LINCOLN.

The restaurant at Lincoln Center, Lincoln Ristorante, is certainly worth checking out - even if you aren't out watching the ballet or the opera.

You know how I usually go ballistic on restaurants that don't cater to vegetarians or serve me meat and don't care? Well - you can expect QUITE the opposite coming from Lincoln. My waiter asked our table if we had any food allergies or preferences - and noted that I was vegetarian...and apparently informed the entire waitstaff.

Even the bread man!!!! I wanted to try the "fluffy bread" but the bread man informed me that it unfortunately contained LARDO (which I had accidentally ingested during my meal at COI). Good catch!

Even the little amuse bouche was specially catered for me! My friend received a lentil-topped crostini and I was served one with an olive tapenade. I whimpered and wanted to know why I didn't have a lentil-topped crostini as well - and the amuse bouche server informed me that the lentil-topped crostini had chicken stock in it. Good catch! I ate the lentil one anyway.

My pal ordered a side of Fughi Misti - a delicious blend of roasted mushrooms of all different varieties! A symphony of textures and flavors.

I ordered a side of the Beets, Sheep's Milk Yogurt, and Pistachios - not quite as thrilling as the funghi misti, but still very good.

I have never seen gnudi on a menu since my visit to The Spotted Pig - a dish that I still talk about to this very day. So I was more than excited to order the Gnudi di Ricotta e Rapini - ricotta dumplings topped with broccoli rabe pesto, pine nuts, and garlic chips. While they were not quite as "melt in your mouth" as the gnudi for Spotted Pig, they certainly came in a close second. The plump dumplings were filled with soft cheese. I loved the contrast of texture from the crispy garlic chips.

For dessert, I ordered the Gianduiotto con Panna - served with chocolate gelato, hazelnuts, and whipped cream. This was literally like a Ferrero Rocher Sundae SPRINKLED WITH ROOFIES. The whipped cream was of a light, airy, and smooth consistency that I have never experienced before. The crunchy ferrero rocher-esque sphere was crunchy and crispy, perfect with each spoonful of rich gelato and crunch hazelnuts. YUMYUMYUM.

Petit fours for the table before the bill arrived. Cute.

My meal at Lincoln Ristorante was a lot better than I had anticipated - an indulgent and conscientious waitstaff, delicious pastas, a celebration of vegetables, and fantastic desserts. I cannot wait to return...possibly when I watch The Barber of Seville in February?

HAPPY CHINESE NEW YEAR!!!

Xin nian kuai le to all of my FAVORITE internet-users out there!!! It is the year of the DRAGON, which is an AUSPICIOUS year - so I am definitely looking forward to lots of SUCCESS over the next few months.

To make sure I was on the PATH TO SUCCESS, I made sure to eat as many Asian meals as humanly possible over Chinese New Year weekend.

It all began on Friday - at Peking Duck House. 1. I had been here before and really enjoyed it and 2. it is a BYO - so I thought it would be the perfect place for a Chinese New Year Dinner amongst friends and lovers.

I somehow managed to forget to take a shot of our steamed Vegetable Dumplings - which was the perfect way to whet our appetite for Chinese cuisine.

Our Peking Duck arrived at the table!! Of course I did not partake, but the two boys at the table managed to kill off the mallard with ease.

The vegetarian answer to Peking Duck was Moo Shu Vegetables - which we could place on top of the pancakes, top with scallions and cucumbers, and then douse in hoisin sauce. 

What is Chinese New Year without some Steamed Sea Bass!?! The Chinese word for fish is yu - which sounds almost the same as the Chinese word of surpluses. May there be fishes every year. May there be surpluses every year.

We also ordered Shrimp and Vegetable Pan Fried Noodles - which didn't come out as I had expected (I love the thin and crispy egg noodles that are just drenched in sauce).

 

For a bit of extra luck - the boys decided to partake in the FISH EYEBALLS!!!!! Here they are posing with the bad boys before the big gulp.

#FISHEYEBALLBFFERS

#COUSINBFFERS

We had a raucously loud and spectacular time at Peking Duck House - definitely a place to bring a fun crowd and enjoy a delicious meal.

We spent the next day jumping around Soho for macaroons, brunch, and eyeglasses!

I am not sure how I have never come across this gem of a chocolate shop - but we found ourselves absolutely mesmerized and staring through the glass windows of Kee's Chocolates in Soho. The Black Sesame macaroon was PHENOMENAL. Soft, just the right balance of chewy and crispy, with the slightest hint of cocoa.

Immediately after brunch, we couldn't help but return back into Kee's Chocolate shop for a few more goodies. The chocolates are tiny pieces of art - we got a little bagful of chocolates to try. I, of course, chomped right into the Black Sesame Truffle right away. #LOVE

We decided to take a break from Chinese and go Thai for brunch - Kittichai features a $25 Prix-Fixe brunch of UNLIMITED brunch cocktails!!! I loved the spicy kick from the Bloody Mary!

I had the Kittichai Omelette with Jumbo Lump Crab - it was served with curried potatoes and a stale-ish naan bread. The kitchen must have been hoping I was bombed on Bloody Marys because this omelette was less than mediocre. One goes to Kittichai for unlimited cocktails and a hip atmosphere - not quality of cuisine.

After a few more hours of shopping in the city, we jumped on the LIRR and headed to Huntington. We celebrated the new year Japanese-style at Osaka Sushi.

The Seaweed Soup was chock-full of nutrients of wakame.

My $15 rolls were not shabby - the Pinky Salmon Roll and some other crazy roll. I was shocked by the Manhattan price tags at this joint.

On Sunday mid-morning, my extended family and I headed out to Flushing for a Chinese New Year's lunch!! We went to DJDB (Da Jiang Nan Bei) Restaurant.

We ordered a slew of yummy dishes - the flounder in black bean sauce was delicious.

I forgot what part of the pig this was (the fattiest part) but I had to take a picture of it because it was so jiggly!!! I, of course, did not partake in this dish - but my cousins seemed to like it!

Tofu and seafood in a corn-starchy sauce.

Snow vegetable and squid! YUM.

And of course we had to drop by the bakery across the street for BUNS!!!!!!!

There is no greater joy than buying freshly-baked buns filled with cream, taro, and red bean - all less than $1 per piece.

I had a delicious Pineapple Bun filled with COCONUT!!!

That night, my extended family and I enjoyed a traditional Chinese New Year's HOT POT feast!!!

I couldn't have asked for a more belly-bursting, delicious holiday - filled with food, friends, and family. GAN-BEI to a very happy and successful YEAR OF THE DRAGON!!!

KING RESTAURANT.

"It's good to be THE KING" is printed on the restaurant's business cards - which made me think of Gene Simmons and his reality TV show that makes him appear quite normal...to the point of boring (which, of course, does not at all deter me from avidly watching). The King Restaurant opened up last week right by my apartment - literally sitting at the border between Soho and West Village.

The antique-y, old world charm of the venue makes for a casually luxurious dining experience. The open dining space and bar area lead towards a more intimate "railroad" style dining area.

At each table is a little enticing SWITCH. When turned on, servers run over with a bottle of champagne...service fit for a KING. I couldn't help but flip the switch myself, but of course I warned my server to ignore the request beforehand.

 

I began with the Tartine of Mimolette and Spaghetti Squash - and adorable little toast topped with strips of spaghetti squash (one of my most favorite vegetables) and heaps of thinly shaved mimolette cheese!!! Delicious and quite different!!

My friend ordered the Squash Soup with chamomile, pumpkin seeds, and spice bread. I thought the mixture was a tad too sweet for my liking.

The Smoked Octopus dish with frisee, radish, and poached egg was absolutely AMAZING. The octopus was cooked perfectly and had a wonderful smokey flavor to it - so much to the point that I am fearful there might have been bacon bits in my dish (I thought to ask...but didn't...because I secretly wouldn't have wanted to stop eating it if I had realized it was bacon). The soft, velvety texture of the poached egg paired well with the soft octopus. I tolerated frisee for the first time in many months only because I loved the smokey bits of flavor captured in each leaf.

My friend's Roasted Skate was very nice - served with cauliflower, caper berry, and maple. A lightly flavored cauliflower puree always goes well with the saltiness of skate. The caper berries were similar to...well...capers (caper berries are the fruit, whereas capers are the edible bud), and added a pickled sweetness to the dish, which I really liked.

My Scallops, served with hen of the woods mushrooms, salsify, and clam nage, was not as exciting. The clam nage was a soupy sauce that was poured over my dish at the table - it was difficult to experience the flavor of the clam in each bite because of the sauce's liquidity. I woud have much rather preferred a creamier or thicker sauce to flavor the scallops.

For dessert - a Mint Poached Apple with walnut streusel and cream fraiche gelato. To be honest, we were a bit disappointed with the dessert. The poached apple slices were not served warm and were almost difficult to cut through - I would have liked a softer fruit consistency. The walnut streusel was a little too simple and there was not enough cream fraiche gelato to go around!! To tell you the truth - I have better breakfasts made out of Chobani Greek yogurt and granola.

Our check arrived with two airy chocolate chip meringues. A nice touch.

There were many things about the King Restaurant that I liked - several of the dishes were quite unique and lovely. Others, such as the scallops and the poached apple, were not quite as strong - they lacked in flavor and consistency. I am excited, however, to return to this newcomer restaurant after it has had time to work out the kinks (which there are only very few of).

SONS OF ESSEX.

From the same man that brought you the Eldrige in LES, Matt Levine's newest venture, Sons of Essex, is not nearly as hip-stentious (a portmanteau for HIPSTER + PRETENTIOUS). The scene was underground and communal - I sat in the front of the restaurant near the bar, where you are seated picnic table-style next to other diners. A little invasive and rocky (the table's legs were uneven and shifted often), but the extreme comfort food menu made me forget about all my discomfort. 

 My friend ordered the Truffle Grilled Cheese - a deliciously puffy and crispy sandwich of gruyere, goat cheese, parmigiano reggiano, sauteed mushrooms, and baby arugula. YUM. It also came with a side bowl of Tomato Cheddar soup.

I began with the Asian Calamari Salad - a blend of lightly battered and fried calamari tossed with sweet and spicy Asian chili sauce, cucumber, watermelon, cilantro, and celery leaf. I loved the combination of celery and cucumber flavors along with the calamari - light and refreshing. 

It was a hard call - between the Macaroni and Cheese options and a true entree - but I ended up ordering the Eggplant Parmesan Stuffed Tomato - a carved local beefsteak tomato stuffed with layers of eggplant parmesan. DIVINE. You know my affinity for cheesy and mushy vegetables - which was exactly the consistency of the eggplant parmesan. Next time, I'm going for the Lobster Pot Pie! 

 

We also ordered some sides to accompany our meal - the Cauliflower Puree was lovely. A creamy, whipped, airy puree with light flavors. The Roasted Brussel Sprouts were topped with pine nuts and had an excellent mush-factor.

Desserts were an absolute must. My friend ordered the Churros with Creme Anglaise Dipping Sauce - light, crispy sticks of fried dough rolled in cinnamon and sugar and served with a delicious vanilla scented cream. This must have been the lightest and cinnamon/sugariest encrusted churro I have ever eaten!!!! Absolutely fantastic. 

The Butterscotch Pudding with Bruelee Bananas was also excellent - a golden delight, smooth luscious pudding with hints of caramel topped with sweet ripe banana made slightly crispy with their burnt sugar topping. YUMYUMYUM. The pudding had a wonderful vanilla flavor to it - which was enhanced by the caramelized bananas. I absolutely LOVED this dessert - it definitely competes with Magnolia's Banana Pudding (which I love so dearly). 

Had a wonderful meal at Sons of Essex and cannot wait to go back and try more items off their menu!