Thursday, February 28, 2013
UPyourS! AGAIN
It's 6:25 p.m. Do you know where my package is? Yes...once again. I different company is delivering frozen food, overnight, to arrive at "the end of the day". So, will I get it or will they haul it back to Maspeth and let it go bad? Hint....I don't expect to be staying home all day tomorrow. Call into Maspeth. Let's see how it goes with UPyourS! Got it at about 7:45 p.m.
Monday, February 25, 2013
BEATRICE MUNGAI RUGGERI AKA BICE
Beatrice Mungai Ruggeri (BiCE to her family and friends) opened her first restaurant in Milan in1926. In the years which followed, BiCE along with her brothers and sisters developed what became the pinnacle of Tuscan style cuisine in Milan. When her sons Remo and Roberto started to work in the Milan restaurant, they changed the typical trattoria into an International restaurant, and thus began a new era for the Ruggeri family’s restaurant concept. Bice New York, located at 7 East 54th Street, opened in 1987.
It
is an atmosphere of spacious white cloth tables, lots of wood and Italian
artwork. You enter into the bar and
lounge area that lends itself to partying, but on an upscale level.
Silverio Chavez runs the kitchen here featuring Northern Italian cuisine. Chef di cuisine Eric Rucinski was on hand the evening that I sampled much of their signature dishes starting with the Insalata Gloriosa, a salad of romaine lettuce, asparagus, hearts of palm, avocado, corn, tomatoes and olives tossed with a tangy anchovy dressing. I think that us Americans have gotten used to eating salad as an appetizer vs the Italians who have it after a meal. Delicious combination on this one.
Pound out some fresh raw beef tenderloin so that it looks as if it was sliced and call it Carpaccio. Not only is it served with your typical thin slices of parmesan cheese, the rest of it consisting of hearts of palm and arugula, is served in a basket made of parmesan cheese along with a lemon dressing.
Here is what Eric tells me about the
Burrata. “Burrata translates to buttered in English. It is a soft centered
cream based cows milk cheese made from mozzarella, cream, sugar and butter. The
special we were running that night was served on top of an arugula salad
dressed with lemon and olive oil, accompanied by fresh roasted peppers, cherry
tomatoes and garnished with 50 year old balsamic. I toss the burrata with an
extra virgin olive oil, salt and pepper in order to enhance the sweet cream
flavor of the cheese.”
I
love pasta that is made on the premises.
There were a few that I sampled. One was the Ravioli Della Massaia Con
Salsa Di Furnghi, veal and spinach ravioli with champion mushroom sauce. Another one was the Casoncelli Alla
Bergamasca con Sugo Di Vitello, Tartufo Nero E Rosmarino…in other words….Veal
and Parma ham ravioli with black truffle, with a rosemary veal sauce.
Next
was another pasta recommended by Eric who says: “Tagliolini Con Aragosta is one of Bice’s signature
dishes. It consists of chunky lobster morsels, a mix of Chanterelle, Portobello
& Shitake mushrooms, for the sauce a blend of lobster bisque & tomato
sauce reduce to a 1/3 to get that rich flavor”.
And flavor is certainly had!
It is not
unusual for an Italian or Mediterranean restaurant to serve “Branzino”, a white
and meaty textured fish. Some
restaurants of old have brought the actual dead fish to your table to
inspect. Most have the time to serve it
whole and either filet it for you at your table of just leave it up to you to
dig in. Bich prefers to do this: Spray a 1/2 to
1/4 inch thick plank of food ready cedar wood with cooking pan spray, add
seasoned fish and cherry tomatoes and place in a 400 degree preheated oven. Cook fish until an internal
temperature of 140 degrees is achieved, or the fish becomes opaque and flakes
easily.
Meanwhile,
add shallots to a hot sauté pan with olive oil and sauté until translucent.
Add
brussel sprouts, sundried tomatoes and garlic. Sauté until hot throughout and
colors have become bright and vibrant; add salt and pepper to taste. Place
vegetables on the bottom of serving dish. Remove fish from oven, and let rest
for 5 minutes. Place cherry tomatoes in a bowl, and dress with herbs, truffle
oil, salt and pepper. Layer branzino on top of vegetables, and garnish with tomato
and herbs.”
One other delicious dish was the Osso Bucco. I will quote Eric on this. "It's one of the oldest, and most traditional dishes Bice serves. It's roots can be traced back to the 19th century. For some time, farmers were responsible for it's popularity, because of it's toughness, it was not a commonly sold cut of veal. Bice adheres to the traditional standard of the dish, and serves it with Milan styled risotto and gremolata. The braising liquid is of course, a secret. Although you can find hints of cinnamon, fresh herb, and wine."
Here is a photo of Eric, Manager Angelo Alban, and my ever smiling waiter, John Djombalic as Eric serves the Osso Bucco.
Dessert is
always a must for me. With much to
choose from I opted for the Italian Cheesecake served with fresh berries and
vanilla ice cream. I was also able to
taste a few of their other ice cream flavors since they were made at the restaurant. Hazelnut, chocolate and a raspberry sorbet.
Only one
drawback to Bice is that although they are “handicapped accessible”, there is a
long flight of stairs and no option for the restrooms. I use a cane and when I asked they did not
mention an option of sending me “next door”, which is what they do for those
who can’t handle the stairs. Odd way for
me to get some exercise after a meal.
Otherwise, I highly recommend dining here.
Sunday, February 24, 2013
PROVIDENCE PROVIDES PLENTY
Megabus was having a promotion to get people to travel during the cold winter months. The cost? $0 and both ways, plus a 50 cent fee. I looked at the list of where I could go from New York without a really long ride and to a place I’ve never been. Providence, Rhode Island, about would take about four hours. Perfect and booked it way in advance. I would be leaving New York at 7 a.m. Oy!
It was extremely cold when I arrived at the Megabus
area located on 34th Street between 11th and 12th
Avenue and just across the street from the Jacob Javits Center...but not
accessible. In fact there were several
areas set up with signs to various destinations and no shelter from the extreme
cold.
Having never taken Megabus I did not know what to
expect. The seats are high, not
leatherish and more like an airplane seat.
I think the seat reclined further back than many I’ve been on the airlines. Seat belts, although the driver never
acknowledged that they were there. A
few tables for people to put their laptops.
Free wi-fi and outlets to plug your gear. I’m not sure but the ride felt more like it
was electric then gas.
Arriving in Providence I checked into the Hotel
Providence, located in the downtown area at 139 Mathewson Street. Artsy hotel…bookwise. My room was called the Herman Melville
Suite. Very friendly looking lobby and
staff as well. Jim, the bellcap, always
had a smile and most likely knew the secrets of the hotel and best sights and
places to dine. I never got to eat at
the restaurant in the hotel as I was seeking some special ones for my
research.
I took a quick tour of the downtown area and a few
others before it was time for lunch at Hemenway’s, located in the downtown area
at 121 S Main Street. Seafood is the
cuisine of which the menu seemed to emphasize what I term as the “non-kosher
fish”. That’s okay with me as I was in
the mood to sample some local oysters.
I had: Onset, from Onset Ma, the Cape; Walrus and Carpenter from
Charleston, RI; Powder Point from Duxbury, MA; and a non-local called Beau
Soleil from Nova Scotia, CA. They were all delicious!
Steve Long, the Executive Chef, brought out an amuse bouche. It was a sauteed scallop with pea greens along with a ragu of root vegetables with pancetta. Wow, did that whet my appetite. That would certainly make for a fabulous entree!
Next was the Tuna Tartare, a wasabi ginger and soy-spiced tuna with wakame salad and lotus chips. Normally, I would not order a burger. What a smart idea of making one using lobster and crab! It was served with lettuce and tomato on a toasted Portuguese sweet roll. Reminded me of P’Town. What stood out about Hemenway's is that the seafood is local. www.hemenwaysrestaurant.com
Steve Long, the Executive Chef, brought out an amuse bouche. It was a sauteed scallop with pea greens along with a ragu of root vegetables with pancetta. Wow, did that whet my appetite. That would certainly make for a fabulous entree!
Next was the Tuna Tartare, a wasabi ginger and soy-spiced tuna with wakame salad and lotus chips. Normally, I would not order a burger. What a smart idea of making one using lobster and crab! It was served with lettuce and tomato on a toasted Portuguese sweet roll. Reminded me of P’Town. What stood out about Hemenway's is that the seafood is local. www.hemenwaysrestaurant.com
I cannot resist going to a zoo. I just love animals and wish that I could pet
each one. Off to the Roger Williams
Park Zoo. The zoo is located in a 40-acre
park and houses over 100 species of rare and some fascinating animals. I was able to get someone from their
marketing department to take me around in a golf cart. The best part was when I was able to pet a
baby wallaby. It was so cute. I don't think that the red eye is the result
of the camera. www.rogerwilliamsparkzoo.org
When it comes to art, the Museum of Art Rhode Island
School of Design (referred to as “Ris-D”) is the place to go and in the
downtown area. I viewed a gallery with
your typical old flavor paintings as well as sculptures and designs by
students, alumni both conservative and the unusual. www.risdmuseum.org
Providence is well-known for food and the location
of the Culinary Arts Institute. They do
not have a restaurant as visitors will have to settle for the Culinary Arts
Museum at Johnson and Wales University outside of the downtown area. There is a huge emphasis on the Diner and
instruments used for cooking as well as two areas just for kids. Diners are one of the major exhibits. www.culinary.org
I checked out a huge Italian market called Costantino’s
Venda Ravioli, located on part of the same strip known as Depasquale Plaza. The store is like a mini-Italy unto itself. Upon entering you see an island of food where
you can purchase cheese, cooked meats, olives, sandwiches, entrees, and it goes
on. Take it to go or dine at the side café.
The 35 or so varieties of ravioli are made across
the street that houses equipment imported from Italy and using No1. Duram
Semolina. Take advantage of it being a grocery store with authentic Italian
imported foods. You’ll most likely find
some of the best olive oils and vinegars.
I had a lesson on reading labels. Nutella, for instance. If you buy it
in a plastic jar, it is not Italian. In
fact, the imported ilk does not contain palm oil. Do I spread it on bread? Hell, no! I take spoonfuls from the jar…why waste the
calories? www.vendaravioli.com
There’s nothing like the smell of baking, especially
at the nearly 100-year-old Scialo Brothers Bakery (www.scialobakery.com).
The pastries, made the old fashioned way and passed on to generations, tasted
more like the ones I have had when I was in Naples, Italy. I sample Sfogliatella, a cannoli, and a slice of cassata cake, which has a combo of cannoli cream inside and almond paste as the topping.
There were two shows happening at the Convention Center, one of which was the Spring Flower and Garden Show. The other was a rather small Food and Wine Tasting. It was there that I discovered Coffee Syrup. I found out that it is a Rhode Island tradition to have coffee milk the way we would have chocolate milk. This particular brand called Daves Coffee offers a coffee syrup that does not contain corn syrup as well as one that adds Madagascar Vanilla. I have been experimenting with it and using it in cooking. www.davescoffee.com
