Diner brunch

Blanca

I scored this reservation while sitting in a meeting, in a conference room whose walls were so thick my phone kept bouncing between 4G, Edge, and No Service whatsoever. It was stressful. 

We went to Blanca last night, my birthday gift to Kev. We got the drink pairing, as did 9 of the other 10 diners at the seating. Everyone had a great time, and at the end, happy and drunk, Kev got an impromptu Happy Birthday serenade from 10 strangers. It was wonderful. 

We were instructed to put away our phones, which came as somewhat of a relief, allowing us to focus simply on the moment. We lost count of the dishes early on because of it, and that was all right. 

The portions, the pacing, the pairings, all thoughtful and merciful, restrained. It is a rare thing to feel energized at the end of a long meal, especially one involving abundant alcohol, but that's what this meal did. 

Some memorable dishes were the corn pudding (cold) and tomatoes (warm, tiny, perfect spheres), the dessert of cilantro sorbet and watermelon, the raw littleneck clam served with myriad ingredients all melding into one briny bite, the ridiculous grapefruit orechiette absolutely drenched in citrus about which my drunk self proclaimed "There are 16 grapefruits in every bite," the fresh from the oven Hawaiian roll, the beef, the lamb, the crudo...

I'm realizing that every dish was impressive. 

Maison Premiere's Oyster Happy Hour

The oysters were no joke. The happy hour was an in good faith event, not "chef's choice" style which also means "no choice" for you. An abundant selection of east and west coast oysters and a quick 15 minute wait for 2 bar seats, where I had summery drinks and he had alcohol mixed with alcohol (good in a different way).

We'll be back soon, concentrating on the east coast oysters, which we deemed brinier and less creamy.

Also, how are the barkeeps so impeccably clean?

The Pines - Brunch

Speedy Romeo

A few weeks back, before the year's first heat wave, Kev and I took a trip to Speedy Romeo in Bed-Stuy for a quick brunch. We sat at the bar and had some big cappuccinos, chatting about the sleepiness of the neighborhood, the signs of a young and hip New York creeping steadily into a old New York part of the borough. The pizza was good, Roberta's is better, and what I really loved was the roasted beet dish. As you see below, big blocky chunks of roast beet and other big, simple ingredients. 

Littleneck

Last Friday the heat wave had yet to break, the work week was short (after Memorial Day), and we were craving summery, shorey things. We love clams and oysters on the half shell, and each year look forward to Clam Bar in Montauk in August with his family. Raw bar offerings are so reminiscent of summer for me, and are amongst the company of strawberries and watermelon. Fun fact: Kevin introduced me to the world of raw seafood - sushi, clams, and oysters.

I got there a little earlier, and sat on the quaint little bench out front. I was jamming to old school Mariah Carey, and Kev was in a bad mood, stuck in traffic on his way to Gowanus.

Been a while: Diner

Since moving to Brooklyn and with the warming weather, we've been enjoying early morning brunch on weekends, which gives the added bonus of making the days feel longer and more luxurious.

We got to Diner at 10, were seated immediately, and ordered the following:

the potatoes with chorizo oil
bacon with kumquat marmalade, ramp yogurt, and oats
duck hash with rhubarb, ramps, topped with a fried egg
bacon with polenta, fried oysters, green garlic, onions, and a sunny side up egg

Yum!

Then we bought some Diner swag, a tee and a tote.