karendipity cooks: burgers

after watching the barefoot contessa prepare sliders and corn on her grill on foodtv, i was inspired to replicate the meal at home. i combined some recipes i found on the internet with one in my barefoot contessa cookbook to come up with the following recipe. she suggests putting a pat of butter inside each patty, but that's a bit much for me.

mix ketchup, chopped onions, chopped garlic, worcestershire sauce, soy sauce, lemon juice, and brown sugar in a small bowl. make about 2 tbsp of sauce and make sure it tastes okay. then add 1 lb. ground chuck, 0.5 lb. ground sirloin, 3 egg yolks, salt and pepper. form into patties, grill on a hot pan for about 3-4 mins a side. after flipping, i add a piece of swiss to each of derek's patties. in a second pan, i fried some mushrooms with onions and garlic to make his mushroom swiss burger. i prefer mine with arugula and a slice of tomato. i also fried some corn with my fake butter for a side dish. the burgers turned out pretty good, although nowhere as good as the shake shack. i think i need to figure out the "smashing" technique they use.

angelo's

new york, ny

website

my friends and i recently held a pizza tasting - everyone brought their favorite pizza to determine which was the best in midtown east. angelo's won easily. they use fresh mozzarella, great sauce, and tons of basil. the crust is nice and chewy, with a good amount of char. they also have an excellent arugula salad that you can start with, which makes you feel a little healthier. they also serve huge french rolls, perfectly crispy on the outside and soft on the inside.

the pizza is excellent when delivered, but even better when you get it fresh at the restaurant. also, when you go into the restaurant, they serve everything with really good olive oil - perfect for dipping the french rolls and pizza crusts. with a full bar and a casual atmosphere, it's great for hanging out with friends after work.

eleven madison park

new york, ny

website

dinner at eleven madison park is not a meal, it's an experience. i'm not sure my humble writing skills can do this place justice, so i invite you to read frank bruni's take on this place. the restaurant is housed in a beautiful old bank building overlooking madison square park. the service is stellar - this is a place that takes the "customer is always right" motto to another level. and the food - between the hors d'oeuvres, amuse bouche, appetizer, entree, dessert, and all the extras in between - it is sensory overload. it is foodie heaven. i'm going to try to explain the experience, but i'll have to go over my two paragraph limit.

we start by requesting a bottle of champagne from the champagne cart (yes, there's a whole cart) - vouvray petillant brut 2002. after ordering from our menus, the waiter brings the first plate of extras - hors d'oeuvres. these include a beet-flavored marshmallow, celery gelee with truffle, a savory macaroon, something with goat cheese, and my favorite - sweetbreads stuffed in a crispy shell shaped like a carrot. after a while, the waiters bring another extra - mushroom soup with parmesan foam, served with a mini brioche. it's unreal - rich and creamy but light and frothy at the same time. just when you think they're done with the pre-appetizer appetizers, they bring a curious glass container, filled 2/3 with dry rice and topped with a small, black ball-shaped item. what could it be? why, it's a black truffle beignet! of course. upon opening the container, the scent of truffles pretty much smacks you in the head. the beignet itself is doughy and earthy. quite surprising.

now we get to the food that we actually ordered. my appetizer was unbelievable - a farm egg, slow-cooked so that the white and yolk are both the same soft foamy consistency, served with a wine sauce, winter mushrooms, and extremely tender frog legs. again, the flavors and textures are incredibly rich, yet delicate. derek ordered the shrimp wrapped in avocado. for our entree, we shared the bluefoot chicken. the entire chicken was sliced in front of us - the breast meat was served with a truffle sauce with tiny potatoes and leeks. the dark meat was taken back to the kitchen where it was turned into a creamy dish with chanterelles. i didn't like the breast meat (but i rarely do), but the dark meat was delicious. at this point, i was full beyond full and i might have looked at the waiter skeptically when he brought our desserts - a vanilla souffle with passionfruit sauce and the chocolate peanut butter palette. both were quite good. and we're not done yet - next, the waiter presented a large plate full of adorable mini macaroons for us to choose from. i took one out of politeness and simply stared at it. derek really enjoyed his peanut butter and jelly macaroon.

finally, as a parting gift, we each received a lovely little box of housemade jelly candies in grapefruit, lemon, lime, and tangerine. the next day, or maybe a week later, taking a bite of one of the candies and tasting the fresh fruit and delicate texture, is the perfect way to reminisce about the eleven madison park experience.

blaue gans

new york, ny

website

last weekend, derek and i were craving some schnitzel and decided to stroll down to tribeca to join jenny for dinner. we ended up walking faster than expected and arrived at jenny's apartment about an hour early. no problem, we all headed to ward III for some "bespoke" pre-dinner drinks. simply tell the bartender what fruits/flavors/alcohols/herbs you would like in your drink and he puts together a magical concoction. my favorite is when i asked for something with peach and champagne - and the bartender created a peach pie cocktail with a sprig of rosemary! warning - the drinks are strong. one will give you quite a buzz, two will make it difficult to walk to your dinner destination.

we did, however, manage to make it to blaue gans for dinner. before derek's co-worker introduced us to blaue gans, i always thought that schnitzel was some kind of germanic pastry. but turns out, it's pounded fried meat (sometimes pan-fried, sometimes deep-fried). and it's delicious. blaue gans has several varieties of schnitzel. on a previous visit, i had pork schnitzel that was stuffed with ham and cheese. this time, to continue the double-pork trend, i ordered pork schnitzel topped with a bacon mushroom cream sauce. the sauce has an amazing rich flavor and the meat is tender and juicy. who knew german food could taste so good.

haru

new york, ny

website

everyone needs a local sushi place. in new york, it should be within walking distance, preferably just a few blocks. there should always be a seat available. and the sushi should be reasonably priced (for sushi). although you can't expect the sushi to be flown in daily from the tsukiji market in tokyo, the sushi should always be fresh and tasty.

despite the fact that derek and i have lived in the gramercy/flatiron area for over a year, i have yet to find the perfect local sushi place. instead, i've settled for haru. it tends to be a bit too trendy for me with loud music, an unnecessary waterfall, and expensive rolls. but it does have very good cocktails and unique rolls. my new favorite roll is the double toro roll - yellowtail toro, salmon toro, asparagus, carrot and cucumber. sounds strange to be sure, but it turned out to be a perfect combination of fresh fish and crunchy veggies.

6/19/2010: reposted with photo of giant platter of sushi

xoco

chicago, il

website

christine and val, fellow foodies, suggested xoco for dinner. i was very excited because i've wanted to try a rick bayless restaurant ever since he won top chef: masters. xoco is a casual restaurant located next to bayless's more formal restaurants. it's an interesting set-up, like a high end fast food joint. there's a large blackboard with the menu listed in chalk. you order and pay at the register, they give you a number, and then you sit down at your table and wait for a server to bring you your food.

at 7:30 pm on a friday night, the place was packed. they wouldn't let us order until there was room in the dining room for 3 people. after about a half hour, we were finally allowed to order. not one to pass up homemade chorizo, i chose the choriqueso torta with homemade chorizo sausage, roasted poblano, artisan jack cheese, and tomatillo salsa - delicious. the blackboard also explained that xoco grounds its own chocolate in-house, so i ordered a chocolate cafe con leche - which was a bit bitter, but rich and chocolatey. val and christine ordered fresh churros for the table - unbelievable - the churros were perfectly crispy on the outside, steamy and chewy on the inside, and covered with sugar and cocoa bits. an amazing meal with excellent company, unique and delicious food, and even a celebrity sighting ("hey, that's rick bayless walking into the kitchen!").

giordano's

chicago, il

website

chicago, it turns out, is a food city. i wish i had more time to explore the culinary landscape, but i only had two free evenings. the first evening, i told kasi that i was craving chicago-style pizza. the hometown girl takes me to the famous giordano's on rush street for their famous deep dish pizza pie. we order the special, of course - sausage, mushrooms, green peppers, and onions. the pizza takes about 45 minutes to bake, which is just enough time for kasi and myself to update eachother on: our lives, the lives of our mutual friends, and the latest episode of american idol.

the pie finally arrives and it is MASSIVE. we ordered the smallest size available. it's supposed to serve 1-2 people, but the pizza must have weighed at least ten pounds. i'm telling you - there is no way that 1 person can eat the entire pizza. i would be shocked to see 2 people finish it. there's a thick crunchy buttery crust, topped with gooey chewy cheese an inch deep, and another half-inch or so of sausage, veggies and red sauce. delicious. i can understand how someone might want to eat the whole pizza, but i only managed to get through 1/3. kasi succeeded in finishing another 1/3. we had to roll ourselves out of the restaurant, but it was worth every bite.

ariyoshi

new york, ny

link to yelp

jenny and i come here all the time to get their udon noodle soup. it tastes just like the udon i had in japan - perfectly cooked noodles and a rich, slightly fishy, broth (that has probably been cooking all day in order to intensify its flavor). i like to get the pork udon with miso. jenny usually gets the tempura udon with chicken. it's just across the street from our offices - convenient comfort food.

last week, we decided the cold weather necessitated some hot noodle soup. to our surprise, however, ariyoshi had completely changed its menu! it is apparently now an izakaya serving japanese pub food. so we took the opportunity to order some appetizers - the fried tofu and the cold radish with mentaiko mayonnaise - before sharing a bowl of udon. for dessert (pictured), we ordered the tempura green tea ice cream, which came topped with whipped cream and chocolate sauce. yum. so far, so good - we'll have to come back to try the rest of the new menu.

la mangeoire

new york, ny

website

jenny heard that la mangeoire just got a fancy new chef. even though it's a little bit pricey for lunch, jenny and i decided to try it out. the interior of the restaurant is rather dimly lit, but we walked through to the second dining room which gets a little bit more light. once it gets warmer, however, the outdoor sidewalk cafe is the best option.

we both ordered the prix fixe lunch, which is just under $20. the bread basket was a pleasant surprise, warm french bread with soft butter. the prix fixe includes soup/salad (we both chose a very good butternut squash soup), entree, and coffee. pictured is jenny's croque madame, which was much more photogenic than my ravioli niçoise (beef and spinach ravioli in a tomato, black olive & red wine sauce). definitely a comfort food spot.

fried chicken dinner @ momofuku noodle bar

new york, ny

website

large-format meals, where a restaurant prepares a preset meal for a large group of people, are a growing trend in nyc. some examples include resto's pick-an-animal meal and the ssam bar's bo ssam feast. derek, however, loves fried chicken and has had his heart set on the noodle bar's fried chicken dinner since it debuted last fall. momofuku uses an egalitarian online system, so whether you're able to snag a reservation depends entirely on luck and persistence. after months of trying, derek managed to get reservations for 4 of us at 11:45 pm on a friday night. not the best time slot, but with less than 40 reservations available each week, you take what you can get.

the long-awaited night finally arrived, but derek didn't leave the office until 11:15 pm. michelle, jenny, and i also had long weeks at work. so it was four bleary-eyed young professionals who sat down at momofuku just before midnight. a few glasses of wine later, however, we were ready for our giant mountain of fried chicken served two ways - southern and korean. the seasoning on the southern style was a little too salty, but the meat inside was amazingly moist and flavorful. honestly, i've never had juicier fried chicken breast. the korean style was extremely crunchy with an appropriately sticky sweet spicy sauce. an hour and a half later, we had managed to finish about 2/3 of the mountain without falling asleep. quite an accomplishment. it was a delicious and fun food adventure - there's something special about sharing a giant plate of chicken with friends - but next time we'll do a fully conscious trip to bon chon instead.

oh! taisho

new york, ny

website

while vacationing in japan, derek and i generally avoided the yakitori spots - they were always small, cramped, and filled with cigarette smoke. but in new york city, yakitori places are just small and cramped. oh! taisho is one of jinny and kurt's favorite restaurants, so derek and i joined them there a few nights ago. in an effort to make it out of the office in time for our 8:30 pm dinner, i decided to work through lunch. so i was very hungry and tempted to order everything off the huge menu at oh! taisho - there are all different kinds of meat on skewers, bowls of ramen, tempura, other deep-fried items, and various other japanese pub specialities - like okonomiyaki.

thankfully, jinny and kurt took charge and ordered their favorites. two platters of a variety of grilled skewers (including chicken, meatballs, scallions, chicken skin, pork, and chicken gizzards), chicken teriyaki, french fries with spicy cod roe mayonnaise, noodles topped with the same spicy cod roe and sliced nori, and a pitcher of kirin. i loved the spicy cod roe mayo, both with the french fries and the noodles. the chicken teriyaki was surprisingly good - almost as good as seattle's teriyaki - but it was missing the essential thick sweet sauce that seattle teriyaki has. the dining room is small, but it makes for a lively atmosphere - if you can manage to squeeze yourself into the restaurant, oh! taisho is a good spot for food and fun.

pj clarke's

new york, ny

website

dorothy had tickets to see der rosenkavalier at the metropolitan opera house in lincoln square. although jenny and i couldn't spare 4.5 hours to enjoy the opera with her, we met up with her for drinks at the empire hotel. we initially tried to meet her at the grand tier restaurant inside the opera house, but a rather stern ticket-taker informed us that we needed tickets to the performance in order to go to the restaurant. no matter, the empire hotel is just across the street from lincoln center and serves excellent (though very strong) drinks. i had an eau de vanessa - grey goose le poire, pear nectar and white grape juice.

after dorothy left for the opera, jenny and i decided we should probably get some food to absorb the alcohol. the original pj clarke's is located in midtown east - it's an old school new york restaurant. you almost expect the bartender to have a handle-bar moustache. the lincoln square location is new, but has a similar feel. we both ordered the burger. definitely old school - they don't tell you where the meat is from, what cut they use, how long the meat has been aged, or where the produce is sourced from. it has a soft white-bread bun, thick beefy patty, melted cheese, lettuce, tomato, and a pickle on the side. a solid and satisfying meal.

bon chon (boka)

new york, ny

website

michelle, derek and i skipped dinner in order to wait in line to see "sherlock holmes" (which was highly entertaining) so by the time the movie got out at 1:30 am, we were very hungry. michelle suggested bon chon nearby at st. mark's, which is always open late. i've only had bon chon when derek brings home takeout, so this is the first time i've been in the actual restaurant. the st. mark's location is nice - clean and laid-back.

we ordered some lychee soju and a half & half order of chicken - half spicy and half garlic+soy. the lychee soju was surprisingly good. the chicken was amazing. korean fried chicken is double-fried and dressed with a light glaze. this gives the skin a light crispy texture. imagine walking through a foot of snow on the ground, where the top of the snow has frozen. each time you take another step, you have to break through the crispy shell to sink through the soft snow below. that's what this chicken is like - you bite through the delicate crispy skin to reach the juicy meat inside. so good.

doughnut plant

new york, ny

website

i almost wish that i didn't know about this doughnut place. i'm a doughnut fanatic (if you couldn't tell from my blog) and these might be the most delicious doughnuts i've ever had. the icing on the yeast doughnuts has extremely rich flavor (the valrhona chocolate is like eating an expensive chocolate bar) and the cake doughnuts are moist and spiced perfectly. who knew that ordinary-looking doughnuts could be elevated to such heights?

michelle, derek, and i walked all the way to their lower east side location and waited in a 20 minute line. by the time we got to order, they had run out of our favorites - the valrhona chocolate yeast doughnut and the creme brulee doughnut! in our despair, we overcompensated by getting a boxful of doughnuts: three vanilla bean yeast doughnuts (pictured) and a variety of cake doughnuts - the blackout, chocolate, roasted chestnut, carrot cake, and gingerbread. next time we'll need to get there earlier.

super taste

new york, ny

link to yelp

it's only a few days into the new year, but derek and i have already tried two of the five restaurants listed in our 2010 wish list. the first is super taste, a small hole-in-the-wall in chinatown. michelle, derek and i braved the icy cold winds and trekked down to east chinatown (away from touristy chinatown) to slurp down some hot beef noodle soup.

it was 4:30 pm when we arrived, but it was still packed. because the door kept opening with new guests, the restaurant itself was freezing inside. we kept our winter coats on while we ate. michelle and derek ordered the beef in hot & spicy soup, i had the regular beef noodle soup. the hand-pulled noodles were the perfect texture - dense and chewy. i liked the sliced beef and the soup itself was delicious. all for less than $5 a bowl. derek and i are considering moving closer to chinatown so we can have more meals like this.

karendipity cooks: steak

new year's day, we decided to eat at home for dinner. derek went downstairs, picked up some steaks, salad, and frozen ore-ida french fries. derek likes rib-eye, i like strip steak. pretty straightforward and easy.

salt and pepper steaks - cook on medium-high heat for about 5 minutes a side. the french fries crisped in the oven in 10 minutes and ended up tasting like mcdonald's french fries (in a good way). i realize that this isn't very impressive other than the fact that i cooked at home instead of eating out, but it was quite delicious.

little owl

new york, ny

website

yet another restaurant with a lot of buzz but very little space. i think the latest trend in nyc is to have a tiny restaurant that everyone wants to eat at but can't get into. jenny has been trying to get me to go with her to little owl for a few months now, but we've never been able to find time to wait in line. finally, jenny figured out that little owl was going to be open on new year's day for brunch. we resolved to meet there at 11 am (as soon as it opened) to wait in what we assumed would be a reasonable line.

turns out - there was no line at all! the three of us - derek, myself and jenny - might have looked slightly stalker-ish as we peered through the windows at 10:55 am. they sat us immediately and after our server explained that "we're known for our burger," derek and jenny ordered the famed little owl burger. it came with american cheese, so i ended up ordering the meatball sliders. wrong choice - the burger was amazing. a thick peppery and juicy patty, a buttery brioche bun that absorbed all of the juices from the meat, and crispy bacon hidden under the melted cheese. derek has declared it "the best burger i've ever had." high praise indeed.

ruby foo's

new york, ny

website

ruby foo's is an asian-inspired restaurant in times square. the decor is rather cheesy with random fortune-cookie-like sayings painted on the walls and other asian-y touches. some of the food is good - i like their fried rice. derek and i decided to go to ruby foo's for new year's eve because we wanted to be near times square and all of our other options were completely booked. the new year's eve menu was strange - i had truffled shark fin chowder with you tiao (which they called chinese flatbread despite the fact that it is round and not flat) and filet mignon with "ho fun" lasagna. the you tiao was good, but the soup was not. my filet mignon was good, but the lasagna was terrible.

the highlight, however, was the fact that ruby foo's had a special area outside of the restaurant cordoned off for their guests. they also passed out celebratory hats and noisemakers. at 11:50 pm, derek and i headed outside into the cold to watch the famous times square ball drop and countdown. and at 12:05 am, we headed back into the warmth of the restaurant and enjoyed some champagne while listening to two new york city anthems - frank sinatra's "new york, new york" and jay-z+alicia key's "empire state of mind."

dish d'lish @ seatac

seatac airport, wa

website

kathy casey is a fixture in the seattle food scene. i'm not sure what the source of her fame is, but i do know that her dish d'lish in the recently remodeled pacific marketplace is the source of my flight food. i usually order one of the paninis - always gooey and good. there's a comfortable and spacious seating area to enjoy your meal and wait for your flight.

i also picked up a chocolate bar with almonds, some cold chicken, and crackers for my 4.5 hour flight back to new york. the chicken was a bad idea because it made my bag smell like a deli, but the crackers and chocolate bar were excellent.

monsoon

seattle, wa

website

for seattleites, the only thing they have to know about this capitol hill restaurant is that it has its own parking lot in the back. (capitol hill is a popular area in seattle for good food and fun hangouts and it is notoriously difficult to find parking). monsoon has great food too. the prices on the menu look like new york prices, but the portions are larger. the menu also resembles new york menus in that it lists the source of all of the meats like "painted hills filet mignon" and "fulton valley farm crispy drunken chicken" (which were both very good).

the fancy vietnamese-inspired dishes are meant to be shared. in addition to the luc lac and chicken, we ordered the papaya and prawn salad, squid stuffed with duck (pictured), crispy tofu, and asian long beans. there's also an excellent wine list and the waiter was able to explain the differences between the whites available by the glass. derek's mom chose a vouvray and i had a sauvignon blanc. my favorite part of the meal, however, was dessert - we had banana cake, cassava cake topped with a roasted pear, and the coconut creme caramel. amazing.

red robin

seattle, wa

website

another kid-friendly chain restaurant that is great for the adults too. back in undergrad, we used to go to red robin all the time. fun drinks - both alcoholic and non, good burgers, and all-you-can-eat steak fries. i also really like their strawberry lemonade, fish burger, tortilla soup, chicken fingers, onion rings, shakes, and mud pie. did i mention that we used to go here all the time?

my go-to burger is the banzai burger (i order it without cheese). teriyaki sauce on the burger topped with a slice of pineapple. (apologies for not remembering to take a picture until after i had taken a few bites). i also like to order a side of ranch dressing for my fries. solid food for good prices. the kids are happy. the adults are happy. everyone wins.

the old spaghetti factory

tukwila, wa

website

when i was young, i used to think that the elliott street location of this restaurant was really an italian restaurant that had been built in an old spaghetti factory. turns out it's a chain restaurant, originally started in portland in 1969. oh well.

compared to new york city where a prix fixe meal usually costs between $25-35, the "complete meal" at the old spaghetti factory for only $10 is practically free. my favorite entree is the manager's favorite - mushroom sauce (red sauce with mushrooms on top) and the mizithra cheese + brown butter sauce on spaghetti. the mizithra cheese is salty and cheesy goodness. yum. my younger nephew, after trying his mizithra cheese macaroni, proclaimed "i love this place!" me too.

trophy cupcakes

seattle, wa

website

the fancy cupcake craze has officially spread to seattle. these $3 cupcakes were very reminiscent of magnolia bakery in the west village. (although magnolia cupcakes are "only" $2.50 each.) the cake itself is pretty good but i found the frosting to be overly sweet and stiff. much like magnolia cupcakes ...

what i love about this very cute store in u-village, though, is the choice of plastic toys that can be placed on the cupcakes. my nephews are star wars fanatics, so i added a storm trooper and darth vader topper to their cupcakes. they licked off some of the frosting and took a bite of the cake, but they ended up enjoying the toy toppers more than the cupcakes themselves. that said, my brother chris (the frosting fanatic) happily devoured his yellow cake-chocolate frosting cupcake. so if you like magnolia, you might like trophy too.

thai tom

seattle, wa

link to yelp

the best thai food i've ever had. no one else (that i know of) makes thai food like thai tom. back in undergrad, we used to line up outside the tiny restaurant, waiting for a chance to sit at the bar and get splashed with hot oil. the restaurant was so small that you were seated only a foot or so away from the chef's stir-frying frenzy. ryan informed me that the restaurant recently had a run-in with the department of health over some health code violations. but that certainly didn't stop anyone from eating there. including us.

since there was no way we were going to be able to fit 4 adults, 2 children, and a newborn baby into the restaurant, we decided to order takeout. we all ordered our favorites - mine is the tofu pad thai, cindy's is the penang curry, and ryan's is the swimming rama. all delicious. chris ordered the pad see iew, which was pretty good. pictured is my pad thai with fried tofu. it's an incredible balance of sweet, spicy, and savory. the vegetables magically caramelize in the cooking process. amazing. i wish that all thai restaurants could cook like this. i wish i could cook like this. i wish thai tom had a branch in new york. you seattleites are so lucky.

delfino's pizzeria

seattle, wa

website

located in university village, just a short walk away from the university of washington dormitories, delfino's was one of my favorite restaurants in college. my friends and i would walk stop by delfino's first to put in our pizza order, then go study (or shop) at barnes and noble while we waited for our pizza to be ready. they also serve excellent soups and sandwiches if you're in a hurry. my favorite is their deep dish, almost chicago-style, pizza. i say almost because it is not as heavy as the real chicago deep dish pizzas.

recently, they added a slice menu, which is great if you don't want to wait. cindy, chris, baby m, and i were doing some post-christmas shopping at u-village so we stopped by for some salad and slices. i forgot to take a picture of my pizza so the only evidence of our meal is a pretty picture of the leftover salad. the daily slice happened to be sausage and veggies deep dish, which is my favorite. it wasn't as good as the fresh-out-of-the-oven version, but it still brought me back to my undergrad days.

chiang's gourmet

seattle, wa

website

we are regulars at chiang's (every time i'm in seattle), as are all the other asians that live within a 30-block radius of this place. it's always packed. they serve an excellent chinese breakfast on the weekends, including sao bing you tiao (flaky sesame seed-topped bread with a fried donut inside - carb city). an easy way to avoid the crowds is to call ahead and order takeout. my brother chris used to live in the area so he is officially an expert on chiang's takeout.

chiang's has two menus - one for chinese people and one for non-chinese (both in english). it's not a secret - both takeout menus are displayed next to their register. the chinese menu has various organ meat and other dishes while the non-chinese menu has more americanized chinese food. we decided to order a bit from both menus - nian gao (rice cakes with pork and cabbage), honey walnut shrimp, and the "sizzling platter" (chris's recommendation). i admit that i was skeptical about ordering the sizzling platter (pictured) off the non-chinese menu, but it turned out to be a delicious combination of meat, seafood, and vegetables. i should have known better than to doubt chris's takeout expertise.

specialty's

bellevue, wa

website

when i worked in seattle, i would come here for lunch all the time to get a cup of soup, maybe a sandwich, and usually a freshly baked cookie (oatmeal milk chocolate). and now, several years later, they've opened branches throughout seattle, including one in the bellevue square mall.

cindy and i stopped for lunch to fuel up for post-christmas shopping - spicy corn chowder and a turkey pesto sandwich. specialty's soups are always thick, creamy and very comforting. i once asked them if they used cream and they said instead they used some sort of grain to thicken the soup for the texture without the calories. of course you can make up for those calories with one of their freshly baked cookies or a sandwich on their freshly baked bread. so good.

barbounia

new york, ny

website

my favorite thing about barbounia is that it's only a short walk away from my apartment. my least favorite thing about barbounia is the fact that derek doesn't like eating there. fortunately jenny was willing to try it - especially when i told her that their mushroom gnocchi is amazing. unfortunately i forgot to take a picture until i was almost done eating, but see the picture for the last few bites of my gnocchi.

the restaurant serves mediterranean cuisine with a pretty good wine list and a very extensive bar menu. every table also gets warm seasoned flatbread with olive oil that is delicious. both jenny and i ordered off the prix fixe menu. i started with the red snapper ceviche (very good) and jenny had the crispy calamari (also very good, although quite filling). the gnocchi is perfectly light and fluffy with a creamy mushroom sauce. yum.

happy new year!

derek suggested that i do an end-of-the-year post, highlighting our favorite restaurants of 2009 and restaurants we want to try in 2010. looking back at my 2009 entries, i've realized that sometimes my little snapshots don't give the full picture of a place. for example, sometimes we love a restaurant at first, but subsequent visits prove that the menu doesn't always have winning dishes. other times, my blackberry photo makes the food look completely unappetizing. but i'm glad i started this blog, despite all the comments and stares i get for taking pictures of my food ("did she just take a picture of her sandwich?"). i've had a lot of fun sharing my food experiences with my friends, family, and the random strangers who stumble onto this site. hope you've had fun reading.

top 5 restaurants of 2009:

5. casellula the creative cheese plate, the pig's ass sandwich, the chocolate cake covered with cream are all good enough reasons to include this restaurant on the top 5 list. but it's best feature is that we can always drag our friends out of their comfortable midtown west apartments by saying these magic words: "casellula tonight?"

4. irving mill was a little slice of the pacific northwest here in new york, with an extensive beer selection including local microbrews, fantastic shack-like burgers, and a cozy atmosphere. unfortunately, it succumbed to the economy and will close this month. farewell, irving mill, you will be missed.

3. ramen setagaya has turned out to be one of our favorite places to eat. not only is the ramen top-notch and cheap, but the casual atmosphere and the fact that we're always seated immediately has turned derek and myself into regulars.

2. a voce in madison park has delicious pastas with fresh-from-the-farm ingredients, excellent service from a cheerful and enthusiastic waitstaff, and the best dessert in the city - warm bomboloni doughnuts with a liquory vanilla cream filling, served with a melted chocolate dipping sauce.

1. shake shack. of course shake shack is going to top any list of our favorites - the shack burger is heaven on a bun. i hope that as the shack outposts start opening up throughout the city (midtown, soho), the line at the madison park original will become more manageable.

5 restaurants to try in 2010:

1. marea has gotten a lot of raves this year, so i would love to try it (assuming we can get reservations).

2. ma peche aka "momofuku midtown" is set to open sometime in early 2010.

3. blue hill because if it's good enough for the obamas ...

4. super taste was mentioned in new york magazine as having good spicy beef noodle soup with hand-pulled noodles, which derek has been craving since his beijing days.

5. doughnut plant - okay, technically, i've already been here. but well ... i didn't get a good enough picture of the delicious chocolate doughnut ... so i have to go back.