Cereal Rush
I don’t care how old you are, cereal’s one of those creature comforts we never grow out of. Everyone’s got their favorite. Mine are Honey Nut Cheerios and Cap’n Crunch, the crack of cereals. No other comfort food captures the simple pleasures of childhood like a bowl of cereal. A box of Cocoa Krispies or Frosted Flakes reminds me of Saturday morning planted in front of the TV watching cartoons. I’ve noticed that some of New York’s best chefs feel the same way. Momofuku Milk Bar’s pastry chef, Christina Tosi, pioneered the nostalgic trend with her signature soft serve flavor, Cereal Milk. Suddenly, everyone from Johnny Iuzzini to Daniel Humm’s finding inspiration in a box of cereal. Jean-Georges1 Central Park West212-299-3900www.jean-georges.comJohnny Iuzzini’s always playing around at the pastry station. Right now, he’s buying a lot of boxes of...
Read MoreA Brief Interruption…
I had a wonderful two years at the Daily News. It’s unfortunate such a great newspaper will no longer be reviewing restaurants. But Restaurant Girl is alive and well right...
Read MoreCherry Pitter
The only good thing about the end of summer is ripe, red cherries at the farmer’s market. I love eating them raw, but they’re just as good baked into pies. The only trick is getting the pits out, so we don’t endanger dinner guests or loved ones. Pies look prettier when you can get the pit out and keep the whole cherry intact. I just found this cherry pitter at Sur La Table. It pits 4 cherries at once and the pits fall into the chamber below making pitting not only easy, but mess free and stain free. (I still have cherry stains on my counter from last summer.) $15, Sur La...
Read MoreQ & A with Juliette Pope & Ralf Kuettel
It all began in the kitchen at Zoe. Juliette Pope was a line cook, and Ralf Kuettel was the sous chef. The two have been together ever since, and in the process, both have achieved successful careers in the food world. Juliette Pope started her career in the kitchen. She worked at Zoe and Union Square Cafe before moving to the pastry station at Gramercy Tavern. It was there she met Gramercy Tavern’s wine director, Paul Grieco who now co-owns Hearth and Insieme. Juliette Pope has succeeded in becoming one of New York City’s top wine directors. Swiss-born Ralf Kuettel started at Union Square Cafe and later went on to become the executive sous chef of Zoe. He made his solo debut in 2007 at Trestle on Tenth in Chelsea. There, Kuetell does triple duty as the chef, owner,...
Read MoreThe Mott
The Mott: A cozy find with thoughtful cooking pops up in Nolita Cuisine: Modern American Vibe: Charming downtown nook Occasion: Casual date, group dinner, intimate evening Don’t Miss: Fluke crudo, ricotta gnocchi, duck breast with spinach and figs Price: Appetizers, $11; entrees, $22; desserts, $7 Reservations: Recommended Phone: 212-966-1411 Location: 173 Mott St., at Broome I have to admit: Dinner’s a lot more affordable when there’s no alcohol on the menu. But most people like to have a drink with dinner. These days, you need one. Or two. It’s hard enough to open a restaurant, never mind a sobering one. The Mott, a new establishment in Nolita, had to debut without a liquor license. There was some saga about how Emma Cleary, a former owner, parted ways and took The Mott’s liquor license with her. But you know what?...
Read MoreSummer's Best Mocktails & Booze-Free Beverages
August — It’s hot, humid, and anyone who can swing it, has skipped town in favor of the beach, a lake, or any available body of water. And, of course, drinking lots of cold, icy cocktails, chilled rose, and cold beers. Sometimes, it’s good to take a night off. That usually means depriving yourself and settling on a coke or lemonade or fizzy water. I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but everyone’s getting creative with beverages these days, non-alcoholic drinks included. In fact, some of the drinks on menus are the mocktails. From the simple to the exotic, sweet to the savory, I scouted some of the most imaginative, booze-free beverages around. The Standard Grill 848 Washington St., at W. 13th St. (212) 645-4100 www.thestandardgrill.com The Standard Grill’s a great spot for dining al fresco beneath the city’s new High...
Read MoreThe Spotted Pig's Hangtown Fry
By Executive Chef April Bloomfield Ingredients: 3 slices Smoked Bacon 2 eggs 2 Crisp spring onions or scallions, thinly sliced 3-4 Oysters, good sized and shucked 3 slices Pickled jalapeños 2 sprigs Parsley, picked and roughly chopped 1/4 Salt Olive Oil Procedure: Preheat broiler. Heat a medium non-stick pan over medium heat and cook bacon until golden and brown. Flip the bacon and turn off heat. Add the gently whipped eggs, salt, pickled jalapeños, and shucked oysters to the pan. Sprinkle spring onions on top. Place pan under the broiler for 2 minutes until just cooked. Shake fry out of the pan onto plate. Sprinkle with picked parsley and drizzle with a touch of olive oil. Address: 314 W 11th St., at Greenwich St.Phone: (212)...
Read MoreThe John Dory's Sea bream Ceviche
By Executive Chef April BloomfieldIngredients: 1.25 oz thinly sliced Sea Bream Maldon Salt & Lemon Juice to taste 3 Cherry Tomato (mixed colors), halved 2 leaves of marjoram, torn small 5 small dollops of crème fraîche 1. 5 t extra virgin olive oil Procedure: Place sea bream, tomatoes, and marjoram on a plate.Dollop crème fraiche sparingly. Season with Maldon salt and lemon juice. Drizzle with olive oil to finish. Address: 85 10th Ave., between 15th & 16th Sts.Phone: 929-4948...
Read MoreQ & A with Danny Meyer
Even the most talented chefs and savvy restaurateurs have had to abandon ventures and close one of their restaurants at times. Not Danny Meyer. In the 24 years he’s been in the business, he’s never had to close a restaurant. Instead, his empire continues to grow with a new trattori called Maialino in the Gramercy Park Hotel. Eleven Madison Park just received four stars in one of Frank Bruni’s final reviews. Eleven Madison Park is now one of just six restaurants to earn four stars from the New York Times. Danny Meyer’s first job in food was an assistant manager position at Pesca, a seafood spot, in the Flatiron District back in 1984. It didn’t take long for Meyer to get restless and open a restaurant of his own. He launched his career at Union Square Café —...
Read MoreCookie Press
I love dessert, especially freshly-baked cookies. But there isn’t always time to make them from scratch. It can take forever to roll out the dough, cut, and decorate each cookie. This cookie press is a foolproof, time-saver. Just put the dough in the barrel and with the touch of a button it dispenses perfectly formed cookies. The press comes with various-shaped discs to make star, flower-shaped treats, among lots of other shapes. It’s just not a press. It can also be used for filling deviled eggs, pasta, and decorating cakes. $29.99...
Read MoreCivetta
New Nolita Italian spot Civetta makes disappointing debut Cuisine: Italian-centric Mediterranean Vibe: Inviting downtown kitchen Occasion: Group dinner; drink date downstairs Don’t Miss: Rigatoni alla Bolognese, lamb goat cheese polpettine, lamb sausage with drunken raisins Price: Appetizers, $13; entrees, $28; desserts, $7 Reservations: Recommended Phone: (212) 966-9440 Location: 98 Kenmare St. between Mulberry St. and Cleveland Pl. If a restaurant could have a midlife crisis, Sfoglia is having one. Sfoglia is an irresistible Italian spot on the upper East Side with wonderful food and tons of charm. Judging from the reservation book, everyone else thinks it’s irresistible, too. Sfoglia is run by Colleen and Ron Suhanosky, a husband-and-wife team who work alongside each other in the kitchen. But maybe they needed a little space, because they have just built a bigger kitchen in a much bigger restaurant way downtown....
Read MoreLocanda Verde's Pistachio Brown Butter Cake
From Chef Karen DeMasco From her new cookbook “The Craft of Baking” Ingredients: 8 ounces (2 sticks) unsalted butter, cut into small pieces, plus more for the pan1 cup unsalted pistachios1 tablespoon all-purpose flour3/4 cup cake flour 2 3/4 cup powdered sugar 1 teaspoon kosher salt7 large egg whites (3/4 cups plus 2 tablespoons)1 cup sliced plums and apricots2 tablespoons Demerara sugar Procedure: Put the butter in a small heavy bottomed saucepan and cook it over medium heat until it is light brown and smells nutty, (about six minutes). Remove from the heat and strain through a fine mesh sieve into a small bowl. Combine the pistachios and flour in the bowl of a food processor and grind until fine. Whisk together the ground pistachios, cake flour, powdered sugar, and salt in a large mixing bowl. Whisk in the egg...
Read MoreQ & A with Josh DeChellis
Josh DeChellis is a jack-of-all-trades in the food world. He was born in Colombia, got his first job in an Italian joint in New Jersey, and has since cooked everything from French to Asian to tempura. DeChellis trained at the CIA, then went on to work with such notable chefs as Wolfgang Puck, David Bouley, Jean-Georges, and Charlie Trotter. DeChellis had dinner at Rocco DeSpirito’s Union Pacific and and decided he wanted to work there. Following Union Pacific, he went on to opened a few restaurants of his own, including Sumile, a Japanese restaurant, and a modern American tempura spot called BarFry. These days, Josh DeChellis is tackling modern Spanish cooking at the newest incarnation of La Fonda del Sol. His bar room menu features tapas, like patatas bravas and black mission figs with serrano ham and goat cheese. ...
Read MoreThermal Beach Cooler
I like gadgets that multi-task. It means more counter space and less spending. This isn’t just a thermal cooler, it’s also a blender, which comes in pretty handy in the heat. I hate feeling like I’m racing the clock when I’m drinking a frozen margarita poolside. The second half usually ends up a watery mess. You just put it on the base, blend ice and whatever you’re making — milkshakes, slushees, margaritas — then tote the cooler outside. It keeps beverages frosty for up to 8 hours. $39.99 Thermal...
Read MoreThe Standard Grill
The Standard Grill: High life on the High Line – at a reasonable price Cuisine: American Vibe: Bustling High Line haunt Occasion: Night on the town, date, group dinner Don’t Miss: Octopus with sweet potato & chilies, lamb chops, rainbow trout with currant and pine nut relish, shaved lime-mint ice Price: Appetizers, $9; entrees, $18; dessert, $7 Reservations: Recommended Phone: 645-4646 Location: 846 Washington St., at 13th St. Hip usually comes at a cost. When a restaurant’s hip, you can’t get a reservation or you can’t afford one. If you somehow manage to get a table, it’s too noisy to hear yourself eat or too early to eat. The Standard Grill’s different. It’s undeniably fashionable and entirely affordable. The dining room’s filled with celebrities and everybodies. The restaurant opened in the Meatpacking District, right underneath Andre Balazs’ Standard Hotel...
Read MoreBest Summer Ceviches
Certain foods seem to define summer — rose, lobster rolls, gazpacho, and ceviche. There are few better ways to capture the freshness of just-caught seafood than soaking it in a little citrus and spices. Whether you like your ceviche brightened with just lime juice or more creative preparations, we’ve found this summer’s best ceviches. Toloache251 W. 50th St., btwn. Broadway & Eighth Ave.(212) 581-1818www.toloachenyc.comIf you can’t get a seat at the five person ceviche bar, Chef Julian Medina offers the El Acapulco tasting of three ceviches in the main dining room as well. The tasting includes the Camaron (shrimp, spicy roasted tomato salsa, lime and pico de gallo), the Átun (spicy yellowfin tuna, key lime, vidalia onion, radish and watermelon), and the hamachi (yellowtail, Meyer lemon, cucumber, huichol salsa and crispy avocado). The John Dory85 Tenth Ave., btwn. W. 15th & W....
Read More5th Annual Great Chefs Dinner
This Sunday, August 9th, chefs from the East End of Long Island, will be cooking in honor of Jeff Salaway and the Jeff Salaway Foundation. Toni Ross of Nick & Toni’s and Jon Snow of Hayground camp will be hosting the all-night affair of cocktails, a silent auction, and a seated dinner prepared by Eric Ripert and Nick & Toni’s Joseph Realmuto among others, like Miche Bacher of Sacred Sweets and produce from the Hayground School’s Slow Food Greenhouse. Tickets for the cocktail party are $125, and $500 for the seated dinner. For more information and to purchase tickets, call 631-537-7068 or go to www.greatchefsdinner.com. Date &Time: Sunday, August 9th, 5-9PMLocation: Hayground School, 151 Mitchells Lane, Bridgehampton,...
Read MoreQ & A with Ryan Lowder
Ryan Lowder craves action – perhaps that’s why he traded a career in finance for one in the kitchen. And just recently, he jumped from Spanish cooking at Mercat, where he ran the kitchen, to Italian. This former pro skier and mountain biker credits his culinary interests to grandparents who were farmers. He got his start at the bottom, delivering pizzas, washing dishes, and bussing tables in Salt Lake City, and eventually headed east to the Culinary Institute of America. Instead of hanging around for graduation from the CIA, Lowder found himself working at Jean Georges, followed by stages and consulting gigs in both Colombia and Spain. Arriving back in New York, he worked at Casa Mono and as the opening chef at Mercat, where his cooking garnered the attention of restaurateur Sasha Muniak, a regular at the chef’s counter at Mercat. Currently, Chef Ryan Lowder...
Read MoreHotel Griffou
Hotel Griffou: Setting the bar high for drinks Cuisine: Retro-American Vibe: Subterranean swank Occasion: Night out; impress a date; cocktail cravings Don’t Miss: Every cocktail; lobster thermidor fondue; deviled crab croquettes Price: Appetizers, $10; entrees, $25; dessert, $9 Reservations: Recommended Phone: (212) 358-0228 Location: 21 W. Ninth St., bet. Fifth & Sixth Aves. The cocktails at Hotel Griffou are phenomenal. There’s one called the Trophy Wife. I wanted to dislike it based on its name alone, but it’s excellent – a vibrant mix of cachaca, Champagne and passionfruit puree. My favorite is the Tarbell, a soothing combination of cucumber vodka, elderflower liqueur, cucumber and mulled red grapes. It’s the kind of drink that’s a little too easy to drink – as is the Mexican Rose, made with tequila, strawberries, lime and a fragrant dose of cilantro. The Griffou isn’t...
Read MoreRecession Proof Baking Tips
If you love peaches as much as I do, you’re pretty happy right now. It’s prime peach season. I love them in pies, cobblers and ice cream, but I don’t have the time for such labor intensive baking. I love this easy and versatile recipe for baked peaches. It’s not just for peaches, it works with nectarines and apricots too. Slice your peaches in half, remove the pit and peel off the skin unless you’re fine with skin. (I am.) Then, fill the center of each halve with anything you’re craving. I chose whatever I had in my pantry — shredded coconut, chopped almonds and cinnamon, but cookie crumbs and dried fruit work too. Dot the top with butter and drizzle with maple syrup. Place it in a 350 degree oven for 15 minutes until bubbly and fragrant. ...
Read MoreCheck out My Book – Try This
