Extra Virgin

This was one of those great meals, that was totally unexpected. I went to dinner with Annie, and her brother Scott, to celebrate the end of a terrible week and we decided to go to a local restaurant that we had heard some great things about, Extra Virgin. Our cab dropped us off at the wrong street so we walked around the West Village and finally stumbled upon the adorable little restaurant. Nestled on West 4th sreet, there were a ton of several people outside 

To start I decided to drink something seasonal and opted for some sangria. I think they must top that sucked off with some champagne because it was bubbly and I was feeling it! We were seated relatively quickly and glanced over the menu and between the three of us we knew what we wanted, but as a rule of thumb we always ask the servers. 

Initially, we thought we would go for one of the following:

• Grilled atlantic salmon with cauliflower puree and aged balsamic
  
• Lemon crusted chilean sea bass with orzo tomato black olive salad
• Rare seared yellowfin tuna with herb whipped potatoes

So, when the waitress walked up, we were prepare to order these. Then she suggested the chicken. Wait, what? You are telling me to get the chicken? As a general rule of thumb, I just never order chicken, for no other reason than if I want chicken I will cook it myself. She promised us that it was worth it and also that we should get the prosciutto wrapped pork chops, which is something that we discussed, but weren't sure about it. So we ended up listening and ordered this:

• Fritto Misto - fried calamari, rock shrimp, calms, zucchini with a spicy tomato sauce
• Roast Parmesan Asparagus - poached egg, hollandaise, panchetta (pictured right)
• Mushrom Crusted Virgin Chicken - sweet pea risotto, cippiolini onions, truffle broth
• Proschuttio Wrapped Roast Loin of Pork - roast garlic parmesan whipped potatoes, broccolini, rosemary jus (pictured top left)
• Rare Seared Yellowfin Tuna - herb whipped potatoes, roasted artichokes, braised fennel, tomato caper vinaigrette, crispy onion
  

For starters we ate the fritto misto and roasted parmesan asparagus. For me the fritto miso was a miss. It was just your standard fried plate of food and honestly, I felt like I could have gotten that anywhere...just really wasn't doing anything for me...the asparagus however, now that was delicious. The bits of panchetta provided the perfect crispy, salty balance to the sweet egg and hollandaise sauce. 

Moving on to the entrees. We eat decide we would eat a couple of bits, and then rotate so that everyone as the table could have a sample. I started with the pork. The sweet jus and the salty prochuttio and the soft pork loin all melted together to create a delicious harmony in my mouth. I mean angels were singing, children were laughing, all was right. I then tried, the tuna...despite being the only thing on our originally intentions menu it was a bit of a let down. The tuna was a little bland for me, but not an epic loss, just not as good as the pork. Then I got the chicken. Again, I was not really looking forward to this, but since this was the last dish I was getting I had heard both Annie and Scott tell me how good it was, so I had some high expectations. They did not disappoint. I mean the mushrooms were crusted so tightly on that chicken it created a texture like the chicken had been fried. It was really incredible. The sweet pea risotto was outstanding as was the onions (can you really go wrong with roasted, sweet onions). By far this was my favorite entree, and one of the best chicken entrees I have had in a LONG time. 

I would definitely recommend Extra Virgin for a cool, laid-back night. It's definitely the kind of place where you could lose yourself for hours. Entrees ranged from $20-$30 and appetizers in the $10-$15 range and I would definitely, definitely order the chicken :)

Extra Virgin

259 W 4th Street

New York, NY 10011

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Internet Broken

My internet is completely broken at my apartment! So I have several posts in queue, but have been unable to publish them :( 

Hang tight, internet is suppose to be back this week!

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Pomme Frites

Here is something that I love about New York; people understand that you don't need to be good at everything, just do one thing and do it well. I think that is what the people behind Pomme Frites were thinking, "we're not really good at anything aside from fries and sauces so let's just make an entire shop around that..." And they did!! Nestled between a bar and a deli lies the promise land, Pomme Frites, a valley full of delicious fries (or frites) and sauces. 

I had heard about this place for a long time and this weekend finally decided it's time I taste this on my own. I was shocked at the size of the place. It's literally just a long hallway fitted with two big deep fryers, a cooler and a back section that seats about 14-15 people. It's hot, it's greasy, it's awesome. 

On the board in the back there are about 20 different sauces (mostly mayonnaise based) that you can pick from. Each sauce is $1.00 or you can get a combo for $2.50, and they will let you try any or all of them for free. The people there are honestly there to help you and don't seem annoyed when you want to try 6 different sauces :)

I ordered a regular fries (for $4.50) with pomegrante teriyaki sauce. Holy. Mother. There was so much food. A regular fries from this place is like getting them super sized at McDonald's. I mean it was huge, but so good. The fries were served in a paper cone and were definitely hand cut, crunchy on the outside, mushy on the inside, just the way I like it. The sauce. Oh the sauce. The sauce was everything that I look for a in dipping vehicle, salty, sweet, with a little kick at the end. I tried the rosemary garlic and horseradish sauces and while both delicious, the garlic and the horseradish had a little more kick than I was looking for, but I could easily see myself ordering them another day. 

Once I got my snack/meal, I sat down at one of the single stools in the back and went to town. On the tables they have little holes cut out so you can stick you cone in there and eat with a fork and basically demolish the food. I ate what felt like 5 lbs of potatoes but barely made a dent in the cone. I asked for a bag and wrapped everything up and ate it later in a park :)

Is Pomme Frites worth it? Absolutely. I will say this: don't go alone, bring friends and get more sauces. The regular is definitely enough to share amongst three people and there are so many sauces to chose from I had a hard time picking one! 

Pomme Frites

123 2nd Avenue 

New York, NY 10003

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Cheese - The Ultimate Food

Taking it back old school I decided to re-post this again. Annie's parents are coming in town and she asked me what kind of cheese she should get for her parents and without hesitation I said "Port Salut!" Read below my previous review which still reigns true:

For my first product review I am going to discuss something that could possibly be one of my greatest culinary passions: cheese. So yeah, I'm a member of the cheese of the month club, courtesy of a Christmas present from my wonderful dad.

Every two months (I know, I said cheese of the month club, but bi-cheese of the month club is a mouthful, calm down) I get 3 new cheeses. One that has apparently left a profound impact on me is the Port Salut and yes, its French, but no, it is NOT stinky, in fact it is awesome.

Imagine a muenster cheese, that is a lot softer and milder in taste. So the next time you put cheese out at a party spare your guests of the typical spread, with havarti and cheddar, and take a closer look and pick up Port Salut (may be called SAFR Port Salut) everyone will think you're a lot classier and if possible, more awesome. Pair that sucker with some fruit and a nice white wine and everyone will love you. At least I will.

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Top Chef Masters

I am so excited I can't stand it. Last night as I was watching the Real Housewives of New Jersey (don't even act like it's not incredible...) and I saw a commercial for TOP CHEF MASTERS. What? What is this show you are speaking of? Basically, Top Chef is going to start a new show that features prominent chefs defending their honor on the culinary battle ground and competing for charity. If you look at the cast list here you are going to notice some pretty big names and former judges on the show.

A couple of my personal favorites:

• Wylie Dufresne - The owner of WD-50 and molecular gastronomy god.


• John Besh - Adorable New Orleans chef that has been on Iron Chef and I believe he won! Right?


• Art Smith - Oprah's former personal chef and overall southern delight to watch :) He has been on Iron Chef too, but I think he lost...

I am not too familiar with any of the judges, but that's ok I am sure they are legit. I kind of wish that Tom Collichio threw his chef hat into the ring, but maybe they are saving that for another competition - "Top Chef Masters All Star Challenge."

Anyways, I am seriously counting down the days until June 10th at 10pm EST! This is going to be a great summer show!

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