Of course this happens during the time I’m trying to watch my alcohol intake…well I say this now but talk to me again on Friday. In the meantime check out the lineup below and get yo’ DRANK on this weekend. I know I will be…

Thursday, 5/17

The Orchard House;

 146 Orchard St. 

(4:00-10:30 pm)

Naked Lunch;

 17 Thompson St. 

(5:00-12:00pm) 

Centro Vinotca; 

74 7th Ave South

 (anytime) 

Friday, 5/18

Centro Vinoteca; 

74 7th Ave South 

(anytime) 

The Orchard House; 

146 Orchard St. 

(4:00-10:30 pm)

Saturday, 5/19

Centro Vinoteca; 

74 7th Ave South 

(anytime) 

 Sunday, 5/20

Centro Vinoteca; 

74 7th Ave South 

(anytime) 

Savann on a beautiful day in the neighborhood..

Upon entering, I was greeted by the waitress (who proved to be slightly incompetent unfortunately) who sat me in a comfy booth as I waited for Alexis, my date for the evening. The place wasn’t busy, but the few who were in there appeared to be locals. I take this as a good sign. It was a beautiful day and the windows/doors to the sidewalk were open and blowing in a nice breeze. Time for a drink. I had the Huckleberry Lemonade which is what it sounds like: lemonade with alcohol in it. It was good, but very sweet and STRONG. I guess I can allow that.

Enter Alexis. Our friendship is based on the mutual feelings of constant hunger, so we ordered everything pretty quickly and had a nice sampling of the dips and spreads: Cacik, Hummus and Babaghanoush. Classic and delicious, I could eat these every day with warm bread. The cacik with thinner than I expected, but it tasted perfect – cool and refreshing yogurt with cucumbers and garlic – similar to the Greek tzatziki. Went well with our entrees too but more on that later…

"I love dip."

Hummus. God bless the chickpea. Here’s a fun fact about me: I eat hummus every day. I don’t know why but I am basically obsessed with hummus, so I have had my share in this city and Savann’s was right up there with the great ones. Thick and creamy but still had that slightly grainy texture that spreads so well on the crusty bread; a little drizzle of olive oil and mmm…

Awesome hummus

For those of you who claim to not like babaghanoush, I beg for you to give it another try. Smoked eggplant with tahini and lemon, this is probably one of my other favorite Mediterranean dips and Savann’s version was great, but could have used a little more salt. What can I say? I have a salt tooth…

delicious and healthy

Whenever I have Turkish food, I usually have lamb. Why? Because it’s usually awesome. And because I’m Greek so it’s in my blood. Alexis got the chicken kebab platter, and I had the lamb adana (ground lamb spiced with peppers and paprika). It was nothing fancy in the slightest – just meat, rice, and salad. When the food is made with a little TLC and a lot of good seasoning, what else do you need? I thought it was great.

Lamb adana kebab – thumbs up

I can see the lack of pomp and circumstance being a downside to some people, but if you want a good meal, I definitely recommend it. I wouldn’t say I was blown away by it because there was nothing “different” that stood out and let’s face it, as New Yorkers, we look for different because we’re bored with everything. Jaded palates need the thrill of the frill every now and then, but there’s nothing wrong with a meal that tastes like it came from your grandma’s kitchen.

Savann

414 Amsterdam Avenue @ 80th Street

212-580-0202

Fava bean and pecorino Salad from Hearth. Crisp, sharp and delicious.

Spring is in the air!

Border Springs Farm lamb belly with tabbouleh, benne seed tahini and cucumber from Craftbar. The lamb was delicious and tender.

i love lamb

Grilled mackerel in chilled, gingered pea soup with rhubarb and merkén from Riverpark. Merkén is a Chilean spice derived from hot peppers, cumin, coriander and salt. The soup was amazingly smooth and had a nice kick from the merkén.

Smooth and spicy

Gnocchi in brown butter with root vegetables from Barbuto. Jonathan Waxman was cooking this dish himself for the Toast to the Children benefit – always awesome to see a chef actually be there participating in the event! Not to mention the gnocchi was DELISH.

mm butter

Shrimp with organic blue corn grits from Blue Smoke. I’m sure most of you know about my love for Danny Meyer’s restaurants, so naturally, this was one of my favorite dishes of the night. Creamy, seasoned grits and shrimp? Can’t go wrong.

scrimps

House-smoked sturgeon with pickled spring vegetables from Frankies Spuntino. I’m normally not a big fan of sturgeon, but this was actually really delicious. Must have been the combo of the smoked fish and pickled vegetables – the flavors really popped.

surprisingly tasty

Black pudding pie with pear chutney from Saxon and Parole. People were raving about this one. Black pudding pie is not something I normally crave, but I could crave this one. That crust! So buttery and flaky…just give me that and I’m good.

that flaky crust was amazing

Pastrami duck with orange pickled cabbage and black garlic from Craft. I love how chefs these days are making all kinds of meats into “pastrami” aka making it salty and delicious. The addition of black garlic paste was perfection.

pastrami anything = heaven

Kerrygold cheeses and butters imported from Ireland. This was probably my last stop on the “savory train” before heading over to desserts…but let me tell you it took a while to get off that train. These cheeses were SO buttery and delicious, I couldn’t stop; the blue cheese and butter on top of baguette bread was amazing. I actually told the rep at one point that he might have to have me removed otherwise I would never leave.

I could eat cheese all day…every day.

Assorted chocolates and chocolate covered cheerios from Jacques Torres Chocolates. There’s not much else to say here. Chocolate is amazing. And they put this right next to the Kerrygold cheese station. To say that I was manning these stations would be an understatement.

i. heart. chocolate.

Carrot Cake torte with honey mascarpone and candied walnuts from Colicchio & Sons. I love carrot cake, so this was the perfect ending for me. Moist cake with fluffy mascarpone and those crunchy walnuts…perfection!

Beautiful and delicious

Pretzel and Chive Dumplings. I would like to describe the deliciousness of these little pockets of happiness, but I think the pictures can do that for me. I will tell you that they really do have a buttery, pretzel-y taste on the outside, and inside is a pork and chive mixture that is just perfect with the spicy mustard.

you can tell these are amazing..

Saigon Crepes. This is not your typical soft crepe. This is a crispy, eggy crepe with smoked shrimp, chinese bacon, sprouts, and mint on top. Normally, I’m not a huge fan of mint (it’s a blood-relative of cilantro and you know how I feel about cilantro), but it works here. There’s a vinegar-chili syrup that you pour over the top of the crepe and it soaks into the mint and tastes really fresh and delicious. The texture is awesome too – crunch crunch crunch!

Thats a lot of mint!

Inside – see the shrimp and bacon?!

Crispy Oyster and Bacon Pad Thai. Another thing I’m normally not a big fan of is the oyster. That said, if you fry it, I’ll try it. This pad thai was BOMB. The equation is simple: bacon + fried anything + noodles = trifecta.

Mmm pad thai..

Beef Short Ribs. I was concerned that they had only given us chopsticks here, but I soon found out that a knife was not necessary for the short ribs at Talde. They fall apart when you poke at it with the chopsticks, and the pickled onions on top made it even better. If I had any criticism there, I would say that they need to put more of the pickled onions.

Short ribs with pickled onions

So tender

#369 market vegetables. I have no idea why they are called that, but I do know that they were crispy and fresh, albeit kind of boring. They were perfectly cooked but slightly under seasoned. However, I felt good that I got some vegetables in me..

and they photograph beautifully..

Halo-halo. What? Yes exactly. This is a traditional Filipino dessert consisting of shaved ice, evaporated milk, and various toppings ranging from bananas and plantains to tapioca balls. Talde takes this interesting dessert and makes it appealing to the masses. How do they do that? Throw some Cap’n Crunch cereal on it! When the waitress described it to us, I was really unsure about it, but it turned out to be really good! Like a sweet bowl of cereal with a lot of surprises in it and I don’t mean a toy or stickers. This halo-halo had bananas, coconut cream, kaffir lime juice, tapioca balls, fruit, Cap’n Crunch, and condensed milk. It’s their only dessert at Talde, but trust me it’s a good one.

Weird but tasty!

Talde now serves brunch as well, which I’d be excited to try. Guess I’ll have to either get used to long train rides or save up some money for cab fare..

Talde

369 7th Avenue (btwn 11th and 12th streets)

347-916-0031

And since today I can eat all the PB I want and not feel guilty, I would also love these Minis of the Month from Baked by Melissa…they’re Peanut Butter Fluff! Someone out there get on that please..

http://www.bakedbymelissa.com/#/flavorsandsizes/

And check out Bananappeal too while you’re at it..

http://bananappeal.com/

Happy Birthday to me!

Mmm cauliflower sammie..

Cauliflower sub from (where else?) No. 7 Sub. Cauliflower, French dressing, raisins, scallions, potato chips. Be open minded. I promise their sandwiches SOUND weird but TASTE like heaven. Not to mention they’re usually a texture-bomb of deliciousness on your tongue.

Sorry. there was more on the plate but you know..

Ricotta with Chili bread from Allswell. Spicy, crusty bread with cool, creamy ricotta and olive oil..yum. Perfect starter.

Tender perfection.

Lamb Chop with Asparagus and Potato Puree from Allswell – perfectly seasoned and cooked. Everything at Allswell is delicious. I have yet to come here and be disappointed.

Oink.

Pork buns from Booker & Dax (@ Momofuku). Generous pieces of pork belly served on pillowy buns. Mmm. I thought the pork pieces were a little large, which I guess isn’t really a bad thing, but it was kind of hard to eat. The mushroom pork buns were just not worth it. If you’re a vegetarian, you shouldn’t be eating something called pork buns anyway, regardless of whether or not the pork is optional…it’s in the title for a reason.

SO. GOOD.

Peanut Butter Cookie with Espresso ice cream sandwich from The Meatball Shop (original, LES location). Stopped in here for a late night snack with Rudy and Nick the other day, and Rudy knocked the sandwich off the dish at one point, so like a mama bear pretending her cub, I dove for it. With a twist of my wrist and flick of my fork I was able to save it. The things we do for love.

Rhoda Cookies!

Rhoda Cookies for Easter. Ok, so this isn’t something you can get just anywhere (though I think she should sell them), but Nick’s mom, Rhoda, makes these AMAZING chocolate chip cookies. So naturally, we had a batch for Easter along with some peanut butter oatmeal ones as well (on the right). The chocolate chip cookies have been adorably dubbed “Rhoda Cookies” because none of us have yet to taste another cookie that duplicates it. Bravo, Rhoda!

Not only did I get to try a lot of fish that I have never had before, but I also conquered some fears aka touched and ate a piece of a shrimp head. I. KNOW. Never thought I would do it, but it happened. Sometimes in life you just have to say “F it” and dive in with both feet, or in this case, both hands. I ripped off a few pieces and ate them – tasted kind of like a french fry. I couldn’t get into the “meat” of the head though, that would have been too much. Baby steps, baby steps.

Now in terms of fish I have had and/or thoroughly enjoy, I have to say I loved the crispy rice cake topped with spicy tuna and gold flake. Not only does it look gorgeous, but it tasted wonderful.

Beautiful AND delicious

One of the first bites we had at Geisha Table was something I have never heard of before, but it was AWESOME. It was called a “truffle sandwich” and it was layers of truffle, seaweed, sesame seeds and tuna in a triangle sandwich shape. Crunchtastic!! And the truffle flavor was perfectly balanced, and if you have had truffle before, you know that it is an easy thing to overdo. Hashtag. Yum.

Different and amazing

The sashimi plate was out of this world in terms of presentation; the flying fish sets this apart from anything I’ve ever seen from a sushi spot. This is where the shrimp heads sat (eep) alongside salmon, tuna, tuna belly, shrimp, snapper, octopus, hamachi, sardines, and scallops. I can’t say I loved everything, but that’s just my preference for fish – if it’s too fishy, I can’t really enjoy it – but the salmon and the tuna melted in my mouth like butter. Even the snapper was very fresh and the scallops were sitting on lemon slices which gave them a nice citrusy tang. Overall, A+ for presentation, but I prefer a little extra accoutrements with my fish…

Scary? Maybe a little but so cool..

Enter the sushi roll. Sushi chef Don asked me what kind of fish I like and that he would make a roll for me. Awesome! I said tuna, salmon, crab, and shrimp. So I got a roll with…tuna, salmon, crab, and shrimp. Avocado slices, cucumber and shrimp tempura gave it that extra something I was so badly craving. This sushi roll was carb-friendly too, as it was wrapped in soy paper instead of rice.

NOM

Aside from the incredibly small and uncomfortable seats, I had a great dinner at Geisha Table. Seriously the seats are these stools that swivel and the base is perhaps the size of a contemporary dinner plate. But after losing feeling in your butt, you get to focus your senses on the food. So next time, I would probably try the garlic fried rice and some of the sushi rolls which looked like works of art coming out of the kitchen; the colors were so vibrant, you couldn’t take your eyes off of them. I guess life isn’t the only thing that can imitate art..

Geisha Table

2178 Broadway (between 76th and 77th st next to Serafina)

212-595-0094

Obviously Magnolia is known for their cupcakes; I happen to love their banana pudding too, but that wasn’t offered at the tasting. Sad face. That said, the Hummingbird cupcakes, Easter Egg Brownie Bites, Matzoh Crunch, and Strawberry Puree Icebox Cake more than made up for it. The Hummingbird cupcake is made with pineapples, banana and pecans inside, with that famous cream cheese frosting on top. Rarely do I like the actual cupcake as much as the frosting, but this one won me over. Big time.

Mini Hummingbird Cupcakes – delish

The icebox cake looked almost too pretty to eat, but believe me I ate it. It didn’t take long to overcome that hesitation. Delicious strawberry puree is whipped into fresh whipped sweet cream and chocolate. This creamy cake is served chilled. Wonderful for a summer treat.

Pretty icebox cake

Matzoh crunch! Who knew Magnolia could make such a great Passover dessert? Definitely would have been the last place I checked, but YUM. Matzoh Crunch is sheets of matzoh covered in homemade buttercrunch candy and chocolate, then drizzled with white chocolate and toffee bits. It has that salty/sweet crunch and the caramel will stick to your teeth a bit, but it’s worth it.

Mmm Matzoh Crunch

My next favorite cupcake had to be the Devil’s food with edible images on top. These make a great party favor since you can put any image on top – think Bachelorette Party, Engagement, Bridal Shower, and of course, who doesn’t love a personalized birthday cupcake? The cake is chocolatey and moist, while the thick layer of frosting is covered in crystal sugar.

Look how cute!

Magnolia has a whole collection of confections if none of the above appeal to you (which obviously means you’re crazy), so check out their menu here online and stop in for a visit. You can’t call yourself a New Yorker if you’ve never had Magnolia!

I’m not so sure I understand the decor or theme of Highpoint, but it was sleek, comfortable, and the service was great. Michael, our waiter, was happy to recommend drinks and even changed mine when I didn’t like the one I chose (too sweet). The menu really is all over the place, so if you’re not a picky eater, having a helpful waiter around to help you choose the right dish is an awesome thing. So we went with the following to start: tuna tartare tacos (awesome), sliders, and “angry” calamari. In case you can’t figure it out, the “angry” calamari is in reference to the spicy dipping sauce it’s served with, which was almost like an Asian sweet and sour sauce, reminiscent of General Tso’s. The calamari is super crispy and maybe a tad greasy, but it was still quite delicious.

Mmm crispy, fried and spicy calamari

What’s bar food without sliders? No joke, these were some of the juiciest sliders I’ve ever had. Most of the time sliders are overcooked and dry, but these were actually dripping when you bit into them. YUM. Perfect bar bite.

juicy sliders

Did I mention the bread that’s served in a miniature shopping cart? Again, not sure how this plays into the theme of the restaurant, but it’s cute. I enjoy some whimsy with my meal…

Don't know why…but still cute!

Normally when I go to a restaurant that serves mainly bar food, the last thing I’m going to do is order a traditional dish like meatloaf or steak, but everything we had was really good, so we threw caution to the wind and ordered just that. The steak was cooked perfectly, seasoned well, and served with chimichurri sauce and crispy golden fries. If you’ve never had chimichurri on steak, allow me to tell you with force: get on that! Parsley, garlic, olive oil, red pepper flake. It just melts into steak…I can’t explain how much I love the stuff. The meatloaf on the other hand, was a bit underwhelming, but I guess that’s because it’s meatloaf? I was never a big fan.

Steak with chimichurri #NOM

Feeling the effects of early onset food coma, we were about ready to throw in the towel when Michael suggested something called The Caramel Experiment for dessert. I held up my hand in objection, but curiosity eventually got the best of me and I caved. We were glad we did, at least while the sugar was still lingering on our tongues. Now let me explain this one: a platter for two comes out with your usual dessert fondue fixins like brownies, pretzels, candied walnuts, mini cupcakes, homemade marshmallows and fruit. Then you see a large block of something yellow that looks like soap; this is a slab of himalayan rock salt, which gets topped with caramel. Making the connection yet? As the caramel hits the salt, it becomes slightly salty, and the longer it sits, the saltier it gets. So if you’re the type who loves salted caramel (like me), then you will LOVE this. They also give you a bit of melted chocolate on the side if caramel isn’t your thing. Despite busting bellies, we did some damage to that platter.

The Caramel Experiment!

Despite the confusing decor and mixed up menu, I thought the food was pretty delicious. It might even be the perfect place to go if you’re not in the mood for anything in particular, because there are plenty of options that don’t necessarily speak to one genre. And if you’re going to have a crazy menu, why not have it in NYC where the crazies roam freely? Perhaps there is an underlying theme after all…

Highpoint Bistro & Bar

216 7th Avenue btwn 22nd and 23rd

646-410-0120

Website menus: http://www.highpointbb.com/menu.html

The space inside Thymari is not your standard blue and white, Aphrodite, and Parthenon backdrop (thank God); it’s classy, simple and inviting. Exposed brick, soft-lit sconces and an impressive wine collection proudly displayed says “stay a while”. The service is indicative of most Greek restaurants I’ve been to as well: they just want to feed you and make you happy. Fortunately, they picked the right people for the job.

Interior

The menu is a mix of traditional dishes like moussaka and spanakopita, with twists on the staples like feta saganaki, seafood orzo, and cornmeal-crusted calamari. We started out with the traditional Greek salad and the Pikilia, which is an assortment of dips that change daily. On this day, it was babaghanoush (smoked eggplant dip), taramosalata (fish roe), and tyrokafteri (spicy feta). The greek salad was great, but to be fair, it’s Greek salad: tomatoes, cucumbers, red onion, feta, olives, olive oil and oregano. Not much to screw up there. The dips were hit and miss, the one miss being the tarama – I hate to say but it was a little fishy. The babaghanoush was awesome, I loved the creamy, smoky eggplant.

from left: babag, tarama, tyro

If there is one thing the Greeks know how to do, it’s meat. Lots and lots of meat! Loukaniko is one of my favorite Greek sausages, it’s usually laced with orange zest, lemon zest, and a boatload of spices. Thymari’s was delicious, with red peppers, onions, garlic, and plenty of herbs – they make it in house and give you a sizable portion for an appetizer. Good stuff.

Mmm meat!

Saganaki is a popular Greek appetizer (translates to little frying pan) made with a block of Kaseri cheese, floured and pan-seared, then served in the pan with lemon juice. Thymari’s take on this is interesting, and we really enjoyed it. They use feta cheese, “bread” it in sesame seeds, pan-sear it and serve it with a berry compote. If you like feta, you will probably like the contrast of the salty cheese and sweet berries – it was a really nice appetizer.

Feta Saganaki

Whenever I go to a Greek restaurant, I feel it’s my duty to order something with lamb; unfortunately, I also wanted to try a seafood dish. You can’t go Greek without trying the fish! I ordered the seafood orzo, with mussels, shrimp, feta, tomato and fresh thyme, and Cliff had the leg of lamb roasted with potatoes and a honey-wine reduction. Both solid entrees, but I’m going to give the edge to the seafood orzo, only because I’m somewhat of a lamb purist, and I prefer it sans sauce. The seafood and the pasta were cooked perfectly, and the seasoning was excellent. I could have eaten that for two days, but, it’s fish and that probably wouldn’t be a good idea..

Succulent seafood orzo

My brother Cliff can plow through food like it’s no one’s business, but at this point, even he was getting full. We had enough room for dessert, naturally, so we tried two…or three. The baklava (have to), a homemade honey-orange sponge cake, and a homemade Greek panna cotta with cinnamon and almond dusting on top. LOVED the spongecake and the panna cotta; the flavors worked so well together and were perfectly executed. The spongecake is syrupy and sweet with a hint of citrus, while the panna cotta was thick, creamy and perfumed with cinnamon. We devoured them.

What's a Greek dinner without baklava?!

When I met with Kostas, owner of Thymari, he said that his vision stemmed from wanting to create an environment where people can sit, talk, and enjoy each other’s company, all the while enjoying great food. He believes that the food is important, but it’s not as important as the conversation. In my world, I would probably put the food first, but that’s just me…and maybe my brother who said it best: “be snotty, be ineffectual, but at the end of the day, put something brilliant on my plate.” Cliff rarely puts together a sentence I can agree with, so Kostas definitely accomplished his wish: he made me and my brother bond over a good meal. As the Greeks say, BRAVO!

Thymari

32-07 34th ave, Astoria

718-204-2880

Website Link: Thymari