new york nibbles - week 1

i know everyone's expecting some news from my mid-term vacation in new york. so i thought i'd indulge you all by telling you how much fun i'm having just eating my way through this city. i suppose this post will be similar to my boston musings, especially since there's just so much to eat that there's not enough time to process it all. needless to say, some adventures have been more delightful than others, but all in all, it's been a total dream to be munching my days away. (FYI that i went back to a couple of my favorite places, so i'll skip those for fear of creating a snoozefest.)

wednesday:

when i saw s'mac in the TFF guide, i knew i had to go. after what seemed like a long trek east, i found it! and after perusing through all the delicious options (and skipping over the light option -- i mean, it's mac 'n cheese, for pete's sake), i decided on the parisienne w/gruyere, figs, and shitake mushrooms. (seriously? seriously.) while the mac was certainly good, i must admit that, even after walking for what seemed like a billion avenues, the dish was still way too heavy for me. i suppose i didn't need to eat it all (especially since i'd ordered it to go and i'd only wanted a quick taste), but god knows i suck at portioning. (*sigh*) at any rate, i dedicate this meal to nida -- who absolutely LOOOOOOOVES mac 'n cheese. to you, nida -- CHEERS!

s'mac - sarita's macaroni & cheese
345 east 12th street
new york, ny 10003
212.358.7912

http://smacnyc.com/home.html

as soon as i found out that harold's restaurant was open, i knew i had to try it. i'd been waiting to get to perilla for months, so i was thrilled when silvia and joanne were up for yet another FDE. after going through the amazing menu (both online and in person), i decided on the flax seed crusted soft shell crab and the sauteed chinese broccoli & spinach. the crab was perfectly crispy and the veggies were totally yummilicious (especially w/chinese sausage tossed in -- YUM!). and to top off the meal, i picked out the vanilla scented doughnuts for dessert. even though i'm not the biggest fan of donuts generally, these were super light and uber delectable, especially when dipped in lemon curd or dark chocolate mousse (provided on the side). with the amazing ambiance and the fabulous food, the only thing missing was harold himself! mmm....

perilla restaurant
9 jones street
new york, ny 100014
212.929.6868

http://www.perillanyc.com/

thursday:

even though lunch was quick, it was great to touch base w/tara (and check out her amazing ring) and ev (who needs to check her dartmouth account more often -- HA!). to make it more convenient for ev, we decided on a thai place two steps from her office. the food was typical, but my duck was delicious. i think every neighborhood needs some local joints, and this place certainly fits the bill.

song kran
330 8th avenue
new york, ny 10001
212.239.8792

i'm one of those people that likes to make plans way ahead of time. which means i really appreciate it when other people want to make plans too! so i was delighted when deb wanted to make sure we met up before she headed out of town for her upcoming nuptials. as we conversed over wedding and post-wedding plans, we dined on some delicious sushi. while deb couldn't have any rice for passover, i decided to indulge in a spicy spider roll. and even though the waitstaff couldn't seem to agree on whether iced green tea was available (go figure!), the roll was yummy. plus our table by the window made for a nice and relaxing dining experience.

ko sushi
1329 2nd avenue
new york, ny 10021
212.439.1678

http://newkosushi.com/index.html

friday:

i'm so glad i got the chance to take a relaxing stroll through the union square greenmarket b/c it's one of my favorite places in the whole city. it's a foodie paradise, and top chefs go there, bright and early, several days a week. it's great to watch the vendors sell their wares and it's even better when they share them! as i walked through, i got to try samples of free-range meat (cooked, of course) and homemade jams (i chose apple butter over garlic jelly -- who wanted to walk away w/garlic on the tongue?). i even purchased some delicious iced mint green tea, which was totally refreshing, despite the nippy temperatures. i also passed by some delicious-looking cheese biscuits, but i decided to hold back. (it's so difficult sometimes. *sigh*) thank goodness i kept myself under control b/c i would've never been able to fit in lunch!

union square greenmarket
union square (duh, silly)

http://www.cenyc.org/

considering that i'd been munching the morning away, i didn't have much of an appetite for lunch. but seeing as how i really couldn't sit there and not eat (god forbid), i decided on an eel tempura roll. thankfully, it was light AND delicious. alex was also generous enough to share some of her sashimi lunch special, so i had a few yummilicious mackerel pieces as well. i wish i'd had enough room in my tummy to order the sukiyaki (which i'd loved when ev took me to this place many years ago, though she couldn't even remember the name when i asked her about it), but there was just no way. of course, this means i'll be back, right?

kodama sushi
301 west 45th street
new york, ny 10036
212.582.8065

saturday:

before i headed downtown to meet derek, i decided that i HAD to try josie's kitchen. i've always loved josie's west, so as soon as i saw josie's kitchen on soon's block (and josie's take-out menu in soon's kitchen drawer), i knew i was meant to try it. after scanning the menu quickly, i decided on some shi-shi iced tea ($5!! can you believe it??) and a dish of brown rice, egg whites, spinach, and chunks of (what i think was) ham. everything was quite delicious (AND healthy) and i had to keep from eating it all (or else risk not getting through my steak later in the night!).

josie's kitchen
1614 second avenue
new york, ny 10028
212.734.6644

http://www.josiesnyc.com/josie_kitchen/jk.html

seeing as how derek doesn't eat much red meat down in atlanta, he pretty much decided that we had to have it in new york. and seeing as how i'd really wanted him to visit this weekend, i pretty much had to concede. (though i suppose eating a big slab of juicy steak wouldn't necessarily be considered the biggest concession.) as a surprise, i invited soon, who brought along michelle, marissa, and ben. needless to say, i was more than a little concerned when derek promptly informed me (after the hostess confirmed my reservation for 6) that he doesn't like surprises. (eek!!!) and needless to say, i heaved a big sigh of relief when he actually enjoyed the company -- YAY! (some people are soooooo hard to please! =S)

more importantly though, we all REALLY enjoyed the food. derek and i shared the special 2-person rib eye, which came out perfectly done at medium rare -- a nice crispy sear with a just slightly warm pink interior. the rest of the table ordered the 1-person ribeye, the filet mignon, the new york strip, and the snapper. the red meat turned out to everyone's liking, but the snapper didn't fare well at all. derek and i have argued many a time over the nature and quality of non-steak dishes at steakhouses. his side: why would you ever order a non-steak dish at a a steakhouse? my side: if you're going to have a dish on the menu, it shouldn't taste like shit, steak or not. and that's that.

we decided to share sides at the table, so we ordered the crisp goose fat potatoes (which i wasn't going to touch w/a 10-foot pole), the black truffle creamed spinach (which i could smell as soon as the server set it down on the table -- mmm....), the sauteed wild mushrooms (which complete any meal), and the creamed corn w/pancetta (which was THAT much more delish w/a thin layer of breadcrumbs on top). we decided against appetizers what w/all the other food we ordered, but we were SOMEHOW able to fit in some sweets at the end. soon picked out some ice creams and marissa chose the apple dessert for the table to share. it was a perfect way to end off a really fun night! (let's not focus on the waiter who was having a totally off day and was unable to process our credit cards correctly -- even though we wrote out EVERY single transaction. he was nice so i won't call him incompetent, but GOOD GRIEF!)

strip house
13 east 12th street
new york, ny 10003
212.328.0000

http://www.theglaziergroup.com/restaurants/striphouse/