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elcielo
The term in Spanish for contemporary experimental cuisine is “cocina de autor,” which may allude to the “auteur” theory in film and its prioritization of the director as author. The author of the meal, by analogy, is the chef, and the diner is subsumed to his, or her, vision. The preeminent autor de cocina in…
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Spanish Wine and Cheese
I enjoyed the cheese and Spanish wine tasting on Monday night at City Winery, which was co-sponsored by Murray’s Cheese. It was my first time in the place’s actual winery, as opposed to the concert venue next door. We were loomed over by the stainless steel vats in which they make their own wine-on-tap (it’s…
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Istanbul Meets New York
FADA is a friendly bistro in Williamsburg with tango on Tuesdays, live music on Fridays, a good Sunday brunch, and excellent French food. The restaurant has a Turkish connection too, which was celebrated Monday evening with ISTANBUL MEETS NEW YORK. There were mezes (small or shared plates), traditional with an occasional twist, from food artist…
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Crudo Night at Ballarò
Ballarò is a little Italian bistro on 2nd Avenue that is one of my favorite places for a coffee or modest lunch. They have excellent panini, including some breakfast specialties, good well-selected wines, and real Italians behind the counter. So when manager Stefano Sasselli announced that he was hosting a special dinner of crudo –…
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Austrian Wine Dinner
I celebrated my first day in Manhattan after Sandy by signing up last minute for the Austrian Wine Dinner at Corkbuzz on Monday night. There were just four of us, due to hurricane related cancellations, which meant we got plenty of one-on-one attention. The wine was all served cool or on ice, which was counter-intuitively…
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Truffle Dinner
Halfway through this week’s Truffle Dinner at Corkbuzz, the sommelier’s table was a chaotic jumble of half consumed bottles of Nebbiolo, along with a few extras, but still awaiting the Pedro Ximenez that would top off the experience. As usual, both the food and the wine were superb, and went well together, with little flecks…
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Spanish Wine Dinner
At the Spanish Wine Dinner at Corkbuzz on Tuesday night, the labels alone were pretty intriguing, including one printed in Braille from a winery that uses blind persons, with their heightened taste buds and olfactory abilities, to test the wines. An interesting slide show accompanied the meal, narrated by Kerin Auth, who owns the excellent…
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Summer of Reisling
Since attending the SUMMER OF REISLING dinner at Corkbuzz on Monday evening I have stood corrected on the subject of Rieslings, which I have always regarded as a light, non-serious white, and usually a little too sweet, although refreshing enough as a summer accompaniment. Now I know courtesy of sommelier Laura Maniec and Reisling enthusiast…