funkymonkey's Profile
sousa/puerto plata - dominican republic
i second the place on cabarete beach called Dom Alfredo Papi (or something like that.) the shrimp are great.
we also really enjoyed the mofongo at mofongo king on sosua beach. absolutely delicious.
the food at casa veintiuno is worth checking out. the proprietor there is wonderful.
there's an indian restaurant called blue moon that's supposed to be amazing. call for a reservation, we couldn't get in.
morua mai (spelling?) was pretty good too.
all in all, it's not really a foodie destination, but there is definitely some decent grub!
have a great trip!
Patronizing restaurant language from NYT - what's your experience
my big patronizing pet peeve is when waiters or waitresses ask: "have you dined with us before? are you familiar with our menu" or "would you like me to explain how our menu works?" i just hate that. it's a menu, a list of food. give me three minutes to look at it and i'll be familiar with it. if i can't figure it out, i probably shouldn't be eating in a public place.
funkymonkey
thebestbite.blogspot.com
Toloache ....last minute delight
i'm glad to hear there are others digging this place. i went for lunch one day and for dinner another and had really delicious experiences both times. the only thing i didn't love was the tortilla soup, which tasted like a big bowl of hot salsa (although this may just have been a problem on my part because of expectations; it was thick and tomato-y and i was expecting a chicken stock based soup.) i loved their trio of guacs, the tacos, and the tamales.
funkymonkey
thebestbite.blogspot.com
Idea
i think it's really smart and totally worth your time. start posting them on the web, before you know it, you'll drum up an audience, and you'll be rubbing elbows with alton brown before you can say "yumm-o".
funkymonkey
thebestbite.blogspot.com
Eggplant side dishes?
are you looking for this as a side dish to the squash lasagna? if not, there's a brilliant recipe from "Indian Home Cooking" for smokey eggplant with yogurt and cilantro. it's served cold and it's fantastically delicious and not terribly difficult to make: roast an eggplant, peel the skin off, saute an onion and some Indian spices, and toss that with the eggplant, some yogurt, and cilantro. i posted the recipe on my blog a couple of months ago, if you don't have the book. i *highly* recommend it. even my anti-aubergine husband was very pro-this one.
funkymonkey
thebestbite.blogspot.com
Has anyone made ricotta?
sounds good to me! especially if we can include some kind of cured pork product on the menu...
xoxo!
Has anyone made ricotta?
ever since i saw one of the chefs make ricotta on "the next iron chef", i've wanted to give it a try. it doesn't seem that difficult. surprisingly, not a single one of my hundreds of cookbooks includes a recipe, but i found this and will probably try it:
http://italianfood.about.com/library/rec/blr0949.htm
but first, i wanted to see if anyone here has made it or has a recipe or a technique to recommend. thanks!
funkymonkey
thebestbite.blogspot.com
Baking Chocolate Taste Test
it was the 99% cacao unsweetened.
maybe i should save my pennies on the SB unless I'm making truffles or ganache.
Baking Chocolate Taste Test
i usually bake with Scharffen Berger chocolate. i decided to do a little face off, let Scharffen Berger go mano a mano with the standard grocery store Baker's chocolate, just to see if all those extra bucks i'm plunging into chocolate are worth it. if i did a blind taste test, would i be able to tell the difference? would anyone else?
so, yesterday, i used the same brownie recipe (Baker's one-bowl brownies) and made two batches, one with Scharffen Berger and one with Baker's. it's a pretty good recipe, super fudgy, which made it a bit messy and difficult to cut attractively (although that could just be the fact that I'm completely lacking in food presentation skills.)
a friend gave me the blind taste test, taking extra care that I didn't peek. i tasted one brownie. i cleansed the palate (poland spring). i tasted the other brownie. they were shockingly close. but i tried them both again and i decided one had fruitier and caramell-ier notes than the other. it turned out to be the scharffen berger. i'm not sure the difference was so pronounced that i'd turn my nose up at a Baker's brownie, but the scharffen berger won the first round.
for the second round, i did a random Pepsi-Challenge-ish taste test with 15 more-than-happy-to-oblige coworkers. i was amazed, but 11 of the 15 heartily preferred the Baker's. some said it was sweeter, some said it was less sweet (odd, since i used unsweetened chocolate and 2 cups of sugar in both recipes.)
now, i'm wondering if i should be shelling out the extra shekels for the scharffen berger. if most people prefer the bakers, or don't even care, is it worth it? i mean, if we had some random chowhound potluck and i was bringing something chocolate, there's no contest which i'd use. but for the masses, i'm disappointed to report that i think the grocery store options would suffice.
i'm also wondering, am i all snooty about the baker's chocolate just because i'm predisposed to be, as a chowhound? do i like what i like because i know i'm supposed to like it? or because i really like it?
funkymonkey
thebestbite.blogspot.com
All PIE Menu: a Fantasy, but Can it Become a Reality?
have you made this? it's been in my epicurious recipe box for absolute ages, and i haven't gotten around to it yet. it sounds divine.
All PIE Menu: a Fantasy, but Can it Become a Reality?
i don't think it sounds crazy at all. it sounds like fun, actually! i think you might want to vary the type of crusts you use, so guests don't have crust overload by the end of the meal; maybe do a starter with a cornmeal or polenta crust, a main with a traditional crust, and a dessert with a graham cracker crust. i think you might want to ditch the crust on the salad; the parmesan crisps sound good, but kind of superflous and i don't think a pie-free side dish would be a bad thing.
also, consider things like shepherd's pie, cottage pie, and fish pie if you want to add more variety and get some taters in there.
funkymonkey
thebestbite.blogspot.com
Going Polynesian
i saw a recent episode of Anthony Bourdain's No Reservations, where he went to French Polynesia. Every stop he made along his tour, someone gave him a bowl of "poisson cru", which is like a polynesian ceviche. it looked wonderful: fresh raw fish (often tuna) tossed with raw vegetables (carrots and peppers, i think. maybe some white onion), lime juice and coconut milk. it looked absolutely fantastic; there's really nothing not to like there.
here's a link to the episode, but i bet you can either wing it or google recipes for "poisson cru":
http://travel.discovery.com/tv/bourdain/travel-guide/french-polynesia.html
funkymonkey
thebestbite.blogspot.com
Wedding vendors
you'll probably want some flowers, but i always thought doing individual cakes for each table would make for cool centerpieces. or even a nice platter with cupcakes on it, so each table can help themselves!
also, if you can handle doing the flowers yourself, you can save some money. i always loved the idea of using potted herbs as centerpieces, and then they can be favors as well.
funkymonkey
thebestbite.blogspot.com
BEST SAUCE WITH SAN MARZANO TOMATOS?
i'm a little partial to keeping it simple, when you start with great ingredients like that. my sauce of choice is marcella hazan's super-simple tomato with onion and butter sauce, from "essentials of italian cooking". i don't have the book with me, but here's the recipe from memory.
squish the tomatoes in your hands to break them up. pour the tomatoes and all their juice into a saucepan. cut an onion in half and plunk it in with the tomatoes. add 5 Tbsp. unsalted butter. simmer for 45 minutes. discard the onion and serve sauce, making sure the melted butter is stirred into it.
that is some seriously good, greater-than-the-sum-of-its-parts eating. i know it seems weird to chuck the onion, but over the course of the 45 minutes, the flavor infuses into the tomatoes and the butter lends a wonderful silkiness. yum yum yum.
funkymonkey
thebestbite.blogspot.com
2nd Date: W. Vill for $75
i much prefer extra virgin to da andrea, if you're thinking italian. and centro vinoteca has had some nice write-ups, although i haven't been there yet.
if you're willing to go somewhere that doesn't accept reservations, pearl oyster bar is excellent and so is blue ribbon bakery. and if you're willing to go somewhere that doesn't accept reservations that you'd have to get to relatively early, but has amazing grub, there's always the spotted pig.
two other new joints worth scouting are Los Dados and Kingswood.
good luck w/ the 2nd date! have fun!
funkymonkey
thebestbite.blogspot.com
Kedgeree
oooh, i love kedgeree! whenever we go visit friends in the UK, i insist upon them making it. they use a jamie oliver recipe that uses cilantro, instead of parsley, and they serve it with mango chutney. wonderfully, delicious, addictive stuff!
i can never find smoked haddock here, though. not that i've done an extensive search, but it doesn't seem to be readily available in new york. bat guano, can you find it where you are?
funkymonkey
thebestbite.blogspot.com
Restaurants you love that are rarely mentioned on Chowhound
i don't see Snack or Snack Taverna mentioned too often and i've really enjoyed both of them. also, i think Tree is a great, little place on 1st avenue.
Lost in Translation--Risotto al Gorgonzola
nah, i'm sure they're just like anchovies. you don't even taste 'em, but they add a certain depth, an umami, if you will, to the dish. before you know it, you're picking sparkly wings out of your teeth and sprinkling fairy dust on your froot loops.
Favorite Catering Company
Abigail Kirsch did our wedding three years ago and it was a wonderful, chow-worthy event. they did a stellar job with both the food and the presentation and my whole food-snobby self couldn't have been happier! even the wedding cake was exceptional!
funkymonkey
thebestbite.blogspot.com
Lost in Translation--Risotto al Gorgonzola
well how else would one expect to eat fairies? with butter and sour cream?!
1st Date: Drinks + Appetizers nr. Astor Place
what about five points? you can sit at the bar or at one of the tables near the front for wine or cocktails and nibbles. it's on great jones, between lafayette and the bowery.
funkymonkey
thebestbite.blogspot.com
Cacio e Pepe - recent experiences?
we've had a couple of very nice meals there. service can be a little scattered, but not too bad. and the pastas are pretty damn tasty.
funkymonkey
thebestbite.blogspot.com
Classy Bachelorette Dinner?
if you want to stick with the tapas idea, Alta on 10th street is very good. it's a lot bigger than tia pol, and i've seen large groups there.
bar stuzzichini has very good food and it's a large space, so they fit the bill. and since they do sort of an italian tapas thing, those looking to pinch their shekels should have no problem.
i can't think of an affordable place with a private room, though. good luck!
funkymonkey
thebestbite.blogspot.com
Anyone been to Toloache?
i work right near there, so a couple of friends and i went for lunch last week and really enjoyed it. we started with the chips and their classic guac; the chips were warm, which i loved, and the guac was fresh and appropriately spicy, with just the right mix of chunks of avocado and mashed avocado.
i had the huitlacoche quesadilla, which i'd definitely recommend. nice and cheesy, but not overly so. it comes with rice and beans and it was all very filling, but the portions weren't SAR (standard american ridiculous), so i didn't feel like a blimp for joining the CPC (clean plate club). my friends both had tacos, one had shrimp and the other had chicken, and they both loved them.
the atmosphere is a little more upscale than the average lunch calls for, but i'd definitely go back.
funkymonkey
thebestbite.blogspot.com
dessert for 8-10
i know that the cocoa bar, a place in brooklyn, just opened a place on the lower east side. plus, they serve cocktails and wine. i think it's more casual than chikalicious, p*ng, or kyotofu, but it's pretty chocolatey and delicious!
funkymonkey
thebestbite.blogspot.com
Would you eat this shepherd's pie?
While a friend was staying with us for a few days last week, he very sweetly made a shepherd's pie for dinner. it was delicious hot out of the oven, but he made enough to feed an elite squadron of famished military professionals. we nibbled on the leftovers for a day or two after that, but the remainder has been sitting in the fridge for exactly a week. do you think the leftovers are still good to eat? or should i chuck it?
What are your favorite appetizers to serve?
quite a few people have mentioned stuffed mushrooms, which are definitely at the top of my list. i always get *raves* over this recipe. i usually stuff criminis and there's enough stuffing for WAY more than 8 mushrooms; i can usually get about two dozen stuffed off of this. the filling is excellent, but doesn't require nearly as much oil as stated inthe recipe, 2 Tbsp. is more than enough.
http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/104927
my second fave hors d'oeuvre is bacon wrapped dates. i stuff an almond into a pitted date. wrap with half a slice of bacon and seal with a toothpick. bake at 450-degrees for 5 minutes; flip with tongs and bake another 5 mins more or until crispy. they're also great stuffed with blue cheese (as someone else recommended). they're little flavor-filled bombshells.
funkymonkey
thebestbite.blogspot.com
Am I the only one who peeks at the online menu prior to visiting a restaurant?
are you kidding me? this is one of my all-time favorite hobbies. having access to menus only amps up my anticipation at eating at a place, and i really enjoy the anticipation. plus, i did weight watcher's for a while, so i always wanted to be able to go into a place with a game plan. also, i like to nose around and see what specific things on restaurant menus are recommended (by chowhounds and others).
you are not alone, my friend.
funkymonkey
thebestbite.blogspot.com
Park Slope Delivery Favorites
i second that Tofu on 7th recommendation. The food isn't brilliant, but it's a lot less greasy than most other chinese places in the area. And, despite the name, it's not a vegetarian place.
funkymonkey
thebestbite.blogspot.com
Us v. the vegetables
i have exactly the same problem. exactly. i wrote a post on my blog earlier this summer called "the asparagus is stressing me out", because i go overboard at the farmer's market, i only have my husband and myself to feed, and i have a more-than-full time job which means i don't often get home in time to cook during the week.
i've been baking, both savory and sweet, muffins and breads the overabundance of gorgeous zucchini. i've also been making tomato risotto and tomato salads like crazy, since i can't resist those fat, juicy heirlooms and buy them by the boatload. i suppose you can make soup and stews, which are freezable, but i love the season's bounty fresh fresh fresh. i recently made a fantastic eggplant salad, it was almost like an indian version of babaghanoush, from Suvir Saran's "Indian Home Cooking." my suggestion is to have an impromptu dinner party!
good luck!
funkymonkey
http://thebestbite.blogspot.com/
