Bibingka (Philippine rice cake baked in banana leaves with feta & Gouda cheese)
by Celia Cheng
April 28th, 2008
CENDRILLON
45 Mercer St #A
(Broome & Grand St)
212-343-9012
$$
Cendrillon’s bibingka is a sweet and savory cake that I could eat all day long as a snack or dessert. Made with galapong — rice soaked overnight then ground into a wet batter — it’s lighter and fluffier than most Western cakes. Sprinkled with sugar, Gouda and French feta cheese and then baked under high heat on banana leaves, the top caramelizes, becoming a crusty layer that adds a contrasting savory flavor to the sweet spongy cake. Filipino food is certainly not light, and after a copiously delightful meal at Cendrillon, it’s hard to imagine having a cheese-crusted cake, but no matter how stuffed you are, a piece of bibingka is definitely the way to end this perfect ethnic brunch.
Posted in Brunch , Cheese , Dessert , Filipino , SoHo , Sweets
Yellowfin Tuna Steak Sandwich
by Celia Cheng
April 28th, 2008
OLIVE’S
120 Prince St
(Wooster & Greene St)
212-941-0111
$$
There’s something to be said about novelty. This grilled yellowfin tuna steak with red onions — also grilled — watercress, tomato and wasabi mayo on a brioche only appears on Olive’s daily menu one Wednesday a month. And when it comes to waiting for this sandwich, a month feels like forever. I generally don’t like cooked tuna, but the steak is only lightly grilled, so the center stays juicy. Add the fresh vegetable toppings, wasabi mayo and soft brioche bun, and I want to have another as soon as I devour the first. Olive’s is good at creating sought after cravings, like their avocado sandwich — a bi-weekly selection that was so popular it became a weekly — or the egg salad sandwich — another monthly favorite.
Posted in American , Fish , Sandwich , SoHo
Pizza Cavolfiore (cauliflower pizza)
by Celia Cheng
October 11th, 2007
GRANDAISY BAKERY
73 Sullivan St
(Spring & Broome St)
212-334-9435
$
Grandaisy Bakery has delicious pizzas whose recipes date back to the original Sullivan Street Bakery. Though the once-owners of a single enterprise have now gone their separate ways, the two resulting bakeries both serve many similar, if not some of the same, delicious goodies. However, the cauliflower pizza is only available at Grandaisy bakery, and it is in my opinion the most delicious of the pizzas, though all of them — potato, tomato, mushroom, zucchini, celery root — are excellent! With pieces of cauliflower, gruyere cheese and specks of parsley topping their signature crispy, thin crust, it’s a delicate but winning combination. On occasion, walking home after having a slice, I’ve had to circle back to get another.
Posted in Bread , Italian , Pizza , Snack , SoHo
Speculoos Cookies
by Celia Cheng
September 19th, 2007
LE PAIN QUOTIDIEN
100 Grand St
(Mercer & Greene St)
212-625-9009
more locations
$$
The Belgian bakery-café chain Le Pain Quotidien seems to be continuously opening new stores around the globe, with thirteen locations in New York City alone. In my book, LPQ’s speculoos cookies — Belgian spice cookies — are reason enough for world domination. I love these smooth, flat cookies with sliced almonds because the subtle hint of cinnamon and fresh lemon linger on your palate long after the cookies are gone. The texture of the cookie is hard but refined as it’s made with pastry flour. Each bite starts with a light, crisp crunch, and ends with your hand reaching for another.
Posted in Belgian , Chelsea , Cookies , Midtown West , SoHo , Sweets , UES , Union Square , UWS , West Village
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Lamb 1.3 (Lamb Sandwich)
by Celia Cheng
August 16th, 2007
SNACK
105 Thompson St
(Prince & Spring St)
212-925-1040
$
The lamb sandwich, lamb 1.3. (all of the sandwiches at Snack are named in this way, by meat or method of cooking and a number.) Juicy pieces of braised lamb are served on ciabatta with roasted red onions, tomatoes, arugula and a homemade roasted tomato aioli sauce. The lamb and tomato aioli are like lost lovers reunited at last, while the rest of the flavors do their parts in supporting roles so that all work in unison to create a succulent sandwich. Did I just say succulent sandwich?! Well, it is!
Posted in Greek , Lamb , Sandwich , SoHo
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