Foodie Adventure, New York: Eleven Madison Park

Sometimes the best things in life present itself when you don’t follow a plan. You don’t choose the experience, it chooses you. When those opportunities present itself, you can decide to go along for the ride, or opt out and continue life in an ignorant bliss, not knowing the amazing opportunity that you have just foregone. Well, apparently since I’d already said to hell with plans on New Years Eve this year, I might as well break my new years resolution a second time within a week span. Woke up early, changed my flight, and enjoyed every extra minute that I had to spend in New York City. As a result of another spontaneous decision, I stumbled upon what is not my favorite restaurant in New York City.

Eleven Madison Park



This restaurant can do absolutely no wrong. From service, to ambiance, to food, everything was spot on. Understated modern simplicity, with a touch of elegance. Let’s start with the food. We’ll let the photos tell the story.

Menu. Simple and straight forward, it states only the main ingredient presented on each dish. You choose one item from each column, and leave the rest up to the chef.



Amuse 1: Gougere
Cheese battered profiteroles. Not something that I was unfamiliar with from making it at work on a weekly basis. Great way to start a meal with cheesy goodness.



Amuse 2: Chicken Veloute with Chive Oil
They first bring you a teacup with a small amount of chive oil on the bottom, which leaves you wondering how this dish is consumed. Then teapots arrive at your side, and steaming chicken veloute is poured into the cup, with the scent of thick, creamy chicken broth tingling your senses. The scent alone, guaranteed a flavour that would not disappoint.







Amuse 3: Chicken Liver Mousse on Brioche
This bite sized mousse, perfectly spread on brioche, was light, flavourful, and just enough to leave your palate craving more.



Amuse 4: Smoked Sturgeon Sabayon
Light and foamy egg filled a perfectly topped eggshell, the scent of smoked fish emulating from it. Who can say no to smoky goodness, fluffy goodness.



At this point, you wonder if you’ll still have room for the meal by the time they actually start serving you the dishes that you ordered. But who doesn’t like freebies, especially when they are presented so tastefully and with such elegance? And then came… the bread.



Fresh out of the oven, the bread is indescribable with it’s light flaky crust, and fluffy interior. Almost resembling a croissant, but not quite as buttery. It came with a pairing of goats butter and cows butter, along with Maldon salt.



First Course

Crab:
Rolled in avocado, lightly glazed, micro greens and edible flowers.



Scallop:
Ceviche and salad, lightly dressed in olive oil and lemon.



Foie Gras:
Terrine w/ black truffle paste, purple carrots and brioche tuilles.



Second Course

Lobster:
Sherry butter poached lobster tail w/ mixed mushrooms and sherry sabayon. Absolutely most perfectly cooked lobster I’ve ever tasted. Border lining rare and cooked.



Chestnut:
Fontina Val D’aosta tortelli w/ chestnut puree.


Turbot: Poached w/ celery and truffles in tapioca celery nage.



Third Course

Squab:
Breast and leg, roasted beets, bitter chocolate and squab jus.



Veal:
Roasted with porcini mushrooms celery, served w/ boudin blanc and veal jus.



Guinea fowl:
Beast and leg, seared foie gras, salsafy and suckle berry.



Now, before we could get around to dessert, the Maitre De had put together an amazing surprise for us. I’ve been on numerous kitchen tours before, but definitely nothing like this.

Kitchen table set up in the corner, white linens and polished silver spoons, waiting for us. We had no idea what to expect.



As we stood there taking it all in, liquid nitrogen was poured into a bowl with apple compote.



Then pomegranate foam was dipped into a bucket of liquid nitrogen.



This resulted in an apple brandy, liquid nitrogen pomegranate foam cocktail. Quite unexpected and jaw dropping to have a kitchen table set up for you for cocktail service in a 3 Michelin star rated restaurant.



We were then instructed to take the spoons and crack open the frozen foam and enjoy bites of that with the apple compote brandy in the bottom of the glass. Speechless.



We couldn’t help but also notice the spotlessly clean kitchen, where everyone seemed to be smiling, laid back and not the least bit stressed.





Back at the table (and more freebies), we were served the Eleven Madison Park version of egg cream with orange syrup, cocoa nib, citrus olive oil and topped with soda water.







Deconstructed cheesecake



Triple Crème:
An assortment of cheeses that they bring to you table side as a whole prior to bringing you your cheese plate.



Quince:
Quince sorbet, poached quince, quince puree and nuts.



Chestnut:
Chestnut sorbet, puree, meringue and grapes.



And because none of us had ordered the chocolate dessert, they sent out 2 differing plates of chocolate desserts, complements of the kitchen.





Last but not least, came the (excuse my choice in vocabulary for describing this next item) orgasmic black and white truffles. Not the least bit close to what I expected, this white truffle literally made my eyes roll to the back of my head. An explosion of cool, liquid white chocolate infused with black (mushroom) truffle. Imagine that! Need I say more?



Whether you’re looking for a restaurant with great ambiance, service, inspiring plating and food, or value for money, Eleven Madison Park is the place to go. It is definitely more than just a meal. It’s an experience that’s worth every penny.

Foodie Adventure, New York: Ippudo

If you’re searching for a place with excitement, noise, and maybe a bit of a taste of the Japanese hustle and bustle, Ippudo is undoubtely the place to go in New York. From the moment you walk through the door, the bar is filled with hungry people waiting to be seated. As with most places in New York, good food does not come without a wait (often waits up to an hour at this place).

Lucky for you if you decide to ever step foot into this place, the bar serves not only drinks (a selection of Japanese beers, sake, and my personal favorite Yuzu sake on the rocks), they also serve a limited selection of food (including what I like to call “fluffy buns of love”) while you wait. These are probably the most deliciously fluffy pork belly buns you’ll find in town. It’s very much the perfect balance of spice and savoury flavours, the crunch of fresh lettuce and unexpected tenderness of the pork belly melting in your mouth. As tempting as it will be to fill up on these, don’t forget to leave room for the rest of the goodness to come.


After you’ve been overwhelmed by the tenderness and flavour of the pork belly buns, and finally come back to reality realize that someone is calling your name to be seated, you walk through the restaurant with the sound of numerous wait staff greeting you in Japanese and cooks putting out steaming bowls of ramen. It’s time to fill our hungry bellies!



Although not for everyone, I enjoyed the nasal clearing spice of wasabi in this dish (baby octopus sashimi).


Who can resist a juicy, deep fried chicken wing? The fall off the bone wings were everything but disappointing. Tender, juicy, perfectly spiced.


Generally speaking, I’m not a fan when it comes to cooked fish. But miso black cod is definitely a whole other story. The salty, light soy flavour of miso, the fattiness of the fish, a slight touch of acidity, paired with the sweetness and mild heat of the ginger, it’s hard to enjoy cooked fish again once you’ve tried this.


Then came the steaming bowls of ramen. One spicy, the other was a clear broth. There is no better way to warm up on a cold winter day then a steaming bowl of ramen. Perfectly cooked (what Italians would refer to as “Al dente”) noodles with a bite to it, miso broth, with a perfect blend of spices, soft-boiled eggs with a bright orange soft yolk, tender slices of pork belly, and marinated bamboo. It makes the hour long wait seem worthwhile! After slurping up the noodles true Japanese styles, we were ready to head out and brave the cold again.



On a side note, the fluffy buns of love were so good that we couldn’t resist making a return trip in between the countless meals at Michelin rated restaurants that we had lined up the next 2 days.

Foodie Adventure, New York: Laduree

Anyone who knows French macaroons has undoubtedly heard the name Laduree. Previously, those who wanted a taste of these bite-sized decadences had to travel to Paris. But through modern day convenience, as of August 2011, they have officially arrived in, where else but New York!

Luckily, I was on the Upper East Side for brunch that morning. So after an abnormally large brunch, I was in dire need to walk it off, and what better then to go on a hunt for French macaroons! With all the excitement, I hurried down 5 city blocks and there it was, Laduree!...



With is massive line up that snakes through the store and out the door.


As you stand in line, you pass by window displays filled with beautiful macaroon boxes, and macaroon trees.


The excitement builds as you peek through the window (not much unlike a creeper), and anticipate your turn.





When you finally get out of the bitter winter cold and make it in the gates, you are in every little girl at heart’s dream (and I’m not a girlie girl by any means, but I will admit, it was hard to resist). A world filled with pastel colours, macaroons of varying colours, the sweet scent of vanilla, who could resist? By the time it came around to my turn, I was prepared to take the whole store home with me. Can’t say my wallet didn’t take a beating from this visit. Managed to walk out with a bill in the 3 figures range, and not much to show for it except some pretty pastels and an insane urge to eat through these like a fat kid with candy. But these delicacies are meant to be eaten with lady-like elegance, so we’ll refrain from acting otherwise.





The second I arrived home, the boxes were opened without hesitation. I had left with one of almost every flavour that was available that day.


In hindsight, after all the excitement had settled and inspecting the macaroons close up, I was slightly disappointed. Not all of the macaroons were as perfectly and precisely lined up as some of the small shops I had previously been to. Also, the "foots" were cracked on numerous macaroons. That’s the beauty of an art that you loose once you hit large-scale production. After eating my way through a significant number of these (not without damage to the waistline), I was yet again disappointed. The macaroons weren’t as fluffy and delicate as I would have expected. They were also often over sweetened, and some artificial tasting. Call me traditional, but my favorite out of the bunch was still Vanilla.


At the end of the day, Laduree is a shop whose macaroons would make a great gift that make people “Ooo” and “Ahh” when they see the pretty box. Are they the best macaroons that you’ll get in New York? Definitely not. But who can resist the temptation of marketing and beautiful packaging these days? My 2 cents and forewarnings:

1. Don’t go to Laduree if you plan on walking out empty handed, the temptation is hard to resist with all its beauty.
2. Beauty comes at a price! And at a price, I’m not only referring to the price of the macaroons. The pretty boxes on display don’t come without a price either. If you want a nice box (not the thin paper box), it will cost you.