i loved everything but the coffee

the food in martha's vineyard was fresh, down home--even when it was upscale-- and altogether delicious. i made pretty good on my vow to eat lobster (or at the very least, seafood) at every meal. and i did taste the lobster ice cream at ben and bill's chocolate emporium. buttery and quite nice, though the lobster bits were a bit weird, and i definitely couldn't eat a whole cupful. (i had a cup of cappuccino ice cream instead, which was studded with huge, wonderfully bitter espresso beans.)










my only disappointment all weekend--the weak, weak coffee. even at the storied "black dog," the coffee was watery and flavorless. and to think i nearly missed the ferry because of it...

anyway....

here were some of the highlights:

this lobster roll was my first taste of new england, 2005...it was a more than generous pile of sweet fresh picked lobstermeat--rich hunks of lobstertail and claw, mixed with the tenderest strands of meat from "the main"-- dressed with just a touch of mayo. it was so light and tender, close to melting, and it was properly creamy, with a hint of sea saltiness. i've loved the lobster rolls at pearl oyster bar, but this was of a universe beyond...


this baked stuffed lobster (the navigator) makes one think of that silly, cheesy adage--you can never have too much of a good thing. i had terrible lobster experiences growing up--over-boiled, with banded claws, so that the meat and juices tasted bitter and artificial and chewy. even the smell called to mind the inside of a school desk full of erasers and rubber bands. so the idea of this lobster, baked, with butter, breadcrumbs, and double the amount of meat, gave me pause after i placed my order. but my initial, gut-instinct was rewarded with one of the finest, most indulgent single entrees i've every had. and i left nary a buttery nook unslurped!

this crabcake sandwich that i had for lunch at the main street diner was hearty and fresh enough that i eventually found myself able to laugh about the terrible, terrible service and chalk it up to the waitstaff having had a terrible night before. (seriously though, i nearly mobilized our party to march out the door, in protest. it was ridiculous. )


this fancy dish of sauteed lobster claw, saffron fettucine, in a pernod cream sauce (from chesca's) is yet another example of my venturing beyond my usual palate (was it the sea air?)...i almost never order dishes with a cream sauce (too heavy), especially a pasta entree. and yet, again, i was rewarded! this did feel like another real indulgence, but it was as much the joy of realizing that this fresh al dente pasta, and tender lobster claws, luxuriating in this salty, cream sauce, could still have a light, fresh taste. i finished it all but for the flower, and still had room for dessert.


and i had the snowball...i ordered this simply because i love cake crumbs and i've never seen "cake crumbs" on a dessert menu before. (when my mom bakes her wonderful chiffon cakes, she leaves all the bakings pans for me to scrape...the "scrapies" are even more moist and sweet than the actual cake, and i love love love just sitting there, running a fork a long the bottom and sides of the pan and eating them, while watching my mom spread and pipe dainty buttercream designs on the "real" cake.) this snowball, with vanilla ice cream, rolled in cake crumbs, and served with caramel sauce, butter crunch candies was sweet and lovely. (but to be honest, my mom's cake crumbs are much tastier! this might have been better with cookie crumbs, coconut, or better yet, ground almonds.)

with the quality of the seafood so high on martha's vienyard, i suppose it's possible to take it for granted. it's all fresh and sweet with a touch of the sea--a treat for the nose as well as the palate. but what i won't take for granted--ever--is the service and accommodation made to our large party of 9. when you travel as a big group, it's harder to maintain that wanderer's insouciance--just happening upon and taking a chance on a place that looks good, has an interesting menu---that most rewarding essence of being on vacation.it's nice to know that some places will welcome a party of 9 with a smile--and not with a look of "oh no, here they come!" on this score, the navigator earns high marks, but chesca's really soars above and beyond. for their accommodating manner, swiftness in seating us, and attentiveness throughout the meal, chesca's positively worthy of "5 fork-and-spoons," a la michelin.

a little hopper-esque, maybe?

from the ferry, martha's vineyard.
sept 18, 2005.

finally inspired

the daily news got me in the mood to blog again. go figure. september was one big blur. once the us open was over, i was sucked into the tightest end to a regular season in recent mlb history. there was a visit from cousin, hec, which means fun times and good eats, and then a quick trip to martha's vineyard, and then, a temp job.

as food highlights go, there was the awesome pochero that joe and hec made-- one of the best meals i've ever had. (my cousins' recent culinary adventures have solidified themselves at the top of my "best meals" list, which is surprising because i never would have thought that any filipino dishes would make it. but boy oh boy. ollie's caldereta made everyone swoon. in my case, for weeks. and the pochero that joey and hec made, it's a perfect meal any time of year, but i imagine in the winter, it really warms the bones.) pochero has been oft mentioned in family conversations since then, and we've looked into it, and it would seem joe and hec's version was definitely modified from the traditional. (no plantains in theirs, and this seems to be a big deal.) but i hardly care! oxtail stew, with chorizo and cabbage--that's pochero to me! there's something about having oxtail at someone's home that strikes me as wildly exotic...so i took a photo.

not that i'm above photographing the unexotic. like this amazing 40 clove chicken recipe that i tried. i've heard a lot about the garlic festival and the stinking rose restaurant in california (and hope i make it out there sometime soon) and last week, when i suddenly discovered that the gigantic plastic jar of peeled garlic that i had was about to "expire," i found a recipe for their 40 clove chicken. it was amazing. even better after a couple of days. reheated, it gets salty and more flavorful. i had so much of it, that in later iterations, it became a creamy garlic (and chicken) pasta sauce.

i haven't been eating out much, except during the day. what can you say about the lunch hour. eh. hit or miss, even within the same franchise. case in point. pret a manger. i took a stroll through rock center's sublevel last week (and i haven't really been through those bowels in years) and was amazed to find lots of great lunchtime options...two boots, hale and hearty...but i settled on a crayfish and avocado sandwich from pret. wow. rich and creamy, it seemed completely indulgent (but it's not overstuffed so you're not left with that woeful rock- in- your- belly-for -the- rest- of- the- afternoon feeling). and to make you feel even better about the experience, pret donates a dollar for every crayfish and avocado sandwich to a hurricane katrina relief fund. woo hoo.
anyway, yesterday i went to the pret on 55th between 5th and 6th, ordered the same thing because i couldn't resist, and my excitement was crushed by a poorly constructed sandwich (a crayfish mound in the middle, bread that was too soft) that was hard to get a grip on. once you did, the stuffing just kept falling out of it. what good's a sandwich in a cute little compact box, if you need a fork to eat it? needless to say, i'm hesitant to visit that location again.

but the good thing is pret generously offers the recipe on its website. so, if you've got access to crayfish (or crawfish) you can have at it!

yes, so the daily news got me missing the 'hood. you know how you can live somewhere, but miss it? it happens to me, anyway. between work and going away on the weekends, you just miss a place. and since the LES is still so new to me, i feel like unless i'm there on the weekends, on a sunday morning, buying the paper and a scone, or strolling on a saturday afternoon, skim latte in hand, or hanging out there at night (and whiling the night away in my apartment doesn't really count), i'm just passing through. anyway, all the talk of grilled cheese nyc (been there, enjoyed the "phoenix" and the tasty sweet potato fries) and the creperie (my first meal in the 'hood. it made me realize that overstuffed chicken crepes are much too much of a good thing) made me want to eat out on the LES. but the next time i go out in the 'hood it will be to tides.

the daily news also has a little feature on the owner of fluff, john dempsey. i consider this a coincidence, since just last week, i had made my way over to ninth ave to pay fluff a first-time visit. i was thrilled at the prospect of homemade twinkies and hohos and other childhood "faves." i had also read about the the funky interior design (by design wizards, ltl architects) and was looking forward to checking it out in person. sadly, very sadly, they were closed for renovation. no twinkies for me--i had wonderful napoleon bars from ceci-cela instead. (not exactly slumming it! i'm not complaining. in fact, one of my friends called it the best he's ever had!) but i still plan to visit fluff when it reopens (end of the month?). the daily news article is noteworthy for tracking the onward, upward movements that dempsey is making with his other restaurants (including the wonderful Hell's Kitchen).