Treat House in New York, NY

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In Europe, we do not know Rice Krispies treats; we know the Kellogg's cereals, but it stopped there. I tried them for the first time when Jodi made them for me and loved it, although very sweet and sticky to the fingers and teeth. But I guess it is what is fun about these treats!

So, we saw The Treat House in an episode of Serious Sweets and decided to add it to our wish list. Few months later, here we are, on the Upper West Side, in front of the store, ready to indulge with these decadent cubes. The size of it is perfect so you can try several.

The owners, Chris and Jennifer Russel, Wendy Israel (Pastry Chef), and Michael Trenk, decided to partner with The Food Bank of New York, giving 10 cents from each treat sale and a dollar from each T-shirt sale. So you indulge and give back to the community at the same time.

We decided to get our treats and eat them there, in the small area in the back of the store. We chose four treats:

Caramel and sea salt:

Pina colada:

Chocolate Hazelnut:

S'mores:

These treats were delicious: gooey, delightfully sweet, dense and packed in flavor.

My favorite was the pina colada that had this delicious pineapple and coconut taste, then the salty caramel and the S'mores. I was a bit disappointed with the chocolate hazelnut one, probably because I thought I would find the same taste as Nutella. But overall, these treats are the perfect guilty pleasure for adults and children. Good job Treat House!

Enjoy (I did)!

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Dovetail in New York, NY

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Chef John Fraser, the owner of Dovetail, is no stranger to me. Well I do not know him personally and would love to meet him; it is more that I have a personal story related to one of his restaurant that unfortunately closed few years ago: Compass, located few blocks down from Dovetail. That is where Jodi and I went for a drink on our first date. We went back few times to celebrate our anniversary or other occasions, always having a great experience there.

Anyway, Chef Fraser has an impressive resume: he worked at the famous French Laundry and Taillevent, an award winning restaurant in Paris. I was so thrilled to see how he works his magic.

So, this time I was at Dovetail, located few steps from the Museum of Natural History. I like the place: the decor is simple and elegant. I went with some friends on a Monday night and, to my surprise, the restaurant was packed. 

Menu wise, they offer seasonal dishes. For dinner, you have a choice between the vegetarian menu and the Chef's menu. I went for the latter. 

To accompany the meal, we decided to order a bottle of red wine. A Crozes Hermitage 2010. 

At first, they brought us some amuse. It started with truffled arancini, rosemary crackers and white cheddar corn bread that were all very good and a good way to open our appetite. 

Then, they brought us a delicious leek panacotta topped with honeydew. 

I think the most difficult part of eating that was the tiny spoon they give you...

For the appetizer, I decided to try the steak tartare that one of my friends recommended.

I rediscovered steak tartare during my last vacation in France and start to really enjoy it. This one was prepared with preserved eggplant, brown butter and capers. It is not your usual steak tartare, served with an egg on top, often a quail egg in elegant restaurants. If you always wanted to try, but found that raw ground meat does not look appetizing, you may want to try it as it does not look exactly like a steak tartare, the ingredients being mixed together, the sauce hiding the raw meat color (and the dimmed light helping even more). It was really good and original. They were served with some very very thin crackers for added texture and I truly appreciated the fact that it was well balanced, the capers standing out from time to time.

The second course was a vegetarian dish. I went for the ricotta royale with Summer truffles.

This was my least favorite dish, missing some freshness and I was expecting that the summer truffles would be tasty, with this pungent taste so particular to this fungus, but it was not the case. I should mention the nice presentation of this colorful dish, especially the peas.

For the third course, I went for the Colorado lamb.

I love lamb and was very excited when it came as I could smell it and admired the plating that made that dish very appetizing. If you love lamb, I really recommend this dish: it was served with peas that were crunchy and tendrils that I did not really liked, served like small quenelles.

The meat was cooked perfectly (I asked for medium), being slightly pink n the center, tender and juicy, with a bit of fat that was delightful.

After that fantastic dish, here comes again the all spoon! It was for a watermelon sorbet topped with Korean chili flakes.

It was like a palate cleanser, very refreshing. I did not find any particular taste to the chili flakes.

For the last course, dessert, I ordered the soufflé.

In lots of restaurants, it takes 15 to 20 minutes to prepare a soufflé and they often ask you to order it right away or mention it on the menu so you are warned that it takes some time. At Dovetail, it takes 9 minutes. It is served with a macadamia-pineapple ice cream and a caramel sauce very buttery, not too sweet.

That was a fantastic soufflé: perfectly cooked, with the outside a bit crunchy on tip and the inside deliciously liquid and very chocolate-y. I loved the combination caramel / chocolate (and even ice cream), that make this dessert delightfully decadent and a must have.

I then finished my dinner with a decaf espresso:

And some petits fours: coconut macarons, tamarind pates de fruits and green tea and chai chocolate:

This was a great dinner: the food was well presented, delicious and the service perfect. No wonder why this restaurant has one Michelin star and I would not be surprised that they get a second one ! Chapeau Chef!

Enjoy (I did)!

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Italian dinner Family style at Carmine's in NYC, New York

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There are institutions in NYC and Carmine's is definitely one. It is not just experiencing some good Italian food, but also eating it family style, like you would do at home, sharing huge plates of delicious food, where taste matters more than presentation. So we decided to go there with the Kroners, our Danish friends. Good that we had a reservation, because it was packed, unexpected for a Wednesday night! 

We went to the restaurant on the Upper West Side that is in fact the original restaurant, opened in 1990. This place is huge: I am not sure how many people they seat in the dining room, but it was quite impressive, tables being for four people or more. Well, being two could be challenging considering the quantity of food served, although you can take it home. 

At the entrance is the large bar where you can either wait, drink or eat. 

Upstairs is the dining room. 

The menu is pretty traditional, so there is no surprise there. As we were six, they suggested to order one appetizer, one pasta and two entrees. We kind of followed their advice, although replacing one entree with a (large) side. 

As we were waiting for our food, they brought us some bread. 

The focaccia was just ok for me, tasting a bit stale.

Then came our appetizer: tomato and mozzarella. 

Nice plate: the star was definitely the mozzarella that they make there. It was soft and tasted fresh. 

Then came the spaghetti (store bought) and meatballs that were the size of my fist. 

Coincidently, there were six meatballs; I am not sure if they considered one by person or not. These meatballs were delicious: tasty, not dry with a delicious hint of herbs. 

The pasta sauce was succulent: thick, it is not just made with tomatoes, but also with beef, and you may end up with delicious pieces of meat in your plate. We all finished our plates, regretting that there was not more. 

Then came the chicken saltimbocca:

It is chicken breast cooked with ham and mozzarella, served on a bed of spinach and bathed in a wine sauce. I was not that thrilled by the spinach (I prefer them with cream to offset the bitterness), but really liked the chicken that was perfectly cooked. 

Last was our side: eggplant parmigiana. 

Ok, they call it a side there...It was definitely big, with an impressive presentation, a knife stuck on the thick block formed by the multiple layers. It was delicious, the eggplant really shining. I just regret that there was not more tomato sauce on it. 

Needless to say that we were full at that point (ok, I admit that the hot cocoa and chocolate chip cookie from City Bakery did not help...). So, no dessert. That was fine considering the fantastic dinner we had at Carmine's. I should mention the very good service and the noise level that requires you to scream to be heard. But hey, this is the price to pay and it is worth it. 

Enjoy (I did)!

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Sugar and Plumm in NYC, New York

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For Jodi's Birthday, we went to Sugar and Plumm's location on the Upper West Side, the reason being that the last time we passed by that place, Jodi immediately noticed their coconut cake!!! So, it was Her day! 

The place is fun because it mainly caters to families and it definitely is not where one should go for a romantic dinner! If you really want to go there, but would like to avoid family crowds, it is better that you go after 2pm if not 3pm. 

When you enter Sugar and Plum, you will notice three areas:

The candy area on the right that is amazing! 

Not because if the regular candies by the pound they sell, that are pretty standard. 

But because of the ones made of chocolate, some if them being spectacular, like this red shoe (Jodi loved it!):

or a bottle of champagne:

In the center, various items:

Macarons

Croissants, pains au chocolat or cookies

Pastries, cakes and cupcakes:

or ice cream and sorbet:

Last, on the left, the dining room with its colorful mosaic on the wall, accentuating how fun this place is. 

We started our lunch with the following. For Jodi, the ham and cheese crepe. 

The darker color of the crepe was a clear indication that it was made with buckwheat. There was a nice amount if cheese, however, for $12, I would have expected a salad on the side. Besides being pricey, it was very good and similar to a crepe I would have eaten in Paris. 

So, as there was no salad, Jodi ordered one!

Let's face it: it was just a salad. Nothing to dream about. 

I decided to order the chicken and waffles. I love this Southern concept and it is the perfect example of how sweet and savory can be successfully combined together!

I immediately saw that the chicken was not fried, but probably baked. I did not like it: fry with a weird taste and with the skin missing some crispness. For sure healthier, but who cares!

The waffle however was delicious! Dense but not too much, with a fantastic taste enhanced by vanilla. 

To go with the chicken and waffles, I went for a vanilla milkshake:

It was very good: tasty, it had the perfect consistency which is that I did not have to struggle to get it through the straw, even if that straw was a bigger one.

Then was time for the long awaited dessert!!! The coconut cake:

It was quite appetizing and we liked it although it does not measure up with the one at Balthazar or the coconut cream pie at Billy's. 

I think that if you like waffles or have kids, Sugar and Plum is the place for you. For instance, we witnessed the patience of the staff and their kindness toward children (also the adults!). Otherwise, I thought that some items were overpriced. 

Enjoy (...)!

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