A little My Drunk Kitchen and South Park for your viewing pleasure...
Showing posts with label French Cuisine. Show all posts
Showing posts with label French Cuisine. Show all posts
Tuesday, September 20, 2011
Saturday, November 6, 2010
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.
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.
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…
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…
Monday, August 10, 2009
Julie & Julia
Julie & Julia is truly a wonderful film—the casting was amazing, the story inspiring, and at several points throughout the movie it seemed that the scent of buttery, rich food sizzled off the screen and filled the theater. The film presents the stories of two individuals: Julia Child (the woman who mastered French cooking in the 1950s and made it accessible to Americans) and Julie Powell (a woman of the twenty-first century who cooks and blogs her way through Child’s famous book, Mastering the Art of French Cooking).
Meryl Streep is perfection as Julia Child. The spirit of the woman who food lovers across America owe so much is honored in Streep’s impeccable performance. Julia is portrayed as an outgoing, everyday woman whose large heart fits her stature, who can tame the French’s seeming disregard for Americans, who adores her husband, and who simply loves food. Amy Adams does an excellent job as Julie Powell, who is a frustrated thirty-year old living in a tiny apartment and working in a cubicle, with only food and her husband to turn to for support. Food is inspiration for both Julie and Julia, and the both undertake massive projects, which become the focal points of their lives even as they are discouraged by others. After being trained at the Cordon Bleu in Paris, France, it takes Julia Child over eight years to simply finish writing Mastering the Art of French Cooking, and still the publishers reject it. Julie Powell faces issues at work, with her husband, and several meltdowns as she pushes herself to finish just one task in her life.
Interestingly, it is not food that is at the core of this film though it plays a monumental role in the lives of both Julie and Julia. Food brings them pleasure and gives them each a sense of purpose. However, it is not necessarily a desire to cook or turn to food for inspiration that one leaves the movie with—it is more of a sense that one should pursue whatever she loves in life, not for an end result, but simply for the act of experiencing it. Despite any obstacles or discouragement and without knowing if recognition will ever occur, at the root of Julie & Julia is the encouragement to pursue love and joy in life—to do what you love and surround yourself with the people that love and support you. And to share your joy through it all. Both Julie and Julia could not have imagined what was at the end of their seemingly impossible tasks, but they persisted anyways.
If you love to paint—simply keep painting regardless of if an art critic ever reviews your work or a piece ever sells. If you love to write—simply keep writing even if no one else ever reads your words. And if you love to cook, just keep cooking. In all that you do everyday, let the world inspire you and look for the joy in life, like Julia, in a smile, a sunny day, or a stick of butter…
Meryl Streep is perfection as Julia Child. The spirit of the woman who food lovers across America owe so much is honored in Streep’s impeccable performance. Julia is portrayed as an outgoing, everyday woman whose large heart fits her stature, who can tame the French’s seeming disregard for Americans, who adores her husband, and who simply loves food. Amy Adams does an excellent job as Julie Powell, who is a frustrated thirty-year old living in a tiny apartment and working in a cubicle, with only food and her husband to turn to for support. Food is inspiration for both Julie and Julia, and the both undertake massive projects, which become the focal points of their lives even as they are discouraged by others. After being trained at the Cordon Bleu in Paris, France, it takes Julia Child over eight years to simply finish writing Mastering the Art of French Cooking, and still the publishers reject it. Julie Powell faces issues at work, with her husband, and several meltdowns as she pushes herself to finish just one task in her life.
Interestingly, it is not food that is at the core of this film though it plays a monumental role in the lives of both Julie and Julia. Food brings them pleasure and gives them each a sense of purpose. However, it is not necessarily a desire to cook or turn to food for inspiration that one leaves the movie with—it is more of a sense that one should pursue whatever she loves in life, not for an end result, but simply for the act of experiencing it. Despite any obstacles or discouragement and without knowing if recognition will ever occur, at the root of Julie & Julia is the encouragement to pursue love and joy in life—to do what you love and surround yourself with the people that love and support you. And to share your joy through it all. Both Julie and Julia could not have imagined what was at the end of their seemingly impossible tasks, but they persisted anyways.
If you love to paint—simply keep painting regardless of if an art critic ever reviews your work or a piece ever sells. If you love to write—simply keep writing even if no one else ever reads your words. And if you love to cook, just keep cooking. In all that you do everyday, let the world inspire you and look for the joy in life, like Julia, in a smile, a sunny day, or a stick of butter…
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