NYC Tastes

Buffalo continues to explode onto the craft brewing scene with places like Resurgence  and  Big Ditch  dotting the downtown area. Now the Southtowns have started to become their own little beer mecca specifically in East Aurora with arguably the best bottle shop/beer store in WNY Aurora Brew Works and now the brand new brewery 42 North.  This sprawling space features a huge outdoor patio in the back with a roaring fire pit, a game room with shuffleboard and life sized Jenga for both kids and adults plus a gorgeous bar made from reclaimed wood in the main area with tables overlooking the brewing tanks below.   42 North has a nice mix of both house brews and guest taps on the menu at all times along with cider, wine and soda for just about any palate to be happy.  We enjoyed the Borderland IPA when we visited and their collaboration with Elm Street Bakery down the block the Elm Street Coffee Porter. For now they just offer a limited food menu.  The...

Hope everyone had a fabulous long weekend celebrating.  Mr. T and I actually spent this New Years Eve alone for the first time EVER and it was fantastic!  Pre-dinner miso wings at Bar Goto, tiki drinks at Boilermaker, a delicious seafood feast at Upstate Oyster Bar followed by my favorite churro's in the world (and marcona ice cream) at Huertas.  It was completely laid back and stress free; something I hope more of my days will be like in 2016. I ended up making it to 7 of the 15 restaurants on my wish list  from last year so right around 50%. I'm really hoping for a bit more this coming year; more excitement, more creativity....just more from the NYC dining scene.    Here's to 2016! 2016 Wish List Untitled Oiji Leaf Bar Bar Bolinas Bigelows Seafood Houseman Red Hook BBQ Llama Inn Ichimura at Brushstroke Quality Eats Seamores L'Atelier Joel Robuchon (come back to me mashed potatoes!) Peller Estates Restaurant 

It was another crazy and amazing year that seemed to go by way too quickly as always.  Things got off to a great start with the return of  Founders CBS  one of my favorite beers of all time.  I really didn't think this would ever be brewed again so I spent the first two months drinking it as much as humanly possible.  Fried Chicken Sandwiches became all the rage; Fuku , Delaney BBQ and the Brooklyn Shake Shack continue to have epic lines for these crispy creations.  The Blue Hill pop up WastED  was also a huge highlight of the year.  It was amazing to see the community of chefs, farmers and retailers come together to shine light on the extreme waste of food in the industry and celebrate these "leftovers" by incorporating them into incredible new dishes.  And as a personal success it only took me two full years but I finally got a  Cronut !   Of course as time passes the culinary landscape must change and...

It only seems right to close out 2015 at one of my old favorites- Gramercy Tavern.  It's been quite a year for Mr. Danny Meyer; Union Square Cafe closing, Shack Shake chicken sandwiches exploding and of course the end of tipping. I have no idea what he's got planned for the coming year but knowing him it will be fantastic.  Here's a look at the current lunch tasting menu: Lobster with celery root and horseradish foam  Flounder with butternut squash, cauliflower and grenada peppers Duck Agnolotti with shell beans, treviso and pecorino Lamb Loin and Shoulder with carrots, kale and sunflower seeds. Chocolate Custard pie with cherry fudge, chestnut and bourbon ice cream (subbed in for the Rice Pudding Quince on the tasting menu) An array of chocolates to round out the coffees... ...and a special Coconut Cream Cake for Mr. T's father; a birthday gift from the kitchen to celebrate his birthday.   Gram...

One would assume that any entering a place with "pizza' in the name means the obvious order is a nice large pie. That still holds true at Emily where the thin, crackly pizza looks amazing but it's actually more well known for their incredible burger.   Emily uses dry aged beef from DeBragga so the patty tastes more like a rich hearty steak than regular ground meat.  It's seared with clarified butter, topped with a thick layer of Grafton cheddar cheese, caramelized onions and a drizzling of the house special sauce (red pepper aioli) then sandwiched between a pretzel roll from Tom Cat Bakery. The meat was insanely tender with deep earthy flavors from the dry aging, a bit of funk from the cheddar cheese and some heat from the sauce which reminded me of Franks Red Hot with less spice.  The extra sturdy pretzel roll held everything together surprisingly well.  That being said I used a knife a fork for the first half of the burger; definitely not something to order on ...

Making the trek out to Other Half Brewing for a beer release every month could seem like a hassle.  It's a long subway ride with weekend service delays and the beers usually sell out early afternoon so a morning trip is the only sure way.  I prefer to use it as an excuse to find an excellent brunch in the neighborhood.  Of course there's the original location of  Court Street Grocers  and their AMAZING breakfast sandwiches right around the corner and the sleeper favorite  Dover  up the street but right smack in between these two is another fabulous spot- Prime Meats. This place is well known for its fantastic burger and Cote de Boeuf dinners, but did you know they also make an incredible Biscuits & Gravy with sunnyside up eggs and Benton's Farm bacon. A monstrous Sausage, Egg & Cheese biscuit with the thickest slab of sausage I have ever seen... ...and a pretty insane Turkey Club piled high with thick cut bacon, bibb lettuce and f...

There have been a handful of critical darlings that opened this year and Virginia's is definitely on the list. This cozy Old World bistro by Per Se and Locanda Verde alums in Alphabet City is just churning out delightful dishes like appetizers of toast points layered with creamy goat cheese, honeycrisp apples and sunflower seeds... ...and beautiful Caramelized Romanesco Salad topped with smoked pine nuts, clothbound cheddar cheese and speck vinaigrette.  You could make a meal of the small plates alone but then you would miss out on some truly fantastic large plates like the hearty Hanger Steak with Argentinian chorizo and bok choy... ...an incredible Sweet Corn Risotto dotted with hunks of okra and plump chanterelles... ...and some of the best cooked Scallops I have ever had in my entire life; crisp and buttery on the outside and silky smooth inside. Virginia's is a fantastic new neighbor in the ever growing restaurant/bar scene...