Fat Radish

Photo courtesy of Fat Radish

An exciting meal out reminds me that cooking is a creative outlet.  I work in an information profession, and really enjoy coming home and getting my hands dirty in the kitchen.  But most of the time, I make quick and unblogworthy fare, and it’s been a few weeks since I felt like posting.

The night out last week impressed me — dinner at Fat Radish, a farm-to-table place in the newly hip area south of Delancey, where the Lower East Side hits Chinatown.  On one hand, Fat Radish is a scene, true to its roots as a catering business for fashion shoots.   On the other, staff is friendly and the neighborhood has a great up and coming vibe.  I know the area well, as Darcy lived a few blocks north when we started dating.  South of Delancey is now in a sweet spot — tons of creative new bars and restaurants, with much less noise and crowding than the northern part of LES.   I can’t wait to make home versions of a few plates.

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(Eating Ourselves Silly at) ABC Kitchen

Last week, Darcy and I ate at ABC Kitchen, the Jean Georges farm-to-table restaurant inside ABC Carpet & Home. What its founder calls “casually elegant,” I call an awesome splurge and the start of an annual killer dinner tradition.

ABC does not need much of an intro. It opened in 2011, promptly racked up awards and is now a real hit, even by Jean Georges standards. He has plans to add a tapas bar (ABC Cocina) and an Eataly-style food court within ABC Home, as well as a second ABC Kitchen on the West Coast (in LA, says Eater.com). Darcy is an interior designer, and heads to the store often enough on business — she reports the restaurant is packed at off hours. I can attest that reservations take a month and fill in minutes.

LA + PDX

We spent last week on vacation on the West Coast — first with our friends Becky and Robert in LA and then with Darcy’s family outside of Portland. Freezing weather aside, we had a great and relaxing time. Here are the food and drink highlights. No, we are not paid spokespeople for the Ace Hotel — we just like the place a ton, ironically except for the one back home in New York.

3 Square Cafe (Venice)

3 Square is my kind of place — simple and modern, with a menu full of vegetable sides and German beers. I had the perfect cafe dinner — a crabcake on a roll with sweet potato fries. Great way to start our trip.