BCD in NYC Holiday Special, Part III (or is it??!)

by Xani

Thinking back on this trip, Sunday is a little hazy. It's been almost a month (oops!) since our visit, and the details are hard to conjure up... then again, perhaps the haziness has something to do with the four bottles of pink champagne we downed the night before. It made for quite a morning. We knew the only cure was a delicious, hipster brunch in Williamsburg!

We headed out in the cold to Egg, which we heard had the best brunch in Brooklyn. When we arrived, there were numerous hipsters milling around outside, and a chalkboard propped up against the front window, where names were scrawled and crossed out as the super-nice hostess came out to seat people... she seemed to feel really bad that people were waiting outside in the damp, chilly weather.

After a decently long wait (well, it seems like AGES, but when cold, tired, hungry, and badly in need of coffee, its difficult to judge time), we were finally seated at a cozy little table covered in white paper. The rest of the space was totally stark-- concrete floors, blank walls. Zero atmosphere; this place is all about the food. They did provide crayons so we could dress up our table a little. Our charming waiter quickly brought us french-pressed coffee so we could warm our tired bones (what?). (Also, note that I said the hostess was "super-friendly" and the waiter "charming." "Friendly service-people?? But they're hipsters!?" I hear you cry. Apparently the two are not mutually exclusive. At least, not at Egg.)

Along with the coffee came...wait for it.... donuts! Oh yeah, these melt-in-your-mouth little babies were the perfect sugar rush to go along with the strong coffee. I had already scrawled our logo on the paper in front of me, not knowing donuts were forthcoming. It was a MIRACLE. I think the waiter was confused...

Then we ordered: organic cheese grits and eggs (Stone-ground antebellum grits from South Carolina's Anson Mills, eggs cooked any style) for EP and LP, the country ham biscuit (Country ham from Col. Bill Newsom's Hams in Princeton, Kentucky,served on a biscuit with homemade fig jam, Grafton cheddar) for me, and a side of candied bacon to share. And, omg people, wow, GREAT brunch. So good it cuts through the haze of a champagne hangover and a month's time, and I can taste those cheese grits now....

Just really, really excellent breakfast. My sandwich, with salty ham, sharp cheddar, and sweet fig jam, all perched on a tender biscuit, was sublime. It came with a side of non-cheese grits, but the cheese grits EP and LP got were off the charts. LP deemed the kale (the seasonal vegetable of the day) on of the best things ever. And let's not forget about that candied bacon, which was salty, smoky, crunchy, and covered in a sticky sweet glaze-- in a word, perfection.

So that was breakfast. Afterwards we retired to LPs place to lay around like beached whales until it was time to go to dinner. Yup, we're still eatin'!

Dinner:

Dinner was something I was really looking forward to, as we were hitting another Mario Batali place, and I knew it would be super-tasty. Otto Pizzeria and Enoteca is a more casual, everyday kinda place (well, after eating there, I will say that if I lived in NYC I would want to eat there damn near everyday!). The space is warm and inviting, and we enjoyed (yet another) bottle of Prosecco at the tall tables in the bar before we were seated. Then the six of us (me, EP, LP, LPs boyfriend John, and EP's friend Kerry, who has appeared on the blog a couple times before) got down to the serious business of ordering. This is something of a challenge since Otto's menu is extensive and everything sounded absolutely delicious. So, we did what any reasonable person would do-- go completely NUTS with the ordering!

I can't possibly remember everything we ate, even with the pictures (again, the haziness). There were multiple types of house-made salumi, there were seven kinds of cheese with various accouterments, there were half a dozen antipasti vegetable dishes, there was pasta, there were pizzas, and eventually, there was dessert. These blurry pictures and my inability to recall the particulars of the meal really don't do it justice. Let's just say that my memories of this meal are so wonderful: drinking Italian wine, eating delicious food, enjoying the warm surroundings and good music, and talking and laughing with good friends. What more could I ask for?

Otto was our last meal in NYC before we headed back to Baltimore. We had a freaking fabulous time, as usual, and, as usual, on the train ride home we were already plotting, um, er, planning our next visit. Which will be very, very soon, and to celebrate a seriously special occasion. But first, a BCD family blow-out in LAS VEGAS. Stay tuned!

X

BCD in NYC Holiday Special: Part II

by Erin and Xani

After our first, fun-filled day and night in NYC, Lauren, Xani and I woke up to a snowy Brooklyn on our first morning in NYC. Thankfully the precipitation had ceased so we only had to worry about not falling on the ice and seriously injuring ourselves or others. We bundled up and headed into the City. First stop: The West Village and The Spotted Pig. You long-time readers might remember that I went there with Lauren during my Spring Break trip to NYC last March and we ran into some male models - so hilarious. More importantly, it was so delicious that we wanted to go back so Xani could have a Spotted Pig experience of her own!

On the choo choo to the West Village

Like last time, we had planned on a long wait for a table, but alas, we walked right in and got a table! We think the weather had deterred many from venturing out, but not us - we had a food itinerary to keep, come hell or high water!

We were seated in a cozy back room and got a cup of delicious (and more importantly, hot) coffee.

We once again ordered the Chicken Liver Toast since I had told Xani all about it after my first visit and we, as nice Jewish girls, love our chopped liver. It was wonderfully rich, savory, and sweet all at the same time. It was served on grilled bread which added a great contrast in texture.

Then we ordered our mains. Lauren got the Smoked Haddock Chowder with Homemade Crackers, Xani got the Beef Tongue Hash with Poached Eggs, and I got the Cubano Sandwich with Mixed Salad.

Chowdah with crackers

Rockin' out to beef tongue hash

Layers of cuban goodness

The chowder was really comforting and rich, but still had lots of flavor from the fish and the veggies. It was creamy but not like a giant bowl of cream. The beef tongue hash was also great - clearly we love offal! The cubano was good but not as traditional as it could have been (e.g., they used a crusty baguette for the bread, instead of a softer cuban bread that crisps up better when pressed). Still, it had all the notable flavors of a cuban sandwich: roasted pork, ham, cheese, mustard, and pickles. (That reminds me of one time when I was eating a cuban sandwich at Little Havana with a few friends and they asked me if I kept kosher, to which I responded, "there are two kinds of pork, plus cheese in this sandwich. I don't think so.")

We also ordered a batch of their famous Shoestring Fries. The fries were wonderful - so skinny! (One of the few times the words "fries" and "skinny" appear in the same sentence.) They were cooked with garlic and rosemary, which gave them an amazing aroma and taste. We devoured them - can you blame us??

Before...

After! It was like a Christmas tree with all that rosemary...

Instead of dessert at the Pig, we headed to The Doughnut Plant, a donut place that was featured on "Throwdown" on The Food Network, and recently on "Donut Paradise" on the Travel Channel, amongst other accolades. I was VERY excited to go here since I LOVE donuts and I had heard so much about this place. We caught a [cash] cab to the Lower East Side, where it was one of the few businesses open on Saturday. We scooted into the warm little space to order, and you could tell there was a major baking operation happening on the other side of the wall.

Specials of the day

We had decided to get a dozen donuts and bring them to Ann and Steven's place for a donut tasting (normal!). We got almost every flavor they had, including almost all of the specials. Flavors included: vanilla glazed (raised), vanilla glazed with homemade cranberry-orange jam filling, the same as the former but with a peanut butter glaze to make it a PB&J donut, blackout, tres leches (cake donut filled with cream), pomegranate, marzipan, creme brulee, gingerbread, raised with chocolate icing, coconut glaze with coconut cream, etc., etc.

We got to Ann and Steven's awesome loft just in time for Steven to arrive with coffee for our tasting! We arranged all the donuts and cut them up so everyone could have a try of each. The verdict? The donuts were spectacular! They tasted fresh-baked (a rarity these days) and you could also taste each of the flavors in each donut. For instance, in the donuts with the cranberry-orange jam, you could taste the donut itself, the glaze, the cranberry, and the orange! Really wonderful. Winners for me were the vanilla glazed with cranberry-jam filling, the coconut with coconut cream, raised with chocolate icing, and the creme brulee. The creme brulee donut we saved for last - it was so teeny and had a hard shell of burnt sugar on top, with a rich creamy filling. The whole thing was sweet but had a tint of "burned" flavor, just like the real deal.

Black coffee and donuts! Also note the SQUARE donuts!

Xani tapping the sugar shell on the creme brulee donut

Donuts as far as the eye could see

Check out that jam filling - soooo delicious

After we sat around in a sugar coma for a few hours, we got ready for another birthday-ish celebration we had all been SUPER excited about: we were going to a burlesque show!! We got all dolled up and headed to This is Burlesque, a burlesque revue that is sold out for almost every show!

The gals!

We had great seats, not more than 15 feet from the small stage. As we sipped on pink champagne and nibbled on some appetizers, the show began and the MC came on stage. The MC was a special surprise guest: Dave Attell! He's a pretty famous comedian who had a show on Comedy Central ("Insomniac") and Xani and I were pumped to see him. He is very crass and inappropriate, but still very funny. The show then began and it was really great - the girls were wonderful dancers and singers, and it wasn't sleazy at all. My favorite was the tap-dancing girl, but then again one of them did a routine en pointe which was pretty impressive. And then there was the tassel-twirling - hoo boy! She was very talented indeed.

The show was holiday-themed - can't you tell?

Dave Attell!

Overall, it was a great show and the champagne did flow. Also, Lauren and Ann bought a few little goodies (a bumper sticker and tassels, respectively), which provided us with hours of entertainment.

Cheers!

More toasting, and note Xani's fab hair clip with veil

What a wonderful day and night! Thankfully we got home in one piece and collapsed in BK to prepare for Day 3 - post coming up next!

Happy tassel twirling,

EP & X

BCD in NYC Holiday Special: Part I

by Erin and Xani

First off, my apologies for being MIA on the blog scene! In my defense, I was down in the bayou building homes through Habitat for Humanity (and yes, eating beignets and etouffee) for a week (just like last year) and only recently returned. The post about the fabulous NOLA eats is forthcoming, but first let us present the much-anticipated BCD in NYC Holiday Special posts!! Hooray!

We departed Baltimore on a rainy morning (about 36 hours after my last exam of the semester), and as we headed further and further north on the train (or the choo choo, as we call it) the rain turned to snow and it was like a winter wonderland!

Waiting for the choo choo in Baltimore

The view from our window on the Hogwarts Express!

It was nice to be inside the cozy train car (very Hogwartsian) while it was so cold and blustery outside. That is, until we arrived in NYC and had to go outside and try to catch a cab! After a few minutes in the blizzard, we caught a cab to Cousins Ann and Steven's house in the Flatiron district.

It was a special day since it was Ann's birthday, and we wanted to go somewhere cozy and delicious for her birthday lunch and to kick off the weekend. Ann mentioned she'd like to go to a French bistro, so I suggested the only French bistro I know in New York: Les Halles Brasserie. Yes, folks, THE Les Halles that is the subject of Anthony Bourdain's "Kitchen Confidential" and other books/TV shows of his. I'm not sure if he's even affiliated with the restaurant anymore, but I have read "Kitchen Confidential" more times than I'd like to admit, and the BCD fam has cooked from the Les Halles Cookbook (dark chicken stock, anyone?), so I was STOKED to get to eat there for real. Lucky for us, the restaurant was only about 3 (snowy) blocks away. A Christmas miracle, indeed!

We were welcomed into the restaurant and seated right next to a large window overlooking the snowy and bustling street. It was so lovely to sip wine and be warmed by the heater and talk with Ann and Xani. And then there was the food.

The view from our table - so nice to be inside

Xani and birthday girl, Ann

We started with some escargots and some gratinee (french onion soup). The escargots were wonderfully garlicky and buttery (and so hot I did some damage to my mouth) and so full of flavor. The gratinee nearly made me fall out of my chair. The soup itself was thick with caramelized onions and so intense in flavor from the dark chicken stock, then topped with a crouton and lots of melted gruyere. I hesitated to pass it on to Xani but I knew she wasn't afraid to use her butter knife on me...

Snails + butter + garlic = heaven

Just kill me now...

Next course: steak frites, duck confit, and moules! The moules were classicly prepared with wine and garlic and some herbs, and were delicious and not gritty at all. The crusty bread played a wonderful role here.

The steak frites was also fantastic. We ordered the hanger steak (I think?), cooked rare, and it was so tender and flavorful. (Another neat fact about Les Halles: they do all their butchering on site.) The steak was served with a pan sauce likely made by deglazing the pan with some wine and shallots and letting it reduce (probably finishing with a glob of butter, of course). This sauce was extremely familiar (and thus comforting) to me since BCD Dad often makes a similar sauce when we have steak au poivre at home.

The duck confit was good but it was outshined by the steak and other dishes. I did like, however, the salad served along side the duck, which was a frisee salad with little fried cubes of potato on top - delish!

And speaking of fried potatoes, let's talk frites. I hate to say it, but they were not THAT good. They tasted a bit old. It goes without saying that Xani's fries are far superior (and note that her technique is in part from the Les Halles Cookbook!). But, perhaps I feel this way because I always eat Xani's fries RIGHT out of the oven, whereas in a restaurant, the chances of that happening are relatively slim, right?

Clearly I didn't get the black nailpolish memo

Moving on to our last course: dessert. The birthday girl wanted coffee and profiteroles, and that's what she got. The ice cream was creamy and delicious with the warm chocolate syrup we drizzled on top, plus the nice texture contrast of the cream puff itself.

Action shot

The coffee came with a wee brownie!

We left Les Halles almost three hours after we went in, trekked back to Ann's apartment, and relaxed until it was time for birthday dinner. Yes, another meal. We went to the Hudson Cafeteria and met up with Ann's cousin on the other side, Brian, who was also celebrating a birthday, and his super-fun friends. Plus, Lauren (of Brooklyn fame) came to dinner! It was a very cool space (also Hogwartsian with big long tables and super-high ceilings), with a REALLY cool bar where we had drinks beforehand, and the food was essentially upscale comfort food. No pics of that meal except these fun birthday pics!

Happy birthday!!

It was a lovely time with everyone but we were VERY glad to get to Brooklyn and get some shut-eye in preparation for the rest of the weekend. BCD Holiday Special Parts II and III coming soon! Don't touch that dial (er...URL address bar)!

Cheers,
EP & X

Christmas Eve: BCD travels to Mecca

by Xani

I know you are all waiting, at the edges of your seats, for the BCD takes NYC: Holiday Special posts... how could you not?? But, here's the thing. I know EP really wants to write about the very first place we went to in NYC, and she is currently down in the bayou doing a week of community service, without internet access and possibly without modern plumbing. So, I'm skipping over NYC (for now) and zooming all the way ahead to Christmas Eve. How is this night different from all other nights? For us (jews), it means Chinese food! But not just any Chinese food will do for the BCD family- oh no! We just had to go to the newest Chowhound darling, Grace Garden.

Grace Garden, in Odenton, is now widely believed to be some of the only decent Chinese food in the Baltimore Metropolitan area. While the place is off the beaten path, and has exactly ZERO atmosphere, the Chowhounders are right-- the food is out of this world! It's also gotten praise from the Citypaper, The Baltimore Sun and The Washington Post. Folks are talking about this place, and for good reason.

First of all, anyone visiting Grace Garden needs to know the inside scoop. They have an "American style" menu that I've never even seen-- forget all about that. You have to go for the real-deal Chinese menu, that's where the real goods are. Also, if you want the full experience, you need to do a little pre-planning; a few of the dishes need to be ordered in advance (the tea-smoked duck, which we ordered and loved, needs to be ordered 3 days ahead of time). But wait! I've gotten ahead of myself. Let's start at the beginning....

We arrived at Grace Garden on Christmas eve to find the place PACKED. Luckily they were holding one large table for us (because of our advance order). We had perused the menu ahead of time and were quickly ready to order. We sipped hot tea and soda (GG doesn't have a liquor license) while we waited for the following dishes to come out of the tiny kitchen:

• Chicken Dumplings
  
• Fish Noodles (Fresh Noodles Handmade with Ground Fish, Sautéed with Chinese Sausage, Mushroom, & Cilantro)
• Sichuan Chili Shrimp (Lightly Fried Head-On Shrimp Sautéed with Hot Sichuan Chili Paste)
• Smoke Tea Duck (Whole Duck Steamed in Smoky Tea Flavored Sauce)
• Braised Pork Belly with Mui-Choy (Thick Slices of Seasoned Pork Belly, Slow-Cooked with Preserved Mustard Cabbage)
• Cantonese Stir Fried E-Fu Noodles (E-Fu Noodles Sautéed with Shitake Mushroom)
• Snow Pea Leaves with Garlic (daily vegetable)

What a meal! The first thing to arrive was the fish noodles:

Omg, what a treat. "Fish noodles" might not sound delicious, but oh my, they were. Not fishy at all really, just thick, handmade noodles with a light sauce, thin strips of flavorful sausage, and some still-crunchy veggies. Excellent dish-- and you're not getting anything like this at your local take-out joint.

Next, the dumplings. While fairly standard in concept, they were perfectly executed, with a very tasty filling and homemade, soft (but not TOO soft) wrappings that seemed handmade. These barely made it around the lazy susan before we gobbled them up.

Onto what was arguably the star of the show, the duck. This bird goes through a multi-step process of drying, smoking, steaming, etc, which is why the kitchen needs three days notice to prepare it! But man, is it worth it. Like no other other duck you've had, it was super-rich, fatty and flavorful. It's also served in the traditional "chopped up into random pieces each of which had many bones in it" style-- very Hong Kong.

The snow-pea leaves are a favorite of the BCD family. They are usually served braised (with wilted leaves but still very crunchy stems) and in this case with loads of roasted garlic.

Then onto the pork belly. I hate to talk bad about pig in any form, but sadly this was our least favorite of the evening (although in all fairness, on a previous trip to Grace Garden, it was the best dish of the evening!). The pork belly was just waaay too fatty, and the sauce was kindof blah. GG has several other preparations of pork belly on the menu, and I would definitely try one of those, next time. I'd even try this again-- the first time I had it it was rich and meaty, and the mui-choy (preserved mustard cabbage) had a very unusual texture and flavor. So, let me rephrase: not only would I try some of their other pork belly preparations, I would try this one again, too!

The shrimp and e-fu noodles were up next, and even though we were slowing down, these dishes were irresistible. We've discussed head-on shrimp before... they made headless shrimp seem like a waste of time! So much more flavor. These were lightly fried (shell still on-- adds lots of crunch!) with a nice, spicy sauce. The E-Fu noodles were another repeat from our first visit to GG, and just as good this time. Nice and chewy, with a strong (but not overpowering) mushroom flavor. Just the thing to fill in the corners from all the rest of our dishes.

What a meal! And what a way to celebrate NOT celebrating Christmas. I also want to say that the staff are incredibly helpful and friendly, and the Chef even came out to all the tables to chat with regulars and ask us if everything was up to par. A true diamond in the rough, if you are in the area, and looking for good Chinese, Grace Garden is really one of your only options (unless you know of others, Dear Reader... suggestions welcome!). And with all the great press they're getting, it won't be long until a seat is impossible to come by. Stop by while you still can!

X