Sweets News

To preface this edition of Sweets News, I must say how much I regret the closing of P*ong.

• April showers bring... macarons. To celebrate Spring, Tafu NYC (CLOSED 2009) as created a line of macarons in Japanese flavors like black sesame and matcha. They are $2.50 each.

• Are you feeling creative? Try to brainstorm Dunkin Donuts' newest flavor, and if your suggestion is chosen, you'll win a $12,000 prize! The deadline is April 7.

• Alexandra Leaf of Chocolate Tours NYC (isn't this wonderful?) will lead a chocolate factory tour on April 25 at 12:30 pm. To register, visit the ICE Website. (Apparently, it is recommended that you eat lunch beforehand, so as not to experience an insane sugar spike.)
  

Andy's Seafood & Grill

Forest Hillsers know how hard it is to score a table at East Ocean Palace, a popular Chinese restaurant with large fish tanks. As of this week, there's an alternative in nearby Rego Park, and what an alternative it is! Andy's Seafood Kitchen is a new Taiwanese/Szechuanese place on Queens Boulevard, and its menu boasts every imaginable treat from the sea. Are you craving sea cucumber? Have some in brown sauce, or with abalone. What about conch? It's served with chives, or with fried bean curd. Snails in black bean sauce, Taiwanese cuttlefish soup, fried baby oysters, squid with scallion and ginger, sauteed crab with vermicelli or black bean sauce... the list goes on and on. I stopped in today for the delectable sliced flounder in hot chili sauce - it was served in a bubbling broth, which was fragrant with cilantro, scallions, sesame oil and ginger.

Andy's has something for everyone. For the fan of Chinese-American food, there are scallion pancakes and sweet-and-sour pork. For the more adventurous, there are salt and pepper frogs' legs. And for those of us who are trying to conserve cash (and that's a lot of us these days) there is the already-legendary "Dollar Menu" (Monday-Friday, 11 am-4 pm). Served from a steam table, this menu includes Peking duck, crispy whole shrimps, pepper steak, and much more. Andy (yes, there really is an Andy), rounds up the items of your choice, and gracefully places them upon your plate - no messy communal buffet here!

Please visit Andy's, but leave me a table. I have a lot more eating to do here.

Andy's Seafood Kitchen: 95-26 Queens Blvd., Rego Park, (718) 275-2388.

A Eulogy, in Restaurants

Next week, I'll back to my regularly scheduled restaurant review, but in this post I wanted to pay homage to one of my favorite dining partners: my vivacious grandmother, who just passed away on Thursday at 91 (1917-2009). She is referenced in various posts on this blog.
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Grandma was always happiest when everyone was eating, although she would tell you that she herself ate like a bird. We painted the town red, going to Payard for tea, Sant Ambroeus for lunch, and Teodora for dinner. We hit all the hot spots; last year, my companion and I took her to Quality Meats. We were regulars at Elio’s; this was one of Grandma’s favorite restaurants, because she used to go there with my late grandfather. But no matter where we went, she would always ask, “What are you having? That's all? No appetizer, no salad? Are you enjoying your food?” (She would also mention that Grandpa would have liked what I was eating. He liked to read menus and eat exotic foods just like me.)

I discovered a lot of new foods in Grandma’s kitchen. She introduced me to egg barley, and she made all the Hungarian specialties like nockerl and kaposzta teszta. Grandpa would have all the ingredients for homemade fountain sodas in the fridge, and there was always lots of candy on the coffee table, so their apartment was really a great place for a kid.

As Grandma grew older, she wasn’t as able to cook, so we’d go out to Our Place on 3rd Avenue. One memorable night, we went there with my aunt, my father, and my brother. It was a rather challenging evening; we were all arguing with each other. My aunt had sent her food back twice, and the cook had put peppers in Grandma’s main dish (my aunt wanted to try it but had an allergy to peppers). I had to leave the table and take a deep breath. When I returned, it was time to open the fortune cookies, and Grandma’s said: “Your family is one of nature’s masterpieces.” We all burst out laughing.

Grandma lived through many ups and downs, surgeries, and the passing of my grandfather, whom she was always thinking about. But through it all, she maintained the most positive attitude - even after falling and breaking her arm in three places while in her mid-80's. It really didn’t take her long to recover; soon we were going out to the movies and Etats-Unis.

She appreciated every little thing, an iced coffee, a birthday card, her egg poacher, the smoked fish from Sable's, a short phone call, and the apricot cake from Andre’s Hungarian that I brought her this past Sunday - the last day I saw her.

Rest in peace, Grandma, and I hope there are some good restaurants in heaven.

Inakaya

Having not read much about Inakaya other than that it was a Japanese grill, I was utterly unprepared for the synchronized shouting and dancing of its cooks and servers. "Did we just walk into Cold Stone Creamery?" I asked my companion. Uniformed men cried out as they pounded mochi into submission, waiters loudly chanted orders, and there was an eruption of "Irrashaimase!" whenever a customer entered the restaurant.

The experience was rather jarring, which was a shame, because many of the grilled items were quite good. We sat at the counter, where baskets of fresh vegetables, meats and fish were laid out in a row. The cooks would pluck out our choice, cook it and deliver it on a long wooden plank. When the gummy taro potatoes ran out, they were replaced by golden-fleshed Japanese sweet potatoes served with a smear of sweet butter. We also enjoyed meaty grilled yellowtail filets in both teriyaki and sea salt preparations, and tsukune (chicken meatball skewers) in tare sauce. The grilled scallop was disappointingly bland, although attractively presented in a shell. (Our budgets did not allow for the $67 deep sea snapper.)

The cold dish menu included maguro natto (one of my favorite dishes); the raw tuna was sliced instead of cubed. (There was no maguro yamakake on the menu, although plain grated yam cake could be ordered.) There was also a sizeable sushi menu, which we didn't take advantage of.

It is this humble blogger's opinion that Inakaya might benefit from a menu apart from the a la carte, especially in this economic climate. Soup, rice, or salad could be included with a main course- it gets expensive when you are ordering four chunks of potato for $7, or a $9 skewer of mushrooms. And perhaps the theatrics could be toned down a bit.

Inakaya: 231 West 40th St., (212) 354-2195.

1492 Food

Do you ever walk by a restaurant, make a mental note to dine there someday, and then promptly forget the name? That's what I did, and after a Google search for "that tapas place on Clinton," I met a friend at Tapeo 29.

But I'd meant to go to 1492 Food. (Nothing against Tapeo 29, although it was rather noisy.) So, after a slightly uncomfortable exchange with the host, we exited, and walked down the block towards the restaurant that existed in both my memory and, fortunately, reality.

We loved the place from the first sip of sangria (red for us, but the restaurant also serves white). The waiter brought us a basket of fresh-baked Spanish bread. We were surprised to find that the accompanying condiment was not butter, but garlicky aioli. It was gone in about two seconds.

Although the chorizo lollipops and bacon-wrapped dates called to us, we were trying to eat light, as it was rather late. We began with soup. The special was a sort of zarzuela; it was packed with tender calamari, mussels and shrimp. The other soup was lentil, a nourishing rendition made with diced carrots. "The lentils are perfect; when they're overcooked, they get starchy," remarked my friend.

After the soup, we polished off the escalivada, a plate of dainty grilled veggies (artichokes, red peppers, tomatoes, eggplant) finished off with truffle oil. (Healthy, yes, but delicious!) Our last course was a plate of hearty porcini croquettes. Crunchy on the outside and creamy within, they were served with small dollops of mushroom mayonnaise. The bread came in very handy here.

Once the dessert menu arrived, I realized that our attempt at light eating was about to fall by the wayside. After being tempted by the chocolate molten lava cake, we ended up with the rich, dense chestnut cake (tarta de marrones). It was totally irresistible with its caramel topping and a side of fresh whipped cream.

After a couple of excellent cortados, we agreed to return for the 2-for-1 drink special, which is offered every Sunday, Monday and Tuesday. (Now that the name of the restaurant is established firmly in my memory, it should be easier to come back!)

1492 Food: 60 Clinton St., (646) 654-1114.

Taro Sushi

I haven't yet made it to Brooklyn's new Kappa Sake House or Zuzu Ramen (well, the latter isn't open until Tuesday, March 10 - it will offer novelties like green curry ramen as well as sake and beer). But I always enjoy the sake and sushi at Taro Sushi. I was first introduced to this Japanese gem by a Park Slope family whom I'll call The Olives. The Olives have two little girls who are rapidly broadening their palates at Taro. Tonight, they feasted on inside-out California rolls and shrimp tempura maki topped with rainbows of avocado and smoked salmon. But when one of the girls clamored for an item not on the menu (a bowl of plain tofu cubes), the waiter happily obliged.

I started my meal with a dish of chopped toro tartare, raw quail egg and lots of wasabi, and continued with two preparations of freshwater eel: plain with sea salt, and lightly sauced. Then I savored some yellowtail belly topped a white onion sauce, and an assertive mackerel slice. All of the fish was outstandingly fresh and presented with care.

But there was more than just sushi on the menu. The hot appetizer selection included such delicacies as simmered pork ribs and miso-cooked pork stomach. Mama Olive craved noodles, so she devoured a bowl of hot soba with spinach, seaweed and scallions. (I think she'll probably bring the Olive girls to Zuzu when it opens.)

Diners of all ages will enjoy Taro Sushi.

Taro Sushi: 446 Dean St., Brooklyn, (718) 398-0872.

Barnyard Cheese, Meats & Fine Foods

Gougeres are like potato chips; I can never eat just one. The addictive cheese puffs have stopped me from finishing many a meal at Benoit or Artisanal. But now I can stock up on these savory treats without making a dinner reservation; they're available by the bagful at Barnyard. This gourmet market sells all of my favorite things. Cheeses include Pleasant Ridge, Pecorino Toscano, Garrotxa, and chevre noir; co-owner Darren is generous with the samples. For charcuterie, there's Serrano ham and pancetta. The refrigerator is full of goodies like pesto, uncured duck sausage and duck bacon. The pantry abounds with sauces from Il Mulino and Rosa Mexicano, as well as condiments like Maldon sea salt. If you visit, don't forget to pick up a bag of those Taza organic cocoa nibs by the cash register!

Barnyard: 149 Avenue C, (212) 674-BARN. Daily sandwich specials.

Sweets News - Greenpoint and Williamsburg

• Cookie lovers in Greenpoint have been anxiously awaiting the opening of psychedelic-themed Cookie Road. The shop, which will serve Counter Culture coffee and an assortment of co-owner Aneta Szot's cookies, cakes and tarts (there's even a Liza Minnelli cookie), will be holding a meet-and-greet on Tuesday, March 3. Because the Department of Buildings has not yet issued the proper permits, no pastries will be on hand, but there will be free coffee! (Cookie Road: 94 Franklin St., Greenpoint, 718-383-8094.)
  

• Three-month-old Whisk, a delightful kitchen appliance store, contains a hidden surprise for the home baker. In the very center of the store, there's a tiny pantry stocked with edible glitter, turbinado, fondant and muscovado sugars, nonpareils, jimmies, and lots of other items to make a beautiful sweet. (Whisk: 231 Bedford Ave., Williamsburg, 718-218-7230.)
  

• You might have read about Mast Brothers Chocolate, which recently opened its newest location in Williamsburg (it had previously moved from the brothers' apartment to a Greenpoint space which was closed to the public). The factory, which produces chocolate from the bean to the bar, offers a truly special "Salt & Pepper" bar - a 60% cacao, dark milk chocolate confection made with brown sugar, sea salt and black peppercorns. According to Michael Mast, a line of truffles and hot chocolates is in the making. (Mast Brothers Chocolate: 105A North 3rd St., Williamburg, 718-388-2625. Open on Saturdays and Sundays.)