Garlic Rose

Earlier this year my parents visited me in Jersey and we hit up Garlic Rose, a restaurant I'd been dying to try for far too long. Located at 41 Main Street in Madison, New Jersey, Garlic Rose is BYOB, so we brought along a nice bottle of French malbec (my favorite type of wine). This cute bistro was packed to the brim on this Friday night and the scent of garlic filled the dining room, whetting our appetites for dinner.

First off, I just have to say that lots of restaurants bring out bread and oil or butter before your dinner begins, but at Garlic Rose this simple snack is taken to a new level. The bread was soft and warm and the dipping sauce was exceptional. It’s basically a super garlicky pesto sauce, and it tastes phenomenal when drizzled over the bread. I could have been happy just eating this standard fare.

But of course there were many more dishes to try! For one of our appetizers we ordered the Garlicious Escargots—snails served out of shell and sautéed with onions, shitake mushrooms, and basil in a red wine garlic veloute sauce. The snails were cooked perfectly and melted in the mouth with the delightful flavors of the accompanying sauce. 

We also tried the Artichoke Hearts Del Destino, which are egg-battered hearts sautéed with capers and red peppers in a roasted garlic lemon and veloute sauce. These were thankfully not battered too heavily and were perfect for sharing between us although I did prefer the escargot.

From the specials menu my mom ordered Shrimp Oreganato. This entrée consisted of shrimp topped with garlic orgenanato breadcrumbs that were broiled in a white wine, lemon, and butter sauce and was served with seasoned yellow rice. Also from the specials menu my dad ordered St. Peter’s Fish Fra Diablo, which consisted of Tilapia topped with a spicy garlic tomato sauce with hot cherry peppers, roasted red peppers, onions, fresh basil, and oregano. It was also served with seasoned yellow rice. This dish had a really nice level of intense heat and spiciness.

I opted for the Center Cut Frenched Rib Pork Chop. This 12 oz. center cut frenched rib pork chop was broiled to medium doneness in a garlic marinade, topped with a red wine demiglaze, and accompanied with caramelized Fuji apples and Gilroy potatoes. I thoroughly enjoyed this entrée. The pork chop was cooked just right, but the real gem of this dish was the caramelized apples. They added a slightly sweet delightful accompaniment to the pork that was all tied together with the red wine demiglaze. In fact, the sauces on all the dishes we tried were phenomenal—Garlic Rose must have a superb saucier.

Although we were full and satisfied after these appetizers and entrees we couldn’t resist trying the Garlic Ice Cream from the dessert menu. I’ve heard that such a thing exists but had yet to try it. This ice cream was exploding with garlic flavor. There was a very interesting play between the heat and intensity of the garlic juxtaposed with the cool sweetness of the ice cream that made this dessert particularly addictive. It was surprising that the most garlicky item we tasted was the dessert, but it was delicious and any garlic lover should definitely try it out at some point.

I’d been waiting quite a while to eat at Garlic Rose and it definitely lived up to my expectations. If you find yourself in the town of Madison then it’s well worth it to try out this garlicious bistro.  

Nice Matin

Last week I headed into the city for some Halloween debauchery with my sister, her boyfriend, and some of their friends. It was destined to be a memorable night, and I even got to create another alter ego. Maya “Off-the-Hook” Rook—a tough, guidette bitch from the Jersey Shore. (Note to my readers: if you don’t have an alter ego I highly recommending getting at least one. I now have two, and they are both fabulous.)

But before hitting up the New York City nightlife scene, we had to eat. My sister treated me to a wonderful meal at Nice Matin, located at 201 West 79th Street. The menu was inspired by Chef Andy D’Amico and Simon Oren’s trip to Nice, France. The result? An excellent menu and lovely restaurant.

After we each ordered a glass of red wine, first up for the meal was the escargot, which was baked en cocotte with tomato fondue, garlic butter, and bread crumbs. The bread crumbs that topped the escargot were crunchy but quickly melted into a buttery, cheesy softness in the mouth. Each little dish had two snails rather than one, which is how I’ve usually had it. Bonus snails! It was a perfect appetizer—garlicky, buttery, warm, and succulent. 

I knew I needed real food. For the past week I’d had my nose to the grindstone with grad school work and I’d also run out of money, so basically I’d been living off of bread and pasta and vitamin supplements. Not cool. My body was craving vegetables and meat. It was an easy choice to order the soup du jour—butternut squash soup.

When I usually make butternut squash soup I do it as a puree, so I assumed that’s how it would be prepared here. Au contraire, mon ami. Instead, it was a hearty soup with large chunks of butternut squash, mushrooms, onions, and lentils, all simmered in a lovely chicken stock. With the first spoonful I felt my body start to revive. It was exactly what I needed—delicious, healthy, and satisfying.

Sonya ordered the spinach salad, which I partook of as well. Her plate brimmed with baby spinach, aged French goat cheese, roasted beets, pickled onions, hazelnuts, and nut oil vinaigrette. The spinach was fresh and green, the cheese was luscious and creamy, and those beets…wow. They were really incredible, like little cubes of ruby goodness sprinkled over the plate. I really need to start integrating beets into my own cooking. The salad was superb.

After my body replenished itself with the vegetable loveliness of the soup and salad, it was time to move on to meat. I ordered the Raviolis Nissarda—short rib ravioli flavored with orange and sage, red wine daube sauce, and parmesan. It was exquisite. Each ravioli was a pocket of hearty short rib decadence—the perfect balance between pasta and meat. I opted for the smaller order, and it was just the right size for me. I was able to enjoy every tasty bite without being too full.  

Instead of ordering dessert, we each ordered another glass of wine. That’s just how we do. I don’t think I could have eaten another bite, but if I go back I’d definitely want to try dessert—the menu looks phenomenal.

After the meal I was replenished with delicious food and good conversation with my sister. The sun had gone down and darkness was setting in over the city. It was Halloween weekend, and now I was ready for shit to get off the hook…

A New Years Tradition

Over the last three years it has become a tradition for my boyfriend and me to go to the restaurant Provence in Albany to indulge in escargot and a martini every New Years. Provence is one of my favorite restaurants and will receive a proper review one of these days, but our New Years tradition is always one of the most pleasant ways to say goodbye to the old year and welcome in the new.

One of the dishes that Provence does best is their escargots à la bourguignonne. When I first tried escargot I didn’t know what to expect. I assumed it was an overrated delicacy—how good could snails be? I soon found out—so good. Of all the places I’ve tried escargot, Provence is definitely my favorite. They are Burgundy region snails cooked in a traditional style in a cast-iron dish with garlic butter and topped with a slice of brioche. The result is delicious, moist snails that have absorbed the flavorful garlicky sauce and are complemented by the lightly toasted, yet soaked in butter, bread on top. Each order of escargot comes with six snails, so it’s perfect for sharing—especially when your boyfriend always lets you eat four out of six!

Provence also makes a perfect martini, which is my cocktail of choice—Bombay Sapphire gin, straight up, on the dry side, with olives. It’s the perfect drink for the winter time with clean flavors like freshly fallen snow and hints of juniper berries. Like Frederic described in Ernest Hemingway’s A Farewell to Arms, martinis are “so cool and clean” and make one “feel civilized,” especially when sitting at a classy restaurant like Provence.

As the holidays wind down and the new year begins, a trip to Provence is a great opportunity to sit down for an hour, relax, and indulge in a beverage and some of the best cuisine in Albany. If you’ve wanted to try Provence but don’t quite have the monetary means for a full-fledged meal, I highly recommend sitting at the lovely bar and just ordering a cocktail or glass of wine and an appetizer. If snails aren’t your thing, they have plenty of other tasty starters to try.

Bon appétit and happy New Year!

http://provence-restaurant.net/provence.html