Lafayette - Restaurant Week

Lafayette Grand Cafe and Bakery was the one place I really wanted to go to for restaurant week. I've passed by this NoHo bistro so many times, peeping through the windows, oogling at its refreshing use of high ceilings. The tiles can give it a sterile effect, but the mahogany balances it out. Their bakery section is so tantalizing with items like passionfruit cheesecake, chai tea creme brulee, butterscotch eclairs, etc. Their baguettes and croissants also looked heavenly.

I went with my buddy Will and we were thoroughly satisfied with their restaurant week menu. There were so many restaurants with subpar menus, but Lafayette had such a great selection of prix-fixe.

We shared everything. So for appetizers we got the salmon tartare with sauce aigrelette, and crispy potato in addition to the frisee salad with bacon maison and a poached organic egg. Excuse my picture skills, my hunger probably gave me the shaky hand syndrome.

 The aigrelette sauce made the salmon tartare refreshing and light with its tangy vinegar and citrus pieces. There was definitely a hint of orange zest in there. I'm not the biggest fan of orange flavored dishes, but it was light enough for me to swallow and enjoy with their rustic bread basket. This dish came with "crispy potato," which, shown below, was more like a flavorful potato chip. I'd stick with the bread, but if you want texture, go for the crispy potato as your tartare vehicle.

The frisee was light and the bacon pieces added the punch it needed. But, I personally feel like this bacon trend is now overrated. The poached egg was interesting because the yolk added to the texture. Not sure how to feel. But, the overall taste with each piece on one fork was delicious. I'd get it again.

Crispy potato.

Will and I both got the crispy duck confit with lentils du puy in red wine. Just another way to say a deliciously baked duck thunder-thigh with lentils in a red wine sauce. This was perfecto!

Excuse the plating-- it looked better before my hungry hands delved in without a second thought.

Ugh, this duck was so crispy on the outside. Do you know how delicious crispy duck skin is??? Do you??? The best crispy duck I've had was in Beijing and Shanghai in a pecking duck dish. I've never had a crispy duck dish within the european cuisine-world. I will say that this was delish. If you don't like salty foods, you might not like this because the salt is unavoidable here.

Lastly, dessert. Will and I shared the almond frangipane tart with winter citrus and mandarin granite and the milk chocolate pot de creme with chai tea and espresso notes. Fantastic. Thumbs up. Two thumbs up. 

And here's da big boiiii Will with his lito pot de creme. I ate most of it. He doesn't like chocolate--not sure why he is my friend.

Lafayette: 10/10! I would come here twice over for their regular brunch menu too. Good day it was indeed. 

Lafayette Grand Cafe and Bakery 380 Lafayette St. New York, NY 10003 http://lafayetteny.com/

DBGB - Restaurant Week

DBGB Kitchen and Bar, the french brasserie by Chef Daniel Boulud, reminded me of home, Los Angeles. I felt like I could breathe with its spacious seating arrangements and high ceilings. The place was very hip with dark wood undertones and yellow hued lighting. I'd come here if you don't want to be playing footsie with the next table over, an uncomfortable and reoccurring theme for most NYC restaurants.

The lunch prix-fixe menu well reflected the restaurant's sausage, beer, and burger flare. I'd definitely come back here to try the pate and sausages.

For appetizers my friend, Christine, got the butternut squash soup with preserved gooseberries, sage cream, and pumpkin seeds; I got the roasted beets with pistachio crumble, whipped goat yogurts, kumquats, and horseradish.

Kumquats are definitely trendy and "in."

For the main, I got "the Frenchie", a 7 oz beef burger with confit pork belly, arugula, tomato-onion compote, and morbier cheese on a peppered brioche bun with cornichon, mustard, and fries. To be honest, I was expecting much more from the confit pork belly, a more fatty, rich taste, but my tastebuds were met with the familiar taste of salty bacon in a hardened texture. 

Christine got the beer battered cod sandwich with frisée salad, pickled shallots, spicy ranch dressing, and fries.

To all my McD filet-o-fish/uncouth lovers, get this.

As for the dessert, we shared the bittersweet chocolate layer cake with coffee ice cream and the exotic pineapple sundae with candied peanuts, spiced pineapple pieces, lime coulis, coconut rocher, and whipped cream.

Having our own private booth made our experience so much more special and intimate. We were able to freely move and to freely speak with no interruptions. Catching up with this girl is always good feels and fun times. Love you, Christine!

DBGB Kitchen & Bar 299 Bowery, New York, NY 10012 http://www.dbgb.com/nyc/

330 Days Until Pancake Month

With the end of February came the end of Pancake Month at Clinton St. Baking Company.

I only went one day for the blueberry pancakes with blueberry crumb streusel, fresh blueberry sauce, vanilla bean whipped cream, and warm maple butter. The wait was.....drumroll....133 minutes. That's 2 hours and 13 minutes of pure agony in the frigid cold in the Lower East Side. I thought I was going to go crazy from hunger. But, it was worth the wait.

And what's a meal without friends? :0)

Clinton St. Baking Company 4 Clinton Street (btw. East Houston & Stanton)

New York, NY 10002 http://clintonstreetbaking.com/ 

Sandy Didn't Hit the Kitchen

Hurricane Sandy prompted an intense detox of our entire apartment once my room mates and I got back  from our place of refuge (a friend's apartment in Brooklyn). After a whole day of cleaning and washing, I decided that the only way to readjust my mind back into order was to cook and bake. With the limited availability at Trader Joe's, I worked out something sufficient: honey roasted pork tenderloin with brown rice. Not bad for a post-hurricane situation, right?

To top off the "welcome back" celebration (party of one), I baked a honey beer bread. I decided to use a pumpkin ale to match the season. You could really taste the ale and it was absolutely wonderful. My room mates patted a slice of butter and some honey to their slices to make it doubly indulgent.

The hurricane hit NYC much harder than expected. With half of Manhattan with no power, I would say this was definitely a trial for a zombie apocalypse. NYC with no lights- imagine that.

Tester

(Monkfish citrus salad from Gramercy Tavern)

This is a tester post. Not an edible tester.