An Edible Celebration of Cherry Blossom Season
One of the most glorious signs of spring is undoubtedly the blooming of the Cherry Blossoms. The delicate Japanese trees produce scores of pale pink flowers in early April, which can be viewed in all of New York’s Botanic Gardens, as well as Randall’s Island and both Riverside and Central Parks. And while cherry blossom season isn’t greeted with quite as much fervor here as in, say, Washington D.C. (where it’s commemorated across the city wit…
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The 8 Luckiest Spots to Spend Chinese New Year 2015
…n food events & festivals that have taken place this February, it’s almost made us forget about how bitterly cold it’s been (almost!). And here’s yet another upcoming celebration, to help you party your way into March — The Chinese New Year. The longest public holiday in China (commemorated from February 18th-24th this year), it’s an opportunity to get together with family, welcome the coming spring, and promote good luck during the months…
Read MoreQ & A With Katie Lee Joel
Conscious consumption: It’s understanding how food from the earth becomes the meal on your plate, and it’s also the guiding culinary principle of Katie Lee Joel, occasional television star, wife of musician Billy Joel, and author of the upcoming cookbook, The Comfort Table. Before she was old enough to read a recipe, Joel was busy helping her grandmother turn fresh vegetables and meat from their West Virginia farm into the dishes that brought he…
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Seasonal Eats: Spotlight on Citrus
It can be hard to get jazzed up about winter fruits and vegetables, but citrus is a real bright spot (literally!) in a season full of tubers and roots. And we’re not just talking about lemons and limes, but grapefruit, oranges, tangelos and more, in a number of different hybrids and varieties, that are sure to gift a lift to any hearty, cold weather dish. So instead of going straight for those basic, supermarket lemons, how about checking out M…
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Seasonal Eats: Concord Grapes
…makes them a favorite among chefs and restaurants, who are busy turning their early autumn bounty into sorbets, cakes, jams, juices and even cocktails. Take Mas Farmhouse in the West Village, where pastry chef, Maritza Aranda, is plating her White Chocolate Cheesecake with Concord Grape Sorbet, Peanut Toffee Crumble, and a handful of fresh, local Grapes. Jean-Georges Vongerichten is also spinning Concords into Sorbet at his Meatpacking Distric…
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Wildair – Review
…r-battered and served with a muddy squid ink aioli that seemed to rest too much on its inky laurels for flavor. Chocolate Peanut Butter Tart The best part of the meal at Wildair just may be dessert, the handiwork of pastry chef, Fabian Von Hauske, who got his feet wet at Jean-Georges under Johnny Iuzzini. Don’t let the fact that there are just two desserts on the menu deter you. Order both! (You won’t be disappointed.) While I usu…
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Q & A with RedFarm’s Ed Schoenfeld
How does a local Brooklyn boy, and a Jewish one at that, become a Chinese food expert and successful restaurateur? Ask the incomparable Ed Schoenfeld, who is currently orchestrating the build out of three exciting restaurants alongside partner, Zach Chodorow. First, there’s the under-renovations RedFarm in the West Village, his top-rated, modern Chinese eatery that’s expanding to meet a growing demand. There’s Decoy, a Peking Duck spot and co…
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Memorial Day Dining In NYC
…no reason to. There’s plenty of great food activities to indulge in this holiday weekend — from the Fatty Cue’s pig in a blanket party to the month long food festival in Madison Square Park or all-you-can eat crab deal at Fish on Bleecker. Here’s our favorite Memorial Day dining ideas. Madison Square Eats Address: Worth Square; Fifth Ave. btwn 24th & 25th Sts. Website: www.madisonsquarepark.org Pop-up restaurants are in right now, s…
Read MoreValentine's Day on a Budget
…xtensive selection of wines available by the glass. Order a few small plates to share, such as the grilled calamari, ricotta & tomato bruschette, fritto misto and truffled egg toast. For dessert, I love the chocolate budino topped with whipped cream. All About Privacy/ Under the Radar Zenkichi 77 N 6th St. (btwn. Berry St. & Wythe Ave.)Brooklyn, NY(718) 388-8985www.zenkichi.com If James Bond was sed…
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Seasonal Eats: Soft Shell Crabs
…our soft-shell crabs in cool, moist packaging, like wet newspaper or straw. Fresh crabs can be held in standard coolers at approximately 36-degrees. And if you were lucky enough to get your hands on live crabs, the temperature of your cooler should not dip too far below 50-degrees, since the chill will ultimately kill your crabs. Many fish markets will gladly clean soft-shell crabs for you, but it’s a simple enough process to undertake at home…
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Blueberry Soup Fix
…up water ½ fresh squeezed lemon juice pinch of salt greek yogurt to add Steps: In a sauce-pan over medium heat, combine blueberries and water and set to a simmer. Add a pinch of salt and the cinnamon. Take off of heat and add the basil-agave simple syrup and lemon juice. Pour into a bowl and serve with a dollop of plain Greek yogurt. Dressler Address: 149 Broadway btwn Driggs and Bedford Aves Phone: (718) 384-6343 Website: www.dresslernyc.co…
Read MoreQ & A with Gavin Kaysen
…d shirt! You have a earned many prominent awards, including a James Beard Award just last month for “Rising Star Chef” and Food & Wine magazine’s 10 Best New Chefs. What is it like for you to receive this kind of recognition at such a young age? I think it goes without saying that it is a tremendous honor and I don’t know if I have really understood that I have received all of these awards. I do know that it means more pressure in p…
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Q & A with Toro’s Ken Oringer and Jamie Bissonnette
…harder than anybody else. That came from David Burke. JB: Pay attention to everything, and always keep one hand clean so you can answer the phone. Missed calls are missed opportunities. How did the two of you meet, and what would you say makes your relationship work so well? KO: Jamie and I have such respect for each other in the kitchen and as friends. We really listen to each other and try and understand where the other is coming from. JB:…
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Trend Spotting: Seafood Charcuterie
…s and more. But recently, a number of eateries have expanded their garde manger repertoire (foods produced in a cold kitchen) to include charcuterie made of under-the-sea delicacies, including fish, lobster and shrimp. Genius, no? It actually makes a lot of sense amongst increasingly health-conscious diners (and especially appeals during warmer seasons), to swap in light, fresh seafood for dense, gamey cuts of beef, pork, rabbit or duck, in thic…
Read MoreQ & A with Johnny Iuzzini
…? Pastry has become rocket science in a way, because more doors of information keep opening up for us and we are constantly learning about new ingredients, including more about the ones we have been using all along. I think cooks today understand their ingredients better than they did 50 or 100 years ago; therefore, they are cooking more intelligently. Cooking in general has evolved greatly over the last 20 years due to major leaps and bounds in…
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The New School Face of Old World Brooklyn Cuisine
Most major cities can lay claim to one or two signature dishes. San Francisco has sourdough and cioppino. Boston is known for cream pie and baked beans. Philly is associated with cheesesteaks. Cincinnati piles chili on top of spaghetti. But the vibrant, incomparably diverse food culture of Brooklyn has truly shaped the way New York eats, with an unprecedented array of undeniably iconic foods. Who hasn’t strolled the Coney Island boardwalk i…
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Food Trends to Watch For in 2016
2015 may be officially behind us, but that doesn’t mean our dining habits will change on a dime. In fact, most of last year’s persistent restaurant trends — such as the implementation of a no tipping system, or an increased use of environmentally sustainable seaweed — will remain explicitly omnipresent in the coming months. They’ll just be joined (or in the case of fried chicken, eventually overtaken) by movements burbling just under the surfa…
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Q & A With Park Avenue Chef Kevin Lasko
…When I had to go on my second internship for school, I had no idea where to go. A friend was going to New York City. I was lucky to get a job at Mercer Kitchen. When I started I didn’t even know who Jean-Georges Vongerichten was. The food was just so much different and better than anything I had ever seen. That was really the turning point, when I realized what food could be. Who are your culinary influences and mentors? Any chef whose food…
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Q & A with Alder’s Jon Bignelli
…or five years. When Wylie Dufresne decided to open this new restaurant, did he tap you immediately as executive chef? Wylie said, “Hey, I’m up to doing this other project and I can’t think of anyone else I’d rather have running it.” wd-50 has been his only outlet for ten years. I really wanted to help him get out from under that and do this. We work well together and collaborate well together, so it just made sense. It’s also the style of f…
Read MoreAbout Me
…l Address: restaurantgirl@restaurantgirl.com Review Policy First and foremost: If you are open for business and charging your clientele full price, you are open for review. I stand firmly and fully behind my position. With the advent of blogs and real time news, there has been much controversy over the fairness of such practices. There will always be service kinks, kitchen backups and other issues to tweak when a restaurant opens. We understan…
Read MoreCheck out My Book – Try This
