Gotham Gal

Old Joy

Old Joy, an indie film, won awards at a variety of film festivals this past year.  Now it is being touted, critically acclaimed, in NYC as the film to see.  So, we went and we saw. 

The film is only 76 minutes.  A bonus.  The cinema photography is absolutely beautiful.  The colors are vivid, and since the majority of the film takes place in the mountains of Oregon, the film is beautiful to watch.  I think that is what stuck with me.

Very minimalistic plot.  Two friends, who were pals when they were 16, reunite and go on a 2 day camping trip.  One of them is married whose wife looks as if she is about to give birth any minute, the other has never found himself and has sort of rambled around the past 15 odd years. 

They embark on a journey to a special place that the slacker has been to.  They don't find it the first night and end up sleeping in a garbage strewn field but the next morning they find the location.  A beautiful water spot where you can lie in baths and enjoy the warm springs.  Once they have finished, they go home and part ways.  I'd say about 200 words are spoken through out the film to each other.  OK, maybe a few more. 

In the car, NPR is always on the radio, discussing the demise of the Bush administration.  The point?

What does this all mean?  What exactly are the film makers trying to say to the audience?  Friends change, people part, life takes different turns?  Hmm.  Not sure.  Maybe I am too pedestrian to get it.  Although when leaving the film I brought up these points to Fred and the guy next to me just laughed and said one word, BORING!

Two Exhibits at the Met

Two exhibits at the Met absolutely worth seeing are New Orleans after the Flood and Cezanne to Picasso: Ambrose Vollard, Patron of the Avant-Garde.  They are both on the second floor, literally next to each other.

New Orleans after the Flood are pictures by Robert Polidori.  The images are intense.  Long exposure allowed him to capture the intensity of the details.  You can almost smell the mold and dirt coming out of the picture.  Remarkable to see the aftermath of what was affected and what was not.  Why are clothes still hanging on hangers in a closet but the entire house has been destroyed?  Or why does not house remain and the house next door is gone?  A haunting and disturbing reminder of this tragic storm that destroyed New Orleans and peoples lives.  Seeing these images once again brings to light the failure of our own Government to help this city through a natural crisis.

Cezanne to Picasso is a curators dream.  My hats go off to who ever did the research for this particular project.  The exhibit is devoted to Ambrose Vollard who was the dealer for Picasso, Van Gogh, Degas, Matisse, Renoir, Gaugin and many other artists of the late 19th Century and early 20th Century.  Truly remarkable how much work from these artists touched his hands to get to the collector on the other side.  They all relied on Vollard.  The majority of work that he was responsible for is in the exhibit.  There are the original pieces of Matisse's first solo exhibit. Paintings that each of the artists did of Vollard.  Vollard was the key to these artists future.  He was the sugar daddy of the art world.  The art work is magnificent.  It is interesting how much their work fed off of each other in that time.  Now, there is so much more available that we can see a much broader view of work whereas then although these guys were cutting edge, there were many similarities.  I particularly loved the piece that Van Gogh did of Vollard himself.  Great exhibit.  A lot to take in.

I believe these exhibits are running through mid-Dec for New Orleans and early January for Vollard.

Volleyball

The sports season has begun.  We have 3 serious basketball players in our house.  How do you get ready for basketball season?  The coaches would love to see the kids take up xcountry...good for stamina but that wasn't happening.  Emily took up volleyball.  I loved volleyball when I was a kid.  Fun to watch.  My sports season has begun.

Roll & Dough

What a hilarious name for a Chinese restaurant. Roll & Dough opened recently on West 3rd just East of 6th Avenue.  Total NYU neighborhood.  Perfect location.  They serve inexpensive dumplings, buns and bings and also a few classic dishes and soups.  But their main thing is the buns, dumplings and bings.  You can buy them to go, to stay or frozen. 

So, what is a bing?  I was curious myself so I stopped by to take a look and a bite.  A bing is basically a Chinese calzone.  Boiled or baked, not sure but covered with sesame seeds, about the size of your palm and stuffed with anything from spicy pork to chicken to red beans to vegetables to bananas.  They run from $1.50-$1.95.  One is ample for lunch. 

There isn't really a name on the door but a huge New York Times copy of the review they had which just cracked me up.  No ambiance whatsoever.  A bit cheesey and the back of the counter sort of resembles a Chinese Dunkin' Donuts.  Fast food for the masses.  Think they are looking to expand this into a chain?

I got a spicy pork bing for $1.95 just to try.  They are really good.   I picked up a menu for delivery.  This could be our new place on Sunday nights...at least for awhile. 

Mappetite

Someone sent me a link to this site called mappetite.  I am going to put it on my blog roll.  Really well done site particularly for anyone traveling to NYC.  You can do a search in the area that you are going to be in and restaurants come up including food that might be worth trying in that area such as an ice cream or cheese shop.  Even the neighborhood search area makes you think about some things you might want to see and hadn't thought of.  Great site. 

Guidebook, maps, food all rolled up in to one.

Bedtime Beats

I believe sleep becomes more difficult the older you get.  Why?  I am not sure. 

My friend, who is one of the people behind Bedtime Beats, gave me a few reasons.  Kids have routines.  They take a bath, you read them a book, they go to sleep.  Routines are supposedly very important to a good nights sleep.  Most of us don't have routines.  One night we go out and drink and eat too much, one night we do email in bed until the wee hours, one night we actually get into bed and read a book but each night is a different scenario.  I believe our sleeping patterns just change the older we get and the more responsibility we have makes for a lot rattling around in our heads while we sleep, thus not exactly a sound sleep.  Answer for some is Ambien, others is just plain old insomnia. 

Bedtime Beats might be something in your future if you need some help sleeping.  People have been really happy with the results. Read the testimonials.  Music that is geared towards sleeping.  Interesting concept.  Worse case scenario is that it doesn't work and at least you get to listen to some mellow music. 

I haven't tried it yet or even listened but I do like the concept.  When counting sheep, late night TV, reading another book or Ambien fails to work perhaps Bedtime Beats could be your savior.

Barbounia

Barbounia is located at 20th and Park.  I'd say over the past 15 years 3 different restaurants have lived in that location.  I have been to them all.  Barbounia is the latest. 

Greek/Mediterranean food.  The decor is blue and white - no surprises there.  Clean, simple, elegant.  The bathrooms in the back are co-ed.  5 doors opening into a multi-tiled room with 3 huge white concrete sinks.  I really like the whole decor. 

I went for lunch.  The space is quite big and even though we were one of very few people in the restaurant, I didn't feel like we were lost in space.  My guess is dinner is much more crowded and I'd be interested in seeing the noise level since the ceilings are really high. 

The menu is simple and not a lot to choose from but a variety of sides and sharing plates.  For lunch there one of the options is 4 different souvlakis.  One chicken, one beef, one shrimp and one lamb served over a simple Greek salad.  I went with the chicken. Tender spicy piece of chicken served over some greens and feta, halved Greek olives (no pits), cucumbers and cherry tomatoes in a light vinaigrette.  Really nice.  We also split the large beans to taste on the side.  Big beans sitting in a large pot filled with lots of butter but the beans were cooked just perfectly. 

I really liked Barbounia.  Looking forward to returning for dinner.

The Stanton Social

Back down to the Lower East Side for dinner hoping to find another gem.  The Stanton Social scores on all fronts.  The whole family went and we all loved it. 

You know you have found the spot because even the front of the restaurant shouts out to you.  Steel window frames, glass front, very modern.  Walking in puts you in to a very different world than the street outside.  Warm, wood, steel, elegant lamps on the side walls, a small balcony upstairs against the wine cellar for a more intimate meal.  Even the round tables for 5 are just the right size to be able to talk across. 

Each dish is designed to be shared among the table.  The plates come out continuously through out the meal.  The service is attentive which is very important because you are in constant need of new plates.  The tastes are all so different that a spicy chipolte sauce would ruin the effects of a goat cheese ravioli.  Also, the waitress noted that there were 5 of us so on some dishes she told us how many pieces we were having and then asked if we wanted more so we all got one.  I liked that.

We started off with Red Snapper Tacos and Chipotle Grilled Shrimp.  We were all wowed from the onset.
The shrimp was charred and served alongside a mixture of tomatillo, corn and feta.  Great combination.  There was also a spicy chipotle sauce that criss-crossed the dish for presentation which was perfect.  The salad salad was crunchy and worked perfect with the shrimp.  The Red Snapper Tacos were tiny hand held tacos stuffed with snapper and a spicy mango avocado salsa which made the combination soft and explosive. 

Waiting was fun.  We discussed each dish and looked forward to the next.  Our next was Yellowfin Tuna Sashimi cut in small pieces layered over avocado with slices of red jalapeno on top.  It was to be dipped in the yuzu ginger dipping sauce that had two pieces of grapefruit floating in it.  There was also a tiny small grouping of greens on the side that we scooped up too.  I am not sure that I would order this again because it was sort of a lone taste in the midst of more powerful plates.  Sushi is more elegant and sublime than powerful. 

Next up was the French Onion Soup Dumplings.  Beyond clever.  This dish was baked in an poached egg type pan.  So there was 6 toothpicks with croutons on top of each of them stuck into a cheesey concoction.  When you pulled the dumpling out it was set inside a small hole.  Melted cheese surrounding a bready round piece that is stuffed with caramelized onions.  Really good. 

Our next dish was a flat wood grilled pizza covered in manchego cheese, oven dried tomatoes and a roasted garlic and chili oil.  The combination was excellent.  The bread was crisp.  The flavors worked and you could taste each one. They served that alongside the "old school" meatballs that were a mixture of meats, roasted and served over a herbed ricotta manicotti and lots of red sauce over it.  I really liked the meatballs and sauce.  The manicotti wasn't as interesting but I liked how each meatball was laying over the small piece of manicotti. One thing missing here was bread.  We would have all liked to have mopped up the red sauce before they took away the plate.

Our last combo hit the jackpot.  Braised short ribs that had been pulled apart and put into a small bowl with a dab of sour cream on top.  Served along side 3 small bowls.  One of refried white beans, the other shredded manchego cheese and last a tomato salsa.  Hot soft tacos were folded over on the meat plate.  You made your own taco with the combination of all four.  Excellent.  I will absolutely attempt to create that dish at home.  The meat had been cooked for hours and was rich and flavorful.  Alongside was their interpretation of Moo Shu Shrimp.  A small bowl of shrimp and torn herbs next to a tiny bowl of a citrus hoisin sauce and folded soft crepes.  Again, make your own.  Delicious, light and flavorful.

The one thing that we didn't order but will next time are the Sliders.  Sliders seem to be the new food. I've seen them at a few restaurants.  Small Kobe Beef Burgers or BBQ Pulled Pork Sanwiches or Lobster Rolls.  They are tiny but not that tiny and we were afraid that they would be so filling that we wouldn't get to taste enough things.  The key is probably splitting them or dividing them into four. 

We bagged dessert because we had to be at a show around the corner at Pianos which is a very cool bar and venue. 

I can hardly wait to go back to the Stanton Social and by the way, neither can the kids.

The Drowsy Chaperone

The big hit of last year was The Drowsy Chaperone.  Our good friend called me right after seeing this play and said "This is a must see.  Buy the tickets before the Tony's because The Drowsy Chaperone will sweep".  He was right.  I'm glad I bought the tickets for the fall that night. 

Let me start by saying that I am not a big fan of musicals.  I know that I should just go with the flow, enjoy the music and turn off the world for 2-3 hours but I can't.  I truly prefer thought provoking, well acted theater. 

The Drowsy Chaperone actually opens with the narrator (the guy who also wrote the play) telling you what he likes and dislikes about the theater and certainly why he likes musicals.  It was much appreciated.  Gave me some insight and a few good chuckles.

The play is a play within a play.  The narrator, played by Bob Martin( who is fantastic and the best thing about the entire production ), begins to tell us of his favorite afternoon activity which is losing himself in a musical.  Listening to old LP's on his stereo, closing his eyes and envisioning the show.  This is precisely what he does but the show happens to take place in his apartment.  We get to see the show as he describes the scenes he loves or the scenes he hates.  It is very clever when the album gets a skip and the cast continues to repeat their lines over and over again.  In essence, a musical within a comedy.  Very very clever.

I didn't love it but I liked the creativity of the play.  A new musical but with a twist.  It is good for any age except kids under 10.  Josh has a soccer game so he passed but Jessica and Emily thought it was clever.  They also felt that Bob Martin was the best thing about the play. The audience absolutely loved it.  The Marquis Theater has good leg space for a theater which is a bonus.  Located in the Marriott Marquis is kind of strange getting in and out.  I felt like I wasn't in the city but at a convention hall. 

Regardless, if you like musicals, this would be the show to see.

Apple Strudel

Not my best picture but it tasted good.  For Rosh Hashana, Happy New Year / Shono Tova to all, we went to our friends for the big meal.  Us Jews, we are all about the meal.  I brought the dessert and salad.  Apple's are pretty essential for this meal.  Apples and honey. 

Haven't made a strudel in awhile.  Working with phyllo dough is not so much difficult but it tends to break when baking and sometimes even before you get to the oven.  The key is really keeping a warm/wet towel on top of the phyllo dough each time you use it, make sure you put the towel back on.

I actually made the inside of the strudel before making it.  5 apples (golden delicious), peeled and sliced into about 1/8 inch slices.  I use one of those apple slicers.  Makes life easier.  Then I just need to take off the skin and seeds.  Use 1/2 stick unsalted butter and melt in a large non-stick pan.  Take the apples, 1/4 cup of sugar, 1 t. cinnamon 1/2 t. kosher salt, 1 T. juice of a lemon, grate the rind of one lemon too.  Mix this all together and then put in the pan and cook at a medium heat for about 20 minutes or until the apples are soft.  Strain and set aside until this is cool.  You can always add 1/3 cup of walnuts or 1/2 cup of golden raisins or currants.  I opted for neither. 

While the apples are cooling take out another small pan.  Melt 2 T. butter.  Put in 1/3 cup of bread crumbs and toast until they are golden brown.  Once the apples cool, mix the bread crumbs with the apple.

On a large part of parchment paper over a cookie sheet I put down my first piece of phyllo dough.  Keep on hand a large bowl of melted butter and a small bowl of white granulated sugar.  The key is also using a good pastry brush.  After putting down one piece of phyllo, brush with butter and then shake a little sugar over it.  This will adhere the phyllo pieces together and hopefully they won't separate as much in the oven.  Continue this process until you have done 5 sheets.

Now put your apples in the middle of the sheets leaving about 2 inches on each side.  Fold over the two left sides over the apples.  Then fold over the bottom on top of the apples and the other folded pieces.  Now roll over, very gently until you have created a strudel.  I used a huge spatula to do this and my hands.  Very tricky.  Now coat that with butter and sugar.  Put in the oven at 375 and bake for about 40 minutes or until browned. 

With the left over phyllo down I made small triangles of stuffed phyllo with my favorite jams and baked them in the oven.  They were a huge hit.