Mission Cantina

Dinner at Mission Cantina was one of my gifts to Kev this December. I'm giving him an unconventional advent Christmas, and two weeks in, I've truly wracked my brain all month. It's challenging. This was one we could both enjoy. 

The lighting is Miami Vice style trippy and neon to the max, which I loved. The guys got Negro Modelos on tap while I tried two delicious soju cocktails. We stuffed our the awesomeness below and more: whole rotisserie chicken, sardine fried chicken, poblano pepper salad. 

Takashi

Lunch at Sweetgreen

This concept isn't new, but Sweetgreen does salad very very well. Natural and not-too-sweet drinks such as watermelon lemonade and cucumber limeade in place of fountain sodas sealed the deal for me. We went to the NoMad location, and I got the seasonal salad, shown below, that included arugula, watermelon, feta, spicy sunflower seeds, and kale dressed with a champagne vinaigrette. Delicious and filling and healthy, with bread from Sullivan St. Bakery.

We both got the app, with rewards and an easy pay function. 

See you again, Sweetgreen.

Lunch today: Mulberry & Vine

Kev bought a 30 day unlimited Metrocard contingent upon my agreement to meet for lunch often. We meet usually in Nolita or Soho, which is easy for both of us to get too. Today he came all the way to my work neighborhood, TriBeCa, for lunch at Mulberry & Vine. 

I'd been here once before for a coworker's birthday, and loved the selection of fresh made options, so was happy to come here again. The place has wifi too, so if one day I get a work laptop I'd love to do some work in its high ceilinged, well lit dining area or on the more secluded lofted second floor. 

We each got a plate of 2 cold/1 hot, $13.  ($1 gets you a bed of greens.) We shared the veggie curry, herb roasted chicken, kale and chia seed salad, tomato and watermelon salad, and beets with pomegranate seeds. We sat at the window counter and people watched while we ate. What's great about a lunch spot like this is that you don't get a food coma when you got back to your desk. 

We ate and still had time to take a stroll with coffee in hand from Kaffe 1668 nearby. Summer is ending but not just yet. 

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?