Me on my 3rd birthday

Today, I turn 40 years-old.  I come to this milestone with satisfaction, both personally and professionally.  To keep this post food and wine-focused, I’ll reminisce about some birthday traditions and memorable birthday meals I’ve cherished over the years.

When I was growing up in Quebec, my mom would often make my sister and me crepes for our birthday breakfasts.  The first crepe would have our first initial “stamped” into it with her spatula and we thought that was awesome.  When I got a little older, my special birthday dinner became a stuffed beef tenderloin with peppery sauce and mashed potatoes.  It’s still no doubt a favorite of mine, when fixed by mom.  Another birthday tradition when I was little, was to have my grandma make me a birthday chocolate cream pie.  Yea, no cake, always this mile-high pie that I often still crave.

Now that I live in the New York metro area with no family around to help celebrate, my guy always plans a special night out in Manhattan.  The restaurant is always kept a secret with me getting clues every few days as to the location or perhaps chef, as the big night gets closer.  What fun!!  Over the years, we’ve dined at Daniel, Bouley, Nobu and others that are foodie favorites.

This year, my girlfriends from Florida flew up to help celebrate the big 4-0 with me and some of my friends.  We I say that “we” celebrated, I mean that the two of them celebrated the fact that I’m no longer in my 30s and have FINALLY joined them in the 40s.  As we always do when they come visit, we had a foodie weekend with tons of diet-unfriendly grub.  I’ve enjoyed every minute of it.  Did you see the chocolate cream pie they made me that I posted a few days ago!??

I look forward to what’s to come in this new decade.  Onwards and upwards!

Veronique

Shaved Porchetta Sandwich

I am an avid fan of Locanda Verde and its sublime food attentively prepared by Food and Wine Best New Chef award winner, Andrew Carmellini.  I have written about Locanda Verde in the past, but on a recent visit, I brunched and it is worth noting what a super job the staff does with this meal.

For me, a key component of brunch is a good cocktail.  I typically go for a spicy Bloody Mary and Locanda Verde does not disappoint with its fiery Bloody Mary Della Casa ($13) served with Italian hot peppers and Mortadella.

Our party began its meal with the Pastry Misty Del Giorno ($14), a basket of delectable pastries: cranberry muffins, olive oil coffee cake and apple breakfast pie.  I would not skip this starter expertly prepared by pastry chef Karen DeMasco; it is delicious with the dark roasted coffee served at this establishment.

Scampi and Grits

Some can’t miss brunch entrées are the soft scrambled farm egg crostino with leek, mushrooms and speck ($17) – the bread used to make the crostino might be the best I have had in New York City and the contrast of soft-cooked eggs over the crunchy bread is amazing.  The “Scampi and Grits” ($20) with organic polenta, tomato, sausage and coddled eggs is a winner – the polenta is creamy, the shrimp is cooked with the flavorful sausage and the soft-cooked eggs  create a yolky ‘sauce’ that helps marry all the flavors together.  Another stellar option, and perhaps one of the best sandwiches in town, is the shaved Porcetta sandwich ($16) with grilled onions and Provolone – the meat is juicy and cooked perfectly and the Provolone is especially sharp and a tremendous asset to this succulent sandwich.

Brunch is served Saturday and Sunday from 10AM until 3PM.  Making the trek down to Tribeca is a small price to pay to be rewarded by fabulous food, a trendy, sexy space and a helpful staff.

377 Greenwich Street

New York, NY 10013

212-925-3797

Cheers,

Veronique

Pork Belly

Michael’s Genuine, in Miami’s up-and-coming Design District, is a foodie’s paradise dressed down as a casual neighborhood bistro.  Chef Michael Schwartz excels at what should be three basic restaurant concepts: the space, the staff, the food and wine.

The bistro, opened in 2007, can accommodate up to 100 diners both indoors in a comfortable dining room and outdoors in a bustling courtyard area.  The ambiance is relaxed, even with a roomful of some of Miami’s most beautiful people.

The staff is friendly, helpful and knowledgeable about the menu and its ingredients.  There is a palpable excitement amid the crew about the product being offered that is akin to being a kid in a candy store.

The food…is absolutely amazing.  Chef Schwartz masters New American cuisine and many of the ingredients used or served are housemade.  The pork belly over kimchee is succulent.  The short rib Panini is rich and delectable.  The beet, heirloom tomato and blue cheese salad is ultra-fresh and perfectly dressed.  A special of the day, the croque-madame sandwich is prepared with house-cured ham is comforting and completely old school perfect.  The restaurant’s wood fire oven also works miracles on the ultra-fresh fish sourced by Chef Schwartz and his team.

Croque-Madame

The wine list is eclectic, interesting and offers great value.  There are over twenty wines by the glass ranging from Austrian Gruner Veltliner to Krug Grande Cuvée and Piedmonte Barbera.  The list is smartly designed to be unintimidating to all fans of the grape.  The Chardonnays are categorized into ‘unoaked’, ‘light oak to moderate’ and ‘moderate to heavy oak’ and varietals are divided by region making it straight-forward to select the right wine for the occasion or dish.

Chef Michael Schwartz hits it out of the ballpark with this venue by offering unpretentious food in a casual atmosphere.  A must-try dining experience when in Miami.

130 N. 40^th Street

Miami, FL 33137

305-573-5550

www.michaelsgenuine.com

Hours of operation:

Lunch: Monday – Friday 11:30AM – 3PM

Brunch: Sunday 11AM – 2:30PM

Dinner: Sunday 5:30PM – 10PM; Monday – Thursday 5:30PM – 11PM; Friday – Saturday 5:30PM – midnight

Happy hour: Monday – Friday 4:30PM – 6:30PM

The holiday season is in full swing and families across the country are planning their perfect holiday meals, tastiest treats or most delectable hors d’oeuvres.

Starting December 5, the Virginia Beach CVB is looking for creative, original recipes with its “12 Days of Christmas” Coastal Food Tours Getaway Giveaway Contest, a virtual cooking competition that will earn the winner a three-day, two-night stay in Virginia Beach for two people, with the chance to experience the new Coastal Food Tours program.

Now through December 16, visitors to the Virginia Beach Facebook page can submit a favorite recipe based on one of the days in the holiday classic, “The 12 Days of Christmas.”

In addition to free transportation and accommodations during their three-day, two-night stay, the winner and a guest will receive complimentary tickets to the Boardwalk Food Tour in Virginia Beach, the Granby Street Food Tour and complimentary tickets to other attractions, including the Virginia Aquarium and Marine Science Center. Estimated value of the package is $2,000.

How to enter:

1. Become a fan of the Virginia Beach Facebook page.
2. Email your original recipe name, ingredients and cooking method, along with full contact information including name, email address and phone number to 12daysofchristmas@visitvirginiabeach.com.

Good luck if you enter!

Veronique

For my NY/NJ friends who don’t have New Year’s Eve plans yet, I saw this fun way to bring in 2012 that I thought I’d share.

Celebrate 2012 at Hoboken’s first biergarten, an old world experience welcoming the New Year.

Doors open at 8pm - $100 per guest includes:

• Open Bar from 9pm-1am – Premium imported and American craft beers
• Abundant Platters from the Grill – Weisswurst, Bratwurst, Kielbasa & More
• Famous Oversized Bavarian Soft Pretzels – Midnight Toast of Champagne or Beer
• After midnight, Chef Thomas Ferlesch will serve a kettle of Hungarian Beef Goulash to ward off that New Year’s Day hangover
• Live DJ All Night Long

Pilsener Haus & Biergarten

1422 Grand Street

201.683.5465

Prost!

Veronique

I recently attended a conference in Atlanta and stayed at Omni Hotel at CNN Center.  The hotel has a few dining options, and on the first morning of my stay, I decided to try Prime Meridian for early breakfast.

The space is well-adorned in dark woods and plush upholstery and has a welcoming feel.  The staff offers southern hospitality to each guest and made me feel pampered, even at 6:30AM while in my gym clothes.

The food isn’t your typical hotel restaurant fare.  The ingredients are high quality, the food is hot, even on the buffet, and the selection is outstanding.

I’m an oatmeal connoisseur and was thrilled to see and sample McCann’s Steel Cut Irish Oats ($5) on the menu.  It was cooked to perfection – with a bit of texture and nuttiness.  The perfectly-pillowy pancakes ($10) are light, delicious and served with 100% pure maple syrup.

Besides the a la carte menu, there is the “Chef’s Art of Breakfast” buffet ($22) which features an extensive array of top-quality foods.  The buffet offers a choice of juice and Starbucks coffee.  The buffet is truly a great option with tremendous variety.

I highly recommend starting your day at Prime Meridian if staying in downtown Atlanta.  It offers quality food, prepared expertly and served by a cordial staff.

Cheers,

Veronique

Monday evening, I took my dad and his spouse, Rolande, to the Wine Library Super Tasting being held at beautiful The Manor in West Orange, NJ.  The event coincided perfectly with my dad’s yearly pilgrimage to see me in New Jersey from Quebec, so I was excited to surprise them with tickets to the tasting.

A portion of the proceeds from the event will benefit The Gateway Chamber of Commerce Scholarship Fund, which is geared toward students pursuing technical and career oriented education.

With over 700 wines being poured, it was imperative that I arrive at the event prepared.  To add to the excitement of attending the tasting, I created a database where names of the wines we wanted to taste along with their table numbers could be added.  From there, I had my dad and Rolande compile a list of wines they would like to sample and I built mine.  There was no overlap – they opted for strictly French and I diversified.  Once the list was compiled, I ranked the wines by table number and also by wine type and printed the grid that we each brought a copy with us.  Simple and efficient!

Here is our master list:

Super Tasting Wines – 101011

Being organized allowed us to taste all the wines we wanted to sample, it kept us focused and it avoided the familiar “where do you want to go next? I don’t know, where do you want to go next?” situation that arises from poor planning.

The 2011 Wine Library Super Tasting was a super event indeed and one I’ll be certain to attend in future years.  Thanks to the friendly staff of the Wine Library for being so helpful, as always and for making its patrons feel much pampered.

Cheers,

Veronique

2002 Perrier-Jouët Belle Epoque Rosé

This week, I had the pleasure of participating in the celebration around the 200^th anniversary of Champagne powerhouse, Perrier-Jouët, hosted at the beautiful Park Avenue Club in Florham Park, NJ.

The exclusive event featured Perrier-Jouët Chef de Cave, Hervé Deschamps, one of only seven Cellar Masters in the 200 year history of the famed Champagne house.  Mr. Deschamps thrilled the crowd with the sabering of a Champagne bottle.  Really neat.

The five wines that were served were fantastic.  I’m a huge fan of bubbly wines, so this event was such a special treat for me.  Here are the Champagnes we sampled:

• Perrier-Jouët Grand Brut: Understated elegance and subtle flavors – $45.
• Perrier-Jouët Blason Rosé: Palest pink, creamy and a bit smoky – $85.
• 2004 Perrier-Jouët Belle Epoque Brut: Golden, yeasty, floral, crisp in the well-known flowered bottle – $150.
• 2002 Perrier-Jouët Belle Epoque Rosé: Ripe strawberry, rich texture, long finish – fabulous – $350.
• 2000 Perrier-Jouët Belle Epoque Blanc de Blancs: 100% Chardonnay, moussy, fresh, crisp yet rich and honey-flavored. Just the ultimate Champagne – $400.

I enjoyed all the wines, but the 2002 Perrier-Jouët Belle Epoque Rosé and the 2000 Perrier-Jouët Belle Epoque Blanc de Blancs were just very special.

Each wine was expertly paired with delicious small plates that enhanced the qualities of each of the Champagnes being poured.

I’ll be popping open Perrier-Jouët for several celebrations I have in October.  Don’t wait for the holidays to pop open this liquid gold – just do it for the special mood it’ll put you and your guests into.

Cheers,

Veronique

OpenTable, the online restaurant reservation site, has announced its 2011 Top 50 Most Fit for Foodies Winners.

OpenTable users are foodies who are informed, adventurous and, above all, appreciate unique dining experiences. More than 10 million restaurant reviews were used to determine this year’s “Fit for Foodies” list where readers will find many well-known favorites peppered with a few trendy newbies.

Here’s the complete list:

Abattoir – Atlanta, Georgia
Ad Hoc – Yountville, California
Aldea – New York, New York
Annisa – New York, New York
Bergamot – Somerville, Massachusetts
Bibou – Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Blackbird – Chicago, Illinois
Blue Hill – New York, New York
Bonsoireé – Chicago, Illinois
Camino – Oakland, California
Canteen – San Francisco, California
Cascina Spinasse – Seattle, Washington
Coi – San Francisco, California
Commis – Oakland, California
Commonwealth – San Francisco, California
Craigie on Main – Cambridge, Massachusetts
Dirt Candy – New York, New York
FIG – Charleston, South Carolina
Fond – Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Forage – Salt Lake City, Utah
Frances – San Francisco, California
Frasca Food and Wine – Boulder, Colorado
The French Laundry – Napa, California
Gather – Berkeley, California
Girl & The Goat – Chicago, Illinois
Graham Elliot – Chicago, Illinois
Hatfields – Los Angeles, California
Haute Dish – Minneapolis, Minnesota
Heartland Restaurant & Farm Direct Market – Minneapolis, Minnesota
Hungry Mother – Cambridge, Massachusetts
Local 127 – Cincinnati, Ohio
Menton – Boston, Massachusetts
Mistral Kitchen – Seattle, Washington
noca – Phoenix, Arizona
o ya – Boston, Massachusetts
Osteria Mozza – Los Angeles, California
Park Kitchen – Portland, Oregon
Piccolo – Minneapolis, Minnesota
The Publican – Chicago, Illinois
Range – San Francisco, California
Saffron Restaurant & Lounge – San Francisco, California
Saison – San Francisco, California
Sprout – Chicago, Illinois
Spur Gastropub – Seattle, Washington
Staple & Fancy Mercantile – Seattle, Washington
The Tasting Kitchen – Venice, California
Tilth – Seattle, Washington
Ubuntu – Napa, California
wd-50 – New York, New York
Wexler’s – San Francisco, California

How many have you visited?

Me – 3!  I’ve got some catching up to do!

Cheers,

Veronique

Ai Fiori - Photo by Open Table

New York Restaurant Week in underway.  The two-week event runs from July 11 – 24, 2011 (excluding Saturdays) and features 3-course prix-fixe lunches for $24.07 and dinners for $35 at over 320 restaurants in New York’s five boroughs.

The event, sponsored by NYC & Company lets foodies on a budget experience some of New York’s most acclaimed dining establishments at a very affordable price.  Lunch at Chef Michael White’s Ai Fiori on a Tuesday and dinner at world-class Tribeca Grill on a Wednesday?  Why not!?

During this summer’s event, I’ll be lunching at db Bistro Moderne one day and eating dinner at David Burke Kitchen on another.  Have I had the opportunity of eating at restaurants I might not have ever dined at because of the twice-a-year event – yes!

One note of “caution”, many participating restaurants feature their 3-course Restaurant Week menus on their websites, so be sure to access them prior to booking a reservation to ensure you’ll find something you’ll like before you go.

Several cities throughout the USA host Restaurant Weeks with similar values, so take the plunge and experience some of your city’s best restaurants.  Reservations can be made with Open Table at www.opentable.com.

Happy dining!

Veronique