Gotham Gal: Return to DGBG

Went back to DGBG and not sure I will ever return again.

I went this past summer when it first opened. Josh and I shared the menage a trois which is all 3 burgers and it was delicious. Last night was not the same experience.

My friend and I had a drink at the Bowery Hotel which was perfect. Should have stayed there an ordered a few of their pizzas from Gemma. After drinks we walked down to DBGB and nabbed the last seat for 2 in the bar area. First thing, order more drinks. I was drinking scotch and they had a Japanese Single Malt scotch on the menu which I ordered. Amazing. Smooth, rich and delicious. Could be good for an after dinner drink it was so smooth.

We decided to order everything to share. We started with 2 salads. Crispy chopped iceberg lettuce with chunky blue cheese dressing and pieces of bacon over the top was very good. Loved the crispy with the creamy. The other salad was a medium hard boiled duck egg encased in a deep fried bread crumb casing tilted on sliced portobello mushrooms that had been over cooked in red white witha few chitlins mixed in. It tasted like a suburban chef who was trying to be clever. Sorry to all the suburbanites but that is my best description. Creative works when it works but when it doesn't, it is really abysmal.

Out next came the 2 sausages. The menu has a variety of sausages to order from sweet to spicy, etc. One was a lamb merguez served over really overcooked spinach and a few chickpeas. One bite, not so good, two bites, no more for me. The other sausage was chunky pork sausage with pieces of something in it which I believe was bacon, pork, mushrooms and onions but that isn't what it tasted like. This was served over lentils cooked in red wine. We did get a side of fries though that were top. My friend said today, have you ever had a bad fry and the answer is absolutely. These fries were really good.

For dessert we split the chocolate sundae. Too much whipped cream, uneven layering of chocolate pieces over the ice cream. Of course it was sweet and chocolatey but not fab.

I waited 24 hours to write this but I slept really bad, my stomach is a bit upset today....all and all, I never liked the decor in there and now I'm pretty sure the only thing I like are the fries, the burgers and the Japanese scotch. Also, while I'm on a roll, why are the bathrooms so far back you have to navigate the waitstaff and servers to get there?

books of the moment

Gail Simmons: Talking with My Mouth Full: My Life as a Professional Eater
Loved it. If you love food and the industry that has sprouted across the globe, read it!
Cristina Alger: The Darlings: A Novel
i LOVED this book. First time novelist. Well written. She does a great job of describing each character. The story is loosely based on a Madoff type character. Total NY story. Page turner. She knows her town and these people. Really LOVED this book.
Stephen King: 11/22/63: A Novel
This is my first King book. He is an incredible story teller. Quite a book, very creative, interesting idea and story. It is so long. 850 pages. I get why he is one of the best selling authors
Whitney L. Johnson: Dare, Dream, Do: Remarkable Things Happen When You Dare to Dream
I was so graciously asked to write a blurb for this book. It doesn't come out until May when I will write a post but for the time being you can pre-order. Here is my blurb; Every woman, regardless of age or profession, should read this book. Through stories of real women, their dreams and their struggles, Johnson's book has created an instant community. What's more, she has opened the door for women to empower themselves to dare, dream and do.
Russell Banks: Lost Memory of Skin: A Novel
An interesting novel about the underground topic of child molesters. Banks takes on a disturbing topic as he weaves a variety of strange characters into the fold. Maybe I wanted some kind of closure from the book. The book is a big idea which really navigates a slice of America. Really well written but not so sure I'd recommend it. I stuck with the book but I didn't love it.
Susan Weissman: Feeding Eden: The Trials and Triumphs of a Food Allergy Family
The name of the book says it all. Every parent and every teacher should read this book.
Tom Perrotta: The Leftovers
I have read a few of Perrotta's books. He is an incredible writer but I always feel so unfulfilled when his books end. This concept of this book is that one day random people disappear and the world changes. The book focuses on one particular community and a few families. At the beginning I was wowed by the premise of the book but as always his books begin to ramble and the end was so bad it was if he couldn't figure out how to finish it. Literally the last paragraph made me say to myself, "seriously"?
Alice Hoffman: The Dovekeepers: A Novel
I wanted to finish it, I really did. But half way in I moved on. Really beautiful book. A story of four women who lived on Masada who are thrown together through fate as they tend to the doves. Wonderful history and interesting paths of each character. Just super dense. I hope to return to finishing it. After all...it is on my kindle.
Deborah Copaken Kogan: Between Here and April
This book tracks a terrible tragedy of a mother who took her life and her childrens in the 70s. I was interested in it because it happened where I grew up. Unfortunately the book bounces all over the place and only focuses on the authors own issues that she believes to be connected to this but in essence it is a serious reach and rambling.
W. Bruce Cameron: A Dog's Purpose
It took me a while to get into this but a very clever book. Life through a dogs eyes. Really well done.
Kyung-Sook Shin: Please Look After Mom
International best seller. Not only a peak into a past generation of Korean life but a disturbing look at alzheimers. Sticks with you.
Kathleen Flinn: The Kitchen Counter Cooking School: How a Few Simple Lessons Transformed Nine Culinary Novices into Fearless Home Cooks
Flinn writes about how she transformed 9 people to love cooking, understand food and what they are eating and basically changed their lives. Good book.
Julie Salamon: Wendy and the Lost Boys: The Uncommon Life of Wendy Wasserstein
What a fascinating life. I actually liked the last 25% of the book the best. A woman of the generation that was told she could have it all and with all her success she still felt unaccomplished. A worthy read.
Michael Ondaatje: The Cat's Table
A beautiful memoir of Ondaatjes solo journey from Sri Lanka to London as a young boy of 11 to return to his mother who had been residing there for 3/4 years. Those 3 weeks made quite an impact on his life as he threads those stories back to his life as an adult.
Jeffrey Eugenides: The Marriage Plot: A Novel
loved this book. brilliantly written, great character development, literature references abound, questioning of religion, depression issues, post college angst. loved loved.

Gotham Gal

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