at the sign of The Pink Pig

The Dutch Fails To Impress Again

[Pigging by Wilfrid:  June 25, 2012]

Someone called me crazy when I told them I'd given The Dutch another chance.  Perhaps so.  It was prompted by a couple of things.  The news that Andrew Carmellini is set to launch a French operation in the  Chinatown Brasserie space was one reason The Dutch was on my mind again.

The other was that I needed a fall back when I failed -- as I did -- to get into Perla.  I was horribly disappointed by The Dutch when I first visited.  First impressions are sometimes right.

Sondheim In DC: Ten Years Ago

[Pink Pig Time Machine by Wilfrid:  June 25, 2012]

I'd like to make a quick trip to Washington DC some time this summer to catch Richard Diebenkorn's "Ocean Park" series at the Corcoran.  Ten years ago I made a cultural expedition to the capital, primarily to catch some of the Sondheim Celebration at the Kennedy Center, but also to visit some galleries.

I had modest eating plans too.

Reintroducing Paprika

[Free stuff by Wilfrid:  June 18, 2012]

There are some things you just don't know until someone tells you.  I wouldn't have known, for instance, that Paprika, a familiar St Mark's Place veteran, was debuting a new menu had I not received an invitation to come try it.

You all know Paprika.  It's been there forever (or a dozen years, anyway), on the south side of St Mark's between Avenue A and First Avenue.  You might have taken it for a central European joint, thanks to the name,  but you figured out is one of many nice, neighborhood Italian trattorias.  Well, no longer.

Quick Bites: Over-Ordering At The Brindle Room

[Pigging by Wilfrid:  June 18, 2012]

Tired, hungry, too late for most restaurants (it was just about 11pm), we stumbled into The Brindle Room (serves until 1am Friday and Saturday) and rashly over-ordered.

What an easy, friendly, casual place to drop in.  And there were complimentary bar snacks if you checked in on FourSquare (news to our server but not, fortunately, to the kitchen).

Union Pacific: Ten Years Ago

[Pink Pig Time Machine by Wilfrid:  June 18, 2012]

After the quick round-trip to London, a quiet week at home in New York.  The main event, unquestionably, was an extended dinner at Union Pacific -- a restaurant which should have had a much longer life.

Something here about supping with the devil.

East Village Pork Bun Bonanza

[Pigging by Wilfrid:  June 15, 2012]

Something for the weekend?  I hit the pork bun trail for the New York Times' Local East Village site.

Get your fat on right here.

The Cheese: Breimat

[Pigging by Wilfrid:  June 13, 2012]

I guess this stuff is really rare.  I can't find any information online -- and I am open to correction on the spelling (which I thought I took from the label).  But we know who Rolf Beeler is.

He's the superstar affineur of hand-selected Swiss cheeses.  And his stuff is good.  But $46 per pound good?

From San Domenico To The Savoy: Ten Years Ago

[Pink Pig Time Machine by Wilfrid:  June 13, 2012]

Another very quick business trip to London loomed this week ten years ago.

I prepared for it by eating supper at San Domenico, no longer a local restaurant for me, but still a leading favorite.

WD-50 Soars Again

[Pigging by Wilfrid:  June 11, 2012]

I've been a fan of WD-50 since Wylie and Dewey Dufresne opened it, astonishingly almost ten years ago.  From the foie gras with sardines and cocoa nibs, I've been an ardent support.  I even forgave them the ramp soup.

I've written about it often enough too -- and I won't repeat all the background and context I gave in this 2007 post.  I hadn't visited in a while; but then Wylie went ahead and did precisely the right thing to bring me back.  He threw out his tried and trusted menu and started all over again.

Well, no, not quite.  He kept some of his greatest hits on a $75 "From the Vault" menu -- the pickled beef tongue, the lamb loin with black garlic romesco -- but introduced with a flourish a completely new $155 tasting.  Out went the carte, but lest anyone thinks this is an exercise in envy, provoked by the plethora of high-priced tastings appearing around town, reflect that the dining room now expects to turn far fewer tables.

There  is one easy way to access Wylie's wonderful new food.  Sit at the bar and order from either the new menu or the Vault: two courses for $25, each additional course $15.  These are still, of course, tasting portions -- don't imagine two or three courses will stuff you.  But it remains a notable bargain, given the excellence of the cuisine.

 

Blue Hill With Experts: Ten Years Ago

[Pink Pig Time Machine by Wilfrid:  June 11, 2012]

I missed an episode of Ten Years Ago last week, so we'll have two this week.  An easy matter in the blog-o-sphere.

It's an amazing ten years since I dined at Blue Hill with some people who were then high volume and influential posters at eGullet.  But the week began modestly with a High Hopes Hogs pork sauage, and some home made baked beans.  I've always liked my home-made beans and don't make them enough.