Last week I started to eat a little bit healthier and am working towards losing some lbs. I lost three pounds just from avoiding gluten, not drinking alcohol Monday-Thursday, working out 30 minutes a day (Jillian Michaels), and having one cheat day. Great motivation! I typically aim on losing .5-1 pound a week, but I think the no alcohol thing was a shock to my system especially after my travels to DC. I went to Golonka's to load up on veggies and cooked low fat protein on our mini-big-green egg. I cooked flank steak, shrimp, veggies, chicken all healthy and all delicious. Plus, I started bartending 2 days a week at The Hideaway, which is perfect and fun, and I will try to bring my lunch/dinner with me when I am working Tuesday nights/Wednesday days.
On Friday I took my parents to Jake's for lunch and we all had the fish tacos, which are new on their menu, they were brilliant! Then we went to see a matinee of The Hundred-Foot Journey, one of the best movies I have seen in a while and very cleverly done! Shows you what incredible things happen when you open your heart and your mind. It also helps you realize that happiness is everything.
Friday night I went to a darling friend's 40th birthday party and the food there was amazing! Tons of local veggies, homemade dips, kielbasa, sausage balls, delicious soup, homemade salsa, you name it! Then there was Amanda's (from Small Oven) famous chocolate cake, which is a staple of any cool person's party, and zucchini bread! It was great fun!
Saturday was my parents' 45th anniversary and my mom and I planned a little getaway for my dad. We decided to go to the Baseball hall of fame in Cooperstown, NY and to the new (since I graduated 5 years ago) Paul Bocuse restaurant at the CIA. We left super early and drove to Cooperstown and went to the BBHoF and watched the "movie", which plays every 30 minutes. It's built like a stadium and it plays for 13 minutes - it was a little cheesy :) We then decided to go find somewhere for lunch and stumbled onto this great place (I wish it were closer) Alex & Ika. It was on a little side street, almost an alley and it was very eclectic and mismatched, which was divine. I had to have a Ommegang beer - the Hop House - and it went with my meal perfectly. We started by sharing a big bowl of the soup, a creamed parsnip soup with nutmeg - perfection! Not to thick or creamy, naturally sweet and just the right amount of spice that made it well balanced. Then we all had sandwiches - my parents had the bahn-mi style chicken sandwich and I had the falafel. My favorite part of the meal was the bread that the chicken sandwich was on - probably the best baguette I can remember eating. It was from a bakery in Tribeca, NYC (Tribeca Oven I think) and they receive it frozen and heat it in their ovens, which is how we used to do it when I worked at Table & Vine when it was in Northampton. The texture was honestly, perfect. If you are in Cooperstown, you must eat here!!!! Open for Dinner too :)
We went back to the hall of fame and were there for almost 3 hours perusing the greats.
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Sorry I didn't take more photos, I was just trying to get through in a decent amount of time ;)
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| Memories of The Naked Gun? |
We then drove to Poughkeepsie and checked into our hotel and relaxed before dinner. We arrived to Bocuse and had to wait for our table so we decided to take a lap through the hallways. I showed them my old kitchens that have almost all changed in the last 5 years. We headed back and were seated. I ordered 3 glasses of Champagne :)
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Unfortunately, the server (student) spilled the whole tray on my mother :( we felt so bad for him! I think she held up well though :)
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| Torchon de Foie Gras Apricot Compote, Black Plum, Muscat Gel, Candied Marcona Almonds, Brioche |
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| Soupe aux Truffes Noires Élysée Paul Bocuse 1975 Beef Broth, Vegetables, Black Truffles, Puff Pastry |
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| Crispy Sweet Breads Ris de Veau Croustillants Asparagus, Pickled Peaches, Fennel-Fines Herbes Salad, Pink Peppercorn |
2010 Vintage...Delicious!!!
I NEVER say this, but dessert was my favorite part of the meal. They sent out a table side lavender ice cream and then I ordered a dessert as well. All three of us got treat board to snack on while we waited for the ice cream to be essentially hand churned.
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| Table-Side Ice Cream & Classic Treats Lavender Ice Cream in a Waffle Cone Apricot Clafouti Canelé de Bordeaux Green Tea-Red Bean and Jasmine Rice Pudding Gâteaux Strawberry Consommé, Lychee Panna Cotta |
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| Modernist Lemon Bar Gâteau Crème Fraîche et Crème Citron Crème Fraîche Cake, Lemon Curd, Coconut Ice Cream, Tamarind Sauce |
They were both out of this world and I ate the whole damn thing! What a tremendous and memorable experience with great company. Back on the diet train yesterday after some buckwheat pancakes at the Palace diner.
Cheers!
Jody
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