AlwaysFresh: Babbo Rampage
Maryse Chevrière — April 21, 2010
In this week’s Always Fresh, instead of visiting a local greenmarket, we are spotlighting a trio of dishes from Babbo featuring every locavore chef’s favorite spring ingredient du jour: Ramps.
Clockwise from top: Bruschetta with Mozzarella and Ramps, Marinated Gulf Shrimp with Ramps and Jalapeño Vinaigrette, and a Side of Grilled Ramps.
Another spring, another season of restaurant menus suddenly peppered with dishes featuring ramps. Yawn, right? Not so fast. During a recent meal at Babbo, three dishes gave merit to the live-from-the-market tweeting, menu shuffling, mass ramp hysteria. These were ramps, exclamation point. That alluring, curious conflict of wilt and raw texture. That often-nuanced, green onion-garlic profile, was somehow impeccably more pronounced.
They were best atop oil-soaked bruschetta with half-moons of creamy mozzarella. A sort of deconstructed ramp pizza, more successful in showcasing the full characteristics of the ingredient than the actual pie version served at Colicchio & Sons.
In a bowl, as a stand-alone side dish, a twirl of the fork and the soft green strands become slick vegetable spaghetti. Grilled Marinated Gulf Shrimp, normally served with cardoons, get the ramp treatment too. The grilled flavor of the greens made the biggest impression, and their texture added another layer of tenderness to the springy shrimp.
AlwaysInformed: Tripe and Ramp Pizza at Colicchio & Sons
Maryse Chevrière — April 08, 2010
Tripe Pizza with Ramps and Shishito Peppers.
“It’s spring in NY bring on the ramps,” chef Tom Colicchio tweeted on March 18th. And now he has— onto a new Tripe and Shishito Pepper Pizza, served at dinner in the Tap Room of Colicchio & Sons.
The pizza was introduced to the menu a few weeks ago, but ramps were added only within the last three or four days. It’s a sauce-less, cheese-less pie— more like a jazzed-up, doughy flatbread (that’s not a bad thing). Of the three starring ingredients, the flavor of the shishitos is the most pronounced.
The shishitos were described as a kind of culinary Russian Roulette since only one in ten is extremely spicy. They provide a blistered smokiness, and lingering heat. They’re juicy too, lending some desirable wetness. While the small strips of soft tripe almost mimic the texture of lightly-cooked pieces of bacon, the flavor is almost imperceptible. (Which when you think about how wrong funky-tasting tripe can be, is not necessarily a negative). And the ramps? Well, the chef is right, bring ‘em on.
AlwaysInformed: Aureole’s Grilled Burger
AlwaysHungry — November 11, 2009
In today’s Dining Section, Sam Sifton wrote that the food at the new Aureole is “meh,” that is, except for the “extremely good” Aureole Grilled Burger. We totally agree. Below is AlwaysHungryNY.com’s post of July 21, 2009, lauding Chef Christopher Lee’s recommended dish-worthy burger:
Aureole Grilled Burger with Onion Rings.
There is no denying that New York Magazine assembled an epic slideshow of New York’s 82 Most Notable Burgers. While their round-up was ridiculously thorough, there may be a few burgers worth noting that have popped up since the list was finalized. Case in point, #83: Aureole’s Grilled Burger.
That Charlie Palmer’s Aureole (view) even has a hamburger on the menu shows how it has evolved from its stuffy, Upper East Side past. The “Aureole” Grilled Burger ($19) is available at lunch, and à la carte as a “bar room snack,” at dinner. It’s topped with Smoked Bacon, Vermont White Cheddar and Pickled Ramp Dressing.
AlwaysInvestigating: Aureole’s Grilled Burger
The Gluttoness — July 21, 2009
There is no denying that New York Magazine assembled an epic slideshow of New York’s 82 Most Notable Burgers. While their round-up was ridiculously thorough, there may be a few burgers worth noting that have popped up since the list was finalized. Case in point, #83: Aureole’s Grilled Burger.
That Charlie Palmer’s Aureole (restaurant page) even has a hamburger on the menu shows how it has evolved from its stuffy, Upper East Side past. The “Aureole” Grilled Burger ($19) is available at lunch, and à la carte as a “bar room snack,” at dinner. It’s topped with Smoked Bacon, Vermont White Cheddar and Pickled Ramp Dressing.
A patty of Debragga chuck-sirloin blend was cooked to a perfect medium-rare and served on a house-made toasted brioche bun spotted with black and white sesame seeds. While this mighty burger could easily stand on its own, it was served with a side of three thick tempura-battered onion rings.
The brioche soaked up the burger’s substantial juices, but kept its integrity through the last bite. Crispy bacon was more of a textural compliment than added taste— its the juicy patty that commandeers this flavor profile. The burger patty was topped with slivers of raw red onion and butter lettuce leaves then dressed with a creamy, tangy pickled ramp dressing that was like a high-class version of the special sauce found on a McDonald’s Big Mac. A mild, melted layer of Vermont white cheddar played a supporting role, it’s subtle sharpness occasionally shining through.
Aureole’s Grilled Burger is as painstakingly assembled as Grub Street’s list of #82 burgers, good enough to make us wonder why New York Magazine didn’t go all the way to #100.
AlwaysPartying: Food Trucks at the Brooklyn Yard
Arthur Bovino — May 27, 2009
Considering its environmental issues, the Gowanus Canal might not seem like the go-to spot for snacking, but last Saturday at the Brooklyn Yard in Carroll Gardens, it was. Van Leeuwen and the Green Pirate were the only actual trucks at Parked!: The Best Food Trucks in NYC, but plenty of good food could be had from Pizza Moto and Margarita of the Red Hook huaraches vendors.
AlwaysHungryNY: The Cardinal Club
The Gluttoness — May 11, 2009
Ever invited friends over for dinner, cooked them a fantastic meal and bathed in their rave reviews, seriously considering charging for your food as they suggest? We recently dined at the home of one entrepreneurial couple who followed through on the idea. You may have heard of this before. The New York Times called similar dinners, anti-restaurants. The couple, Simon & Paula (both 27), who prepared our meal, call their kitchen turned restaurant, The Cardinal Club. Running a dinner club was a natural evolution considering the couple’s passion for food and the hosting capabilities their garden apartment allows them. Inspired by Spring and an incredible meal that Jeff had attended at the club the week before, he insisted that the CORE return to experience this special place.
The couple named their dinner club for the cardinals that frequent their backyard. They transformed their ample garden into a clandestine dining sanctuary where friends can enjoy a leisurely meal in a homey, relaxing environment—an amazing alternative to the chaos of dining out in New York City. The warm glow of the romantic garden was compliments of Christmas lights and candles. There were plants, trees and flowers, but also fresh herbs, grown for use in Cardinal Club meals. Inside, a vintage record player spun an eclectic mix of tunes, from South African jazz like Startime with the Dark City Sisters to Ghostface Killah’s Supreme Clientele. You couldn’t help but instantly feel blessed to be aware of this hidden gem.
To keep the Cardinal Club private, Simon and Paula (both graduates of NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts), only serve one party per evening (up to 6 guests fit comfortably) and all groups must be recommended by former diners. Diners can choose to have three to six course menus. The cost per person is: $50 for three courses, $60 for four courses, $75 for five courses and $90 for six courses. Every menu is ingredient-driven and relies on French execution. The dinners are always BYOB, so we brought two different sangrias, made using AlwaysHungryNY recipes.
Simon, our cook for the evening, acquired his culinary experience at one of the first acclaimed French restaurants in the Southwest, Vincent on Camelback, in Phoenix, Arizona. Simon learned a lot while working there under Chef Vincent Guerithault, but he is still largely self-taught. He has an impeccable knack for combining seasonal and seldom-used ingredients. He thoroughly sources ingredients from the Union Square Green Market, specialty restaurant suppliers and renowned purveyors. He gets his meat from Esposito’s Pork Store, and his fish from The Lobster Place, for example.
Paula, our Argentinean-bred hostess served us consummately—lighting candles and refilling drinks. She even went the extra measure by serving things on a silver platter. While she doesn’t participate in the cooking, her South American background surely influences his cuisine.
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