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jeunefilleparis

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Everything posted by jeunefilleparis

  1. I had dinner several hours ago at THOR. I had been to the hotel back when it was under construction to check out the rooms, but the entrance way wasnt quite finished yet. You enter in what seems like a white cave, it kinda reminded me of George restaurant on top of the Centre Pompidou in Paris Anyways, the hostess was very attentive and nice as she took us to our table. The space was very nice, minimalistic, reminiscent of Wallse in a sense. Anyways, our server was one of the most attentive I have ever encountered. I told her that I was a vegetarian and would it be possible to make something up for the main course since the main courses were just fish and meat. She said that it wouldnt be a problem. My friend ordered the foie gras terrine with peaches and I had the ravioli with quark cheese with mint and a hazelnut sauce. My ravioli came in a trio along with some asparagus. I ve always loved quark cheese and the mint and hazelnut complimented it well. Though I didnt eat the foie gras terrine, my friend said that it was very very good. I decided to have a risotto with olives, black trumpet mushrooms and whatever else the chef decided to add to it. We werent sure if he could do it since its usually done with a chicken stock but in the end, thats what i got. It was rich and creamy and full of great flavorful olives. My friend had a fish dish, i cant remember which one, it came on a bed of creamed spinache, again he enjoyed it very much. We also got the side of root vegetables and the gratin. The gratin was made of turnips which was rathe unique and was also very rich, but nice. The vegetables had a strange acidic taste to them. They were in a butter sauce but something was off about them For dessert we opted for the lollipops since some of the desserts had gelatin in them which I cant eat and though the avocado, lime sorbet dish sounded interesting, i was more keen on the lollipops that were chocolate hazeletnut. apparently they are coated in butter and fried. The outside to my displeasure was kind of soft and soggy, as though they had been fried and forgotten about,, but once you bit into them, that all becam a foggy memory as the gooey chocolate flooded your mouth. The milkshake was fine, but nothing to write home about. After that we got little madelines that came with a tube of chocolate "frosting" as the server called it. The chocolate was great and I brought half a tube back with me! All in all the service was great and the space is lovely, but I prefer the food at Wallse.
  2. Chef Katie I hope that your first day at Olives went well!! Please let us all know what you thought about it. Oh and i want to know if your whole name is on your sous chef coat or only the last name you like L
  3. Having known Katie for several years and having been cooked many meals by her, it is a bit hard to be objective, but here goes I didnt watch every episode because i have been away, but on the episodes that i did catch, Katie was always on top of her game. Yes she had her faults and like all the other contestants, she was called on them. They did not let her off easily when they thought that she was slacking. I m very surprised at all these comments about her being "gruff". Have any of you worked in a kitchen, i ve never met an executive chef be "really warm" in the kitchen, outside of the kitchen, fine, but while working,I dont think so. Being friendly is great but when you are in a kitchen trying to serve top quality food, being warm and cheerful doesnt pay off. You need to be a leader and you need to be assertive. As Katie mentioned, if a guy is assertive hes just doing his job and that is all fine and dandy but put a woman in his shoes, shes a total bitch and it s amazing that in the 21rst century that women are still expected to act passively. Asserting onesself doesnt equate to bitchiness. It is a necessary part of the job that will lead to success. Also, I have to comment on the posts regardign the "3 girl winners" Clearly the judges thought that they were the best; and had they been men, I seriously doubt that anyone would have said a thing. Katie had an internship at ADNY and then went on to work there. I met everyone in the kitchen there( before the news chefs came) and if she can stand them and work with them ( where she was one of the only women chefs) she can hold her own at Olives. Katie, I wish you all the best, you dont need any luck. Just create those meals that you ve made me and I know you ll rock. L
  4. Bonjour All! Sorry its taken me a little while to get back to this board. After Paris I was only home in NYC before flying to Denver. Anyways, here are my thoughts on being a vegetarian in Paris after years of consuming anything and everything, very very difficult and a little depressing. VEGETABLE: Like I mentioned earlier I had Passard's famous egg dish, I was so impressed with the presentation of this dish. 3 perfect brown eggs in little egg holders, all precisely cut at the seemingly same place to reveal fluffy little egg white loveliness inside. The more I thought about what I ate, I m still a bit baffled. It wasn't mousse like, wasnt eggwhite like, almost reminds me of the texture of my mom's lemon souffle. I dont know, but it was fun, not to mention delicious to eat and thats whats most important. next was the risotto and to steal this line from another post "the risotto was creamy, dreamy, topped with a halo-like flurry of thinly shredded raw vegetables" pretty much somes up my feelings on this dish. My dish also had these little purple flowers thrown in with the shredded veggies and that spark of color really pleased the eye. I m all about food as art as I can imagine a lot of people here are as well. It was quite creamy dreamy, all that parmesan cheese, and the most perfect risotto texture, ah, so good. My dessert the famous tart ( at least the gentleman to my right said it was) with the slightly more than paper thin crust, blue cheese ( sorry dont know which kind) and layers of pear slivers, was nice but nothing really special. I m a bit bummed that I didnt go for les fruit rouges with infused hibiscus. I didnt end up going back agian the next day so, no onion tart and no basil, peas and grapefruit, but , I really enjoyed that meal and will definately splurge on L'arpege next year in Paris. On another note, I ate my weight in icecream which was really quite a treat. Last year I was introduced to a new place basically across the street from the bridge that leads to Ile St Louis. The name is escaping me, i think it was Dammonds or Dammons, and odd name to me, but none the less, excellent homemade glace. Some flavors I tried were bulgarian yogurt, chestnut, cinnamon, this one made from a Moroccan nut oil, cant remember the actual name,,,,, what others,,, salty caramel one that was fabulous,,,, I ate lots of cheese which was no real surprise, and no real chore either. I did find it hard to eat in "normal" restaurants and resorted to pasta dishes or salads. I had a horrible omelette with so called chanterelles and i sent it back because they were so dried out it was like eating twigs. Overall, being a vegetarian in Paris definately will take some adjustment time. Next year I ll do some more research and figure out where to go and eat so that I can still enjoy some culinary delights. Hope that everyone has a great summer. I will be away working in the mountains and therefore offline til August! a bientot Lauren
  5. just a quick message... ate lunch at Vegetable today and it blew me away. i went alone but the two gentlemen seated next to me filled me in on the details! one of the, was a huge Arpege fan and told me what i definately had to try i ll give more detail once i m in the US as i have some wine drinking ahead of me, but the eggs were one of the most unique things to ever touch my mouth i m still thinking of ways to describe their texture.. not quite mouse like; not quite egg white like.... i opted for the risotto though the mqn next to me said i should get the pea grapefruit basil dish and then the onion tart; but i m going to eat again tomorrow so i ordered the risotto! it was a delight to the eye and the palette.. so rich and dreamy ; loved the slivers of veggies on top my only disappoint,ent was the dessert; a tarte of blue cheese and fresh pear slivers apparently one of his signatures... just didnt do it for me. i want to try the strawberries with infused hibsicus and vanilla ok more later also sorry for the typing errors; i m not used to the keyboards here yet whomever mentioned Vegetable orginally MERCI BEAUCOUP
  6. I am certainly not here to pick a fight, but you response was utterly and completely close minded. You ve never met at French vegetarian, well then, i guess you ve met every french person on earth then, havent you. Please, its that exact attitude that partially prevents vegetarian restaurants from opening, To all the other responses,. I will be sure to check out Primtemps, i was thrilled to hear about it! I am proud to be a vegetarian and I m not going to stop because one city doesnt have as many options as say New York. je dois finir a faire mes valises!! Merci encore lauren
  7. Tomorrow night I leave for my first trip to France since I became a vegetarian last year. I m a bit nervous since so much of my previous trips have revolved around food. In New York I have found no problems having amazing vegetarian food, in both casual and upscale places. The restaurants do not have to be vegetarian( though are welcomed), but just places that would be more accomodating to my needs. Any advice would be much appreciated! They can be typical french or other types of cuisine. Merci lauren
  8. Yes but she has been living in NY for years and has worked for one of the best chefs of our time. Also, she may come off bitchy and I told her myself that she came off as having an attitude on the show,( my personal favorite line having to do with people messing with her mise en place and her response " I m from NY and I ll F**** Kill you") but that is the beauty of fine editing, they have the power to choose the personalities of the shows contestants to some degree anyways, i ve only seen 2 episodes, and I m gone the rest of the summer is there a way to get old episdoes?
  9. Hello Everyone I had a wonderful dessert at chikalicious the other night. It was a dried fruit risotto with an almond tuile and roasted almond icecream. The risotto was more like rice pudding and was perfect in consistancy. the risotto was the size of a petri dish and the almond tuile covered it and was a bit large with the roasted almond icream on top. it was delicious. I really enjoyed the 3 different textures together, the smooth, cold, of the icream followed by the crisp sweet tuile and then to the semi sweet softness of the risotto. all in all very nicely done. the amuse was a lemon milk sorbert on an orange agar agar ( i cant have any of the gelees anymore since i m a vegetarian) On another note, as I walked in I noticed a new woman behind the counter and my heart skipped a beat, where was Donna, but then she reappeared so I was confused. When you go to a restaurant so often and become friendly with the chefs you get attached! I hadnt been there in two months and Donna told me that she wondered if she would see me again since this was her last week there. Her replacement is a very nice woman named Sofia who has come from Gramercy Tavern. It was interesting to watch Sofia work as Chika guided her through the proper way to plate the desserts and what not. anyways, the place was croweded as always and the new spring desserts all seem interesting. It s almost their 2 year anniversary too! I hope that everyone is doing well cheers lauren
  10. I have a reservation for Per Se on May 17th. When I made the reservation, I mentioned that I was a vegetarian to make sure that they would do one veg. tasting menu and one non. What I was shocked to hear, though I guess I shouldn't have been, was that they cook the veg. tasting menu in animal stocks,( since i m used to veg. meals cooked in veg. broths) so she made a note that it had to be all vegetarian. I m not sure how many people here have had the veg tasting menu and i m wondering how much of a difference in taste my meal will have being made without the normal stocks used. Considering the talent in the kitchen I m hoping to have a stellar meal regardless Also, I am not a big drinker being on the little side, if i drink too much wine I ll basically get drunk. I know that restaurants obviously make a killing with wine/drink sales added to the price of the reg. cost of the meal, will they treat me differently if I am not ordering bottles of wine? I m really looking forward to this meal, but it is definately a splurge. I m trying to to have high expectations, but its rather hard not to considering all the hype ( deserved or not) about Per Se. any advice would be greatly appreciated! thanks lauren
  11. Hello everyone, Its been a while but since I actually went somewhere new to me last night I thought that I'd share. I was at an event in the time warner mall, uh center and afterwards I decided to indulge by having dessert at Cafe Gray. It was around 10pm and the place was still busy, so I knew I wouldnt be a nuissance by having dessert or I wouldnt have stayed. In any case, I sat at one of the comfy round tables in the bar room. The room itself was a bit much for me. I wasnt too fond of all those mirrors everywhere. But the music was lovely and it wasnt too loud. I checked out the entire menu and for me, eventhough I am a vegetarian now, nothing really leaped out at me as something I really wouldve wanted to try. In any case I had come for dessert. The dessert list was fairly lengthy, 2 sections, one of desserts and then one of only chocolate desserts. They were all very pricey ranging from $14- $17. Of course the one that I so desired was the $17 Cherry Almond Souffle with cherries flambe. I was informed that it would take 15min to prepare. I was more than willing to wait. It was fun to people watch there. The crowd, unsurprisingly enough were made up of a lot of white older businessmen in suits downing martinis. The table next to me ordered about 7 appetizers. I heard them discussing really delicious foie gras sandwiches. I couldnt see too much of the main room, though I had seen it on a previous occasion when they first opened, but it was quite full from the heads I could make out through the glassware on the shelves. In any case, I had a lovely chamomille tea while I waited for this $17 souffle to arrive. I don't know what I envisioned I would be receiving for paying such an steep price for a dessert. Well the souffle came and the server punctured the middle and poured the cherries flambe ( the flame had gone out- bummer) into the center. The top of the souffle was crispy with a crusty layer on top flowing over the ramekin. The middle as could be predicted was fluffly and warm. The flambed (sp?) were a bit too alcoholy for me. I think they were doused in rum, but i m not positive about that. I greedily gobbled it down, but in the end ,when my $23 bill came for tea and dessert, I suppose that I was rather disappointed. I had expected way too much from a dessert, but with a price tag like that, can you blame me? the service was great and at the end a hostess came over and chatted with me and was very cordial. The atmosphere over all was very classy and it never got too loud though it wasnt full and i m not sure how the sound levels would be if it were a friday night. Well, I guess thats all for now, back into hiding, though I do have a reservation at Per Se for May 17th! I m saving my pennies now for it and I hopefully will be able to go though again I wonder, with a meal that is truly outrageous in price, how high will my expectations be? and will I be disappointed if its not as amazing as it should be?
  12. Hello all, I havent been on for a while. I just got back from a couple of months in South America, but its nice to be in NYC again In any case, i went to an "old" favorite of mine. I went early on so that it wasnt very busy yet. I chose the apple pudding cake with creme fraiche sauce and a granny apple sorbet. The cake was really rich and delicious, that paired with the creaminess of the creme fraiche and the cold, refreshing taste of the granny apple sorbet made for a lovely combination. as always they were very friendly and i sat at the bar so i could watch Donna and Chika prepare the desserts. There was a pregnant woman there who ate two fromage blanc ile flottantes, that was pretty impressive! hope that everyone has been well Lauren
  13. i wish my office was a garden too,,,, but i have central park across the street for lunch i guess that s good enough....
  14. goslings is a fun word. sorry random thought, it s been a long day
  15. a la carte, I m curious, really as how you can still be hungry, i admit i am a fairly small framed woman, but i am always left stuffed when i leave there, maybe its the extra dessert i eat that fills me up, who knows! I guess that for me when i used to eat sushi, it would take a lot to fill me up,,,,
  16. Bux When I required about vegetarian dining there they told me that they actually do it quite often and can even do vegan. I would taste a meat stock in a second and raise bloody hell, and i honestly don t think that they would do it like that..... i d really like to do Per se's veggie menu. Honestly, I dont miss meat or fish or any of it reallly. Living without goat cheese for a month was killing me that I kinda od'ed on it these past couple of weeks... also since i have a sweet tooth its hard to avoid eggs in a lot of desserts, i just need to be careful of gelatin, and i was told by a friend of mine in the health industry that they make white sugar by crushing it in horse bones, its this a myth or the truth anyone know? Lauren
  17. I am supposed to go their on aug 11th with my boss. We are both vegetarians so it will be intersting to see what they prepare for us. We have informed them already of our dietary needs..... I have always wanted to go to Daneil and Ducasse. My ex worked at Ducasse so that was my main reason for wanting to go there along with the fact that its well ducasse & I ve been to Spoon and Mix but never his signature In any case, I am excited for my dinner, though I will be very aware of my surroundings. My best friend went there for her 24th birthday. They were dressed appropriately, ordered a nice menu etc, but she felt that they were treated a bit differently. That happend to me at Le Bernadin 2 years ago. I dont know if "ageism" is prevalent in any other places. I have been to Babbo, Jean Georges and Chanterelle in the past 7 months and had no problems there. The receptionists at Daniel have always been very kind when I ve walked in to ask for their new menus ( i work on 66th street ) So it will be interesting to see how they treat my boss and I ( both 25) we both know our food and wine, as we work in the industry, and I hope it is a great evening. Lauren
  18. I would hope that if you are paying $35 for an entree ( like at Gotham) that it would be considered fine dining. I definately agree with someones previous post about getting the reservationists name. As a former reservationist, if I made a promise that was confirmed by the chef or manager I would always note that. I can not tell you how wise this is to have your back covered as a reservationist as we are scapegoats for everyones problems in the restaurant from server to sous chef. I am so happy that job is in the past I had dessert at Nougatine about 3 weeks ago. My aunt was there for her mother's birthday and i stopped by to say hi. I ended up joining them. since they had already started their tasting , my aunt who is tiny shared hers with me, not half and half by any means, just that when she was finished what she wanted she wuold give the rest to me. Our server was less than thrilled about this. OF course they immediately set my place and offered me a drink but i could tell that she was annoyed that i wasnt ordering. Having worked in the biz, i can understand but you know what, it happens and they just have to deal with it. I did order dessert wtih them at the end In February I had a full on tasting menu at J-G. Parts of it were very good and the service was for the most part on the ball. I ended up eating there alone after a friend couldnt make it last minute and since i had wanted to go for so long, i just decided to do it with out him. they were very acommodating and i got a tour of the empty kitchen since it was rather late when i finished. In any case, its a great place, i m sure like all restaurants they have good nights and bad nights. J-G is not one of my favorites in nyc, i d recommend a dozen others before it!
  19. I ate there on Monday night. We started with the lettuce wraps and the summers rolls which were excellent as always. So fresh and flavorful. We also were gifted the tomato tartare which i really love, it tastes so pure, reminds me of my mom's tomato garden the entrees, were both new for me, the pizza flat bread and the coconut curry noodles iwth veggeis. I really enjoyed both of these with one exception to the pizza, i guess i just dont like spelt b/c the crust or whateer you call it didnt do it for me, it didnt taste bad at all, but i just didnt love the texture. the actually stuff on the pizza was awesome, its a chick pea free hummus,,,, Sarma, what was it again? pine nuts, lemon olive oil? lots of olives and tomatos, i would love that anytime- just with out the flat bread,,,,, The noodles were excellent, my guest was a bit shocked for lack of better word that there were not noodles there, but the curry flavor was great and everything was well, yes fresh again,, i need to get some more synonyms for fresh before my next post.,, My favorite part of the meal was dessert. we had the sour cherry tart with almond cream and an almond fennel crust. oh my god, sinfully good. Great sour cherries and that creamy sweet almond cream, what a pair! Debbie you rock. We also got a small portion of the choc. pudding which is awesome too. Next time i want to try the parfait again bc they keep changng the fruit flavors!
  20. I lived next door to mamouns for over a year and they actually were my landlords, but before i knew that i had been eating there for 5 yrs. the service is quick , its cheap as hell and even though it can get busy it moves fast. i love chick pea though bc its a bit more upscale, you can put lots of other things on your sanwich and they offer whole wheat pita which i love. also they have the fun little pita bread machine that you can watch while you wait. i also loved the baklava at mamouns and i m a picky baklava girl bc i m greek and my family makes it,,,, but its always been pretty good!
  21. I had an incredible sour cherry crostata at the bar last tuesday. When I say TO DIE FOR < I mean it was isanely great! the perfect combination of tart and sweet and the vanilla gelato was great, there was also a mint coulis too that was a nice complimet, i dont know how much long the cherries are in season, but you should go there just for that!
  22. definately,,,,,,,the zebra lasagne with all its layering looks time consuming
  23. I guess being in the industry I see the cost of a dish to come down to 2 things, 1) ingredient costs and 2) the art of the dish. I guess I can understand how a dish that is $17 and only vegetables is pricey, however, the artistic aspect of the dish has to be applied. I mean if you go to TGIF for example and order the $20 sirloin, its gonna be beef slapped on potatoes with some veggies,,,, you know they didnt do a damn thing about plating,,,,, even at Peter Lugers, I never noticed any type of real art aspect, its just about the beef. for me a meal is as much about the food as the presentation, maybe thats why I dont find PF&W to be expensive! lauren
  24. How can they call their food pricey, thats so ridiculous. I found their prices to be completely reasonable.
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