cloudy with a chance of WHAT?!

yes, meatball sized snowflakes

falling from the sky.

someone poured a slushy 

all over new york city

and it's not cherry flavored.

but oh, 

wait 

wait

splish splash splish splash

{that's the sound of me jumping in puddles wearing my new hunter green hunter boots!}

oh

and

hold on...

zoom zoom

zoom zoom

{that's the sound of my airplane taking off for miami tonight}

whaaaaaaaat

that's the sound of a spring break starting in february.

silly, i know.

happy spring break, 

my lovely classmates!!

xoxo

yeh

{pics from here, here, & here}

week 7: lederhosen

subtitle: your spätzle are rubber bands, so let's drown our sorrows.

one of my very best friends, rob, is a near-pescetarian. 
meaning, 
he's a vegetarian,
but he eats fish.
and the "near" part because,
one day a week,
he indulges in the land animal.


and so i knew we would be perfect valentines for each other when he professed his affection for me by saying,
"i'm saving my meat day for you, baybay"
that's true love, if you ask me. 


so, obviously, it was either burgers or schnitzels.
and it just so happened that i was due for a schnitzel.


and so the rob and i navigated about the tiny streets of the west village
until we happened upon
lederhosen
...hidden in a little basement of one of those beautiful west village townhousey things. 


it was so much like entering a german beer house,
that rob and i actually broke out in our best german talky
{we are, after all, scholars of the language}
we were immediately hushed up by our 
sassy "i left germany for a reason and don't want to sprechen the deutsch with you" waitress.


sure, frau, sure.

ok,

so i got:

chickens schnitzel

+

spätzle

+

can you substitute that pickled stuff for more spätzle?

no.

{clockwise from top: pickled shit that no one really eats anyways, 
rubber patty, 
rubber bands}

rob got:
pork schnitzel
a la holstein = with an egg on top
+
taters
+
pickled shit


ditto on the rubber.




i'll spare you details,
but the evening was saved by four things:


1. the massive mural of pretty germany mountains,
complete with scaled down painting of neuschwanstein,
and cows.
2. the happiness and beer-garden-y ambiance that would make it a very pleasant place to trinken a bier with friends.
{a.k.a. i'd go back to this place, but only after dinner...}

3. my pretty jimmies heart that i crafted in my milk during dessert at milk & cookies.
4. rob {duh}




i mean,
a bad schnitzel had to happen sooner or later.
good thing i have 45 more restaurants to go!!




xoxo




yeh






lederhosen is located at bleecker and grove in the west village.
milk & cookies is located at commerce and 7th ave in the west village.

the breslin

since when did everybody in the world become vegetarians?

did i miss the memo that you're not supposed to eat dead anymore? 

why do i feel like i just denounced gay marriage when i take out my turkey sandwich for lunch?

raise your hand if you take bacon in your mac and cheese,

if you can't have pancakes without them being rolled around sausages,

and if you go to baseball games just for the hot dogs.

*raises hand*

i'm so happy to have found

the breslin

to renew my faith in carnivores.

and to remind me that, no, meat eating is not dead.

{no pun intended....}

...

 unaware of what being attached to the ACE hotel really meant,

i expected white table cloths and cordial waiters in all black,

but was pleasantly shocked to find a quirky, two story, vintage-y establishment

run by kool kids in tight t-shirts and jeans.

the moments where i

[a] opened the menu, and

[b] dropped my jaw

were simultaneous.

"i know, it's like porn!" said my new best friend, the waitress.

the amuse bouche was caramel corn.

I KNOW!

not like those balls of cardboard you got on halloween.

this was freshly popped,

with homemade caramel,

and roasted nuts.

...light, crunchy, melt-in-your-mouth heaven.

cracker jacks on crack, if you will.

but,  nothing could prepare me for what was about to happen next...

the appetizer.

{i'm hoping that adding a period after the word makes it sound all a bit more grand and intimidating}

cotechino

with lentils and a terragon and shallot dressing

a house made pork sausage,

herbed uniquely and to PERFECTION...

 piping hot, 

fried

 meaty goodness. 

you could linger on one bite forever.

this honestly has to be one of the best things i've ever eaten.

the main course

came close though...

house made sausage
with polenta and parmesan


&


taglietelle
with pork ragu and rosemary


{pictured is the former}


i almost bit the pops' head off when he tried ordering the halibut.
i told him if he didn't get the sausage, i'd disown him as a father 
{i had already decided on the taglietelle}
and, luckily, ms. waitress was on my side {YES!}
because the sausage was {and pops soon agreed}
amazing.
ok the sausage itself was fine,
but a perfect forkfull of just the right proportions of it and it's friend, the polenta, was just 
deliciously comforting. 
the tanginess of the parmesan meshed so well with the sweet polenta. 
i needed one of those four foot long forks to keep reaching across the table to pops.


the taglietelle 
was very very good. 
i can't say much about it,
because by the time i had finished it
 {in all of two bites :-(...}
i had forgotten to think about it.
oops. 


it was an almost offensively small portion.
but
that's ok
because it gave the pops and i reason to order the
thrice baked chips
served with cumin mayo and spicy pickles
that yelled from the menu,
"eeeeat me!!!"

they were quite tasty.
similar to pommes frites,
but a bit crunchier.


i tasted one of the pickles that came with it.
{i've never had a pickle}
it was fine.
sorta weird.
kinda pointless?
what's the point of a pickle?


whatever, it's time for
dessert

donuts!
ciabatta donuts with navan and banana ice cream
{banana ice cream on the SIDE thank heavens... bananas give me the heeby geebies}


&


chocolate stout syllabub
 with bubbled caramel and crème fraiche 




donuts! can we talk about donuts?!
in 6th grade i once ate an ENTIRE box of krispy kremes in once sitting.
and well, THESE WERE BETTER!
april, these ciabatta donuts are just genius!
they're chewy! sooo chewy! 
and not too sweet, so i could go on and on eating them.


..."syllabub"
is like a fancy word for mousse?
that, too was über tasty. 
the caramel was a bit salty,
and the crème fraiche light,
and the chocolate pearls on top hilarious and charming.


both of the desserts were way satisfying.


actually,




the whole meal was wayyy satisfying. 
i give it like seven thumbs up.
it was so creative. 
not in an out sort of way,
but in a.. this makes so much sense sort of way.


next time i have carnivorous friends visit from out of town,
i'm taking them here.


i mean,
those brits, they just know.


xoxo




yeh






the breslin bar and dining room is on west 29th street, just east of broadway

the petrossian

circa 1994:

"daddy's caviar got taken away at customs because security thought it was a can of bullets," mum explained when a crabby pops returned home from a business trip overseas.

"ma, what's caviar?" asked a four year old me.

"fish eggs, honey," she replied.

"EWWWWWWWWWWWWWW, WHAT THE FUCK?*" 

i was exasperated.

*i didn't actually say "what the fuck."

17 years later, this past saturday:

it's 2pm.

i have just gotten out of my tap class.

and i want a hot dog...

make that two hot dogs

 {from the food stand on 66th}

and fries.

also a burger,

maybe some kung pao chicken...

and ice cream,

yes,

mint chocolate chip ice cream!!!

...so what's for lunch?

caviar.

ugh.

it was time.

it was just time.

pops and i had reservations.

and it was just time,

because,

since that one fateful day in '94,

i still had not tasted caviar.

and if it was going to happen at all,

it was going to be with the pops,

and it was going to be at 

the petrossian

as i approached the beautifully carved piece of art at that is the petrossian,

{a building i've walked by and drooled over so many times on the way to carnegie}

i got the same nervous feeling that i sometimes get as i'm about to perform or take an audition.

i was about to try caviar,

and i was scared!

see you must know, 

i only just tried fish for the first time very recently,

and, still, i only really eat salmon.

so this was a very stressful situation for me to the point where butterflies jumbled in my tummy.

without further ado,

the first course:

risotto

with duck and mushrooms

it was pretty tasty,

sorta cold,

  and i sorta ate around the mushrooms because i am still not fully comfortable with them.

the main course:

{oh geez, here it goes...}

for pops:

cucumber and crème fraiche sandwich,

transmontanus usa farmed caviar

pour moi:

cheese omelette,

transmontanus usa farmed caviar

don't think about it, molly, just do it!

and,

 like ripping off a band aid,

i just did it.

hmmm.

mmm.

yeah.

meh.

bored.

totally bored.

it was nothing surprising because, 

it was exactly the smell of fish,

but in my mouth,

and it was mushy,

and jell-oey.

...and i still wanted a hot dog.

pops' sandwich was fine.

but give me some melba toast and some cukes and i'll make you somethin real nice, too.

and my omelette?

i've had airplane omelettes that were better.

oh heavens, i feel so bad dissing such an institution.

but, really, i can't love a place that serves cold food,

runny omelettes,

and {according to the pops who is quite the caviar connoisseur }

lower quality caviar 

during restaurant week.

dessert was:

red fruit mousse 

&

opera cake

both fantastically mediocre.

i'm sorry petrossian,

you are so pretty.

i wanted to like you, i really did!

but unfortunately,

i don't think i'll be back.

xoxo

yeh

the petrossian is located on west 58th and 7th ave, just below central park.