Junior's

Perhaps the original was in Brooklyn, but this Junior's was in the belly of Grand Central Station. Who would think to look for food at Grand Central? It was merely a fluke that we even found this outpost of the Junior's branding. It was surprising to me that they had a shop devoted exclusively to bakery items, because I knew of it only as a restaurant. I had no knowledge then that Junior's makes "The best cheesecake in New York" . Having walked by it 3 times already, I just had to break down and buy a piece of cheese cake, to take back to the hotel.

The selection was mind boggling. Besides the regular cheese cake, they had raspberry swirl, pineapple, strawberry, chocolate swirl, and one that had a mountain of chocolate frosting on it. Most interesting and unusual were the hybrid cake / cheese cakes. The devil's food cake and plain cheese cake combination, with chocolate buttercream frosting and shaved chocolate, still sends shivers up my spine when I look at this photo. The carrot cake / cheese cake combo with buttercream frosting only makes my knees weak. Then I saw the red velvet and carrot cakes and almost walked away in frustration. How could one choose?

My inner struggle between buying what I really wanted vs. buying the least of all the evils lurking behind the counters, came to an abrupt halt as I walked out of the shop. During a momentary panic of  indecision I bolted, but then I turned. Standing before me was the only case I had yet to memorize. I rushed back in, before I could change my mind again, and ordered the smallest item in the shop for myself and a slice of the raspberry swirl cheese cake for my husband. With purchase in hand, I rushed back to the hotel and along the way, purchased a carton of milk.

  

The Tuscan brand milk was better than I've had in a long time, so I recommend it. I decided the red velvet bunt cake with only enough cream cheese frosting to fill the void, was probably my healthiest bet, but who really knows? About the cheese cake; I wish I had a Junior's in my neighborhood.

Junior's Website

Retail Bakery Grand Central Station Main Concourse near track 36 New York NY (212) 692-9800 Monday-Saturday 6am-10pm EST Sunday 8am-8pm EST

The Old Mill

Every time we travel to Massachusetts we make time to drive to Westminster and dine at The Old Mill. It's become a habit at this point, but not necessarily for the food. Originally we went there and ordered their boiled lobster dinner, but that has been off the menu for many years now. Perhaps we go back for the tranquility offered by the lovely, country setting and the mill pond complete with ducks; or the very rustic feel of the interior and the basic "meat and potatoes", all American, New England style menu that hearkens back to a simpler time. Memories of the pecan sticky buns, available from their bakery for take out, would be reason enough. We've packed those back to California a time or two.

Sometimes, when a restaurant has a standard menu with few variations like nightly specials, you risk being disappointed. That's what happened for me with the corn fritters, a staple at The Old Mill. I fell in love with them my very first time and keep a wonderful memory of them that did not match the reality of the same dish on this particular visit. They used to be made with corn batter studded with fresh corn kernels that created not only a wonderful contrast in textures, but added a fresh sweetness each time you'd bite into a kernel. That is no longer the case, although they're still served piping hot with maple syrup, and that is a treat in itself. The New England clam chowder is still rich, thick and creamy.

No, the photo of the prime rib is not distorted, it is actually that thick. Generous portions are the hall mark of this type of restaurant. Doesn't that half of a roasted duck look enormous? The stuffing underneath helps, but suffered in taste and the charred leg bone is a good indication of how well cooked it was. If I clicked my heels twice I wonder if I could get back to another century and find the same menu.


http://www.1761oldmill.com/

69 State Road East
Westminster Massachusetts 01473

The Green Table in NYC

Located inside food central, Chelsea Market in lower Manhattan, The Green Table was a small tasting room set up by the Cleaver Company to allow it's potential catering clients to taste samples of organic items prepared by and available from their facility. They ultimately decided to use it as a minuscule restaurant with perhaps 6 or so tables to serve the throngs of people walking through or working at Chelsea Market. A good use of space in my opinion. They also have a take out window for prepared meals.

I was fortunate to be visiting Chelsea Market after the lunch rush because I had no trouble getting a table, green or otherwise. Each item on the menu looked enticing and was described by not only ingredients, but by where the ingredients came from, mostly organic farms and dairies close to the city.

I had no trouble selecting blue corn pancakes served over a vegetable ragu. For very healthy food, this tasted better than I had imagined and lighter than I had expected. Cleaver company has a good thing going and I'm glad I went. Since Buon Italia, a purveyor of imported Italian food and condiments, is located in the same building, I'm certain I will dine here again.

http://www.cleaverco.com/

212) 741-9174
75 9th Ave

New York, NY 10011

Ferrara's

If someone were to invite me to an "institution" for a pastry, I probably wouldn't accept the invitation, unless it were Ferrara's. It's been anchoring the block for so many years, this Italian pastry shop has become an institution, but it's all sweetness and light. Its humble origins started in 1892 as a caffe where patrons could find a good cup of espresso and a place to play Neapolitan card games. Enrico Caruso had been a regular patron. It survived the Great Depression by baking several times a day to to avoid waste and became known for the freshest pastry in town.

Ferrara's has earned a wonderful reputation for producing Sicilian specialties like cannoli, sfogliatella (the "leafy pastry" with layers of paper thin pastry filled with ricotta cheese and candied fruits that are sometimes thought to look like clam shells) and cassata (the sponge cake with cannoli filling and marzipan "frosting"). This 5th generation family run business is owned by Italian Americans originally from a small town in Campania. They also have a fine reputation for torrone, the almond and nougat candy, as well as biscotti and panettone. You can find almost any Italian specialty dessert imaginable here at Ferrara's.

Although a bit cramped for space, and the pace a bit hectic, you can settle into the shop at a small marble table and relax with a cup of cappucino and a cannoli. Even though the neighborhood is less and less Italian these days, you will always find a slice of Italy at Ferrara's.

http://www.ferraracafe.com/

195 Grand Street

New York NY 10013-3717

Phone: (866) 920-4476

Ristorante Bacco

Ristorante Bacco is my favorite San Francisco Italian Restaurant. I can think of none better on the basis of consistently well prepared offerings that are seasonal and exactly what your expectations had primed you for, authentic Italian cuisine. The service is personal and efficient, a difficult balancing act for many other restaurants, but not with Bacco's warm and gracious Italian staff. The setting is intimate and walking through the velvet curtains at the door really sets up the romantic mood. It also serves to keep the room warm.

This is the kind of restaurant and type of menu that begs for more than 2 courses. I easily give in to this impulse every time I order a dinner at Bacco. My partner in crime for this meal was willing to go for four courses, if we split the pasta selection. I was a willing accomplice. We started out with a burrata salad with arugula and tomatoes. As you can see by the photo to the right, I once again failed to take the photograph until my antipasti plate was almost finished. Each cured meat was perfectly moist and not too salty.

The pasta course would have been perfect had it not been for the fact that the vegetable supplier delivered the wrong potato and the gnocchi was not light as a feather, the way they are normally prepared at Bacco. The consistency of perfect gnocchi at this restaurant is quite an accomplishment, no matter what the recipe. These particular gnocchi were heavy and gummy. Even the creamy truffle sauce couldn't redeem them.

Had this not been served at a restaurant the excels in making this dish, I would have said nothing. I vote with my patronage when it comes to restaurants. But when the waiter asked how every thing was, I felt compelled to speak up. He thanked me for saying something, even if it was not positive. Five minutes later the owner came by our table. I explained that I loved his restaurant and because of that I had to let him know that the dish he makes so perfectly was "off" tonight. That's when the potato story was told, a very reasonable explanation. He even comped the dish.

While my dining companion ordered the flank steak in a balsamic sauce I went for the lamb, since Bacco never fails to cook it perfectly medium rare. Simple pan juices were delicious, but that balsamic sauce looked very appealing too. Roasted potatoes and steamed broccoli worked for both plates.

The desserts were not only beautiful but generous in size and not cloyingly sweet. The chocolate torta sat in a bath of perhaps zabaglione (sorry, I didn't taste it) and the apple tart was drizzled in caramel sauce. It was a very creative execution of an old standard. A square of puff pastry had the middle cut out and replaced with apple slices to create a cup for the vanilla ice cream; simple, yet impressive.

http://www.baccosf.com/

(415) 282-4969

737 Diamond St

San Francisco CA

Sushi Groove

If we didn't have friends living around the corner from Sushi Groove, we may never have found this sake bar and sushi restaurant. The sushi itself is as modern and inventive as the name, with a twist of fresh vitality lacking in many traditional sushi restaurants. It's an East meets West approach at its sophisticated best. Our first time there was only for a drink, but we sat at the bar to watch the making of a foie gras nigiri. That told us enough about this restaurant to bring us back. They offer specials along with their regular menu every night and that makes it enticing for repeat business. I'm hoping to find the foie gras again on another visit.

The first dish ordered this time around was an Eel Salad reasonably priced at $7.25. The unagi was beautifully dressed with the traditional sweet sauce that usually accompanies it, sitting on a bed of pickled cucumbers. One could make a meal in itself of it. Next was a platter composed of sushi of varying complexities and prices.

Spicy Tuna Maki in the lower range of complexity and priced at $6.75 was still more complex than at most other restaurants. It came with avocado, a nice creamy foil to the heat of the hot sauce employed on the ahi. California Maki for $5.75 was equal to any other and the crab was very fresh. West Coast Roll at $13.00 was particularly good and may be a regular on the menu. It is basically a California Roll topped with ahi tuna and a dollop of hot mayonnaise. It was rich, creamy and hot, just delectable. The Lahaina Roll priced at $13.00 may have been a special for the night as I believe it was topped with Hawaiian Ono. I'm sorry to admit that I don't recall the other ingredients, but I could easily order it again because it was delicious. Judging by the photo, I might guess it was ahi, cucumber and avocado inside, but it very well may have been spicy tuna and not ahi.

1916 Hyde St
San Francisco CA 94109
415)440-1905

Palazzo Giuseppe in San Luis Obispo

If you ever find yourself spending the night in San Luis Obispo, this restaurant would be a good bet for dinner. As we walked around town, there were not a large number of fine dining establishments to select from, but since Italian is high on our radar, we took a chance and ate a very decent meal here. Palazzo Giuseppe must be very popular as there were no tables available inside, so we settled for al fresco dining in what can only be described as a mini mall with shoppers passing by as we attempted to enjoy our meal, trying to become oblivious to our surroundings.

Their Cesar salad passed muster with its dressing and they get credit for the presentation of placing the leaves of Romaine in an upward tepee like configuration. there must be an aspiring architect or anthropologist in the kitchen; not so unlikely in a college town. The goat cheese and pecan salad with strawberry dressing gets points too, although I would have liked to see more pecans on the dish as well as a bit more goat cheese.

The dressing was a vinaigrette with some of the strawberries macerated into it and it provided a beautiful color to the dish as well as a bright, fruity, sweet flavor to the dressing itself. The fruit also helped to make the dressing a thicker and silky in texture. I could barely take my eyes off of this presentation, since the butter lettuce was again placed in an atypical manner on the plate, as though it were still an entire head, instead of purposely arranged leaves.

Now we come to the best part, the pasta course. It's difficult to pass up home made pasta and when shape is something unusual, it's absolutely mandatory to give it a go, so Strozzapretti was my selected option. Mouth feel is so important in fresh pasta and the "priest strangler" did not disappoint. It was both tender and slightly chewy and was dressed in a sweet combination of peas and cream, with some pancetta, parsley, mint, and Gorgonzola Dolce. Adding the mint was a classicly Italian approach that makes a perfect compliment for the young peas.

For all the spaghetti and meat ball fans, this was much better than it looks. The meatballs, besides being the size of meat loaves, were juicy, tender and highly flavorful. They did in fact, taste like what one might reasonably expect an old world grandmother to make; perfetto. The tomato sauce was better than most and although the spaghetti does not seem plentiful up against the meatballs, the dish was very filling and satisfying. No room for desserts this time, but coming back to this restaurant to try one is on my short list of things to do in San Luis Obispo.

http://www.palazzogiuseppe.com/

1010 Court Street

San Luis Obispo Ca 93401
Phone: (805) 541-9922

Fax: (805) 541-9929

Email: slogiuseppes@sbcglobal.net

Mission Cafe in San Juan Bautista

Mission Cafe is the real deal. Having no idea how long this restaurant has actually been in business, my guess would be 60 years and counting. Even if it only opened last month, it hearkens back to a time when diners first started. All the patrons seemed to know one another and the wait staff. It was one big happy family from what I could gather, but this iconic, small town, gathering place welcomed strangers. And that was a good thing for two San Franciscans traveling down the coast and hungry for breakfast.

Pancakes, these were also the real deal, tasting homemade instead of like a commercially manufactured restaurant mix. No matter how many pancakes I have eaten, most of them have been made from packaged mixes and few of them were exceptional in taste. Mission Cafe makes exceptionally good pancakes, so good, we are planning on making Mission Cafe our first stop on our next journey to Southern California.

300 3rd St

San Juan Bautista, CA 95045

(831) 623-2220