hungryabbey's Profile
Top Food Experiences in Israel
Thank you so much for this tip. I think I am going ot end up at Akko afterall.
Dinner close to Thompson hotel (NOT scarpetta)
yah not a fan of Lee.. not sure Alimento is "special" enough...
Dinner close to Thompson hotel (NOT scarpetta)
Hm.. I have been to beast but love it, so thats a possibility.
Dinner close to Thompson hotel (NOT scarpetta)
Im looking for a restaurant within walking distance of the Thompson Hotel for a special occasion dinner. Any type of cuisine, price doesn't matter, I would like a nice atmosphere, preferably somewhere I haven't been before (not Buca, and NOT Scarpetta, ha). Any ideas? I have never been to Crush... is it still good?
Top Food Experiences in Israel
Thank you so much. So in Caesarea.. is that Helena restaurant on the top of the hill with a view? My Israeli friends all told me i need to eat somewhere in Caesarea with a good view.. so I just want to make sure. Any other suggestions would be great too.
Top Food Experiences in Israel
Hi everyone, I am planning my first trip to Israel to celebrate me completing my conversion to Judaism, so this is a pretty big deal for me. At this point, I know which cities we will be staying in/visiting, and would like some advice on the top restaurant/food experiences in these cities, or close by for day trips. Money is no object, I am open to both inexpensive casual and high end options. Here is our tentative list:
Tel Aviv
Haifa
Netanya
Tzfed
Caesaria (for dinner specifically)
Sea of Galilee
Nazareth
Yizreel Valley
Tiberias
Beit Shean
Golan Heights (any good vineyards/wineries up this area that do tours?)
Negev
Jerusalem
Dead Sea
Thank you so much in advance for any advice you can give. I am so looking forward to my visit!!
You best fried chicken
Unfortunately I don't have time but I'm not too concerned as I'm a fairly intuitive cook. plus I think Ive read enough recipes now and have watched a lot of youtube videos, I'm more than prepared ha. I always try new recipes for events, and am pretty much always successful. It's just my family anyways, and I'm the only one in the family who cooks, so I'm sure it will work out just fine.
Candied sweet potatoes
sounds awesome. Reminds me of how I make baked beans (with root beer as my sweetener of choice).
You best fried chicken
So, how would you suggest I execute this..
I have 8 people to make chicken for, so I will surely be doubling etc recipes.. I can do no more than 2 pots at once.
at the same time I will have something in the oven at 400 F...
I will want everything done at the same time obviously..
can I finish in the oven? Can I hold it outside the oven until its all almost done and then pop whatever I had to do first into the oven for 5-7 min to rewarm at 400 F?
How many pieces can I fry at once if I were to do the deep fry?
Any recommendations on execution would be great.
You best fried chicken
Okay, and if I deep fry in a dutch oven, most recipes I see show it will take me less time right? Can more pieces fit in the pot if I deep fry?
You best fried chicken
So I think Im going to stick with pan-fry.. I think I want to use this recipe http://allrecipes.com/recipe/fried-chicken-with-creamy-gravy/ (lots of good reviews) but I was thinking of double dredging.. is there any disadvantage do this?
Also, how many pieces of chicken do you think I can fit per pot? and how long do you think they will take? im trying to time a whole meal so its important i have a sense of when these will be completed.
Table 17...recent experiences?
We had a similar experience there in Jan (I think it was). Very cold, very slow service. They werent accomodating at all (we had a friend with us who keeps gluten free for health reasons (celiac) and we did the pre fix and asked if she could just have a scoop of ice cream or something as none of the dessert options were GF and she said no.
Not to mention that the food was very mediocre. I was embarrassed for choosing the place for my group.
Need help with Yorkville Dinner Recommendation
Went for a casual dinner on saturday. The decor in there is similar to the Q + B. Its very British, and very comfy, with a nice big fireplace that I know I am going to be all over come fall. The servers were all very cute, and attentive, and filled out water glasses consistently.
They have a great drink menu, and I wanted something sweet, so I had a blackberry mojito which was really delicious. The SO went with the Whisky Sour, which they did really well as well with lots of frothy egg whites (the one he ordered on Friday at Scarpetta had none).
We tried:
Melted Brie, Fennel and Honey on Toast- The brie was a stronger one, so it could have used a bit more honey to balance it out. But in general, I loved this, and it was a great snack for any time of day.
Squab and Rhubarb-Pippall Chutney- served with these little hickory sticks-type crisps, which made this dish a really nice balance of salty and sweet.
Fish and Chips- Really nice light batter and perfectly cooked fish, but the star of the dinner was no doubt the chips. We both agreed that these were some of the best fries we've tasted in a long time. They reminded me of the chip truck we visit on our way up to the cottage, which is always an awesome food memory to channel. they were super crispy outside, yet really fluffy and moist inside. Really, it doesn't get much better than this.
Cheddar and Bacon Burger and Chips- I'm not one to order a burger at a restaurant, but I was so glad that I did because this one was really good. Not a huge burger, but perfectly sized if you want to thoroughly enjoy those fries. I appreciated that they will cook them to the diners' requested temperature, so I went with medium (but would try medium rare next time). Even at medium, it was incredibly juicy and flavourful with just the right amount of fat. The cheese added a nice sharp bite, and the bun (while maybe a wee bit small for the patty) was buttery and delicious. My only complaint would be that the thick-cut bacon on top could have been cooked a little bit more for me (I actually don't like crispy bacon, but because it was so thickly cut, a lot of the fat had not yet rendered so it was a bit chewy).
Crunchy Walnut Maple Tart and Vanilla Bean Ice Cream- So I went with the sticky toffee pudding last time at the Q + B, which I adored (its favourite dessert, so I am a bit of a STP expert). However, I do try not to re-order (and thus, re-review) the same dishes, so I opted for the walnut maple tart. While not as good as the STP, it was really a delicious dish. The tart shell itself was flaky and perfectly sweetened (and I usually don't like pie/tart crust), and I loved the intense crunch that came from the caramelized walnuts on top. I could have used a bit more chewy-gooey factor from the filling (mmm like my favourite butter tarts from Flaky Tart), but you know, I'm not going to be too picky.
Chocolate Ice Cream- A very rich, dark chocolate flavour with a creamy consistency. I was a bit disappointed that the Oxley didn't have all of the cool ice cream flavours offered at the Q + B (they only had vanilla, chocolate and blue cheese cherry), but maybe they will work those in slowly.
So for 3 cocktails, 2 apps, 2 mains and 2 desserts, the bill was $130 including tax and tip. Pretty damn good for the amount of food we got. This is definitely our new choice for drinking and eating casually in the hood. Patio in the summer, fireplace in the winter. Pics on the blog (accessed from the site).
www.abbeyskitchen.com
Finger lickin' good? [moved from General topics]
Can you explain why? Is it a turn off when the woman does it?
Scarpetta at the Thompson Hotel
So heres a report back:
First of all, the room is very nice. Dimly lit, sexy, with a large wine rack built into the wall. Service was very friendly and accommodating, and there was very a moment when water glasses were left empty. There were 6 of us and I didnt try what most people ate, but Ill comment on what I tasted:
Creamy Polenta: Fricassee of Truffled Mushrooms- The polenta itself was creamy, cheesy (I even noticed a bit of stringy cheese pull when I brought the spoon to my mouth), and perfectly seasoned. The mushrooms were cooked perfectly with the perfect amount of truffle flavour.
Burrata: Heirloom Beets, Toasted Pumpkin Seeds & Aged Balsamic- I think when you put a dish together that is so classic (balsamic, beets and buffalo cheese), you really need to nail it on the execution, and this kind of fell short. I found the burrata to be a little dry, and not as creamy as I like it, and the beets, while sweet, were a bit underseasoned.
Duck and Foie Gras Ravioli: Marsala Reduction- This was a pretty solid dish. The pasta was perfectly cooked, and the filling had a really delicious salty/savoury flavour that was off-set beautifully by the sweetness of the marsala. I was a little put off by the texture of the filling, however, because the foie gave this super smooth buttery consistency that seemed somewhat muddled by the grains of duck meat. While I do love both duck and foie (and thus, this dish seemed almost too perfect for me), I think I would have preferred maybe to have just one or the other. Spiced Duck Breast: Duck Sausage, Fregola, Bitter Greens & Currants- This again was very mediocre. The duck breast was a little tough (and I know from personal experience that this can be challenging), but I also found the fregola/greens/sausage accompaniment to look very sloppy. I dont think it needed the sausage thrown in the mix, and without it, I think the dish would have at least looked a little more refined.
Amedei Chocolate Cake: Burnt Orange-Caramel Gelato & Espresso Sauce- I'm not the best to judge a chocolate cake because I don't love it (and this one was super chocolately), but the texture was very nice. While I did feel that the gelato was smooth,creamy and light, I was a little disappointed that I couldn't really detect the "burnt"-ness of the caramel, nor the citrus notes.
Mango Ricotta Cannelloni: Brown Butter Walnut Cake & Lemongrass Syrup- I was hoping to order the Carmel Budino, but they had already sold out, so I opted for this one instead which turned out to probably be a much lighter option. The cannelloni were prepared using very thinly sliced ripe mango as the "pasta" and then filled with a supposed sweetened ricotta filling. I was definitely expecting more of a cannoli type texture in the filling, but what I got tasted more like whipped cream, which I found a little unsatisfying. I did love the walnut cake, it was dense, chewy and crunchy from the nuts and texturally, was a nice counterbalance to the delicate "pasta" and cream. As for the lemongrass, well, if it was there, I didn't see or taste it, but honestly, there was enough bright flavour from the mango to carry the whole dish, so it was okay with me.
So meal was approximately $150/head including tax and tip. Probably not the best bang for our buck in light of some of the amazing meals I've had in the city lately for much less AND the fact that we were eating pasta (probably the most inexpensive thing to make). Yes, there was foie and truffles thrown in the works, but it was pasta, none the less, and I eat foie/duck/truffles most weekends for less. Would we return for a meal on our worn? Probably not. But I would definitely not turn down an invite or hesitate to recommend it for a "safe", high end, solid experience.
www.abbeyskitchen.com
New Q! Stack BBQ
I'm glad that my rack of ribs seemed to just be a bad one (with little meat in comparison to yours)... I actually found that my mac and cheese was pretty cheesy with lots of nice "stringy" pulls, so again it might come down to consistency..They're pretty slammed for being so new, so i can imagine it will take some time to iron out the kinks.. but the doughnuts alone are kind of worth going for me lol
www.abbeyskitchen.com
Spreading more Weezie's love...
I was there in March and was not wow'ed. I think the best things we ate were the mac and cheese (which wasnt my fav in the city) and the roasted cauliflower soup of the day. The lemon curd cheesecake was also good, but in general its pretty standard, good but uninspired fare.
www.abbeyskitchen.com
Finger lickin' good? [moved from General topics]
Aw, no no I kid and now i feel bad. He is wonderful, we all have our quirks. Dealing with his hygiene obsessions is definitely something i can deal with.
Candied sweet potatoes
I need an amazing recipe for candied sweet potatoes, something really addictive, sweet and sticky. Thanks in advance!
Finger lickin' good? [moved from General topics]
Ha, no its not okay in private either. He watches me like a hawk when he thinks my fingers may be "on their way in", and then I usually just get up at the table and go get a napkin. Overtime, I have learned not to come to the dinner table without a whole roll of paper towels. And oh, yes, this is a personality thing.. he is VERY specific about hygiene, and a little OCD about general cleanliness and tidiness (I also cant leave the house without him attacking me for an in-depth session with the lint roller).
Analysis Paralysis - Help me choose a restaurant: Nota Bene, Acadia, Campagnolo, Frank's Kitchen? Other?
really? any idea where he might be going?
www.abbeyskitchen.com
