restaurants

et: milan


1. carbonara!
2. a trip to the market
3. little lunch for the train//italy's answer to the lunchable!!
4. bruschetta at a little place on via ticinese

how italian girls look like italian girls in a country that lives on cheese and prosciutto is beyond me. it's like they have super powers...can i get some of their genes? really, i felt no pressure to eat all of my vegetables in this country.

even though milan doesn't seem to be a big food city, all of the paninis and breads and stuff from the generic little cafes on every block were absolutely delicious and comforting... 
and the aperitivo!
friend sarah took us to a bar in the navigli district for aperitivo, which is like milan's happy hour, but it is so much happier there because it involves an entire buffet of cheese, ham, focaccia, and butt loads of other things. it actually is too good to be true.

on our second day, cold and rain struck, so maria and i fled to our sanctuary {the supermarket} and got fresh pasta, tomaters, kinder eggs, and other goods to make a big fat italian feast. i made carbonara because it was that type of weather. i don't think they have soup weather in italy, i think there is just carbonara weather. it was amazing! {i attribute that to the fun little pasta shape!}


--yeh!!!

restaurant challenge: complete

things i learned, 
things i ate, 
and answers to questions that you probably didn't have {but my mom did}
1. cocks comb is gross, 
so is jelly fishies, 
and shrimps, 
but truffles rock.
2. hot dogs and mac and cheese and schnitzel 
still reign supreme on my list of most favorite foods. 
3. more restaurants should have a menu option that reads something along the lines of,
don't worry about ordering...just sit down and let us bring you food
4. what were your favorite meals?
the ones with a lot of my favorite people and a lot of time 
and a lot of booze:
terroir, piccolo angolo, alinea, to name a few...
and then there were the ones that i was completely obliterated for, 
those were fun! 
5. ok, but food-wise, which were your faves?
i have dreams about the breslin
and i've been back to kesté like a zillion trillion times
and the black label burger at minetta tavern really was worth an arm and an eye ball
and baohaus...oh there are simply too many... 
my favorites were all comfy foods 
{but i did really love momofuku ko, and was astounded by alinea}
additionally, some of the best things i ate this year weren't part of restaurant challenge. 
they were: 
the banh mi at fatty 'cue {photos were kidnapped!}, 
the hot sauce and honey butter chicken biscuit from the pies n thighs booth at the columbus circle holiday market, 
and, of course, 
my 3,000 chicken schnitzel schnitzel truck sandwiches {happy birthday, oleg!}
 6. things i ate for the first time:
cock's comb*, shrimpies*, truffles, fluke, sea bass, venison, duck, lamb, bunny rabbit, manta ray, caviar, salsify, rutabaga, liver, tongue, pickles, bone marrow, foie gras, turnip, tuna, quail egg, short ribs, goat, piggie face, mussels*, squid*, bitter melons*, eel*, seitan*, tempeh*, beets... ok i'm getting embarrassed. 
*ew
7. did you get chubbier?
no. look at this graph i drew that charts my weight:
 see?! i broke even!
8. r.i.p. canteen 82 and xiao ye
9. how are you not poor?
well, my computer is about to combust, 
my phone screen is shattered, 
and i don't love marc jacobs like i used to, 
if that says anything... 
it was just all about priorities and work study money, 
and also winning free schnitzels.
10. whatchu gonna do now that it's over?
not be that girl that takes pictures with her food. 
oy vay i got so sick of that. 
and also i won't feel stressed on saturdays to squeeze in the restaurant for that week.
...in 2011, i might master the art of the tv dinner or something.
or think of another little project, like, 52 dog butts 52 weeks. 
i love dog butts. they so cute. 

bye bye, restaurant challenge!! 

xoxo

yeh