Around the world in 3 meals

Upon my return to the US, I had to catch up on my tv shows and came across a new series on Bravo TV called "Around the World in 80 plates" a cooking competition that as you guessed it- takes place around the world.  One of the contestants is a chef at Fatty Crab, a southeastern (mostly malaysian inspired) destination with several outposts here in Manhattan.  Too be honest, I can't quite remember everything and neglected to capture any photos but I can say that their signature "Chili Crab" and their pork and beef sliders were both terribly disappointing.  The crab dish was perhaps two tablespoons of pulled crab meat swimming in a thick and creamy bowl of chili sauce.  No veggies, no rice, no garnish, it was a bit of a fishing expedition to say the least.  Not worth the exorbant price of $28.  The sliders were spiced with what I believe was an excessive amount of all spice and/or star anise that was incredibly off putting to the point I could not finish it.   The week after we dined at Fatty Crab, the chef on "Around the world" was promptly eliminated from the show....The only redeeming part of the meal was the delicious chicken wing appetizer.  Deep fried and tossed in a sweet soy, chili sauce. the wings  reminded me of the top notch ones at pok pok wing down in the lower east side.

In a craving for pasta and to catch up with a good friend after being away for almost 7 weeks, I researched my way to Osteria Morini, a Michael White restaurant in Soho.  Though they placed us right by the kitchen exit, we caught glimpses of the chefs hard at work preparing what ended up to be a fantastic meal. The insalata mista was mixed greens and spring veggies tossed with sliced salumni and shaved parmigianno which added a wonderful saltiness to the fresh salad. The two pastas were exquisite and perfectly al dente.  One was a simple truffled cream sauce, proscuitto, peas and wilted raddichio while the second was a spinach pasta with a hearty lamb ragu.

In the final segment of this post, I dined at Pio Pio for their entire Peruvian Chicken.  The space was filled with a variety of diners surrounded with a mixture of wood paneling/accents and stone structures all added to a wonderful atmosphere for the evening.  Sure you can get a perfectly acceptable rotisserie chicken at Costco for $5 but this was worth every penny.  Juicy and well spiced and I really didn't feel the need to use the green Aji sauce.

I will say that the spicy corvina ceviche appetizer was excellent, served with gigantic fresh corn and what I can only interpret some sort of nuts/seeds (in the very back, any guesses?).  The slice of boiled sweet potato was a nice touch to counter the acidity and spiciness of the dish.

Spuntino

What used to be the red trolley (a cafe and gelato shop) a block from work has recently been replaced by Spuntino.  And what used to be An's Lemongrass grill next door in that red brick building will soon be a Park Burger (projected to open late february!).  In addition to a rotating lineup of gelato flavors like pistachio and chocolate salted caramel they also offer flatbreads, paninis, and salads and housemade tarts (think lemon basil curd) napoleans and tiramisu in their display cases.  The price are on the high side ($8-$10) for their little eats so we decided to share one of their flatbreads topped with stracchino, proscuitto and arugula.  Upon placing our order, we watched the cook or food artist whatever you call those people pull out a small ball of dough and proceeded to roll it out until it was a quarter of an inch thick before throwing it down on the flat top.  He then brought out a 5lb slab of proscuitto and shaved off several slices for the flatbread.  I supposed this is what "made to order" looks like!  I wonder if they cure their own meats?

The melted stracchino cheese was followed by the proscuitto and generous handfuls of peppery arugula.  As we ate it, the warm flatbread was less like a  pita or a chewy pizza dough but more like a flakey pastry dough.  I felt as though the arugula could been dressed with some acid like red wine vinegar or lemon juice to cut through the richness of the cheese and proscuitto.  It was a decent sized portion for "little eats" however for $10, i doubt i'll be running back for a seconds.  I wasn't in the mood for dessert either which is a shocker but i will return for the gelato and definitely those gourmet popsicles (think celery lime or blueberry basil) in the warmer months.  Despite being open for less than a month, westword has already raved about the popsicles as one of their favorite foods for 2011.

Plate score: 7

Trattoria stella (website currently down) is located just a few doors down from common grounds and the  three dogs tavern on 32nd avenue in the highlands.  With a two tiered patio, we were seated near the entrance and quickly noticed that housemade pasta dominated half the menu.  It was a game time decision but i settled on the 32nd street pasta, apparently a house specialty where as my friend settled on a classic spaghetti arrabiata (spicy tomato sauce).  My dish was pretty disappointing as the 32nd street pasta with tiger shrimp,, sun dried cherries, and goat cheese in a spicy lemon garlic olive oil sauce was pretty much a disaster.  The first problem was there was no sauce.....it was dry and both of us agreed it was flavorless, which made the dish taste only like goat cheese.  My friend's spaghetti arrabiata on the other hand was delicious, a classic dish that was well executed.  My dish was a 2 but hers was a an 8. The jury is still out.


So groupons are great when the restaurants are great.  I had read a lot about cafe bisque in lakewood highlighted as an amazing brunch spot in 5280 last year but when we drove up on saturday, we found it located in a small strip mall with just a few cars.  We were suprised to find only 4 occupied tables. The server asked if we wanted to sit inside or out, since it was a beautiful day, we quickly replied outside.  Apparently "outside" in lakewood means sitting in the entryway of a medical building/mall with skylight.  We found this to be hilarious in addition to the christmas lights that wrapped the railing by our umbrella and patio furniture.  The menu was a mix of brunch specialties, sandwiches and salads.  I settled on a duck confit salad with goat cheese, cranberries, and tomatoes.  The duck was good but nothing special.  My friend settled on the strawberry vanilla pancakes.  The strawberries were served defrosting on the pancakes.  Slow business does not mean it is ok to use frozen berries.  Use a different fruit next time.  We pushed aside the mess to eat the pancake but was not impressed.  I will not be returning.

Plate score: 3

South Broadway has been a new go to spot for me.  I recently gave mixed reviews to Beatrice and Woodsley and this time Deluxe just a few doors down faired much better.  The interior is a small space with a dozen tables, dim lighting, an exposed and large circular mirrors to give an illusion of a larger room.  To start, my friend and I shared a cesar salad and the monsoon dumplings.  The cesar salad was fresh with a parmesan tuile, however the monsoon dumplings were disappointing.  The filling was stiff more comparable to a chewy meatball and the "deluxe sauce" was a spicy lime (thus excessively sour) broth.  The star of the meal was my friend's paella, a heaping pile of rice with chicken, chorizo, mussels and shrimp.  It was absolutely delicious, served piping hot with delicate white wine and saffron flavors.  My smoked pork chop, though slightly overcooked had great flavor, the housemade chipotle bbq sauce, cabbage slaw and deluxe fries were solid accompainments.   Overall, the main courses were great with the star definitely being the seafood paella but the service needs work.  Our water glasses were empty for quite some time and our waiter manually transferred a piece of flatbread to my bread plate.  Pretty sure that is not ok.  We watched the next table indulge in a homemade ice cream sandwich of flourless chocolate cake and vanilla ice cream, but didn't have the room to order our own, maybe next time.

Plate score:  8.5

Locanda Del Borgo

Locanda del Borgo is a small italian eatery located in a tiny shopping center at intersection of 3rd avenue and holly st about 10 blocks east of colorado blvd. The place needs a larger and more visible sign on the outside as we couldn't actually see the name until we were 3 feet from the door.

Nevertheless, i thoroughly enjoyed my meal, friend on the other hand had some minor issues. I ordered a classic cesar salad which by the way if prepared properly is NOT a cream/mayo based dressing. The ice cold romaine lettuce was tossed with just enough dressing served with a perfect portion of shaved parmesan. My entree was a perfect portion of al dente rigatoni alla bolognese, a slow braised chunky beef and veal sauce. It was simple yet wonderfully delicious.

My friend ordered a disappointing fettuccini with house made sausage, porcini mushrooms tossed in a garlic cream sauce. It was super salty most likely from the sausage and the sauce was overwhelming garlicky....

Obviously there are things on the menu that are better than others however it seems that this place does the simple things well....

Plate score: 8