there was a time…  long ago…  when i was in high school…

a bunch of us used to a) go to spilkas for seafood and bad beer and b) joke about going to spilkas for seafood and bad beer.  clams, man.  clams.

i would point to it every time i passed it on the way in to see my family in the last 15 years…  it was closed for quite a long time.  on my most recent trip, i saw the beautiful neon “open” sign all lit up.  spilka’s was open!  (i have no idea for how long…)

and then…

kevin sent me this article from a local utica tv station.  apparently, it is not only open, but people are (still?) getting whacked there.  harsh.  is the prospect of death worth the experience at spilka’s?  that’s a definite maybe. 

it has been quite a while since i have had a brazilian meatfest, er, churrascaria! years, in fact, since i used to go with a large group of friends to churrascaria plataforma in midtown west — stuffing ourselves full of food and wine served in magnums and imperials.  (i love dining with josh!)

we decided to ring up tanya to go to churrascaria riodizio tribeca, which is just across town from us.

the most important thing i can tell you about the experience? none of us can eat like we used to.

this restaurant is a lot smaller than its bretheren — located in an oversized brownstone on west broadway. the bar is pushed to the right as you walk in with a small, controlled temp wine room on the left. the dining room expands as you walk forward with the misnamed “salad bar” tucked in all the way to the right and the dining area extending all the way to white street on the left.

alison and i got a bottle of wine — a flavourful pinoit noir from santa cruz, ca.

we all worked through the “salad bar” with asparagus risotto being at the top of my list of favourites and other dishes including: marinated mushrooms, cold asparagus salad, tortellini, cold seafood salad and a red bean and chorizo dish. yum!

then we hit the meat! we turned our coasters from “red” to “green” and were deluged by succulent meat variations. i really enjoyed the pork tenderloin and the flank steak.

too full for dessert… go figure.

alison and i certainly love going to the bridge cafe! as i have mentioned before, we take everyone we can think of there for dinner…

this time? we got taken!

the corporate real estate folks at alison’s law firm had an “outing” on monday. (for the record, alison is not in the corporate real estate practice.) they started with a walking tour of the area near the brooklyn bridge IN brooklyn and then proceeded over the bridge to manhattan. i did not go on the tour, but alison thought it was pretty dang cool. caissons and contruction, oh my! they even took the “secret staircase” down from the bridge…

the group then headed over the bridge cafe. when alison mentioned how close her husband was to the restaurant — i got an invite! woo!

there were about two dozen folks from the firm there — mostly summer associates with a few partners and real estate associates mixed in. we sat with the smallest group — three summers (one from cordoza, one from buffalo and one from columbia) and a partner. really nice folks! one of the things that struck me was how young they were. although alison passed the bar last year, she had been working for several years as a scientist and a scientific adviser before practicing. in other words, she is 6-7 years older than the average associate who went to law school after undergrad. the other thing that struck me was how willing they were to soak in her experience (and some of mine!) — they asked a lot of good questions.

the food was off a abbreviated bridge cafe menu. everyone was started with a mixed greens and roquefort/walnut salad with a vinaigrette. shockingly (ha!), i had the diver scallops (with the andouille sausage and grits preparation). alison’s fave dish — the lamb — was not on the menu so she went with the massive ribeye — 2/3 of which is still sitting in our fridge.

there were both a red and white wine served, but i did not get a good look at the labels. the red was distinctively not californian, a bit dry, but still with subtle fruit flavours. we did not try the white…

“thank you” to the firm for taking us!

first and foremost, alison and i are both excited and pretty bummed that our friends ronda & phil are moving to england. yes, across the pond. near london, i hear. and they are not getting cable. definitely a satellite dish.

they are leaving next week so we wanted to get an excursion in to jeremy’s and the bridge cafe before they headed out.

i arrived at jeremy’s first. and i almost immediately remembered “free wifi at jeremy’s”. laptop - open. (btw, it is FAST, really easy to connect and most definitely free. second office, indeed.) i love getting a beer/cider there. they serve in two sizes: pint or quart. both in styrofoam cups. excellent.

alison arrived and ronda shortly after and we talked (bitched?) about wedding related stuff for some reason. alison did find that… beer does a body good.

off to the bridge cafe… i will not be giving a “formal” review of the place this time around. although i should. soon. however… the bridge cafe is hand’s down our favourite restaurant in nyc. we take everyone there.

as per usual, the staff at the bridge were very cool — in fact, purchasing us a round of pineapple martinis before dinner.

alison and ronda split her favourite appetizer — a fondue-ish concoction with crab, spinach, and artichokes served with flatbread/crackers. i certainly dig it as well, but going out always affords me the opportunity to get…

seafood!!

both phil and i started with a fried oyster appetizer. nicely breaded with something reminiscent of a good fish fry batter with some spices in it (paprika, black pepper…). served in a martini glass on top of blanched risotto and with a light, yet creamy, dipping sauce. when this dish was on the menu (it was a special last night) it used to be served with three dipping sauces. if i had a complaint, that would be it…

we worked through a bottle of l’ecole #41 (2003 napa, ca) — a syrah that was bold in both colour and flavour with a lot of “earthy” notes attached to both the front and the back end. i dug it. alison… notsomuch.

alison and ronda both ordered the same entree. then again, phil and i both ordered the same entree.

we are creative people. clearly.

alison and ronda did the petite lamb chops. i’ll let them comment on them…

phil and i did the diver scallops. for the record, i always get the diver scallops. i love diver scallops. the bridge changes their preparation on them a few times a year. last night, they were served with a cheesy pile of grits that had andouille sausage in it. i liked the complement of the sausage to the scallops. (my fave prep involves their lobster risotto!)

during dinner we had the ballentine old vine zinfandel (2001 ca) — a red zin that was much lighter in colour than i had expected and had a bit of “tart” on the front end.

we skipped dessert. who doesen’t? ahem.

thank you, ronda and phil!! we had a great time!!

the rest of the photos are at: http://www.erock.org/gallery/2007/20070523_Night_Out/

whenever steakhouses get mentioned in nyc, sparks steakhouse seems to garner at least some attention. after ~5 years of working at 51st and 3rd and not going there (it is on 46th between 2nd and 3rd) — i finally went there for dinner. with alison and tanya.

we did not make reservations, but it was easy enough to get a table at 530pm. the bar was only a 1/4 full and the dining area was virtually empty at this time.

the place felt “old”. not “old” as in “classic”, though, more like “old” as in “gordon gecko would still be eating here wearing exactly the same suits…”. there were a smattering of tourists — again, mostly in the AARP set. jokes about “early bird special” abounded. it was dark, as many good steakhouses are, and appointed in a lot of dark-ish wood.

when we sat down we noticed that one of the on-table wine classes had a nice big crack running lengthwise through the bowl. not a big deal, but as that was the first table set for the evening, you would think that someone would have looked at the glasses first. the silverware was “solid” and “heavy”.

our server was the only server who did not seem to make “rounds” on a semi-regular basis. waiting for alison, tanya and i made it through our cocktails and waited a good 10 minutes before we even saw our server again. certainly, that does not seem like a long time, but when the server to customer ratio is nearly 3 to 1, you would expect a bit more.

both our appetizers and our entrees were brought out on a rolling cart. from where we were seated, this was a relatively easy process, but the carts certainly made for an interesting maze when they were stuck more toward the middle of the dining area.

the “change the tablecloth” after dinner exercise was neat, but mostly lost on us as we did not stay for dessert or after dinner drinks. classy, though.

on to the food and drink…

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cocktails –belvedere martini, up and dirty
- solidly portioned and nicely chilled. the brine was a little off, though, and the olives were very small — especially for a steakhouse

wine –

stag’s leap petite syrah 2004
- the 2003 vintage was on the wine list, but they were out of it. the 2004 is not all that different, in my opinion, than the 2003. personally, i prefer the 1997 and the 2001, but those would no longer be cost effective. ahem. the bottle ran ~$50 which was a little less than i would have expected.

appetizer –

lump crab meat & bay scallops (hot)
- served hot in a small casserole dish. the crab was quite good — sweet and nicely textured. the scallops lost a bit of their flavour to the butter in the casserole. not a ton to share, but it worked out nicely.

entrees –

eric - steak fromage
- i am a sucker for roquefort cheese. an absolute sucker. when i saw a beef cut topped with roquefort, i put the menu down immediately. the cut, although unidentified, was closest to a ny strip. medium rare came out just as expected with a nice pink through the center. the roquefort, at first glance, was disappointing as it was a liquidy concoction loosely poured over the top. it was perfect, however. the sting of the cheese meshed excellently with the tenderness of the beef.

alison - lobster tails & broiled shrimp

tanya - filet mignon

tanya sez:

“The size was impressive. And it was cooked perfectly medium-rare on the inside; that being said, the outside was a bit charred for my taste. I am all for a tasty crust on my seared steak, but charcoal is best left underneath the grill in my humble opinion. Overall, this place is great if you feel the need for a testosterone rush. Lots of men - all trying desperately to impress each other (but not in a gay way, but rather in a “I make so much more money, have a bigger apartment/house/powerboat than you.”) If you want a good steak, a good martini, an excellent/interesting array of appetizers and sides - go to Dylans. And call me when you go!”

(i am hoping alison and tanya can leave their thoughts in the comments…)

sides –

hash browns
- lots of nice dark brown crust surrounding scalloped potatoes.

creamed spinach
- more spinach, less cream = tasty goodness

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sparks is one of those places that is often on a “list” of restaurants to go to. although i liked the food, i am just going to cross it off my list rather than put an asterisk next to it to go back to. try it once.

another beautiful saturday in nyc.

alison and i headed up to o’flanagan’s for some brunch with noga. she is in town for a few days from her self-imposed exile (just kidding!) in iowa. i was particularly interested in some of the linguistic discussion during brunch; how do new hebrew words get created, etc…

alison went for the full irish again, but skipped the puddings. both noga and i went for the eggs benedict. the hollandaise was a little orange-r than i am used to, but the eggs were done perfectly. the home fries neaded salt, but they were made from small potatoes and had a nice mix of onions and green peppers. the bloody marys were not as good as the last time we were there, but the mimosas were served in a pint glass. wow! the staff was very nice, as usual, and we joked around with them — especially the one that was still trying to wake up. there was also a table of 11 behind us with a little girl who had just come from her first communion. white dress and all.

to the back bar for some pool… this was my second time playing in a qualifier at o’flanagan’s. diane was there, but dorie was running the show. we also saw mandy (from the last qual) and talked a bit with misako. i played dave, an SL4, in the first round. i played, arguably, very well. however, i gave dave ball in hand at three critical points over the course of the three games and i lost. i need to work on my shot speed — again. i felt like i rushed a few shots and i need to calm down a bit, chalk up and look at the shot for a few more seconds.

and this is where we decided to spend money.

off to bed, bath and beyond. we went to bbb to purchase a picture frame and a shower liner. we left with hundreds of dollars of “stuff”. i am particularly digging the new couch pillows, but have lingering disappointment that we did not purchase a kitchen gadet that plugs in. although, i’m not sure what i would do with a soft-serve ice cream contraption so i guess that’s a good thing. ahem.

off to the new era cap store. alison and i have tickets to some upcoming cubs/mets games and my cubs hat does not fit right… cubs hat? check. new red sox hat? check. new sabres hat? puh-leeeze. even the new era store in nyc does not have sabres gear in any quantity. i did see the “new” sabres hat that just came out — one of the staff members was wearing it. nice.

the new era cap store is conveniently located near to… the new astor wines location. i picked up a few syrahs that we have not tried before, a big bottle of pinot grigio and a few bottles of prosecco. i really liked the new space, but it certainly felt less “big” than the old location. the wines were laid out by region, but within the regions there was a mix of different varietals. i wish they would sub-section. the irish whiskey section has been halved, unfortunately, but they have a nice new climate controlled area with very expensive stuff.

back to the hizzouse… watched happy feet. or at least alison did. i fell asleep. another penguin movie. caught the end of the ottawa/nj game. ottawa takes the series…

for the record… josh must have been having a great time at the no pants wine swill in dc. at least that’s what we gathered from the text messages! although it was cinco de mayo, we steered clear of tequila. and, although it was kentucky derby day, we both steered clear of mint juleps and, for the matter, actually watching the race. i’m sure a horse won.

a GREAT saturday. out and about. this is why people live in nyc.