St. Alps Teahouse

Addicted...

http://nymag.com/listings/restaurant/saints-alp-teahouse/

Neighborhood: East Village
39 3rd Avenue
(between 10th St & 2nd Ave)
New York, NY 10003

(212) 598-1890

www.saints-alp.com.hk/

Battle of the Banh Mi - Bandwagon Trend

ref: nymag article: another banh mi in the oven


ref: nytimes.com: Building on layers of tradition.

Seems like the Banh Mi bandwagon trend is now in full effect here in the East coast as many magazines and articles are popping up on the net featuring these mouthwatering subs.

A famous west coast foodie couple/bloggers called "the white on rice couple", created the site "battle of the banh mi" to educate everyone on the great delicacy of the banh mi sandwich. It seems that on the west coast the banh mi has been famous for years (seeing that most trends pass through the west before they are set in here in the east coast) as seen by the abundant Lee's sandwich shop chains have been popping up all over since 2001 with over 31 chains!

The classic banh mi is a Vietnamese-French influenced sandwich, that is on a crispy baguette(classically made with wheat and rice flour) and made up of an addicting combination of salty, crunchy, moist and hot contrasting delacacies such as pickled carrots and diakons, onions, cucumbers, cilantro, jalapenos, meat fillings, headcheese, pate's, mayonaise, butter and sirracha sauce.

I am holding my own personal East Coast battle of the banh mi , as we have been recently scouring NYC for the best tasting banh mi, not necessarily the most authentic, but best overall based on price, quality and taste. Which may ruffle some purist feathers, but sometimes it is what it is~ Trend or not we enjoy ourselves a good banh mi~

We have found several variets which range from: classic, chinese-influenced, and modern/upscale banh mi's. None the less I will rate and value as many banh mi's as I can get my hands on.

So far my list is goes as follows:

Hanco's - 85 Bergan St, Brooklyn -$5.50 - Value: B-, Taste: A, Overall: A
Ba Xuyen - 4222 Eigth Ave, Brooklyn - $3.75 - Value: A+ , Taste: B, Overall: B
Baogette - 61 Lexington Ave - $5.00 - Value: B, Taste: B+, Overall: B+
Banh Mi Saigon Bakery - 138-01 Mott St - TBD
Nicky's - 150 E. 2nd St - $5.00 - Value B, Taste: C, Overall: C
An Choi's - 85 Orchard St - TBD
NhaToi's - 60 Havemeyer St, Williamsburg - TBD
Saigon Vietnamese Sandwich - 369 Broome St - TBD
Paris Sandwich's - 113 Mott St - TBD
Sau Voi Corp - 101-105 Lafayette St - TBD
Num Pang - 21 East 12th Street - TBD
Thanh Da - 6008 Seventh Ave, Brooklyn - TBD

Outside NYC:

Lee's Sandwich's - Various locations California - $$ - Value: B, Taste: B-, Overall: B-
Vietnamese Cafe - Philadelphia - $3.50 - Value: A, Taste: B, Overall: B

fresh and local

there was a huge new sign at fairway that instructed everyone to buy fresh and local, so i just did that and came home with some wild hake , cremini mushrooms, thyme, meyer lemons, white mushrooms and rock shrimp

we put together an inspired

olive oil slow poached hake fillets
with cremini mushrooms and diced shrimp in a shrimp and ginger infused lemon broth.

Parmesan crusted potatoes Au gratin

Mac n Cheese

comfort food: refers to a variety of familiar, simple foods that are usually home-cooked or eaten at informal restaurants.

for angie her grandmother used to put together a campbell's cream of mushroom mac and cheese, we did a modern play on that after hitting up the market.

after walking by the cheesemonger we picked up a nice cave aged gruyere, a swiss emmenthaler and a local NY cheddar to go along with some fresh shiitake mushrooms, baby portabellas, fresh thyme, green beans, meyer lemons, and fresh strawberries. Later that evening we treated ourselves to a nice dinner that included:

3 cheese elbow macaroni
stacked over thyme and truffle oil infused mushrooms

blanched green beans
with a first press olive oil (from fairway) and sea salt

sparkling strawberry lemonade
with a pure cane sugar syrup

Old Brooklyn

Nostalgic in Brooklyn sent me a very cool bakumatus koshashin generator making images appear 50 - 60 years old!

To the Year of the OX!

Happy Chinese New Year!

Fried spring roll wrapper with sauteed vegetable and tofu filling


To celebrate the Chinese New Year, Neil made his own versions of the "Lumpia", a Filipino spring roll with Chinese origins.

Vita-Prep

My New toy...Thank you Mr.Craigslist $25!!!

PORK

I just received my neighborhood "Brooklyn" Ork Poster, and it looks great, just need a frame and will be all set. (Got if framed 12/4/08)



In lieu of it, and Jenny Beorkrem's design, I have created my own culinary poster!

Goodbye October

With many happenings October has come and gone, as the autumn colors fade and tree's begin to bare, the same can be said of the many photo's I wished to blog about but was to lazy to actually blog on the same day they were taken.

Today on this Election day(history in the making), I hold before you a collage of October's past, which include:

Adirondacks, Bison, Steamed tilapia, bittermelon, wonton and white radish soup, park slope farmers market, honey crisp apples, mr. pickle, my mandolin, sweet potato fries, produce from a farm in PA, and butternut.

The Brooklyn Urban Arts Market

Party and shop locally, all summer long and into the fall! The new Brooklyn Urban Arts Market's five Sunday appearances on Myrtle Avenue near the PrattStore will blend the power and pull of Afro-Punk and BAM’s cutting edge creative culture with MARP’s community economic empowerment and small business initiatives. Envisioned as an answer to those ubiquitous NYC street fairs (you know the ones…same perfume and tube socks at every one no matter what location), this open-air market will house 50 local artisans, vendors, and entrepreneurs hand-selected for their innovative creations, fresh urban perspective and DIY spirit.

The Brooklyn Urban Arts Market is located on Myrtle Avenue between Grand and Emerson in Clinton Hill this Sunday, September 7th, from noon to 8 pm.

Sweet Soy Braised Bronzini with Carmelized Shallots

Sweet Soy Braised Bronzini with Carmelized Shallots

Cooking dinner for one on a budget has been a bit tricky for me, however today I managed to find a very friendly and convenient fish monger here in Bayridge (Chef with a Sole, 3rd ave btwn 86th and 85th street), once I walked in I saw very fresh produce of which he told me that he hand picks every morning at the fulton fish market. As an added bonus they will even peel, clean, fillet, and cook ($2/lb) any fish you purchase. I decided to pick up a 1 lb whole Bronzini, of which they professionally cleaned and gutted it for me.

After spending some time in Canada with Angkong (grandpa), of who is also an excellent chef and someone that knows how to really eat good chinese food! He has inspired me to create this dish, so here is to a great man with a great taste for food.

Prep your ingredients in advance, stuff belly of fish with garlic, julienne ginger, and cilantro.

Season fish with kosher salt and crushed black pepper. Prepare sweet soy braising liquid.

Deep fry shallots to golden brown in oil, drain and cool. Deep fry entire fish 4 mins each side.

Remove all oil, and add braising liquid. Braise for 3 more mins.

Korean Microwave Rice(2 mins), surprisingly delicious and taste very fresh! Perfect for myself when cooking for one!

The cheeks of each fish are said to be the most succulent and sweetest part of the entire fish. They are considered a delicacy in the east, and was a prized piece of every meal with fish in my home. For this night it is all mine. Good eats indeed.

I'll follow up with a full recipe in a few days.