BRUNCH bums: Black Bear

RER 4.28.13

What a delicious tradition— Sunday brunch with some of my favorite girls (though next time, I hope even more of my favorite ladies come out to play), lingering over brunch treats with sweet bubbly mimosas and random girl talk. A tradition created on the foundation of a meal, the most leisurely of meals, that meanders between breakfast and eggs, and lunch and salads. Brunch is a space for down-time and enjoyment, friendship and confused food. Sometimes, brunch is an event, a moment to see and be seen. And sometimes brunch is a hangover cure, a way to both recall and forget the night before.

This Sunday, brunch was meant for girl talk and seeing friends I do not see nearly enough. It required some waiting though, for an outdoor table to relish the sunshine at the bar and eatery Black Bear in Hoboken, and for the third friend running late in Sunday traffic.

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Brunch time in Hoboken often leads to running into other friends and acquaintances, old classmates or otherwise, people you never remember live in the same town but move in different circles perhaps. And when the weather is sunny and mild, the likelihood increases, and so does wait time.

But our wait was filled with chatting to unexpected friends on the street and $2 mimosas at the large loud bar just down the street, 1Republik. The brunchy drinks were sheer with the champagne to orange juice ratio. The bubbles stifled our hunger but raised our voices and made the time move faster. And finally with a few sips to go, we got the call and our tables down the street was ours and ready.

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I had only been to Black Bear a few times to check out the nightlife, including a DJ and drink specials, but this was my first time in the afternoon for brunch. Walking passed I would always see people sitting outside, chatting over large plates and sipping colorful drinks. This was our party on Sunday, soaking up the sun and champagne.

Ravenous, we ordered some fries and mozzarella sticks, and more mimosas to start us off, even before attempting to thoroughly examining the bar menu. We were thankful when the waitress put the mimosas on the table, though these were sweeter and heavier with orange juice. And the snacks were a brilliant idea, though generic.

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One friend ordered steak and eggs (with her eggs over hard… is that at thing?),  the other got french toast, and I wanted to play with the big boys, so I asked for the special burger of the day. Everything looked nice enough, just generic and typical, nothing extremely creative or stultifying. I was politely reminded that it was “bar food.” My burger was topped with a round of ham, bacon, a fried egg, onion rings and a tangy spicy bbq sauce called firecracker sauce. Our server asked how I wanted my burger cooked, but it came to me well done. No biggie, all the toppings and sauce made a well done burger less difficult to eat. My fried egg was too, well done, which actually disappointed me. I was dreaming of that yellow yolk running over the pork products and the beef, spilling on my plate and being sopped up by superfluous french fries. This was a delicious dream, but not on my plate. Despite it all, I ate everything, and proceeded to eat my friend’s french toast, and eye my other friend’s oniony hash browns.

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All in all, it was not about the food or the delicious mimosas (well maybe those), it was about catching up with close and old friends, closing the gap between us, and creating a tradition we plan to adhere to. It was about reminiscing and future planning, laughing out loud and probably being too loud. I am so looking forward our next brunch, basking in the sun, sitting at wobbly outdoor tables because of  uneven pavement, and spending too much time indulging in too much food and fun.

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4.29.13

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second YELPing...

RER 10.12.12

Ooo another yelp review. Take a peek at what I thought about the cool Barcade in Jersey City. Beer, food, arcade games, and music... could it get any better? Maybe, but it was deffo a fun time celebrating my friend's birthday, chomping on a fancy sandwich and swigging a pint.

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Don't forget about FOOD-tography! There are always new food shots, scrumptious for the eyes and make the mouth water and the belly rumble.

*Note these photos are not from Barcade

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4.26.13

RER 4.13.13

FoodView: FORBIDDEN photos

TA 4.17.13

A few months ago, there was an article in The Dining Section of The New York Times, exploring and investigating the rapidly expanding trend and topic of photographing food in restaurants. Helene Stapinski in “Restaurants Turn Camera Shy,” articulates the problem at hand and how restaurants and even other patrons are dealing with the sometimes annoying photographing of food at the table.

With facebook, twitter, instragram and the like occupying the eyes and the minds of people across age lines, this sort of snap and share phenomena has climbed to at times obnoxious heights. These social media outlets are enablers of instant gratification and instant sharing, not with just a few close friends, like those at the physical dinner table, but across followers and intangible web space. Just like taking pictures of outfits or creating text images, taking photos of food has become a cultural standard, and not necessarily an over share.

Some restaurants have come to accept the trend, modifying their service like Chef David Bouley, as Stapinski notes, allows his guests to take photos of their dishes in the kitchen, implying a better photograph. Some places take the middle ground and request no flashes, like the quiet galleries of many museums, so as not to destroy the experience. But some restaurants have taken even more drastic measures; banning photography in general. That is an ultimatum to rid diners of flahes, mini tripods and gadgets, while enjoying a meal. Some owners and chefs see it as distraction and disturbance, while diners (sometimes at the same table) see it as an annoyance.

As Stapinski mentions, there are those who are over the top in photographing dishes or food, as a sense of pride or maybe even a status symbol (read, I went to eat at this famous restaurant look at me).  But then there are also other people, minus the mini folding tripods or fancy flashes, that just care to capture the moment and create a visual souvenir.

And then, there is me. I do not go crazy (most times) uploading photos from my phone to facebook or instagram, but I do take a ton of photos, depending.  I do my best to be as least obnoxious as possible, out of respect of the restaurant and the people I am dining with. And then again, the people who share the table with me, respect me and know what I am doing. Taking photos of food at restaurants is part of what I do, for my blogs and for my career development. Sometimes taking photos of food can feel uncomfortable, depending on the atmosphere, the restaurant, the other people eating there as well as the details of the lighting. Sometimes it is this feeling that makes me limit my photos or amp up stealth mode.

But to ban photographing dishes at restaurants seems to me to be a stretch. It is denying a right for the diner to hold on to the moment through their own perspective and art. They are paying for the experience; the diner, the food, the service, and even the name, so why not be able to bring that home with you in the form of a photo. As long as it is done respectfully and courteously, there is plenty of justification for it.  I can understand that it can be annoying and disruptive, but so can someone talking on the phone in a restaurant or a less than polished staff. I can also understand that chefs could feel that these photos are stealing something, and taking away from the art they tirelessly strived for in presenting their dish and vision. Perhaps the restaurants want their patrons present, in the moment of their food experience, rather than documenting for enjoyment later and separate from the environment created for them.

To me, allowing people to take pictures of dishes, and in turn, by the nature of things, them posting the images online, would serve as excellent advertisement. I am of the opinion that nothing sells food better than a photo. One frame can encapsulate so many elements that chefs are trying to portray to their diners. I often skip over websites or recipes with no pictures of the food, because it leaves too much mystery. A really excellent photo can convey and acquaint the viewer with the many layers of food, from the ingredients to the textures, to the colors and the relationships on the plate. I think that a very large part of dining is the visual and the aesthetic aspect of food and the meal. I essentially think that we eat first with our eyes. The goal of my photos, wherever they are taken, is not only to artistically summarize but also inspire desire for the dish they see before them.

As long as taking pictures in restaurants is done in a classy, minimally disruptive manner, it should be acceptable. The way trends and culture is headed, instant shares and superfluous photos floating on the internet, are not going anywhere. Obviously there are two sides to this argument, what do you think?

RER

4.23.13

MangiaMore: LEMON drop cupcakes

RER 4.20.13

Another birthday (I know I have mentioned how much I love birthdays)! This time I did not make a cake like birthdays past (chocolate cake and disaster cake), I opted for the faster baking, decadent bites of fancy cake, cupcakes. Knowing the birthday boy quite well, I looked through Better Homes and Gardens Best Cupcake Recipes, a myriad of flavors, fun techniques, crazy combinations, elegant and simple. I really wanted to try them all, but I found the recipe I needed to make— Lemon Drop Cupcakes.

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My boyfriend is a sucker for lemon, from fake Country Time Lemonade, to a favorite lemon ricotta cookies, or a Christmas tradition, lemon squares. So I thought why not lemon cupcakes. First I was thinking about lemon meringue cupcakes but I thought of a cake I made once that did not turn out so successful. 

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RER 4.19.13

This lemon drop recipe was perfect; simple, straightforward for a quick baking adventure and a time crunch. I was excited (of course because a birthday was on it’s way, and it wasn’t just anyone’s birthday, all this is obvious) to try another cake recipe to add to the arsenal.

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RER 4.19.13

I rearranged the recipe (per usual) due to lack of all the correct ingredients, mainly the limoncello. My family doesn’t generally keep the Italian liquor on hand. And other than fine lemon peel, there was no other trace of lemon in the cake batter, so I improvised by adding a little lemon extract and a little fresh lemon juice. It made the cake much more flavored of lemon, though the lemon juice might have reacted with the baking soda, which made the batter bubbly. But in the end (the end result is what matters, right?), the cake was lemony delicious.

JAR 4.20.13

JAR 4.20.13

The frosting also had lemon juice in it for an extra zing. Other than the lemon juice, the frosting was of the butter cream variety, though it was comprised of equal parts of butter and shortening. I never used a recipe with shortening, but I was informed that shortening and unsalted butter were basically the same, just made of different things. So in an effort to make less frosting (as cupcakes were rapidly disappearing from the ranks) I only used half a cup of butter and 3 cups of powdered sugar (no shortening).

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I think the birthday boy liked how the cupcakes turned out, as did I. Somehow they were less rich and felt lighter because they were lemon (maybe all cakes should be lemon so we can eat more cake… I think so), but they still satisfied my sweet tooth and created a tart pucker. The cake of the cupcake was not terribly lemony, but just enough to hit at the summery feeling of lemonade and sunshine. It was the creamy frosting where the tartness was more pronounced and lively.

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Though I loved these little yellow cupcakes, I can't wait to try a new variety. Maybe not for a birthday, but there are a few graduations coming up. Stay tuned for what I choose next.

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4.22.13

RER 4.20.13

MangiaMore: CORNISH hen

RER 4.15.13

I was gifted a cornish hen; a cute 1.78 lb game cornish hen, basically a mini chicken. It had been purchased, frozen, thawed, and I had no clue. My mom quickly described the recipe she used once for this little gamey fowl, but when the time came to make the small bird, it was lost. And really, I had no clue. So we stumbled on this Emeril recipe and so began our fowl play.

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Speaking of fowl, the recipe required spatchcocked hens. Right, that is exactly what I thought...spatchcocked? Again, I had no clue. So we checked out the below video to teach us how to basically butterfly this baby cornish hen.

It was easy (I guess, I let my boyfriend take charge), but it was not pretty.

Of course we were not as elegant as the fine Emeril nor did we have all the same ingredients, but we made the recipe our own. It was fun scrounging around to see what we could use and what we had. We deffo squeezed soy sauce out of extra packets from our last Chinese Food take out, and threw some dried rosemary on the second after we tossed our cornish hen in the oven.

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Despite our loose interpretation of the recipe, and limited supplies (NOTE: one cornish hen is not sufficient sustenance for two not so small people, so be prepared), I thought the cornish hen turned out delicious. It was sweet and luxurious, moist and flavorful. The added rosemary at the end was really potent and beautiful, making the dish feel fresh and fragranced, which I really liked. The sweet and salty, with the strong rosemary, made me think of spring and dinner parties. We already decided we would love to do this recipe again... but next time, we need at least two hens.

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4.16.13

JAR 4.15.13

FOOD truck frenzy: Stevens Boken

RER 4.13.13

It is the very beginning of the sweet days of spring, when no one can bear to stay inside and tables appear outside of restaurants (and people occupying them even when it’s premature).

And in come the food trucks…Sure food trucks can be seen all year round; on busy Manhattan blocks or quiet quads in Philly. But they can’t be nearly as fun when weather is chilly.

In celebration of the coming end of term, Stevens Institute of Technology in Hoboken, treats its students (and trespassers…shh) to a fun time featuring different food trucks. This year four trucks from both Jersey and Manhattan, came to play on the school’s campus amid loud dance music, inflatable play things and carnival goodies like cotton candy and popcorn.

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The Taco Truck

A Hoboken and Jersey City staple, the Taco Truck never disappoints. The Taco Truck actually has a small storefront in Hoboken, dishing out pretty delicious tacos and other savories. For one token at Boken, we got a respectful meal— 2 tacos and a healthy dose of rice and beans. The options were pollo asado, barbacoa de costillo and a vegetarian choice. My boyfriend (the student) and I used two of our combined four tokens there. We chose the pollo asado and barbacoa de costillo.

First off the arroz con frijoles was hot and spicy, perfect for the chilly day. It was hard to tell which brought more of the heat—the beans or the rice. The pollo assado, served in corn tortillas was topped with pickled red onion and a slice of lime for the tart juice. The chicken was tender and flavorful with a kick heightened with the tang of the pickled onions. While the barbacoa de costillo was not quite as good; the meat felt a little dry and over done. The chopped white onions and dash of cilantro brought the taco to life. I love love love tacos  (as you can see…) and the Taco Truck so this food truck was definitely a welcomed addition.

RER 4.13.13

Milk Truck

This food truck, the Milk Truck, was only serving grilled cheese exquisitely described, beautiful to see, but fell short in taste. They were made with Aged Wisconsin Gruyere, cultured butter on Balthazar Levain Pullman bread. The ingredients were lovely, high quality and created high expectations. But somehow the ratios were not right. I know it was just a grilled cheese, but the truck was trying to create something more than “just a grilled cheese.” The gruyere, though sharp, tangy and delicious, overwhelmed; the sandwich was far too cheesy. The bread ended up being crunchy, almost like a grease filled crouton. The sandwich was rubbery and chewy, while being crunchy and flat. It was a pretty sandwich but needed something to wake up the sleepy grilled cheese.

RER 4.13.13

Eddie’s Pizza

Unfortunately we did not use tokens on Eddie’s Pizza Truck. Though we did see many people chomping on the paper thin pizza, recreation of the “bar pie” created in the Eddie’s Restaurant in New Hyde Park, NY. The thin sheet of crust was laden with red red tomato sauce and slippery cheese, and looked good, but I feared it would get cold too fast.

RER 4.13.13

Phil’s Steak Jawn

Now once we saw these cheesesteaks, we knew we had to get in the tremendous line to get one. On first glimpse they looked fat and promising, unlike any cheesesteak we encountered in the cheesesteak capital. Phil’s was going to deliver… and that it did. We could not have been that hungry at this point, but we scarfed down those bad boys with gusto, like we hadn’t had food in days. Those plush but durable buns apparently were shipped from the city of “brotherly love,” just to make their way into the mouths of New Yorkers lusting for cheesesteaks Philly style.  The meat was chopped and shaved like, but not dry and tasteless. We could hear the guys cooking away in the truck, serving up our special cheesesteaks (with hot and sweet peppers, mushrooms and fried onions) with a thick layer of provolone cheese. They were hot, meaty, substantial and comforting.

I really commend and appreciate food trucks as they create food from simple to the exquisite and high end in a small, portable space. Somehow food trucks emanate comfort food and convenience, but at the same time for me they create an exciting experience, something different and transient. 

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4.14.13

RER 4.13.13

 

MangiaMore: jacked-up BANANA bread

JAR 4.5.13

So I had two bananas on their way out, and I thought perfect! I’ll make banana bread (but remember making banana cake, with the oldies but goodies). Unfortunately, perusing recipes online and in some of the deteriorating cook books I have at home, most required three or four of those over ripe gems. I felt stuck and lost. I really wanted to make that darn banana bread before those two bananas were far beyond hope. I was gifted another banana, which was almost just about right for my taste to eat (yellow but a little spotty and soft). That banana was too new and almost too appetizing, but the thought of banana bread was far more enticing than a simple fruit snack. So I threw around my new addition, showed it a little abuse, and forced it to bruise and ripen faster than what’s natural. And then it was ready, and so was I, to try out smitten kitchen’s passed around jacked-up banana bread recipe. Check it out here.

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First of all, this is the most super easy recipe ever (well, maybe not ever, but it’s close). All it really involves is your ingredients, a bowl, and a wooden spoon (you know besides the oven and loaf pan). I repeat, a wooden spoon, nope, no mixer necessary, which to me means less mess and always a victory.

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Second of all, it is a little adventurous. There is the optional bourbon addition, along with vanilla, which I don’t really recall putting in my banana bread in past endeavors. But there are also spices like cloves, and nutmeg and cinnamon, creating a spicier warmth to combat the sweetness of the brown sugar and brown bananas. The little kick wakes up the loaf and your mouth.

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Third, it is way beyond delicious.

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Also, there are so many ways to customize it to your own tastes and whims, like adding in nuts (which I don’t like but plenty people do…walnuts, pecans), or chocolate chips for a sweeter tooth or chocoholic. I can even imagine throwing coconut in there for more texture and chew, creating something a touch tropical and different. Or even craisins for a rounder breakfast bread. Toast it with a little butter or cream cheese when it dries out (if it lasts that long), or slather it with nutella or extra frosting from your coconut cake (oh wait, that might just be me…). Any way you dream it, this moist banana loaf is delicious.

RER

4.8.13

JAR 4.5.13

 

(s)LOW standards?: The Standard Grill

RER 3.29.13

We chose the Standard Grill this time. It was a nice day and time to try a different restaurant. The wait for a table was not very long (despite… you’ll see). We hung right in from the second door, waiting for the trendy hostesses to check their books and such. The light in this first room was beautiful. It felt like a southern closed-in porch; white, bright, with black and white tiles lining the floor.  And there was something about the odd shape of the room and the closeness of the tables that felt like we were somewhere else. There was another area with more of a dinning room feel, heavier, more refined, discerned from sneaking peeks. But we sat in the light room in the front, perfect for a late lunch.

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Once we were seated, we were basically sitting on the lap of our French neighbors. And confusion set in early as we talked with different servers within our first few moments. A harbinger for what was to come.

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The lunch menu is short and sweet, both high and low brow, ranging from soup and Waldorf salad appetizers, to the classic Standard burger and fried fish sandwiches, to fancy mains featuring mussels or tuna or heavy salads, and even fishes off the grill. There is something for everyone, easy dishes with flourishes and elevated elements. The simple American fare is alluring like disguised comfort food.

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 The food turned out to be nice, not extremely memorable, but definitely pleasing to the eye. The white bean soup, drizzled with oily lamb merguez and topped with a few leaves of crispy kale, served as a substantial appetizer. The soup was thick and hot, almost like a dense puree, and the fat of the lamb was welcomed to tame the heaviness, and the fried kale served to break the bland texture. The flavors played well together, but in the end it was too heavy to be really enjoyable.

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Many glasses of still and sparkling water later, watering mouths and lingering eyes, our mains arrived, aesthetic to the eye but lacking a certain spark. The diver scallops were plump and well cooked, soft, crusted in crunchy sesame seeds, accompanied by acidic lightly stewed tomatoes and a light herbaceous avocado remoulade. The textures were lovely, the sweet meaty scallops countered their crispy crust. And the tart tomatoes burst with each bite, balancing the sweetness of the scallop and fattiness of the almost superfluous avocado. The scallops definitely shown, subtle and delicious, making the rest of the plate feel obsolete.

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The duck confit on a bed of lentils and dubbed aromatic vegetables (which felt like almost crunchy carrots, onions, and zucchini) was lacking a kind of punch and some brightness. Duck is rich and fatty, so it wants to be paired with something to lighten it and give it a spark. The lentils and the other almost soft vegetables were buttery and salty, making everything blend together and heavier. The delicious duck and melt in your mouth crispy fat deserved something to make it resonate, not monotonous, maybe like a cranberry sauce or some lightly sautéed green apples and onions.

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However, the wait for said food was almost intolerable. I should add that I was extremely hungry, and sometimes that makes time move slower, we all know that feeling. But the pair sitting next to us had the same wandering eyes, and uneasy expressions of impatience and frustration that we had. We ate our soup and what seemed like hours later we asked about the status of our food. One of the plaid clad servers let us know that the kitchen was a little backed up, that many of the orders were put in at the same time. Both my friend and I, basically eaters by profession, were shocked and alarmed by her response. In fact, we felt there was no excuse for such a grueling wait. My friend said, “This can’t be their first lunch service…” and he was correct, because the Standard Grill by the trendy High Line is not extremely new. But neither is this problem of the waiting, reviews in nymag.com’s profile for the restaurant highlights the wait times as a trouble spot for the restaurant, and yelpers tend to have found the service to be ok and slow at times.  

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The dessert, unlike our mains, came out with the blink of an eye. I had already been nostalgic for London when the banoffee pie sent my mouth reminiscing. It was overly sweet, just like I remember the Tesco brand take-away pies, but sweet, rich and diversely textured. I was not fond of the whipped cream on the top of the pie, as it was unsweetened, but it was added for balance. The center of the little tiny individual pie oozed super syrupy toffee melding with the custardy banana middle. A quick end to a slow lunch.

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In some respects I felt that the experience was spotty on the whole, both food and service, like the restaurateur had not thought of everything, all the contingencies that exist. I know this is not possible, but some things should be better planned out; from the “too cool” nature of the hostesses which ends up cold and unwelcoming, to the hard to catch servers and blurring plaid, to the monotony of flavor profiles and reliance on name and area to maintain. That isn’t to say that the quality of food was not good, there is just a lapse in innovation and execution. And that isn’t to say that the servers were not nice, because some were, but getting their attention was severely difficult. And that isn’t to say that it was a fun lunch, because it was; lovely company, lovely sun, just (s)low standards.

RER

3.31.13

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second YELPing...

RER 4.8.13

The weather has had an instant switch from chilly temperatures to warmth and sunshine, perfect indicators of ice cream weather. Yesterday was one of those exceptional days where all I thought about was creamy, cold, delicious ice cream. Check out my yelp review of a Jersey City favorite ice cream spot, Torico.

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JAR 4.8.13

And what about the FoodFacts on ice cream itself, from its different styles to the plethora of flavors and nutrition facts!

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Would love to hear what foods and places you are looking forward to with all the spring days a head of us... leave me some food for thought.

RER 4.8.13

P.S. It is Free Cone Day at Ben&Jerry's, so get it while you can!

RER

4.9.13

RER 4.8.13