smorgasburg: food, food, food

is there anything better than tons and tons of great food trucks and small  vendors selling homemade, delicious looking (and smelling) food in one location? smorgasburg, a smaller “all-food bonanza” version of the brooklyn flea, takes place on the williamsburg waterfront on saturdays from 9-5.

hibiscus doughnut from dough (this was my favorite thing all morning, and as i went to pick up another one on my way out, i noticed that they were sold out…before noon)

a lobster roll from the red hook lobster pound

pimento mac and cheese from radish (very flavorful, and totally cheeeeeesy.  slightly cold, but it was a windy day..if piping hot, this stuff could be addictive)

an italian chicken cutlet sandwich 

a fried chicken and biscuit sandwich from king’s crumb (so messy to eat, so delicious, words cannot describe)

a cut above: the standard grill

after taking in an afternoon matinee at the joyce theater on saturday, my aunt, my sister and i went for a leisurely, snap-happy stroll along the high line. it wasn’t terribly crowded — temperatures, new yorkers will recall, were a sweat-bomb-y 97 to 100 degrees. did it make us intrepid? or merely insane? in any case, by the time we reached the southern tip, at gansevoort, revitalization was in order: food, drink, and a cool place to sit.

the standard grill was the most obvious stop. it is a cool place–but what of the food? i offered up the caveat–i had never dined there and had heard little-to-nothing about the quality of the food. had no idea about the price points. but no one cared. standard = oasis.

the place is visually appealing: the front bar area, bathed in sun and dressed in white paint; the staff, bathed in beauty, dressed in grey/maroon plaid vests. there’s a refined beach club vibe– it’s how i imagine key largo (that of bacall, not bertie higgins). the back dining area sets a more intimate mood with darker wood, warmer amber light, rich red leather seating offset by white tablecloths, with simple blue squares. the candles sit in hurricane glasses.

i like it all.

and then there is the food.

i love the food.

keep in mind–it was my first meal, so this is a narrow review. but what if  we were to lay out “knowing how to treat an octopus,” or crisp, ethereal french fries as a barometer. then the standard would merit an “A.”  there wasn’t a mediocre moment (except for the  raw mini radishes that were served as the pre-meal snack. pretty, but bitter. which as a general rule in life, i try to avoid).

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among the pretty scenes at the bar…

the millionaire.

i chose this for the fresh grenadine, mostly out of intrigue (i didn’t know it could be fresh) and nostalgia (my friend christina and i used to sneak into her family’s basement bar and soak sugar cubes in the bottled stuff. we were 8. maybe i’m still running off that suger high?)

in addition to the fresh grenadine, this has rum, sloe gin, apricot brandy and lime. i could tell that this could veer easily toward being a little cough syrupy, what with all the alcohol and the cherry notes. but on saturday, it was perfectly balanced. filthy good.

charred spanish octopus, sweet potato and chilies.

when i first took my dinner knife to this, i thought i was in for disappointment –the knife didn’t penetrate easily and i could feel the meat springing back to me as a sawed through. but that was pure paranoia on my part. it was perfectly prepared. the meat was white and sweet, the freshest of i can recall here in nyc. the char added a strong summertime note (imagine grilling your own, on a beach bonfire…).  the citrus gave it a lift; the tender bed of cubed sweet potato added a comforting touch.

crispy potatoes with smoked paprika aioli. if you like aioli — why wouldn’t you? — go for these. the potatoes are fried dark–maybe it took a double dip in the fryer? and yet they don’t seem greasy at all. we thought about ordering two (we like our potatoes) but our waiter smartly advised us to wait and see how we did with these…(we loved, but did not finish them)

the standard burger, with cheese (cheddar for me, this time) and thick bacon. and the above-mentioned ethereal french fries. there was a light, almost bubbly coating to the fries. sister reasonably thought they might be batter dipped. i asked our server for the inside scoop. it’s flour! we were left shaking our heads and wondering if these could possibly the best fries we ever had. could very well be. (will  go back to make sure.)

i like my burgers on the medium to rare side. they delivered exactly what i wanted. warm and pink…

dessert: sister and i split the passion fruit fool (billed as toasted coconut meringue with tropical fruit) but this struck me more like a layered pudding. probably because the dish was lined with layers of thin sponge cake and pudding. it was topped with kiwi, banana, pineapple, and passion fruit, and little coconut meringue drops. it’s a refreshing, sweet finish.

we also ordered the “ayabel” : a warm chocolate brownie with salted almonds and vanilla bean ice cream. as you can see, the brownie is baked in its own cast iron pan. this might be the only small wrinkle from the meal–the brownie was a bit overbaked. but  the rest of the standard grill’s first impression was strong enough that we could wave this one off, with a smile.

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the standard grill

848 washington street, at 13th street
new york, ny 10014

phone: (212) 645-4100

hours:  mon-wed, sun 7am-12am; thu-sat 7am-1am

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all photos © anita aguilar

refreshment

aranciata hits the spot. with pop burger slider

83 university place, nyc

have a cool weekend (indoors)

good two-shots: lucid cafe and piccolo cafe

i cracked my carafe a couple of weeks ago — well, there’s my new favorite euphemism– and it was a little distressing because i knew it would take days for me to get a replacement. my trusty braun 10-cupper is old school– it has no clock, no timer, no beeping alerts to tell me my coffee’s done. all it has is a drip sensor, but i love it because it gets the temperature just right. no one in the city carries the replacement in-store (at this point i’m lucky i can find it online). and it means that in the short term I’ve had to ” wake up,” put on shoes and (presentable) clothing, maybe even comb my hair before having coffee. oof.

but on the bright side, it was an opportunity to check out two new coffee spots in the neighborhood. coffeehouse culture is weak here in manhattan’s midriff and for the last few years i’ve wondered, do my neighbors not need a cozy little place to sit and sip while reading or writing, or has everyone just learned to do without? we have a few starbucks outposts–and i’m not discounting the chain for its product or its vibe–but it’s a convenience store.  you go because you have a need– you’re jonesing–and sure, it’s great that they offer a place to sit if you want to meet someone for a quick chat or you just need to escape your apartment for a spell. it’s fine and functional, but it’s not a coffeehouse…

i got used to just brewing at home.

but here we are, summer ’11, and the murray hill coffee cups runneth over. i sometimes don’t know which one to visit. both serve good 2-shot lattes; both offer weak, weak drips. i haven’t figured why “lucid” charges $1.25 more for a medium latte–so i’ve ventured to piccolo more often.  but the vibe at lucid is really tranquil in the morning, and it’s where i would go on a weekend morning when i’m flush.

we’ll see if the mutual need is enough to keep these little joints afloat. i do like having them around.

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lucid cafe proudly brews counter culture coffee and offers a small selection of pastries, croissants, muffins. they have these famous (phantom) corn muffins–they’ve been “sold out” every time i’ve stopped in. maybe you’ll have more luck.

there are a few tables and a narrow bar. the wide windows that face lexington avenue add a necessary feeling of space and air, and on sunny mornings it’s easy to be teased outside (i think the cafe is too small to linger comfortably for too long, which makes lucid cafe more “convenience spot” to my mind, but others may disagree).

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if you want to sit for a while, head a couple of blocks due west. piccolo cafe, on madison avenue, is blessed with a little more room and a fuller menu (breakfast to dinner: they are open from 8am-10pm on weekdays; 10am to 8pm on weekends). the espresso drinks are consistently good, and the service efficient, if a little grim.

i stopped in one day for breakfast, before work, on my birthday.  a truffle omelette sandwich seemed to suit the occasion. but it was not as decadent as i dreamed. piccolo’s omelette is a hard-scrambled affair and the eggs pressed flat and folded neatly–maybe a little too neatly? it’s served on hard toast. rightly or wrongly, i equate “decadent” with a little sloppiness, and i wanted this to ooze flavor and texture. like a good deli bacon, egg, and cheese–it should cure all my ills, hit me in all the right spots. i wanted fat, fluffy eggs and a drizzle of truffle oil, on a lofty bun.

it was good, but not birthday great…

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piccolo cafe has three locations. i visited the 238 madison outpost, between 37th and 38th. head over if you plan a morning or afternoon at the morgan library museum. but happy to know what you think if you visit any of the locations in the city.

lucid cafe is at 311 lexington avenue, between 37th and 38th.

lulu cake boutique

lulu cake boutique in new york is (almost) everything i want in a bakery. i love, love the nostalgic treats they serve. reimagined twinkies, gourmet snowballs, childhood favorite cakes. it doesn’t hurt that their packaging is so cute, either. the boutique (which i just read does wedding cakes) is located in chelsea, which other than billy’s bakery, seemed to be craving a neighborhood bakeshop. the vibe of lulu isn’t quite warm or cozy, and doesn’t have little sofas or sweet-as-pie bakers behind the counters, but it sure does deliver on the goods.

each dessert we tried was terrific, but i think my favorite was the lazey river cake. the creme fraiche yellow cake was super moist and the prailine crunch and chocolate glaze on top was just the perfect compliment. i also i am biased. i love anything red velvet, so the red velvet lulu (which is basically a homemade twinkie) was the runner up.

glazey river cake: creme fraiche yellow cake, hazelnut buttercream, praline crunch and bittersweet chocolate glaze

red velvet lulus: need i say more? cream cheese frosting piped inside of a small red velvet rectangle

white snowballs: an updated, DELICIOUS (and all-natural) version of a classic packaged childhood treat. a ball of vanilla cake with light white frosting and cocnut, then stuffed with a decadent coconut cream.

passionfruit lulus: another twinkie-style treat with a white chocolate and coconut glaze atop a vanilla cake stuffed with passionfruit cream.

lulu’s cake boutique is located at 112 8th avenue, between 15th and 16th st. in chelsea, new york. phone: 212-242-5858.

paris postcard: macaron wars (split decision)

one of the birthday gifts i received from my sister is a slim, beautifully photographed guide to baking macarons. i am almost certain she meant this to be an “inspiration” for the picture taking–ideas for lighting and simple prop styling–rather than as a nudge toward the kitchen. but you know, the macarons have an allure that’s so irresistibly feminine–they are so pretty, delicate, sweet, challenging–and the variations in this book can sound innocently flirtatious: honey cream, sweet ganache... i’m tempted to make them at least once, just so i  could say, oh my sweet, i made you some vanilla-honey cream …

ok. that’s a bit much.

still, it would be fun…

i read that the first step involves tracing 2.5 inch diameter circles on parchment paper to use as a guide for piping the batter (oh no, there’s drawing); next, i’d have to pulverize almond flour in a food processor (i don’t have one), and then there’s the matter of my gently sloping oven.

a perfect little meringue cookies, with” feet,”  might be an impossible dream… something to be saved for trips to paris… or the upper east side (more on that later).

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rewind to may: i planned to make 2 stops for macarons and buy a dozen or so from each store to bring home for a little macaron face-off.

defending champ (by default) is ladurée –the brand that created the “double decker”/ sandwich macaron in the 1930s, and widely regarded as best in paris. i’ve had them before and i am guessing they are what every macaron aspires to.

the window display at laduree at 21 rue bonaparte...

the upstart challenger: pierre hermé.  i’d never heard of him or his boutique until recently — some “foodies” were making noise about his macarons being the best in town (and naturally, then, the world). hermé was hailed “the picasso of pastry” by french vogue, is the youngest to be named pastry chef of the year and the only pastry chef to be honored as chevalier (knight) of arts and letters. he’s known for his inventiveness, his use of savory ingredients like olive oil and balsamic vinegar in his sweets. his concoctions do sound exotic. his most famous macaron variation, ispahan, is made with rose, lychee, and raspberry.

but for the purpose of this taste test i chose:

infiniment caramel — salted caramel;

mogador – chocolate and passion fruit–which is, as an fyi, a winning combination of berthilion ice cream flavors…

the ladurée selections were similar: chocolate, bitter chocolate, vanilla, salted caramel, pistachio and coconut.

for the tasting here at home, the hermés were first up. RAVES–almost everyone declared his macarons “better.”  they thought they were fresher, sweeter, lighter. (but to be fair, this was before they even tried this year’s ladurée offerings. they were judging by “recall” from years earlier!)

i was the holdout– i thought the passion fruit was plain weird. i didn’t like the lingering sour notes. and i don’t like butter cream–i wish i’d known that all the hermés i chose had butter cream filling, it might have changed the selection process. the stuff was fresh, to be sure, but i love biting into a macaron and meeting a thick, sweet ganache in the middle. i missed that. the test also underscored that i am, for the most part, a traditionalist. not a foodie. i like to exercise the old adventurous spirit, but if you asked me to choose–and i’ve said this before– i would take an ice cream sundae over some mousse-y thing, a chocolate chip cookie over a fancy dacquoise, and so on. the same is true for macarons: i will probably only have them if i am in paris*– and i’ll have mine straight: caramel…chocolate…pistachio… no top notes or contrasting flavors required.

i think my fellow “tasters” came to appreciate the ladurée macs that i brought home this time– it really is high quality pastry–though perhaps they were on the fence about which one is “better.”

but i know what i like, i know what i want….

THESE

ladurée: pistachio, chocolate, caramel, vanilla

*there is a ladurée shop opening on the upper east side this summer, i’m sure i won’t stay away…

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links to ladurée and pierre hermé shops worldwide…

paris postcard: popelini

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popelini
29, rue debelleyme
75003 paris
tel: +33 (0)1 44 61 31 44
www.popelini.com
open from tuesday to sunday from 11:30 am – 7:30 pm

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photos © anita aguilar

i scream…

happy 4th of july weekend!

a glace–chocolat, vanille…roland garros, may 28, 2011
© anita aguilar