Tomorrow is Spud's 11th Birthday! Some months ago as we were wandering Chelsea Market he overheard someone giving a tour of the market. We asked about that tour and upon inquiring we found out about a sushi "tour". http://www.foodsofny.com/artofsushi.php Spud wanted to do this desperately and I gave him the choice to this instead of a birthday party, and he jumped all over it. I was thrilled to not have to give a kid party. This tour was actaully a sit down tasting dinner at Ariyoshi Japanese Restaurant, located at 810 Broadway (between 10th and 11th Streets), New York, NY.
It was a multi-course dinner done in two parts. The first part was a Japanese Tapas tasting. The second half was a sushi tasting. Sadly I forgot to take the menu, so heere is my best description of what we were served.
PART ONE
Course one: ( Served with Ichiban beer)
Fried chicken in Ponzi Sauce
Asparagus wrapped in Bacon in Ponzi Sauce
Seared Beef in Ponzi Sauce
Salmon & Yam wrapped in radish
Grilled Freshwater Eel
This portion of the meal focused on Ponzi sauces and the key ingredients and how different they can be just by changing the proportions of the ingredients.
Course two:
Miso Soup with Crab Yam dumpling
This was like Japanese Matzo Ball Soup, with a delicious rich miso broth, and a very tasty light dumpling
Course three:
Grilled Tofu served with 2 different kinds of miso sauces
This also focused on Miso and how many differnt types and flavors they can be. This didn't make me a lover of tofu still, but the miso sauces are so very good, and very different from each other.
PART TWO - Served with 2 sakes - One was sweet and served cold, the second was drier and served warm
Course four
Sashimi tasting: Red Snapper, Horse Mackerel, Yellow Tail
Course five
Sushi Rice, Salmon, Fluke and Eel Sushi
Course six
Blue Fin Toro Scallion Maki
The sushi courses focused on quality of sushi rice, chopstick etiquette, Real vs. fake Wasabi, and fresh vs. frozen fish. (it is illegal in the U.S. to serve fish that has not been frozen), and Nori ( the seaweed that wraps the rolls)
Course seven
Dessert which consisted of Green tea infused rice dish, made into something like large tapioca pearls.
This was a very different flavor, but nice and light and a very nice green tea flavor.
I highly recommend this dinner as a great introduction to Japanese cooking, and some insigh to the culture as well. Our host/guide for the evening was highly knowledgeable and very personable to be around, and the food was wonderful. Spud had a wonderful time and ate every last bite!
Monday, October 26, 2009
Sunday, October 25, 2009
Momufuku Ssam Bar
Wednesday evening I abandoned Coco and Spud to join my friend Carmy for dinner in nyc at the Momufuku Ssam Bar. A facebook friend had recently posted how much she enjoyed this restaurant, so I used this evening out and as excuse to try it. The restaurant is located at 207 2nd Ave. nyc 10003 corner of 13th St and 2nd Ave. It is a small restaurant with a long counter where you sit on wood backless stools opposite your guest. You get pretty packed in next to your neighbors. If you like to listen to other people's conversations, this is the place to do so. Our fellow dinner companions got quite an earful of my life that evening! This is not a comfy cozy place, but it is well worth the food! They leave piles of napkins on the table and chopsticks standing up in holders. Think cross between a bar, restaurant, and a malt shop!
It was a perfect selection for sharing and sharing we did. Our menu was as follows:
steamed pork buns – hoisin, cucumbers, scallions
( a yummy update on the chinese classic)
cracked jonah crab claws – harissa mayo
(seved cold on ice, and they were perfect)
bev eggleston's pork shoulder steak – japanese eggplant, hericot vert, watercress
( an interesting cut and innovative way to serve pork)
long island crescent duck – lobster mushroom, daikon, orange
(cripsy and delicious, with a lovely side of duck confit along side the sliced duck)
pb&j – concord grape, peanut butter nougat, ritz craker
( tasted just like a PB&J sandwich, but with a twist - more to come on this)
We had a nice bottle of Pinot Noir with it anad it was a lovely meal! the PB&J was amazing and watch for a blog soon to come where I will tell you about my attempt to recreate it!
Another find we came across was Wine Wednesday's at Metrazur on the balcony at Grand Central. On Wine Wednesday we got a bottle of wine for $15! It was a Merlot, and I couldn't tell you what it was, but for $15 in Manhattan, who cares? We sat right at the railing overlooking the clock in Grand Central, and it is just a great place to people watch. When you have an evening out like this with your best friend, it doesn't get much better!
It was a perfect selection for sharing and sharing we did. Our menu was as follows:
steamed pork buns – hoisin, cucumbers, scallions
( a yummy update on the chinese classic)
cracked jonah crab claws – harissa mayo
(seved cold on ice, and they were perfect)
bev eggleston's pork shoulder steak – japanese eggplant, hericot vert, watercress
( an interesting cut and innovative way to serve pork)
long island crescent duck – lobster mushroom, daikon, orange
(cripsy and delicious, with a lovely side of duck confit along side the sliced duck)
pb&j – concord grape, peanut butter nougat, ritz craker
( tasted just like a PB&J sandwich, but with a twist - more to come on this)
We had a nice bottle of Pinot Noir with it anad it was a lovely meal! the PB&J was amazing and watch for a blog soon to come where I will tell you about my attempt to recreate it!
Another find we came across was Wine Wednesday's at Metrazur on the balcony at Grand Central. On Wine Wednesday we got a bottle of wine for $15! It was a Merlot, and I couldn't tell you what it was, but for $15 in Manhattan, who cares? We sat right at the railing overlooking the clock in Grand Central, and it is just a great place to people watch. When you have an evening out like this with your best friend, it doesn't get much better!
2 Meals from Last Week
So I have gotten a little lazy about blogging - I apologize to my public! :) Last week I managed to squeek out 2 nights of meals.
Monday I made Chicken Divan, page 358. It calls for Broccoli, but as that is my least favorite veggie, I made the dish with string beans. It is an incredibly rich meal, but the sherry flavor added to the cream sauce just make Divan, divine. ( I know - so bad, but it had to be said). This meal is rich enough and the vegetable is included, so this meal stands alone just fine. I good glass of white wine would be a lovely accompaniment however.
Tuesday night I prepared the Veal Marsala, page 457. This is a nice easy dish for a week night, and could easily be included into a busy schedule normal routine. It goes nicely over noodles, and can be served nicely with any green vegetable. I served it with some spinach on the side.
Speaking of easy weeknight meals, as I was catching up on my Gourmet magazines, (RIP) I saw an ad for the NEW Gourmet cookbook. Ruth came up with another 1200 recipes for the more modern cook. I guess they realized that the cookbook I am working from, although amazing, doesn't always fit into the lives of us working busy wives and mothers. I have to, of course, own this new book, so I warn now, this blog could change into the Garden State NEW Gourmet cookbook venture! We will have to see. I can't wait to get my hands on a copy! Ruth also recently began a PBS show called Gourmet's Adventures with Ruth. Unfortunately I haven't been able to catch it yet, I noticed 2 of her first guests were Dianne Weist and Tom Skeritt. If anyone has seeen it yet, please comment in!
Monday I made Chicken Divan, page 358. It calls for Broccoli, but as that is my least favorite veggie, I made the dish with string beans. It is an incredibly rich meal, but the sherry flavor added to the cream sauce just make Divan, divine. ( I know - so bad, but it had to be said). This meal is rich enough and the vegetable is included, so this meal stands alone just fine. I good glass of white wine would be a lovely accompaniment however.
Tuesday night I prepared the Veal Marsala, page 457. This is a nice easy dish for a week night, and could easily be included into a busy schedule normal routine. It goes nicely over noodles, and can be served nicely with any green vegetable. I served it with some spinach on the side.
Speaking of easy weeknight meals, as I was catching up on my Gourmet magazines, (RIP) I saw an ad for the NEW Gourmet cookbook. Ruth came up with another 1200 recipes for the more modern cook. I guess they realized that the cookbook I am working from, although amazing, doesn't always fit into the lives of us working busy wives and mothers. I have to, of course, own this new book, so I warn now, this blog could change into the Garden State NEW Gourmet cookbook venture! We will have to see. I can't wait to get my hands on a copy! Ruth also recently began a PBS show called Gourmet's Adventures with Ruth. Unfortunately I haven't been able to catch it yet, I noticed 2 of her first guests were Dianne Weist and Tom Skeritt. If anyone has seeen it yet, please comment in!
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