Megan Blocker

Gilt had a mention in the New York Magazine food section this week as well...looks like there will be a variety of prix fixe menus, going up to $110 for dinner and $60 for lunch.

I do this all the time with leftover chicken - risotto, baby!

I think Chinese is a great idea - it works well family-style, and it can be really festive. It's also super-flavorful, something that a lot of holiday standby's often aren't. Welcome to eGullet, Marie!

New York Magazine Digest - 12/12/05 Reviews The Underground Gourmet (Rob Patronite and Robin Raisfeld) reviews Bar Carrera, a new tapas bar (sister to Bar Veloce) in the East Village. Bar Carrera purports to be a bar first and a restaurant second, but the writers claim the food on offer proves otherwise. They were particularly fond of the chorizo (served either on its own with some mustard or sandwiched on a baguette) and the $3.50/tapa price tag. They were also fond of the atmosphere: Openings and Buzz Three New Restaurants Each week, New York highlights three new restaurant openings. This week, the winners are: Giorgione 508: The Orchard: Gilt: Sides Also included this week are some smaller news items: Bistro Impostor: Spain in SoHo: Using Her Noodle: Features Taste Test: Eggnog The same duo responsible for the Underground Gourmet undertake a taste test of ready-made eggnogs, and disover that they actually like a few of them. Also included is a recipe for the stuff from the Waterfront Ale House. Fireplace Feasts A list of NYC restaurants with fireplaces - the better to cuddle up with your sweetie. I'm sorry, is it Valentine's Day already? Gravy Train A list of places around the city serving "Soprano's-worthy" homestyle Italian-American food. Market Research: Whisky A-Go-Go A quick tutorial in the art of enjoying the single-malt scotch. Attack of the Snacks The magazine takes a look at this new trend in NYC eating - not quite a small plate, more than an amuse...what will they think of next? Rise and Shine A rundown of new NYC spots for breakfast, including eGullet fave Shake Shack! Everywhere You Go Has Valet! A look at the new phenomenon of valet parking at restaurants on 10th Avenue. The Devil You Say And speaking of snacks, here's a list of spots with superlative deviled eggs. Sirio Maccioni's Grub: Condo Amenities for Peckish Millionaires And, finally, a quick item on the press surrounding Sirio's new location in the One Beacon Place building, where taking a look at the real estate will earn you some free food.

Some melted, some stayed whole, but those became sort of...crunchy. It was cool, actually. I was worried I would have to avoid them when I saw they hadn't all melted, but their texture had changed, and they crunched between my teeth. I will definitely try the sugar cube trick next...

Love those fries, Elie! And, Daniel - those jam thumbprints looks mighty yummy, as does that whole meal...great job, everyone! The whirl of holiday parties and obligations has kept me out of the kitchen for a while now...can't wait to go back in and start posting about my OWN food soon.

Per my earlier promise, here's a photo of that sugar! Sorry it took me so long...I was out of the office for a year-end wrap-up type day yesterday, and I'm having connectivity issues at home...grrr...

Yay! So glad you're back, Klary! To answer your and Danielle's question, I used some large crystal sugar I bought at a German market near my apartment...I'll post a pic when I get home tonight! It was good, though not as good, I suspect, as clumps of granulated sugar. Maybe not melty enough?

That's so cool-looking, Yetty! Wow - how nifty!

I had a leftover lemongrass pork chop from dinner last night, so I cut that up and made a salad with romaine, red onion and a red wine vinaigrette.

Cafe au lait, plain bagel, raspberry jam. Yum.

Aw, thanks guys! I'm going to tell people it's a "Candyland" theme from now on...

Klary, you've been in my thoughts this week! So has your sukerbole, which I made this afternoon. It's delicious! My oven may have been a bit too hot (I really need to get an oven thermometer, because I think the dial is just off), but it came out well, if a bit dark on top! And, man, is it tasty! Thank you so much for this recipe...I can't wait to make it for my family for breakfast on Christmas morning.

And yum! Ooooh, that looks good!

My thoughts exactly...I applaud the idea of cutting out foods with a certain fat content, but what about the vitamin content of the foods that remain? How is that to be dealt with?

That looks damn good, Alinka - way to go! Was it your whipped cream that collapsed, or the souffle?

We-ell, my house isn't nearly as good as the rest of these, but I had a good time doing it. I went in with a whole scheme, and ended up throwing caution to the wind and embracing randomness. I built the house out at my oldest friend's apartment in Queens, and her mom came in from Connecticut to help us, just like she did when we were little - we used to make these every single year. I'm a bit out of practice, but hopefully it will be better next year! Some of the candy we used... Making the icing... The mess we made... My finished house, safely back in Manhattan: A view of the "pond": And the "vegetable patch!" I really had such a good time...next year I'll have to plan better and do something more coherent!

I had...water. So dull, I know! I polished off a bottle of Champagne last night, otherwise I would have had a glass of that...hee hee! That's what I told my friend - she thought it was so odd, and I was all, "It's basically an omelet with spaghetti thrown in!" Great photo, Yetty!

Two of my closest friends were married at the Waldorf in October, and the last course at dinner was an updated Waldorf salad! It was very good, and I'm not a huge fan of savory dishes with apples...

I have a set of stoneware mixing bowls, my mini-mortar and pestle (a gift from my grandparents), the mason jar that holds my pie weights, and a bowl of tomatoes!

Spaghetti carbonara...I'm on vacation, and I felt like it!

Wow, Wendy - that village is AMAZING!!!

This is going to be a great week, Jamie! Thanks for sharing...and those photos are beautiful! This Manhattanite is very jealous.

I do think that, food-wise, Thanksgiving is considered more important - or, at least, more steeped in nation-wide tradition - than Christmas. At Christmas, I've observed that people tend to eat along ethnic lines (a lot more Italian food, for instance) rather than along the turkey-apple pie line. My family (I'm a European mutt mix on my mom's side, Russian and Polish Jewish on my dad's) generally eats red meat on Christmas, either rack of lamb or a standing rib roast. We're huge lamb fans, and my brother can't get enough beef, so it makes sense. We also usually have a chocolate dessert on Christmas, in contrast to the pumpkin and apple pies we eat every Thanksgiving. We do more experimentation on Christmas, whereas if my mother tried to serve something other than her usual on Thanksgiving, my brother might try to disown her!

Had dinner here tonight...my Christmas gift from two of my closest friends was an evening out. The Nutcracker, and dinner at Picholine. The amuses were a touch odd - a tuna tartare (chopped with what tasted like yuzu) topped with freshwater caviar, on a slightly stale corn chip (?), then a mini-spanakopita (which I really liked, though I'm not a huge feta fan), and, finally, a mushroom panna cotta with a parmesan crisp. In all honesty, savory panna cottas just make me think of aspic with milk - and I like aspic, but there's just something odd about it. I started with the braised pork belly and parmesan gnocchi, which made me think of something Daniel might make, a la the "Oink" thread. It was rich and delicious, as pork belly should be, though not overly interesting. For my main, I actually split with my friend Hall (we were super-classy and switched plates halfway through). I started off with a duck and mushroom risotto, which also had chunks of butternut squash and some truffle oil. This was delicious. I've never understood how anyone can do a whole truffle menu, but it's always wonderful to have one dish with it. The earthiness really complimented the duck. My next main was the saddle of lamb - not bad, though nothing to write home about. I love lamb, and I really enjoyed it, but it didn't blow me away. The desserts were...odd. Again, Hall and I did the switcheroo, and we tried the pumpkin cheesecake crisp (really pumpkin cheesecake filling in a spring roll) and the apple three ways. The pumpkin cheesecake was good, but the apple was just plain icky. Not sweet, not savory, somewhere in between. Overall, a great experience, and very good food - just not superb. Fabulous company, though!