Food

Free Babysitting

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MC’s parents came to visit this weekend.  They arrived late morning Saturday.  MC and Teagan had a birthday party to goto so they had already left however Amelia and I got to have lunch with them.  Right after lunch when I got Amelia out of her chair she put her head on my shoulder.  It was as sure of a sign as I was going to get that she was tired and wanted a nap.

My mother in law went for a walk while my father in law and I got to relax with Amelia sleeping.  I tinkered, but I already wrote about that in a post yesterday.

With MC’s parents visiting MC and I had an opportunity to go out for a date night with free baby sitting.  We took her parents up on the offer and went out for dinner after the girls were in bed.

The girls were not quite sleeping when we left however we gave strict instructions to MC’s folks on how not to get scammed by Teagan into going into the room and giving her stuff.

We trekked out in the rain to Jade for some dinner.  We haven’t been there in a  while and we liked the food before.  It didn’t disappoint.  We had a few good cocktails and the meal was good.  I tried some mojito’s and MC tried a specialty drink that was pretty good but I cannot remember the name of.After dinner we headed out in now pouring rain to Martha’s Bakery for some tasty desert to bring home.  We all split some cheese cake, chocolate cake and red velvet.  It was a really good selection.

Today was pretty laid back.  We had breakfast at home and then everyone except me went for a walk and on the way back brought home lunch.  My in laws headed home after lunch thankfully taking a bunch of boxes we are donating with them.  I am all for more free space in the apartment.

After that the girls got in a great long nap.  For dinner MC and I tried to introduce the girls to sushi.  It didn’t go over as planned meaning MC and I ate a lot of such and the girls ended up eating garden burgers since they really didn’t want anything to do with the sushi.

Overall a pretty relaxing weekend at home.

The Art of Dipping

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I came home early from work today and was able to eat dinner with the girls.  They had chicken nuggets.  Well we call them chicken nuggets but they are the Morningstar Farms Veggi nuggets.  MC & I have showed the girls how to dip food into sauces like BBQ & Mustard.  Neither of the girls have been interested in it.

Best Sushi I Ever Had

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MC & I meet up with one of her cousins and his girlfriend and went to Sushi Nakazawa.  I have wanted to go since MC pointed out an article about the place was opening.  She knew I liked the Jiro Dreams of Sushi documentary and highlighted the connection.  The problem was we never got reservations, until today.

Reservations were late so MC and I went back  to Employees Only for a drink first.  It was nearby so we figured we would try it again.  We were lucky and it wasn’t too crowded.  We got seats at the bar.  I had two delicious Whiskey Smash’s.  I would drink more of them if they weren’t as time intensive to make myself.  MC was more adventurous and picked something interesting off the menu.  For round two she let our awesome bartender pick something out for her.  Both drinks were good however I still loved the Whiskey Smash.  After drinks we walked over to Sushi Nakazawa.

Dinner was better than expected and that is saying a lot since we had high hopes.  By far the best sushi experience I have ever had.  I opted for the Sake pairing to go along with the dinner.  It was a good choice.  MC opted for wine however there was enough Sake tasting to go around.  Dinner was a big splurge however totally worth it.

I will try not to discuss the piece of cake and two cup cakes I may or may not have had at Magnolia bakery afterwards.

Overall a fantastic evening.  The only downside would be the Uber fail.  I tried Uber for the first time and the driver canceled on me before they could pick us up.  Ended up being less of an issue since the Subway showed up quick.  I will give Uber another try at some point.  Hoping they are more reliable than one Friday late night instance cancelation.

One of The Best Meals I Have Ever Had

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Jean Georges Anniversary Dinner

Even before MC and I were married we became fan’s of fine dining every once in a while.  I don’t consider us foodies (yet) but we do like to go out and enjoy a good meal.  We have been watching Top Chef for a while and have sampled a few places in NYC from famous chef’s.  We went to Craft for our first anniversary.  Late last year we went to a restaurant run by one of the Top Chef winners, Hung.

Inevitably we don’t get out as much as we would like to.  This year for our 3rd anniversary we wanted to go somewhere nice.  Last year Amelia was only home from the hospital a week and we were lucky enough for MC’s parents to be around to let us go out to somewhere in the neighborhood.  It was a great meal but nothing too fancy.  This year we planned at the last minute so finding a nice place was a challenge.  Instead of looking for a place associated by someone on Top Chef we looked at the Michelin starred restaurants in NYC.  After some trying we were able to get reservations at Jean Georges.  it is one of a handful of 3 star Michelin restaurants in the US. Last year for restaurant week we went to the bar or whatever they call the more casual part of Jean Georges but this time we went to the full dining room.

MC was running late due to train issues, so I hung out at the bar till she arrived. I tried an Old Fashoned. I wasn’t a fan. It is the 2nd one that i didn’t like so i think i am just not a fan of the drink so i will stop trying to make it at home. I swithed to my favorate Sidecar when we got to our table. We both opted for the 3 course menu. Everything was fantastic. I think MC said her secound course was the single best bite of food that she has had. It was that good. It may have arguably been the best meal i have ever had. If not the best it is in the top 5. I paid extra for the beef 3rd course. It was delicious but if we ever went back I would try for something different. Suprisingly the least favorate course for me was my 2nd course of Foie Gras. It was good but MC and I both thought it wasn’t spectacular.

Desert was fantastic. We each went with the chocolate option. They do themes for desert so we had the option of winter, chocolate, carmel, or i think orange or lemon. Neither of us could agree on who would do chocolate and who would get carmel so we both got the chocolate. We also got a little chocolate cake for our anniversary. I was glad to mention that we were celebrating when they asked when we sat down.

Overall we had a fantastic night. Jean Georges also was the single most expensive dinner I can remember spending money on but it was worth every penny. We are now thinking of what we want to do for our next nice night out. That wont be till my birthday at minimum but we want to plan this time. I think we are both thinking of going to Le Bernardin. We both want to go but we haven’t been able to get reservations, so next time we need to plan ahead.

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The Manhattan Part 2

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Tonight was my 2nd attempt at mixing up Manhattan’s. This time around was also a success too. I didn’t drink all of it just because it was a lot to drink for a Monday night. I had enough to know that I have the recipe down to move on to my next drink.

I am not sure what I am going to try next. I made one Old Fashioned last week. According to my own standards I made up last week I want to do at least two rounds (one for MC & I each) so a total of 4 drinks to be comfortable to move on to the next one. Besides the Old Fashioned I have a total of 10 other drinks I have that I want to try mixing up. 4 of them are summery ones so I have 6 to try before I will look at variations. So far this hobby has been pretty fun, although it can cost a lot in money and calories.

The Manhattan Part 1

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Tonight I mixed up my first round of Manhattan’s. For this drink I needed to go out and purchase some Sweet Vermouth. I only had dry. I learned the difference today. I also wanted to get a Rye Whiskey. The Manhattan’s I tried at bar’s were with that and I liked it. I only had Jack Daniels at home.

Once I had my ingredients (and the kids were sleeping) I got to my mixing. As drinks go this was not challenging to make compared to some of the other ones I have tried. The end result was delicious. MC and I both liked the first batch. They were very strong however. 3oz of alcohol in a single drink will do that too you.

Whiskey Smash Take 3

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Tonight was my 3rd attempt at the Whiskey Smash. It was delicious. That makes two successful attempts in a row. I think one more and I will call it a mastering of the drink. At least a mastery for home use. I am not quitting my day job. This last round of drinks I plan for tomorrow in now has anything to do with the fact that the mint I bought is likely going bad and may not last past tomorrow.

Taking a break from my hobby for a day

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Tonight I am taking the day off from my mixology hobby I have adopted. MC and I are both trying to fight colds and the last two days of tasting my concoctions are likely not the greatest thing for my throat. I hope to resume my experimenting with the Whiskey smash tomorrow night.

The Whiskey Smash Take Two

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After my failed attempt at the Whiskey Smash last night I was determined to get the correct ingredients and try again. I searched around the internet and got several different recipies but settled on one that seemed to be one of the classic versions. I was missing simple syrup but learned how easy it was to make it. I also needed fresh lemon. A quick trip to the grocery store on our walk this afternoon got me everything i needed to try again.

With all the right ingredients and a video on Youtube I was ready to go. The preperation of this drink required a bit more effort than just mixing stuff up for the sidecar or the martini. I wouldn’t say it was hard but it was the most challanging drink i have had to make so far. Once done the first taste proved the effort was worth it. With the new recipe I got it right on the first attempt. MC confirmed it was good. She is fighting a cold so opted to pass on her own drink. I should have not even been making drinks yesterday or today because I was sick with a cold but I was feeling much better than I was feeling yesterday morning so I drank my creation. It was good. It wasn’t alot of drink. To make it the size of a drink in a bar I need to double the recipe but that would be alot of alcohol. I am pretty buzzed writting this post now so I don’t think I could have handled a double portion.

I wanted to take a picture of my creation but even with the mint for garnish it didn’t look as nice as the sidecar so no picture. I am still trying to figure out why they say to slap the mint on my arm before putting it in the drink. Either way the verdict is delicious.

I need to make this a few more times in the next week or so (I have a ton of mind I need to use) to be sure I mastered the recipe and then it is on to my next challange. I still need to figure out what that will be. I want to make Manhattan’s but I am not sure if that is going to be next or something else.