a significant amount of liquid in there.  I tried using tongs to lift the dolmas out.  That wasn’t too smart; several of them tore.  Then I used a spoon, which worked better, but not totally; a few dolmas still broke. Others unraveled and spilled out all of the filling.

Any suggestions on the best way to do this?  They’re so fragile!

As you can see, they got a little misshapen once they reached the plate.  And that bottom dolma looks like a roll of toothpaste with the toothpaste squeezed out.

Ate them with a tzatziki sauce and pita bread. They looked bad, but tasted good. The rest went in the fridge to chill.

If you have a method for cooking and removing dolmas that keeps them from breaking, I’m all ears.  How come the ones at restaurants look so uniform and plump?  Think the folks at Lefteris will tell me the secret if I ask?

Freelance writer Katherine Curry and I met up to check out a couple of ice cream spots in the area. You may remember the last time Katherine and I did something like this, I made a short video of it.  No video or hot dogs this time around — just a few scoops of the cold, creamy stuff.

First stop was at Metro Desserts in Scarsdale, where they sell both gelato and ice cream.

I’ll be honest, based on looks alone, the gelato didn’t make a great first impression. We both noticed that it appeared goopy and melted.  I also saw condensation and water droplets on the glass, so possibly there’d been a problem with the temperature of the refrigerator.

The mixed berry gelato (purple at the bottom) appeared the least melted, and it sounded good anyway, so that’s what I got.

Katherine picked up a scoop of chocolate and a scoop of I believe chocolate chip cookie dough.

The gelato comes with a crispy wafer, a nice touch.

The mixed berry was smooth and not too sweet, if a bit subtle in flavor.  There were also whole berries in there (nice), but they were frozen and icy (not so nice), and the contrasting crunch kind of threw me off.

Our second stop was at El Sabor de Michoacan, a Mexican ice cream shop in New Rochelle.

El Sabor is also a paleteria, meaning they sell paletas, the Latin American ice pop, often made with fresh fruit.  I noticed one of the flavors was gazpacho… oof, cold soup on a stick, that’d be my nightmare paleta.

Unique flavors among the ice cream as well.  Pine nut caught our eye, as did mamey (a tropical fruit) and tequila.  Tequila ice cream?  Do we need to be carded for this?

Here’s a scoop of pine nut on the bottom, and a scoop of mamey on top.

I’m wondering if the pine nut was mislabeled, because neither of us tasted any hint of pine nut — nor was there a crunch.

“Maybe the words didn’t translate correctly,” Katherine noted.

I liked the mamey better. Katherine thought it tasted like coconut. I didn’t pick up on that — not sure how to describe the taste, actually.  But, according to Slow Food USA, the flavor of mamey is “A combination of sweet potato and pumpkin with undertones of almond, chocolate, honey, and vanilla.”  So, there you go.

And here’s the tequila ice cream.

When you eat rum raisin ice cream, you usually get the flavor of the rum, but not the alcohol.  Not here — that tequila was strong. Katherine and I joked how ridiculous it would be if we got drunk off it and had to explain to a cop, “No officer, I wasn’t drinking, I was only eating ice cream.”

Still haven’t decided if I liked it or not, but it was worth a try.

Can’t say we were blown away by anything on this expedition, but it’s always fun to see what’s out there.  Do you have a favorite ice cream/gelato spot?

Metro Desserts
8 Palmer Ave.
Scarsdale, NY
914-723-0275

El Sabor de Michoacan
574 North Ave.
New Rochelle, NY
914-235-2781

I worry about Poppy’s Cafe.

Take a stroll down Purchase St. in Rye, and the signs are unmistakable: times are tough for small business owners. Numerous shops have up and vanished, giving way to banks, empty storefronts and “Retail Space for Rent” signs.  Not far from Le Pain Quotidien is a row of vacant stores.  They’re just sitting there. You can practically see tumbleweeds.

And so I worry about Poppy’s, our local greasy spoon. Will I walk by one day and find that it’s closed, soon to be replaced by a chain store or soulless bank?  Let’s hope not.  Poppy’s is like an old car — not cool or sexy, but dependable and will get you where you need to go.

It’s a narrow space with a few tables in the back.

Best bet is to grab a bar stool and sidle up to the counter.

I’ve never actually eaten anything there other than breakfast, so I can’t vouch for the rest of the menu. The 2-egg special comes with hash browns, toast, choice of sausage or bacon, and unlimited juice/coffee refills.

Is it the best egg breakfast you’ll ever eat?  Probably not. The hash browns for instance, could use a dose of onions mixed in. But you won’t leave hungry or unsatisfied.

Poppy’s draws a steady stream of regular customers who are greeted by name and chat freely with the staff in comfortable familiarity. That’s what happens when you’ve been firmly rooted in a town for 25 years.

It’s the Cheers bar of Rye. All that’s missing is Norm planted on the corner stool.

Poppy’s Cafe
27 Purchase St.
Rye, NY
914-967-1544

It hasn’t been too terrible finding soft foods to eat.  So far I’ve had yogurt, oatmeal, eggs, beans, tofu, fruit, and a giant pot of chili — which in retrospect, maybe wasn’t the best choice in this sub-Saharan heat wave we’re going through.

Tonight I decided to go for cooling and refreshing.  I made gazpacho.

Gazpacho’s never been my cup of tea. It’s the idea of it: “Cold soup.”  Kind of grosses me out.  Soup should be hot; if it’s cold, my first inclination is to throw it in the microwave.

But this seemed like the perfect time to revisit gazpacho, and I found a recipe on the Bitchin’ Camero blog that looked promising. I left off the recipe’s crunchy toppings, and stuck with the basic soup with croutons.

1 1/2 lbs ripe tomatoes, peeled and seeded
4 cups cubed stale bread
1 1/2 cups vegetable stock
1 jalapeno, seeded
1/2 bell pepper (not in the original recipe)
3 tbsp sherry vinegar
3 tbsp olive oil
juice of 1/2 lime
1 tsp salt
3 cloves garlic

The whole thing’s a 10-minute process, start to finish.  Blend all the ingredients until smooth, let it sit for five minutes, and adjust for taste.  Chill until ready to serve.

I made the croutons with the extra stale bread, tossing them in olive oil until browned.

And sprinkling them on top of the gazpacho.

The problem isn’t the flavor.  The flavor’s great — bright, tart and garlicky, with the right amount of acid and the taste of the fresh vegetables shining through.

No, my problem is with the essence of gazpacho itself: the temperature.  I just can’t get past the fact that it’s cold. Doesn’t seem natural, like drinking a soup that’s been sitting on the stovetop for too long. The croutons helped a lot, but after two bowls, I was done.

Oh, well.  You can’t like everything, and now I know for certain gazpacho’s not for me.  I still have a ton left over.  Who wants some?

When you think “sushi,” what comes to mind?  Likely it’s rolls, vinegared rice, nori, and of course, fish. All types of fish. All types of seafood, in fact. Exotic seafood.

Miya’s Sushi chef/owner Bun Lai has taken on quite a daunting challenge: create a successful sushi restaurant that’s eco-friendly, uses only sustainable fish, builds half its sushi menu around vegetables, and applies wild creativity and unconventional ingredients to satisfy sushi-savvy customers.

Does he succeed?

You bet.

All credit for this meal goes to food blogger Amy Kundrat, who gathered together bloggers, Twitter pals and food-loving media types to join in a special omakase-style dinner at Miya’s. We put our trust in Chef Lai’s hands, and let him go at it. Damn, did he ever.

I thought we’d be eating ten courses, but it turned out to be much more than that. The food kept coming and coming.  It was a food blitzkrieg.  I could hardly keep track of what was being served, finally borrowing a pad and pen from a fellow tablemate to write everything down. Even then I know I missed many details.

Unfortunately I didn’t get a chance to meet everybody at the table, but the group included CT bloggers Leeanne Griffin of Fun With Carbs, Emily from A Change of Eatery, and Robert Troilo, chef/owner of Norwalk’s Nicholas Roberts.

Chef Lai came out to introduce himself and talk about Miya’s commitment to sustainability and responsible fishing.

Ready to see pics?  Here we go.

Pumpkin miso soup to start.

Mixed greens with a ginger vinaigrette.

Tokyo Fro (yeah, the dishes have some crazy names): fried shredded potato drizzled with a curry sauce.

Steamed artichoke beautifully presented with a pureed jalapeno sauce.

A divine plate of fried organic spinach sprinkled with sea salt. Tasted like the thinnest, lightest potato chips you’d ever eat.

Meanwhile, sakes were being plopped down left and right, with great names like Emerald Witches’ Lips and Cherokee Sumac Love Potion.

The sakes were smooooth, rich with citrus notes, honey and other exotic ingredients.  They were too good, actually.  Went down so easily, I was concerned I’d have to sleep at Miya’s.

This Chinese Firecracker (my nickname) sake, infused with chili peppers, became the basis for a sake bomb — frosted mug filled 1/3 way up with beer, shot of sake lowered inside.

But back to the food.

Some of Chef Lai’s dishes were being made for the first time.  I believe this was one of the new rolls, of escargot and brie.

9-spice tilapia sashimi.

And 12-spice tilapia sashimi.  The server explained how it had been sprinkled with a sea salt sourced from a sinking island. BS? I don’t know, but it sounded cool and made for a good story.

Here’s an example of a roll centered around vegetables, rather than seafood. It contained roasted broccoli, black beans, quinoa and oats.

Another one — rolls with sweet potato, brown rice and mango chutney.

This one that had me scratching my head when it was set down: organic soy chicken with asparagus and a brie dill sauce. Cheese on a “sushi” roll? It actually tasted really good.  Lighter than I thought it’d be.

Another unusual roll, with lobster, asparagus and apricot.

I believe this was the Two Fish Cha Cha: escolar (a buttery white fish) and bonito.

Edibaba: shrimp wrapped in a potato skin with a havarti dill sauce.

Seriously, the dishes never stopped.

Of course, with the hits of creativity, come a few misses. These next two dishes didn’t quite work for me; I found both to be a bit flat and lacking in flavor — surprising, considering kimchi was involved.

The first was kimchi-seared Arctic char, where the kimchi was pressed into the fish and blackened on high heat.

And this was kimchi-seared yellowfin tuna.

One of my absolute favorites of the night: seared Lasater NY strip steak, with a ginger, garlic, Sauvignon Blanc sauce.  Sliced thicker than a carpaccio, but still thin and buttery. Wonderful flavors.

We finished with an amuse-bouche-like dessert.  It was a tempura-fried roll of chocolate, strawberries, peanut butter and banana, served with a scoop of roasted nettles ice cream.

Good lord was it delicious.  I could have eaten four more, and considered ordering a few on my own.

My pics and descriptions don’t capture all the creativity, inventiveness, and yes weirdness, going at Miya’s. I suggest you read the menu on their website to view the full details. No flavor is off limits, no combination of ingredients taboo. Makes for some seriously interesting food.

You know that despised corporate-speak expression, “Thinking out of the box”? Well, Miya’s is thinking out of the box. They’ve put a unique spin on the sushi experience.

Miya’s Sushi
68 Howe St.
New Haven, CT
203-777-9760

My weekend was, um, interesting.  A bike crash put me in the hospital and left me with stitches in my lip, sore teeth and one tooth that was knocked clean out. For now, I’m only able to gingerly eat soft foods out of one side of my mouth.

Needless to say, there will be fewer posts in the next couple of weeks, as I subsist on a diet fit for a two/ 80-year-old.  But soft foods don’t necessarily have to be dull (I hope) — if you have great recipes, please, send them along!

And stay tuned on Wed or Thurs for a post on Miya’s in New Haven, where several bloggers and I feasted on quite a tasting menu (pre crash).

Finally, if you spot a hideous-looking guy standing in the Larchmont Trader Joe’s line this week, don’t be afraid, it’s just me.

Happy eating!