Brunch With Chopsticks Is Fun

   On Sunday afternoon I got to have a new experience thanks to Annie's research and determination. I went to my first brunch using chopsticks. We went to former Top Chef contestant Dale Talde's eponymous restaurant in Park Slope. And they gave us the most unique brunch I've had.

If you're going to have brunch in Park Slope on an early Sunday afternoon prepare for a bit of a wait no matter where you go. If you don't expect a wait, you're clearly suffering greatly from Saturday night's debauchery and should probably go back to bed. That being said, the hostess told us there would be a 20 minute wait and it was probably almost dead-on at 20 minutes. That's refreshing. So often a hostess will tell you 20 minutes knowing full well you'll be standing around for 45. The 20 minute wait gave Annie and I a chance to look around the place. The décor is very very Asian. The plates look like the ones in the pictures above the counter in old school Chinese restaurants. It was all very retro and cool as hell. We also had a chance to enjoy the first of a few very tasty bloody marys. The pickled ginger gives it some pop to go along with the heat. The bar area is a bit of a tight squeeze though once there are more than a few people waiting. And given the popularity of Talde, there will generally be a wait.

We noticed as soon as we sat down how loud the dining room was. But it was a good kind of loud. You can tell that it's the noise of everyone enjoying their food and conversations. You don't have to raise your voice to be heard. Immediately after we were seated out waiter was right there. He asked if we'd been there before. When we replied “no”, he explained that they serve brunch dim sum style. That means when you read about all the food we ate at this meal, don't jump to the conclusion that we're disgusting gluttons with drool hanging from our jowls. They were smallish plates meant to be shared. Which isn't to say we didn't gorge ourselves, we totally did, just not as badly as it would seem initially.

Pretzel Pork and Chive Dumplings

Annie and I started with Pretzel Pork and Chive Dumplings with a Chinese Hot Mustard Dipping Sauce. I loved these. Crispy and flavorful and I love hot mustard. I could easily eat a dozen of these while watching the game. Lobster Bao, an Asian version of a lobster roll. Only instead of a potato roll it's served on a steamed bun. Very fresh and tasty. They didn't last 10 seconds. Char Sui Smoked Pork Shoulder, these are boneless spare ribs in disguise. Wonderful wonderful boneless spare ribs. The Wilbur that gave his hooves and snout for these fantastic pieces of charred flesh was a hero. The Breakfast Ramen soup was a strange thing. It was sausage, a 6-minute egg and ramen noodles in a buttered toast broth. The broth was actually too buttery, it was pretty overwhelming. Then we added some sriracha and all was good with the world. I'm excited that someone heeded my earlier call for a breakfast soup.

Char Siu Pork Shoulder AKA Boneless Spare Ribs

After finishing all of that up we ordered some more. Why not, it's only dim sum. We tried Shrimp Toast with Chinese Sausage Gravy. The toast was OK, not great but OK. Much shrimpier than normal shrimp toast from a take-out place is. Which I liked, but the dish really wasn't anything special. The gravy was really good. Shiitake Mushroom and Scallion Chang Fun, which were basically veggie stuffed crepe wraps. These had good, bright flavors. I liked them a lot. I had to get Tater Tots just because they came with sriracha ketchup and I can't get enough sriracha. As it turned out I added more sriracha to the ketchup and the tater tots were hot and crispy and good. They were good in the sausage gravy too. As we finished up, Annie switched to a Bellini which was very fruity and loaded. At Talde they do not skimp on the booze.

On a separate note; at the table behind me was a couple sitting on the same side of the table. I really can't stand same-side sitters. You look like tools. You really don't need to cuddle through a meal. If you really can't stand to not be touching each other, order in and then you can eat, fuck, then eat some more. And you don't even have to get out of bed.

After a couple of hours of eating and drinking, Talde had beaten Annie and I into submission. That was definitely an excellent meal. Great service, excellent food and the price wasn't too bad at all. I'd say if you want a different experience for your next Sunday brunch adventure, hit this place up.

Talde

369 7^th Avenue

347-916-0031

www.taldebrooklyn.com

I Can Do Refined Cooking Too!

Scallop Mac N Cheese
1 lb. elbow pasta
4 cups milk
1 lb. bay scallops (or if using sea scallops cut into quarters)
4 or 5 large cremini mushrooms, diced
1 shallot, minced
10 oz. + 2 oz. gruyere, shredded
10 oz. + 2 oz. cheddar, shredded
1/2 cup + 1 tbsp butter
1/2 cup A.P. flour
3/4 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp red pepper flake
1/2 cup panko
1 sprig rosemary

1.  Cook pasta to al dente.  Strain
2.  Melt butter in a large sauce pan over low heat.  When it's all melted and just starting to foam add the shallot and mushrooms.  Season with salt and pepper.  Cook until softened.  Keep the heat low, you don't want to saute this stuff.  Just sweat it.  4 minutes or so.  Stir in the flour.  Keep stirring the flour around until you get a nice, bready smell and a light brown color.  Pour in the milk and stir to incorporate all the flour.  Increase to medium heat.  Add the nutmeg, red pepper flake, salt, pepper and rosemary sprig whole and bring to a simmer.
3.  Once the milk is to a simmer bring the heat back down to very low or remove from the heat entirely.  Remove the rosemary.  Fold in the 10 oz of gruyere and cheddar a handful at a time.  Making sure it's melted before adding the next handful.  When it's all melted, check for seasoning, add salt and pepper if necessary   Fold in the scallops and the cooked pasta.
4.  Melt the 1 tbsp of butter in a saute pan.  Add the panko and toss to coat.
5.  Pour the mac and cheese mixture into a baking dish.  Sprinkle the remaining 2 oz of each cheese on top.  Then put the buttered panko on top of that.  Bake in a 350 degree oven for 25 - 30 minutes.
6.  Remove from oven and put in the broiler for 1 minute to get some color on the top.
7.  Eat this shit...it's really fucking good!

Pan Seared Swordfish with Roasted Potatoes and Apples

Seems today was the day to mosh around in my kitchen my tasty vittles.  Tonight we came up with swordfish and roasted potatoes.

For the swordfish I just seasoned the fish with salt and pepper.  Then rubbed it with a garlic clove and dusted it with Parmesan cheese.  Melted a tbsp of butter in a tbsp of olive oil until it started foaming, then added the fish.  Cook about 3-4 minutes per side.  About halfway through cooking on the 2nd side I added 1/4 cup of white wine, 1 tbsp of balsamic vinegar and some capers.

For the veg, I took 2 medium sweet potatoes, 3 medium size red potatoes, 2 honey crisp apples, 1 red onion and 4 baby portabella mushrooms and cut them into roughly 1"x1" pieces.  Tossed it in olive oil and then added fresh rosemary, salt and pepper.  Roasted on a sheet pan for about 45 minutes at 400 degrees.  Check after 25 minutes or so to make sure it's not sticking.

That was definitely some good eating.  Give it a shot boys and girls.  Don't fear the swordfish.  He's dead, he can't duel you.

Sometimes Grilled Cheese Needs A Little Love

Sometimes when you make grilled cheese you've got to go all out.  So in today's iteration of melty masterpiece theater we used

Mushroom Ciabatta Bread
Capicola
Baby Portabellas
Roasted Red Peppers
Provolone
Fresh Mozzarella
A little oregano and red pepper flake

Now That's A Happy Thanksgiving

One day I'm going to make one of these.  I don't know what day that's going to be.  But you can believe there will be pictures.

BuzzFeed shows you how to make Turducken!

Apparently Guy's American Isn't Very Good

This might be one of the harshest restaurant reviews I've ever read.  NY Times writer Pete Wells completely skewers Guy Fieri's new Times Square joint like a kebab.  I almost want to try this place just to see if it's as bad as Wells says it is.

Check the review out at the NY Times here.

Rooster Sauce

I know I'm not the only addict of Rooster Sauce.  Oh, you better believe I'll be trying this.

D.I.Y. Sriracha...