Cocktails, Always a Good Place to Start
Quote of the Week: "You're just like a roast in the oven; all you need is time."
The coffee is slowly making it's way up to my brain. Isn't that how it works? Straight to the brain? As any co-worker, ex-boyfriend or family member can tell you, I am not a "morning person," so the cup of coffee is indispensable. Trying to write a blog without a full cup down the hatch might be messy, but I have brunch plans in Brooklyn and jazz in the early evening, so here I am. Let's see if I can pull the gastronomic details from the week out of my slowly caffeinating gray matter.
Let's see, where shall we begin? How about cocktails? Always a good place to start.
Tuesday after work, champagne and cocktails at Pipa on 19th Street with Mrs. and Mr. O and KG to celebrate the promotion I received earlier that day. The champagne was mediocre at best, but the slightly dirty martini with olives was perfectly made. We munched on almond-stuffed, bacon-wrapped dates that were served on endive leaves. The bitterness of the endive balanced the sweetness of the dates and added a nice outer crunch. We also chowed on meatballs (delicious!) and wild-mushroom flatbread with figs, ham, manchengo cheese and caramelized onions.
Pipa is an old standby. It's very woody and earthy, but is also decorated with gorgeous elegant chandeliers from ABC carpet. It can get crowded, though, so go early.
Admirably, on Wednesday, I behaved myself, having one glass of wine only after yoga class and holiday shopping as Santa for a charitable gift-giving program through my office.
The libations continued full force, however, on Thursday with a lovely evening of cocktails, dinner and more cocktails all in good company. (Yes, it was a date, but this is a food blog, so that's all you get.)
The German and I were standing outside an unassuming locked door with a metal plate that said Little Branch at a few minutes past 7:00. We were debating about trying another spot, when we heard the lock slide back into the plate. Through the door and down the florescent-lit stairs into the dim basement bar.
I had been thinking about the bartender's choice all afternoon, and I was not disappointed. My request for a bourbon-based, forward-flavored drink resulted in a cocktail of bourbon angostura bitters and maraschino cherry liquor. I forgot to ask the name of the drink and what type of bourbon was used. (You know, first date and all, I was a little nervous). TB ordered a Manhattan which was very smooth and tasty.
Dinner followed drinks at August on Bleecker near Charles where I had something I never thought I would try. As a gastronomer, though, I have to be open to adventurous eating. The dish was an appetizer of Formage de Tete, which is pig's head terrine with ginger-parsnip chutney and grainy mustard. It was tasty, but one bite was enough. I'm still entrenched in Omnivore's Dilemma and could picture the pig too easily.
My starter was a salad of roasted beets, Gjetost cheese, glogg gelee and pickled mushrooms. It was a curious dish. The glogg gelee was the same color and size as the chopped beets. Despite my aversion to things gelatinous, the flavor was quite nice, just like the mulled wine I assume it is named after. The cheese was a light reddish brown color, slightly sweet in flavor and had a consistency that sticks to the roof of your mouth. The tiny white pickled mushrooms had an ever so slight crunch. Overall the dish worked very well.
We sat in the back room of the restaurant which has a cobbled floor and high glass ceiling. The room was large, but it felt cozy, earthy and welcoming. Before, between and during courses, we sipped Chateau Vieux Maillet Pomerol 2004 from the Bordeaux region of France.
For entrees, the German had the Cochinillo Asada: roasted suckling pig with coco beans, kale, and pimenton, which did not measure up to taste expectations. I ordered Monkfish Coq au Vin because I was curious about why any chef would wrap a piece of fish in crispy chicken skin and make a cake out of chicken and fish to serve it with. Also there was bacon consomme. The monk fish was meaty, moist and fresh, but it was overpowered by the chicken skin. The chicken and fish cake didn't work so well. It was just too strange to have the two mixed together.
For an after dinner cocktail, we returned to Little Branch because it was cold outside, the speakeasy was close, and we were guaranteed a good drink. Good service maybe not so much. We stood at the bar quite some time being ignored until I asked the bartender with the long-sleeved white shirt and arm bands if we could order from him. Oh no, he told me, we had to order from Randy down the bar, who seemed less than aware that we were drinkless.
But, a hot cup of mulled cider and music from a band in the corner made it all okay. The German ordered a whiskey sour while I was still working on the cider. Both drinks were fantastic thus confirming the consistency of Little Branch mixology. I have yet to have a bad or even mediocre drink at the bar.
Upon waking Friday, I was reminded why I usually cut myself off after three drinks and also why I never order a drink with a sugar-based mixer. Hungover. But in that adult-sort-of way where you aren't completely dysfunctional, but rather just plagued by a come-and-go headache and a little queasiness all day. C'est la vie!
The adventures continued on Saturday with afternoon cocktails at a new spot Rye House on 17th Street with LP. We had just spent several hours braving the madness of holiday shopping and were in great need of a warm-your-winter heart cocktail. The bartender stirred us both up an American Trilogy with Applejack, Wild Turkey, housemade bitters, DeMere syrup and a slice of orange peel. It was smooth, balanced and warming.
The space is inviting and well lit. The bar is large with a marble top and dark wood shelves. The bartenders were welcoming, attentive and open. Following the cocktail, we split a pour of Blanton small batch bourbon. It was a little harsh, but I was happy to have tried something new.
After drinks with LP, I wandered over to Blue Water Grille to join Mr. and Mrs. O for Mr.'s 50th birthday celebration. (Happy Birthday, Mr. O!) My adventuresome streak continued. I've never been big on seafood, but I told Mrs. O I would try everything on the seafood castle she ordered as a starter.
Yes, a castle. And it was enormous. Oysters (two varieties, including shibumi which is apparently the sexiest oyster available), clams, muscles, shrimp, baby shallots, crab and lobster. It was all so fresh it seemed those crustaceans had just leapt out of the sea and onto the plate. The only cocktail that seems appropriate with all that seafood is a slightly dirty martini, and this, my friends is what I ordered. I still think shrimp are too much like big insects from the sea, but I suppose they taste all right when fresh.
After all that protein I could only handle a salad for dinner. And, tis' the season for beets. The beet and goat cheese salad with almonds was superb. The beets tasted like candy.
The company and conversation for all the eat-outings this week were as delicious as the food.
And now, it's time to go to Brooklyn to have Bloody Mary's with CME. I apologize if this post is riddled with typos and not as cohesive as others. It's been a filling week!
Stay tuned!
Quote of the Week: "You're just like a roast in the oven; all you need is time."
The coffee is slowly making it's way up to my brain. Isn't that how it works? Straight to the brain? As any co-worker, ex-boyfriend or family member can tell you, I am not a "morning person," so the cup of coffee is indispensable. Trying to write a blog without a full cup down the hatch might be messy, but I have brunch plans in Brooklyn and jazz in the early evening, so here I am. Let's see if I can pull the gastronomic details from the week out of my slowly caffeinating gray matter.
Let's see, where shall we begin? How about cocktails? Always a good place to start.
Tuesday after work, champagne and cocktails at Pipa on 19th Street with Mrs. and Mr. O and KG to celebrate the promotion I received earlier that day. The champagne was mediocre at best, but the slightly dirty martini with olives was perfectly made. We munched on almond-stuffed, bacon-wrapped dates that were served on endive leaves. The bitterness of the endive balanced the sweetness of the dates and added a nice outer crunch. We also chowed on meatballs (delicious!) and wild-mushroom flatbread with figs, ham, manchengo cheese and caramelized onions.
Pipa is an old standby. It's very woody and earthy, but is also decorated with gorgeous elegant chandeliers from ABC carpet. It can get crowded, though, so go early.
Admirably, on Wednesday, I behaved myself, having one glass of wine only after yoga class and holiday shopping as Santa for a charitable gift-giving program through my office.
The libations continued full force, however, on Thursday with a lovely evening of cocktails, dinner and more cocktails all in good company. (Yes, it was a date, but this is a food blog, so that's all you get.)
The German and I were standing outside an unassuming locked door with a metal plate that said Little Branch at a few minutes past 7:00. We were debating about trying another spot, when we heard the lock slide back into the plate. Through the door and down the florescent-lit stairs into the dim basement bar.
I had been thinking about the bartender's choice all afternoon, and I was not disappointed. My request for a bourbon-based, forward-flavored drink resulted in a cocktail of bourbon angostura bitters and maraschino cherry liquor. I forgot to ask the name of the drink and what type of bourbon was used. (You know, first date and all, I was a little nervous). TB ordered a Manhattan which was very smooth and tasty.
Dinner followed drinks at August on Bleecker near Charles where I had something I never thought I would try. As a gastronomer, though, I have to be open to adventurous eating. The dish was an appetizer of Formage de Tete, which is pig's head terrine with ginger-parsnip chutney and grainy mustard. It was tasty, but one bite was enough. I'm still entrenched in Omnivore's Dilemma and could picture the pig too easily.
My starter was a salad of roasted beets, Gjetost cheese, glogg gelee and pickled mushrooms. It was a curious dish. The glogg gelee was the same color and size as the chopped beets. Despite my aversion to things gelatinous, the flavor was quite nice, just like the mulled wine I assume it is named after. The cheese was a light reddish brown color, slightly sweet in flavor and had a consistency that sticks to the roof of your mouth. The tiny white pickled mushrooms had an ever so slight crunch. Overall the dish worked very well.
We sat in the back room of the restaurant which has a cobbled floor and high glass ceiling. The room was large, but it felt cozy, earthy and welcoming. Before, between and during courses, we sipped Chateau Vieux Maillet Pomerol 2004 from the Bordeaux region of France.
For entrees, the German had the Cochinillo Asada: roasted suckling pig with coco beans, kale, and pimenton, which did not measure up to taste expectations. I ordered Monkfish Coq au Vin because I was curious about why any chef would wrap a piece of fish in crispy chicken skin and make a cake out of chicken and fish to serve it with. Also there was bacon consomme. The monk fish was meaty, moist and fresh, but it was overpowered by the chicken skin. The chicken and fish cake didn't work so well. It was just too strange to have the two mixed together.
For an after dinner cocktail, we returned to Little Branch because it was cold outside, the speakeasy was close, and we were guaranteed a good drink. Good service maybe not so much. We stood at the bar quite some time being ignored until I asked the bartender with the long-sleeved white shirt and arm bands if we could order from him. Oh no, he told me, we had to order from Randy down the bar, who seemed less than aware that we were drinkless.
But, a hot cup of mulled cider and music from a band in the corner made it all okay. The German ordered a whiskey sour while I was still working on the cider. Both drinks were fantastic thus confirming the consistency of Little Branch mixology. I have yet to have a bad or even mediocre drink at the bar.
Upon waking Friday, I was reminded why I usually cut myself off after three drinks and also why I never order a drink with a sugar-based mixer. Hungover. But in that adult-sort-of way where you aren't completely dysfunctional, but rather just plagued by a come-and-go headache and a little queasiness all day. C'est la vie!
The adventures continued on Saturday with afternoon cocktails at a new spot Rye House on 17th Street with LP. We had just spent several hours braving the madness of holiday shopping and were in great need of a warm-your-winter heart cocktail. The bartender stirred us both up an American Trilogy with Applejack, Wild Turkey, housemade bitters, DeMere syrup and a slice of orange peel. It was smooth, balanced and warming.
The space is inviting and well lit. The bar is large with a marble top and dark wood shelves. The bartenders were welcoming, attentive and open. Following the cocktail, we split a pour of Blanton small batch bourbon. It was a little harsh, but I was happy to have tried something new.
After drinks with LP, I wandered over to Blue Water Grille to join Mr. and Mrs. O for Mr.'s 50th birthday celebration. (Happy Birthday, Mr. O!) My adventuresome streak continued. I've never been big on seafood, but I told Mrs. O I would try everything on the seafood castle she ordered as a starter.
Yes, a castle. And it was enormous. Oysters (two varieties, including shibumi which is apparently the sexiest oyster available), clams, muscles, shrimp, baby shallots, crab and lobster. It was all so fresh it seemed those crustaceans had just leapt out of the sea and onto the plate. The only cocktail that seems appropriate with all that seafood is a slightly dirty martini, and this, my friends is what I ordered. I still think shrimp are too much like big insects from the sea, but I suppose they taste all right when fresh.
After all that protein I could only handle a salad for dinner. And, tis' the season for beets. The beet and goat cheese salad with almonds was superb. The beets tasted like candy.
The company and conversation for all the eat-outings this week were as delicious as the food.
And now, it's time to go to Brooklyn to have Bloody Mary's with CME. I apologize if this post is riddled with typos and not as cohesive as others. It's been a filling week!
Stay tuned!
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