short ribs with tomatoes, butter beans and calvados

So I had calvados left over from my pork chops and I didn't have anything else to reduce in my pan once the short ribs were browned.

To start I rendered the fat from a few strips of bacon and browned the slightly frozen short ribs all over.

I then deglazed the pan with a large onion that I'd cut in thin slices.

In went the calvados and then some chicken stock.

In went a can of diced tomatoes with garlic and something and a larger can of crushed tomatoes.

In went some salt and 2 cans of butter beans.

Into the 350 degree oven went my cocotte.

Then I raided for 3-4 hours.

Out came this.

Tebaya...no

So after I scored a calphalon pan, some chi silk infusion and some drinking glasses from TJ Max I went to Bed, Bath and Beyond (both on 18th & 6th). After leaving with a Brita and some other things from BBB I walked over to 7th.

On the way there was this tiny little shop that had Japanese fried chicken wings.

I had to stop in.

I got an order to go with some of their potemochi (toooo mushy to even have a picture of, bleh).

When I got home I had high hopes for these wings. Look at them. They're little, beautiful, sesame-speckled temptresses. Then I bit into them.

The chicken itself was kind of meh. This isn't the meaty wing you'd get someplace else and the flesh was kind of stringy.

The skin was no longer crispy because of my journey and I longed for more of the sauce to compensate.

I'll try to give them another shot fresh, but I don't know if it's worth it or not.

Tebaya
144 W 19th St
(between 7th Ave & Avenue Of The Americas)
New York, NY 10011

Liberté Méditerranée Yogourt

I love this stuff. I adore it. I could live off of it as my only yogurt source.

Forget you Fage... you're lovely, but this, this is creaminess beyond your imagining.

8.5% milkfat so better for you than ice cream, but ever so delicious.

My favorite flavors are the peach passion fruit, blackberry (mind the seeds) and plum walnut.

Sushi Yasuda... eh

So I got their takeout and can't directly compare an order of takeout to an omakase, but I can do take out to take out.

For the same price as that huge thing of sashimi at Umi sushi (and a lil bit more). I got this.

First, the salad.

The salad looks delicious upon first glance. Upon first taste it was very salty. Instead of the normally sweet sesame ginger dressing this one was quite salty.

Then there was the crunch.

After taking a few chopsticks-full of sushi I looked in the bowl to discover these little fishy larvae creepy-if-you-think-about-what-you're-eating-too-long things.

I ate it anyway. meh

Now onto the sushi and sashimi.

I was so excited to get to them that I kinda forgot to take a picture till I'd cleared out a roll and 2/3 types of sashimi. I'll leave you to imagine the beauty of an untouched box.

So... I've also decided that I like it when the restaurant gives you their house soy mixed instead of the little packets of red Kikoman that are too salty to put near rice. I didn't use much at all because of this and it was harsh if I missed the fish and hit the rice.

The wasabi was grainy which I guess means rustic and homemade, but to me it was a little gritty on the tongue.

The ginger was very fresh.

The rice was excellent.

The fish was very fresh and tasted like it should. I didn't expect anything less.

I'd still rather go to Asabu for as much seared otoro, Spanish mackerel and salmon as I could eat.

What's with every upscale sushi place having something that stares me in the eyes?

Bar Bao: best hash? HA!

Since this was just taken yesterday I've finally caught up! Woo.

NYmag's the best of NY came out recently and they said the "BEST" hash was at barbao... I really beg to differ.

I love daikon.. and the little bits of cake that were diced beneath the pork belly were delish. The hash was too sweet, too salty and too... meh.

I ordered the daikon rice cake (hash) which has duck confit, an hour poached egg, duck bacon and sweet soy.
I also got an order of the pork belly and didn't see a bit of red cabbage anywhere (but it was deliciously fatty)
I got the raved about duck fried rice and that was mmmm.

The pictures show all three piled onto my plate since it was my first meal of the day. I had the leftovers for brunch this morning. The first picture has mostly fried rice and pork belly and the second has pork belly and hash.

As I left I saw the cards for the place and remembered that I'd also seen them when I was at Baoguette (which disappoined me in bahn mi land tremendously). /sigh



Bar Bao
100 W 82nd St
New York, NY 10079
(212) 501-0776