Day One Grand Teton – Stop at Dornans for Breakfast

 The summer vacation before back to school was much needed and did not disappoint. My husband loves the mountains and has been raving about Yellowstone for almost as long as I have known him. He is also extremely nostalgic about all the travel done during his graduate school days, so I often listen and discount the rave reviews with a pinch of salt. However, my first glance of the Jackson Hole, WY,  landscape straight out the plane window, and I was mystified and awed by the magestic beauty of the Teton mountains.

When we travel, the choice of food destinations is usually left to me, but Anshul did insist on the first stop at Dornans.  This simple down to earth place for our first breakfast set the perfect mood for the trip. The restaurant is a family owned place actually going down several generations with the family is set within the Grand Teton National Park, in a converted chuckwagon. What I loved about the place was its lack of the typical commercialism that you might usually find with a place like this. I know, what can I say, as a jaded New Yorker, I find this surprising. It presented itself simply, without any fuss or frills.

The menu had the usual breakfast trappings with the food being cooked right in front of you. We picked good hearty menu options, in fact, ended up overeating.

All the options for eggs, juice, sausage and of course the pancakes did not disappoint. If you like your coffee flavorful but not too strong, you will love their self service options for coffee. With a sense of wistfullness, I had to agree that if this was anywhere close to work, chances are I would be sipping coffee the whole day enjoying the pristine scenery, which is really what makes this a must visit stop. The restaurant is located against a backdrop of the Teton’s with the Snake River gently wandering past in a clear and unhurried manner.

Even as we were eating, we saw a large moose run past, thrilling the kids to no end. I have to confess, I was so startled, I did not have a chance to even get my act together to take pictures of the animal. Yes, it is this perfect scenary that just cannot be customized. If you are in the area, I highly recommend this stop to get a great start into easing into the stunning western landscape and hearty honest to goodness food.

The next few days were just a feast for this nature lover. I hope you shall listen and share my amazement at the beauty of the western landscape.
Dornan's Chuckwagon on Urbanspoon

Asellina for Restaurant Week Summer NYC

Last week was the end of Restaurant week in the city, for various reasons I have never been able to take advantage of this, it is either the wrong week, wrong neighborhood,  wrong whatever, just not been right. I have lately managed to be the model person and have been bringing my own lunch, healthier, tastier (ahem) and certainly cheaper, even the bodegas that I like to frequent cannot really beat free. BTW, I have actually lost a couple of pounds, not that I am proclaiming my cooking to be the next diet fad, it really becomes more along the lines of portion control.

But, anyhow, but now I am also into Friday celebration meals, after all once a week, can be a splurge kind of lunch.

So, the more upscale with restaurant week all pointed to Aselina. We do not do too much Italian food (my fault!), it is hard for me to pass up on all the various ethnic options and settle for something that we can find so much more easily in Westchester. I have tried, Sri Lankan, Persian, Thai (well, I think that you get the drift) all within a stone throw away. But, today Aselina was calling us and for mighty good reason.

As soon as we began crossing the blocks, the rain came down, pouring, hard and soaking. Nonetheless, we braved it, Ken being a gentleman and me being crazy, rain loving me. We arrived at the restaurant looking like wet rats, despite feeling cold for the first few minutes, we shook out pretty well, thank you drip and dry. We stuck nicely to the pre-fixes offered to us by the restaurant week menu.

 We started with a pre-fix seafood salad, compact, tasty and flavorful. What was nice about the place was their well-proportioned serving sizes, adequate but not too large. The main courses offered three choices, a mint flavored ravioli, well more like a mint enhanced red sauce, I had a pretty amazing pasta dish with sausage and spinach. This in fact, will be the inspiration, make that loose inspiration for tomorrow’s dinner.

We finished off with dessert, a chocolate cake and melon panna cotta. Well worth the rainy walk.

By the time we headed out, the rain had cleared leaving the streets washed and relatively fresh. It was nice to walk across the five blocks feeling well sated. We shall probably be back, maybe the next season or for a celebration when the mood hits. If you want to check it out, here is the lowdown.

Aselina

420 Park Avenue South, New York, New York 10021

 

 

 

 

Asellina on Urbanspoon

Rainy Day Take Two – Chutney Masala

  Earlier this year, when I was working on this piece on fenugreek with Chef, Navjot Arora, he had asked me to come and check out Chutney Masala. I had tried the place before and the visit was pleasant enough to stop by again. One of my biggest needs in an Indian restaurant is to savor food that is closer to home cooked food, rather than the rich overcooked food that some places offer. It is not always that I can wholeheartedly say that a place delivers on this, but Chutney Masala certainly does. It was nice to be able to catch up a little with the Chef, who makes a courteous and charming host. He is very proud of Punjabi heritage and I loved the reflection of this spirit in the food.

I started with a glass of pinot noir, which could have aired a little more, but once the wine was aired some it opened out and paired well with the meal. Down to the food, the pictures are from my I-phone and not the best, but the presentation too is clean and simple much like the flavors of the meal.  On a different sidebar, the perfectionist and rather fair husband gets upset with all this photo mediocrity, and often says that I am not doing justice to the restaurant.

 So to every one of my five readers (ha!) I assure you the food looks better than the pictures. Actually, down to the atmosphere, the lighting in the restaurant is rather dim, which while is nice and cozy for dining does not do well for pictures. The atmosphere in the restaurant is quaint with brick walls and black and white photography. The restaurant is near the water, but does not quite offer the views except in certain windows. The only time I am sorry that Anshul and I are not big eaters is at a place like this, because I would love to have tried both the vegetarian and non-vegetarian samplers but settled for the Shakahari platter, which brought a plate of the papri chat, the samosas, pakoras and the vegetarian kakabs. The chat and the kababs were ok, great on texture but just a little light on the crispness, the samosas were amazingly good! The servings were quite generous, in fact, one could almost make a meal of the platter. While they reccomend these samplers for two, I think that they would work well for 4.

We ordered the birayani with goat and the vegetarian sampler. The birayani was well done, with a nice dose of spice and the vegetarian thali came with one of the best dals (slow simmered lentils) that I have sampled. Their are many styles of Indian birayanis, in fact, most recently I have shared my own version of a chicken birayani. The restaurant’s steam cooked Birayani reflected the style of the south Indian region of Hyderabad, noted for its sealed pot (dum) cooking with a nice dose of spice. This birayani certainly lived up to its name.

They were thick, creamy and well spiced. The eggplant and the okra was well done too! The restaurant offers a compact but well made menu and the hallmark of the menu is its fresh tasting food. I would love to come back with the kids, but will need to scour the menu to see what would work for their milder palate.

I was debating on casata, an Indian style ice cream, but ended up with the ras malai, which was actually the courtesy of the Chef. Folks, this dessert was plain looking but really good. The message here really is, even if the dish looks a little plain, give it a try, chances are it shall be worth trying.

 Chutney Masala

4 West Main Street

Irvington, NY 10533

 

 

 

 

 

BGR – The Burger Joint

 Remember that date night couple, when Anshul and I ever so often try to get away for dinner. I am actually a compulsive evesdropper, and over the years my husband has gotten used to it. He even has to listen to my evesdropping storries from the train and and lunchtime. Well, the similarity ends there, for better or for worse. No dancing or pretending as someone else to get reservations, not to mention the late night escapades. Oh, but like Ray Romano, I do work as an accountant….

This evening was a little different, BGR, The Burger Joint was doing a blogger event, and I was glad I could make it and actually happier that the other (read not better) half could make it. The place definitely offered a change of place from our usual fare and was fun and festive. The general vibe, sort of clean sleek and festive, with pictures of bands and music that I still recognize and listen too. This these days is a rareity.

 A wall with the clean bright blue had notes pinned on them that ranged from profound, soulful, funny and just plain weird. But there is fun to see random thoughts on the wall. The pace was somewhat quite, but it was a wednesday evening.

The general atmosphere as you can see, was casual and fun, the menu was colorfully featured on a large blackboard. They had at least 8 to 10 selections of burgers that would satisfy most palates and diet preferences. They had fish, veggie, turkey, lamb and a variety of regular beef options. It took us at least 5 minutes to decide, we finally settled for a Southwestern burger and the Greek which essentially was a lamb burger with greek style fixings.

They had plenty of options for the sides, outside of the standard fries and a wonderful young man who helped us make up our mind.

We ended up with a side of grilled asparagus, which actually was for the husband, but ended up on my plate and an order of vidalia onion rings which were really great. I grudgingly offered my husband two.

 We had ordered our burgers medium, and I think while the southwestern was done just right, my burger tended to be closer to rare. Very flavorful, but a little more pink than I would like. I loved the red onion and yogurt sauce and cucumbers and feta that came with the greek burger. Reminded me of a greek salad on a burger role.

All good, they have a wonderful selection of drinks including beer and baseline, white and red. The wine came in half bottles and their red worked well with the meal.

 We shall probably be back with the kids at some point of time.

If you are in the area and are in the mood for a quick and hearty bite and a good place to grab some beer with friends and chat I would actually reccomend giving this peppy and cheerful place a try.

Oh, and in case you are interested, they have WIFI too!

The lowdown,

BGR – The Burger Joint

20 S Moger Ave Mt Kisco

914-864-2151

www.bgrtheburgerjoint.com

Open Mon- Sun 11-10
The Burger Joint (BGR) on Urbanspoon

The Village Tearoom – New Paltz

The first time I had stopped by the village tearoom in New Paltz, it was rather unplanned. My brother and I were trying to cover some local wineries, we had stopped at Clinton Vineyards and I wanted to hit Adrair. That particular day, the hours did not co-operate, hunger prompted us to the tearoom. I was pleasantly surprised by the food and of course, the nice cup of tea that went with the snacks to boot.

It is of course another thing, that this post has been sitting in my drafts for over two months, and I am finally getting round to posting it. I am bad that way, and look for a change I shall not really blame anything else.

Now, life and food is always about expectations! The next time I went that way was to very specifically get there for a cup of tea (and everyone knows I am a tea buff!). I had also been educated about the reputation of the restaurant. The place as you walk in is like walking into someone’s house. They have a very cozy atmosphere and are surprisingly child friendly. There is a blackboard with chalk and a small collection of children’s books that can help engage their little customers while the food is being prepared. This can possibly be attributed to the fact that the proprietress is a mother with relatively young children. It is a nice change from the super buttoned up tearooms that one might find. The atmosphere is very pleasant and inviting, however on a busy afternoon they can be a little slow.

Their afternoon tea, which is what I ended up getting is wonderful, their home baked goodies, sweet buttery and fresh tasting. Their use of spices is perfectly balanced and adds wonderful notes of flavor and character to the menu. The minted chicken salad with lovely notes of almond hits the spot. They do well in the seasonal and local department, and their absolutely rich and heavenly goat cheese sandwiches are a testimony to this. Other interesting offerings are their Malaysian spiced chicken wings and they have a soup of the day, which the last time that I tried it was really nice. The two teas that we ordered came well brewed in brightly colored teapots and a little hour glass to help you brew the tea to perfection before pouring a cup.

Their sandwiches included an interesting mint almond chicken salad, and the goat cheese sandwich offered the best of Husdon Valley, in creamy, earthy mouthfuls.

Now, on the other side, they have a surprising full mealtime menu, not quite what I would expect in a tearoom, but I imagine there must be plenty of takes. Their tea selections were small and this menu was also complimented with wines. Somewhere here the restaurant does steer away from being just a tea room, possibly to widen its horizons. This does take away a little from what the restaurant tends to do best – be a tea room.

It is however a wonderful stop for tea and company as long as you are happy with a few select teas, brewed to simple perfection. On a cooler day it would also be an inviting lunch stop. If, of course I do make it to the winery one of these days, I shall definitely pair it with a visit to this charming restaurant. Possibly to try their goat cheese sandwiches again!

 

 
The Village Tea Room Restaurant & Bake Shop on Urbanspoon

Saravana Bhavan – Upper West Side, NYC

Earlier this year, when the daffodils were blooming and the kids had their spring break, we ventured out to spend a day in the Museum of Natural History. It was also a day when we discovered Saravana Bhavan.

 We have avoided doing too much of the city museums until recently, just not organized enough to get our act together. The kids are however finally a good age to enjoy some of what the museums has to offer. It is important for us to fit some of this into our weekend schedule. So inspired by the wonderful weather we headed into the city.

After three hours of wandering through the exhibits we decided it was time for food. One of the things that I strongly feel is that while museum restaurants are serviceable and will get you an adequate and possibly overpriced meal, it really is a shame to waste a mealtime in the city without trying something unique. We had initially set our sights on Sarabeth’s however en-route spotted Saravana Bhawan. This restaurant is theWest Side branch of theLexington Ave restaurant whose parent is inIndiathereby lending claim to being the real thing! The cuisine is from the Udipi region in Southern India and the fare is what is collectively called tiffin and tends to be the ultimate Sunday Brunch for most Indians. Actually, I should preface this, the restaurant has vegetarian meal options and a wonderful collection of tiffin offerings, which tends to be the prefered choice for brunch.

I tend to get my fill of this since I get into the city for work, but my for my husband this is fairly unique, and his rather greedy glances lured us in.

The kids tend to like this fare as well so we went into a very busy and bustling restaurant. This pretty clearly meant slow service. On a beautiful spring day sitting outdoors, the only downside to this was two hungry children, who kept staring at everyone’s food. On the bright side none of the usual coaxing was needed when the food arrived.

We pretty much ended up ordering half their menu, including some unusual items such as the adai with avial (a unique south Indian mixed vegetable curry from Kerela). The coffee, that is also a sweet India style latte is a regional favorite. The food was served in traditional stainless steel multi-compartmental plates and tasted fresh and consistently good. The prices were reasonable, although a little higher than their downtown counterpart possibly to cover the overheads for this upscale part of town. Interesting finishing touches included two to three well spiced chutneys. The restaurant is Kosher and the menu is also chock full of vegan options and is vegetarian.

There were a few coarse stops such as a dessert order getting mixed up and the waitress spilling a tray full of food, which to their credit was very promptly and effectively cleared up. So, maybe Sunday mornings might not be their best service day, the food certainly is as good as it gets in a rather pleasant and authentic styled setting.

If the test of a restaurant is an overall satisfying experience, this restaurant certainly complied.

 Sarawan Bhawan

413 Amsterdam Ave,

Manhattan, NY 10024

 
  Phone: (212) 721-7755
 

 

 

 

 
Saravanaa Bhavan (Vegetarian) on Urbanspoon

Good Food on the Hudson – X2O

 I had once heard from someone who does restaurant reviews for a living, had told me that I should really try a restaurant a few times at different times of the day to get a good idea of the place.

Now, while I do not usually stick to this when telling you about places, in the case of X2O, it looks like I needed at least 4 visits to write up an tell you about it. Ironically enough, even though I can almost unequivocally say that the restaurant has one of the most stunning views that I have seen, it is difficult to order a custom made day. I have had a 50% good weather success and this time round was a miss.

It is however a pretty and rather stunningly done place and despite the gray, the water tends to be soothing. Outside, we watched a few lone yatchs here and there and settled for the pre-fixe, but did get a side of the wonderfully crisp coconut shrimp.

The shrimp is moist and plump with a nice and sweet ( though not cloying) coating, with a lightly seasoned and smooth mustard dipping sauce. As someone who dabbles and is very fussy about her mustard, this sauce itself establishes the stage for the rest of the meal.

The rest of the meal went very well. I chose the seafood bisque, something that was not overly rich and flavorful. I think the hallmark of good food is that the seasonings and richness marry each other to a happy harmony. The texture of the soup was also great.

For the main courses, mom had a miso and honey salmon, seared to moist perfection severed over a rich well seasoned risotto and tender bok choi. I had a roast chicken, that had enough muscle and texture to convince me that it was indeed a free range chicken. The chicken came with a assortment of vegetables and a small serving of very well made mashed potatoes. I am aslo a sucker for good mashed potatoes, so I was a happy girl.

As we ate, the clouds played hide and seek with us, occasionally teasing us with their withdrawal. It was nice to see the fog lift just a little to get a beautiful view of the green treeline. However, the blue did not appear, so the waters remained cloudy and grey. A sombre hudson, but magestic in its pristine peacefulness.

The desserts brought a nice finsih to the meal. I had the flan with seasonal fruit and was impressed to see that the sweetness of the fruit kept up with the dessert and the chocolate terrine that my mother ordered was also really good.

The service was as smooth as butter, attentive without being annoying. I will also point out that the pre-fixe on weekdays is a very good deal. I have also tried their Sunday brunch which I thought was really nice. I would tell you to check out the place, but then again, it is probably one of the most talked about places in Westchester, so chances are you will want to visit it with or without my endorsement.

 X2O Xaviers on the Hudson

71 Water Grant St

Yonkers, NY 10701

http://www.xaviars.com/yonkers/index.html

 

X20 Xaviars on the Hudson on Urbanspoon

The Koreatown Series – Episode Two – Pho

I had featured my first Koreatown post, here telling you about Shanghai Mong. Here is a somewhat delayed second episode. This post will take you to a little Vietnamese place that is really, really good. It is so good, that people stand in line for up to 10 or 15 minutes to sample and savor the steamy savory bowls of Pho.

Pho, seems to be so trendy these days, in fact, I would have brought it into my house a long time ago but resisted because of this little gem. Pho 32 has been the enabler that has prevented me from trying and cooking Pho, because I can easily get my pho and drink it too without the effort. The first time I tried this spot was when my brother was visiting from Seattle, and after a cold day walking all over NYC he wanted something to warm him.

We stumbled into Pho 32 by chance, and I found a keeper. I will confess, though I am not super experienced with Vietnamese food. We need more of them in Westchester. This being said, I do understand good tastes and flavors.

 

I have since then been back many a time. They key here is to hit the spot right before12pm, or you are guaranteed a wait. I have not been there on weekends, but I am told it is busy then too. The deal is simple. You order a big bowl of pho, which is essentially a hearty deep seasoned beef broth. The pho comes with base options such as chicken or seafood and an assortment of fresh veggies and herbs such as bean sprouts, cilantro, sliced jalapeno and lime. You get unlimited amounts of any of these enhancers. There is a small seasoning bar where you get your pick of hot sauces and there are optional add on, such as fish balls and tofu for a price. Pure and simple!

 

For less than 10 dollars, you experience a satisfying cornucopia of flavors and feel deeply satisfied. The place is mostly about the pho, but they have a menu with noodles, dumplings, Shabu Shabu and other entrees. I have tried a bunch of their appetizers and think that the dumplings and rolls are consistently good.

Featured here is there mixed platter, which is good for two or three people and gives you a good variety of snackables.

As I write this post, I really am tempted to try a vegetarian version of this glorious soup, I shall keep you posted about my efforts.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pho32 & Shabu on Urbanspoon

Pho32 & Shabu on Urbanspoon

Anjappar – Chettinad Cuisine in New York

 Anjappar, a new kid on the block replaced a long standing french restaurant. It was bound to happen, I guess. One of the problems with an ethnic neighborhood is that it often crowds out other cuisines other than those of the ethnic community. Most people frequent this India row in Manhattan for Indian food, leaving the rest of the restaurants wanting patrons.

There is enough diversity in just the Indian culinary styles, to satisfy the patrons, there is Indian vegetarian fare and then the more mainstream. Fast food and conventional sit down joints all showcasing the many moods of Indian cuisine. So, it might seem surprising to have yet another newcomer on this street. Well, with Indian cuisine there is always room for diversity.

 Anjapaar bring the Chettinad cuisine from the South of India. Chettinad cuisine is the cuisine of the chettiyar community of the Tamil Nadu region of India. As with all other communities the culinary style is distinct. The cuisine is charterized with a fondness for meat and robust spices. I was not sure how the restaurant would fare in this department. Well, getting in the decor is vivid and brings to you a strong sense of character with colors of bright red and black. The furniture is made of heavy dark polished wood.

For a lover of Indian regional cuisine, I am always thrilled to see more character and authenticity in Indian cuisine. I also, have learnt to temper my expectations since sometimes the authenticity is not all that. This however, was not the case. Two visits and I am left craving for more. Their lunchtime options include set meals from different parts of the regional.  On day one, I tried their non-veg options, this came with a fried and spiced chicken, a vegetarian curry and a spicy, creamy meat curry that came with layered paratha bread that is a speciality of the south and a mild flavored rice pilaf. Every bite was flavorful and the spices were fresh and full of flavor. Their menu was innovative and even had South Indian breakfast options, not just the tiffin choices, flavorful Indianized eggs.

Day Two, I ordered off the menu, this time I tried their biryani. I am addicted to good biryani, in fact, I can eat on all kinds of them. This was well seasoned redolent with a light touch of coconut and a touch of curry leaves. The rice grains were moist and well cooked but separate and the goat meat was nice and tender. Well seasoned perfection on a plate.

In a nod to some of the more classic dishes, they had the chicken tikka (yes, there is no getting away from that one on an Indian restaurant menu). My friend ordered a chicken karai, which had a nice and deep flavored tomato sauce and chunky peppers. A better rendition of a restaurant staple. Nice and fluffy parathas and a well seasoned raita completed the meal.

Our neighbours had ordered an interesting assortment of fried idlies, that shall bring me back the next time round.

 Anjappar

 116 Lexington Ave

 New York, New York 10016

 Anjappar Chettinadu on Urbanspoon

John Dory Oyster Bar

The name of my graduate school advisor was John Dory. It actually took me some time to realize that it was also the name of a fish. I could never quite understand why so many seafood places were named after Dr. Dory. Oh well… The John Dory Oyster bar, deserves credit for two things even before we get to the food, they both revolve around location. The restaurant convienently located adjacent to Stumptown Coffee Roasters, seems to also have a very inviting look, mostly due to the long glass windows surrounding it.

We had eyed this for a while and then one day decided that it was the day to try the place. The place was charming, elegant and had a special moment written all over it. It was a celebration type of day so the place was well picked. I did not get the best captures, but drank a lovely pink procesco with the meal. This place makes for elegant pick ups, that actually bely their richness. So, watch what you are eating.

We started with Hawaian blue prawns with coriander mayonaise. The prawns were good, but the mayonaise was simply the freshest tasting, creamiest mayo that I have ever tried. We saved the mayo after the prawns were done, because it was just too good not to finish up by itself.  We also, tried the sea urchin with pomegranate black pepper and I really am not sure what to make of it, rather strange at best.

We also, ordered the house parker rolls which were made fresh on the

premises and were just heavenly to mop up the remaining mayonaise with. I had ordered a roast pork sandwich with tuna mayonaise, and this sandwich was rather disapointed and too salty.  Other items were the parsley and anchovy toast and the fish dumpling soup, both of which were pleasantly nice. We finished off with the Ecceles cake, an interesting british tea time pastry that pairs stilton with a sweet currant sauce, also very good and hit the spot.

Overall, the place was generally a little pricey and hit some high notes but not enough to be considered an instant repeat place.

 In general, I think that the problem with the place is that it has a bit of an identity crisis in that, it is trying to be the neighborhood yuppy happy hour place and your fancy oyster bar both rolled into one, I personally think that is sometimes too much ground for any restaurant to cover.

John Dory Oyster Bar

1196 Broadway 
New York, NY 10001

212 792 9000

www.thejohndory.com

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
John Dory Oyster Bar on Urbanspoon

Finding Vegan

  • Template Customized by Bloggermint