One day @ a time - #8 Dim Sun eats Dim Sum - June 12

Almost done with the blog-athon! I'm just making up lost time due to a Macbook malfunction. I'm now playing on my new MacBook Pro, but feelin' like an amateur, teeheehee.

Saturday, June 12, 2010

So after the crazy week that started off with me Buffering due to my broken lapto--uhh, notebook :-), I set out to take a mind clearing stroll through Brooklyn and instead got my mind blown! We moved to this area shortly after our house was broken into and did the initial stroll around the blocks. We picked up menus and I made mental lists of what groceries were where. We saw this huuuuuge building under going a remodeling and at the time it looked like a fish market??? What do you think?

The "Plaza"part is what made us feel like it was a seafood market of some type. Well, that was a year and some change ago and every time we pass it on the way to another seafood market, we'd wonder when it would finally open. This day we were coming from a stroll and saw activity outside of the entrance. First we stood on the corner, then we slowly inched closer towards the building. Both looking up at it and mumbling things like "I wonder what's going on" and "Is it open for business?". We mumbled right up to the foot of the steps and that's where we met a nice lady talking to two other businessmen. I think she knew we were clueless and inquisitive because she walked up to us and asked us if we needed help. We both explained that we didn't know what was inside, but wanted to go in if it was finally opened. We asked if it was a seafood market and she said no, it was a restaurant. A RESTAURANT!?!?!?! My heart skipped a beat! We live on the cusp of many different nationalities in my area, so given her nationality as Chinese and the word "seafood" on the building, I got super foodie excited. We already have authentic Greek, Italian, Middle Eastern and South American food at our footsteps, so this would be the cherry on top! She invited us in and that's when I realized she had ties to the building. I was impressed, she was so inviting and we instantly got hungry, but it was Saturday and we were both in our weekend worst of cargo pants and wrinkled t-shirts. I told her we looked a mess and would return cleaned up, but she told us it was casual and we looked ok as is. I like a sweet, but hard sell. She ushered us up the steps and into what I can only explain as a Dim Sum Palace! You'd expect to see something like this in Manhattan's Chinatown. Huge. Pretty Lighting. Loud. Busy. Aaaaaand we were the only non-Asians in there ... something of a coup in the ethnic dining trenches of NYC. Take a look at our first round ...
Look at that! That's only a third of what we ordered. So happy I was Dim and it wasn't a seafood market. I don't mind walking a bit further for seafood if that means Dim Sum is close to home! If you've never done Dim Sum, it's fun and instant gratification. The waiters come by with carts of steamed dumplings and small bites and all you have to do is point to what you want and it's on the table in seconds, straight from the cart. We'd pretty much said yes to everything and then realized we had to slow down or we'd have more on the table than we could fit or eat. That's when this beauty rolled by ...
It had me at bacon. We both looked at each other for approval, then before even getting each other's response, told the lady with the cart we'd take a few of the bacon thingys. I don't know what you call it but inside was crab meat and spices. That's all I can discern, it was crispy, not greasy and delicious. We thought surely we were breaking the bank there with all of our cart hijacking and I kept thinking this would be a nice way to say welcome to the neighborhood and congrats on getting the business opened. Turns out when we moved into the area over a year ago, it was almost ready to open, but the city slowed the process by not issuing an occupancy certificate. Must've been stress waiting for that as a business owner. Anyway, we ate for 2 people and had enough left to take home for 2 more people ... grand total?? $36. Crazy!!! I love a stroll through Brooklyn!

Ok, I'll post the next and last blog for today around 5:30 for my East Coast foodies reading live that have to clock out from the cubicle :-) ....

Brooklyn Dinin'

Last month I read in the paper about Dine In Brooklyn and got totally excited. I truly enjoy eating and eating out is a nice break from prepping on my own. The big city (Manhattan) has it's own. Restaurant Week, but I'd just moved into a new hood of Brooklyn and needed a new list of spots to try. Another crazy thing is the restaurants are getting hit bad during the recession, so what a great way to support businesses and my belly at the same time, eh? 

I made reservations at a few spots, but one day I had a hard time finding a place participating in Dine In Brooklyn that was also open for lunch. One of the few available restaurants with the special menu for the event was the Stone Park Cafe. They didn't have a special menu set up for lunch like the others, but it was in an easy area to get to, plus supporting is about supporting, right? So, special menu or not, I was out to give my Brooklyn crew some biz. Cool thing is I had a business meeting planned and when possible I like to have them in Brooklyn, that's right ... I made someone come to Brooklyn for biz teeheehee! It's hard to get people over the bridge or through the tunnel - and it's just 5 to 10 minutes sometimes, it was that way when I lived in New Jersey. I'm sure they'll be back to Brooklyn after the meal. Boy, was this food bangin'! The service was cool and reminded me of my favorite place in the city ... they'll let you sit there all day if you want and never try to turn the table. It's small and totally good for dates and business and the bar drinks are yummy. Over the next weeks, I revisited to try the full menu, which is small and I have my theories about the small menu/seasonal spots, so I was pleased with the outcome. One time we went and had the most amazing scallops for an app. We talked about them throughout the entree course so much that we skipped dessert and decided to order the scallops again to finish the meal ... I know, crazy, but that's how good they were. I'm now accustomed to calling in advance to see if they are on the menu, thing is even if they are not I still make a reservation. I just want my brain and tummy to be ready for the scallops. This is one of my plates post-scallop ...

If you look close my dude's plate is clean too. One time they were sprinkled and crusted with bone marrow. OOOOOOOOWWWWWEEEEEEEEEE! So anyway, I wanted to spread the news to my Brooklynites or anyone planning a visit. Yes, Manhattan has some great spots, but there's nothing like Brooklyn Dinin' :-). Give us a visit for a meal! Again, this isn't an ad ... just a friend, telling a friend about a great meal! P.S. ... they have a kitchen with a view from the street, it's small and congested and they are turning out some banging food ... you don't need space and bells and whistles to make great stuff, remember ... it all started with a fire and some cave dudes ... 

Press and Pizza .... wait PIZZA and Press lol!!!

It's friday and I wanna know where my week went, for real. I've had two hair cuts, one baaaad and one that was Edward Scissorhands grrrrreat! A bad headache or two, a few meetings, I had an over cooked porterhouse, that broke my heart .... such a nice cut of meat, butchered by a nyc restaurant and let's seeeee .... I got lucky and got a pie in just 20 minutes at Di Fara's!! So, it wasn't too bad a week now that I think of it. And wait, now that I type away, something amazing happened this week!!! I can't even share yet, but you know as soon as I can, I will spill the navy beans. See, that's how life is, you think it's bad or stressful, but if you sit for a sec and think about it, there are some gems in there. How could I forget some of the good stuff this week?? Alright ... I have some pics to share ... first, oh wait, the FN Dish thing ... so if you saw the episode, it was a good thing I gave a behind the scenes rundown and toldya about my apartment and our walk through my 'hood, because that part didn't make the cut :-). So they got right to the chase and started it at Di Fara's Pizza. It is THE BEST PIZZA EVER. I described the way they top pizzas there as "The Ben & Jerry's of toppings", meaning, what you ask for you get in abundance. I mean, you will never search a slice for garlic, a garlic pie ... is a GARLIC pie. teeheehee ... take a look ... these are not stunt pics, real slices I began and couldn't finish until I shared the beauty of gaaaaaarlic ahead of me. So, here's two slices of Di Fara's with pepperoni and garlic. I also like the porcini mushrooms on it, so if you ever go, give them a try and be prepared to wait for a long time, but just know it is worth the wait. really. you are eating a piece of history, formed by an artisan. period. and now .... the slices ... remember, i didn't set these up, no strategic placement of any topping ...first the wide, then the close up for each ...yummy!





Okay, so that's the pizza, now the press ... There's a 2 part interview I did with Jacob from Food Network Addict, give it a click and read :-)

Then, this Saturday ... TOMORROW ... I'll be on the CBS morning show, eating and cooking for less than $40 bux, so hope you can wake up and catch that ... feels like a 7 or 8AM situation.

And, my bad ... i got so busy I didn't even promote the fact that I would be hanging out with Ed Lover and his team on Power 105.1 here in NYC yesterday. I hope to get the audio and post it soon. We had such fun! I brought breakfast and they tore it up. They had my french toast with caramelized pecans, strawberries and cream. I also threw in a side of bacon. At first, when I suggested it, I thought I'd cook at home and bring it in, but then Food Network offered me THA ENGINE lol ... so, two cool chicks from the kitchens helped and did alot of the work, so I gotta say thanks to them. It is so neat to see other people prepare your recipe. Feels weird too ... I was like yeah, the bread is sliced just how I like it, and they were like ... we read your recipe and measured them. That's serious. Let me tell you, that's why I love Food Network, they are serious about food and so am I! So Ed, Kut, Lady O and the gang hopefully enjoyed every bite. Ed's was gone in 60 seconds like the movie teeheehee. Then they asked me about the beginning of my catering days, here I am talking about catering for Jadakiss, Styles P and Sheek Louch (D-Block), when who walks into the building??? Sheek!! We chat via text here and there just to catch up and say hi, but I hadn't seen him in about 3 years!!! It was soooooooo good to see him. Those guys were just always great to me and treated me like a little sister. So of course I cooked for them and they were first to throw me grocery money for cooking. Next thing you know, I'm catering for N.O.R.E and the list went on. So, I'm forever thankful for the smiles and the "mmmmmm good's" I got from them. Sheek specifically used to tell me my food tasted like "LOVE" awwwwwww .... how sweet huh? Anyway, he has bulked up, so I know his girl is killin it in the kitchen!!! Get his CD Silver Back Gorilla and look at the inside flick, he's in the gym son!! lol ... ok, here are some pics from yesterday ...


That's DJ Kut, Me and Ed Lover


annnd me and Sheek Louch ... just two days guys! i'm nervous and anxious. :-)