Foo and Some Reviews

I was hella pumped to find out that this week's Top Chef involved the Foo Fighters - one of my fave rock bands.  Dave Grohl is so talented, as well as his entire crew.  So TC New York was tasked with delivering turkey day feasts for the Foo and their entourage, breaking up into two teams.  Team SexyBack won, which included Fabio (my current fave TC chef), but I really wanted Team Cougar to win it.   Leah, the quickfire challenge winner and Team SexyBack teammate, chose the colleagues she wanted to cook with, but they won by like a hair.  I'm not a fan of her though.  

Ok so I've had some wines this week, sedation for my work pain.  The first one was a tempranillo cabernet sauvignon called Sestero, a 2003 Navarra.  It's atrocious!  I've had hybrid wines before that were delicious, but this one had the most foul after taste.  When I restocked my shoebox apt with wine, I decided to go with a wine I know and love.  It's Syrah Reserve Vicien Vintage 2006.  It's from the Catamarca region of Argentina.  There are berry flavors and it has a full body and  a great after taste.  It is a great wine, and it costs $10. 

Now onto the most expensive wine I had with my dinner last night.  Il Nero Di Casanova Sangiovese 2006.  It's a Tuscan wine that you can order online for like $20, but since I ordered it at Spigolo, it cost double.  It was well worth it.  The wine has a deep red color, great cherry flavors, and a nice after taste.  It went nicely with my parpadelle and oysters.  Yum! 

Who wants a hotdog?

One of my reality TV obsessions is Top Chef, which my friends CKC and ANG introduced me too last season.  On tonight's episode, the quick fire challenge was to create hot dogs and many of the contestants stepped up to the plate, and made something original.  The elimination challenge was to create a New American lunch dish to serve at Tom Colicchio's restaurant Craft.  Disgruntled chefs who weren't chosen to be on TC got to taste the food and critique, and critique they did.  It was a bad night for most of the chefs, but Fabio came out on top and Jill got the boot.  I don't know what she was thinking making a quiche from ostrich egg, but then again why would someone buy canned crab as the main ingredient for a dish?

As of right now I'm a Fabio fan, but we'll see if that changes.  Stefan annoys me.

Great Find in Colombia and UES

I was on  a bit of a hiatus for a bit.  I just got back from a family vacation in Colombia, where I got to see my relatives.  It went by fast, but I am happy to be back in my shoebox of an apartment. 

While Colombia itself does not have any wineries, I did fall in love with 120 Cabernet Sauvignon (2006) from the Santa Rita winery in the Rapel Valley of Chile.  I found it refreshing, which I find rare in a red wine.  It went down smoothly and complimented the spicy potato chips I was munching on at a family gathering.  I found the wine at a local supermarket chain for roughly $9 USD, which is a steal to anyone.  I'm always wary of the $6 wines.

My first full day back in NYC, I stocked up on produce from Citarella and wine at McCabes Wine & Spirits.  I made what turned out to be a delicious dinner with a friend from Germany who's been staying at my parents' home.  To start, I created a salad with romaine lettuce, basil, chopped peppers, pomegranate seeds and tomatoes, with a raspberry walnut vinaigrette for the first course.  For the main course, I cooked organic boneless chicken breasts on the stovetop, which was soaked in a marinade I concocted of balsamic vinegar, olive oil, honey mustard, ground cumin, sage, thyme and adobo.  Marinades really work wonders - the chicken was delich!  I made a simple white rice as a side dish to the chicken.  

I grabbed a wine at McCabes to go with the meal that I had never really noticed.  My friend and I ended up polishing off  a 2007 Thierry & Guy Fat bastard chardonnay, which complimented our meal perfectly.  It is full bodied and had lemony hints to it.  It also cost about $11, which isn't too much of a sticker shot.  

I should have taken a food porn shot of tonight's dinner, but I enclosed a picture of a fantastic lunch I had during my 8 day vacation in Colombia.

Accademia!

I never thought I'd be doing this, but some of my friends are blogging and I thought I'd join in on the fun.

This evening I went to one of my new favorite restaurants, Accademia di Vino, located on 3rd Avenue btw. 63rd and 64th Street.  My friend CKC introduced me to it over the summer.   I'd never been there for dinner and it was an interesting crowd, mix of old Upper East Side and downtown chic.  I fit in quite nicely with my Chuck Taylors and jeans.

Now onto the good stuff.  Since Greco Brit friend Poodge and I were on the exhausted side, sharing a bottle of wine was not happening.  I opted for white and drank two delicious glasses of Pinot & Toi, Maculan Veneto 2006 ($12 a pop - blast!).  Accademia describes the wine as "crisp and fun on the palate."  I couldn't agree more.  It goes down real smooth and complemented my meal nicely.  I started with a mesclun salad with goat cheese fritters (they look like fattish mozzarella sticks) and for a main I had bavette cacio e pepe with VOO, cracked black pepper and pecorino romano.  As I am typing this, I realize now why my pasta was really spicy - added more fresh ground pepper to the mix -- oops!

All in all a great meal with a friend, even though we were both zombies at the table.