Blog - Grits in the City - discounts and faves

all of the ricotta & brunch at locanda verde

March 30, 2014 by Lara Leave a Comment

Locanda Verde had been on my “must try” list for over a year before I finally made it there. Now that I’ve been (twice) I’m fairly certain it was my subconscious keeping me away, knowing that once I went, I’d want to keep coming back over and over (and over).

We’ll start with brunch. It was a cold wintry Sunday, one so windy I remember being thankful I made it there since I couldn’t see most of the walk there. I’d managed to secure our reservation thanks to calling directly. The restaurant limits the advance window and overall number of reservations available via OpenTable. For better availability, I suggest calling Locanda.

Since it was so cold, I ended up ordering not one, but eventually two cappuccinos. They weren’t cheap, but fellow cappuccino aficionados would approve of the strength of their espresso and proper foam. Perfection.

To start, we had to order the ricotta toast with honey. I’d had this for dinner on my first visit, the only difference being that the brunch version pairs it with a burnt orange toast instead of plain. Both times I was so blown away by the creamy fresh flavor of their ricotta. I don’t think I will ever be able to come for a meal at Locanda and not order this dish. I’m obsessed.

For my main dish, I couldn’t resist making it a full ricotta brunch, so I went with the lemon ricotta pancakes with blueberries and meyer lemon curd. While the pancakes were not cheap ($17), I have to say they are some of the best I have had in a long time. The ricotta made the interior almost creamy and the meyer lemon curd was the best I’ve ever had. I think I have found my new go-to brunch spot. I could happily spend hours upon hours here. We actually did this specific Sunday! Highly recommend.

Locanda Verde – 377 Greenwich Street (@ N Moore Street) – 212.925.3797
Reservations Recommended

bbq and a road trip to jack daniel’s

March 29, 2014 by Lara Leave a Comment

During my recent trip to Alabama, we decided to take a trip on the last day up to Lynchburg, Tennessee, home to the Jack Daniel’s Distillery. The tour was amazing. The distillery is much larger than I’d anticipated – so many buildings making up their production (everything is produced in Lynchburg, a town officially with only 361 residents!). Here we are posing with Jack, in front of the caves where they get the cave water that comprises 40% of the whiskey.

On the way back to Huntsville, we made a stop for some high quality BBQ. I’d yet to visit New Hope BBQ but had heard nothing but the best from my parents. There’s not a ton of seating, essentially only a strip of tabletop space running the width of the building. Many people grab it to go or, come warmer temps, will eat outdoors at their picnic tables.

I had to go with my staple Southern fave, pulled pork. Unlike BBQ restaurants in NYC, I love that their BBQ was not about the fancy overall experience. No. It’s all about the food itself. It wasn’t quite a “meat & three”, but I went for two sides – their coleslaw (vinegar based) and mac ‘n cheese. The mac ‘n cheese was nice and creamy – not too heavy. I was excited to see they not only had Milo’s iced tea, a favorite of mine, but they even had a variety with Splenda. The sauces were on the more vinegar side, which I layered with their smokey rib sauce. I have to say, I’m spoiled from being able to have BBQ in NYC any time soon. So good.

We even ended up springing for some dessert, even though we had just had some wonderful complimentary mini Moon Pies from the store in Lynchburg in celebration of Pi Day. That day’s special dessert was lemonade cake, so we decided to give it a try. It was an interesting combination of tart and sweet, managing somehow to truly be both. A nice finish to a wonderful meal.

New Market BBQ – 5601 Winchester Rd, New Market, AL – 256.379.5525
No Reservations / Carryout Available

happy hour at brooklyn fish camp

March 24, 2014 by Lara Leave a Comment

Friday’s weather seemed like it might be at least working towards spring, making it a perfect day for some seafood. I’d been curious about Brooklyn Fish Camp for a bit and T had heard some great things from friends. Happy hour runs from 12-7pm, at the bar only.

The happy hour food menu is filled with $5 options. Note, when they say bites, they mean it. The salt covered shrimp, while tasty, was only 2 shrimp.

We also started with an order of their hushpuppies ($8 for a side order). I was a bit surprised that they were more like fritters than hushpuppies. They were not savory or crumbly enough to truly be hushpuppies. I’ll admit, I also had a hard time with the $8 charge for three of them, having just been somewhere where a huge plate with them came free with the food.

For main dishes, we knew we wanted to do their Baja Style Fish Tacos. They were served with a habañero lime yogurt and frijoles charros ($17). The flavor was great – I really loved the yogurt sauce. The only thing that would have been an improvement would have been something crunchy – more radish, lettuce, or something – to mix up the texture a bit.

We also ordered the pan fried ‘Hook and Line’ Atlantic cod sandwich with french fries ($17). It was interesting to have the sandwich pan-fried instead of truly thick batter fried. I actually really liked it, as it made it a bit lighter overall yet still having a touch of the fried texture. I really liked their fries – fresh and thin. Just to note, both of the dishes we had were the heavy selections off of the menu. The other dishes were much smaller.

I opted us in for dessert, curious to see what the banana fritters tasted like, opting for vanilla instead of chocolate ice cream. It didn’t cross my mind at the time, but it ended up being the sweet version of the hushpuppies. Oh well. Win some, lose some.

Overall, some great flavorful bites, albeit light on portion sizes. I’d come back for happy hour, but not sure for full meal.

Brooklyn Fish Camp – 162 5th Avenue (@ Degraw Street), Brooklyn – 718.783.3254
No Reservations
Update: Brooklyn Fish Camp is now closed.

family traditions: homemade cinnamon rolls

March 23, 2014 by Lara Leave a Comment

Typically I get to go home to Alabama once a year for Christmas. That means I naturally think of home now in the context of Christmas foods, holiday themed decor, and colder temps, all capped off with a soundtrack of carols and the like. When I took T to Alabama for his first visit, cinnamon rolls had to be part of the experience, Christmas or not (served along with homemade chili, naturally).

The biggest “ingredient” this recipe requires? Time. All of your time. Special thanks to mom for spending so much time year after year putting these together. It did not go unappreciated.

Ingredients

2 packages active dry yeast
1/2 cup warm water (105 to 115°)
2 cups lukewarm milk (scalded then cooled)
1/2 cup water
1/3 cup sugar
1/3 cup vegetable oil or shortening
3 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons salt
1 egg
5-6 cups unbleached flour
4 tablespoons butter or margarine, softened
1/2 cup sugar
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon cinnamon

Dissolve yeast in warm water. Stir in the milk, 1/2 cup sugar, oil, baking powder, salt, egg, and 2-3 cups of the flour. Beat until smooth – ideally using a Kitchenaid mixer with the dough hook attachment. Mix in enough flour for it to start to stick to the hook (or stick to the spoon, if you are mixing by hand), likely somewhere between 3-4 of the 5-6 cups of flour.

If you have mixed by hand, turn dough onto a a well-floured surface (can cover your counter with wax paper). Knead until smooth and elastic. If you mixed with a Kitchenaid, you can spoon the dough into a large, greased bowl. Cover and let it rise in a warm place until double, about 1 1/2 hours. Dough is ready if you see an indentation after you touch it.

Grease two oblong pans, 13×9 inches. Punch down the dough and divide in half. Roll one half into a rectangle, measuring dimensions of 12×10 inches. Spread with half of the butter. Mix 1/2 cup sugar and the cinnamon. Sprinkle half of the cinnamon-sugar mixture over the rectangle.

Roll up, starting with the wider side. Pinch the edge of the dough into the roll to seal. Stretch the roll to make it even.

Slice into 12 slices. Place them a bit apart in one pan. Repeat with the second rectangle of dough.

You can cover with aluminum foil for and place in the refrigerator for 12 hours (to no longer than 48 hours) and then bake. If you want to bake the same day, place the pans in a warm place until the dough rises to double, around 30 minutes. Pro-tip courtesy of Mama Ruth: cover with towels and put a kettle of hot water on. It’ll make the yeast plump up perfectly.

Preheat oven to 350°. Remove foil from pans (if you’ve refrigerated overnight). Bake until golden for 20-22 minutes (longer if refrigerated).

Frost prior to serving. A simple recipe for frosting is mixing 1 cup powdered sugar, 1 tablespoon milk, and 1/2 teaspoon vanilla until smooth. I personally am a bit more generous with icing, so the above does not make enough for the two pans of 24 rolls. I recommend adding a small bit of milk to each spoonful of powdered sugar to make as much as you need to ice. Vanilla extract is a nice addition – another great option is almond extract.

Hope you enjoy them as much as my family has over the years.

anniversary at aldea’s chef’s table

March 10, 2014 by Lara Leave a Comment

It had been a long day this particular Tuesday during Social Media Week, but I quickly found my second wind. This night T had made plans for our big three year anniversary celebration. I did not know where we were headed other than somewhere nice. I was caught off guard when it appeared we were making our way over from Chelsea instead on foot. Eventually he slowed down a bit and I looked across to see the entry way for Aldea – a restaurant I knew of somewhat, but admittedly not in great detail. I hadn’t done my usual pre-visit scan of the menu. It was fun to go in with no expectations – ready to be wowed by a fun new spot.

We checked in at the front and made our way to the back, where the Chef’s Table is located. Unlike some other restaurants I’ve been to, this one was nice and open, still managing to give you an amazing view of the detail with which the kitchen prepares every single dish. There were small utensils, tweezers and the like, used to ensure that every intricate detail was just perfect. [Read more…]

it’s still rock and roll to me

February 6, 2014 by Lara Leave a Comment

I might have been a “child of the 80s,” but I didn’t really even watch a second of MTV and VH1 until I went over to a friend’s house in high school. My musical world mostly consisted of things on CMT (Country Music Television, for those of you who aren’t familiar) and a first concert by Randy Travis. There were a few pop artists who slipped through and made their way to my boom box, such as the Bangles, Wilson Phillips, and Debbie Gibson, which comprised my tape collection. I only give myself partial credit for those since — let’s face it — I learned about those from quality birthday party time at the roller rink. And then there was my meager record collection — Michael Jackson’s Thriller and the theme song from Rocky. New Kids on the Block, Bell Biv Devoe, and Prince… I vaguely knew of them but no, they didn’t make up my 80s. I remember feeling uncool for not being into New Kids on the Block, and not really caring that the brothers Wahlberg and company didn’t really hold my interest.

The first two non-country music artists I truly got into ironically had one thing in common: the piano. Tori Amos and Billy Joel couldn’t be more different — well, aside from said piano. I remember coming across a double tape of Billy Joel’s Greatest Hits Volume 1 & 2. I loved the richness of his voice. The storytelling style of his lyrics. The way that New York was such a character in his songs. I swiped the tape and took it into my room, singing along about Chinatown, Riverside, the Palisades, Park Avenue, even the Upper East Side’s Elaine’s, as if I had a clue of where these places really were. Some of them sounded glamorous, though from the grunting incorporated into Pressure, I knew he’d thrown in some degree of harsh reality along the way. I’d never been to New York at the time but his version was the only New York that 10-year-old me knew.

[Read more…]

robicelli’s cupcakes: 5 miles ahead

February 3, 2014 by Lara Leave a Comment

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T and I had been wanting to pay a visit to the newly opened store for Robicelli’s. But it’s a bit of a hike – ok far – so going for a visit, unless that happens to be where you live, does require some time (not that I’ve ever let that deter me).

Yesterday was gorgeous. Okay, comparatively nice. The sun might have been hiding, but temps were almost a balmy 50 degrees, no rain or snow, and little wind. Perfect day for a stroll to Bay Ridge, Brooklyn. To be fair, the plan had been to take the subway, but we decided why not just walk?

Turns out that walk was over five miles. We strolled through South Park Slope and into Sunset Park, where the streets were filled with families, some children sitting to the side of their parents as they fried up food for their street carts. There was a man protesting in Spanish outside a church, his microphone breaking up but seemingly accusing someone of being a murderer.

Finally we made it into Bay Ridge, which started much further north than either of us realized. There were too many options from which to choose, the likes of which changed while we were sitting there.

T had walked the whole way intent on trying their buffalo chicken cupcake, an appropriate nod to Super Bowl day. When we got there, there were none to be seen. Instead, he went with the chicken and waffles. [Read more…]

farewell, chicken sandwich

January 28, 2014 by Lara Leave a Comment

I’ve been to 7A twice the last couple of weeks with my sister. We wanted to squeeze in at least a couple of visits before it closes its doors for the last time on January 31st. I’ve already posted over on Medium just how sad their closing makes me. They’re on the short list of restaurants I automatically link to neighborhoods, almost as if one couldn’t exist without the other.

Friday night though, I think it all set in. Deciding we were going to go all-out with our final visit, my sister kicked off our order, “We’d like to start with the mozzarella cheese sticks.”

Our server paused, seemingly running through a mental list. She shook her head, “We are actually out of those.”

Caught off guard, my sister continued, “Okay, well I’ll have the Austrian … the fried chicken cutlet with sweet potato fries.”

The server looked back up. “I think we still have those. I’ll check. If not, are regular fries okay?” My sister nodded yes.

As our meal continued, I heard similar conversations between patrons and the servers. No, we don’t have that beer. We are out. No, sorry we are out of that menu item. With 7 days to go, it seems as if they’re done. No new supplies. Just there to sell out of their existing kitchen inventory.

The last weekend has come and gone, so no more chance at brunch, but there still are several nights to squeeze in a dinner or lunch. A last hurrah. Might I suggest the Austrian sandwich – of course, assuming it’s in stock.

The intersection of East 7th and Avenue A will never be the same.

Side note, this is this blog’s 1,000th post! I can’t think of anything better to be the focus of this post.

7A Cafe – 109 Avenue A (at East 7th Street) – 212.475.9001
Reservations Not Required
Note: 7A is now closed.

seeing red – carpets, chili, & velvet

January 13, 2014 by Lara Leave a Comment

I love awards shows. I do. Yes, they drone on and on and sometimes, maybe get to be a bit long. And sometimes the hosts disappoint. But you know what doesn’t disappoint? The dresses. Oh the dresses. Whereas the Oscars tend to lean towards the “fancy fancy”, the Globes tend to sprinkle in some crazier options for attire. Then there’s the general unexpected, like celebrities tripping and falling. As someone who often does so herself at inopportune times, I live for seeing stuff like that. It makes me feel better.

I had a few friends over for a night of red to line up with the red carpet. There was (mostly) red wine, red meat (chili), and red velvet cupcakes. I thought chili would be a perfect simple awards show meal – filling but not so labor intensive that I wouldn’t be able to sit down and hang out with everyone myself. Thankfully it didn’t disappoint.

You can easily replicate the mix of spices that I usually buy in a packet, but I’ll admit I usually just buy it because it makes whipping this up even easier and possible to do so on varying levels of spiciness. I’ve been using the McCormick brand mix, and opting for some alterations – the simple one that looks like this:

Ingredients

1 spice pack chili mix
1 pound ground beef (can substitute turkey)
1 14.5 ounce can of diced tomatoes
1 14.5 ounce can of tomato sauce
1 onion (diced)
1 jalapeño (diced) – optional
Shredded Cheddar Cheese – optional
Crackers – optional

First, brown the ground beef. Drain. Separately, sauté the diced onions. Incorporate the onions in with the beef, adding the spice mix, both cans of tomatoes, and jalapeños (optional). I suggest dipping in a spoon and testing the spice level. If it’s not enough, you can add in more chili powder or even more jalapeños. Simmer for 10 minutes. Serve as preferred. I love sharp cheddar cheese and a smattering of crackers. Sour cream also makes for a fun addition.

Looking for a different kind of chili? Check out my prior post on pumpkin turkey chili.

On a related topic, which Golden Globe winner do you want to see first? American Hustle, August Osage County, and Dallas Buyers Club are on my list.

brunchx2 at the dutch

January 6, 2014 by Lara Leave a Comment

Back in December, I went to brunch with my sister to celebrate her birthday before we went to the Pink show. I sent over a bunch of options, but she came up with her own idea – The Dutch. I had been curious for a long time about The Dutch but kept forgetting to go. Problem solved. It was a day where light snow was coming in, a common occurrence for me, food, and SoHo.

I was having a hard time making a choice when it came to the menu, as there are so many great options. There is a crispy whole grain waffle, apple, maple-bourbon, and pecans. And then there’s the soft scrambled eggs, smoked salmon, trout roe, and a bagel. Or what about the shrimp and kimchi fried rice served with two eggs and grilled pork belly? So much awesome, only one plate.

When it came time to make a choice, I was thankful to not have to! As is often the case, my sister and I chose to go the “best of both worlds” route, mixing savory and sweet. First, we got the hot fried chicken served with honey butter biscuits and slaw. Fellow brunch splitters rest assured – the dish comes with two biscuits!

And for our sweet option, we had the cornmeal flapjacks, which were served with salted butter and blueberry syrup. The cornmeal made for an interesting addition – it made it a bit more savory than your typical pancake, as did the lovely salt they added to the butter. I really liked the blueberry syrup, which was nice and sweet but not that super sugary version you often find with syrup. Nicely done.

On New Year’s Day, I found myself back over in the area with a group of girlfriends. When the restaurant we had a reservation at was closed (I’ll be kind and leave them unnamed but restaurants accepting reservations when they’re closed is the worst), I found myself back at The Dutch. I was again torn by what to order (even more so having had the magical mix). Thankfully another friend wanted to order the same mix. What can I say – fried chicken, honey biscuits, and cornmeal flapjacks. It’s just magical.

The Dutch – 131 Sullivan Street (@ Prince Street) – 212.677.6200
Reservations Recommended