SD26 at Madison Sq Park

Monday night we took advantage of Restaurant week at SD26. It has a contemporary decor, with a fun looking cocktail lounge as you enter. Walking past the bar, the dining room opens up with a cathedral ceiling, and open kitchens. There is actually a salumi and artisan cheese station as well - I think if I find myself here again, I may have to take advantage of that!

When we sat, we ordered cocktails from the specialty menu. Our server had an iPad which showed the cocktails and wines. It was a novelty, and perhaps they do have a direct link to inventory, but really kind of kludgy in practice.

I ordered the SD26 Negroni cocktail - a vodka martini with Aperol (what is that??) cucumber and lemon. Well - you know how I love me a good cucumber martini :) The first sip was acidic, sour and cucumbery, which I didn't care for. The second sip, the flavors seemed to meld together nicely. It was an enjoyable cocktail, garnished with a lemon slice attached to a cucumber slice with a toothpick - the 2 wheels looked like a double button as the toothpick threaded the wheels. Rick ordered La Verita, a rye whiskey with maple syrup, bitters and black pepper. It was fabulous! Garnished with a lemon wheel, it had a light fragrance, and a smooth finish.

When we sat at our 2 top table in the middle of the room, long home made grissini were laid in a silver basket. They were at least 18" long, and delicious! Nice breads were served, including a fresh focaccia, and a light poufy roll. This beautiful bottle of olive oil was seriously the best olive oil I've ever tasted. Beyond fruity, beyond peppery...I hope sometime I find a bottle of this lovely stuff to take home!

My appetizer was the Uovo Raviolo with truffle butter. As I sliced into the beautiful pillow of pasta, the lovely yolk ran, and the warm cheese oozed...Happy sigh! So delicious!

Rick ordered the spinach and pear salad. It was light and fresh, just what he was looking for.

My entree was the guinea hen - it is boneless, with a rich sauce including chestnuts and the poultry rested on a bed of julienned brussel sprouts. It was savory, tender and very filling! I took home about half for later.

Rick ordered the beef cheeks for dinner, and I did get a taste! Rich, thick sauce derived from the borolo broth, tender beef - it just melted in my mouth. Divine!

For dessert, I had the tiramisu - it was the classic, and very tasty. Rick had the panacotta, and it was light, fresh, and a wonderful ending to the meal.

Overall, SD26 has fabulous food. The flavors are fantastic, preparation perfect, and service efficient. The only thing that would keep me away from SD26 is the loud atmosphere. With the hard contemporary decor, there is nothing to prevent you from having your thoughts interrupted by the conversation a few tables away. Well, and the tables right next to you as well. There were lots of business deals "going down" and after work cocktails and dinner while debriefing the day. I am glad we got a chance to try the excellent cuisine, but I'm not sure we'll be back.

Kellari Parea NYC

I wanted to get out of the recent round of the same-o same-o rounds of restaurants we have been making this winter. I went on to Open Table, and found the cute local place not too far from the apartment. Kellari Parea is a very beautiful restaurant at 36 E 20th St. Rustic but romantic, quiet but not desolate.

Our waiter told us of the fresh fishes available, and there is a display case of fresh whole fishes to admire on your way to your table. We were a bit early, but decided to sit at the table for a pre-dinner cocktail. I tried the Ginger Sun, a vodka cocktail with a topping of prosecco. It was nice. Rick ordered a Figs n Kisses cocktail - a vodka cocktail with some sweet midori like liquor - his was a a sweet kiss - I liked it a lot.

Rick was pretty hungry, and wanted to order an app early, so we chose the Saganaki, described as Flamed kefalograviera cheese. It is a definite show stopper - the cheese is fried in the kitchen, and then some kind of liquor is poured over it, and set a light. Very fun! Be sure though, to eat your Saganaki as soon as it comes. It cools quickly, and it's not nearly as nice once it's cold.

I ordered the tzatziki, and it was a nice started - a nice amount of dip with freshly baked flat bread. And our waiter happily brought more fresh flat bread when we needed it.

For dinner, Rick ordered the filet mignon medium rare. Unfortunately it came well done. I ordered Yesterday's Lamb - a specialty of the house I thought. I was expecting a nice braised meat from the description, but it was tough and grey.

Although Kellari Parea offers meat, I think really it's a seafood restaurant, and that was not clear from the website unfortunately. I was hoping to have a few tapas, and share, but Rick was up for dinner. He chalked it up to: "You don't order coffee in a Chinese restaurant." and obviously you do not order meat here.

After dinner the waiter brought some complimentary cookies with the check, and they were nice.

I think I would go back, but I would plan on a seafood extravaganza :)

Blue Water Grill, a dream table

The Blue Water Grill has been on my list of restaurants to try since we moved to the city. It's a seafood focused restaurant, but there are a couple of chicken options. I didn't realize it initially, but Blue Water Grill is a part of the B. R. Guest Restaurant conglomerate. I've had good luck with restaurants associated with BRG in the past, but none were as formal as this.

I was lucky when I arrived that around 1:30 there was plenty of space inside and the patio outside was also available. I got a great table outdoors and enjoyed the view of the Union Square Park. I felt like I was celebrating the good interview I had the other day, so I ordered a Yello Bello. It has Ketel One Vodka, Lillet, Crème de Cacoa, Ginger and Lemon. It tasted a lot like a generic lemon lime soda - kind of syrupy and lacking finesse. I would not suggest it, as there are lots of other options. I enjoyed the sunshine and contemplated the menu as I sipped my cocktail.

I decided to start with the Marinated Yellowtail Sashimi  with Avocado, Ruby Red Grapefruit and Spicy Mango Dressing. I would describe this dish as more of a ceviche, as the tuna was heavily marinated in citrus - lemon, lime and perhaps grapefruit. I ordered it because there are a significant number of sushi and sashimi options on the menu, and I thought it would be especially fresh. But the citrus made me think, as it usually does, that perhaps the fish isn't as fresh as it should be. I did enjoy the caviar sprinkled over the top, and the thinly sliced fennel. The gentle little pops of the caviar were fabulous.

My entree was the seared scallops - they were different than the description on the web site - mine were with brussel sprouts, panchetta and carbonara sauce. As you can see from the photo, the sprouts were separated leaves and there was pasta involved as well - quite a nice entree :) I was glad I'd had an appetizer as 3 scallops do not an entree make, but it was delicious :)

Overall, Blue Water Grill would be a place for a business lunch, but not for a foodie extravaganza. It's a pretty expensive option, and frankly I expect much more for the money. I would put the food here on the same par as other B.R. Guest restaurants I've visited, where the bill was about half compared to the bill here.

As I looked over the menu, I couldn't help but think to myself, this is where Jumpin' Jay's Fish Cafe obtained some of it's ideas. More moderately priced, it is one of my favorite places in Portsmouth :) I love how the foodie world finds inspiration everywhere, and that it is shared all over. Very nice.

Blue Smoke Goodbye Lunch

My project came to an end at the palace this week, and for a second good bye lunch, my boss Andy took me out. We decided to hit Blue Smoke. I haven't been here since Rick and I went and tried a few samplers, but I remembered spying the Banana Cream pie on the way out thinking - I MUST try that next time!
I started with the Yellowfin Tuna Tacos - you know my penchant for fresh fish tacos! I was a little leary about ordering fish at a BBQ place, but I figured, what the heck? The menu didn't say anything about it being raw, and when the waitress mentioned sushi, I was a bit puzzled. When they came, I was shocked to see raw tuna in a small dice loaded into 3 small hard taco shells. I took a taste, and it was nicely flavored with cilantro and something fresh like perhaps tomatillos. One taco was really enough - this is a very substantial appetizer, but it would have been divine had the tuna been grilled.
Andy had the Shrimp Corndogs - very nice presentation. Long wooden skewers topped with fried shimp coated in cornbread. Andy let me have one, and the coating was crisp, light and corny - yeah that sounds corny, but really it was a great way to serve them. There was a light sauce they came with that I liked a lot as well - it had a fresh cilantro lift to it as well.
We moved on to the entrees and we both ordered the pulled pork - and it was really good! You can see Andy's dish above - the pulled pork platter. I had the sandwich - and I would definitely order it again!
And you would think after all that food, we'd be done, but no. That banana cream pie was calling my name, and I ordered it.

 It. Was. To. Die. For.

And it was even better than mine!! I do see a return visit in the future :)

The Ice Cream Alternative

I really don't like Mr Softee - his ice cream is slimy. And based on the reports and videos on MidTown Lunch, he is also mean. So when I was able to get real ice cream on the street, I was pretty happy!

I tried the Van Leeuwan truck - with devine flavors like cinnamon, ginger, chocolate and vanilla it was hard to choose! I went with pistachio - and wow was it delish! No scary green food coloring, just creamy pistachio goodness.

2 Thumbs up for Van Leeuwan - try it if you get a chance! It was at the corner of 23rd and 5th next to the mango ladies :)

Corner Mangos

While out getting some iced coffee yesterday, I came upon these women selling sliced mangos on the corner in sandwich sized ziplocks. Now what was really interesting was the condiments for adding to your mangos - these included salt, lemon juice and hot sauce! If my hands hadn't already been full, I thing I would have had to try this! I love sweet and spicy!

Rickshaw Dumplings - Yum Yum!!

After perusing the Home Depot and P.C Richards for ideas and thoughts about updating the kitchen and bath, we went next door to Rickshaw Dumplings. Rick loves dumplings. He loves to tell you about how every culture has a "dumpling like" comfort food. Some kind of deliciousness wrapped in a few carbs :) So this place has been on my list for a long time.

We decided we'd each get the sampler - one of each of the seven cool looking offerings complete with the appropriate dipping sauce :) This is the way to go as a first timer!!

As you can see, it is important to have the menu along side because you can't really tell what is inside these little love pillows! As I look at the To Go menu, it is in a different order than the one on the chalk board in the store. Still, I think we can tell which is which :) Rick's fave was the traditional Pork, and I would totally order either the Chicken and Thai Basil with spicy peanut dip or the Peking Duck with hoisin dip. Who am I kidding? I would order both. Yummmmmm!!!!

Ruthie Foster in Madison Sq Park

Tonight I went out for the free concert Ruthie Foster played at Madison Square Park. I tried really hard via facebook to get a date, but unfortunately it didn't happen. Around 3 it was looking like rain and I considered not going thinking it would be called off. When I left the apartment, it had rained at some point between 5:20 and 6:45, but wasn't raining right then, so I put on my new science sandals, grabbed my camera and an umbrella and made my way back to the park outside the building where I've been working.

I was very pleasantly surprised that the park wasn't entirely mobbed. Usually when you go to a free thing in NYC, 3 million other people want to go too. This was wonderful because the park itself was relatively open - even bench seating was available from the North side. The stage was set up near the Shake Shack (I'll review this place later when I've actually eaten there!), and all the tables and chairs were filled with people eating and drinking, and then extra seating in front of the stage was for blankets for people to bring picnics - just like Prescott Park in Portsmouth! People walked though and stopped to listen and moved along, and I actually got a chair behind the sound guy. This wasn't a great seat for watching, but in the middle of fans so very enjoyable!
After the beer I got (a Shakemiester brewed especially for the Shake Shake by the Brooklyn Brewery) I sat, watched, clapped, and did a very good job of not singing the choral parts from Rock My Soul's versions of "Joy" and "Death Came a Knockin'" arranged by Cheryl Lynn Stromski for the group. I'm proud of me for being relatively quiet :)
I decided I had to buy a cd, and of the 8 options, the person at the stand recommended "Runaway Soul" as the most gospel like of the bunch. I just listened to the whole thing and highly recommend it to my gospel loving friends :)
I started on my way out with my CD while the band was riffing on "Death Came a Knockin'" and watched the folks in the middle of the park ballroom dancing! I tried to upload this but blogger nixed that. You can see the last photo (with the girl wearing a see through crinoline skirt as a shirt) that there are people dancing in back.
I mentioned on fb that this was the most fun I've had on my own in NYC, and I'm definitely looking forward to the rest of the MSP music series as this was only the first show.
If you come to the swamp, otherwise known as NYC in the summer, put this on your list :)


PS - Pandora has a Ruthie Foster station for your enjoyment :)

Barbounia, a Mediterranian delight!

Tuesday nights are the preferred Date Night at the LaFleur house. Head out after work, have a cocktail and then dinner. It gives us a chance to try out new restaurants while it's not so busy. We get great service, and aren't overburdened by a full dining room.

This time we came to Barbounia - a mediteranian restaurant that turns out to have delicious food and a gorgeous dining room!

To start we ordered a tray of tastes including tatziki, hummus and babaganoush. It came with a freshly baked flat bread . I asked for some veggie dippers for Rick who is low carbing it, and they were happy to add cucumber slices. They also offer olives, but damn - I just can not seem to like those salty yucky little bits. I like olive oil, and the flavor olives add to a dish, but I just don't like olives to eat. Anyway - nobody forces you to eat olives, and that is a good thing. The tatziki was wonderfully fresh and garlicy, the hummus was fresh and rich, and the babaganoush was light and garlicy. All were very yummy!
For dinner I ordered the Branzino - it was very fresh and well seasoned. I orderd it to be fileted in the kitchen, but I think next time I would have it served whole - the edges were a little over cooked, so I don't think it was fileted after cooking. Rick ordered the steak - he asked for spinach rather than the potatoes. Initially the server said we were unable to make substitutions, however she managed to get the extra side taken off the bill before providing the bill. We were thankful.
Barbounia has a lively bar scene - happy hour specials are only allowed at the bar, but the dining room allows a little more space early in the evening, and we genuinely enjoyed it. Come to Barbounia and listen to your server's suggestions - she knows what she is talking about!