Lily Of The Village
...A successful dish all around, the oxtails were properly tender, flavor, and juicy, accented by the texture of its bits of barely toothsome cartilage and the slivers of fat that just evaporated on the tongue. The rice and beans were light, fluffy and aromatic, and the slaw was crisp, tangy tart with vinegar, and cool.... [Full Post]
Letters From Home
...The chopped lettuce with carrots then got mixed with a teaspoon of mustard, red wine vinegar, lemon juice, salt, pepper, and honey. Two slices of toasted cornbread slices got smeared with mayo with cider vinegar stirred in, the slices of tomatillas sautéed in butter, the BBQ bacon slices, and slaw, with the pea salad spooned on the side.... [Full post]
With A Little Help From My Friends
...This dish appeared and tasted pleasantly bright and rustic. The pasta—thicker-than-most "thread" pasta—supported and hugged all the flavors of the rendered pork fat, garlic, lemon, and butter extremely well, while starting and ending each bite with, first, the aroma of truffles in the cheese on top, then, lastly, the flavor of truffle.... [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]
"Dinkfast"?
...I won't ever give up omelets or pancakes or French toast forever, but considering not only the great tastes in these two dishes, but how much healthier (lower in carbs, cholesterol, sugars) they were as well, I think I could make a good case for eating like this more often during the a.m. hours.... [Full post]
Nice Choux's
...A very pretty woman was ordering a dozen of each flavor of their signature cream puffs, available in vanilla, chocolate and strawberry. I asked her what her favorite was—fearing less initiating a conversation with her once I espied the lack of wedding or engagement ring! She said she preferred the chocolate, which I ordered only one of, accompanying it with the green tea latte.... [Full post]
Egg-a Omega
...I sautéed i few smelt fillets in some rendered bacon fat in a cast iron skillet, meanwhile frying to egg yolks sunny-side-up. I then placed the eggs on top of the chili pepper paste, then placed the smelt decoratively on top of them, trying to not visually obstruct the eggs.... [cont.]
Saintly Pizza
...I am always surprised to find that most people don't know where the name Two Boots comes from. Both the country of Italy and the state of Lousiana are shaped like boots, so the food represents most Italian-style pizza reinvented with more traditional Louisiana foods, such as crawfish, andouille sausage, spicy peppers, and their indigenously ubiquitous cornmeal, which is the base flour in their pizza dough.... [cont.]
Bowl Me Over
...I made a broth from first boiling the scallion, green parts of the lettuce, and mushroom stalks—which are firmer are more fibrous than the caps—in a pot of salted water, then slow cooking them over medium heat with the pot mostly covered with a lid, letting some steam release to concentrate the broth.... [cont.]
Peruvian Gold
...Yet, unlike the neighborhood's standing Peruvian cuisine champ, Pio Pio, Chicken Festival, in it's being so new, has something to prove. I've been going to Pio Pio for years; however, over those years, I've seen the service get more caustic, the restaurant get more cramped and rushed, and the delivery take longer and longer with varying results in portion size, food temperature, and even accuracy of order.... [Full Post]