I'd Gladly Pay you Tuesday

New Yorkers are currently and always will be obsessed about two things: pizza and hamburgers, most recently we've added ramen to the mix. Depending on what publication you read or who you talk to on where to find the best hamburger in the city, there is much debate. This is where I weigh in and put my two cents. I will not be comparing burgers with foie bourgeoisie, or Wagyu wannabe Kobe, this is based on the all-American beef.

One of my more recent trips out to have a burger was at JG Melon on the upper east side. It was a Wednesday and I had nothing in particular to do but figure out where to have lunch. I decided since I had a veggie burger the other day, let's go for the real McCoy. JG Melon feels like walking into Cheers. As a regular patron you're greeted warmly and immediately seated at your table. I saw what the deal was and headed straight to the bar ordering while taking off my jacket. Smooth move. :) Most times, dining at the bar is far more interesting than sitting at a table, you get to people watch. Oh, and was there juicy gossip to be heard...

Burger- juicy and moist, cooked Medium about 6oz. (I usually keep it safe with anything grounded.) Buns- fresh rolls slightly toasted. Served with pickles, iceberg lettuce and sliced red onions. Fries- cooked to golden perfection, crinkle cut chips. There were so many toppings to chose from but, I wanted to keep it honest with just a little ketchup on the side. It made me such a happy girl I decided to walk the 13 blocks home and work off all that beef and fried goodness.

I have listed a few places that I can recall off the top of my head and assigned them grades.

A= Blue Smoke. Houston's (yes, you heard me, I did not stutter) Shorty's.32. JG Melon. Fanelli's Cafe. SoHo Park. P.J Clarke's.

B= Shake Shack. Burger Joint. Better Burger. Good Burger. Jackson Hole. BLT Burger. Balthazar's. NoHo Star. Kinsale. Johnny Rocket's. Les Halles.

B/C= Lucky Strike. Silver Spur's. Pop Burger. Blue 9 Burgers.

C= Corner Bistro. Sassy's Sliders. McDonald's. Cart burger on the corner of 55th St./Madison St.

*People, White Castle doesn't count, I don't even think it's 100% beef. I'll save mystery meat for another entry to write about...

Happy eating!

Cruella de Ville at the door?

The other night Mei and I finally picked a date to meet up and have dinner. Since most of my friends work in the restaurant industry its tough to meet up like regular 9to5ers. First of all, who the heck wants to eat dinner at midnight or eat at the select few restaurant that cater to the night walkers, Ambien deprived and finally the cook, server or chef who just wants to sit down after a long night of dinner service.

We decided on this Italian joint in the lower east side on a recommendation, the food akin to home style cooking and good, apparently its also one of the most romantic restaurants in the city. Upon arriving at the door, we were greeted by such ungracefulness by the host/maitre d'. Cold. Cold. Boss lady. Ok. I'll wait the hour and a half. It was a Friday and you'd think the atmosphere would be lively and buzzing? mmm... more like somber. We decided to leave. Had we been greeted with warmth I would have considered staying and bared the long wait in anticipation of the Italian cooking. Ultimately, its you who dictates how your evening will proceed, I wasn't in the mood to put up with nonsense. (Money well spent is where it's appreciated.) This restaurant will remain nameless out of respect - until strike 3 occurs.

Down the street was this "dive" bar. It was more of a neighborhood joint filled with the usual kitchy stuff- disco ball, piano in the corner, patio furniture, plastic objects hanging on the wall. It was good, drinks cheap, young white collar types with a few locals in between. As we sat and drank our first cocktail of the evening we were trying to decide where to have dinner. Mei was discussing the finer points of hospitality and how to improve it. Dude. Seriously. Can't we just go out to dinner like normal people and not pay attention to all the damn details it takes to run a restaurant?! LOL. It's just a habit, I guess.

We ended up at Indochine. A great standard. A restaurant that runs so well after all these years of being in operation. The room was packed and buzzing, everyone was smiling and the food was good, I love sharing a meal family style. It was a Friday night and it felt like one, not to mention it was also Fashion Week in Nyc and that JT sexy back sat two booths away from us.

In the end, its all about sharing a good time, enjoying the food and company that matters most. I learned that Miss Mei who loves hamachi dislikes tuna! while I loath uni and am allergic to soy beans. Next dinner out, i'll talk about the food.

Like Jean for Chocolate

One of my most memorable experiences dining out was back in 2001, it was my birthday and I had chosen to celebrate at Eleven Madison Park solely because I had heard their chocolate souffle was the best in the city. I had to investigate.

The first time I tasted a chocolate souffle, I was blown away. My exact statement after the first bite was, "I am going to marry the man who could surprise me with a chocolate souffle." This is how seriously I take the cake.

So here we were, in a corner booth with the view of the entire dining room having this beautiful meal. The chef at the time Kerry Heffernan, comes out to greet us and wishes me a Happy Birthday and also to make sure that our experience are up to USHG standards. Secretly, I'm trying to enjoy the meal, (and I do) and eat a little faster than usual in anticipation for the big event. It takes at least 25 minutes for this work of art to bake.

Dessert finally arrives! I am in heaven. Chocolate goodness! I can die in peace. Yes, folks this is how deep my insanity goes. Do you remember that scene from "When Harry Met Sally," the part where Sally fakes an orgasm and the woman next to her says "I'll have what she's having." I think I actually did have a chocolategasm. To add, the woman in the next booth who was in her mid 50's asked what I was having and ordered one for herself. My date was a bit embarrassed that I couldn't stop gushing with the "oh, my God, this is so good" and other bits of exclamations that's not fit to print. :)

I have yet to find a man who will surprise me with a chocolate souffle. So, I decided to take it upon myself to make one. I went straight to the source- a pastry chef at EMP. My dear friend actually made one for me years ago while we working together at another restaurant, it was the same as I remembered. I did tell him he was off the hook and didn't have to marry me. Chef R was kind enough to share the recipe and convert it to measurements that were easier to follow.

Giddy as a school girl; scared as a cat, I went to task and followed the directions. I didn't want to disappoint myself if it didn't turn out right. I am a perfectionist and hard on people in the kitchen who don't know what the hell they are doing. I reread and reread the directions, made sure that all my ingredients were measured out perfectly. Baking is a science, one false move and its a pound cake, worse a deflated souffle. Disaster.

Before the main event, my partner and I made a lovely dinner. Like the experience of 2001, I secretly was dying to bake off those wonderful lovelies. 23 minutes later... It turns out I may be marrying myself but, I did have help whipping those egg whites by hand... Whew, Success. I celebrated and shared in the glory with my love, my best friend.

There is nothing like the comfort of your home, love in your life and a bottle of

Chateau Du Cru Beaucaillou 2000 to make everything right in the world. mmm... Black berries, silky tannins, great body, sexy nose, right hint of minerality, this baby was ready to go! It was the perfect paring and perfect ending to a wonderful day. Chocolate, love and wine.

My photos aren't the best, working on sourcing a camera for the next posts. Trust me, they were wonderful to the last bite.

p.s. The first year of Gary Danko's opening in San Francisco, his chocolate souffle kicked some serious ass. Haven't been back since, hope its still yummy... Let me know if you've been recently.

L-O-V-E

I created this page to focus on food, wine and life to express how deeply I feel about my life's passions. Since all things in this universe are connected; me, you, the trees, air, bacteria and how we all love each other in a helpful or harmful way, I'll briefly talk about it. Love is a passion.

This conspiracy of St. Valentines Day: a made up holiday so that the masses are guilted into showing how much they haven't expressed their feelings for their loved one(s) during the entire year. I'm not a big fan. Maybe you say I'm jilted, annoyed for all those days I had to work a Valentine's day shift. Watching all the fake smooches, the over the top adoration, the googly eyes, the generic boxed chocolate and the velvety red roses (with baby's breath, ugh.) I guess; good for them, at least someones getting attention for a day. However, love can become dangerous when it isn't mutual and becomes one persons obsession. It can be toxic when you think it must be love, you've been with one person xx amount of years.

Love is free, unforced and kind. Love is known to make people sing and smile without reason.

Lets talk about the everyday surprises that kicks this one day jam packed of forced love and romance of Valentines day.

What is love anyway? Love is listening to your dear friend at 2a.m. hearing her sob and trying to comfort her. When you hear a parent scold a child saying this hurts me more than it hurts you and one day you'll understand. A stranger paying for a single parents grocery just because they had exchanged pleasantries earlier, turns out she couldn't afford all the food in her cart... Truly forgiving those who hurt you and letting go. Self love is the greatest, it is then we can honestly share the love in our hearts.

Romance. The kind that is spur of the moment, not the generic petals on the bed, bubble bath and candles. Although, it is a nice gesture... How about looking out your window of your second floor apartment to see what that strange tapping noise could be, turns out to be a man looking up at your with adoring eyes singing opera in the middle of the day. Having a book delivered to work with a note saying "this will help you relax on this hectic day." Butterfly kisses while snuggling on the couch watching t.v. on a Tuesday. Finding a "mucho mucho" note in your brief case as a reminder that you're thought of all day.

Love and romance is possible seven days a week. You just have to be open. Me, I decide to live my life full of love and romance everyday. Keep it simple. Original

Laughing

Last night while in bed and just before hitting a point of sleep, for no apparently reason I started laughing. Granted, I had a long week and was probably delirious from a lack of beauty sleep, I was a bit baffled by the spontaneous combustion of laughter. I then proceeded to have a lively conversation with myself about all the wonderful things that needed to be taken care of the next day. Meanwhile, the other part of my brain was telling the other half, "what the hell is going on here, were supposed to be sleeping, we have a big day tomorrow?!"

I'm laughing now as I write. I don't know if any of you have experienced this but, if you do; roll with it. Laughter is amazing medicine for the soul. It gives your endorphins a chance to come out and breathe. Allows for a wonderful sigh, and works your smile muscles. All positives! It just feels good.