Simon’s Birthday

Angelo and Maxie’s Steakhouse, 233 Park Avenue South, New York 10003 [site]

It was a last minute dinner for Simon’s big 27th, and a small group of friends went to Angelo and Maxie’s near Union Square. I forgot my Canon camera again, so I had to use my 2MP phone camera. The bread was good, albeit not fresh. Well, can’t be too picky about bread, I guess.

Helen’s decided to pick a group appetizer, fried calamaris, the special for the day. The squid was definitely fresh and moist, since the batter didn’t stick too well on the it. I had a few nibbles, but it wasn’t something that was crazy good, especially for the special of the day. Then again, it is a steakhouse. If only Helen would eat beef.

Now although the picture above looks nasty, that… actually taste very good. Garlic mash potatoes with fried onions. Creamy, fragrant, and flavorful. I took seconds. Now that I look at it in bright light, it does look freakish.

My main course: a 13-oz filet mignon topped with crabmeat and hollandaise sauce and some asparagus, aka the Filet Mignon Oscar. This was definitely and good dish. I’d definitely go back again for the steaks and try the desserts, not so much the appetizers though.

La Haute Cuisine Française

Le Zimmer, 1 Place du Châtelet, Paris 75001 [site]

I decided to have haute cuisine at least once in Paris, and since Au Chapeau Gris in Versailles was closed, I started studying my Frommer’s Paris: Day by Day Guide on my RER ride back to Paris. After careful scrutiny of local and pricing, I decided on Le Zimmer. Something I noticed later was that the Frommer’s guide only recommended restaurants and bristros that spoken English or have the menu in English. Makes me wonder what’s hardcore French cuisine…

I don’t recall seeing Orangina on the menu, so I ordered half a bottle of mineral water. The bread was mediocre here.

Country Pâté in Terrine Duval, with caramelized onion jam… or as the French call it: terrine paysanne Duval, confiture d’oignon caramélisé. Actually I didn’t know what I ordered when I ordered it, it was just the cheapest appetizer that wasn’t an onion soup. I was pleasantly surprised that the terrine (a type of pâté) complimented the sweet onion jam and sour pickle. The flavors were very contrasting.

For my main course, I ordered the filet de bar cuit sur peau, coulis de crustacés, purée maison, or pan-seared sea bass filet with skin, crustacés sauce, and mashed potatoes. First off, I have to say, this is the best sea bass I’ve ever tasted in my life (Chilean sea bass doesn’t count because it’s actually a Patagonian toothfish). The meat was soft and flavorful and the skin was pan-seared crispy. When I dipped the fish into the crusteacean sauce, it tasted so good. The mashed potatoes were creamy and rich too. I’m guessing this was probably a fresh sea bass caught earlier that day (it was a Tuesday, after all). I would so go back again for the fish, if I was back in Paris…

The Thanksgiving Menu

Yes, it’s that time of year again. Thanksgiving. This year, same as last year, I was in charge of the bird. And by default this year, the mash potatoes and the biscuits. Cranberry sauce? Out of the can. Cream corn? Out of the can. Salad? Dole’s salad in a bag with sliced tomatoes and cucumbers. Gravy? Out of the can. Biscuits? Pillsbury’s Grand Biscuits in a can. So what was really made from scratch? The mashed potatoes and the turkey.

Of course my mother brought over shrimp fried rice which she made from scratch and her special salad dressing. My dad decided to make sweet and spicy lobster and New Zealand mussels with black bean sauce, since it was on sale. They weren’t pictured here since they were late and then we forgot to take pictures.

The turkey came out a bit burnt on the skin. I know I coated it with honey, but it was towards the end of the roasting, so it shouldn’t have been that dark. I also noticed an uneven browning, which my co-worker said was probably because my oven coils need to be cleaned. In the end, the turkey breast meat came out a bit dry, but everything else was okay.

As for the mashed potatoes, I substituted milk with soy milk since my older sister claims lactose intolerance. It gives it the same creamy texture, but there’s a definite taste of soy milk in the potatoes. I don’t know whether it’s a good thing or bad thing, but I grew up with soy milk, so I have no problems with it.

Tips for next year: maybe a bigger turkey might have been able to retain more moisture than my 8 lbs turkey. 10 next year? Who knows…