European – Page 2 – Food & Pixels

The Fat Radish- A charming place in LES

Opened by a catering company, the Fat Radish has been residing in LES since early 2011. it’s a really cool, chill place. We arrived on a early autumn evening, and was immediately taken by the warm welcoming lights. A coffee bar out front double as a foyer, and a cruiser bike park by the wall. It feels like I am just visiting a friends place. Pass the hallway where we hang our jackets, coffee bar extend into a wine bar, and open up to a beautiful dinning room. Expose brick wall, large commute table in the middle, huge rustic mirror bouncing off lights, it is all very pleasant, charming.

Oysters!!!

Scotch Egg– seeded Mustard, cornichons
These Scotch Eggs are huge!!! Lightly crusted, soft sausage wrapped with perfectly cooked egg. A two sided of scotch egg should be share with 4 instead 2 person. Love,love, love the little pickles!

Deviled Brussels Sprouts– Bacon, Thai Chili
Using Bacon fat to combat the sprouts’ bitterness. Genius!

Celery Root Pot Pie– Gruyere Cheese, Black Garlic
So, so, so good! Crust is fluffy and crunchy. Open it up, and the celery root aroma smell like I have been transported to a barn in England country side, and a pot of creamy celery soup is on the stove, boiling, and I can’t wait to dig in. it taste as good as it smells. It warmed me up and wrapped me around with it’s coziness. I wish I have this on every rainy cold winter night.

Peeky Toe Crab Gratin– Leeks, Aged White Cheddar, Sherry
Moist, and plenty of crab. The fat of white cheddar is really comforting, hearty. A fantastic dish to share. It would be wonderful to have this as a dip dish on a Sunday football party. Only problem is, to get me to let go of the bowl. However, it is too heavy to eat on its own. I only wish there were more bread. Seriously, four little piece of bread is not enough!!!

The Fat Radish Plate– seasonal vegetables, brown rice, adzuki beans. served with tahini, carrot-ginger, pickled cabbage

Montauk Diver Scallops
Perfectly seared scallops on top of a bed of sweet Potato Mash.

Monk fish Thai Green Curry– wild rice, coconut milk
Not a big hit at the table, sauce was too thin and watery.

Roasted Dutch Morgan Chicken– spinach, cornish pasty, shallot jus

Food is British at the Fat Radish. Some are light but flavorful; some are hearty and comforting. Price tags are friendly as well.
It is loud here. Because people let loose when they are happy. And we were happy here. What a lovely place.
Places like this is why we love lower east side.

(October, 2015)

Alder

The James Beard Foundation’s 2013 Best NYC Chef winner, Wylie Dufesne opened his second restaurant Alder the same year. Now, it’s his only restaurant after WD-50 closing it’s door last November.
Alder, a very subtle place on 2nd Ave. Bar in the front, dinning room is deep inside. Dark wood furniture, white brick wall, dim lit place, very clean lines. It is modern and very comfortable. Dinning room is tasting menu “only”, but of course you can still order off bar menu along with it. And we did exactly that.

FOIE GRAS DUMPLING– Mullet mousse, pickle raisin
Not our regular “dumpling”, should really call it a puff. Cute, delicious little bites. Rich and tasty, and balanced really well by the pickle raisin. Served in an escargot dish, where are my other four??

Layers of “cheesed” together, created a croissant-like cheese cube. Reminds me of the potato cake on the Mixed Grill from Torrisi Italian Speciality. Lightly toasted, topped with a little sauce. Amazing!

“PIGS IN A BLANKET” 13 – Chinese sausage, Japanese mustard, sweet chili sauce
Nice bite size of pigs in a blanket. Very very good Chinese sausage. This was a very nice touch by our waitress and very understanding staff. We did debated if we should order this as an individual dish, but was concern with the amount of food we are getting knowing we will get definitely the tasting menu and the pig ears. After we expressed our concern, our waitress surprised us with a mini plate of pigs in a blanket. Yes, it’s just two bites. But the thoughts really count. This way we get a taste, but not stuffed our stomach.

CRISPY PIG EARS 12- avocado, pineapple, pickled mustard seeds
Awesome crispy pig ears. So crunchy and so tasty. Not oily at all. Adding pineapple and mustard seeds is genius. It brightens the dish. And great combination of sweet and salty.

CARAMELIZED CAULIFLOWER TOFU– smoked eel, burnt orange, pistachio
Very interesting texture of tofu. It is almost “grits” like but much less heavy. A very healthy dish, but for me, it could use a little more seasoning.

BLACK GARLIC POTATOES– bravas consomme, chorizo, scallion
A Spain dish with a twist. Texture of black potatoes is just right, still firm and not mushy. Consomme was poured at the table, gives the dish a clear, light touch so it is not as heavy.

OKONOMIYAKI SILVER DOLLARS– grilled octopus, Kewpie mayo
Could use a few more octopus here. Chef Dufresne is taking a page from the very popular Japanese street-food cook book. This is basically a stack of mini tiny octopus pancakes pour with hollandaise sauce. Presentation looks great as the sauce is again, poured in front of us, but nothing innovative about this. This could be easily made at home.

FLANK STEAK– summer squash, beef tendon, hazelnuts
Tender, juicy, tender. Perfectly cooked!

OVALTINE ICE CREAM CAKE– strawberry, coconut, almond
Coated with cinnamon power, this was a disappointment to me. Not that it wasn’t a good piece of cake, just that there wasn’t any taste of ovaltine. Ovaltine is my favorite drink when I was a kid (i’m still a kid as times), but there was no trace of that rich, chocolatey favor here and totally overwhelmed by cinnamon.

BANANA CUBE & WHISKEY COOKIE
The banana cube was awesome. It a solid jelly packs with huge banana aroma and favor.

The 5 courses tasting menu is only $65, which is quite decent. Alder to me is contemporary cuisines with an Asian twist. I felt that the bar food wowed me more than the tasting menu. This is definitely a place where we can enjoy the delicious cocktail and great pub food. (June, 2015)

Wallse

click to see more pictures — click to see pictures

click to see pictures[/caption]Like most New Yorker, I love West Village. A stroll down the streets in Spring is delightful. Tree line brownstone buildings, cute cafes, chic boutiques, and a multitude of small restaurants.
Among them, stood a small, artsy restaurant, Wallse.
Wallse is an Austrian cuisine run by chef-owner Kurt Gutenbrunner, who also own Blaue Gans and Cafe Sabarsky. I have to be honest. I don’t know what I should be expecting at an Austrian restaurant. The only other place that strike a slight similarity is the Marrow (now closed), which served German food. As I understand, Wallsee, the town that the restaurant is name after, is only about 3 hours from Munich.
On the evening we visited Wallse, the building was scaffolded, which was cleverly camouflaged by the benches and flowers. Once step inside, it is equally artfully decorated. Across from the bar is a giant portrait of chef Kurt Gutenbrunner. The place is quiet, modern and sophisticated, and as were the food.

a glass of Riesling and Ingwer(Beefeater Gin, Ginger, Seasonal Fruit, Elderflower, Lemon)

2 kinds of spread: sour cream with chives, and liver mousse

Bread comes with sour cream with chives and liver spread. Surprisingly generous!! and smooth. But kinda wish the bread was warm…

Complementary Corn bread with avocado and lime sauce with a little snitzel, topped with salty pop corn. Beautiful dish. Definitely woke my taste buds up.

White Asparagus, Sweetbread, Chive Sauce, Fingerling Potatoes

Wiener Schnitzel, Parsley Potatoes, Cucumber Bibb Salad, Lingonberries

(April, 2015)

Category: <span>European</span>

The Fat Radish- A charming place in LES

Alder

Wallse