Culinary School Blog

We're going back home!

It's finally time to head back home - the final box was taken to the post office this morning.  We did our final "check-out" with Sebastian the owner of the loft - all went well.  Mark's parents will be at the airport in Austin to pick us up & take us home. 

Our dinner last night at Daniel was a lovely way to end our stay in NYC.  We both really enjoyed our dining experience.  There was a bit of screw up when we got there - arrived via cab at 8:00 for an 8:15 reservation.  They showed us to the lounge, as they needed to set up our table.  We ordered drinks & relaxed.  There were other parties of two that came in & were shown to the lounge, but then were seated prior to us.  After this happened for the second time - we were asked if we were still waiting for the other people in our party.  We explained that it was just a party of two & they apologizied and got us to our table quickly.  We were well taken care of, as were all the other guests the rest of the evening.

Mark ordered a bottle of Kistler Pinot Noir, to got with our dinner.  Once again, we opted to have the three course meal & not the Chef's Tasting Menu, due to me.  I had the Peeky Toe Crab Salad as my starter & Mark had the Tuna Tartar.  I then had the Black Sea Bass, which is one of their signature dishes & Mark had the Rack of Lamb.  Mark ordered the Mango Granny-Smith Tarte Tatin & I ordered the Chocolate Fondant for our desserts.  When our waiter came back to our table, before dessert, he asked if we were celebrating a special occasion & I told him we were celebrating that we were leaving NYC in the morning after being here 7 months.  This then lead to some questions as to why we were here & we explained that we had been at culinary school - he also questioned as to why we didn't have the Chef's Tasting Menu - I confessed it was due to me.  When our desserts arrived, there were two additional desserts that were sent compliments of the pastry chef.  That was then followed by Petit Fours.  The final "dessert" served at Daniel is Madelines, which we opted out of, seeing as it was getting close to 11:30 - ah, next time.

I've had a book on my bedside table for the last few months - just no time to read it.  The funny thing is, it's called "The Fourth Star" & it's about the restaurant Daniel.  I started reading it on the flights home - rather interesting, as we'd just been there.  Our flights back were delayed - late leaving Newark due to weather in Chicago & then late leaving Chicago as we had to wait for a crew.  All & all, we arrived 20 minutes late.  As we flew into Austin, we could see how pretty it all looked, green & the rolling hills. 

We got home around 8:00 pm & noticed the numerous boxes, the stack of mail & the quiet!  We're both very happy to be home!

Our last day here

Today is our last day here....... it meant disconnecting the Tivo, more boxes to pack & trips to the post office, as well as collecting a few things - prescriptions, dry cleaning, etc........ the final tally on the boxes appears to be 18, not sure where we put it all in the loft & we have four full suitcases to take on the plane with us tomorrow - I'm sure we'll be over the weight limit on a few of those suitcases.

We're off to Daniel tonight for dinner, so we're looking forward to that.  We went to one of his other restaurants a few weeks ago - DB Bistro - and enjoyed it.  I realized today, that in my zeal to pack, I packed shoes that I needed for tonight and they're on they're way to Texas - oh well!

We're both ready to head back to TX at this point - we'll miss some things about the city, but we're looking forward to where it's a bit more quiet.

Packing boxes to head home

Today we packed up four more boxes – two going back to TX & two going to FL.  We had a reservation for lunch at Il Mulino, a recommendation of Julie’s.  It’s one of those places that it’s hard to get through on the phone for a reservation, but well worth it. 

When you’re seated, they immediately have a zucchini dish on the table for you to eat, as well as some wonderful breads – one of which is just soaked in olive oil.  They then bring you bruschetta, salami & garlic bread.  We were pacing ourselves, as we heard that you could easily get full here.  We had a bottle of a Super Tuscan with our lunch, Fattoria Uccelliera – Castellaccio.  Mark had the Tuna Carpaccio for his starter & I had a pasta starter.  We both had the Langostino Risotto, which was a special for the day.  After having such a good Italina meal, we did what the Italians do, we walked around a bit after lunch. 

We took the four boxes to the post office & then packed up three more.  We probably have one to two more to pack tomorrow, so the count should be around 20 in total.  Our friend John who's been staying at our house, sent an e-mail yesterday, saying the boxes were piling up there.  We'll be home on Saturday to start sorting it all out. 

We were due to have dinner at Cru tonight, but Mark wasn’t feeling up to it, so we stayed in. 

What we thought of our dinner at Per Se

Last night we went to Per Se.  Our overall experience was good, but both of us walked away not being thoroughly blown away.  We’re not sure if it was too built up for us, we both felt that it was very good meal, but we’ve been more impressed at other restaurants we’ve been too.

We had a 9:00 reservation, and seeing as it was a long day for Mark, he was yawning 10 minutes after we sat down.  We opted to have the five course menu.  I ordered a French Martini to start off with, but the waiter came back & said that they wouldn’t be able to make that, as they didn’t have Chambourd, so I ordered a Cosmopolitan.  When the waiter returned with our drinks, he poured Mark’s drink into my glass & didn’t notice until he was almost done.  He apologized & took his tray back to the bar to get us another set of drinks.  We had a lovely bottle of Pinot Noir from Burgundy with our meal.  Mark’s main course was Cobia & mine was Halibut.  That was followed up by each of us having our “cheese course”, which was ricotta & pecorino ravioli – we both thought this was the best course.  Mark had a chocolate dessert & I had a cherry, chocolate & pistachio Tartufo.  That was following by a tray of Petite Fours & they also sent us home with macaroons. The food was very good, but I guess it lacked the wow factor of unique combinations…….

The maid arrived around 10:30 this morning, so we packed up to kill about 5 hours.  We went to Starbuck’s first, so Mark had an internet connection, while I read IBD.  We then went down to the Lower Eastside, so I could show Mark a few of the fabrics I found.  We walked around a bit & found Guss’ Pickles.  I got two of their sour pickles for $1 – what a bargain – and they were really good to boot. 

Lower Eastside

We then headed up to Midtown, near our first apartment to go to Bridge Kitchenware – a store that someone had told Mark about.  They had a lot of neat stuff, but we decided at this point, it’s best to contact them once we get home & have them ship directly.  We then went to Serendipity 3 for lunch & to try their famous Frozen Hot Chocolate.  Mark & I shared one – I really liked it, he thought the whipped cream on the top was the best part. 

We met Beau, one of Mark’s classmates for a drink at Merc, which is in the SoHo area.  He told us about a good restaurant not far from where we were called Dos Caminos, which serves Mexican food.  We walked over there, Broadway/Houston, but it was a really long wait.  We then wandered over to Greenwich Village & wound up having seafood at Fish.  The weather today was perfect, so it was very pleasant walking around. 

Mark's last day of class

Mark wasn't in a rush to get to school early today, I think he's ready for the final project to be over.

My cousin Liz & her daughter Lauren took the train into the city today to spend some time with me.  We walked around a lot & had lunch at Balthazar.  I had tried to get a reservation at L'Ecole, the restaurant at the FCI, but they were fully booked.  We finished our lunch at 2:50 and we were two blocks from school, so we headed in that direction so that Liz & Lauren could say hello to Mark.  I saw a few of Mark's classmates & most of them are ready for the final and being done.  We also went to get a certified copy of our maternal grandfather's birth certificate, as Lauren & my aunt are going to apply for dual citizenship (U.S./Ireland).  On the certificate the address of the building that my grandfather was born in, is just a few blocks from where our loft is.  We walked down there to take a look at what is currently there - it's now the J. Baczynsky Meat Market.  Mark & I have walked past this building a handful of times, it's a block south of the 2nd Avenue Deli. 

Building at 139 2nd Avenue

Mark had a massage scheduled for 8:00 pm and we both thought he would come home very relaxed.  Although he had a good massage, he was a bit keyed up, we attributed it most likely to his final being on his mind.  He's going to do great!

The last weekend in NYC

The weather cooperated with our last weekend here - it was sunny all weekend & is starting to warm up - I think for good this time.  We packed up some boxes in the morning, the count is 11 that we've shipped back to TX.  There's still a few more that need to be packed & sent there, as well as at least one that needs to make it's way to our house in FL. 

I went and got us sandwiches which we ate up on the roof top deck of our building. 

Union Square + Empire State Building from the rooftop

Rooftop view from our loft building

I then headed to Moma after lunch, so that Mark could study in the loft in the quiet, well golf was more than likely on the tv.  I thought that it was such a beautiful day that the museum might not be that crowded, well I was wrong.  I started out on the 5th floor, which is the where the Paintings & Sculpture start.  The museum had a large collection of Picasso works of art, pictures & sculptures.  The only time I remember seeing more of his pieces in one place, was an exhibit that was in LA years ago. As I worked my way down the different levels of the museum, some of the works of art started falling into the category of the ones I just don't understand how they call them art. I must say that I enjoyed seeing "Christina's World" by Andrew Wyeth & also the works by Seurat.

MoMa

Seurat

Picasso

Wyeth

Magritte

Warhol

Pollack

Van Gogh

And the following pictures are from the museum as well, falling into the "hard for me to understand this as art" category, especially the white string/wire attached to the wall & the floor. 

We had dinner reservations at Jack's Luxury Oyster Bar on Saturday.  They have a small dining room downstairs & another room upstairs if you're partaking in their Tasting Menu.  Mark started with some oysters.  He then had Foie Gras (he feels the need to get his fill of this, before we get home) and I had the Blue Crab Bisque, which was poured into my bowl via a tea pot.  For his entree, Mark had the halibut & I had the New Orleans Style Barbequed Lobster.  We shared the Ba-Ba Bananas Foster for dessert. 

Sunday, Mark started by studying early, while I did our laundry.  We then headed out for lunch at a Mexican restaurant we passed the night before, called Mary Ann's.  Let's just say that it's not like the Mexican food we get at home.  We walked down towards the SoHo area & just browsed.  We went to dinner at Gotham, which is the third time we've dined there - we enjoyed it again. 

 

A few days in NYC

I've been making my way through the list of things that I wanted to get to before we've gone back home.  I had mapped out a few fabric stores & and went to the first one on Thursday, which was up in the Fabric District.  It's called B&J Fabrics and is located at 38th Street & 7th Avenue.  They had a lot of fabric, but the majority was suited more for clothing than for upholstery.  I then did some shopping at Macy's, which is located at Hearald Square.  Once again, I tried on a lot of things, but didn't make any purchases. 

Friday, I went to two fabric stores - one on the Lower Eastside & the other on the fringe of Chinatown, close to the FCI.  Harry Zarin Co, which is located on the Lower Eastside had a lot of great fabrics & a lot suitable for upholstery.  I found a few swatches that I'm going to take home & see if they'll work - they assure me they'll ship which one I need, to me in Texas.

I then walked a few blocks down Grand Street, to Doughnut Plant. 


I heard about this spot & was curious what it was all about.  As the sign out front showed, they're special of the day was the Elvis Doughnut, which I passed on, seeing as I'm not a fan of Peanut Butter.  I did try one of their caramel glazed doughnuts, which was pretty good - it's a bit different than most doughnuts out there.  It's a small little shop, and I think that most of their business is outside vendors selling their doughnuts, i.e. Dean & Delucca.  It's also in a bit of odd spot, an area that seems to be a lot of housing (apartment buildings) for seniors.

Manhattan Bridge

Onward I went, trying to make my way to the last fabric store - I was a bit turned around & got clarification from a guy that was coming out of a shop, and this was after not getting much help from a crossing guard with an attitude.  Seems my mistake was that I was heading east, instead of west.  I found the store which is called Long Island Fabric, located at Canal & Walker.  It was pretty much a bust & I spent less than two minutes inside the store.  I then walked up through Little Italy & stopped in a restaurant called Positano - seeing as that's where we got engaged, I figured I should give it a try.  Not one of the best plates of gnocchi I've had - in addition to the fact that the waiter clarified that Montelpulciano is in Italy - I guess he felt I needed that spelled out for me, prior to ordering my glass of wine........ o.k. the fact that I've been to Montelpulciano helped me out more in my choice of wine.  After I selected that over the Chianti they were offering, he commented that that was the "good stuff" - oh boy!

We had dinner reservations at Jean Georges, which was one of the better meals we've had while in NYC.  My starter was Madai, which is a fish that was served sashimi style & Mark had the Blue Fin.  I then had shrimp as my next course & Mark had Foie Gras.  For the entrees, I had the Filet & Mark had the Lamb Chops.  I had a neat apple dessert, with many different components, while Mark had a chocolate dessert.  It was a bit of a challenge to get a cab, the doorman for the Trump International  Hotel, was only successful on getting cabs for the line of people, when someone was being dropped off at the hotel.  After waiting about 10 minutes, we opted to take the subway home - so that ride around midnight capped off the evening.   

More shopping

Yesterday I did some more shopping, well let's call it looking.  I'm in Manhattan & am challenged to find clothes, perhaps I just got used to my chef's uniform & nothing can compare to that!  I also had a dental appointment & met Julie & Sophie for a late afternoon drink at Olives. 

Mark had a busier day at school, he made Osso Bucco.  I think he's ready to be done at this point, it was a bit hard for him to get out of bed this morning. 

We had dinner at David Burke & Donnatella again - what a different experience from a few weeks ago - this time it was very crowded & very loud.  We arrived about 10 minutes early for our reservation & could barely get in the door.  They told us they were running about 20 to 30 minutes late.  Mark made his way to the bar & ordered us drinks, a few minutes later I made my way to the bar as well.  There was a nice man who offered me his chair & not long after that they seated a large party, so it wasn't as crowded.  The host kept us informed & kept apologizing - he managed to seat us at 9:00 for our 8:30 rerservation.  We were in the large dining room that they have, which was a louder room to be in, but the noise level in the bar area surpassed that.  Mark had a Crabcake/Shrimp Tempura starter that we shared - it had pretzel sticks that were tied by leek strips as the "crust".  I had the Halibut T-Bone again & Mark had the Lemon Sole.  For dessert, Mark had the Chocolate Tasting & I had the Apple Tart, with a different plating than the last time.  It was 10:45 by the time we were hailing a cab & heading home. 

This morning, I've spent some time changing our mailing address on some bills, which is not one of my favorite things to do - automated phone systems - can't I just speak to a person?  It's still sunny here & a high in the upper 50's is expected.  They're saying by next Wednesday it's going to hit 80 - just in time before we head home.  We've booked our tickets back to TX & we'll be heading out on the 23rd.  Later today, I might venture to a few fabric stores to find some material to recover a chair back home.  We have massages early this evening, once again warranted due to the bed here in the loft - that's one thing we won't miss. 

Last Wine Class

Today, the weather has gone back to cold - 37 when we got up this morning, although still sunny. 

We started the day by taking some boxes that we've packed to the post office - to start their journey home.  We packed up three boxes of cookbooks so far & there's at least one other box of those to go.  I took the subway up to 57th & 7th, looking for a fabric store, that wasn't there, as I needed to be in the area for what I thought was an appointment.  I then went to the dentist for my cleaning appointment, but alas, it wasn't today, it's tomorrow - not sure if I made the mistake or the person booking it did.  I decided that I now had some free time, & that I could mull around Bergdorf Goodman's.  If you're wondering where the ladies that do lunch shop - it appears to be at Bergdorf Goodman's.  They had models all dressed up, sauntering around the store while holding a sign showing where you could find the items in the store.  My next stop was Henri Bendel's, where I always find a treasure or two. 

I took the subway back downtown to our wine class at FCI.  This was our last class & it was on champagnes, Austrian, German & dessert wines.  We did food pairings again.  Seeing as I don't have any homework, I took the opportunity as I did in yesterday's class to sip & swallow, instead of the sip & spit method that they suggest.  We did learn that champagne is a wonderful accompanyment to salty foods, which is counter to what most Americans do by having champagne before a meal or with dessert.  We also learned that rose champagnes are ideal with fatty & savory foods.  I was also surprised by how much I liked one of the Riesling wines we tried, as I usually don't like that.

Wines for tasting

Tasting plate