Slow Cooked

The Go To List

I've been in a food rut lately.  I haven't been been eating out much, but I also haven't been cooking anything spectacular (or even interesting), so I'm not exactly sure what I've been eating, I just know it's been nothing to write home - or the internet - about.  What I have been doing, however, is running down the list of all the places I want to be eating, be they old favorites or been-meaning-to-try-it spots.  And in doing so, I realized that one of the most valuable things one can have (especially if one lives with someone else and frequently finds oneself debating the "I dunno, where do you want to eat" issue) is a Go To list. 

The Go To list can end many arguments and come in handy on many a low-blood-sugar occasion.  It can be amended as needed but the beauty of a go-to list is that consistent core of foodie options that you know, no matter what the day, weather, time, or mood, will satisfy you.  And so, I present to you, my Go To List:

Go To Pizza Delivery   
Layla Jones, but more specifically the Grilled Pizza with Ricotta, Mushrooms and Spinach

Go To Neighborhood Sushi
Cube 63

Go To Non-Neighborhood Sushi
Blue Ribbon

Go To Pub Food
Pete's Waterfront Ale House

Go To Spot for Drinks During the Week, Brooklyn
Total Wine Bar

Go To Spot for Drinks or Lunch or Brunch or Whatever, Including Meeting People You Don't Know that Well or Even Going Alone
'ino (this goes in my All Time Hall of Fame as THE Go-To Spot, I think.  I adore 'ino.  If I lived closer, I would eat there at least three times a week, I'm sure.)

Go To Spot for a Lovely Lunch when Desperately in Need of a Break from Shopping and/or Crowds
Savoy

Go To Spot for a Greasy Burger
Fanelli Cafe

Go To Spot for Dinner During the Week
Lunetta

Go To Spot for Basically Anytime I Can't  Think of What I Want
Bocca Lupo

Go To for Real Pizza
Otto

Go To Gut-and-Wallet Busting Dinner
Babbo (see the pattern??)

Go To for Dessert
The Chocolate Room

Go To End-of-a-Hard Week And I Need  a Margarita Place
Alma

Go To Breakfast Foods
Margaret Palca Bakes for cranberry walnut muffins

Go To for Good Bread and Prepared Things When I Don't Want to Cook
Cobblestone Foods

Go To for  Sunday Afternoon Treats
Almondine

Go To for Quiet, Cozy, Romantic, Comfortable, Just-About-Anything Dinners
AOC Bedford (which is across the street from 'ino and not far from Blue Ribbon, making Bedford Street one of my favorite stretches in all of New York)

I'm missing things, I'm sure.  I don't have a go-to Chinese restaurant because I don't love Chinese food, and I don't have a go-to Mexican restaurant because I haven't found one yet.  My wandering-around-hungry go-to spot is often the nearest Amy's Bread location, where I will often scarf the sourdough chocolate twists, but I still feel as if I'm missing some of my obvious regular spots.  We'll leave this open-ended for now...but what are some of yours?

The Red Hook Ballfields

For several years now, I've been meaning to make it to the Red Hook Ballfields during summer.  I've heard about the amazing Latin food and the arepas ladies and the mangos-on-a-stick, but up until now, I've never been -- although last summer I tried to find the food stalls, ending up by mistake west of the ball fields and in the vicinity of the then-new Fairway grocery store.

But today!  Today, we finally went! 

It is SO worth the trek to Red Hook - the food is both amazing and dirt cheap, but the crowd makes the experience even more fun.  Soccer and softball fields abut one another and at the eastern edge of the parks, in a dirt lot, there is a wide L of family-run food stalls selling fantastic Guatemalan, Mexican, Equadorian, El Salvadoran and Honduran fare, and lined up at all the stalls are a crazy, noisy mix of yuppies and hipsters and foodies and a huge population of Hispanic people cheering the soccer teams, and kids - tons and tons of kids! - and everyone is eating tacos and papusas and taquitos and arepas on greasy paper plates and drinking aqua fresca and looking for spare napkins.  There were maybe 15 different stalls and a motley assortment of picnic and folding tables set out, but Kevin and I ended up sitting on the grass once we'd purchased our heaping steak tacos from the stand with the longest line (I figured someone had to know something, and picked the stall that looked the most popular). 

While we waited in the one line, Kevin explored a stand a few yards east and came back with amazing taquito-type things: fresh tortillas (as in, a woman was flattening the dough, throwing it on to the grill, and then setting aside once charred) wrapped around chicken and fried, then heaped with pickled onions and cabbage, salsa and some quesa fresca.  As I tried to stymie the flow of vinegar and taco sauce from my chin, I spied a father wheeling his daughter past in a Maclaren stroller, a Balducci's canvas bag slung from one handle.  On my other side, a non-stop chatter of Spanish.

We filled up before being able to get any of the grilled corn or the mangos-on-sticks (a whole mango, peeled and roughly scored, on a skewer, squirted with lime juice and doused with chili powder), but did manage to down 3 aqua frescas - two lime and one watermelon.  All in all, for the three drinks, two taquitos and two tacos, we were out maybe - maybe - $15.

It's a big ol' party down at the Red Hook Ballfields, and I suggest anyone looking for authentic Latin food and a really good time check it out.  A word to the wise:  this is a field trip for your foodie friends, not your in-laws from Ohio.  The ball fields are... how do you say, surrounded by housing projects.  Red Hook is still rather...gritty...so be forewarned that it's a hike to the nearest subway station, and that there are no Starbucks in sight.

The food stalls at the Red Hook Ballfields are open on Saturdays and Sundays during the summer, from noonish to about 5pm.  They only accept cash, and I'd bring my own wet-naps next time!  To get there, take the F to Smith and 9th St, cross under the BQE and head for Bay Street - the food stalls are at Clinton and Bay.

(Editor's note -- I had pics of the actual, you know...FOOD, but apparently the Macro setting and bright afternoon sun did not agree with one another, and the photos were just blinding white blobs, with some lettuce on the permiter.  Oops.)

Cobblestone Foods

A million years ago, Tuller opened on Court Street and all the foodies in the neighborhood went OOH and AHH and jumped at the chance to buy artisinal cheese on their way home from the F Train.  And for a while, I was one of them.  When Tuller first opened the sales staff was great - knowledgeable, fun, friendly, quirky, and really, really into cheese.  Overtime the awesome people moved on to bigger and better things, and the rules of the shop changed a bit.  Prices started going up and up and up and the cheese guys had a tendency to be a little...condescending, if you don't mind my saying.  I don't mean to speak ill of the shuttered, but in the past year or so I had moved my cheese business elsewhere - to Sahadi's for cheap favorites and to Stinky Bklyn for all the rest (and very occasionally, Bierkraft or Blue Apron, if I was in their 'hood.)

So when Tuller closed and Cobblestone Foods opened in its place, I was dubious.  I had friends who'd explored the possibility of buying the former Tuller (lease and equipment) and knowing the price, I doubted the ability of any newcomer to do anything meaningfully different than Tuller.  To boot, Cobblestone Foods opened to the kind of local grass roots protest that feels almost cliche in Brownstone Brooklyn: neighbors were upset about the air conditioning unit, and I can't remember if it was an exhaust situation or a noise situation, but regardless, there were fliers posted all over Cobble Hill.

I stayed away, out of loyalty to Stinky Bklyn and out of residual frustration with the prices at Tuller.

But eventually, I needed good bread, and it is shockingly hard to find GOOD bread in my neighborhood, so I went into Cobblestone for bread.  Then I started exploring their prepared foods, and sampled the panko-crusted chicken strips (delicious!  light and crispy!) and the pulled-pork salad and the BBQ chicken salad and the ginger-glazed baby bok choy and the more I tried, the more I was impressed.  I had never been a fan of Tuller's prepared foods; I don't think enough was sold for the food to turn quickly enough to guarantee freshness (although that might just be my impression) and the selections were sort of...soggy.  Cobblestone's deli items are much more interesting to me, and everything I've tried has been top notch.

I've even gone to their cheese case.  I've left highly satisfied.  I'm usually a browser who tends to pick up a few different cheeses and just ask for "whatever's new and good," but tonight I knew exactly what I wanted.  I asked for a sweet, grassy sheep's milk cheese, and left with a wedge of the DELICIOUS Brin d'Amour, which I cannot say enough good things about -- it sort of reminds me of Sally Jackson's cheeses, and if you know Sally Jackson cheese, you know how good her product is, and how fresh and herb-y and grassy and sweet her cheeses are.  This Brin d'Amour is fantastic, and as gross as this may sound, reminds me of how connected the diet of the animal is to the final dairy product.  Sheep that eat well make yummy cheese, in other words.

I've done a 180 on Cobblestone Foods, it seems.  I rolled my eyes when they opened with nary a change to the interior of their space, but in the past months I have been converted.  Anyone in need of last minute prepared fare, yummy cheese, 5 Boroughs ice cream or Donut Plant donuts should stop by Cobblestone Foods, located at 199 Court Street in Cobble Hill.  Really.

Fifth Ave Eats, Brooklyn

After approximately 25 hours in the car, we were beyond happy to return to Brooklyn, and after several days of snacking on rest stop fare, we were THRILLED to return to our Brooklyn restaurants. 

Sunday was warm and bright, and Kevin and I celebrated our return home with one of our favorite foodie walks - the stretch of Brooklyn's Fifth Avenue between 3rd Street and St. Marks.  We started our day with cappuccino and croissants from the little red delicatessen around the corner, then eventually peeled ourselves off the couch and walked east on Union Street to Fifth Avenue.  Contemplating our options, we landed at the bar at Stone Park Cafe, on the corner of Fifth and 3rd Street.  We both ordered a Six Pointe "Bengali" ale and scanned the brunch menu.  Kevin went with his usual - the burger, medium rare, with blue cheese, and I ordered the short rib hash with poached eggs and sourdough bread.

Heavenly.  The Stone Park burgers are consistently flavorful and tender, but neither of us had ordered the short rib hash before.  The short rib meat was crispy and salty, the hash browns were perfectly browned, and best of all, the portion was not the all-too-common Heap-Of-Brunch...I felt full but not stuffed, and there was just enough hash to accompany the two poached eggs, bite for bite.  While Stone Park can be crowded and service can feel rushed and cold, I am always happy with the food, so sitting at the bar and avoiding the long waits feels like the perfect solution.

We ambled north and ducked into another favorite, The Chocolate Room, for a wholly unnecessary dessert.  I will confess to not being a "chocolate" person, but if I am craving chocolate, I want plain, unadorned, high quality chocolate, which is exactly what The Chocolate Room provides.  If you've not visited it yet, I would suggest going after a light dinner and trying one (or some) of their dessert and wine pairings; it's a luxurious little spot with simple, delicious treats.  Yesterday I opted for a single scoop of bourbon vanilla ice cream with their house-made hot fudge that is (I'm pretty sure) nothing more (or less, I should say) than Valrhona chocolate and butter.  It is fantastic.  Kevin had his stand-by, the chocolate shake.

After that gluttony, we walked home and decided that maybe dinner was not going to happen, not tonight.

Gluttons for...er, Gluttony

We managed to hit a good number of our favorite spots this weekend and still have room for more; nothing was really new, but the perennial faves are always a joy to visit!

We had dinner on Friday night at The Good Fork; Kevin had a burger so good he immediately regretted sullying it with ketchup, and I had a tile fish special, served over cous cous with almonds and raisins, wilted spinach, and a tangy salsa verde.  We drank wines by the glass and started the evening with crab cakes and dumplings, ending it with a piece of Steve's Key Lime pie.  Delicious, well priced ($9.50 for THAT burger is a steal, especially considering the mound of light tempura-battered onion rings on the side!) and oh so cozy, The Good Fork gets better every time!

Saturday found us near Bedford Street, so we brunched at 'ino, one of my all time favorite NYC snacking spots.  I had the fennel, artichoke and tellagio panini - my favorite, as I can never get enough fennel - and wished it were a liiitttle later in the day so that I could have justified a glass of wine with my meal.   We sat at the crowded bar and chatted with the always-on-top-of-things bartender, and left happy and full.

We had dinner at Cube 63, our go-to neighborhood sushi restaurant; I had assorted sashimi and Kevin had some rolls, we split a bottle of sake and walked the three short blocks home to watch a movie, happy that our new apartment (yep, we are under contract!) is just as close to Cube as our current one.

Bocco Lupo has added brunch to their menu, and we stopped in on Sunday for their fantastic baked eggs -- sweet sausage, spinach, artichoke, ricotta and two eggs, baked in a little casserole and served with toasted Italian bread -- and a salad of frisee lettuce, pancetta and poached eggs.  The salad was slightly over dressed but otherwise perfectly hit the spot, especially alongside the much-more-filling baked eggs.  We were there around 12:30 and the place was not crowded at all, perhaps not what restaurant owners desire, but a nice change from Bocca's packed nights.

I had a "Brooklyn" themed book club meeting on Sunday night and am here to report that the rumors about Lucali's pizza, on Henry Street (between Carroll and 1st) are true -- there aren't regular hours and the owner is still getting used to his brick oven beehive, but the pizza is the real deal.  The crust is chewy, charred, crispy, thin - all at the same time - and the sauce is not too overwhelming.  There are several kinds of cheese, on the plain pie, including a light dusting of grana added after baking, and it is fantastic.  I am eager to try more, and will report back as soon as I can.  The pizza is purely for research, of course!

Total Wine Bar

My husband was recently reading an article that spoke of our need for a "third place," something that is neither home nor work but that belongs to us and rounds out our lives.  In college, a sociology professor lectured to my class on a similar theme, and pointed to the popularity of the show "Cheers" as an example -- audiences liked the show because it was comforting; the patrons of the bar had found their 'third place' and it made us feel good to watch a show about people belonging somewhere.

And it is in that vein that I am nominating Total Wine Bar as my official 'third place.'  This intimate, comfortable, chic wine bar is located at the north end of Park Slope's "restaurant row," on Fifth Avenue.  Just two doors up from another favorite of mine, The Chocolate Room, I first discovered Total Wine Bar on a tense Saturday afternoon, happily relaxing with a glass of rose while chatting with owner Adam Robertson and his friend and patrons (the two are indistinguishable). 

We returned this weekend, sitting down around 4:00 p.m. and eventually peeling ourselves away after 8:00 p.m. that evening.  In the meantime, we sampled wines and made friends and settled in, again chatting with the utterly charming owner and the equally beguiling cast of characters that dropped in for a glass of wine and a quick Hello. 

Wine and beers are carefully curated, and a reserve list is available, although spirits are not (nor were they missed -- Total is a wine bar, and wine is the lovingly-showcased main event).  I had two glasses of a toasty, dry Italian red wine from Puglia and then two rich, buttery glasses of Cava -- the wine list spans the globe and offers numerous varieties inlcuding some obscure grapes (a Slovenian white I sampled over the summer comes to mind, as does a chilled, sparkling red); Adam Robertson's descriptions are succinct and evocative -- he is happy to help patrons navigate the wine list but also allows for easy browsing and tasting without assistance. 

Cheeses and small plates are available; we tried a killer spinach and gruyere tart and I'm anxious to make my way through the cheese list (cheese are from Blue Apron Foods) on our next visit. 

The owner, a former musician, and his eclectic band of friends and neighbors contribute to the fantastic "Everybody Knows Your Name" vibe.  This savvy little gem is as comfortable as a friends' home and as chic as you'd expect from a bar that welcomes you with Rosemary Clooney on the iPod and wines described as "silky & supple, elegant & rich. hypnotic. satisfying." on the wine list.

Q&A with Sue Torres in Diner's Journal

Years ago, my good friend Jay was working at a then-new restaurant on 9th Avenue called Hell's Kitchen.  Our chef is AMAZING, he would tell me, and on many nights I sat in the deep, dim booths in back and gorged myself on Sue Torres' nouveau-Mexican cuisine.  It was where I learned 1) what Huitlacoche is, and 2) that I like it.  I ate duck in rich mole sauce, spicy empanadas filled with duck confit, sweet empanadas filled with caramelized banana, seared tuna on crisp tortilla chips, spice-rubbed pork loin.  I ate and ate and ate.

Jay has since moved on to new endeavors, and chef Sue Torres opened her own restaurant, Suenos, in 2003, on 17th Street in Chelsea.  I was happy to see that Frank Bruni sat down to talk with her this week.  Suenos is absolutely worth a visit, and beyond that, I am excited to see a young, female chef in the spotlight. 

Suenos is located at 311 W. 17th Street and accepts all major credit cards.

Sensational Sweets

My friend Sara is an incredibly talented pastry chef who has a custom dessert company called Sensational Sweets.  She and her partner turn out consistently beautiful and innovative desserts, customized to their clients menus and wishes.   Sensational Sweets has an elegant aesthetic but can also create unusual and playful desserts, never cloying or trite.

For my 30th Birthday, Sara made a tiered cake studded with her signature iced cookies -- her cookies are my personal favorite item, somewhere between a sugar cookie and a shortbread, and iced adorably.  Sensational Sweets is also known for their "Bites" -- bite-sized cheesecakes coated with chocolate.  The Bites make a perfect favor when packaged in vintage one-of-a-kind boxes or tins, or are striking when stacked in tiers at special events. 

Desserts are as elaborate or simple as the client wants -- brownies and tarts are simple, fresh, elegant; wedding cakes are made to order in whatever style and flavors desired.  Novelty cakes can be made in a variety of flavors -- this almond cake with raspberry filling was made for a friend's 30th birthday.

Sensational Sweets is based in DUMBO, Brooklyn and as Sara likes to say, "If it can be imagined,
Sensational Sweets can bring it to luscious life. "