CF Brunch at Le Pavillon

To help raise funds for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, Gigi's parents planned an amazing brunch at her dad's restaurant - Le Pavillon in Poughkeepsie. After a wonderfully cozy MetroNorth ride up the Hudson, we were in for quite the treat!

After admiring the items for the Silent Auction, we settled in for a lovely meal of salmon (Melissa) and steak (DJ) with fluffy, buttery mashed potatoes and string beans. A delightful heart-warming meal on a rainy day!


And the most wonderful thing about all the food (besides being prepared by a master French chef) is that Gigi's dad grows many of the spices in his own garden! It doesn't get much better than that! Thank you to Gigi and her family for sharing such a wonderful event with us.

Sugar and SPICE and everything nice!

There are really no other words to describe Spice Market besides... HEAVEN ON EARTH! As always, DJ planned a wonderful date night - this time to celebrate our 8 Monthiversary! :)

So, first things first, the decor of Spice Market is sublime. You feel like you've walked into another world. Every detail makes the ambiance feel very relaxed yet extravagant.

Every person we encountered was SO friendly; the hostess, the waiters, the manager - they all came by the table with a smile and pleasant inquiry of: "Is everything okay?" YUP!!


Now... the food. WHEW!!!! A party in our mouths!! We tried the Tasting Menu. Originally we planned on getting the basic one: 5 courses with 10 tastes. But when we sat down, we were told that we could make it 6 courses and get tastes of shrimp and lobster. Who could resist?! Well, we eventually realized we should have because after the first 4 courses (which were nice small bite-sized tastes), the cod fish and chicken plates seemed HUGE! Then dessert came around, and as much as we loved the flavors we just couldn't manage more bites. As DJ said: "I was done pre-chicken!" lol


1st: raw tuna with Asian pear and lime - total bursts of flavor! definitely the #1 favorite for both of us.


2nd: lobster roll - awesome sauce! Mel's assessment: a high-end version of the McDonald's special sauce. lol


3rd: black pepper shrimp and pineapple - totally worthy of getting as a main course! DJ's favorite after the tuna.


4th: onion rings and avocado - a warm weather delight!


5th: chicken samosas with cilantro yogurt sauce - Mel's favorite after the tuna.


6th: pork with pickled veggies - tasty and fun presentation

WARNING! ~~ WARNING!
This is where we were completely unprepared for the amount of food STILL TO GO! So the rest of the dishes we did our best to taste, but pretty much had to tell the waiter we surrendered rather than finishing any plate. lol


7th: cod fish with yummy sauce


8th: ginger rice with a Sunnyside-Up egg on top - interesting but, as DJ said with a shrug, "It's rice."


9th: blackened chicken - FABULOUS! we had to ask for it "To Go" because we loved it, but just simply couldn't eat it. lol it'll make a nice dinner some other night!


10th: DESSERT! on the left are the Thai Jewels and OH MY GOODNESS are they splendid! a collection of jelled fruit in coconut ice milk. we're going back in the summer just to have this as a refreshing treat. DJ said the taste reminded him a bit of an ice cream in Ethiopia. and the dish on the right was the Ovaltine Kulfi - a bit like a rich brownie. tasty but a bit heavy for the end of a meal. would be best solo.

All in all, Spice Market was an ultimate dining experience. The best way to celebrate 8 wonderful months of fun!

Ditch Your Books at Ditch Plains

The day we went to dim sum with Vicky and Gigi (*see Jing Fong entry in March), we passed a cool guy selling books on the street. We wound up spending so much time recommending book titles to each other that we thought a book swap would be brilliant. Then we wound up passing a quaint little restaurant that looked promising for future brunches. Such was the evolution of today's event:

Ditch Your Books at Ditch Plains!


Ditch Plains is really cute, albeit a lot smaller than it appears on their website. But the staff were all very cordial; they actually apologized when the wait for a table was longer than anticipated, and offered us drinks to tide us over! Major points to them for civility.

The food was pretty good. None of us were particularly bowled over by what we ordered, but we also realized that the place specializes in seafood and none of us ate anything close to fish. That was our fault. lol


The one thing that did get us all very excited after we swapped our books was the salt water taffy that came with the check! We were like kids in a candy store trying to sort out flavors. Definitely an unexpected bonus to this place. But, note to selves: next time we should actually try the seafood. :)

A Roast with the Most!

It'd been a while since we had some good beef, so it was time for a roast! A little garlic, a little cooking wine, and a little time = a little piece of heaven!

Lessons Learned:
1. Though the meat thermometer directions said to leave it in the roast while cooking, that proved to be a hassle. Thankfully, we realized it worked just as well by sticking it in the meat after it was out of the oven.

2. Meat Bubblegum. (Don't ask.)

3. Mel and DJ have very different definitions of rare... The photo above is what Mel considers rare. The photo below is what DJ considers rare. Next time around, we'll aim to reach a happy medium. :)

Gobo = Yum-o

It was veggie paradise when we went to Gobo with Neha to wish her a happy birthday!



We meat-eaters weren't sure what to expect since not all vegetarian places are so good with making "proteins" taste like anything. But Gobo is top-notch and we were not at all disappointed! We all shared yummy spring rolls to get started.



Then DJ tried the stir-fry noodles, Mel went for the spinach roll, and Neha had some tofu and veggies. Delicious! Mel also tried the lychee-tini (a sake martini), which was really refreshing; it would probably be great for a relaxed summer evening. And as we were about to leave, we were all bowled over by the savory aroma coming from the next table. We found out it was the Sizzling Seitan, so we definitely know what we'll be ordering next time! :)

Happy Birthday, Neha!!

Cafe Henri in Long Island City

Viva la France!
We met up with Carole in Long Island City to try a Queens hotspot for brunch: Cafe Henri. This place got FABULOUS reviews online, and they were quite well-deserved. The decor is very quaint and reminiscent of a Parisian cafe.

Many people on the web said the Eggs Benedict were divine, so DJ ordered them with bacon and Mel tried them with salmon. Final verdict? FABULOUS! Carole opted for a salmon crepe, and she was also quite impressed. Being that she's a crepe aficionado, that's quite the review!

For our sweet teeth, DJ and Carole tried the chocolate cake (which came on a wonderfully decorated plate) and Mel had a tasty cafe au (soy) lait that came in a cup the size of her face. Coffee facial, anyone?


Overall, Cafe Henri was well worth the trip to Queens! Definitely check it out.

Pasta and Canasta on Long Island

It was definitely time to happy dance when we went to visit Mel's parents on Long Island for some food, folks, and fun!

First off, Mr. B worked his magic and whipped up his signature delectable lasagna with salad and garlic bread. We all had to try very hard not to keep eating even after we were stuffed!

YUM!


Mrs. B and Mr. B the Chef

After lunch, it was time for some serious card playing with the Canasta Crew: Toots (Mrs. B),Tuna (DJ), and Toto (Mr. B).

DJ was hoping to defend his champion title, but Mr. B pulled through with a win this time around. 'Till next time for the rematch...!!!

too many cards to hold in one hand!

Nachos Muchachos!

We thought it'd be fun to try making some Mexican cuisine, so -- TACO NIGHT!! WOO WOO!!



Just browned some ground turkey with the right taco seasoning, heated up some tortillas, and loaded up on cool toppings: salsa, cheese, sour cream, grilled peppers, lettuce, and guacamole. Messy and delicious! :-D

Easter Feast in Fairfield

It was a beautiful sunny day for Easter Sunday, and DJ's parents invited us over for a wonderful feast! His mom put Bon Appetit magazine to shame by not only mastering their chicken recipe but actually improving upon it! That dish combined with fabulous scalloped potatoes, chicken casserole, salad, and biscuits made for a perfect holiday meal.


one word: YUM!


the chef extraordinaire!

Afterward we glanced outside and realized the sun was really making it feel like summer. So we decided to head to the nearby beach to enjoy the outdoors for a few minutes. Nothing beats a bit of sea air to make you feel like doing a happy dance! :)



HAPPY EASTER TO ALL!