Eating in New York

I love New York for its hundreds of restaurants everywhere. One is truly spoilt for choice. I stayed over at my ex-roommate Wendy’s place in the East Village this trip. I was drooling just from walking around!

We have our eating routine in New York down pat though: a nice restaurant the first evening, then Chinatown Sunday morning for cheap but delicious dim sum.

This trip, we chose Boulud Sud, which is conveniently located across Lincoln Center. Our last trip, we went to another of Daniel Boulud half dozen restaurants in the city, Cafe Boulud. While we enjoyed that meal, we found the ambience a little too stuffy.

Happily, Boulud Sud’s dining room has a much airier feel with its contemporary decor of high ceilings. The cuisine is Mediterranean-themed and the pre-fixed menu focuses on fish.

Our table of five weren’t too adventurous in our choices and stuck mostly to the same dishes. For the appetizers, we had the grilled octopus with almonds and pan seared mackerel that was meaty and immensely satisfying. Jeff ordered the eggplant and chickpeas falafel dish, which was unimaginative (on both his and the restaurant’s part) though decent.

For our entrees, 3 of us had the sea bass wrapped in scallions on a bed of polenta with a side of crispy potato gratin. It was delicious and paired really well with our Saar Riesling. Kat ordered the calf liver that I had been eyeing and it was so good! Mike had the wagyu beef and they were most generous with the cuts.

Dessert was also a highlight – orange dark chocolate tart with pomegranate sorbet. And grapefruit mousse with a caramel glaze served in a wine glass.

Haha, it was such a pleasure to indulge with seriously tasty food, instead of average fare dressed in really fancy presentation served by condescending waiters. Which was how our Alinea experience last week felt like. Alinea touts itself as a Mecca for molecular gastronomy, but thinking back, the only dish that really qualified as such was the distilled hot chocolate that looked like clear water but tasted exactly like chocolate. Otherwise, I’d say that the flavors were pretty distinct. In contrast, our meal at Boulud Sud packed a real punch in flavors.

On Sunday, we went to Shanghai Heping on 104 Mott Street, a newly opened restaurant in Chinatown, so new, they did not even have the credit card readers up and running yet. We went on a friend’s recommendation, and weren’t in the least disappointed. Their soup dumplings is the best we’ve had in recent memory!!! The skin was thin and delicate but sturdy enough to hold the ton of soup within. I was in such bliss sucking and slurping up the broth. Our table of 10 enjoyed the dish do much we ordered four steamer trays of it, on top of the 10 other dishes we ordered! Other highlights – Shanghai noodles, pea pods. Definitely worth a return trip!

Anna Bolena in New York

I had looked on several occasions, but hadn’t been able to find any available tickets to Anna Netrebko’s Anna Bolena at the Metropolitan Opera. By chance, I mentioned it in passing to Jo, an old elementary school friend now living in New York.

She went to the website for a look and excitedly pinged me. Four tickets available!!! After just a moment’s hesitation, we snapped them up. Then, I went to look for flights. Hehe.

It was so so so good! First of all, I had read a lot of reviews that panned the staging, and the critics openly wondered about Peter Gelb’s push for non-operatic directors to produce operas. But I really loved the set. Yes it was grey, but I thought the somber colors suited the tone of the opera, and in any case, the lighting was really excellent. Very dramatic.

We enjoyed a performance from an evenly strong cast too. It was thrilling to be able to hear Anna Netrebko live, after having only heard her in movie theaters and at home for so long. Her voice was true and clear, soaring effortlessly to the upper levels of the balcony where we were seated. Her mad scene aria was out of this world. For a few whole stanzas, she sang completely unsupported. Gave me the goose pimples. As soon as her last notes died away, the audience as one erupted in a frenzy. Most exciting!!!

As we walked out of the enormous, plush theater, I felt a pang of regret, and a tinge of jealousy. Haha for a moment (or two) I wished I lived in NYC too, so I could have regular access to this beautiful opera house and it’s stellar line up of international stars. (And access to the hundreds and hundreds of good eateries too, but that is another story).

Oh well. Given the crazy high standard of living, I think it is still cheaper for us to live elsewhere and make the occasional sojourn to the city. There’s the Diana Damrau and Juan Diego Florez production of Elisir d’Amore this spring, and I have to say I am quite tempted to make another trip out.

Morning of Circus Arts

Since the indoor trapeze rig in Chicago is still not yet open, I’ve been looking to get my trapeze fix wherever I can. I think Jeff’s given up on the trapeze, but he was game enough to sign up for the silks class. At the last minute, we were able to convince his brother Joe to sign up for the trampoline class around the same time (although I think he didn’t think it was really his cup of tea, after bouncing around for a good part of an hour).

I continued to work on my swing and layout. I think it’s amazing that I’ve caught that trick twice before – Brian and Steve are really excellent catchers and linesmen respectively to help me make those two catches before, because I think my swing still needs a ton of work. But the staff at the NYC rig were really, really great – they were very generous and helpful with tips on how I can better improve my technique. Towards the end, they were even trying to convince me to change my air ticket, so I could stay for a couple more days of tutelage. Haha.

It was a great workout! Perfect excuse for later pigging out at The Cannibal, where I met up with an elementary school friend and her boyfriend to catch up on old times over the most delicious Trappist ale and heaping plates of pig’s head, veal and other assorted meat.

Rodelinda at the Met

Jeff was a little hesitant when I told him we were going to watch a Handel opera. The last time we caught his Hercules at the Lyric, we left at intermission, bored senseless by the endless repetition and glacial moving plot. We’d better order coffee, he said worriedly, when we placed our dessert orders at Cafe Boulud.

But we needn’t have worried much. As expected, there was a ton of reiterations of sentiments. But the story line was tight and moved along at a good pace. We wished there was more than one duet though – it was lovely hearing the blending of the voices of the soprano and countertenor in Io t’Abbraccio. I guess duets (and trios and quartets and choruses) are a rare thing in Baroque opera. It’s definitely interesting to see the development of the operatic styles through the ages. In Rodelinda, all actions completely grind to a stop while the character sings his/her aria vs. in Wagner’s operas where the music is conceived as a “continuous melody” and the arias drive the story along.

That evening we caught the opera, the Lyric released an announcement stating that it had appointed Renee Fleming’s personal manager into the newly created position of Director of Public Relations. My initial reaction – she’s not secure enough as Creative Director? Or is she trying to maneuver her way into the top job at the Lyric? She definitely has a ton of influence, not only at the Lyric, but at the Met, where she convinced the company to produce the Rodelinda opera for her back in 2004. The opera is not that much a soprano showcase however – all characters had long and demanding parts.

We had a solid cast to watch that evening. We greatly enjoyed Fleming’s singing, especially in the duet aria with tenor Joseph Kaiser. Stephanie Blythe, with her powerful voice, is always a delight to listen to. The two countertenors were great too, and we were very impressed with Iestyn Davies – his voice seemed stronger at times than Andreas Scholl. The Classical Review has a great review here.

Oh, and I love, love, love the seats at the Met. I’ve only been there two other times before. The first, I bought a standing ticket to the double bill, Rusticana and Pagliacci; the second, I had orchestra-level seats at the back. This time, we bought tickets in the front center of the family circle, and had excellent views. The seats were spaced generously apart, so we didn’t have to squash our knees into the backs of the seats in front of us, nor had to lean forward to peer over the heads of the people in front of us. I’ve greatly enjoyed watching the close-up live in HD performances at the Met, but it’s something special to sit and take in the entire wide stage at a glance. Oh for another weekend trip to catch another opera live!

Cafe Boulud

I always love visiting New York City – there’s such a ton to do, it’s difficult planning an itinerary. This trip, I only had the weekend in town, so I jammed it as best as I could.

In the morning, we had brunch at Congee Village with Jeff’s family. Loved the flavorful congee – I haven’t found a restaurant that offers half as good a porridge in Chicago unfortunately. And the price is definite value for money. Our table of 8 ordered a dozen dishes, and the total bill with tips came only up to $75!

After lunch, we caught the Broadway play, Seminar. Between that and the opera, we had just about enough time to squeeze in a meal at Cafe Boulud.

The one thing I’ve definitely taken for granted eating at fine dining restaurants in Chicago is that for the most part, the dress code is a little more casual. At El Ideas, we can get away with wearing a nicer sweater or shirt, but apart from that, the jeans and sneakers stay on.

I felt compelled to dig out my nicer dress pants and boots for Cafe Boulud however, and still felt a little intimidated by the sharply suited waiters hovering over us.

We had a half bottle of Burgundy red to go with our seafood pasta appetizer of uni, shrimp, and lobster. It was delicious, and I could have easily slurped another plateful. For entrees, we shared the puff-pastry wrapped sea bass and pan seared duck, both excellent, if un-exciting choices. The hazelnut dessert with salted nuts was the highlight of the evening, especially paired with an off-dry French red. We also lingered over the basket of madelines they laid out with our coffee. Soft, they puffed warm air into our mouths when we bit into it.

The Seminar with Alan Rickman

Jeff was really nice to give in to me when I asked, could we please, pretty please go watch Alan Rickman in his new play on Broadway, Seminar?

The play, by Theresa Rebeck, is about a grouchy celebrity editor who holds a private writing seminar and who then seems to take an unwholesome delight in ripping their work to shreds. The plot is simple, with no twists, but the dialogue was smart and wicked.

Rickman was at his snarling, blistering best. He delivered punches in his deliciously low voice that reverberated off the floors of the stage. The audience, consisting mostly of an older set – and then us, lapped it up.

One of my favorite lines: You want my honest opinion? Well I think you are not without talent. Your writing is like a whore. You are a whorishly good writer. You will never be on a panel, but if you want to make it rich, you should go to Hollywood.

After the show, we left the theater, intending to make our way up to Lincoln Center. Outside, however, long lines had formed. It turned out that people were waiting for Alan Rickman to appear. Haha so we joined in the waiting. Jerry O’Connell, one of the actors in the play, made an appearance, and diligently shook hands with everyone before he and a couple other cast members strolled off around the block. Alas, to everyone’s visible and audible disappointment, Alan decided to hide from his adoring fans and sent word that he wasn’t going to appear.

Oh well, but at least we did see him up close and in the flesh!

Jerry O’Connell signing autographs

Big Apple for the Weekend

Fine way to herald Spring: wandering around the streets of Manhattan (and Flushing) on two incredibly gorgeous sunshine-y days this past weekend.

Joe and I checking out the art fair in Union Square

Chalk art installation in progress

A round of ping pong in Spin, a fancy bar with dozens of table tennis tables for rent

And the wonders of FB and GChat: a couple of innocuous postings about NYC led a few friends and I to meet up. Julia, who was coincidentally up from Boston for the weekend; Char who came in from Chicago as well; Jo, my primary schoolmate; and Wendy.

A short but delightful weekend.