Taste of New York City

     Having hit a bit of a slump, a trip to the original foodie metropolis, Manhattan, proved to be just the ticket  for a much needed dose of inspiration.  New York City has been on my foodie bucket list since finishing culinary school.  Reading Ruth Riechl's book chronicling her capers as New York Time's food critic fueled my desire to seek out as many eateries as possible.   I was on a mission.   
     Staying in SoHo is an ideal launch pad for a culinary vacation in New York.  We were within walking distance of two restaurants we had reservations for as well as the Chelsea Market, an all encompassing purveyor of fine foods.  We could also easily walk to Chinatown for superb Shanghai soup dumplings.  Our daily average number of steps was over 30 thousand, three times the daily recommendation.   Happily exhausted by our food quests, we would strategically nap between lunch and dinner.
     Our first dinner surprised me on many different levels.  After watching Netflix's Chef's Table featuring chef Dan Barber, I scratched plans to Le Bernardin and booked dinner at Blue Hill instead.  This is a farm to table restaurant with produce gathered from Blue Hill farm in Massachusettes as well as local purveyors.  Every scrap of food is used here.  I know because we were served a twig of turnip stem and told to dip the leaves into turnip oil.  What surprised me here wasn't the food.  Oh it was wonderful, all four amuse bouches, and six courses.  What blew me away was the humble service from the stately maitre d to the bread bearer.   Where is the infamous big city snootiness?  Patrons were also comfortably diverse from starched white shirted businessmen to young couples wearing jeans to a single lady.  At one point, rubbing my arms in anticipation of our next course, the handsome host asked me if I was cold so he could turn down the air conditioning!  To which I gleefully replied, "I'm not cold, just happy".  I have had many great meals but the service here was as exemplary.  
     Did we set ourselves up for disappointment after this first impression?  Fear not, my friends.  This is New York City.  Everything we ate after that first memorable feast was just as wonderful in different ways.   Each memorable bite made us want to extend our stay another day.
     We ate a gorgeous $5 cronut from James Beard winner, Dominique Ansel.  Anyone who has tried to make laminated dough would be impressed with the masterful craftsmanship of the evenly spaced cronut layers.  It was somehow miraculously infused with a light custard.  The adornment of icing on top with a kiss of lime sugar was love at first bite.
     Equally delightful were the steamy soup dumplings at Joe's Shanghai.  It is worth the trek to Chinatown to locate this highly touted dim sum shack off the beaten path.  You will gladly share a table with fellow strangers and lovers of authentic Shanghainese food.  Bring cash because they do not accept credit cards, although you can leave spending less than $20.
     We journeyed over to East Village to Katz' Delicatessan, the iconic site of the infamous "When Harry Met Sally" orgasm scene.   She might as well have been reacting to the stacked pastrami on rye.  It is a gargantuan pile of savory, slow cooked beef extravaganza.  One sandwich is plenty to share, along with some simple crunchy pickles.
     At Bobby Flay's newish restaurant, Gato, I had the best paella since Barcelona.  It seemed each grain of rice had that all important but difficult to achieve caramelization known as socarrat.  The kale and wild mushrooms were lovely, but the rice is and should be the star in paella.  It was toasty, golden, and delicious.  Truly addictive.
      One cannot venture to NYC without a real slice of that most beloved Napolitano import.  Joe's Pizza on Carmine's in Greenwhich Village was established in 1975 and is the go to place for New York pizza.  I believe the dough is the secret to the best pizza.  Here at Joe's, the pie is thin crust and cooked through from the puffed crust to the center.  No soggy dough here.  Each slice is delivered hot with just the right amount of tomato sauce and gooey cheese.  And for $2.75 a slice, it may well be the best thing I ever ate.
   

Kale and Wild Mushroom Paella at Gato

Cronut from Dominique Ansel, SoHo

Pastrami on rye at Katz, East Village

A slice from Joe's in Greenwich Village

Baby breakfast radishes at Blue Hill, Greenwich Village

Russell's Smokehouse, Denver

     Growing up in Alabama, I was exposed to lots of excellent southern barbecue.  It's one of the things I miss from the south.  Who can resist the pull of succulent, tender, smoky meats that doesn't burn a hole in your pocket?  Luckily for me, this slow cooking trend has invaded the west.  
     One hidden, literally, gem of slow cooked meats is Russell's Smokehouse in Larimer Square.  This subterranean cave of southern delights is somewhat off the beaten path.  You can find it as you head towards the courtyard of Bistro Vendome.  A set of stairs leads down
to the Smokehouse as well as Green Russell, a speak-easy drinking lounge.  Both are part of chef and restauranteur, Frank Bonano's empire.  
     While spectating in the Chalk Art Festival one Sunday night, a sudden monsoon wrestled chalk art gawkers into the myriad restaurants on Larimer Street.  Fortunately, few were aware of the existence of Russell's Smokehouse.  We were seated right away.
     The Smokehouse is a calm, cool, dark refuge from the ground level mass of humanity.  You instantly feel relaxed upon entering.  Vintage gyro ceiling fans hanging from exposed ducts provide quick relief from the summer heat.  We were seated in the spacious booths that could double for postprandial nap cots.  A sprinkling of patrons sat at the bar which faces the booths.  There is another dining area centered by a stone fire place.  Art work appropriately trends toward abstract and whimsical animal husbandry.   Be sure to check out the bathroom walls.
     I gleaned a total of three servers including the bartender, but they kept things running smoothly with the efficiency of a well oiled machine.  I could only glimpse the kitchen through a small delivery window, but they appeared equally unharried.  We were informed by our server that they were out of a couple items right away instead of after we had our heart set on them.
     My cocktail, the Car RamRod, was made with Russell's 10 year bourbon, a curiosity since the restaurant hasn't been open that long.  Perhaps chef Frank has a liquor crafter hidden somewhere mastering his small batch bourbon.  The drink arrived without ice in a double old fashioned glass with a small orange peel.  Sweet and citrusy, it was smoothly drinkable.  The cocktail menu is always changing on the whim of the bartender, but they can certainly craft something to your specifications.
     To assuage our guilt from our carnivorous entrees, we split the spinach salad.  Baby spinach tossed in just the right amount of creme fraiche dressing were accompanied by fingerling potatoes.  The potatoes were warm and toothsome, but I wish they were roasted for more golden color and crunch.  I inadvertently inhaled the pickled red onions which caused me to cough a bit.  Shaved fennel added additional sweetness and a hint of licorice.  It was a satiating salad and plenty to share for only $8.
     On Sunday nights, they offer fried chicken with mash potatoes and gravy for $12.  A half chicken including breast, thigh, and leg is dipped in seasoned batter and fried until golden.  A generous mound of the creamiest and richest mashed potatoes with a ladle of white gravy is shut your eyes good.  My only wish with this comfort dish is that the gravy on the chicken came on the side.  Even though, it was with a light hand, the chicken became soggy in spots with the gravy.  
     The half rack of baby back ribs was impressive to behold. We counted 9 ribs.  It is slow smoked with a dry rub which you can then dress with three house made sauces simply labelled: "sweet, spicy, and vinegar".  The rib meat was off the bone tender and robust with flavor.  The beautiful garnet sweet sauce completes the barbecued meat.  The spicy sauce adds a subtle hint of heat.  It should not intimidate the wimpiest non-spice consumer. I also liked the mustardy tang of the vinegar sauce.  The two sides that we picked for this dish aren't much to write about.  I'm not a big fan of baked beans.  They always seem unappealingly bland and cloyingly sweet.  I consider them a filler.  The collard greens with bacon were also disappointingly unflavorful and undercooked.    
     Stuffed to the gills, we still had two weighty doggy bags to take home.  True to form, Russell's Smokehouse does meats low and slow very well.  I would like to try some of their non-traditional sides such as the Israeli couscous and barley with fava beans which may prove better options considering the lackluster traditional sides.  

The subterranean restaurant

Vintage ceiling fans

Spinach Salad

Sunday Night Fried Chicken

Half Rack of Baby back ribs

The Bar

Cho77, Denver

     Full disclosure here, I am a devoted fan of chef Lon Symensma of the phenomenal ChoLon in LoDo.  From my first taste of his familiar yet foreign soup dumplings which appeared deceptively Asian, but burst forth with flavors of French onion soup, I was hooked.  Here is a chef who is able to marry his diverse background.  Educated at the Culinary Institute of America, Lon has trained with renowned chefs in New York City, France, Italy, and Spain.  Additionally, he spent a year traveling throughout Southeast Asia furthering  his repertoire.  Amongst his accolades are a silver medal in the culinary olympics, a James Beard nomination, and a title as the 3rd Best Restaurant in Denver by 5280.  
     So, when I heard about his new Asian bistro opening on South Broadway, I was anxious to try it.  Cho77, (1977 being the year chef Lon was born, is a more casual albeit hip little sister to the elegant and sophisticated ChoLon.  It is nestled in the gentrified Baker neighborhood amongst other hipster joints such as Goya and Beatrice and Woodsley.  The space is narrow and long with exposed brick and duct work, long communal high tops, and festive tea lights.  On a busy Thursday night, the hostess apologetically offered the open window high top facing Broadway.  I think we snagged the best seats in the house.  It was not exactly a proper table but was perfect for simple street fare and people watching.  It was especially romantic when the sky started to mist.  One could dreamily imagine rickshaws in Thailand instead of the Beamers cruising the streets.
     Intrigued and torn by the exotic cocktails with names like Hanoi Night Train and Crouching Tiger, we solicited the advise of the harried but patient server.  Once reassured that grapefruit rice beer was more akin to Fresca than either sake or beer, I selected the Drunken Monk.  Indeed, it was a stalwart drink, stiff enough to knock out any stoic friar.  Leopold's gin and citrusy grapefruit rice beer was spiked with mint and a hint of Kaffir lime, a native of Asia and more aromatic than the grocery store lime.  Don's cocktail, a Tamarind Sour, tasted similar to a traditional whiskey sour although the tamarind (a pea pod like fruit frequently used in cooking) imparted a sweetness as well as tartness.  Other beverages include a hand full of interesting white and red wines, local and imported draft and bottled beers as well as non alcoholic drinks such as Vietnamese Coffee.
     The menu, however simple and succinct, offered several tempting options.  Shared plates include fusion delights such as Buffalo Chicken Buns and Red Chili Pork Dumplings.  At the urging of the server, we went with the dumplings.  Four expertly wrapped, glistening morsels arrived piping hot in a slightly sticky sauce of Chinese black vinegar and soy.  Crunchy fried scallions were visually appealing and added texture and aroma.  A slow heat released by the red chile soon followed the first bite.  This excellent appetizer only fueled our anticipation for our noodle soup bowls.
    Cho77 has only four noodle soups to choose from, but all sounded extraordinary.  We narrowed it down to the Colorado Wagyu Beef Noodle Soup and the Bacon, Egg, & Cheese Ramen.  The steaming soups arrived in gargantuan, pristine white, deep bowls.  The Wagyu beef, to my delight, had fat and tendons attached.  Most other establishments would  perfunctorily remove them for the American palate.  These under rated parts impart a depth of flavor during the slow braising process.  The rich meat broth was perfumed with Chinese Five Spice which reminded me of my childhood noodle shop in Taiwan.   Two halves of a succulent beef meatball further added to the heady soup.  Accoutrements included jalepeno and red chile peppers, bean sprouts, cilantro, lime, and red onions.  The cellophane rice noodles soaked up the abundant flavors. 
     The Bacon, Egg, & Cheese ramen was also flavorful but not nearly as swoon inducing as the Wagyu beef.  The ramen noodles had toothsome bite, and the poached egg was perfectly cooked, but I found the soy marinated shitake mushrooms so over salted, they were borderline inedible.  The miso bacon was more like bacon jerky, somewhat swarthy and stiff.  I did not taste much cheese in the Parmesan broth.  Even so, both were perfectly satiating on a cool, rainy night.
     With stuffed bellies, we were too full for dessert, even for Sweet Action down the street, hands down the best ice cream in Denver.  That will have to be another review for another time.

Tamarind Sour and Drunken Monk

View of Broadway from window high top

Red Chili Pork Dumplings

Deliciousness!

Wagyu Beef Soup Accompaniments

Wagyu Beef Noodle Soup

Bacon, Egg, & Cheese Ramen