bloviatrix

Thanks everyone for their get well wishes. Blovie is completely back to himself. So much so that I could make a normal meal last night. Borscht - a more traditional one with beets, potato and dill Wiener schnitzel Roasted cauliflower Asparagus Israeli couscous with caramelized onions Apricots, 2 ways - roasted with brown sugar and cinnamon, sorbet Instead of challah I picked up a marble rye which was then eaten with piperade. I had a glass of Segal's Cab Sauv 2002. Lunch was chili.

I'm running out of excuses as to why I can't accept. Worse is when they corner us face-to-face after synagogue services and invite us to come for lunch. They tend to hit my husband first who is a much worse liar than I am.

I'm going to admit that there are some people I don't want to reciprocate to. I don't like them and I want them to stop inviting me to their home!

Yesterday's lunch at Solo was wonderful. I much prefer this place for the afternoon repast than dinner. Started with the mushroom veloute, which I fell in love with back in the fall. Rich and creamy - it didn't disappoint. I ordered the braised short rib sandwich which was delicious. The short ribs had been braised in a tomato-chili based liquid and then shredded. Served on a square onion roll with cole slaw topping the meat, it was juicy and messy, and intensely flavored. The sandwich was so large that I took half home (it was too good not to take ) and had it for dinner - flavors held up, just as good. They served the sandwich with fabulous fries - these fries could teach the ones at La Creperie a lesson or two in crispiness - a small salad and the requisite pickle. The only thing that would have made the sandwich better would have been a beer. . Both of my parents ordered varieties of burgers and my husband ordered penne with sausage, broccoli, and garlic - a dish I've had in the past. I went seasonal for dessert and order the Rhubarb granita with roasted strawberries and "cream". The granita was lightly flavored with rhubarb and had flecks of vanilla caviar. My parents with the chocolate crepes which came with a house made "ice cream" and what looked like an mini apple galette. Came home find an article about Solo's sister restaurant The Prime Grill in the latest issue of The New York Observer. It seems this place for kosher NY Powerbrokers. I'm going to pay closer attention to those sitting around me the next time I dine there. What I find amusing is that my husband hates entertaining there. He finds it too noisy to have a conversation. They did mention my preferred cut of meat from the menu - the chili rubbed hanger steak. Finally, here are some updates: Eden Wok has opened a location on E. 34th between Madison and Park. Circa on W. 33rd has opened a meat restaurant across the street from the dairy location Piece of Cake on Lex, near the Y is no longer. Il Patrizio closed before passover.

We went back tonight - it's right in the neighborhood and we wanted something other than pizza. Service was so much better. And we didn't have to wait forever for our food. Additionally, after they took our order they came back and set some bread on the table. I ordered the mushroom quiche which came with a small salad on the side. Nicer presentation that what we previously saw. Quiche was good - had a hint of nutmeg in the background. I didn't love the olive oil used in the vinaigrette, but the salad was appropriately dressed - not drowning. Also ordered the fries. They're shoestring. Nicely seasoned with salt and pepper. Ketchup comes on a plate - not a bottle. I would have liked them a little more well done, but still enjoyed them. We both ordered crepes for dessert. Blovie had the almond cream which I took a small sample of - good, but a little to sweet for me. I had the ricotta and strawberry. Disappointing. The crepe was over-cooked and tasted a bit charred. Plus, I expected the ricotta to be sweetened with a bit of sugar and maybe some vanilla. Instead it was quite bland. I look forward to their liquor license coming through so we can try the Crepes Suzette. On our way out we spoke with the manager. They're waiting on the liquor license. The plan is to have a variety of wines - including many by the glass and different beers. He also mentioned they're going to open a second location on W. 46th and 9th - economies of scale. This was definitely a better experience that the weekend. I'm feeling much more positive. Tomorrow we lunch at Solo. Haven't been there since the fall. I'm curious to see how it is.

We had dinner at La Creperie with friends on sunday night. First, let me correct the location. They're on Broadway between 98th and 99th. Now, for my thoughts. Like all kosher places that open, especially in my neighborhood, I want to like them and I want them to do well. The jury is still out on this place - afterall most restaurants need to work out kinks when they first open. The service was bad. Much of waitstaff aren't fluent in English which makes ordering difficult. When they finally brought out our order it was incorrect - they brought out omlettes instead of crepes. And this was with the waiter coming to verify our order just before delivering it. Secondly, the wait times for food were unreasonable. Hopefully, this is temporary. As for the food, it was ok. Not great. I ordered French Onion Soup. The broth could have been richer. Plus, it was lacking in onions and cheese which is what makes this soup so good. Our table also ordered 2 crepes, one of which I tasted. Again, it was ok but lacking something. The presentation was a disappointment - just a single large, squarish crepe on the plate. No garnish, no side salad, nothing. I also took a taste of my friend's pasta. Rigatoni with a tomato-artichoke sauce. Pasta was out of a box. The sauce had nice flavor, but the baby artichokes were under cooked and not tender. Dessert was the best part of the meal. I ordered the Dulce de leche crepe with whipped cream. It's hard to mess that up. Plus, there was a nice interplay between the warm DDL filled crepe with the cool whipped cream. This made me happy. I didn't have a problem with the prices. Soups were $7. Crepes range in price from $9 to about $15 depending on filling. Pastas are about $18 and fish is low $20s. But, what I found chintzy was they don't give you anything such as bread and butter when you sit down. And since they don't do anything with presentation it just seems slapped down. Despite that, I will give the place another chance sometime in the future. I hope they get the service issues worked out. As it stands from this one visit, I would have no problem going for dessert after eating dinner at home.

Based on the address -- 552 West 235th Street (Johnson Avenue), (718) 548-4534 -- I think they're a couple of blocks east of the Henry Hudson. Location on Mapquest

This link shows the truth about French women.

I'll pass on the get well wishes - thanks. The lemongrass came from Gourmet Garage on the UWS.

Blovie is still limited with what he can eat - he's now on soft solids. So, I'm making an Asian style chicken soup infused with lemongrass, star anise and red chilis and served with shredded chicken, mushrooms and peppers. The main will be a thai chicken curry served over basmati. And apricot sorbet. I made a pot of chili for tomorrow's lunch.

There is kosher anchovy paste on the market, but you can't use it in meat/poultry dishes. (Cakewalk's post - #12 explains it all).

BTW, there are worcestershire sauces out there that can be used with meat. I think Heinz makes one (they sell it at the kosher market I frequent).

One of my friends made a mixture of worcestershire, soy and vinegar. I have no idea how accurate the flavor is, but it definitely enhanced the soup she make.

New place just opened last week on B'way btw 97th and 98th (east side of street) called La Creperie. I got a peak inside right before Passover. It will be dairy and casual. As you can tell from the name, they'll be focusing on all sorts of crepes. We'll try to check it out sometime soon.

This place is fabulous. I still remember gorging on their stuff. You should check Sedar Olam out. It's a great resource for kosher restaurants and markets. I've been told Juliette is excellent. Plus, if the Cine Citta in Surfside, FL is any indication, the original in Paris should be very good as well.

My darling husband had some surgery this morning (he's home, he's fine) that will prohibit his ability to eat solid foods for the next week or so. So, for him shabbos will be all about pureed soups:mushroom, borscht, and carrot/organge/ginger, plus sorbets: strawberry, strawberry balsamic and blackberry lime. For me, dinner tonight will be some mushroom soup, spinach salad with a soy-toasted sesame dressing, roasted salmon painted with horseradish-dill mustard and bread crumbs. Tomorrow is sweet and sour meatballs, smoked turkey, cole slaw and potato salad.

Rhubarb ketchup

Throw in non-stop mah jong and it sounds like heaven! Welcome back! ← Actually, my mil found daily mah jongg games. At every meal someone was walking over to our table to invite her to another game. She was very popular.

Another one for me: a copy of Fergus Henderson's The Whole Beast, personally inscribed to me.

I like Kitaro on Amsterdam between 84 and 85. Try to get Richard as your waiter - he's fabulous.

I was disappointed with the blackberry-lime curd as well. I ended up turning it into ice cream since I didn't want to toss it. Somehow, that it made it slightly more palatable, but still had an odd bitterness.

The hotel we stayed at served a sweet matzo brei which had a faint undercurrent of vanilla flavor. It confirmed for me that I prefer the dish to be savory.

Loooks like you're going to have to find a nice Sephardi boy to marry.

We're back from spending Pesach in "the mountains." I don't want to get on a scale considering how much food we consumed. In addition to 3 multi-course meals per day there was a tea room open whenever the dining room wasn't serving plus cocktail hours and midnight buffets. Food was traditional ashkenazi style although they suprisingly offered fish at every meal and the fish ranged from chilean sea bass to red snapper to talapia (with the requisite salmon). I snagged one of the lunch menus which I'll share when I uncover it. Snaps to the bake shop. They turned out amazing cakes and cookies. And the variety was overwhelming.

Oops, I forgot one today -- the new Ruth Reichl.