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Air’s Champagne Parlor is All About the Bubbly
Beer, wine and even cider bars abound in NYC, but Air’s Champagne Parlor is one of the few area drinkeries devoted to bubbly. To be fair, the Riddling Widow briefly preceded it, but owner Ariel Arce was actually beverage director during its tenure, as well as Birds & Bubbles before that, and Chicago’s Pops for Champagne (not to mention Grant Achatz’s exclusive, original The Office) before that. Meaning her reputation as queen of Cuvèe absolutely proceeds her.
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Where to Celebrate Oktoberfest 2017
If you’re already mourning the loss of summer, Oktoberfest is a reliable way to get you over the hump. Essentially spanning the duration of fall (kicking off on September 16th this year & extending all the way to October 31st, allowing revelers to seamlessly transition to Halloween), the 16 to 18-day festival is a giddy saturnalia of German culture…
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Spotlight on the Finalists for the 2017 Vendy Awards
As a fun challenge to the James Beard Awards, the Vendy ceremony — now in its 13th year — is dedicated to honoring the very best in street food. So here’s who’s in the running during the September 16th event at Governors Island; from an artisanal twinkie baker to an upstart french toast sandwich maker, to a Chinese meat skewer purveyor, whose been tapped for the Vendy Cup…
Most Recent Dish
Cipolla Rossa
Recession-proof dining. 1762 First Ave., at 91st St. (212) 996-9426 Mon.-Sat., 11 a.m.-10 p.m.; Sun, noon-10 p.m. CUISINE: Tuscan Italian VIBE: Humble neighborhood spot OCCASION: Neighborhood dining, family dinner DON’T MISS DISH: Grilled calamari, venison pappardelle, wild boar meatloaf, tiramisu AVERAGE PRICE: Appetizers, $7; entrees, $14; dessert, $5 RESERVATIONS: Accepted Why aren’t more people talking about Cipolla Rossa? Maybe it’s the location — First Ave. near 91st St. Maybe it’s the narrow storefront. It has a bright yellow awning...
Read MoreThanksgiving Dining Out
On Thanksgiving Day, you’re technically supposed to give thanks for the people in our lives and the food on our table. In America, that translates to overeating, excessive drinking and lots of leftover turkey. It also translates a lot of cooking. If you can’t bare the thought of cooking this year, some of the city’s best restaurants are offering to take on the daunting task for you. Thinking of dining out on Thanksgiving, there are lots of good...
Read MoreQ & A with Public's Ellen Mirsky
Talk about a career change, Ellen Mirsky quit fashion for food. She went from designing eye candy to designing dessert overnight. Mirsky graduated from the Institute of Culinary Education with a degree in pastry and soon found herself at Charlie Palmer’s Aureole. She’s worked with everyone from Todd English and Rick Moonen to Pichet Ong. Nowadays, you can sample her creations at Public, where she works alongside Brad Farmerie. Her inspired creations reflect comfort sweets from all over the...
Read MoreSecession
Dinner as improvisation at Bouley’s Secession 30 Hudson St., near Duane St., (212) 791-3771 Mon.-Thur., 5 p.m.-10 p.m.; Fri.-Sat., 5 p.m.-10:30 p.m. Cuisine: Franco-Italian Vibe: Gilded Tribeca affair Occasion: Downtown date, family dinner. Don’t-Miss Dish: Boudin blanc, Princess crab & avocado salad, chocolate banana with prune Armagnac ice cream. Average Price: Appetizers, $12; entrees, $23; dessert, $9. Reservations: Recommended Let’s start with the numbers. On the menu at Secession, there are eight charcuteries, a dozen salads, seven types of...
Read MoreThe 11th Annual Chocolate Show
What could be sexier than chocolate and fashion? Thursday evening, the 11th Annual Chocolate Show kicked off with a rather racy, chocolate fashion show at Pier 94 in Manhattan. The task at hand for designers and pastry chefs alike — “Chocolate Superheroes.” Models worked the runway covered in everything from dark chocolate to edible candy couture. It didn’t go off without a hitch, or two. Troubles with the air conditioning caused a few costumes malfunctions. That’s right, a few...
Read MoreConvivio's Fusili with Pork Shoulder Ragout
By Chef Michael White(Serves 4) Ingredients: 1/3 cup olive oil 2 pounds pork butt, diced salt, freshly ground black pepper pinch chili flakes 1 large onion, diced 3 cloves garlic, smashed 1 6 oz can tomato paste 1 cup dry red wine 1 28 oz can San Marzano peeled, seeded and diced tomatoes 4 cups chicken stock 1 pound dry or fresh fusili ¼ cup grated pecorino, plus extra for garnish Preparation:Heat a heavy bottom pot over medium- high...
Read MoreChop 2 Pot Folding Cutting Board
Some cooking gadgets sound too good to be true. Not this one. It’s even better than its humble billing. I don’t know about you, but I lose half of my ingredients on the way from the cutting board to the pot. (I’m a fan of the ten second rule.) The Chop 2 Pot not only functions as a cutting board, but also a chute to transport your chopped goods to the stove top. Suppose you’re sauteeing mushrooms. Slice them...
Read MoreQ & A with Missy Robbins
Andrew Carmellini’s sudden departure from A Voce was front page news in the food world. In March, news broke that A Voce would be taking over Cafe Gray in the Time Warner Center, followed by Carmellini’s controversial exit in June. The million dollar question: who would replace him? I wouldn’t want to try to fill those shoes. Missy Robbins, on the other hand, isn’t too concerned. She jumped at the opportunity to move to New York and oversee not...
Read MoreBussaco
Starting a chowder trend in Park Slope 833 Union St., near Seventh Ave., (718) 857-8828. Mon.-Thur., 5 p.m.-10 p.m.; Fri & Sat., 5 p.m.-10:30 p.m. CUISINE: Contemporary American VIBE: Domesticated firehouse OCCASION: Casual date, group dinner DON’T-MISS DISH: Crab chowder, sweet potato tortellini, Greek yogurt cheesecake AVERAGE PRICE: Appetizers, $10; entrees, $21; dessert, $7 RESERVATIONS: Accepted Eating the crab chowder at Bussaco makes me wonder why chowder isn’t more popular. Was there a chowder trend? Did I miss...
Read MoreBest of – Ten Buck Bites
To say the economy has seen better days would be optimistic. Expense account dinners are but a sweet, sweet memory. Luckily, you don’t have to settle for fast food for fabulously cheap eats. Especially in New York, where good food doesn’t have to be expensive. I’ve scoured the boroughs and compiled a top ten list of my favorite “Ten Buck Bites.” Obika (212)355-2217 590 Madison Ave., (at 56h Street) Average price: $4-$8 This midtown lunch newcomer is imported straight...
Read MoreMama Mudslider's Halloween Cookie
Do you hate to throw all that leftover candy? Perhaps you might reconsider. Hali Horn, a former pastry chef at Kittichai, does too. So she baked them– into warm, chewy cookies. Ingredients:(Makes approx. 2 dozen) 8oz unsalted butter 1 cup granulated sugar 1 tsp vanilla extract 2 eggs 1 ¼ cup all-purpose flour ½ tsp baking soda 1 tsp salt 3 tbsp malted milk powder (optional) 2 cups left over Halloween candy, cut into ¼” pieces* Preparation:Preheat the oven...
Read MoreGizmo Girl’s Stirr
The day has come when the monotonous task of stirring your sauce can be done for you. Sound too good to be true? Fact. Place the Stirr in your pot and catch up and step away from the pot. This gadget continuously stirs your sauce, preventing separation and even burning your precious jus, brownie batter and cream of cauliflower soup. Maybe the Stirr 2.0 will wash the dishes while it’s at it....
Read MoreQ & A with Laurence Edelman
Laurence Edelman was destined to work with seafood. His first job was shucking oysters at the legendary Cooter Brown’s in Louisiana. But who could pass up the opportunity to learn from veteran chef, Lidia Bastianich? So Edelman moved to New York to train at Felidia where he learned the art of pasta and Italian cooking. But he discovered his real passion, American cuisine, while working as sous chef at The Red Cat. It was there he first met Jimmy...
Read MoreReservation Rants
Has anyone noticed how hard it is to make a dinner reservation these days? I’m not talking about getting a table. The economy’s made that easy. A little too easy if you ask me. It’s the restaurants that are making it so difficult. Suddenly, reservationists are demanding full names, multiple phone numbers – a work and cell phone numbers – sometimes even a credit card. But that’s not the clincher. The reservationist at a restaurant I won’t name required...
Read MoreDouble Crown
The urban tropics, Malaysia by way of the Bowery. 316 Bowery, at Bleecker St., (212) 254-0350 Mon.-Thur., 6 p.m.-midnight; Fri.-Sat., 6 p.m.-1 a.m.; Sat.-Sun. brunch, 11 a.m.-3:30 p.m. CUISINE: Fusion. VIBE: Hip Bowery eatery. OCCASION: First date, festive group dinner. DON’T-MISS DISH: Duck steam bun, sea bream sashimi, Singapore laksa. AVERAGE PRICE: Appetizers, $14; entrees, $25; dessert, $10. RESERVATIONS: Accepted. In the right kind of restaurant, eating out reminds you that you belong to a social world, something larger...
Read MoreElection Night Eats
This year’s election heard around the world– one that will result in either this country’s first black president or its first female vice president— is just a week away. We’re making history here folks, consider it your duty to get in the spirit on election night. Why not take advantage of election fever and honor this little quadrennial holiday we call the presidential election? There’s not much time to left to plan our election-themed party, so we asked —...
Read MoreLe Bernardin's Tuna Tartare with Endive
By Chef/Co-owner Eric Ripert (Makes 6 servings) Ingredients: 1 ¼ pound sushi-quality tuna, cut into small dice 2 tablespoons chopped cornichons 1 tablespoons chopped capers 1 tablespoons minced spring onion ½ teaspoon Tabasco sauce 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard 1 teaspoon sherry vinegar 2 tablespoons canola oil 1 tablespoons cilantro julienne 2 tablespoons lemon juice Fine sea salt Freshly ground white pepper 18 leaves white endive, trimmed 1 teaspoon sherry vinegar 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil 12 pieces toasted...
Read MoreFridge Monkey
It’s football season, which means you want to maximize your “beer in the fridge” storage capacity. If you have a little dinky fridge, you’re probably going to be flying solo this season. There is hope. The fridge monkey (pictured right.) It doesn’t look like much, but it’s a powerful force when it comes to stacking beer bottles. Yes, it fits in a mini-fridge. We now own three fridge monkeys and yes, it even works when you’ve had a few...
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