Friday Pic: The Other City

I can't believe it's been 2 weeks since I last posted something here. I am not going to lie, I'm definitely finding it hard to keep this blog updated. Especially when I feel like my job is taking over my entire life! Thank God I'm blessed with a job that I actually enjoy and derive a lot of satisfaction from.

Anyhoo... while I spend this weekend recuperating (kinda not really since the BFF Meeks is in town) enjoy this picture of a beautiful row of town houses that caught my eye on my recent trip to the Big Apple.

Happy weekending-- it's good to be home.

Friday Pic: My City

Two thoughts, 1. I love the city I live in and 2. I wish I had a better camera.

So folks, another week has come and gone, and another Friday is upon us. Unfortunately, my work week doesn't end here as I head up to San Francisco to help out at the SF World Spirits Competition, work some events and then travel to New York to work more events. In total I will be gone from LA for well over a week. Phew.

I love my job? Happy weekending!

Bobo

It seems inevitable that whenever I am in New York for the weekend, I just have to hit up a dining establishment for brunch. I fancy myself Carrie from SATC, weekend brunching with her ladies, all in fabulous outfits.

But reality is I'm not Carrie. NYC or not, I most likely do not have a fancy outfit on (it was freezing in New York this particular trip and the LA/Singapore girl in me chose warmth over fashion. Although I will say I did love my over the knee boots I had on) and I definitely am not having any of that Sex In The City. But fancy outfits and sex aside, I was having brunch! Brunch with my friends Shu and Keith, brunch at bobo restaurant and brunch in the City.

Source

Located in a beautiful old brownstone in Greenwich Village, we discovered bobo through some "interwebs" researching and made reservations to brunch there Saturday morning.

Upon entering the restaurant via the conspicuously unmarked basement entrance (Faux Speakeasy anyone,) we walked right into bobo's subterranean bar area. The brunch vibe there was cool and young, very New York.

As I glanced around the room checking out the scene, I found myself feeling pretty pleased to be "weekend brunching" with the cool kids. However, instead of seating us with the young-uns, our hostess lead us right up a flight of rickety stairs to the main dining room, where we were surrounded by two groups of older patrons. WHAT?? Did we just get seated in the "adults" only boring room? Did we not make the cut? Could they tell I was not a New Yorker??

So there we were, with the oldies in the upstairs intimate (and intimate it was, as I found myself sitting way too close to the next table) dining room, surrounded by tastefully rummaged knickknacks (glass-bead chandeliers, old black and white "family" photos and a pastiche of mismatched “antiques.”) and a large scale hexagonal bookshelf stocked with random volumes and hardcovers.

Despite the chic décor that is meant to evoke a bourgeois bohemian’s dinner party, I didn't care too much for the dark antiquated effect the room had. It made me feel like I was eating in a rundown dirty house. I guess I just don't get the boho bourgeois look and feel.   

That, or I am still sore that we didn't get seated downstairs with all the popular kids. 

Food wise, bobo is a self-proclaimed farm-to-table eatery, which I am always for. After glancing through the brunch menu, I ordered the soft scrambled eggs with tomatoes, potatoes and spicy pepita toasts.

The eggs were cooked to American perfection, and by that I mean that they were nice and dried out, the way Americans expect their scrambled eggs to be. I, on the other hand, have a more European take on scrambled eggs and like mine a little wetter.

That being said, I did appreciate the sweet and tangy tomatoes that were so juicy that it almost made no sense for it not to be summer outside. Additionally, the potatoes had such a lovely crisp and seasoning to them I couldn't help but chow down greedily.

However, my favorite thing from my plate were the pepita toasts. Served atop freshly baked bread from Balthazar (we asked), the pepita spread had a mouth-watering sweet/spicy combo that was refined yet hearty. The masterful combination of the nutty pepita spread and crusty yet chewy bread was relentlessly addictive.

I also have to give a small shout out to the side order of bacon that we ordered (because fat kids are harder to kidnap.) Thick cut, smokey and laden with bacon-tastiness, the bacon was cooked exactly the way I like it- crispy but not burned and most importantly not dripping with oil.

Details:
bobo
181 West 10th Street
New York, NY 10014
212- 488-2626

Friday Pics: The Way I Travel- New York

The Winter Whites of New York City.

Clinton St. Baking Company & Restaurant

I love breakfast. Well no, I love brunch, because brunch combines two of my great loves: breakfast and sleeping in without missing breakfast. 

Waaa-it... didn't I already mention this? Right... deja vu huh? 

But worry not, I got that negative "press" thing out of my system on Monday. Instead, since I'm in New York this week for a work/play combo weekend, I thought I would talk about this lovely brunch place that I dined at the last time I was in New York- Clinton St. Baking Company & Restaurant.

The one thing about brunch that really gets to me, is that everyone else seems to love it too! Therefore, there is, inevitably, always a wait for a table at any brunch spot (least it be McDonalds. Which, btw, I had for breakfast in Singapore on Xmas eve- don't judge!). 

This was exactly the case when I dined at Clinton St Baking Co & Restaurant. My friend and I braved the hour long wait because I just had to have their pancakes. What a foodie brat I've become ;)

But let me tell you, these wild Maine blueberry pancakes that we had was truly worth the long wait. Served with warm maple butter, these pancakes were not too thick and not too thin. They would have surely satisfied Goldilocks herself!  

The pancakes had just the right amount of crisp to dough ratio and were delectable with the warm blueberry compote and sinful with the maple butter. I really can't explain why the pancakes were so good, but if you trust my taste buds, you too would wait for over an hour for them. 

The second dish we shared was poached eggs in heirloom tomato and summer squash stew topped with grated Parmesan cheese and served with sour dough toast. The combination of the warm poached eggs, stewed squash and tomatoes made for a very homey and comforting dish. The tomatoes were so vibrant and sweet, while the eggs were beyond fresh. I love it when simple ingredients come together like this to make a tasty and stellar dish.

Speaking of simple ingredients and simple life, I kept picturing myself on a quaint little farm, eating this dish with farm fresh eggs from the coup, and freshly grown tomatoes and squash from the garden patch out back. Apparently I watch too many farm movies because if you really lived on a farm, you would be too pooped from farm chores to fix yourself such a breakfast. At least I would.

 

Finally, we also ordered a side of their fried green tomatoes. These were truly a perfect combination of fried sinful crunch, with salty and sweet goodness. Furthermore, the fried green tomatoes were not the least bit too greasy and were so amazingly good that I've been craving a good fried green tomato since then.

Anyway, that was what I was up to the last time I was in New York. Stayed tuned to find out what other shinnanigans I get myself into on this trip. Happy February and almost Chinese New Year! 

Details:

Clinton St. Baking Company & Restaurant

4 Clinton Street

New York, NY 10002

646-602-6263

A Night of Cheap Eats in New York

Traveling for work with my boss always means I get to eat well. However, after 4 days straight (2 in Miami and 2 in New York) of 3 hour long fine dining, I had endured enough and my patience (and stomach) was wearing thin. Now don't get me wrong, the snob in me enjoys fine dining like it's my job, but 4 days in a row... I was in desperate need of street eats- delicious, quick and cheap food.

Answering the call was my best friend's older sister Shu, who recently moved to New York to get her second, yes you read right, second law degree.

On our way to our intended first stop, Xi'an Famous Foods, we got distracted by the Wafles & Dinges truck. Impulsively we decided to do dessert before our main course because apparently, you make rash decisions when you are starving.

Owned and operated by an IBM consultant who traded in his brief case for a waffle iron, the bright yellow Wafels & Dinges Truck offers both sweet and savory options. I, under recommendation from Shu, ordered de throwdown wafel, named after the legendary Throwdown Battle with Chef Bobby Flay. The good folks from Wafels & Dinges came out victorious in case you were wondering.

Topped with a huge mound of whipped cream and smothered generously with speckuloos, de throwndown wafel was warm, delicious and was everything I wanted in an "appetizer." 

The Liege wafel itself was soft and chewy. Additionally, there was a certain denseness and sweetness to the wafel that stood out against the usual crisp Belgian Waffles that I am used too. But what made this wafel great was the little bits of pearl sugar that crystallized on the outside of the waffle, giving it an extra oomph of sweetness and texture. Mmmm. 

Meanwhile the Speckuloos- a Belgian Gingerbread spread- was simply divine. Not too sweet, it paired beautifully with the wafel and hinted subtly of a Graham cracker.

After this minor but very worthwhile sidetrack (which by the way, also included a brief interaction with an African American lady who was on a noble quest to track down and try all the food trucks in NYC), we veered back on path toward Xi'an Famous Foods. 

When we finally arrived at Xi'an Famous Foods, it had a long line out the door. Inside the small 3-table shop, pictures of menu items adorned the wall, as if we were in a foreign country and needed pictorial guides. Despite the crowd, luck was with us and we snagged a table as soon as we entered the door. 

Well... it wasn't so much luck as it was me pushing my way forward and surging for the empty table before this meek little Asian girl had a chance to blink. It wasn't even a competition, searching for tables at busy hawker centers in Singapore has me well trained. 

While I guarded our precious table, I let Shu do the ordering. First up to bat, the Mount Qi Pork Hand-pulled (aka La Mian) Noodles. 

I die. There is nothing else I can say.

Well not really, but I thought those two words would adequately convey my feelings for this dish. The freshly made noodles were perfectly pulled/slapped/stretched/ flapped and... well whatever technical magic that goes into making La Mian. With the right amount of chew and texture to it, these noodles had such a luciously rich mouthfeel to it. I'm drooling now just thinking about them. Furthermore, the thing about hand-pulled noodles that I love is not only the amazing texture but the beautifully flawed inconsistency in their size and shape.They are living proof that imperfection is interesting. And delicious!

Besides the heavenly noodles, the pork topping was sour, spicy and tingly all at the same time! The divine combination of the chewy noodles and flavorful pork really made my taste buds howl in delight! If you are looking for a deeply satisfying meal, the Mount Qi Hand-pulled noodles from Xi'an's is the way to go.

Having shared the noodles, Shu also thought it wise to order the savory cumin lamb burger. Now I don't usually include prices in my blog reviews, but I would be doing everyone a disservice if I did not tell you that this lovely lamb burger only cost $2.50! 

Price aside, let me tell you more about this lamb burger. The only similarities that the lamb burger has with a regular burger is in its size, which is roughly the same. But that is where the similarities end. 

Instead of a meat patty, this burger has chunks of smokey cumin coated lamb that are sauteed with jalapenos, onions, and scallions. The lamb is then stuffed into a hard, crispy-warm bun that is more like a toasted English muffin. Similar to a Hamburger or not, this lamb burger is deeply aromatic and fragrant and tasted like nothing out of any Asian eatery I know. 

Stuffed and deeply satisfied, we wandered the streets of New York (where we actually made a quick pit stop for an Australian Meat Pie) for a while before heading back to Shu's gorgeous new home. 

Later that night, and yes, with the Phua's there is always a later that night ;), we found ourselves at Pomme Frites looking to satisfy our late night hankering for fries. 

Another "Hole in the Wall", Pomme Frites serves just fries and a multitude of dipping sauces. We shared a large order of the Belgian fries with the following sauces and garnishes to compliment them: Ketchup, especial (frite sauce, ketchup and raw onions), frites sauce (traditional European mayo) and a horseradish mayo. 

Freshly cut and fried in a giant vat, the fries were hot and sinfully crispy on the outside, while mealy on the inside. They were the perfect vehicle for the myriad of sauces we ordered, and the perfect late-night snack.

Details:

Wafels & Dinges

Xi'an Famous Foods

81st Mark's Place

New York, NY 10003

Pommes Frites

123 Second Ave

New York, NY 10003

212-674-1234

Nuela

If you've been paying any attention to my recap of recent work travels, you'll remember that I am "currently" in New York City, living it up in a penthouse hotel. On our first night there, we learned what having the UN in town did to New York traffic, and we also dined at the new and hip pan-Latin restaurant, Nuela.

The moment we stepped into Nuela, we were greeted by the loud "unch-unch" of throbbing music- I immediately thought to myself "I'm too old for this."

A room full of shiny hair, sky high heels and it-bags hinted that beautiful is a prerequisite of dining at the restaurant. Even with my stylish new cropped pants, bohemian blouse and stacked heels, I felt like I needed higher heels, more makeup and a fashion bag the size of a sofa cushion dangling from my arm. Decorated in radioactive shades of orange and red, the main dining room was filled with diners that sat chattering with friends over cocktails (which were pretty delicious actually, especially the Cuba Libre) while simultaneously texting other friends and posting status updates on their social network.

It is needless to say that Nuela oozes with the exclusive glamour of a Miami Nightclub. You know, the kind of exclusiveness that makes one feel a little awkward and out of place at first because you don't quite know if you are actually cool enough to be there... yeah... like I said, I'm too old for this.

Nuela was meant to mark Neuvo Latino pioneer Doug Rodriguez's return to New York. However, Chef Rodriguez dropped out of the project before it actually began, leaving the restaurant's fate to his No. 2, Adam Schop to run the whole shebang. Regardless of who was at the helm of the kitchen, I was in a hip New York restaurant, had told myself I was cool enough and I was ready to get my grub on.

Up first, the shaved hearts of palm salad with smoked dates and a coconut vinaigrette. Not being a huge fan of dates (unless they are wrapped in bacon) or coconut, this salad was a ho-hum dish for me. I didn't hate it, but I didn't love it either.

The hearts of palm were shaved to a delicate thinness but in my opinion, the dressing was too creamy and rich- I like my vinaigrettes with a little more acidity to it.

We also tried some octopus and pork belly anticuchos (aka Peruvian-style skewers) with pepper escabeche and shishito mayo. I wanted very much to enjoy these skewers but the octopus was tough and in my opinion overcooked, making it a chewy mess.

I know the pork belly was there to act as a balance to the chewy octopus but the combination just didn't come together for me. It was hard to enjoy one, without its counterpart foiling the experience.

Also sampled were these wee little foire gras croquetas with a liquid center of gingersnap and rum.

Definitely not my favorite. I was actually most excited to try this unique dish but could not get over the strong, sickly-sugary, alcohol-flavored goo that burst out of the ball. I haven't met something that I really disliked this much in a long time. It was like the foire gras croquetas were the food personification of a punch in the gut, or worst still, something you would find on the floor of a bus station bathroom.

However, if you are a fan of rich and strong alcoholic taste, then these croquetas are for you. I picture a hearty old man enjoying these. Oh wait... that would be my boss... and he did enjoy them.

Chifa empanadas with pork and rock shrimp in a curry mustard emulsion were also ordered. While they reminded me of the curry puffs that we get back home, the rock shrimp was extremely succulent and provided a divine complexion to the empanadas. The mustard curry emulsion was perfectly balanced and was a nice dipping sauce for the already tasty empanadas.

Having one in our party that did not eat shrimp, we also put in an order of their vegetarian empanadas, which  has a flavorful mixture of vegetables. Again, the empanada shell was nice and crispy

By this time, I was starting to categorize Neula as one of those restaurants where the scene is hot, but the food is not so much. Then the ceviches came...

We ordered two ceviche dishes and first on the palate was the surf clam and heirloom tomatoes, with charred watermelon and basil. My oh my!

I generally steer clear of clams in general but the combination of the tangy tomatoes, sweet watermelon and herbaeous basil was just what I needed to make my mouth water. The chewy clams were just delightful against the watermelon's wet snap. A dish like this could make me rethink my usually unfavorable position on clams.

The second ceviche we had was the hamachi with aji amarillo, sour orange, basil and black garlic. This was easily my favorite dish of the entire dinner. With flavor combinations that were new and exciting to me, I kept going back for more, in an attempt to make friends with every new flavor that walked across my palate.

It was delicate yet strong, simple yet bold. The sour orange combined with the black garlic was such a surprise and was like a flavor bomb going off in my mouth. What was even more endearing was that despite the boldness of the garlic, it did not overpower the hamachi, not one bit. It was exciting for me to see big brash flavors in such close proximity to extremely delicate ones.

For the main dishes we ordered two dishes from the section of the menu labeled Para Dos Personas, or dinner for two. Dish numero uno: The whole smokey peruvian chicken served with huancaina sauce, a piquant green aji sauce, thick crusty french fries topped with gloops of melty cheese, and a soft-boiled egg.

Moist and tender, the chicken was a sign of perfect technique being executed in the kitchen. While some think a perfectly cooked bird is cake walk for any kitchen, experience has proved to me otherwise. The huancaina sauce was peppery and simply over the moon, while the aji sauce provided a nice spicy option.

The second shared dish was the Arroz Con Pato, a beautiful paella-like amalgam of crispy duck breast, confit thighs and gizzards, roasted foie gras, and a fried duck egg served over rice that bears a tender, chewy crust of soccarat on the bottom.

I don't think I've ever seen so many variations of the theme of duck in one dish. I love variety so the multitude of duck was right up my alley. The bird's breast were amazingly succulent and flavorful, while the liver and gizzards offered many different textures and tastes from the duck. The best part of the dish was the combination of the runny fried egg that just gently flavored the golden rice that was beautifully crisp around the edges.

This is definitely a dish not to be missed.  

For dessert, despite all of us being full, we ordered the Passion Y Coconut with coconut crema, passion fruit curd and sorbet, and macaroon toppings.  While I enjoyed the passion fruit curd and sorbet, and while the macaroon topping provided a wonderful textural contrast to the crema, once again the coconut flavors put a damper to my enjoyment.

And lastly, we shared an order of a Panna Cotta with milk foam. I will say this now and will say this forever, foam on food is too contrived and a waste of space! It adds nothing to the dish and looks like someone spit up all over your food. Yeah... I think you know that I barely even touched the panna cotta.

So after 3 hours of dining at Nuela, what is my final verdict? Neula has a bit of an identity crisis. It can't seem to decide if it's a flashy Latin Lounge, or a restaturant with serious culinary intentions. I am not saying that a restaurant cannot be both things. However, the contrived coolness coupled with the brash party vibe of Nuela makes it too exhausting for a multi-course 3 hour meal. In other words, there is good eats to be had at Nuela, if you can just summon the mental strength to ignore the scene.

Details:
Nuela
43 W 24th Street
New York, NY 10010
212-929-1200

Friday Pics: The Way I Travel- New York

After spending 2 days in Miami, it was time to take our event to New York City. Here are some pictures from my time there for this week's installment of Friday Pictures. 

 The Indoor Balcony of our penthouse hotel on the Upper East Side.

The views from the outdoor balcony of the hotel.

 

The Flat Iron Building.

And a little shout out to Eataly, the gorgeous new Italian food market and restaurant collection that we happened to chance upon, and also where I got to meet Joe Bastianich and Mario Batali (orange crocs and all). 

Boasting 50,000 square feet of restaurants and peninsular provisions, Eataly has everything you'll ever need with a fishmonger and butcher (and vegetable butcher) and an espresso bar, a wine store, a cheese store, a cooking school, a kitchenware department and a great deal more! Eataly literally took my breath away and I wanted to spend hours exploring every nook and cranny of this awesome space.

 

Happy almost-thanksgiving-but-not-quite weekend!

The Little Owl

For my birthday...Okay, okay, I know that my birthday was um exactly a month ago and it's slightly untimely that I'm only now getting round to sharing... But hey, better late than never!

Anyhooo, where was I? Right...For my birthday, I made dinner reservations for my friends and I to dine at The Little Owl.

Nestled on a quiet corner in Greenwich Village, The Little Owl does a beautiful job of capturing the spirit of neighborhood dining in NYC- warm and welcoming. With wooden-paneled floors and a ceiling made from antique stamped tin, the restaurant's unassuming size (about 10 tables) could either be interpreted as cozy or suffocating, depending on what mood you're in.

Upon being seated in a cozy corner booth, we were served bubbly --compliments of the chef/owner Joey Campanaro (My boss knows Chef Campanaro and told him we were coming in). Because it was my birthday, I was in a joyous mood. But on the other hand, I was dealing with a wine-stuck-in-France-thank-you-very-much-Eyjafjallajokull situation, so I was very anxious. I guess you could say that the bubbly was much appreciated :)

For starters, I considered ordering The Little Owl's famed meatball sliders made from a variety of meats including pork, beef and veal. However, the guilt from the weekend of over-indulgence was overwhelming and I ended up with the lobster soup with lobster chunks and chives (how this is a healthier option I do not know). The lobster chunks were fresh and succulent, but the soup itself was a tad on the heavy side and almost overpowered the taste of the lobster chunks. I should know by now that I should always stick with my first instinct.

For my main course, I ordered the crispy chicken with asparagus home fries, lemon, sherry and dijon. Usually, I am not one to order chicken at a restaurant, but for some reason, fried chicken sounded amazingly comforting... and comfort was what I was seeking! My crispy chicken tasted like fine-dining's answer to fried chicken. The meat was juicy and flavorful, and the skin on top was perfectly salty and delectably crispy. Additionally, the accompanying asparagus and potatoes were well-cooked and seasoned. My one complaint about the dish is that it starts out strong but sort of peters out as you finish up -- I loved my first couple of bites but somehow wasn't wowed as I continued eating.

And for dessert, my friends and I split the chocolate tort cake with vanilla ice cream...

and the rhubarb crisp with mascarpone sorbet. The chocolate torte cake was more of a lava chocolate cake and I truly dislike false "advertising". Moreover, it was a little dry for my liking. As for the rhubard crisp, it was a great combination of hot and cold but in my opinion had too much sugar, which masked the sour taste of the rhubarb. I will say though that the mascarpone sorbet was delicious and added a lovely finishing touch to the plate.

Details:
The Little Owl
90 Bedford Street
New York, NY 10014
212-741-4695

The Way I Travel: New York

At the request of my dear sister-in-law Sarah, here are a few more shots from my trip to New York.

I was so captivated by the escape ladders on the outside of the buildings.

It really is a picturesque city.

We also walked by a random flower patch. I think it was the NYU something something garden?

The New York skyline, showing the Manhattan Bridge and Empire State Building.

Okay just kidding! Just wanted to check that you were paying attention! The last picture is not my own work, but rather the work of Irene Suchocki. Check out her store on Etsy, she has the most gorgeous fine art photography.

Happy Monday!

Chocolate Delights in New York

My original plan for my birthday in New York was to do a dessert crawl of some sort. However, things changed and I never got round to doing it. But, I did make up for the non-existent dessert crawl by making a couple of stops at 2 Chocolatier shops while in New York.

First up, Chocolate Pizza from Max Brenner. The first time I'd ever heard about this chocolate pizza was when Aaron Sanchez mentioned it in a pizza-themed The Best Thing I Ever Ate. There is something about watching a foodie/chef talk about their favorite food that mesmorizes me and get those salivary glands going. Yeah, I desperately wanted to try this pizza.

Made with white chocolate, milk chocolate and lightly-toasted marshmallows in place of cheese, this pizza is a real sugar rush. The chewy, fresh marshmallows were sprinkled generously over the sweet chocolate base, with chunks of slightly-melted chocolate dispersed throughout. While the toppings of this pizza sang sweetly to me, the pie itself was a sore spot. Although the pie was made with real pizza dough, I was not impressed with the hard piece of cardboard that supported the above sugar overload. It tasted like it had been made hours before and had a dense quality to it. Perhaps had this chocolate pizza been made fresh, I would not have to accuse Aaron Sanchez of tricking me! This was not the best pizza I ever had.

Up next, was a visit to Jacques Torres for some hot chocolate. Wicked Hot Chocolate to be more exact- hot chocolate with a hint of Ancho and Chipotle peppers. After a stressful day of touring NYC with French winemakers and producers, nothing sounded quite as lovely as a steaming cup of hot chocolate.

The combination of the Ancho and Chipotle peppers in the hot chocolate made for a feisty drink. The chocolate had a deep bitter quality to it and I adored the heat of the peppers hitting the back of my throat. I swoon. But as good as the Wicked Hot Chocolate was, I will say that I did get a chocolate overdose by the last drop of my small cup.

Oh! And did I mentioned that Mr. Torres, Mr. Chocolate himself was in his store while I was there? Cool beans huh? (Sorry, I apparently get star struck with chefs!?)


Details:
Max Brenner
841 Broadway
New York, NY 10003
212-388-0030

Jacques Torres Chocolates
350 Hudson Street
New York, NY 10014
212-414-2462

Public

While in New York, I thought it was the perfect opportunity to catch up with an old high school friend from Orange County whom I lost touch with after we went our separate ways for college. We made plans to brunch at Public.

Set along a tree-lined street in Nolita (North of Little Italy- look at me with my New Yorker lingo!!), Public comes complete with irreverent decor- public buildings are the inspiration for the industrial aesthetic. Raw exposed brick, sleek industrial lighting, and nook and cranny seating set the scene at this downtown industrial chic restaurant. Designed and branded by the James Beard Award winning team at AvroKO, Public was recently awarded a Michelin Star in 2010. And, if you are an avid fan of Iron Chef America, you might have recognize Public's Executive chef Brad Farmerie from "kitchen battle" "maple syrup" or as a Iron Chef hopeful from Next Iron Chef America.

Failing to make reservations, my dining party was ushered into Public's sister space and wine bar, Monday Room, to wait for our table. Sexy leather banquettes to perch my behind, free ice tea to quench my thirst and good conversation with my old high school friend made our wait go by swiftly.

Upon being seated, we were served small bites of apricot scones. Sweet and doughy, these scones were moist but a little too buttery for my liking. I would have preferred if the scones were warm out of the oven but since they were complimentary, who was I to complain.

The brunch menu at Public is interesting with a wide array of global choices ranging from lamingtons to Irish breakfast to ginger spiced lychee french toast. After a rave recommendation from our server, I ordered the Turkish Eggs-poached eggs a top Greek yogurt with kirmizi biber (a common Turkish spice made of crushed peppers that are rubbed in oil and often roasted) butter.

Now I know from the picture this dish looks a little weird maybe even questionable (I mean the French couple sitting at the next table could not help but stare incessantly at my meal when it arrived in front of me) but let me tell you, this was one of the most delightful and unusual dishes I've had in a while.

The poached eggs that come buried in a soupy mess of Greek yogurt and topped with the kirmizi biber sauce reminded me of good hummus, the way it’s served in middle eastern restaurants, with a sizeable well for olive oil and spices. On smell alone, the sweet aroma of the kirmizi biber is intoxicating, but the flavors... oh...The tartness of the yogurt balances the mild, smoky spice from the kirmizi biber, while the butter adds a sweetness that complements the richness of the runny yolks. For egg lovers, it’s a must-try. My only complaint is that my eggs were a little over-poached and the yolks could have been runnier.

Details:
Public
210 Elizabeth Street
New York, NY 10012
212-343-7011

Momofuku Noodle Bar & Milk Bar

Having already read David Chang and Peter Meehan's Momofuku cook book from cover to cover, my visit to the Momofuku chain of eateries was the gastronomical highlight of my New York trip.

After a long day out in the City, my friends and I were craving a hot soupy-type of a meal for dinner. Our initial thought was to cook our own bouillabaisse from scratch (what were we thinking? It was already 7pm and we thought we could make seafood stock from scratch?!?!), but after facing facts, we settled on getting some soupy Asian goodness in the form of Momofuku Noodle bar.

Arriving at the Noodle Bar past 9pm, we were told the wait would be an hour. *sigh* I hate waiting for food. However, I was determined to not be deterred by the hour long wait time, so I suggested that we pay the Milk Bar (which was a block or so away from the noodle bar) a visit and do dessert before dinner.

At the Milk Bar, we ordered a Carrot Cake soft serve and a Milk Cereal soft serve. The Carrot Cake soft serve really tasted like well... carrot cake with a hint of the warm spices. But as yummy as the Carrot Cake soft serve was, the Milk Cereal was by far my favorite flavor (they also had Red Velvet (too sweet) and Cream Cheese Frosting (too sweet again, but very authentic!)). The milk cereal reminded me of Horlicks, but obviously a more gourmet version of that. The one thing I will say is that the Milk Bar's soft serves were a little too rich for my liking. I guess I'm used to tart fruit flavors of frozen yogurt and the rich creamy soft serve was a tad overwhelming for my biased taste buds.

At the Milk Bar, we also ordered a Compost cookie made with pretzels, potato chips, coffee, oats, butterscotch and chocolate chips; a Blueberry cookie with dried blueberries and milk crumbs; and Cornflake Chocolate Chip Marshmallow cookie. The Blueberry cookie and the Cornflake Chocolate Chip Marshmallow cookie were good cookies, but nothing too extraordinary. The Compost cookie on the other hand, I have to take my hat off to. The saltiness of the potato chips and pretzels really played well with the sweetness of the chocolate chips. Meanwhile, the coffee grinds really were a spectacular and genius addition to the cookie, adding the right amount of smokiness to the flavor profile.

After pigging out on desserts, we headed back to the Noodle bar for our main meal. I have to first add that the hostess at the Noodle bar was exceptionally rude and grumpy with my friends and I. Trust me, we did nothing to deserve that treatment. But I was having such a good time with my friends that a grump-butt did nothing to spoil my mood.

Because we were at Momofuku, there was no way we could visit and not get the steamed pork buns. Even though Momofuku is sort of famous for their steamed pork buns, I did not have very high expectations of them. After all, the momofuku steam buns are not exactly an original idea, but just their version of a pretty common Asian food formula: steam buns + delicious meat = Mm-mm-good. The steam buns or mantous were lovely but for some reason, the pork belly seemed to be missing the unctuous, fall-off-the-bone lusciousness that I expected. However, I will say that the pickled cucumbers added a fresh snap to the steamed pork buns.

My friends and I also split an order of smoked chicken wings with pickled chili, garlic and scallions. While I appreciate that the process of making these smoked chicken wings is not exactly a throw-in-a-pan-and-fry type situation, I don't think these were particularly special. My favorite thing on this plate were the pickled chili- apparently I am a fan of the pickling process at Momofuku.

And lastly, for my main dish, I ordered the Momofuku ramen aka the whole reason we went to Momofuku Noodle Bar in the first place. A typical ramen usually consist of broth, noodles, meat, toppings and garnishes. Momofuku's ramen was no different, with pork belly, pork shoulder, a poached egg, bamboo shoots or menma, naruto or fishcakes and nori.

To me, what makes a kick ass bowl of ramen is the broth. It needs to be served at the right temperature (right under boiling), with the right amount of tare for depth, salt for roundness and mirin for sweetness. Unfortunately, the ramen broth at momofuku was a little too salty for me. I blame their addition of bacon to the usual pig bones and seaweed combination for this unnecessary saltiness.

Because ramen usually comes with a hard-boiled egg, I will give Momofuku's ramen bonus points for their poached egg. It was lovely to poke the egg with my chopsticks and watch as the yolk ozzed out into the broth. MMmmmm...

Despite the all too salty broth, Momofuku's Ramen was still rather tasty and comforting. However, nothing beats the original ramen roadside stands in Fukoka, Japan; where you are served steaming bowls of ramen noodles after a night out of partying. Ahhhh... good memories.

Details:
Momofuku Milk Bar
207 2nd Avenue
New York, NY 10003

Momofuku Noodle Bar
171 1st Avenue
New York, NY 10003