Event: 2.13.10

Last Saturday, my friend hosted a very swank bachelorette party for her sister at her condo. She hired a sommelier to come in and host wine tastings and education. She also hired a personal chef (me) to match the food with the wine. Overall, I prepared 6 items to complement a welcome champagne, 2 whites, 4 reds, a sparkling dessert white (which was our palate cleanser), and sparkling dessert red. Here was the menu as well as some photos. It was a lot of work but a lot of fun!!!

Assorted Cheeses

Pommery "Brut Royale" Champagne, NV Brut, Champagne, France

Starters

Spicy Tuna Tartare with Avocado & Cucumber
2008 Bodegas La Cana Albariño, Rias Baixas, Spain

Celery, Toasted Almond, & Tarragon Chicken Bibb Lettuce Cups
2006 Zantho Muskat, Burgenland, Austria

Salad

Belgian Endive, Pomegranate, & Blue Cheese Salad
2008 Sherwood Pinot Noir, Marlborough, New Zealand

Mains

Baked Mozzarella Ziti
Savory Butternut Squash & Parmesan Bread Pudding

2007 Costanti "Massarossa", Lazio, Italy
2007 Niepoort "Twisted", Douro, Portugal
2007 Ridge "Geyserville" Zinfandel blend, Sonoma County, California

Dessert

2008 Gianni Doglia Moscato d'Asti, Piedmont, Italy

Chocolate Mousse Torte
2005 de Jean Paul Brun Terres Dorées FRV 100 Sparkling Gamay

Underground dinner for 2.20.10

For those of you have been asking, underground dinner for 2.20.10 is off. :( Unfortunately something came up for Matt. We have a lot of booked up Saturdays in next couple of months so we're brainstorming other options. Perhaps a gourmet savory and sweet Sunday brunch? Let me know your ideas!!!

Review: TRU (2.6.10)

Matt and I went to Tru to celebrate my new job and promotion. The food was amazing!!! Savory portions were all wonderful however I thought the dessert was a little weak (especially after having an amazing mid-afternoon treat at Hot Chocolate). Service is incredible. Even to minute details such as putting both of our plates down at the exact same time and taking them away. They called us a cab when we were done and have us a little cherry muffin to eat with our morning coffee. It is a little stuffy and sterile however so the atmosphere might not be for all. Jackets are required for men, conversation is almost TOO quiet (I think I had to laugh out loud twice too), and with the all white walls and black furniture, it's a little cold. One other thing that I would improve is to have a wine pairing option with the degustation menus. There must be some reason why they don't? We got the 9-course (which is really more like 15) so it's hard to pick a bottle or 2. We ended up just opting for glasses but it would have been nice, however, to have had the option to have coursed pairings.

Menu (pictures flow opposite though...don't feel like redoing them. Deal :)
Cornte cheese gougere - no picture

Beef consomme: wagyu beef ravioli, espelette pepper, parsley - no picture

White sturgeon "caviar", avocado, hazelnut (one of my favorites)

Red ace, candystripe, & golden beet collage, horseradish

Celeriac veloute, celeriac profiterole, olive oil - no picture

Maine lobster, romanesco, madras curry, espelette tempura (another favorite)

La ratte potato gnocchi, white veal glaze, fragile lace tuile

Miso-marinated sablefish, kale, radish, banyuls brown butter sauce (Matt's favorite)

Prime beef ribeye (I upgraded to the Kobe beef option), grilled foie gras, hedgehogs, parsley - no picture

Selection of 3 cheeses (another favorite. They wheel out a chart with 10 cheese options and you get to pick 3. It was unreal!)

Meyer lemon puff, tapioca, mint yogurt

Tahitian vanilla cremeux, hazelnuts, manjari chocolate ice cream (weak!)

Mignardises & lollipops


Overall rating: 3 stars / 4

TRU
River East
Jacket requred for menu
Cost: $$$$$

http://www.trurestaurant.com/

Recipe: Mexican Lasagna

This was a good easy weekday recipe. You might need to cook the lasagna a little longer than the recipe calls for to make sure the cheese is nice and bubbly and slightly browned. It needs some additional toppings in my opinion; I served it with with sour cream, sliced avocados, finely sliced iceberg lettuce, and chopped tomatoes. Serve with Spanish rice on the side and enjoy within 30 minutes!

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/rachael-ray/mexican-lasagna-recipe/index.html

Dining in Dublin

If anyone of you are reading this, let me know what you think about posting restaurant recommendations in other cities. My favorite thing on this planet is food but my second favorite is traveling, and what better activity to do than to check out food WHILE traveling?!

I was in Ireland the early part of December and randomly discovered this quaint restaurant called The Winding Stair. It is a twist on traditional Irish food and specializes in seasonal and local produce and purveyors. It was a gem and definite recommendation, especially in a place that might not be known for its food.

I had a tasty smoked fish platter of eel, 2 kinds of salmon, and trout served with soda bread and caperberries. Entree was duck two ways: confit and breast with a berry sauce. Irish bread pudding in whiskey is a must for dessert!

Reservations are also a must. The place is tiny.

http://www.winding-stair.com/

Underground Dinner 2 complete!

I've been traveling the world eating some great culinary delights in Scottsdale, Ireland, and Australia. After taking almost a month off, the docent is back!

Our 2nd dinner was a great evening of fun with Trisha, Justin, Natalia, and Brett. The wine pairings were a little off this time but the pear cider was stellar: a wonderful compliment to the smoked fish, peppery arugula, and sinus-clearing horseradish. Main and dessert were fantastic. I was very pleased with the results.

I only remembered to take 1 picture again...next time I will have to remember better (or drink less) :)

Underground dinner will take a break for January due to crazy full-time job and traveling but we will be back on track for our February dinner on 2/20...menu pending.

Underground Dinner: 12.12.09 7:30 pm

hot mulled ginger-spiced pomegranate cider
-
potato pancakes topped with apple-horseradish cream and smoked whitefish
baby arugula with lemon vinaigrette
Ace Hard Perry Cider
-
garlic and herb encrusted rack of lamb
port wine veal demi-glace
pumpkin-sage parmesan polenta
2007 Ascencion Malbec
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spiced caramalized pears with warm marsala zabaglione
2008 Tabali Reserva Late Harvest Muscat

Room for: 6
Cost: $30