food and drink around the world: May 2010

Monday, May 31, 2010

NYC: Memorial Day Weekend

Coney Island, 5/30/2010

Hope everyone had a great holiday weekend! Going to interrupt my (very slow ;) stream of posts from Hawai'i with NYC posts so that I don't fall too much behind.

The city was quiet for the last few days...Monsieur P and I stayed in town to catch up on work, and life, and etc. It's nice to have the city for "yourself" when most people are out of town.

Iced Coffees at Ninth Street Espresso

Dinner at Perilla on Friday, tea at Cha-An with Adelyn on Saturday and SATC 2 (heehee) with Lauren. Lots of Grand Sichuan this weekend. And then a day trip with friends to Coney Island and Brighton Beach on Sunday. Ninth Street Espresso + Monday morning reading, Northern Spy for lunch, and an afternoon of shopping.

Northern Spy Food Co, - Polenta & Baked Eggs - Braised Greens, Creme Fraiche

We are going to San Francisco next week!!!!! It's been four years since my last visit, so I am quite excited. Kelly (thank you!) will be hosting me for the first few days, and then Monsieur P will meet me for the rest of the trip. We don't have a set "schedule," trying to make this a relaxed trip. There are some restaurants I would like to visit, but other than that, the goal is -> Stress free! Yes!

Our Sunday trip to Coney Island/Brighton Beach was particularly fun. We arrived in the late afternoon, around 4pm and OH BOY was this beach crowded. I'm sure the fact that it was opening weekend for the amusement park played a factor ;) I've been to Brighton Beach many times for Russian food, but this was my first visit to Coney Island boardwalk and beach. The colour of the ocean was so very different from what we have in Hawai'i ;)

We had afternoon beer and herring at Tatiana Grill before our dinner reservations at Tatiana Restaurant next door. Shared many plates among the seven of us, just as many bottles of wine, and dessert, of course. The restaurant was PACKED (just like the beach!) and the whole place seemed so chaotic and organized at the same time. It was quite the experience.

Our tables were close enough to the beach so that we could smell the salt water and hear the waves. That, along with seemingly endless glasses of cold white wine, a seafood-centric dinner, and amazing company made for a truly awesome evening. The abundance of Russian vodka was also fun ;)

Oh! Also stopped by the Passport to Taiwan festival at Union Square on Sunday morning. We arrived right after they opened and already the crowds were insane. We stayed only a bit...just enough to get...

...shave ice...

...and rice with stewed ground pork, shoyu egg and radish dish.

That's it for tonight! I hope it rains in NYC soon - this humid weather is driving me boonkers! Going to take Monsieur P for a very special birthday dinner this week - can't wait to tell you all about it :)

P.S.
Does anyone want to buy a Canon xsi with the 18-55mm lens? I'm selling my camera, which I bought a year ago. The camera is in excellent condition. I need to sell because I'm looking to downsize to a smaller camera. The nature of my job requires me to be out and about most days, and the weight of the camera is just too much for my back :/ Email me if you're interested :)

Tatiana Restaurant
3152 Brighton 6th Street
Brooklyn, NY 11235
(718) 891-5151

Saturday, May 29, 2010

Hawai'i: "Eat My Balls" at Bubbies

On Friday, after dinner at the Curry House, Robyn, Noelle, and I walked across the street for dessert at...Bubbies!

Man, if Bubbies had a location in NYC, there would be no other place I'd rather visit for ice cream. Their lychee flavor is excellent as is the green tea, oreo and rocky road. We've got nothing like this in NYC.

There was a goal for this particular visit: "Eat My Balls." It's listed on the middle-right of the menu. The names of these ice cream sundaes, pieces, cakes, etc are a bit perverted :/.......
- functioning prostate
- come here little girl
- maybe the bag broke
- more than a mouthful
- multiple orgasm...
...I could go on, but I think you get the idea.

What exactly is EAT MY BALLS? $17.50 for ONE SCOOP OF EVERY FLAVOUR. 16 flavours in total. Flavour options change on a daily basis - what you see on the board is what you get.

Tah-dah! They weighed it out, and it came to 1.5 Pounds of ice cream! Shared between three people, that's only half a pound each. Not toooooo excessive, eh?

This is about how far we got ;)

"Eat My Balls," would be much more delicious if the fetal scoops were laid side by side on a plate as opposed to piled atop one another on a bowl. It was warm inside Bubbies and the ice cream melted quickly. We lost our appetites once it melted into a single indiscernible mass. About 75% was consumed...we surely would have made it to 100% if the flavors were separated from one another!

Bubbies Homemade Ice Cream
1010 University Avenue
Honolulu, HI 96826
(808) 949-8984

Friday, May 28, 2010

Hawai'i: Kats Sushi

(note: Robyn's camera broke, so all these photos are taken by Robyn with my camera body and her lens. Complicated! ;)

Sushi buffet time! The only state where I'd be excited to indulge in a sushi buffet is Hawai'i. We seem to have an abundance of Japanese buffets spots...Makino Chaya, Todai, etc. I've been to them all before, but this was my first visit to Kats Sushi. $20, all you can eat.

Kat's does their buffet a little differently. You order off a menu, and they bring the sushi to you. You have to finish everything before ordering more. AND. If there are any leftovers, you get charged a la carte prices. Talk about pressure! But also a good way to minimize wasted food.

The restaurant is super tiny, just a bar that could seat about six, and four small tables. I went with Robyn and Noelle on a Monday evening, the place was about half full at 7. Reservations recommended for groups larger than two. It's BYOB too :) They started us off with a complementary grilled butterfish collar. So ono. We ordered handrolls for the first "round." Cannot recall the names of all the rolls we ate, but there was definitely ikura, tuna, spicy salmon. All the basics (minus natto ;)...the options here aren't too adventurous. As for quality? Of course, not as good as many sushi bars in town. Decent, but very thin cut fish, plenty rice, you know the drill. But don't forget - it's a buffet! And for $20 all you can eat sushi, how can you complain.

This is our third and final round. We didn't intend to order so much - make sure to read the fine print at the bottom of the menu. Nigiri comes two pieces to an order...and they thought each of us wanted one order :/ We were so stuffed towards the end...there was NO POSSIBLE way to finish those last few pieces.

The woman took pity on us (I think she could tell just how stuffed we were!), and said that it was ok to leave the last pieces, hehe. Robyn and I had just come from an entire day of eating (read her post on what we ate prior to Kats...only part 1 is up - look out for part 2 soon), so to finish all that sushi was quite a feat...

...but I still had room for dessert! Hehe. We stopped by Bubbies on the way home.

One scoop of Rocky Road for me. Noelle had the Green Tea, and Robyn was much too full!! No worries, we made a return trip a few days later!

Kats Sushi
715 South King Street
Honolulu, HI 96813
(808) 526-1268

Bubbies Homemade Ice Cream
1010 University Avenue
Honolulu, HI 96826
(808) 949-8984

Sugar Rushed...

...for the week at Serious Eats New York. Plus Lunch for One at Scuderia and the $12 sashimi lunch set at Sushi Azabu. Hope you have a great Memorial Day weekend! :)

Lunch for One: Scuderia

Sugar Rush: Popbar, Ice Cream on a Stick in the West Village

Lunch for One: $12 Lunch Set at Sushi Azabu

Sugar Rush: Nutella Pizza at Luzzo's

Sugar Rush: Ice Cream Eclairs and Sandwiches at ChikaLicious...

...many summer goodies going on here...I like both the ice cream sandwich and eclair cone much more than...

...this iced macaron.

Sugar Rush: Otto's Rhubarb Coppetta

Sugar Rush: Cake Truffles at Momofuku Milk Bar...the truffles come in three flavors. Rainbow cake is pictured above...

...they also do Banana Cake (with hazelnut brittle)...

...and Chocolate Cake (my personal favourite)!

Friday, May 21, 2010

Hawai'i Vacation Pau, Back in NYC

Hiii! Sorry I have not made a "real post" in so long. Just got back from Hawai'i earlier this week and it's been non-stop hectic (that's what happens when you take two weeks off from work ;).

And how was Honolulu? Amazing, as always!! Loving seeing my family, and this trip was extra special because I had aunts and uncles visiting from Paris and San Francisco for the week one. And then Robyn came in from NYC for week two! We flew back to NYC together...my first time doing a direct flight from HNL -> EWR.

Just a few things on the checklist...a mish-mash mix of Hawai'i and NYC...I hope to be posting more regularly soon!

ONE. I have a new listing! 46 Mercer Street (with private entrances on both Mercer and Broadway). A gorgeous, Soho loft, asking $7.2M. It's definitely one of a kind. 5,000 square feet, with NSEW exposures. The space is stunning and the potential? Endless! Let me know if you have anyone interested!!

TWO. The photo at the top of the post, and this photo is taken from Puu Ualakaa State Park, right off Round Top Drive on Tantalus. I had no idea this park was famous till I did a bit of research...it's where Elvis takes his girlfriend to picnic in Blue Hawai'i! How neat is that?? Apparently Obama used to picnic here a lot with his grandma as well. The sight is stunning - a panoramic view of south Oahu going from Diamond Head past Waikiki, Aloha Tower area, all the way to the airport.

THREE. Mochi Cream shop in Shirokiya CLOSED :[ I blogged about mochi creams back in 2008...my mom and I ate so many of these. We always made an excuse to pass though this section of Shirokiya whenever possible...you know, mochi creams for the road!

We just happened to be there on 5/9, and there were signs up noting that it was their final day. They were selling all remaining mochi creams for $.99 (usually is $2/piece)...so of course we bought them all out. Ahahahah. We shared them with the rest of the family at dinner at grandma's house that night.

They have been replaced by Mikawaya...which...well, isn't nearly as good :/ Mikawaya is mochi ICE CREAM, as opposed to mochi CREAM. To their credit, a pretty wide selection is offered, including a whole mochi gelato line.

...will not only miss Mochi Cream's product, but their packaging as well!

(photo by robyn using my camera and her lens)

FOUR. FINALLY visited Cake Works, owned by Abi Langlas. I worked for Abby one summer when I was a bakery at Honolulu Coffee Co. Remember that time I forgot the sugar in the bread pudding recipe? Yes, that summer! Robyn and I shared the Lilikoi-Mandarin Chiffon Cake. It was so lovely, and an excellent deal at $3/slice.

Here's a photo of the whole cake. It's a shame local style chiffon cakes aren't more popular in NYC. They're the perfect warm weather/summer cake. Light and airy, you won't feel a thing in your belly. The cool layers of cream is sweetened slightly, mandarin orange-studded, and topped off with lilikoi curd. Ah. NYC bakeries ought to take more inspiration from local bakers!!

FIVE. A SUPER ALOHA to Reid of Ono Kine Grindz for organizing the most incredible dinner experience I had during this trip. We started out with a massive meal at town, hosted by the very gracious chef/owner Ed Kenney. On the menu? A whole rabbit done six ways, seared ahi, blue lotus duck eggs with ali'i oyster mushrooms...and that just the tip of the iceberg! We rolled out of town, bellies nicely packed...

...and straight to Nobu Waikiki where pastry chef Rachel Murai put together a six course dessert tasting...sous vide watermelon, espresso snow and sweet milk, azuki panna cotta, more surprises to come! You can find photos from the evening here and here...I'll also do a full post on the meal soon.

Ok! Aloha! Going sleep now :) Hope everyone has a great weekend!

Puu Ualakaa State Park
about/directions

Mikawaya inside Shirokiya
1450 Ala Moana Blvd # 2250
Honolulu, HI 96814
(808) 973-9234

Cake Works
2820 South King Street
Honolulu, HI 96826
(808) 946-4333

town
3435 Waialae Avenue
Honolulu, HI 96816
(808) 735-5900