Celebrating Fall, New York City Style

Fall is my favorite time of year, the changing leaves, the food and wines I’ve mentioned here, holidays I truly enjoy and it’s not a surprise since I was born in the fall. I love celebrating the fall season and my birthday and much to my liking the fiancé planned a trip to New York City for both! Does it get any better?
Upon traveling to New York, I always have to remind myself of a few things. First, I’m not going to be able to eat and drink at all the restaurants I want to in one trip. Second, I have to try new places, once I find an NYC restaurant or bar that I love, I always want to go back again and again. Last, while New York has some of the best restaurants and service found throughout the world, I have to remember that people are human, and even though I’m in New York, I’m going to get mediocre food and service. If I follow all of these reminders, I truly enjoy each trip to the Big Apple, and this journey was no exception.
I love flying out to New York in the morning, with the anticipation of a late lunch or early dinner, before the restaurants get so packed you can’t breathe. My fiancé and I always have a plan of restaurants that we want to hit on our eating and drinking tour, although this plan was a bit different. While each day we had a few places on our “list”, dinner the second and third night, were a birthday surprise! So the first night, it was a team effort. First stop and a stop we are both still talking about, Tia Pol. Thanks to our constant obsession with researching restaurants and what other industry cohorts enjoy, the fiancé picked Tia Pol for our early stop. Now Tia Pol is tapas, but this is not tapas for wimps, this is the real deal and it did not disappoint! Head on shrimp was melt in the mouth sweet, sardines were perfectly fried and excellent with the eggplant aioli. Salt cod is something I have only learned to love through my fiancé, and with his Puerto Rican dissent he makes a mean brandade, Tia Pol’s was good. As we were enjoying various bites, we imbibed in the all Spanish wine list and sangria. Usually sangria is poorly made, with no true thought or love, but the sangria was excellent. After our wine and bites (and being the food junkies that we are and knowing we had another restaurant to hit) we just had to have the special … Cochinita! Slow roasted pork and this version had succulent crispy skin that was crackling good! This little gem of a spot was worth the venture to Chelsea for the beginning of our evening. After a less memorable stop, at a restaurant that will remain unnamed, we called it a night as we knew we had three days and nights of indulgence ahead.
The next morning was a bit of a late start, so we opted for brunch and settled on a trip to the lower east side for the much talked about Stanton Social. Stanton Social is known for its small space, small space and always being packed, so without a reservation we knew we had to be there right when they opened. It’s a good thing, as they were busy, but after a minor wait we were seated. Hip and trendy doesn’t always translate to enjoyable small plates, but we were pleasantly surprised. Warm donuts, breakfast bruschetta, chorizo biscuit and gravy sliders, gravlax and more made this a great start to the day. With the full day ahead of us and it being fall, Central Park was the obvious choice on a perfect crisp afternoon. Before Central Park, we stopped by Time Warner Center for coffee, tea and pastries from Bouchon Bakery. And of course we had to at least take pictures of the entrance of Per Se, even though we didn’t get to dine there (this trip!). Sunday was the first night of the surprise dinners, which was at 9:00, so the fiancé and I hit a late lunch at Artisanal. A classic “light” French lunch of mussels and frites, charcuterie and wine, put us ready for a nap before my much anticipated dinner!
Sunday night’s surprise dinner, was very exciting as it has been a place I’ve been wanting to go since it opened. It was my sheer delight when we arrived at Bar Boulud, Daniel Boulud’s wine bar. This location has been criticized by some for the design, that it looks like a tunnel and too minimalistic. I truly liked the atmosphere, buy I was probably biased since I was still in shock and awe that this was my “less” of the two surprise dinners. The wine list focuses on Champagne, Rhone and Burgundy and that was just fine by me! We started with a glass of Champagne, followed by a glass of white Burgundy and with dinner we enjoyed a bottle Joseph Drouhin Chambolle-Musigny Premier Cru 2004. We started our eating adventure with the large charcuterie, which included all the pate and accompaniment goodies. We never order escargot, but being here I couldn’t resist. Burgundy snails, with garlic and parsley potato croquettes did not disappoint. After so many appetizers dinner was a blur until we had so much glorious cheese. Sauternes for me, Calvados for the fiancé was an excellent ending to a flawless evening!
Monday had to be an early day, as my most fabulous surprise dinner was quite an early one. We had breakfast at a casual spot Penelope in Murray Hill and it was quite cute and good. After a little shopping and relaxing, it was a vacation after all, we got all dolled up for our fabulous dinner. The fiancé was very cryptic in telling our cab driver our destination, and my surprise was a brilliant one as my jaw dropped when we arrived at Eleven Madison Park. We had brunch at Eleven Madison Park, a few trips back and it was one of our most enjoyable meals, so I knew that dinner would be even more magnificent. While it is a splurge when it comes to the dollar, it is worth each bight. We both had the eleven course Gourmand tasting, and of course my menu included Happy Birthday wishes! Hold on to your hats … here are the all eleven courses with the wine pairings.

Royal Sterling Caviar, Backed Potato Ice Cream, Sour Cream and Chives
Pairing: Henri Goutorbe, Cuvée Prestige, Ä, Vallée de la Marne, Champagne

Heirloom Beets, Liquid Sphere with Lynnhaven “Chévre Frais”

Cape Cod Bay Crab, Roulade with Avocado, Lime and Yogurt
Pairing: Trimback, Riesling, Cuvée Frédéric Emile, Alsace, France 2001

Foie Gras Terrine, Golden Pineapple (my version had apples, as I am allergic to pineapple), Pickled Pearl Onions and Rum-Raisin Brioche
Pairing: Château Tirecul la Gravière, Clod du Château, Monbazillac, France 2003

Maine Diver Scallop, Seared with Acorn Squash, Satsuma Tangerine and Ginger
Pairing: Girler, Gewürztraminer, Saering, Grand Cru, Alsace, France 2003

Artic Char, Roasted Sweet Potatoes and Black Mission Figs
Pairing: Jacques- Frédéric Mugnier, Clos de la Maréchale, Premier Cru, Monopole,
Nuits-Saints-Georges, France 2004

Four Story Hill Farm Poussin, Poached with Black Truffles and Parsnips
Pairing: Rocche d Manzoni, Quatr Nas, Langhe, Italy 1997

Colorado Lamb, Herb Roasted with Parsnips, Cumin and Sheep’s Milk Yogurt
Pairing: Jean-Louis Chave, Offerus, St. Joseph, Rhone Valley, France 2005

Fromage, Selection of Artisanal Cheeses
Pairing: Moulin Touchais, Coteaux de Layon, Loire Valley, France 1993;
Jacques Laverriere, Clos Chatart, Banyuls, France 1998

Malted Milkshake, Sorbet with Tahitian Vanilla, Terre Bormane Olive Oil
Pairing: Billcart Salmon, Demi-Sec, Champagne, France

Three hours of dining is truly exhausting, but this dining experience was one of the best of my life. The service was impeccable and as my fiancé will tell you (again and again!) I am very picky about service and I was not let down at any point of the evening. To add to our experience our captain was also completely involved in our (and all tables near ours) wine service. While I watched her decant a bottle of wine, I noticed she was not using the traditional candle, but a small tap light. I was intrigued and had to be my sommelier, wine geek self and ask about this gadget. It was a basic tap light, that you buy at the hardware store. The captain shared that it worked better, as it gave off more light than the traditional candle. In true fashion of a Danny Meyer restaurant, not only did the captain give me the packaging that the light came in, so I would know what to look for, she gave me one of the lights! This was by far one of the most amazing dinners of my life (as of yet!) and sharing it with my fiancé for my birthday made it even more special.
Our final day allowed for us to enjoy New York for a few more stops full of treats before heading home. After so many dinner filled with the best of the best, most luxurious foods we woke up feeling like a good burger. We headed down to Greenwich Village for what some call the best burger in NYC, at BLT Burger. From the famed chef Laurent Tourondel, comes his many bistros, and BLT Burger, is a casual burger joint, with great milkshakes. We sat at the bar and our service, well I’ll just say that it is on par with what the fiancé has experienced at other BLT locations (and if I’m not saying a whole lot, read into it meaning not good!). But the burgers, fries, onion rings and shakes made up for what was lacking in other departments. After our burgers, we walked by the James Beard House just for kicks and then headed to Union Square to enjoy one of the last crisp autumn New York days. Before heading back to our hotel to grab the bags, the fiancé took me for one more NYC goodie … hot chocolate at City Bakery. As mentioned here before I’m not a big sweets fan, savories and cheese is more my speed, but this was the best hot chocolate I’ve ever tasted. So thick you could cut this hot chocolate and I didn’t even get marsh mellows! After our last NYC treat it was off to the airport, for a two hour delay before getting home.
I relish my visits to New York City, it makes me realize what I love about this business. After every visit I come home to my beloved Chicago, feeling rejuvenated, knowing that I can always take it to the next level. This trip allowed me to bring home all of those things, but it also gave me a new feeling. The new feeling was love. To be successful in anything you do, there must be love in your heart. When there is love in the food, you can taste it. When there is love in the wine, it jumps out of the glass. When there is love in your work, it shines through your actions. And … when that special someone plans a birthday trip full of treasured moments, in one of the most fabulous food cities, you know you have love in your life. This was a trip worth living and one I will cherish for years to come. Cheers!