Mexican 2008 - Wrapup

Had a great time all over Mexico, but the surprising thing that I realized is Mexican seafood is very similar to Italian seafood - great ingredients, minimally dressed, and cooked well, tastes great. Any who, here's what I want the next time I visit Mexico and I am 100% going back (just not to Playa Del Carmen).

1) Find some good pozole (a hearty soup with hominy). I've had two versions - a shrimp and a pork version, but I wasn't a big fan.

2) Find some juicy cochinita pibil. Every single time I've had this dish it's always been dry. Flavor has always been excellent, but I believe it can be juicier.

3) Find some tacos al pastor - like gyro meat, but it's made of pork. Only saw one place that had it and it was closed.

4) Visit a Mezcal brewery. Tried some Mezcal for the first time and I was completely blown away. Tasted like a great smoky single malt scotch. Mezcal is made from the agave plant (also used by tequilla), but it's smoked. Soooo, smooth and tasty.

5) Check out the grocery store and cook some more. Grocery store contained some fun products - yogurt being some of our favorites. I wish we could papaya or coconut yogurt easily in the states.

6) More shrimp tacos, quesadillas, and gorditas cause they are oh so good.

Curry Ya

Curry Ya is the latest installment from Mr. Yagi's arsenal of Japanese eateries in NYC.
This tiny bar seated joint serves Japanese style curry at a nominal price.

Located right next to Rai Rai Ken in the east village, it's another Japanese joint.
Here are some pics I snapped while dining there last week.
The flavors and service need to be ironed out a bit more... but I can see the place pulling in a ton of Japanese ladies and leisure types strolling the east village once they get up and running.

Puerto Vallarta - All Inclusvie

Dreams - Puerto Vallarta
Stayed at the all inclusive Dreams as our last big splurge for our honeymoon. The food overall was good - tasty at the upscale restaurants, but the fast food places was horrendous. Pricing was much better than the Royal Hideaway, but the service was no where near the caliber of Royal. However, it was still very good and a nice all inclusive.

World Cafe - Highly Unrecommended
This is the first place we went to at Dreams, since I was suckered into the Vegas style buffet they had. It was like the worse cafeteria food ever. Mac and cheese tasted like cardboard, the fries were soggy and gross, the pasta was a clumpy mess. The lone bright spot was the chinese spareribs. Stick with room service for the wings and tater skins - they rule!



Portofino - Recommended
Surprisingly good Italian food. Lamb chops were ridiculously tender and juicy. Pastas were cooked well.

Our Menu
Beef Carpaccio *
Linguine Clams *
Scallops, Mushrooms in Puff Pastry *
Risotto and Shrimp *
Lamb Chops **
Veal Milanese *

Oceana - Recommended
A seafood restaurant that had the best escargot I've had in a long long time. The past couple of escargot I've had were drowning in butter that tasted like nothing. These were nice and earthy.

Our Menu
Mushrooms, Scallops, Cream Sauce *
Stone Crab Salad
Escargot **
Salmon and Scallop Wellington *
Mexican Crawfish and Seabass *
Fried Ice Cream ---

Tom Colicchio at Craft

vt pub & brewery

One of the coolest hangouts in Burlington, VT.
Cask Ale (creamy stout), Vermont raised beef burger and onion gravied cheese fries.

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Mega (sushi) Boat

Have you ever seen anything like this?
Wow!

Puerto Vallarta

Our final leg of the trip was to the west coast at Puerto Vallarta. This was my favorite place of the whole entire trip. It had a nice combination of beautiful location and a real lived in feel. Walking around you see Mexicans enjoying themselves and you can tell people actually eat and live in this city - the boardwalk / night market rules. I never got that sense really in Playa Del Carmen. It's also very walkable which is a really nice thing...plenty of places to explore and plenty of places to eat.

Picnic - Recommended
Púlpito 154
Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
(322) 223-2353

Basically Americanized food, but tasty. I know...not Mexican food, but it had a Mexican owner - does that count? We arrived at 2pm and were starving, so this was the best looking place in our area. BBQ sauce was uber flavorful and spicy. Chicken had a nice crust on it, but on the border between moist and dry. Very friendly service. We did get very good tortillas though with the chicken.

Our Menu
BBQ Chicken *
French Dip


La Palapa - Recommended (for view and service only)
Pulpito 103 and Col. Emiliano Zapata
Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
Phone: 52 (322) 222-522

Everyone recommended this place for the view, so we decided to check it out. Way over priced ($8 water!?!?), but definitely worth it since you eat food on the beach and have the perfect view to watch the sunset. Also, the service is great there. The lobster tacos were incredible - flavorful and great lobster flavor. All the rest of the dishes had good sauces and good cooking technique (moist, nice crust), but the fish/scallops were of poor quality - no real flavor at all. Still, Bourdain is right...food does taste better with sand between your toes.

Our Menu
Lobster Tacos **
Scallops
Sea bass


Marisma Tacos - Highly Recommended
320 Calle Naranjo at V Carranza
Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
Phone: 52-322-222-1395

This place is way out of the way from the hotels, but 1000% worth it. Chowhounders were spot on with this place. Shrimp tacos were sweet and juicy - like eating fried and battered lobster. Top it with the cilantro and lime juice salsa and it was amazing. By itself, it's equally ridiculous. The fish taco had very good flavor but was a letdown compared to the shrimp taco. The fish paired best with the ketchup and onion sauce. Without any sauce the fish is good, but not great. Both served with crunchy cabbage (not lettuce). Definitely my favorite tacos of the entire trip - so good we went 2x. Absolutely no gringos here - but they don't speak English...I got by with my terrible Spanish, but they also have a menu in English which I think you can point at.

Our Menu
Fish Taco *
Shrimp Taco ***
Smokey Marlin Taco **



Los Arbolitos - Not Recommended
Camino de la Rivera 184
Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
Phone: +52 322 3 1050

Heard about this place based on a lot of Chowhounder's reviews and this is a rare miss. The food served here is no better than Chi Chi's - all gringos too. Not necessarily terrible tasting food, but just nothing to go to Mexico for. Food was borderline bland and seasoned ok. My Mexican plate (recommend by the Chowhounders) was very average. The wife's steak tacos were good though, not great. Oh ya, there is absolutely no view of the ocean. I got that impression from the Chow reviews that you see the ocean, but all you see is a mountain. Nice, but you basically see mountains everywhere in Puerto Vallarta.

Our Menu
Mexican plate (Taco, Chile Relleno)
Steak Tacos *


Tacos El Cisne - Highly Recommended
On Panama Across from Pollo Feliz
Puerto Vallarta, Mexico

Random tiny taco stand that serves meat - rare, considering just about every taco stand we saw served seafood tacos. Tasty stuff and good selection of meat and pork tacos. The chorizo was dyno-mite! Spicy, salty, porky...everything I want in a taco.

Our Menu
Abodabo *
Chorizo **




Pollo Feliz - Highly Recommended
AV. MEXICO # 171 (maybe at Panama)
Puerto Vallarta, Mexico

Basically great fast food chicken at Pollo Feliz . The reason why we stepped in because the place was packed with all locals. Basically rotisserie chicken that's juicy , packed with flavor and a phenomenal price. Think the best chicken at a friend's NY area bbq (not smoked, but you know cooked on a grill). These are ridiculously better than that. Served with a side of roasted jalapeno and tortillas. Nuggets were also off the chain good. Crispy, great temperature and perfectly seasoned. Avoid the ketchup they provide you though, it's like gross sweet and sour souce. The wife enjoyed that with the nuggets though. Btw - they have Indio beer which I love...had it in Durango, Mexico but couldn't find it any where. One of my favorite beers.

Our Menu
1/2 pollo ***
9 piece nuggets **



El Arrayan - Recommended
344 El Centro
Puerto Vallarta, Mexico.
Phone: 52 (322) 222-71-95

Our last meal in Puerto Vallarta and we were very happy with it. Appetizers far outshined the entrees in my opinion, but we ordered lots o apps so that was ok. My first time eating insects (chaupulines are grasshoppers) and they were friggin tasty. Scary at first as I was expecting an explosion of guts with the first bite. Not so...crunchy, salty, earthy. Great stuff. The plantains were a big what the f moment for me - sweet, savory, gooey, cheezy. Cochinita Pibil was a tad dry which seemed to be a common theme with that dish every where I went - very flavorful though. Duck carnitas was tasty, but they describe it as duck confit. The images I have of duck confit are the french style, when you touch it with a fork it and it almost falls apart immediately...didn't get that effect. Regardless, this place is very tasty and definitely worth the visit...all gringos here also, but the food is very good.

Our Menu
Chaupuline Tostada **
Plantain Empanada (also stuffed with black beans, cheese) ***
Shrimp Pozole
Hibiscus Quesadilla **
Cochinita Pibil *
Duck Carnitas *

Playa Del Carmen - Welcome to the Jungle

After the great pampered life of Royal Hideaway, it was time to hit the streets and experience some real Mexican food. Like I said before, it is quite difficult to find authentic food in Playa, but we managed to find some when you venture off of 5th avenue.

Yaxche - Recommended
8th St. between 5th. and 10th. Avenues
Playa del Carmen, Mexico
Phone: +52(984)873 2502

Great change of pace from the American Mexican food of 5th avenue. Yaxche serves Mayan cuisine which is the food of the great Mayan civilization...you know, the time of Mr Apocolypto. Food was very tasty and a good sign is when the salsa's are stupid spicy like this place...no gringo salsas for me por favor. The turkey roulade thing with ground beef and hard boiled egg was the winner for me. A great combinations of textures and flavors - got shredded turkey meat as well as juicy breast meat with the rich roasted pepper sauce. The corn thing takes a while to get used to since it's not sweet and juicy like Jersey corn. More a chewy dry thing...

Our Menu
Moloch - Combo Platter with
Boxito (shrimp taco in roasted pepper sauce) *
Pibxcaic (pepper stuffed with pork - cochinita pibil) **
Tsotolbilchay (corn bread filled with chaya egg and pumpkin seed) *
Nal (corn on the cob)
Tsic (lobster taco) *

Turkey stuffed with ground beef and hardboiled egg **


Alux - Highly Recommended (for atmosphere)
Av. Juárez, Mz. 12 Lote 13A
Playa del Carmen, Mexico
Phone: +52 (984) 803-0713

Found this place from the chowhounders...they rule! Basically this restaurant/lounge is inside of a cave. Food was pretty good, but I am highly recommending this more for the environment since it's pretty awesome eating/drinking inside of a cave. The mayan crepes were the winner here with a rich sweet creamy sauce...it's basically a quesadilla with a soft corn shell - thicker than a tortilla, but they can call it whatever they want. It's very tasty.

Our Menu
Mayan Crepes **
Sampler - Pork, Turkey, Chicken Tostadas *


Kool Fish - Highly Recommended
Nueva 5ta con 38 Notre
Playa Del Carmen, Mexico

We randomly found this place outside of our hotel (off the beaten path) and we are so glad we did. Definitely, one of the favorites of the whole Playa trip. A local joint with surprise, surprise...actual locals. Food here is great and a revelation on what a gordita should be (not the taco hell stuff we're used to). Crunchy outside and soft on the inside sweet corn casing, the sweetest and most tender shrimp, and gooey cheese. This thing was off the chain good. Italians always frown upon the seafood and cheese combo, but if they had this gordita they would 100% change their mind. The other really amazing thing was the Ojo Rojo...basically, tomato juice, chiles, salt and limes mixed with beer. So f'n sick...kinda like a bloody mary but 100 times better. The tomato juice mixture is called sangrito and it's served alongside tequilla and mezcal as well. Going to attempt to make the Ojo Rojo and the Gordita somehow....

Our Menu
Baby Shark Empanada *
Camaron En Rajas Con Queso Gorditas ***
Quesadillas de Camaron (shrimp) **
Ojo Rojo ***
Fish Soup **


La Cueva del Chango - Recommended
Calle 38 (between Av. 5 and the beach, near the Shangri-la Caribe)
Playa Del Carmen, Mexico
Phone: +52 (984) 116-3179

Saw this place on an episode with Rick Bayless and Jacques Pepin. A quaint little place near Kool Fish that basically feels like your eating in the jungle. The dinner was good, but the breakfast is definitely better. Standouts for me was actually the Habanero cream soup...tasted like a really nice cream of mushroom soup with this fruit heat thing going on with the Habanero...100% making this sometime.

Our Dinner Menu
Habanero Cream Soup **
Chicken with Ancho Chili Almond Sauce *
Fish Filet with Mole and Plaintain

For breakfast, the huevos and the accompanied potatoes were perfectly cooked. Another surprise is the papaya lassie I got...I always thought that was an Indian drink, but hey it tastes good. Fresh papaya, yogurt, but not sweet at all. Just natural tasting goodness....

Our Breakfast Menu
Huevos Rancheros *


Dr Taco - Highly Recommended
Av 10 entre Calle 8 y 10
Playa Del Carmen, Mexico

Another recommendation from one of Jacques Pepin's articles. This place was unbelievably good and another good sign, no gringos there. The shrimp burger was probably my favorite thing this whole trip. Buttered hamburger buns, mayo, lettuce, tomatoes, crispy and somehow soft cheese with perfectly cooked sweet succulent shrimp. I could have eaten 5 of these things. The other tacos were good, but not great. The chowhounders really recommend the fish taco, but to me it's not that great - crisp and juicy, but underseasoned. Better, however, after adding salsa...Make sure to get the hibiscus agua fresca while you're there. Kinda, like a sweet tea....water steeped with hibiscus giving it a nice flavor and making it very refreshing - also pleasantly sweet.

Our Menu
Shrimp Burger ***
Chicken Taco *, Calamari Taco, Vegetable Taco *
Fish Taco
Agua Fresca **

Brewing at Home

Ever since visiting the Sam Adams Brewery a month ago, Devin and I have wanted to brew our own beer.
Yah, Home-Brew!
Well, this would be my first time in doing so, and I was a bit nervous.
I bought a few books to catch myself up to my beer partner who has been brewing since his college days.

Charlie Papazian's, "Joy of Home Brewing" is pretty much recommended by every single person I spoke to about home brewing.
This book took me from start to finish in a day and gave me the confidence to attempt this noble cause.
The other is Michael Jackson's, "Beer". More of a reference point to what experts consider a great beer.

So once we were determined to brew our own beer, we got in my car and sought to buy our goods the following week
We officially kicked off the 5 week project last Wednesday.

Ingredients and Equipment:
Malt (extracts)
Hops
Yeast
Glass Carboy
Stock Pot - to cook the wort
Thermometer
Tube/Hose





















We decided to try our luck with an Imperial Stout style of beer.
I happened to have premium Belgium Chocolate and Tahitian Vanilla Bean pods at home so we played around with a recipe to make a dark imperial stout with a dark brown head, and chocolate and vanilla finish.

Here is what we ambitiously aim to achieve:
Estimated Alcohol by Volume (ABV) - 7.4%
Estimated Color - 47 SRM
Bitterness - 72 IBU
Bright Malts and Citric Hops through initial sip, with slight Chocolate and Vanilla undertones with a smooth coating finish.
Keywords we are looking for : Alive, Smooth, Rich, Full, Hoppy, Smooth Malts, Coats Mouth, Noble, Medium Complexity.

Man, is this exciting. Only time will tell...





















here are just some pictures we took while brewing the beer.
stay tuned... there's more to follow.....

Where did the talent go?

Aureole NYC, of all places, was supposed to be a solid dinner with my parents who are in town visiting this week.
I had a business trip scheduled and had it all planned.
6pm dinner, then with a happy and full tummy, on the road by 9pm.
Not the case... and not very happy.


















The last time I dined at Aureole, it was still under the command of
Dante Boccuzzi.
About this time last year... Dante decided to uproot and do his own thing in Ohio, and so Charlie Palmer was out an executive chef.
This just goes to show how difficult it is to find a quality Exec Chef.
It's been 1 year since my last visit (and so of the new kitchen staff) so if anyone's going to argue it takes time for a new skipper to fill in the shoes, that argument is out the window.

I ordered the rabbit trio for the appetizer and the seared scallops for the entree.
Both were prepared far below the standards of a fine dining establishment.
(Artisanal or Balthazar puts out plates better than this)
And I wasn't the only one. Everyone in my table just quietly ate their meal, and smiled at one another noting the absolute blandness in their dishes.
e.g.
The rabbit didn't taste like rabbit. The scallops didn't taste like scallops. The lobster was tough and drowned in heavy curry sauce. And the Lamb was tough and tasteless.

What Happened?!
I can't justify ever going back to Aureole again.

I'm happy I got to spend some time with my family, but after dropping $600 on dinner, not satisfied, and left with a 300 mile car ride ahead of you isn't the best way to kick off a week long business trip.

Playa del Carmen - All Inclusive Extravaganza

Playa del Carmen
For the first leg of our honeymoon tour, we chose Playa del Carmen for the beautiful beaches - spectacular water color which is even better than Cozumel. But, the place is like Disney World to me...not a good thing. Basically, there's a main street called 5th avenue that is full of the same generic touristy shops and restaurants with a ridiculous amount of gringos everywhere. I love the U S of A, but when I visit a foreign country I don't want to be 100% surrounded by Americans only. We did find some gems though, but you had to look off of the 5th ave strip. Regardless, we still had a great time here. Below is the first part of our Playa tour...

Royal Hideaway
Our first food experience in Playa was at the all inclusive Royal Hideaway. The service, location, and decor were spectacular. Definitely worthwhile for a honeymoon experience (once in a lifetime), but the food was pretty average except for one restaurant. This was my first time at an all inclusive and probably my last time. Because we spent an obscene amount of money, I had the urge to eat and drink as much as possible to meet my "break even cost." This prevents you from really exploring the city, which is why I want to travel in the first place. It really felt like if you wanted to do an all inclusive just go to Florida somewhere...I'm pretty sure it would be the same experience.

Spices Lunch - Average
Basically Americanized Mexican food. Some of the dishes were good, but overall it was pretty average - the nachos were straight out of Chi-chi's and the tamales were very dry and cold. Unfortunately, at an all inclusive joint no matter how much it costs I have realized that the majority of the food will be average. Fried fish was the highlight though...nicely crisped skin, juicy meat and the zing of citrus on top.

Our Menu
Ceviche *
Nachos
Tamales
Fish Tacos
Fried Fish (red snapper) **
Coconut Cake Dessert *

Rating System
--- What the F - in a bad way
* Good
** Great
*** What the F – in a good way

Las Ventanas Dinner - Highly Recommended
Las Ventanas features international food - whatever that means. Basically a famous two michelin star chef from Spain (Sergi Arola) attached his name to the place. Food is high quality and surprisingly good for an all inclusive. Probably a one michelin or one to two star NY Times joint. Very good FG Terrine and an amazing open faced foie sandwich thing - very Spanish tasting with the roasted pepper and olive oil. Definitely one of the best dishes of the trip.

Our Menu
Tagliolini with Mushrooms, calamari, Parmesan Sauce, and Egg Yolk *
Terrine of Foie Gras with Reduction of Pedro Ximenez and Nuts **
Ox Tenderloin with Tomato Mashmellon and Mashed Potato
Coca bread with Foie, Roasted Vegetable and Olive Oil **
Catalana Cream Emulsion with Lime Sorbet **
Coulant Chocolate Souffle in the Idea of a Black Forest

Las Ventanas Brunch - Average
Came back to Las Ventanas based on the great dinner experience, but the lunch definitely didn't match the dinner experience. Overall the brunch was Ok, but the service was great and I do love me some mimosa and bellini's.

Our Menu
Omelet with Cream Cheese, Chili, and Zuchini Blossoms *
Eggs Benedict

Azia - Highly Unrecommended
The wife wanted a break from the Mexican food, so we tried this place called Azia which received a 4 diamond rating from AAA. Remind me to never listen to AAA ever again. This was one of the worst faux Asian restaurants I've ever been to. The sushi rolls were huge and super clumpy. The pad thai was drowning in sauce and was unedibly sour. The ribeye teppanyaki was cut so thick and cooked so poor, that the meat was either disgustingly fatty or incredibly dry. The lone bright spot was the side of fried rice, which was actually very good.

Our Menu
Azia Roll *
Spicy Tuna Roll
California Roll
Pad Thai ---
Ribeye Teppanyaki ---
Fried Rice **
Thai Duck

Spices Brunch Buffet - Recommended
Wanted to do the Vegas style brunch thing and Spices served up the goods. Nice selection and everything tasted pretty good. The things that impressed me the most were the new fruits to try. Found some pomegranates that were sweet and nutty like popcorn, but with black slimy seeds - different from the pomegranates in the States. Also, tried something that looked like a papaya, but it was very nutty and sweet. I was afraid of trying Mexican fruits from the street vendors because I didn't want Mr Montezuma to attack (it did on my previous trip to Durango), but looking back I definitely want to try some next time.

Cozumel - Food, Fun, and Marriage

Sorry readers for the lack of posts, but I just got back from my Mexican Wedding / Honeymoon and it was incredible. We got married in Cozumel, then travelled to Playa del Carmen and Puerto Vallarta for our honeymoon - obviously eating some great food along the way. Below are the details of the Cozumel portion.

Cozumel - My Take
Basically Cozumel is a realy beautiful island with a great small town feel. Although there are shops lining the beaches it doesn't ever seem insanely crowded for some reason. As you walk further in, you'll find where the real people are and eat. There's a night market that seemed to be where the locals hung out. I usually love night market food, but the one at the Plaza in Cozumel seemed ok...hot dogs(?), churros, and french fries were the only items served when we were there. In terms of food, we really didn't get to do much exploring since we had a wedding to deal with. Here are the places that we visited...we're definitely coming back btw since we love the area, and I'll definitely look out for more authentic restaurants.

Side note - I did not take prices into account for all these reviews, since we were on our honeymoon. Food was generally on the cheaper side, but your experience may differ if you were looking at the bill - example, La Mission supposedly is very cheap, so if I paid attention I may have thought it was more bang for the buck.

La Mission - Recommended for Mole only
Juarez Sur 271 at 10th and 15th Avenida

A small restaurant a block off the beach. Cheezy atmosphere and all gringos. Not a good sign usually, but the food here was good (not great). Good margaritas, great mole sauce, decent chille relleno, and good quesadilla. I recommend the Chicken Mole above all other items. My mexican combo plate was good, but the mole was much better. The wife's chicken fajitas were average...


Prima - Recommended
109 Avenida A. Rosada Salas
Phone: 872-42-42

Had our welcome dinner here and as most can attest, I'm insanely picky with my Italian food. The food here is good, but not great. Nothing like you would get in Italy, more like the Italian American fare you get in NYC's little italy. Not necessarily a bad thing, but I was expecting nothing from this place. I got the chicken parm which I haven't had in 10 years. Easy, cheezy (literally and figuratively), but I still love it...chicken was juicy and flavorful.


Sonora Grill - Highly Recommended
15th Ave. and Juarez
Phone: 872-3620

The best of the bunch. Perfectly cooked items, not Mexican, but killer food. Basically, our seafood was buttered, broiled and topped with garlic and lime. Served with a side of buttered rice, buttered veg, and buttered potato...mmmm, cholesterol. Shrimp was insanely sweet and juicy with the shell on - the lime juice really woke up the flavors too. Definitely going to try and recreate this at home.

Menu
Shrimp with garlic sauce ***
Fish (grouper) *

Tulum - Recommended
Visited the ruins in Tulum - not that worth it except for the best ocean water I've ever seen. Surprisingly got some good food at some restaurant at the ruins site. The salsa was spectacular - like nothing I've ever had before. The salt content was so high, but it worked so well. Great citrus flavor in the salsa too - our limes in the US don't compare. Pork tacos had an unbelievable pork flavor with a rich chili thing going on, but a tad dry, loved the pickled onions. Caveat though that all our other companions hated their dishes (no one else ordered the pork tacos).

Floyd Cardoz at Tabla

Forget Jared's Subway Diet; Try McD's Diet to Lose 80 lbs.

This article was released today by the Associated Press:

=======

QUINTON, Va. - A Virginia man lost about 80 pounds in six months by eating nearly every meal at McDonald's. Not Big Macs, french fries and chocolate shakes. Mostly salads, wraps and apple dippers without the caramel sauce.

Chris Coleson tipped the scales at 278 pounds in December. The 5-foot-8 Coleson now weighs 199 pounds and his waist size has dropped from 50 to 36.

The 42-year-old businessman from Quinton says he chose McDonald's because it's convenient.
His inspiration came from his two children and from the story of a blind war veteran who rode a tandem bicycle cross-country.

Coleson says his goal is to get back to the 185 pounds he weighed when he married Tricia Summer. Their 10th anniversary is Saturday.

=======

Don't quite get the connection between his two children and from the story of a blind war veteran and his inspiration, but I guess it worked.

Sashimi at Matsuri

Who would have thought a busy / hip place like Matsuri (located at the Maritime Hotel right next to Hiro) served extremely good sashimi.
The picture is of a sake tasting event I was invited to go to.
I will be back for sure.

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Street Fair Mistake

If you happen to spot something at a street fair in the city, try to think it through and don't neglect basic reasoning.
I have no idea what made me think a nutella banana crepe was going to be good?

Take it from me, this was the worst crepe I have ever eaten.
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Joe's Pizza

Joe's Pizza (located on Bleecker and 6th Ave) is a must have in terms of the New York experience. Nothing flashy about their "slice". It lies on a foundation of thin and crispy dough with good plain tomato sauce and low moisture cheese.

And at $2.50 a slice, you can't beat that.
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Danny Meyer's Modern at the MOMA

Hot Mama!

For lunch, I went downstairs (again) to Sunspot Café inside my building. They have a revolving door of different foods, which lets me try different things. This time, I saw a bright red bag with fire and a chica. Since I’m a bit of a chili head, I decided to try these. Like I always do. Went to my desk, ate my food, and opened these chips. As usual. Ho-hum.

WRONG!

These suckers are s-p-i-c-y!!! My coworker is from Sierra Leone, and everything he has given to me from there has some nice heat. I called him over. He tried a few. “That’s f@cked up!” Oh yeah, these are nice. Wow. I had beads of sweat running from my hair by the time I got to the end. They’re called Mama Zuma’s Revenge. The flavor is Habanero Potato Chips. The company is called Rt. 11. Here is a link to those chips:

http://www.rt11.com/cfmodules/ObjMgr.cfm?Obj=ChipDetails&SiteSectionID=8004

If you like spice with a BBQ flavor, then these are for you.

Pardon the horrible pictures I took with the camera on my Treo. The warning label reads:

These chips are made with some of the hottest peppers on the planet.

Island Way Sorbet

I found these in the freezer at Costco a couple months ago. I bought it because the health content was decent (50 cal, 9g sugar for lemon, for example), and I like the presentation. Most of the time the box will look better than what the product really is, but these were pretty close to WYSIWYG. There are several different flavors of sorbet, and I especially enjoy how they come in a real fruit shell whether it's mango, pineapple, lemon, and more. It would be great to offer guests when entertaining. This past weekend, the temperature hovered around 100 degrees, and the thick humidity added to it in a bad way. These were so nice to have at that time. You can see the different types they have here:

http://www.islandwaysorbet.com/products.cfm

I highly recommend them.

Judging a Dude by his Food?

Dudes, can you judge a dude by his food? And if so does this list below, published in Shine by Maggie Namser, make sense?

Steak - It's hot when a dude orders steak. That said, everything in moderation. I went out a few times with a tattooed pseudo-stud who ordered steak compulsively. It was cute —until I realized he was doing Atkins. Just like you don't want to know when we feel fat, we don't want to know that you're on a fad diet.

Fish - I really like you! You're confident and comfortable in your own skin. You appreciate the finer things and you’re a little bit health-conscious. Again, just don't order it every time, or I’ll start thinking you’re uptight.

Pasta - Perfecto. Just please don't wear a bib. And if you order something boring like pasta primavera, own it. Say you're in the mood for something simple. Otherwise I might picture myself in Napa sipping a pinot while you’re reaching for a Michelob Light.

Dumplings – You’re cute. Cute as a button, or, er…a dumpling.

General Tso's Chicken - You're not one to go against the grain, but hey, there's nothing wrong with an easygoing fella.

Greek salad - Points for culture, but just like we can't do the salad, you can't either. I don't care how much feta is in there.

Chicken tenders - Is your momma coming to dinner with us, little buddy?

Pad thai - Safest bet on the menu, but the fact that you suggested Thai in the first place is cool.

Fajitas - You're sizzling company. Just make sure you don't get any of that sizzle on my sweater.

Turkey - If it's not Thanksgiving and you're not at Subway, don't order turkey. I can't explain it but just trust me on this one.

Game - Uh, as long as it's not accompanied by hunting-with-Daddy stories, do your thing. And one more thing...please don't sport mandals.

Pizza - If we're at a Pizzeria or a pub, it's all good, but if we are at a white table-clothed restaurant, you might want to aim a little higher. I mean, what’s for dessert—karaoke with your frat brothers?

Burger – You’re a solid man of good taste. You know what you like and you better give me a bite.

Sushi – You’re a keeper. Especially if you do the omakase and If you have the courage to try blowfish, I’d like you to meet my family.

Dessert - Let's save this for the fifth date. By that time we both won't care about an extra five pounds.

The Power of Kalbi

See what happens when you mess with food?

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) -- South Korea's entire Cabinet offered to resign Tuesday to dampen public uproar over the planned resumption of U.S. beef imports, as tens of thousands of protesters gathered in the largest demonstration yet against the policy.

Tens of thousands hold up candles during Tuesday's protest against resuming beef imports.

President Lee Myung-bak's office did not say whether he would accept the resignations, an attempt to defuse the beef crisis that has paralyzed his government less than four months after the former Hyundai CEO took office following a landslide election victory.

The government agreed in April to lift almost all restrictions that had been imposed on imports of U.S. beef over fears of mad cow disease. The decision sparked weeks of protests demanding the government scrap or renegotiate the beef deal amid perceptions it did not do enough to protect citizens.

In the largest protest so far, some 80,000 demonstrators waving candles gathered Tuesday evening in central Seoul, according to police, who blocked roads with shipping containers to prevent the crowd from marching to the nearby presidential Blue House.

Some 21,000 riot police were deployed to keep order, the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency said.

"President Lee hasn't listened to the voices of his people. We still don't have a genuine democracy in our country," said Jang Dae-hyun, a spokesman for a civic group that has organized protests.

Rallies against the beef deal turned violent over the weekend and the government said it will take tougher steps against protesters if the violence continues.

Earlier, thousands of conservative activists supporting the deal protested near the site of the anti-U.S. beef rally.

"It's time to put out the candles," said Suh Jung-kap, a conservative activist. The protesters "are only interested in overthrowing the Lee Myung-bak government, not the safety of public health," he said.

Lee's government said it has asked the U.S. not to export beef from older cattle -- considered at greater risk of mad cow disease -- but rejected calls for a complete renegotiation of the accord, citing possible diplomatic and trade disputes with the U.S.

Lee dispatched several official delegations to Washington on Monday to seek assurances the U.S. will not ship beef from cattle older than 30 months, even though that is allowed under the agreement.

Both Seoul and Washington insist U.S. beef is safe, citing the Paris-based World Organization for Animal Health.

Scientists say mad cow disease spreads when farmers feed cattle recycled meat and bones from infected animals. The U.S. banned recycled feeds in 1997. In humans, eating meat products contaminated with the illness is linked to variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, a rare and fatal malady.

Stupid Post

Or is it?

I received this email recently:

=======

Very helpful information about Aluminum Foil I had to go straight to the kitchen and check this out...how come I never noticed this before now? I've been using aluminum foil for more years than I care to remember. Great stuff, but sometimes it can be a pain. You know, like when you are in the middle of doing something and you try to pull some foil out and the roll comes out of the box. Then you have to put the roll back in the box and start over. The darn roll always comes out at the wrong time. Well, I would like to share this with you. Yesterday I went to throw out an empty Reynolds foil box and for some reason I turned it and looked at the end of the box. And written on the end it said, 'Press here to lock end'. Right there on the end of the box is a ta b to lock the roll in place. How long has this little locking tab been there? I then looked at a generic brand of aluminum foil and it had one, too. I then looked at a box of Saran wrap and it had one too! I can't count the number of times the Saran warp roll has jumped out when I was trying to cover something up. I'm sharing this with my friends...I hope I'm not the only person in the world that didn't know about this.

=======

I've had rolls of foil and Saran wrap fall on the floor, into the food, and just plain not work resulting in wasted sheets. I was very surprised to read this email, so I checked it out. Sure enough, those tabs are there on the box. So I pressed them, and yes, they do help. I still wasted some Saran wrap, but that's just because it's a PITA the roll out.

Parchment paper did not have them, since it's not really an issue there.

WD-50

Mexican Yakult

Yakult - This is one of my favorite drinks growing up (and even now) as a kid in Taiwan and Japan.
I found it in abundance in the local super markets while down in Cozumel, Mexico.
Each one of these little bottle contains millions of natural (good) bacterial cultures to help keep your stomach strong and fight off bad stuff.
They taste great and are good for you. You can't say that about too many other things.

Mahi Mahi for dinner

I went deep sea fishing with some friends Thursday morning.
Our intent was to land some Tuna (Blue Fin Tuna that is), but unfortunately the seas weren't very kind to us and we settled with 2 Barracuda and 1 Mahi Mahi.

I have a new found respect for those sport fishermen out there battling the fish and waves. It's brutal out there.
4 of us went out and 3 of us got sick.

Here are some pictures from our little excursion and a little potluck dinner that followed in the evening. Naturally, we cooked up the fish and brought it over to the party.

Pollo en Mole

Walking around here in Cozumel. It's 7:20 pm and we pick a restaurant recommended by some locals.
Mole is the first thing I spot on the menu and I immediately fantasize about how it tastes.
My first experience with 'mole' was with Athos not so long ago. He brought some over to my place when visiting, and I have then been a fan.

Today's mole was even better. Complex flavors all dancing around the main ingredient, chocolate. It had heat, it had spice, it had savoriness and viscosity. It coated the extremely well cooked chicken perfectly and resonated on my palate for over an hour after the meal was done.

I have to recommend you all hunt down some authentic yucatan mole and treat your senses to a true delight.

Sent via BlackBerry from T-Mobile

Pork Buns at Ippudo

You saw it here first!
A quick answer to their neighbor Momofuku Noodle and Momofuku Ssam.

Ippudo's pork belly is spicy and half the size of their counterpart's. Topped with lettuce and kewpie mayonnaise, this isn't bad, but doesn't compare to Mr. Chang's signature dish.

2 pieces for 8 bucks.
Stick to their Akamaru Ramen and enjoy the homemade noodles broth.

Sent via BlackBerry from T-Mobile

Sam Adams Brewery

I went to Boston the other day for a little weekend getaway with some friends.
As New Yorkers, there's always a little bit of rivalry between the two cities, but all things aside, we definitely had a great time up in Beantown.

I've been traveling quite a lot lately and through my travels, I've met some pretty cool people.
One of these "really cool people" happens to be a Sam Adams employee in Boston and offered to take my friends and I on a private tour of the brewery.

So we set a weekend to go up to Boston and check out what the city had to offer.
It was Sunday and the brewery was closed. Convenient. We met T (the brewer) up around 4pm at the loading dock of the brewery and into the building we went.

It smelled of yeast, barley, hops.... everything you thought it would smell like.
Really good beer was being made here and I was about to have me some.

Once entered, T took us straight to the bar and poured us some seasonal beer on tap.
I asked for a glass of the Holiday Porter.
As many of you know... Sam Adams offers a myriad of seasonal beers along with their standard Lagers and Ales.
Considered a Craft Brewery (bigger than a Micro Brewery, smaller than a Mega Brewery), they pump out only 0.7% of all domestic beers in America. Just 0.7%. To put this in perspective, Budweiser controls 52% of the market share in the US.
(Holy F! is right)

So our tour starts at the tour center... pictures, old bottle designs and medals from all over the world decorate the visitor center. Tons of "Best Beer" awards, tons of medals, tons of awards.... you get the point.
But what we wanted to see were the brewing tanks.
And so into the back we went.

Quite a magnificent site. You can't help but smile knowing there's tons of goodness resting in those steel containers.
At the Boston site, they are only able to produce 70,000 barrels of beer a year. It's more of a front really. That's just fractions of their annual 1.2 million barrels, which are produced in Cincinnati and other off-site breweries.

"Anheuser-Busch literally -- literally -- spills more beer than I make all year," he says. "They make 100 million barrels and they lose 1.5 percent to just spillage in the breweries." - Jim Koch, CEO

At this point in the tour, I thought we were about to wrap up. But T really out did himself and took us into several of the back rooms where they kept "the special stuff".
Breweries always have special stuff for employees and "friends". And the phrase "sharing is caring" couldn't be more true.

T poured us a glass of Sam Adams Utopias.












(left: Utopias from the bottle into a snifter. right: unfiltered Utopias straight from the fermentation tank)
For those in the know, this is a beer only offered every 2 and a half years. The next commercial batch is to be unveiled mid 2009.
- 26% alcohol per volume, this is the strongest beer in the world
- Bock style beer
- Use of all 4 Noble Hops
- Caramel and Vienna Malts
- A variety of yeasts are also used (including champagne yeast)
- Aged in whiskey barrels

This was possibly the most amazing beverage my palate has ever come across. Amazingly deep, floral, complex, smooth and ultra delicious. Not very beerlike but technically still a beer.

This trip definitely changed my thoughts on beer and has even motivated me to buy some books on home brewing. I will attempt to brew with my friend this summer and will surely post once we are ready to sample.

Cheers!

Pringles - Ash Flavor?

The designer of the Pringles can past away and guess what? Yes, he did. He requested to have his body cremated and his ashes stored in a Pringles can. The Pringles can was a brilliant invention, so pop open a can and pour some chips out for the inventor. Just make sure there are no ashes on your chips...

Le Colonial San Francisco

Le Colonial San Francisco - Highly Recommended

We went to Le Colonial last night in San Francisco. Hands down, it beats the version in New York City. First, the location is a hook in itself: it is nestled away in an alley. You enter a building and the restaurant stretches way back, much longer than you would expect. The ambiance is much more relaxing than at its sister in NYC. They even have a heated patio. Second, the service was impeccable. Our waitress could have played the part of the Perfect Waitress in a Hollywood movie.

Third, the food was more imaginative. We started with duck rolls, which came with crispy lettuce and a sour sauce. It was clearly a popular dish: Everyone around us got that to start. For main courses, we got the sturgeon with cold noodles--an excellent pairing of salty fish and a vinegar dish to punch through the savory. The other main course was the scallops and shrimp in curry with potatoes, eggplant, and mango. A Cline syrah was the perfect accent. We were so impressed with the food and service, we forgot to take pictures. (Sorry.)

Brownies - Quick, Easy, Delicious

How easy? Empty the powder into a bowl, add 1 yogurt, mix, pour it into greased baking dish, and bake for 35 minutes at 350. Done! And check it out - fat free and 120 calories per piece.
You're thinking it that it can't be too good, right? I did too. I don't remember the circumstance that made me try it, but I did. I am so happy I did. They're good. Soooo good.

These are called No Pudge! Fudge Brownies. There are different flavors, and these pictures show the cappuccino-flavored brownies. They look identical, but the taste is definitely different. Though cappuccino was decent, original flavor is much better in my opinion. These brownies are so fudgy, moist, and taste great. It’s hard to believe that they are no fat and low-cal. Apparently they were made by a brownieholic. Her testament is on the side of the box, and it reads:

My name is Lindsay Frucci and I am a brownieholic. I love thick, fudgy, chewy brownies. I hate fat. In my food or on my hips, fat is something I like to live without. Since most thick, fudgy, chewy brownies are loaded with fat this created quite a problem. Were brownies without guilt a possibility? In January of 1995, I decided to try and find out.

Her website for the brownies is an open forum where people have added their own twists and tips. There’s even a personal brownie of 1 spoon of yogurt, 2 spoons of the mix, and microwaved. Check out the website
http://nopudge.com/

I need to add that while making the brownies, the mix will feel very, very dry. Resist the need to add more yogurt, water, or whatever to make it more moist. Keep mixing, and it will happen. I added vanilla and used a mixer, but it’s unnecessary. Have fun with it. Add nuts, chocolate chips… there are recipes that turn them into marshmallow graham treats, muffins, cookies, and so on.

Give it a try. And oh, you’re welcome.

Hill Country

the real deal!