The foamiest latte in the world

The other day, I encountered the foamiest latte in the world. Its source was Le Pain Quotidien on the UWS, where I was having coffee and a light bite with SB.

I got a pot of green tea. Extra points to LPQ for steaming the side of milk for the tea-- well done.

Tea service

SB got a fruit salad. LPQ's fruit salads are always reliably fresh and varied, so there's that.

Fruit!

And then... the latte. It was a soy latte, in fact. And take a look at the picture-- it's so freakin' foamy it looks like rice pudding. Or oatmeal. I mean, is that not ridiculous??

How do they DO that?

That is all.

Le Pain Quotidien
60 W. 65th Street, at Columbus
212-721-4001

Just go straight to the bomboloni at A Voce

I've been wanting to go to A Voce Columbus ever since it opened. Why? It got good reviews, it was Italian food, it wasn't prix fixe, it was in the neighborhood (kind of)... it was the quadruple threat. It's been a long time in coming, but when Mom and Dad were in town, I finally made it over there. And I wasn't disappointed.

Mom, Dad, LM, and the bro and I were led to a five-person table in the middle of the modern, classy dining room. We all had a little bit of trouble with the chairs, which are bizarre swivel-y office-style chairs (whaa?). But we settled in, and after about a million menu-related questions for our waiter, we finally placed our order.

First, the wine: for the sake of the Wine Century Club, each of us got a glass of a different kind, with Mom and Dad splitting one. For them, it was a glass of grenache and syrah rose blend; for LM, a pinot grigio rose; for the bro, a moscato d'asti; and for me, a garganega-soave blend. This was tangy and a bit tropical-tasting, good with food and refreshing. And for those counting, I'm now up to NINE varietals for the WCC!

So-ahhh-vay

But really, how was the food? First, phenomenal homemade focaccia with whipped ricotta flecked with red chili flakes. The bread was soft and oily in all the good ways; the only thing it was missing was a shower of coarse salt on the crust. The ricotta was some of the most addictive stuff I've ever had. I couldn't stop eating it, first with bread, then with just the tip of my knife. Nom nom nom.

Acre of delicious, delicious bread

For appetizers, Mom and Dad split the "Condiggion" salad, with gem lettuce, friselle, cucumber, and bottarga. Despite avowing to not liking 50% of the ingredients between the two of them, they both really enjoyed the salad, and it's worth noting the kitchen split it onto two plates without even being asked.

Half a salad

The bro went for a starter of one of the verdure options, cauliflower with almonds and golden raisins. It was surprisingly zesty and bright, and the bro really liked it, especially once he got to the juicy bits at the bottom of the bowl. His words, not mine.

Cruciferous veggies

There was a significant wait before the entrees came, during which I mainlined a bunch more ricotta. But the wait was worth it. For his entree, the bro went for the Maiale, pork chops with roasted abalone mushrooms, arugula, and grilled lemons. He loved it, and it was a huge portion.

Double chop

Mom went for the Pesce Spada, swordfish with marinated eggplant, basil, capers and chilies. She also gave two thumbs up, noting that it's often difficult to cook swordfish well, but the kitchen nailed it.

LM got the Pollo al Mattone, fennel and chili marinated grilled chicken, tuscan greens, and gigante white beans. Once again, this was an enormous portion, and she enjoyed it while noting that the chicken got almost a bit chalky by the end. Again, her words, not mine.

Chalky chicken?

Dad chose the ravioli di caprino, which was prosciutto and goat cheese-filled pasta with leeks, pistachios, and parmesan. He said it was over-salted and looked sort of disgruntled.

Salty pasta

My choice was the funghi al forno, an appetizer of roasted trumpet royal mushrooms, fonduta, mache, and hazelnuts. This wasn't at all what I was expecting-- it was much lighter, which on balance was good. But it also wasn't as hearty or decadent. The mushrooms were lightly cooked, which meant they didn't quite get to the point where mushrooms get deliciously caramelized and lose their woodsy funk. The fonduta was tasty but also a bit mild. There were only three hazelnut halves on the plate, so that didn't add too much. Overall, given my high hopes for this dish, I was a bit disappointed, but I think I also just ordered wrong.

Very pretty, at least!

No matter, that left room for dessert. Mom and I both chose the chocolate chip semifreddo, which was chocolate chip mousse, light and pure-flavored with little specks of crunchy chocolate, already melting around the edges and gently frozen at the interior. There was a cocoa pizzelle topping things off, not too sugary with some good crunchy texture. And as a sweet surprise, there was a shallow moat of bitter orange sauce for flavor contrast—just tart enough to wake up the taste buds.

Simple but spot-on

LM and the bro shared the bomboloni, A Voce's signature dessert. Oh MAN were these phenomenal. The texture of these yeast-raised donuts, each between the size of a golfball and a softball, was so fantastically light, it was like sinking into a soft pillow every time the fork hit the confection. Add a dollop of custard in the center of each, a healthy sprinkling of sugar around each freshly-fried exterior, and some bittersweet chocolate sauce for dipping, and you've got yourself some of the best donuts I've ever come across.

Droooooool

As a final freebie, there were confectioner's-sugar-dusted strips of fried dough brought to the table with the check. These tasted exactly how you'd expect they'd taste: like fried egg roll skins. A nice thought, but a little down-market from the rest of the meal, no?

Fried dough.

While the meal overall had its ups and downs, A Voce Columbus deserves four Offset Spatulas. The cooking is thoughtful and interesting, a nice twist on the old favorites you find around town. The atmosphere is sleek and upscale yet still really welcoming. It's a place I'd certainly recommend to others, and I hope I get to return at some point to sample some of the other delightful-looking options on the menu.

A Voce Columbus
10 Columbus Circle, Third Floor
212-823-2523

Pleasant surprises at Perilla

Saturday, KS and I met at Perilla in Greenwich Village for brunch. Perilla, Top Cheffer Harold Dieterle's baby, was surprisingly empty-- but that meant it was reasonably quiet and relaxing for a catch-up brunch.

Perilla is an attractive restaurant, comfortable and classy in an understated way. The space itself is long and narrow, and the striking striped-wood tables make for agreeable visual accents. Beware the bathrooms, which are well-appointed and visually clean but (at least on my visit) not the sweetest-smelling of locations.

But what about the food, you ask? Easy, now. Brunch started with two complimentary lemon pound cake bites. Cake? Yes please. I took a small bite of one of these and it was, in a word, "great." Yep: buttery, appealing crisp edge, lemony zing, all there. Addictive, to say the least.

They look small, but they pack a buttery punch

And then came the real food. KS ordered "two eggs any style"--poached, please-- along with a side of grilled toast and homemade jam. The eggs actually emerged as the "Poached organic eggs" entree (with smoked salmon, english muffins, the works), but they only charged her for the plain poached eggs. The toast was hearty, and the "grilled" part was a creative touch. Overall, a success-- and a lot of food for $8 total!

Eggs with the works

Bread on the grill

Butter 'n' jam

I ordered the "fresh fruit." Again, at $5, this is one of the better bargains in the city, since what emerged was a substantial bowl of plum sections, blackberries, strawberries, grapes, and pineapple. All were fresh and high quality, and the lack of "filler" fruit (grapefruit, rock-hard honeydew, etc.) was very much appreciated.

Fresh fruit extravaganza!

And that was that. For a very low-key, upscale, incredibly enjoyable brunch, Perilla was perfect. And the reasonable pricing and generous portions make it a candidate for one of the best value brunches in the city. On that basis, it earns four Offset Spatulas and a hearty LWF&D recommendation.

Perilla
9 Jones Street, between Bleecker and W. 4th
212-929-6868

Catching up at Cafe Lalo

Last weekend, I met an old friend I hadn't seen in years for coffee. She had just moved to the UWS, so I picked Cafe Lalo as our mutual meeting place.

If you've ever seen You've Got Mail, you'll know the place-- the cute cafe where Tom Hanks finds out Meg Ryan is the love of his life. The real Cafe Lalo is a bit louder and a bit less romantic but a bit more packed with delicious sweet treats. The restaurant is dominated by a huge case packed full of cakes, pies, and other delectables, all displayed alluringly and ready to tempt the taste buds. The music was on pretty loudly and the tables are packed together. But ignore all that and you can have something good to eat.

The menu is actually pretty extensive, and since we were there mid-afternoon on the weekend, we were able to choose from the brunch offerings. NS went for a frozen coffee, which came out as thick and delicious as a milkshake.

Anything that comes with a long spoon is just fine in my book

I went for a large tropical fruit salad. This concoction had some strawberries, grapes, papaya, mango, melon, and pineapple, all a little bit over-ripe but still tasty. My one gripe-- and apparently this is common around town, given my experience at Cookshop as well-- is that they serve this fruit salad piled precariously in a rounded cup with the fruit teetering out of the top. WHY? How is it possible to eat this without spilling fruit everywhere? You have to put pressure on the pile of fruit to spear anything with your fork, which inevitably dislodges the key piece of fruit holding everything together and sends the top layer tumbling to the table. Given that this fruit salad was about $7, that's at least a dollar's worth gone off the bat. Okay, rant over, but please, restaurants, serve your fruit salad in a reasonable vessel, mmkay?

Jengaaaaaaa

That's all. All in all, I liked Cafe Lalo as a place to catch up, and I'd like to return for some desserts. If you're in the neighborhood, give it a try for brunch or another quick bite. Just ask for an extra plate with your fruit salad.

Cafe Lalo
201 W. 83rd Street, between Broadway and Amsterdam
212-496-6031

Brunch at Cookshop gets 'er done

Over the holiday weekend, I met up with PR for brunch at Cookshop. Usually I expect something of a scene there, but maybe because people were out of town, it was actually relatively low key. There were empty tables. The servers seemed laid back. It was actually quite... pleasant.

They started us off with a couple of slices of bread-- standard fare, rustic slices of the kind you see at a bunch of places around town. Add some soft butter and you've got a good carbohydrate base, especially if brunch is a palliative for the night before (not that it was in this case. I'm just sayin').

Starting things off

PR went straight for the eggs and bacon. The Cookshop Scramble came with caramelized onions creme fraiche, and chives; there were big pieces of thick bacon mixed into the eggs, and the whole mixture was plopped on a big ol' buttermilk biscuit. The side salad was studiously avoided as PR made her way through the protein. While the portion was too huge to finish, she gave her hearty approval of the dish overall.

A whole mess of stuff

My choice was the relatively paltry Seasonal Fruit Salad. I'm not sure what season they were going for, actually, since this salad contained the following fruit: banana, grapefruit, orange, pineapple, strawberries. I'm not too big on banana, grapefruit, or orange (note: this is why you should ask what things contain before ordering them), but this salad was decent overall. Everything was fresh enough, and while it was rather small for $6, it did the trick.

Fruit salad in tiny cup

I'm not sure I'm really qualified to assign a spatula rating based on one tiny fruit side salad, but frankly I'm not qualified to assign spatulas in any situation, so I'm going to do it anyway. Cookshop receives three Offset Spatulas. Is it the best restaurant in the city? No. Is it pleasant? Yes. Would I go again? Sure. And there you go.

Cookshop
156 Tenth Avenue, at 20th Street
212-924-4440

A brunch to celebrate Mom

Last week, my mom was in town for the weekend, so naturally we went out for a celebratory Mothers' Day brunch. And, of course, so did everyone else in the world. Since we didn't have a reservation (and all those other people did, it seemed), we were stuck with our less-than-first choice eatery: Nizza. I'd been to Nizza when it first opened and absolutely hated it, so I didn't exactly have high hopes.

But fortunately, those hopes were far exceeded. Service this time was friendly, courteous, and prompt. Bread arrived quickly, and lots of it-- a curious hybrid of cake, cornbread, and focaccia that my mom loved.

Almost a whole loaf here

And our entrees arrived quickly after that. Mom had gone for the grilled shrimp salad, which had chopped romaine, anchovies, pickled onions, croutons, pecorino, and garlic vinaigrette. The shrimp were warm and freshly cooked, their fragrance wafting across the table. The portion was large, and Mom was highly satisfied.

Big bowl o' stuff

My choice was the bowl of seasonal fruits, sans the accompanying Greek yogurt. I was suitably impressed by the small bowl-- the fresh was uniformly fresh and sweet, and the chefs didn't cop out with a lot of rock-hard cantaloupe and sawdust honeydew; rather, this was a melange of pineapple, mango, raspberries, blackberries, and strawberries. It hit the spot.

Little gems

You all know I'm not a brunch person, but when it has to happen, turns out Nizza isn't such a bad choice. As a result of its solid brunch performance, Nizza earns a huge upgrade to Three Offset Spatulas.

Nizza
630 Ninth Avenue, between 44th and 45th Streets
212-956-1800

LWF&D on the PA wine trails, part I: The Glasbern Inn

I've been wine tasting before-- in New Zealand, South Carolina, and Connecticut-- and while I do like wine, I really like visiting wineries more for the awesome sense of place you get from seeing the vines and barrels and talking to the winemakers. So when I got an email inviting LWF&D to tour and review the Pennsylvania wine trails, I jumped at the chance. I'd never had Pennsylvania wine before, and getting out of NYC for a quick weekend in November had its appeal as well. So on the afternoon of Friday the 20th, AV and I set out on traffic-filled roads towards Fogelsville, a tiny town in the Lehigh Valley.

Our destination was the Glasbern Inn, where the Pennsylvania Wine Association was graciously hosting the two of us for the weekend. I will admit I spent quite a bit of time ogling their sumptuous website in the weeks leading up to our jaunt, so I was ready for a quaint country retreat, complete with fireplaces, hot tubs, and good food. And yet even with such high hopes, the Glasbern managed to exceed my expectations for an incredible weekend.

We arrived late Friday evening and pulled up to the main building to check in. As we were greeted warmly, we noted a few couples finishing dinner in the firelight-filled dining room, our destination for Saturday night's meal. Since the Glasbern is made up of a number of different buildings, the smiling hostess showed us where was the most convenient place to park and told us she'd meet us outside our room to make sure we could get in. Everything worked out perfectly, and we clicked open the door to our retreat.

We were housed in room 22, part of the "Farm House." The front door opened into a small living room with a comfortable couch, fireplace, and enormous hot tub occupying the corner. Past the living room was another sitting room with a flat-screen TV and wet bar. And leading up from there was a staircase to the loft bedroom, dominated by a palatial king-size bed and the bathroom in two parts.

Entry room and fireplace

...with hot tub!

The wet bar area in the living room

Stairs up to the bedroom loft

As any seasoned and sophisticated traveler does when entering a new accommodation, we started by playing with everything the room had to offer. AV built a fire, while I investigated the large gift box that bore my name... which turned out to be a case of wine courtesy of the PA Wine Association, along with a Lehigh Valley Wine Trail Cookbook. With a delight like that on our hands, how could we resist diving in immediately? We popped open a bottle of Chambourcin, the signature grape of the Lehigh Valley, from Franklin Hill Vineyards, as I bounded up the stairs to make sure the bedroom and bathroom were in working order. The toilet in separate closet? Check. The enormous sink room occupied by a steam shower larger than my bedroom at home? Check. Note: extensive investigation of the multi-showerhead steam shower concluded that the best way to make use of it was by turning on the overhead rainfall showerhead, turning on the three side jets on either side, and turning in circles with one's arms up in the air to get a 360-degree carwash effect. Just, you know, FYI.

Our greeting gift... 7 bottles of Chambourcin wine

As such

Our first night sample

...and a Lehigh Valley cookbook

View of the bedroom from the stairs

Insane steam shower!!!

And potty closet

Somewhat overwhelmed by our good fortune and insane complimentary accomodations, we fell exhausted into the king sized bed and slept like babies. (N.B.: The only negative we found to the entire Inn was the pillows, which were somewhat less than ideal. If you find your way to Glasbern and have neck problems, definitely BYO pillow.) The next morning, we woke to the sound of cows mooing mournfully-- it was weaning season, the hostess had explained apologetically the evening prior, as the moos rang out through the night air. Did I mention Glasbern is a working farm? Ahh yes, it is indeed, a fact that boded quite well for our full breakfast (included for all guests) awaiting in the main dining room.

Outside view of the Farm House

Our porch

View out our back door

Another house with guest rooms

The weather was bright, crisp, and clear, about as good as it gets for late November, which made the dining room light and cheery. We chose a seat in the sun room, which lived up to its name, and hit up the waiting buffet. I dove right into the cereal (raisin bran for me, thank you!) and the gigantic bowl of impeccably fresh fruit that was calling my name. Also on offer were breakfast breads and muffins, yogurts, and coffee and tea (great selection from Mighty Leaf, for those who are tea people). Oh, and if that spread weren't decadent enough, breakfast includes the choice of a hot entree from a list of straight-from-the-farm breakfast classics, ranging from Eggs Benedict to Creme Brulee French Toast to frittatas and eggs any style. Content with my (three large bowls of) fruit and cereal, I skipped the hot entree, but AV went for the eggs benedict, complete with potatoes on the side, which he pronounced incredible. Sunday morning featured the same incredible spread; this time AV went for a Western omelette with rye toast and uncommonly good sausage.

The breakfast room

Part of the breakfast buffet

My fruit salad, bowl 1

AV's breakfast tableau

And his eggs benedict (day 1)

Western omelette (day 2)

After breakfast, we had a bit of time before we had to set off on our first wine-touring excursion, so we decided to explore the grounds. We saw the cows roaming the pastures and happened upon the chicken coop, presided over by a blissful-looking retriever. Up near the building housing the spa and exercise room (which we used! Because we're good people!), we came upon two billy goats happily munching away at the foliage. We watched them, entranced, for a good five minutes or so, and then felt bad for being such blatant city people. We felt like inverse versions of the tourists standing in Times Square, heads tilted back, gaping and pointing at the billboards. Glasbern offers more comprehensive guided tours of the farm at 9:30 each day, but unfortunately we had places to be, so we skipped back to our room and jetted off in AV's car for a full day of wine tasting-- stay tuned for my next post for a full report of where we visited.

View off the back porch area of the main house

Large cages?

And a blue tree

The Carriage House, another accommodation building

View down the driveway towards the road

Some of the cows, from afar

Little hut to dry the firewood

Goat!

Beautiful puppy

Chickens!!

That evening, exhausted and sleepy, we arrived back at our room and crashed for a nap. But we revived in time to get ready for our 7:30 reservation at the celebrated Glasbern dining room. In the chilled night air, we hiked up the hill to the dining room. While the room was light and airy in the morning, in the evening it was magical-- filled with firelight and lit with sparkling spun-yarn light fixtures hanging from the barn rafters. We were seated at a generously sized table and settled in for the four-course meal.

Our server, Chris, was a delight, returning our every quip with an even wittier quip of his own. He gave us ample time to choose drinks-- a Yuengling for AV, a glass of Chilean Sauvignon Blanc for me. We savored our drinks and the warm bread with herbed butter and waited for our first course.

Bread with butter in the background

We had both chosen the Glasbern Salad, anchored by incredibly tender, flavorful greens from the Glasbern garden. The greens were tossed in a cider vinaigrette and complemented by dried cherried, addictive candied walnuts, a fan of sliced apple, and (in AV's case) Maytag blue cheese. The salad was simple but incredibly well-executed with memorably standout ingredients.

Truly special lettuces

Second course for AV was the celery root soup with walnut pesto and cider reduction. I skipped my second course (limited stomach space and all) but snagged a sip of the soup. Creamy and filling, it tasted like a pure refinement of the bulbous and homely celery root. AV was new to the world of celeriac, but he thoroughly enjoyed his initiation.

A creative soup course

On to the entrees. AV chose the braised beef shoulder with cabbage, fingerling potato, carrots, turnips, and celery root, with almost all ingredients-- including the beef-- coming from the Glasbern farm. AV had been debating between the braised beef and the sirloin of grass-fed beef, another attractive option, but went with the braise because of the abundance of local farm ingredients. And it was a smart choice-- one bite told him that he had made the right decision.

Fresh, healthy, and comforting

My selection was the roasted red ace beets with white beans, heirloom lettuce, and toasted hazelnuts. This was one of the most incredibly flavorful vegetable dishes I've had in a very, very long while. The beets were lively and sweet, and the vegetable-and-been mixture under the beets burst with a savory, creamy flavor I can barely describe. The lettuces laid atop the beets were wilting slightly from the heat of the dish; I gobbled them down with abandon. I can't tell you how thrilled I was with this selection-- I had to physically restrain myself from finishing the whole meal, because there was dessert coming soon...

One of the best dishes I've had in a long, long time

...And once dessert arrived, I was glad I waited. My choice was a classic Local Apple Cobbler, complete with a scoop of cinnamon ice cream melting into the mixture. The large chunks of apples were stewed to a yielding tenderness and were enhanced with the goodness of butter and brown sugar, and the ice cream surrounded the fruit pieces with a swirly of heavenly creaminess. Otherworldly. I was so full I left the last few bites on the plate, but had I even the tiniest bit of room left, they would have been packed away as well.

Apple + brown sugar = what could go wrong?

AV's selection was the Glasbern chocolate cake with peanut butter ice cream. A warm, semisweet, rich chocolate cake was seamlessly offset by the sweet peanut butter; the swirl of berry sauce only added to the insanity. Let's just say by the time we stumbled down the hill back to our warm, firelit happy home, we were incredibly happy campers.

Appealing to the eye and the mouth

By the time we checked out of the Glasbern on Sunday, we were sad to leave. Yes, any traveler staying gratis would be predisposed to like the Inn, but the special aura surrounding the Glasbern cannot be bought (or faked). From the smiling, personable employees to the relaxing, bucolic surroundings to the uncommon amenities (fireplace! hot tub! steam shower!), Glasbern is the kind of country inn every seeker of R&R dreams of. If you are lucky enough to have the means, I strongly encourage you to experience it for yourself. I can only hope that AV and I make our way back there again some day.

Next up: Our adventures on the wine trails (and more!), day 1...

Glasbern Inn
2141 Pack House Road, Fogelsville, PA
610-285-4723