Gastronomic Portugal: Amore Vero

Amore Vero (True Love) owner Sara Lopes claimed the restaurant’s name was specifically about the love of food—but once you met this creative husband and wife team, you could tell that the two chefs had a special connection. Appropriately, their food was thoroughly composed with TLC. Sara’s eye as a pastry chef and cake designer combines beautifully with Ricardo’s surprising ingredients and combinations. The Tasting Menu we sampled was over-the-top: a beautifully plated, sexy Italian dinner. It’s so wonderful to travel and meet like-minded people who are just looking for ways to “wow” guests and share the love. Photos below reveal the wondrous dishes we sampled. This restaurant is located in the quaint, medieval town of Tavira, also known as the “Mini Venice” of Portugal, due to the fact that houses come right down to the river that runs through the center of town. I took lots of photos of this picturesque spot, which can be seen at this link.

New York Design Week @ Dune: Close Encounters

Dune kicked off the week with an exhibit by photographer Jean-Marc Bellaiche in their showroom on Wooster Street. Jean-Marc created beautiful abstract photos of architecture in Manhattan with super saturated colors. The photos are taken with an amazing eye and are only minimally enhanced. See more on the website or at Dune.

 Artist Jean-Marc Bellaiche poses in front of his photo, "Bar Code."

 photo, "On the Edge" had beautiful blue tones that caught my eye as soon as I entered the space.

 photo, "Infinite Sunset"

photo, "Complex Lines"

Off the Wall Yogurt: guilt-free indulging

If you are craving a sweet treat in the Union Square area, be sure to stop into Off the Wall Yogurt, which recently opened it’s third Manhattan location on 14th Street, just past Fifth Avenue. I attended the opening and got to taste a few of the flavors. Since I really love a salty/sweet combo, I headed right for the low-fat Salted Butter Pecan and topped it with some slivered almonds. It was super creamy, and satisfying to know it only had 133 calories for 3 fluid ounces. This could be habit forming.

Manhattan Cocktail Classic: Tickets on Sale NOW!

Twenty-five thousand cocktails, elegance, big band sounds, festive fare...for five days in May experience the industry’s cutting edge. Head to the website right now! (I just checked it and 16 of the 45 events have already sold out.) Opening night at the New York Public Library is the ultimate New York party, and a night you will never forget. Start shopping for your outfit...look forward to seeing you there! Other highlights: cocktail-pairing dinner by Chef Eric Ripert; a hands-on mixology class at Huckleberry Bar; a celebration of Grand Central Terminal’s 100th anniversary at The Campbell Apartment; afternoon pairing chocolates and cocktails; a Tiki safari; a bar crawl; a bus tour; countless seminars and hands-on workshops at some of NYC’s most heralded watering holes. May 17 – 21, see schedule of events and buy tickets here.

Jeepney: Handle Your Food

Been wanting to get to Jeepney since it opened, so when I heard about their Kamayan “eat-with-your-hands” Night I promptly made a reservation. I love eating with my hands normally, so being able to break this dining taboo in public was immensely pleasureable. Here’s how it works: the four of us ordered our dinner a day before—it was difficult to choose two appetizers and three entrees from the selections. To start, the Warm Pinkabet Salad sounded (and was) amazing: roasted kabocha squash, eggplant, steamed long beans topped with bagoong broth and chicharron (fermented shrimp sauce and pork rinds). Our second appetizer were the Lumpiang Shanghai, which are cute little cigar-type rolls stuffed with beef or pork, carrots, water chestnuts and wrapped in rice paper. (Dip these in the spicy sweet sauce on the table) For our entrees we had Bicol Express, a slow roasted pork shoulder in tasty coconut milk, bagoong, with a side of vigan longganisa (sweet sausage); the Gulay na Galing sa Palengke, steamed market vegetables; and the pièce de résistance: Adobong Hipon: head-on shrimp topped in an intoxicating sauce. The shrimp were perfectly cooked, and quite succulent. You cannot finish this! Three of us went home with hefty portions. And I did enjoy the sausage in an omelette the next day. See details in photos below and do plan to stop in for the finger feast (on Thurdays only) or for thier other tweaked Filipino comfort offerings.

This Filipino gastro-pub was packed with aficianados at 6:30, and remained buzzing until we left.

There are front and back dining sections...

 love the metal wraparound on the kitchen, which leads to the back...

 

mural continued...

 Kamayan service begins with a layer of jasmine rice.

 The Warm Pinkabet Salad is the first to top the rice.

Bicol Express countered at the other end.

 

Our feast awaits...

 Nice hot towels to wipe our hands started the meal.

Jen puts hers to work.

 Owner Noel demonstrates the proper way to partake...

the rice is molded into a shape, then attached to whatever else you you would like to eat.

Pimpila tried the rice pancake...

Adobong Hipon: the shrimp sauce is poured on top, things got a little messy after this!

Dessert: Halo, Halo (mix, mix) featured an ice cream made from purple yams, shaved ice, evaporated milk, with mixed fruit and beans, topped with rice krispies. Light and sweet, perfect accompaniment to the meal.

Pimpila agrees...

Owners Enzo Lim and Nicole Ponseca. Keep up the creativity and warm vibe!

Second Annual Japan Week at Grand Central

Grand Central Terminal welcomes all that is Japanese at this festive event. From March 19 –21 experience culinary delicacies and traditions like: the Pop-Up Bar, featuring JIZAKE, a special sake produced by small brewers, plus 89 other sakes and SHOCHU shots (buy tickets at this link); taste the many regions of Japan in the EKIBEN bento boxes; view a geisha make-up demonstration by a master; and much much more. Photos below, from Japan Week’s website show just a sampling of the delights on hand, check the schedule here.

The signature bento box from Kyotofu: 2 mini tofu burgers, matcha chasoba, house-made pickled daikon, house-made taro chips, matcha financiers, and Sakura brownie (not shown) Photo by Shiho Fukuda.

 TAKOYAKI has been famous in Osaka since the early 1930’s. Invented by a street vendor who was inspired by a dumpling made of an egg batter and octopus. Osaka has a takoyaki shop at nearly every corner and the competition between them is very strong.

ZUNDA MOCHI From the Tohoku region, young edamame beans are blanched, shelled and then ground into a chunky paste, sweetened with sugar and a little salt and used as a topping on the rice cakes.

Valentine Excursion: Goldbar

If you are looking for a sexy little spot to have a cocktail and a bite, head over to Goldbar early, where the newly owned space is now showcasing a fantastic cocktail assortment by Tim Cooper. Perhaps the Ginger Mint Aphrodisiac will create the proper mood (see recipe below) while sharing some of the small plates. I tried the Mulberry Street Chicken Parm (photo) which was served as a tiny trio of breaded chicken atop rolls with “grandma’s sauce” (the sauce is superb, and the chicken soft and easy to consume without getting messy). Also on the menu: ginger prawns, shishito peppers with sea salt and lime, and bacon wrapped dates with gorgonzola, pistachio, and pomegranate, and more. These small bites are designed to give you energy, but not weigh you down...so you can go all night! Goldbar opens at 6pm.

GINGER MINT APHRODISIAC
2 oz Finlandia Vodka infused with Horny Goat Weed
.5 oz ginger syrup
.75 oz simple syrup
1 oz lemon juice
club soda
small handful of mint
Garnish: mint sprig
Shake or stir and serve in a tall glass.

Year-End Outings: brunch at Park Avenue Winter

I met my cousin at Park Avenue Winter for brunch and was nicely surprised. The $35 prix fixe included a tray of pastries and unique selections well worth the price. We also indulged ourselves with a couple of cocktail offerings, which were finely crafted, and full of surprises. See photos below. So far I have been here for dinner in Summer, lunch in Autumn, and brunch in Winter, so must return in Spring to complete the experience.

 The pastry tray includes: Spiced Sugar Doughnut, Golden Raisin And Walnut Roll, Pistachio Scone, Winter Cranberry Muffin, Brioche & Pecan Sticky Bun, Glazed Banana Bread

 Preparing the Cloud One with surprise ingredient (cotton candy...)

which melted into the drink

the finished Cloud One: absolut vodka, pimm’s no. 1, lemon curd, surprise

 Park Avenue Hot Apple Cider: gosling’s rum, apple cider, fresh ginger, orange zest, cinnamon, pears, maple syrup

 Cured-Lemon Caesar Salad

 Lyford Cay Chicken Soup tortellini & bahamian spices

 Breakfast Risotto which included mushrooms and pork bits under the fried egg

 Open Face Omelet wild mushrooms, aged gouda

A side of Breakfast Sausage