This "Pen" Is Mighty
THE PENROSE | 1590 2nd Ave. (bet. 83rd & 82nd Sts.) | 212.203.2751 | PenroseBar.com
Dive Into The Seahorse Tavern
...The Seahorse Tavern represents a long overdue post for real adults to chow down on some down-home chowder, sling back some raw Blue Point oysters with a pint of Blue Moon Belgian Wheat Ale, or enjoy Basque-style mussels and lemon sole with a friend or date over a bottle of moschofilero from Greece.... [Full Post]
Germanic Monday
...The sausage loaf had the texture of a refined thick slice of good bologna, and was flavored by a rich combination of spices. This was a great dais for the soft-fried egg and a hit a ground mustard, which together augmented the leberkäse's unctuousness and almost guilty amount of porkiness. The runny yolk of the egg, which I'm always a fan of, evenly integrated the texture dichotomies between the hot protein and the chilled finely chopped yet still toothsome potato salad.... [Full Post]
Getting "Red"-dy
...But we now have a new chef, who is putting his on take on items we already had, such as fried calamari and chili, and coming up with some new grub, such as a fried pickle spears appetizer (served with chipotle mayo!) and the teriyaki-glazed pan-seared salmon I recently posted about.... [Full Post]
Happy Days
...A perfect medium burger, aromatic toasted rye, gooey swiss, and bright, hot, and flavorful jalapeños made for a pleasingly solid burger-eating experience. The meat was tasty and ran nicely clear with juices, without the toast's crispiness being impaired. The smoky bacon complimented the pinkish beef's natural, sweet, earthiness.... [Full post]
One For The Ages
...After the first bite, I could imagine Barbra Streisand, now, singing Memories in my head, as I, literally and nostalgically, enjoyed the burgers crumbly, tasty, tender meat and its juicy excesses..... [Full post]
"Shake" Wait
...The flattop-grilled, "squished", Pat Lafreida beef is still stellar—caramelizing to a slight crisp on the outside while flavorful juices ran clear from the moist interior—and topped off with an "crisp"-fried, earthy, plump portobello mushroom oozing with hot, sharp and mellow muenster and cheddar cheeses, which winds up being more of a treat than a necessity, but is charming nonetheless... [Full Post]
Getting Ziggy With It
...A very decent pie this was. A nice, pliable but not doughy crust, with a thin strong fold but without the more the more New York-style "crisp". The cheeses were traditionally rustic and aromatic, the sausage buoyantly spicy and sweet, and all of it drizzled with a clean and earthy olive oil that brought all the good flavors together with each bite... [Full post]
Down For Chinatown
... With the unfortunate exception of the shrimp paste (better in idea than in execution), this dish was quite a winner. The pork and beef were nicely seasoned and tender, and were enjoyed more with wrapped in the lettuce with a leaf each of basil and mint, some rice noodles, and a drizzle of house-made vinegar dipping sauce. The springs deftly crispy and not greasy on the outside and chock full minced veggies and meat on the inside.... [Full post]
Back In Black
...Earthy and having both bitter and sweet notes, the Guinness was amped up by the salty sweetness of the soy sauce, the subtle richness of flavors in the fish sauce, and the woodsy bursts of the bites of olive, all of them together working magic with the mussels without the risk of overwhelming them.... [Full post]
Pulino's Just Might Deserve (and Survive) The Hype
...But eventually you have to give McNally some credit. I've liked—if not raved about—the food at Pravda and Balthazar, and frequented those for many years regardless. Pulino's will have its heralders—and, I'm sure, some detractors—but longer after fanfare, discussions and debates have subsided and been forwarded to the new "next big thing", people will be squeezing in rezys and inviting their friends to grab a bite and a beer here with them.... [Full post]
Bratty Behavior
...I then peeled, cored and sliced the Granny Smith into skinny, long sticks and threw them into the pot to stir as well, followed by the andouille sausage, which I sliced into "coins" so that they would impart more of the seasoned "fat" flavors.... [cont.]
Big Tuna
...I started with canned tuna—"solid, in water"—to which I added some fresh cracked pepper, celery salt, the juice of half a lemon, and a teaspoon each of balsamic vinegar and spicy brown mustard.... [cont.]
Curry Up and Slow Down!
...Mainly because they are enjoying a culinary renaissance at the moment, and partly because I used to live in this neighborhood twenty years ago and find it quite amusing how much the area has changed. (I used to live on 13th & Avenue A on a block that saw several busts a week for apartments—like the one I lived in with LM—that were drug dens, brothels, and, more often, both!).... [Full post]
From Gray Bars to Black Iron
....I don't mind busy weeks, especially ones like this week when clients actually pay, and pay on time. And after subsisting on my own cooking, leftovers, and food deliveries the whole week, I pursued the sole yet perfect opportunity to try out another well-received and well-reviewed new food place. Plus, the place is in my new favorite, up-and-coming food neighborhood: the Lower East Side of Manhattan.... [Full Post]
