Spice

By now I'm sure you've figured out that I love Thai food.  Eventually I'll try making it myself and let you know how it turns out.  For now, I'll continue to frequent my favorite restaurants.  Before checking out a film at the Tribeca Film Festival, Mr. G and I decided to grab a quick dinner at Spice.  We went to the Chelsea location, even though the Union Square location would have been closer.  We have been to the Chelsea location several times but I have to say this was by far the best meal either of us have ever had there.

We were running late so the manager (he was dressed like one, but never actually confirmed that's what he was) took our order at the door while waiting for a table to clear.  In my hurry to order, I asked for the Tamarind Whole Fish, I was pretty sure that wasn't what I actually wanted but by then it was too late so I figured if I didn't like it, I would eat Mr. G's Tuna and spice fried rice.

Our food arrived within 5 minutes of sitting down.  Imagine the look on my face when this guy arrived at the table.

I really wish I had a better picture, but yes that's a WHOLE RED SNAPPER! Tail, head, eyes and all.  At that moment, I confirmed I placed the wrong order.  But with 20 minutes left to get to the film, I decided to dig in.  Ladies and gentlemen, this was BY FAR the most delicious meal I have ever had at Spice.  It could probably rival as one of the top two Thai dishes too.  The fish was crispy and sat around a pool of tamarind sauce.  The sauce by itself was incredible.  Sweet but spicy.  I was eating spoonfuls and couldn't believe how tasty it was.  The fish, crispy on the outside but moist on the inside.  Although it wasn't bathed in the tamarind sauce, it definitely had its own flavor so even eating it without the tamarind sauce it tasted wonderful.  Once I added the cone of rice, I truly was in heaven.

Seriously, if you're ever in the neighborhood, you MUST go to Spice.  I have never been disappointed with my order but this was truly the best meal.  Mr. G's dish was also delicious.

The Ahi Tuna was well seasoned and cooked to perfection.  Of course the spice fried rice was a great complement and the flavors blended well together especially with the sauce.

Summer Lunch

Not quite summer yet but it is really warm outside today. All that heat and my laziness left me with a desire for a turkey burger and fries.

I heated up my Forman Grill and cooked a turkey burger. While I enjoy making my own fries usually sweet potato wedges, I also enjoy what the pros have to offer.

I bake these rather than fry them and it takes about 15-20 minutes. Rather than just squirting ketchup on my burger and calling it a meal, I like to make my own special sauce.

Special Sauce
1/4 cup onions, peppers and tomatoes
2 tbs ketchup
2 tbs BBQ sauce
1/2 tsp crushed red pepper
Salt and pepper to taste
1 tbs Olive oil

Pour the olive oil in the skillet. Once the oil is hot, add vegetables. Cook until veggies are tender. Add ketchup and BBQ sauce stir the mixture until the veggies are coated then add crushed pepper. Top your burger with this and anything else you desire.  I added tomatoes and jalapenos. 

More Thai

While I may want to try new things at Buddakan, I'm having a hard time trying new things at Topaz.

Yup that's right jungle curry again, but the lunch portion this time so less curry and the rice comes on a separate plate with salad.  Oh and I also ordered curry puffs as an appetizer.  They were properly spiced and sat on a bed of cucumber, lettuce, red onions, carrots and a clear dressing that was tasty but I'm not sure what it was.

I'm already hungry again...hmm what's for dinner?

A Dining Extravaganza

Aside from the obvious good company, one of the reasons I love hangin with Ms. U is her appreciation for dining experiences and trying new things.  While I had previously dined at Buddakan, this was Ms. U's first time and it was quite the experience.  Being the food lovers that we are, we had both scouted out the menu and reviews repeatedly during the week so we walked in with a plan.  I met Ms. U in the lounge area.  She was seated at the incredibly sterile looking stainless steel bar.  If you're going to hang out in the lounge, the bar is not the place to sit.  The communal tables or the private ones along the wall are a much better bet.  After getting grilled by our hostess, we were escorted to our table.  She tried to seat us upstairs but we opted for the communal table in the main dining room.  We were the first ones at the table but by the end of the meal, we had lots of company.

We started out by ordering edamame dumplings with shallot-sauternes broth to share and personal servings of chili rock shrimp with toasted ginger.

The dumplings were magnificent.  The texture was quite interesting.  The outside was smooth and slick.  The inside was creamy and a little grainy.  The broth complemented the dumplings quite nicely.

The chili rock shrimp lived up to the hype.  Although, I wish we had shared the dish because neither of us finished our portion.  The shrimp were not as spicy as I liked, however one of the servers provided us with some chili sauce that provided the appropriate level of spice.  The only issue I had with the shrimp was they were coated in batter.  While I'm not big on "healthy eating" I don't love eating fried things.  Had we split the dish, it would have been more than enough.

For my main course, I ordered Kung-pao Monkfish and we split Lobster fried rice.  I'm sad to report that the fried rice was just rice with lobster.  There was no real flavor to it, but again that chili sauce rescued it.  

The Monkfish was not as spicy as I would have liked but was otherwise satisfying.  A warning that it is also coated in batter so again not my favorite.  Although we were both filled to the brim, we decided to make enough room for dessert.

That beauty is Crying Chocolate: malted white chocolate ganache and coffee ice cream.  It was so good I'm pretty sure we did not take breaths between bites.  It didn't take us too long to finish it up.

Overall, an excellent dining experience and I'd definitely go back.  Although, I would change my order.  Not because I did not like them, but because there is so much to eat on that menu!!!

Sushi Lunch

How lucky am I that Mr. G had some time to meet me for lunch today?!  We normally dine outside so we can soak up the sun, but it was a little chilly today so we decided to eat indoors.  Sushi is always a good bet for lunch because it's usually very quick.  Aoki was bustling during lunch but they had room for 2 at an alcove table that could probably have fit 6 or more.  They have a big colorful menu with lots of options.  We settled on the sushi roll lunch special.  I ordered miso soup, shrimp tempura roll, salmon cucumber roll and spicy tuna roll.

I'm usually not a big fan of spicy tuna because the consistency can be a llittle off, but I decided to give it a try anyway and boy was I thrilled!  The tuna was definitely spicy, but not overwhelming.  It didn't smell fishy and it tasted fresh.  

The salmon cucumber was very refreshing and tasted like it would be the perfect treat on a hot summer day.  

The shrimp tempura was smaller than most places.  They gave 4 rolls instead of 6, but that was a good thing.  

I finished it all and I was stuffed.  Hopefully I'll have room for dinner tonight!  Maybe someday I'll make sushi myself.