Food

So one of the things we did when Ilan was here was go on a hunt for the best French fries in the city. Well, not exactly a hunt - it was more that I had seen an article about one guy going on a hunt and rating what he thought were the top five French fries in the city, and so Ilan and Alex and I went to two of the places.

We went to the Breslin, which is the restaurant in the Ace Hotel and is very fancy but you can sit at the bar and order the fries. Alex and Ilan, both of whom love fries normally, thought they were transcendent French fries. I thought they were fine.

But then we went to Pomme Frites, which is a tiny place with about 50 different kinds of sauces for the fries, mostly mayo-based, and all of which (or anyway the three kinds we tried) appear to be suuuuuuuuuuuper delicious and perfect with their crunchy fries of perfection! We had horseradish mayo, "War Sauce" (peanut sauce with something else, I forget because it was a couple weeks ago), and their new black truffle mayo. Yum!

Also, we went to S'Mac, which is a restaurant devoted to mac and cheese. If you go, get the smallest size, even though it looks too small. It would have been plenty even for big-appetite Alex! Here's what I have discovered about mac and cheese: If it is not both scrumptious AND unusual/exciting/different, I really just wish I were eating my grandmother's mac and cheese, which is my favorite food on the planet and which I can make perfectly well at home without paying for restaurant food. So S'Mac's four cheese mac and cheese I didn't bother finishing (who needs four cheeses? Just give me a really good cheddar!), but the jambalaya mac and cheese with the andouille and Cajun spices I was all over. Pass me some more, please!

We also hit up Veniero's, a bakery near S'Mac that Meredith and I checked out last year. I'm of course a gigantic dessert snob, so I don't care for everything there - don't bother me with that chocolate cake. No matter how chocolatey you say it is, I promise it doesn't cut it! - but they have this concoction that is one layer New York cheesecake and one layer dark chocolate mousse, and is coated in dark chocolate, and it is perfection on a plate (and this from the gal who semi-hates cheesecake and who will usually turn down a bowl of chocolate mousse flat!).

So on the subject of food, Alex and I made vegetarian chili again, this time with bell pepper and zucchini and rutabaga, carrots, kidney beans and chickpeas and black beans, cocoa powder, chili powder, cayenne, lots of garlic, and a healthy dollop of sour cream on top! And I made chocolate mousse pie for the first time in a while, and it was both beautiful and delicious!

Also, Jamie and Alex and Anthony (who was visiting from CalArts and is a friend from UCI) and I went to the fancy cheese store my parents gave me a gift certificate to for my birthday last year and bought a scrumptious, flavorful goat cheese and a stunning bleu cheese to eat with sourdough and honey (Anthony's inspired suggestion). Yum! Yum yum yum!

Also, my friend Sharyn came over last week and we made salad for dinner, which normally I don't believe in of course, but as this salad consisted of fresh farmers' market lettuce, spring greens, beets, and carrots, plus hard boiled egg, Feta cheese, and a little olive oil, I was down with the situation! Plus, chocolate chip cookies. Practically perfect! Best chocolate cookie recipe I have (it's identical to another chocolate chip cookie recipe I have from another source, although I forget what - I'll have to look it up for you). And I know, because I tested them all out side by side.