Crème Brûlée Cappuccino

This post begins my homage to California.  Some people may think of California as the land of Arnold Schwarzenegger, SUV’s and surfer dudes but as a California native, I especially appreciate California as an agricultural and culinary oasis.  The freshest fruits and vegetables all year around, perfect weather, mountains and ocean in one scene, and people who are generally laid back, casual, and friendly.

I was reunited with a good friend during my vacation to California.  We hadn’t seen each other in years and I was amazed when she asked me if I would be in California at the exact time that I planned to be there!  We managed to see each other the morning that she flew back to Indiana with her husband and two young daughters.  Her husband was kind enough to let me take her for a couple of hours.  We ended up at one of her favorite coffee shops.  This was no ordinary coffee shop.  Barefoot Coffee Roasters serves a Crème Brûlée Cappuccino that I am craving as I write this post.  I have yet to find another coffee shop that will sprinkle fine sugar over your cappuccino and take a torch to it.  You get the thrill of breaking through burnt sugar without the guilt of eating a cream custard along with the reward of a seriously delicious cappuccino!  Perhaps I can find this drink somewhere in New York City.  I’ll have fun trying, at any rate.

Creme Brulee Cppuccino from Barefoot Coffee

Social Eatz

I was searching for a quick and casual place to eat around the Bloomingdale’s area.  I searched Yelp because I am not a huge fan of the girly places near there, such as Serendipity and Alice’s Teacup.  I came across Social Eatz which I have been seeing in the Tasting Table newsletters and has had publicity from Top Chef (which I never watched).  Since I was meeting an adventurous friend, she agreed to try this new place with me.  They don’t open for dinner until 5:30 and we were trying to make it to a Good Friday service by 6:30.  The menu is quite witty and charming.  The food was introduced to us by our server as classic American fare with an Asian twist.  Although the Yelp reviews led me to believe it was going to be hit or miss, I thoroughly enjoyed the meal.  We started with Spring Roll appetizers and before the main course they gave us scented hot towels for our hands!  We had flavored unfiltered Ginger Ale- I only recommend this if you are a huge fan of ginger.  It was quite strong.  The Hanoi Burger was very tasty and my Tilapia Tacos were delicious as well.  Flavor, texture, taste, all good.  The fries, though, [insert dramatic pause here] the fries.  Seasoned and served with a spicy cheddar and sake sauce, these shoestring fries were out of this world.  At first what attracted me to the menu was the Korean Beef Tacos.  I’m glad I didn’t order it, though, because I would have been comparing them to the ones I had in L.A. off the Kogi Truck.  That is a post for another day.   If you are on the East Side, try Social Eatz.  The food was good, the service was friendly, and we were served quickly and made it to church on time.

Spring Rolls and Ginger Ale

Apple Flavored Soda- Mundet

I found some Apple Soda at the supermarket in Jackson heights. It intrigued me because it said that the flavor comes from the apple. I tried explaining it to my coworkers but they kept calling it apple cider even though I described it as apple juice with carbonation. It is delicious, at any rate, and my coworkers can’t get enough of it.  It also comes in green apple, which is sweeter.

Mundet Apple Flavored Soda

Green Apple Soda

10¢ Wings at Croxley’s

I don’t normally hang out in Long Island but I decided to join my co-workers for a pre-Thanksgiving Buffalo Wing night at Croxley Ales.  I had been hearing about these famous wing nights and I finally got to experience one.  The evening was preceded by a discussion of the name Buffalo wings.  Without even having any beer the discussion we had was quite ridiculous and I will not recreate it for you here.  I suppose I could Google or Wiki it but perhaps an informed reader can educate me.  Also, I’ve never been to Buffalo so I’ve never had true Buffalo wings, just like I’ve never had a true Philly cheese steak or true Chicago pizza either.   I had a pear cider and then I lost track of the number of wings that I had.  I think I stopped counting on purpose in order to prevent myself from quantifying the guilt!  I loved the hot wings but people ordered mostly mild or medium.  I couldn’t taste the difference between the mild and medium but it didn’t really matter because the bleu cheese sauce prevailed, anyways.  The wings were great, the company was fantastic, and the beers were plentiful.  ’Twas a great night.

NYC’s anti-soda campaign

Subway Campaign

Have you seen these ads on the subway?  The NY Times published an article about this recent campaign talking about the controversy over them.  I’ve recently entered at Fatbet with some co-workers and it has forced me to reconsider the choices that I make in my diet.  I’m brought back to my high school days when we had health as a topic for a week for PhysEd class.  The teacher tried to explain the concept of empty calories to us.  This was during the time when fat free foods made their explosion onto the market.  Another voice ringing in my head is that of my mother’s, who was always telling me not to drink soda.  All this information clicked with me a few years back when I was living in China, with Coca Cola as one of my few American staples that I could rely on getting abroad cheaply and easily.  My friend who worked at Amnesty International challenged me to give up Coke and Nestle products in order to protest the evils of globalization.  As reluctantly as I did give up Coke products for 6 months (she couldn’t convince me to give up Nestle products, though, because they were the only ones making American style breakfast cereal at the time), I had an epiphany.  My body really didn’t need the rush of 240 calories from pure sugar.  The empty calories were equaling fat, exactly the way it is portrayed in the NYC subway campaign.  Of course, anything is permissible in moderation.  This brings me back to the Fatbet.  People inevitably frown at me when they see me eating a cookie or anything slightly unhealthy.  And drinking empty calories is not evil, it just needs to be moderated.  If you drink a bottle of coke and you’re on a 1700 calorie per day diet, that’s one seventh of your daily allotted calories.  And diet drinks aren’t a good alternative.  According to my friend’s dietician, your body does actually need and crave sugar.  If you use a sugar substitute, your body will still crave actual sugar so it is best to use real sugar, but sparingly and in moderation.  What I learned from my previous Fatbet was not to unknowingly drink your calories.  Sports drinks, sodas, sugar and cream, “enhanced” waters all add up.  And they can add up to fat.

Flushing- Sago

Sago Tea Cafe on Main Street in Flushing serves appetizers, rice, and noodle dishes along with bubble tea (aka pearl tea or boba).  They also have a Korean food menu.  Instead of having my usual almond milk tea or green tea smoothie, I tried the Fried Green Tea Ice Cream as I caught up with friends.  Joe’s Bestburger is right across the street they have a half price deal for their Rewards Card members a couple hours before closing.  My friend Sam was recommending the chicken sandwich, claiming that it is better than Chick-fil-a.  I tried holding out until 10pm to have dinner but I didn’t make it.  I had Burger King instead.  Hardly interesting at all.  My model/actor friend Jay gave me his rewards card to Joe’s Bestburger so I’ll make it there sometime soon.

Breakfast at Tiffany’s Per Se

My version of having Breakfast at Tiffany’s is getting a Pain au Chocolat from Bouchon and then going one floor up to look at what’s on the menu at Per Se.  I never really liked diamonds until I walked into a Tiffany’s and I’ve never thought of food as poetry until I looked at the menu at Per Se.  OK, listen to this:  TERRINE OF HUDSON VALLEY MOULARD DUCK FOIE GRAS- Tellicherry Pepper-Scented Yogurt, Strawberry Gelée, Watercress and Balsamic Reduction with Toasted Brioche.

Or this: MUD PIE- Dark Chocolate Mud Cake, Liquid Caramel, Chocolate “Crémeux” and Caramel Parfait  with Sassafras Ice Cream.

Did you read it aloud?  Is not the alliteration just savory?  Just reading it makes me feel elegant.  Like I could be so Audrey!

Indian Taj

Indian Taj on 74th Street, Jackson Heights

I had a chance to try the buffet at Indian Taj on 74th Street in Jackson Heights.  I really liked their curry goat and chili chicken.  Great flavor, although I don’t claim to be an experienced Indian food diner.  The fresh nan that they brought around during the meal was delicious as well.  My friend Leigh ordered a Gin & Tonic.  Next time I will order a lassi which looked quite refreshing.  I’ve only tried mango lassi before but I’ve never tried the plain one.  Something to look forward to!

Ippudo and Cha-An

Hooray for birthdays!!  I turned…well, let’s just say that it makes me happy to get carded when I order a drink!  My friends took me to Ippudo for ramen and Cha-An for dessert.  A well rounded Japanese evening out.  If you go on Ippudo’s website, the intro says, “Ramen is Japan’s Soul Food.”  I’m still thinking about the exact parallel between ramen and say, chicken and waffles, but I think I understand generally what they are getting at.  It was my first time eating there and it did not disappoint.  I had heard that people wait over an hour but we got there right at the start of dinnertime and were seated right away.  The broth was incredible and they also offer an option of bringing you extra noodles to go with the broth.  I ordered a special for the day, a cold noodle dish with Tan Tan in the name.  It immediately brought to mind Chinese Dan Dan noodles which are a spicy noodle dish, also with ground pork, from the Sichuan province.  Some Chinese people talk about how everything in this world originated in China, just like Mr. Portokalos in the movie My Big Fat Greek Wedding says, “Give me a word, any word, and I show you that the root of that word is Greek.”   I guess legend does have it that Christopher Columbus brought noodles to Italy from China, as well.  Well, according to Ippudo’s website, ramen was brought over to Japan by a Chinese Confucian of the Ming Dynasty.  The cold noodles I had came in a chilled Pyrex measuring cup with egg, shrimp, wine jelly, ground meat sauce, cilantro, fish flakes, and instructions to mix everything together really well.  The flavor was incredible.  My friends’ ramen in broth was incredibly flavorful, as well.

For dessert, we walked from 4th Ave and 9th Street over to Cha-An, a Japanese Tea Room.  I had the Black Sesame Creme Brulee and the Green Tea Float, and my friend had the Zenzai (actually, he had two of them).  The brulee came with a scoop of ice cream on top and a sesame crisp.  The Float had a red bean ice cube floating in it.  Honestly, I could have eaten two orders of the creme brulee, as well.  And the green tea flavor of the float was really good and strong, like I remember the drinks tasting in Asia.  I would like to experience the tea ceremony there, at some point.  I think rituals are underrated in America.

Oh, and somewhere in Manhattan there is a guy walking around with a shirt that says, “Everybody loves Ramen.”  Let me know if you see him!

Ippudo Cold Noodle Special

Sesame Brulee with Ice Cream and Green Tea Float

Lunch at Bouchon

I have never been to French Laundry in Napa Valley or any other of Thomas Keller’s reputable restaurants, such as Per Se, located inside the Time Warner Center at Columbus Circle.  But his Bouchon Bakery (also at Time Warner) is on my list of things that act as anti-depressants for me, along with puppies and chocolate anything, of course.  When Lea, my best friend from college, said that she wanted to eat her way through New York, I knew instantly that I would take her to Bouchon.  We stopped there for lunch and I had what I remember the waiter calling a Wagyu Steak Sandwich with Tomato Marmalade and Basil Pesto.  Sometimes genius can be misunderstood but there was no misunderstanding between me and this sandwich!  Ultra-tender beef and cheese melted between the perfectly toasted baguette dressed with the sweet tomato on the top and basil pesto on the bottom.  If there was a scale of delectability…

Lea had the Corned Beef Sandwich and later we grabbed some of the desserts from the counter to go.  It’s also my favorite place to go for coffee.  Bouchon coffee paired with browsing books at Borders makes for an affordable luxury for the starving artist in NYC!

Pizza, Beer, and the Staten Island Ferry

I was watching the Martha Stewart Show this morning and she was doing a tribute to New York City.  Mayor Bloomberg was the first guest and when she asked him what tourists must do when they come to New York, he answered, “Take the Staten Island Ferry.  It’s free.”  I laughed because I always take my friends on the Staten Island Ferry whenever I have visitors.  Martha and Michael also talked about the nice view you get of Lady Liberty, and if you don’t have time to see some of the cultural things on Staten Island, you can just get back on the ferry and come back.  The part that really made me laugh was the Mayor saying that he used to take a 6-pack of beer and a pizza and made it a cheap date.  Hey, if it’s good enough for the Mayor, it’s good enough for me!