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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
Dumpling Press
There are many levels of cooking. Making homemade pasta or kneading your own dough is an advanced level. I love freshly made pork gyoza or pumpkin ravioli, but I’d never dare try to tackle them at home. If you’ve ever tried to make them at home, you know how hard it is to keep the filling inside the dumpling using your hands. But these days, there’s a kitchen solution for everything. This dumpling press (shown right) saves you the...
Read MoreSweet Leftovers – Recession Proof Baking Tips
Going overboard is practically synonymous with the holidays. We always spend too much, drink too much and eat too much. And, of course, we buy too much, which is why there are so many leftovers. I hate wasting food, especially sweet, fresh baked treats, like candy, cookies, and pie. Even cheesecake and apple pie get boring after the fifth slice. So, we’ve come up with a few tips and tricks to put leftovers to good use. 1) The...
Read MoreClover Club's Green Destiny Cocktail
By Brad Farren(Serves 1) Ingredients: 1 ½ parts Beefeater 24 (Green tea and Japanese sencha tea ¾ part simple syrup ¾ part grapefruit juice ½ part dry vermouth ½ part lemon juice 1-2 shiso leaves Procedure: Muddle shiso leaves in simple syrup. Shake ingredients and fine strain into a cocktail glass. Address: 210 Smith St., between Butler & Baltic Sts.Phone: (718) 855-7939 Photo Credit: Sarah...
Read MoreFlour Sifter
There are lots of wonderful and not so wonderful signs of the holidays. (The unpleasant involve long lines, credit card debt, and frigid temperatures.) The most pleasant signs are the aromas coming from the kitchen. When you’re baking anything from cookies to cakes, clumps are the enemy. This sifter not only un-clumps flour, but can also be used for any other dry ingredients like sugar, baking soda or cocoa. What sets this apart is its curved shape allows you...
Read MoreRecession Proof Baking Tips: Holiday Edition
Christmas is only a few days away. Sweets are the perfect, last minute gift! (Not to mention affordable.) Here’s a few tips to making the perfect X-mas goodies… Chocolate bark is a surprisingly easy and delicious gift that you can personalize according to the recipient’s taste! (Some people prefer chocolate and pretzels, some are partial to dried fruit or nuts.) Simply melt however much chocolate you want (I recommend 20 oz.) in the microwave. (I like to use white...
Read MoreVia dei Mille's Rigatoni with Braised Lamb Ragout
By Executive Chef Emanuel Concas(Serves 10) Ingredients: 1 kg. Rigatoni de Cecco 2 lbs. fresh chuck of lamb 3 small white onions 1 c. extra virgin olive oil 3 c. white wine 3 small cans of Italian plum tomatoes salt and pepper Procedure: 1. Cut lamb in big pieces and then pan roast it. 2. In another pan, cut onions julienne style and sautee them until brown. 3. Put everything into the sauce pan and pour on the white...
Read MoreQ & A with Cesar Ramirez
It’s not often a chef moves from an ambitious restaurant kitchen to a gourmet market, but Cesar Ramirez couldn’t be happier about the dramatic change. Ramirez trained at Bouley where he met his then, future partners for Bar Blanc. Other than its name, it wasn’t really a bar at all. The food was sophisticated, sometimes precious, and there was even a $72, four-course tasting menu. His cooking earned him attention and positive reviews. Suddenly, he parted ways with...
Read MoreTipsy Parson – Reviewed
**** — Four StarsAddress: 156 Ninth Ave, at 20th St.Phone: (212)620-4545Cuisine: Southern-inspired comfort cuisineVibe: Charming brownstone Occasion: Casual date; Group dinner; Bar dining.Hours: Dinner, Mon-Thu, 5:30p.m.-11a.m., Fri & Sat, 5:30p.m.-12a.m., Sun, 5:30p.m.-11a.m; Brunch, Sat & Sun, 10a.m.-4p.m.Don’t Miss Dish: Hush puppies; Catfish; Brussel Sprouts ;Sweet potato pie; Tipsy Parson dessert.Average Price: Appetizers, $12; Entrees, $23; Dessert, $8.Reservations: RecommendedPhoto Credit: Jennifer Calais Smith Capsule: Warm hospitality and wonderful cooking at Tipsy Parson in Chelsea. How great would it be if...
Read MoreBest of – Holiday Cocktails
Winter doesn’t officially start until December 21, but the temperatures outside suggest otherwise. What’s the point in fighting the inevitable? We thought we’d embrace the season with this holiday’s best cocktails. By RG Writer – Agatha Khishchenko Char No. 4 Address: 196 Smith Street Brooklyn, NY 11201 Phone: (718)643-2106 There are a lot of destination restaurants, but this is what I like to call a destination bar. If you live in Carroll Gardens, consider yourself lucky. If...
Read MoreGive A Cookbook That Gives Back
The holidays are all about giving. That means wracking your brain for what to give who. Some people want the latest gadgets, others jewelry, and some an espresso machine or gizmo’s for the kitchen. How about giving a gift that gives back? I love that idea, especially when it comes to giving to people who are suffering this holiday season. Every aspiring chef or aspiring Martha adores getting cookbooks. Park Avenue Potluck Celebrations is two gifts in one. Give...
Read MoreEmployees Only's Southside Cocktail
This week, Employees Only restaurant is celebrating the end of Prohibition (December 5th, 1933). Chocolate coffin cakes, to acknowledge the death of the former amendment, will be served through Sunday, December 13th, as well as vintage cocktails like this one, The Southside. By Bar Chefs Jason Kosmas and Dushan Zaric(Serves 1) Ingredients: 2 ounces Plymouth gin 1 ounce freshly squeezed lemon juice 1/2 ounce simple syrup Pinch of fresh mint 1 splash club soda Directions: Pour all ingredients except...
Read MoreVacuVin Instant Marinater
I don’t know about you, but I can hardly keep track of what day it is, never mind remember to marinate the meat for tonight’s dinner before I leave the house in the morning. Of course, by the time I get home, I either have to settle for a bland meal or eat at 11 pm. Marinating is a wonderful way to add flavor to everything from steak to tofu, but it usually takes time for the meat to...
Read MoreBest of – Brooklyn Diners
So a girl walks into a diner… Brooklyn, I’ve recently discovered, does a lot of things well. Even diners. There are a wealth of wonderful spots with excellent pancakes, eggs, French toast, oversized, late-night sandwiches, and a great bottomless cup of coffee. By RG writer – Caitlin Decker Tom’s Diner Address: 782 Washington Ave (corner of Sterling Place and Washington Ave) Phone: (718) 636-9738 My first visit to Tom’s Diner (pictured right) was anything but eventful. TV cameras were...
Read MoreCharles' The Jane Cocktail
Ingredients: 1 1/2oz. Crop Organic Vodka 1/2 oz lemon juice 1/2oz simple Muddled grapefruit and mint Sprite float Mint garnish Procedure: 1. Muddle grapefruit segment and 3 mint leaves in shaker. 2. Add other ingredients and shake with ice. Strain into a martini glass. 3. Add Sprite float and garnish with mint. The Charles Address: 324 W 4th St., at 10th St.Phone: (212)...
Read MoreSpice Carousel
If you’re a regular Gizmo girl reader, you know how fond we are of gadgets that multi-task and this spice carousel is a great one. Not only does it hold 12 spices to avoid cluttered cabinets with a bevvy of bottles, but it also measures & dispenses them for you. The auto-measure dial measures spices in quarter teaspoon increments, so you can put your bowl right under the dispenser, turn the dial, and out comes 1/4 or 1/2 a...
Read MoreRecession Proof Desserts: Ice Cream Tricks
1) Eating ice cream with your hands is sorely underrated. Most people get a popcorn and a coke when they go to the movies. Me, I get ice cream bonbons. It’s frozen finger good. Unfortunately, it’s hard to find them in the freezer aisle. I decided to experiment and came up with a great, easy recipe. Take a scoop of your favorite flavor with a rounded tablespoon, or a melon baller, and place it on a plate lined with...
Read MoreQ & A with John Fraser
The Upper West Side wasn’t a trendy dining destination until late last winter. It certainly wasn’t a neighborhood where most young chefs dreamed of opening their first restaurant. But John Fraser fell in love with the neighborhood while working as the executive chef at Compass where he managed to turn the kitchen around. Fraser left Compass to open his own restaurant called Dovetail, where he’s earned considerable praise for his refined American cooking. And just a few weeks ago,...
Read MoreThanksgiving Cocktails
Most people don’t think of cocktails when they hear the word Thanksgiving. There’s too much else to prepare – the turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes and pies to name a few. However, there should be a reward for all of that hard work. Here are two unique cocktail recipes to change up the traditional Thanksgiving dinner menu. And if your pecan pie isn’t a success, these can double as dessert. Pumpkie Pie Cocktail GalleryBar ½ oz. Kahlua ½ oz. spiced...
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