Author: eatwellslivewells

November 6, 2009 –

Today was rabbit day. Under the guidance of Chef Mark, we made a fricassee of rabbit served over fresh egg noodles, roasted bacon wrapped rabbit loins stuffed with garlic, rosemary and bacon and a fricassee of brussels sprout (or brussels sprouts) and more bacon. Everything was delicious.

Lurker W’s Younger Brother

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I tried Motorino Pizza Napoletana for lunch with a couple of food lovin out of towners and came away pleasantly surprised. Located in the same space that formally housed Una Pizza Napoletana in the E. Village, this branch of the Williamsburg original is welcome addition to the neighborhood. The $12 lunch special comes with a pie of choice and either a mixed green salad or ice cream.

The mixed green salad came with a little red onion and chive and served with side of balsamic and olive oil. I liked everything about this salad. Fresh greens and just the right amount of vinaigrette. For the pizza’s we tried one with brussels sprouts, smoked pancetta, mozzarella, garlic and pecorino and the soppressata piccante with mozzarella, spicy soppressata, garlic, chili and pecorino. Both pies came to the table with that nice blistered char that you could only get from a VERY hot wood fire oven. The crust had the right amount of crunch to chew ratio for me and the toppings complemented, but didn’t overwhelm.

Everyone enjoyed these pies and I’ll definitely be back!

Sam W.

October 17, 2009

After a very physical soccer match against the Chernomorets Black Sea at Dyker Beach, we decided to try out the Schnitzel Haus in nearby Bay Ridge, Brooklyn. It appeared to be the perfect choice for a cold, rainy October night. We were right about everything except the food and service (the beer was excellent). After a long wait for a table, we ordered some appetizers which took longer than the wait for the table. The salads came with ‘house vinaigrette’ (rather haus) but tasted more like Russian dressing. The schnitzels, instead of being tender and juicy, were tough and dry, made even more difficult to eat with the $0.25 fork. Despite the challenging food and service, a good time was still had by all.

Lurker’s Plums….a delicious tart.

October 10, 2009

If you find yourself in Milo, Maine and looking for some home cooking then head straight to Elaine’s Cafe (24 West Main Street Milo, Maine; 207 943 2705). We all ordered the Saturday Morning Special of biscuits & sausage gravy with 2 eggs for $4.99. I also ordered a grilled raspberry muffin as I can’t pass up “homemade”. With the exception of the coffee that tasted weak and watery, everything else really hit the spot on this chilly morning.

Upon paying the tab I noticed a variety of donuts at the register. After hearing that they were homemade I picked up a dozen for the camp. Apple Cinnamon, Blueberry, Molasses, Chocolate, Glazed, Old Fashioned, Cinnamon & Sugar. All were good, but the Blueberry were OUTSTANDING! We’ll definitely be back!
Sam W.

Graps and cheeze

Lurker W’s plum cake and raspberry tart (pronounced tot)….. It was plums all the way.

August 2009
Lewes, Delaware Trip Report (a little Rehoboth and Dewey too)

By Lurker W’s Older Brother

We’re back from a week in Lewes, and the news is good. There is a ton of great food to be had in that wonderful little town. Blue Plate, Savannah Rd, Lewes.: We tried this place for breakfast. It was crowded when we arrived and more crowded when we ieft. With good reason. The food is very good (omelets, french toast, etc.). As you’d expect from the name, nothing too frou-frou. Just good solid food. Great choice for families with small kids.

Jerry’s Seafood, Second St. Lewes: As many of you know, this is the home of the famous crab bomb. The crab bomb is a ten-ounce softball-sized mass of lump crabmeat and not much else. It costs $34. The question is, is it worth it? The answer is yes. Ten ounces of lump crabmeat is a lot of crabmeat. Really good. Ours came with decent redskin mashed potatoes and very good haricots vert. We also got a good appetizer of fried calamari (decent amount of tentacles). The twins shared a portion of pan-fried shrimp in sherry butter sauce. Quite luscious. Note: The menu item was pan-fried trout and shrimp, we asked if we could just get shrimp, the answer was yes, and the price was $4 less than the trout/shrimp combo. Well played, Jerry’s.
They also have the usual kid’s menu but ours love shrimp so we let them split an adult entree.

Cafe Azafran, Markert Street, Lewes: OK, this is a great place. It seems to be beloved among the locals, and with good reason. We had a wonderful meal on the patio (dog friendly, btw). Mrs. W. got the Seafood Tarragona (a bouillabaisse sort of dish), the twins got bowls of al dente orichiette (!) with butter, and me and my brother Lurker W. shared 9 tapas/appetizers. A word about the tapas: You might think small plates, but these are not small plates. You will be well fed. We over-ordered and were very well fed. Standouts included the sea scallops, the fresh mozzarella and roasted peppers, and the La Mancha plate (cheese, ham, chorizo, romesco sauce). We could have had a third person share these dishes and still been quite full. Add to this very good bread, assorted olives, white and red sangria, and wonderful desserts (I got panna cotta, everyone else was too stuffed), and you’ve got a real winner. Oh, particularly good service too.
Note: this place is open all day and appeared to be packed whenever I looked in. Beseme, Hotel Rodney, 2nd St, Lewes: We hit this place for a late breakfast and had the lovely dining room to ourselves. We mainly got crepes, which Beseme is known for, and were not disappointed. Maybe a little too expensive, so not what I’d call a “deal,” but still worth a stop. We’d go back. Notting Hill Coffee Roastery/Lewes Bake Shop, Second St. Lewes: This is Oby Lee’s Lewes outpost. Same great coffee. Nice people. Very cozy little place.

Crabs: Lazy Susan’s vs. Crabby Dick’s, both on Route 1 (Coastal Hwy between Rehoboth and Lewes). Lazy Susan’s claims to be the home of “hot fat crabs.” All they had were mediums at $36/doz. They were hot, and tasted fine, but in no way were they fat. In fact, they gave us more than a dozen. The steamed shrimp at $14.99/lb were decent, as were the hush puppies. Overall, nothing special. After that, Mrs. W was still craving crabs, so she treated herself to a few at Crabby Dick’s. Her verdict: No contest. The ones she got were around $60/doz, but were huge (she sent me a pic of one of them). So, despite the silly name, Crabby Dick’s gets Baltimorean Mrs. W’s seal of approval.

Pizza: Grotto and Louie’s. We hit our usual two spots and both delivered. Grotto in Dewey — basic large cheese, with salad and meatballs. The garden salad is way overpriced at $5.99, but the pizza was great and the meatballs were too — the twins devoured them as always — but a little smaller than usual. Louie’s on Rehoboth Ave — again, the basic large cheese pizza, and grilled hot dogs for the kids. Two winners.

September 10, 2009

Amuse- bouche in Paris- locally grown chestnut.