I'M BACK! with A Fork in the Road: Paris

It's been awhile! I took up working in kitchens in both NYC and Houston, so time was limited to blog.
Most recently, I traveled to Paris and had an insanely fabulous trip with my family.  This post will just highlight some of my favorite parts.

We all know the fruit and vegetables taste fresher (and different!) and are brighter colored in the EU. These were no exception.

See those cherry tomatoes? The best! We were buying almost daily. Sweet and just cracked perfectly when you bit down.

The beautiful Romanesco and purple artichoke

Flaky, buttery croissant from Des Gateaux et Du Pain in St. Germain
A shoppe with perfect pastries and magnificently showcased. 

 This was probably my favorite part of the trip.  Not only did I wake up every morning and run with my brother and get to 'see' the city in a different way, but we also walked through many of the open-air markets. It was orgasmic every time!  Here is a link of the markets throughout Paris: http://www.parisianlocal.com/a-list-of-street-markets-in-paris-by-day-of-the-week/

Early in the morning, I would see the fishmonger cracking open sea urchin and little old women eating it with tiny silver spoons.

Rod enjoying his well-earned banana Nutella crepe after a run.

Lights of my life, my parents.

Far and away the best meal we had in Paris. Waknine is an Asian influenced French restaurant. The halibut, steak tatare and roasted potatoes were superb!

Get to Paris in the Spring at least once in your lifetime!

And a HUGE thank you to my dad for taking my brother and myself on a trip we will never forget!

A Fork in the Road: Lambert's (Austin, TX)

Some folks want 'fancy' BBQ, others don't.  My thought is why mess with something that isn't meant to be fancy.  Barbecue isn't meant to be fancy, elegant or any variation of the word; yet, for some reason, Austinites love Lambert's 'Fancy' BBQ, a love affair I do not understand. 

First off, it is chalk-full of extremely loud fraternity and sorority kids milling about (to be expected) and while the live music at night is a nice (free) addition, the guy running the soundboard clearly doesn't know his craft.  The scene upstairs was far too ear-splitting in which to dine.

Moving onto the food. 

I liked the composition of the deconstructed salad, from taste to colors.  The royal purple beet juice bled into the horseradish creme fraiche, dressed with only a few pieces of celery heart and covered with tiny flecks of Parmesan.

The brisket I was less impressed with.  Almost dry-to-the-bone with the pickled vegetables being the only accoutrement to save the dish.



Steamed broccoli with onions and garlic - Good

Brussel sprouts in brown butter (and always a hit with bacon) - Great



 Sauteed lemon spinach - Excellent

 The verdant colors of the side vegetables just make you want to eat healthy.  Every single one was tasty.  Thanks to my brother for suggesting these. 

The winner of the evening was cold smoked Lockhart quail, Mexican rice stuffing, cheese enchiladas, fried quail eggs and ranchero sauce.  Wooooweeeeee!  Just look at it.  Hearty, no?  By the way, Forkers, cold-smoked does not mean the dish is cold.  It is simply the process of smoking the meat in temperatures not to exceed 100*F.  I've never seen a hunk of quail as big as this before, nor prepared as well. 

Two disappointing dishes:

After seeing Green Chili Queso on the menu, it was the entire reason to try Lambert's.  What a disappointment.  It may seem silly to some, but this girl knows her queso.  There would have been more green chilis had a can of Rotel been added and it would have definitely thinned it out a bit.  Thick queso on thick chips is gross!

I like to see how restaurants specializing in meat dishes will execute the lone, or two, seafood dishes. In this case, the Gulf fish in an artichoke/crab/tomato barigoule was plated well, but lacked any flair. 

Porsena

A little more than a year ago, Sara Jenkins added lasagna to her miniature menu at Porchetta on East 7th Street.  It was an odd addition to the protein-filled 'restaurant', but was fabulously flavorful and foreshadowed things to come.  Since, she has opened her Roman-inspired pasta ristorante down the same street and wins not only with the innovative pasta dishes, but also takes reservations.  In case you haven't heard, reservations are coveted these days in the "No Reservation Generation" (Adam Platt).

Olive oil poached baby octopus with celery, chickpeas, lemon and olives.  Light oil and fresh ingredients as well as a fair amount of tentacle-y octopus.  Very Roman and superb! 

Savory whipped bacalau spread with toasted, oiled bread and actually more appealing to stateside diners due to the fact it was not salty to the extreme.

Anelloni with salsiccia e rape.  This is exactly what makes Jenkins a creative chef in a city of thousands of Italian chefs.. She chooses the ring-shaped pasta which has a ridge on the outsides that seals the sauce in the pasta alongside spicy lamb sausage, mustard greens and breadcrumbs.  An incredible textural contrast.

The Eggplant Parmesan I didn't care for.  The tasteless eggplant was swimming in a soupy bechamel sauce, although it was hidden under a thin layer of piping hot cheese.

Hence, why Porsena is regarded as the 'pasta restaurant' and rustic cooking at its finest.

Donatella

This was the BEST Strawberry Shortcake I have ever eaten!  By a landslide.  Donatella's post will be reversed starting with the magnificent desserts.  The seasonal strawberry shortcake was a soft, non-biscuit (no taste of butter) biscuit with a hard, sugary top.  In the middle?  Homemade whipped cream and sweet strawberries with an ever so tiny scoop of strawberry rhubarb sorbet.  P.e.r.f.e.c.t.i.o.n! 

I was equally impressed with the off-the-menu ice cream sandwiches.  Smaller than your palm, these round beauties' top and bottom layers were Italian tricolore cookies with slivers of ganache.  Some of diners thought it was too sweet, but I didn't share that sentiment.

Affogato is always a simple dessert with a small scoop of vanilla gelato.  These "biscotti" were actually small cookies (ones I did deem sweet, but fabulous nonetheless).

Moving right along to the pizzas....also some of the best personal pizzas I've had in New York.  Doughy, thin-crust with fresh ingredients. 

Classic Margarita

Diavola with spicy, slivered salami and chili oil.  This pizza had the perfect amount of heat.

Enzo - Smoked Mozzarella, pork-fennel sausage, broccoli rabe and pecorino.  Instead of plain jane spicy or sweet sausage,  I absolutely love the fennel sausage in addition to the sauteed rabe.  This was unreal!

Polpette - Veal Meatballs and Caciocavallo (a teardrop cheese that is left to mature 'a cavallo' i.e. straddling a horizontal stick) 

A ricotta gnocchi that gives April Bloomfield a run for her money.  Served with summer corn, basalmic, parmagiano, and chives.

A luscious mixed green salad with lemon citronette, candied walnuts and pecorino.

Our starter of spicy, braised veal meatballs.  Soft, perfectly spiced and sized.  If you are deciding between Polpette (meatball pizza) or a side of meatballs, get the meatballs.  The pizza doesn't do these meatballs justice.

AND you have to love the bottle and wine glass chandeliers! 

i Trulli

There are a few reviews I missed throughout the winter, but will post pictures with captions.

I Trulli embodies a true Tuscan ristorante, particularly on a bitter winter evening.


Wood-oven roasted oysters with cavolo nero and fonduta

Malloreddus (Sardinian Saffron Dumplings with sausage and tomato) - Makes the entire meal worth the trip!

Costoletta (Grilled Veal Chop, brussel sprouts, herbed potato puree and pinenuts)

Brasato (Braised Short Rib of Beef, Pumpkin Farrotto, Broccoli Rabe) - super tender hunk of meat with a semi-sweet pumpkin side and the bitterness of broccoli rabe

122 East 27th Street b/t Park and Lexington
http://www.itrulli.com/