Eleven Madison Park in New York City

I first heard of Eleven Madison Park (EMP) when I saw their cookbook on display a few months back. One look at the beautiful photography and I was immediately intrigued.  Knowing I'd be visiting New York City I made a point to find a way to go there. I ended up getting a 4-course lunch at EMP as one of my birthday presents two months before the trip. It was the best meal I have ever had. 

At EMP everything seems to be perfect but not in a pretentious way. You enter and feel like something wonderful is about to happen and it actually does! The menu consists of 4 choices per course. The choices are merely an ingredient, such as asparagus or lobster, and make up the center of each dish. The rest of the dish is a surprise. Then to make sure the surprise isn't too big, the waiter asks you whether you have any food allergies or aversions. I told him no oysters, no semi-cooked eggs nor innards for me! When presented with such a sleek menu you almost feel bad saying no this, no that, but the waiter assured me there were far worse cases. One guest had a list of 15 items to not include in his meal and, props to EMP, they were able to come up with a menu excluding all those items.

I chose asparagus, plantain, morel and chocolate as my 4-course meal. The entire meal was truly outstanding. All flavors were perfectly matched, none of them overpowering the others and each dish had a number of different textures that went together beautifully. The dishes were teeming with freshness and the presentation was a feast for the eyes. My dessert was served with a tiny candle to mark the occasion of the lunch (see top photo). When I blew it out I messed up the dessert a bit. It was still pretty, nonetheless. The quality of the food and the service make the three Michelin stars EMP has well-deserved. 

The meal started out with an amuse-bouche of savory black-and-white cookies.  We were told they were a famous New York treat and finally the German word "Amerikaner" (=American) for a large black-and-white cookie made sense. The meal ended with a package of sweet black-and-white cookies to take home. Both versions were very good. 

Before we received the first dish from our chosen menu we were served several more amuse-bouches. 

Little toasts with diced apples or with quail egg and diced apples (for those who don't mind wobbly eggs).

Soup with mini herb bouquet. 

Smoked sturgeon sabayon. 

Fresh cow's milk butter. 

Fresh goat's milk butter.

Fresh, warm rolls.  

Cheesecake. 

Looking back my favorite things were the clambake, the cocktail prepared for us in the kitchen, and the egg cream. Maybe because they were all showy elements, something I'm not used to experiencing when visiting a restaurant. According to a recent New York Times article there's even more of a show to come to EMP. Restaurants do need to stand out from their competitors to be able to stay afloat.

Clambake: a bowl of clams, a steaming pot of clam chowder and miniature zucchini breads 

Cocktail: apple brandy, diced apple pieces, and pomegranate puree blown up into a ball with liquid nitrogen. We were told to break the pomegranate ball and mix it with the rest of the drink before taking a sip. For the making of this drink we were invited into the kitchen where we caught a glimpse of the kitchen staff working at their individual stations. What a sight! At any given point in time there are about 30 to 45 people working in the kitchen and almost the same amount of people out on the restaurant floor. 

Egg Cream: Orange syrup, cocoa-infused milk and seltzer with a splash of olive oil. So fun to watch and so delicious to sip.

At the end of our meal I received a slender box which contained a slip of paper saying Happy Birthday on it as well as two caramel and fleur de sel chocolates. Eleven Madison Park, you know what you're doing and you're doing it so well!

Boston Part 2: B & G Oysters and SoWa Open Market

A definite food must on the East Coast is seafood. Especially when you live in Switzerland, which is pretty far from any ocean's coast. The only thing going for the terrible hostel we stayed at was the proximity to Tremont Street where there are a bunch of restaurants to get your seafood fix. After reading good reviews, we chose to go to B & G Oysters on Friday night without having a reservation. We ended up getting seats at the bar, the only drawback of which was the jacked up air conditioning blowing down our necks. 

B & G Oyster's specialty, as their name implies, are their selection of fresh oysters, but I just can't get myself to slurp down a slippery glob of potentially food-borne-illness-laden saltiness. My friend ordered one and quite enjoyed it. I feasted on the bread and olive oil instead. For my main I had the American red snapper with baby carrots, fennel and yogurt puree, and pickled fresno chili. It was very good and fresh. My friend went with a Maine lobster roll with fries and bread and butter pickles. I had a bite of the roll and it was really delicious. Nothing like the mayonnaise dripping one she had tried at Faneuil Hall Marketplace earlier that day. And the fries, a seldom food I treat myself to since they often just aren't good enough to waste your calories on, were very tasty due to some herbs mixed into them.

Afterwards we had a drink just down the street at The Beehive, a fun place to hang out with a bar upstairs, and a bar and stage for performances downstairs. 

One of my favorite places in Boston was the SoWa Open Market on Sunday. There's everything from farm produce, to T-shirts with moustache themes (what's with the moustache craze in the US???), to food trucks (still a big trend in the US). We first checked out the farmer's market, then moved on to the shops in the buildings between the farmer's market and the food trucks and arts and crafts. We stumbled upon a bead shop called Bead + Fiber where I ended up buying some strands of stone beads to make new jewelry. Then we moved on to the arts and crafts and food trucks. We bought jewelry at the lovely stand of Freebird Designs. Stern Design Works also had some pretty cool jewelry including see-through pendants with miniature animals trapped inside. Unfortunately we were still full from our breakfast at Flour Bakery and Café so that we didn't get a chance to try food at any of the food trucks, but I did squeeze in a drink at Bon Me (a play on banh mi, the Vietnamese term for bread). The cool thing is you can cut the line if you're just ordering drinks and no food. I chose the Thai basil lemonade. It was really refreshing. 

Boston Part 1: Flour, Crema Café and more

Breakfast at Flour Bakery, Boston

Finally I made it to the East Coast. It only took 29 years! First stop was Boston followed by Washington D.C. and finally New York City, the mekka of food, all in two weeks' time. With more time I would've loved to have explored outside the cities. I will just have to go again!
This first Boston post is dedicated to one of my favorite topics: desserts and coffee. These are always a must, first to start the day and second to continue the day. 

The best bakery my friend and I visited was Flour Bakery + Café. Flour has three locations but we ended up going to the one in South End, nearest the hostel we stayed at. The first time we went I had a sticky bun--for me a typical American breakfast pastry and an absolute must-have when in the Unites States--and an iced latte. Both were very good. The second time we went there I couldn't resist the berry muffin top as I'd never had one before. It was also very good although a little on the oily and cakey side. If I hadn't been worried about my luggage getting too heavy I would've bought their cookbook Flour directly at the bakery. As luck would have it, I'm currently borrowing it from a friend. I will try a recipe first before deciding on ordering it online. 

Crema Café in Cambridge

Iced Mocha and
Coconut Macaroon

In Cambridge I got  a delicious iced mocha and coconut macaroon at Crema Café. From there we picked up some goodies at L.A. Burdick chocolates, a place my family had recommended from their trip there last year. The fleur de sel and vanilla caramels we got tasted good but were a little hard to chew. However, the presents I bought there (chocolate covered hazelnuts and chocolate penguins) resonated very well with the recipients. Afterwards we went on a Hahvahd tour, a fun way to get acquainted with the history of Harvard. 

Kilvert and Forbes

Quincy Market, which is a part of Faneuil Hall Marketplace, really is a tourist trap, offering so-so food for over-the-top prices, but you can get some good sweets there. I ended up buying a congo bar at Kilvert and Forbes. A congo bar is made of brown sugar, flour, chocolate chips and walnuts. Hard to go wrong there, right? It was rich, but delicious, a perfect pick-me-up to counteract jet lag on my second day. 

Pinkberry

Finally, Boston is the place I first tried the frozen yoghurt at Pinkberry. I'd heard mixed reviews about it before but I really liked it. It's a perfect little dessert (if you get the "mini" size---which most people do not get) that is refreshing and doesn't leave you feeling full.


Another place with good coffee drinks is L'Aroma Café and Bakery. I recommend the iced mocha. 

Acero Gelateria in Basel

Acero Eiscafé

Finding house-made ice cream in Switzerland, at least in the German speaking part, is not easy. You'd think the closer you got to Italy the easier it would be, but something happens between Germany and Italy and it's not the Röstigraben. It's more like the Ice Cream Abyss. This is very hard to deal with as a German-American. In the US you can get ice cream everywhere and there are loads of brands and flavors to choose from. I remember this one time during my last year at UCD while I was living in an apartment with three roommates we at one point of time had over 10 flavors of ice cream in our freezer! Those were the days...And in Germany every city has several gelaterias to choose from. The quality of those gelaterias is a different story, but at least there are options! 


In Basel, when you're really desperate for ice cream, your safest bet is to buy some at Coop or Migros. If your ice cream-must-have-attack (believe me, this does exist!) happens to you during the day and you're close to Sprüngli (Barfüsserplatz or SBB), then you can get their delicious chocolate ice cream-one of my favorite store-bought ice creams. My other favorite brand is Häagen-Dazs. The problem is that it's getting harder to come by in Basel. You can find it at Globus, but CHF 11.90 for one pint is just plain ridiculous. The other day I found it for CHF 9.90 at my favorite Coop Südpark, but there were only two flavors to choose from: Macadamia Nut Brittle and Cookies and Cream. Ironically, my favorite Häagen-Dazs flavor is Vanilla Swiss Almond but I've never seen it outside the US. If you're up for some swanky ice cream you can indulge in the magnificent ice cream at Teufelhof, where one scoop costs CHF 4.50. Their vanilla ice cream is to die for and makes their Eiskaffee almost totally worth the steep price of around CHF 15. They also have other seasonal flavors, such as rhubarb, which are very tasty.


Fortunately since last year there's ice cream to be found in Kleinbasel at the Acero Eiscafé (they also sell cakes and panini but I go there for the ice cream). Their flavors are constantly changing (they offer 12 flavors daily-check their website for the daily offering) and they sell not only regular ice cream, made solely with organic milk, as well as sorbet but also lactose-free ice creams made with organic almond or rice milk. I've already gotten ice cream there a couple of times during the last couple of weeks. Today I had fior di latte, straciatella and amarena. Of those three the straciatella was the best. My favorite flavors I've had so far are the chocolate and the amaretto. I've tried the ones made with nut milks before but still really prefer the regular dairy ice cream. The little courtyard in back of the café is nice to sit in but it feels a little cramped there so I prefer to take my ice cream outside and just a couple of yards away to the banks of the Rhine.


I heard rumors that Acero may have to close due to having too few customers. It would be such a shame! I can see, though, that they would have issues getting enough customers as the café is not easy to find and you have to walk all the way to the back of the café to get the ice cream. I'm sure if they sold it at the front window they'd get much more traffic. I'm crossing my fingers and toes that Acero will make it!

Fior di latte, Straciatella, Amarena

Today's flavors

Oriental-Style Chicken Salad and Rice Noodle Salad

One of my best friends once gave me a cookbook called The Cuisine of California by Diane Rossen Worthington. It has turned out to be quite the gem. Every recipe I've made out of it has been really delicious. The other day I was craving the oriental-style chicken salad. I still haven't found the right rice wine vinegar for the dressing (I use a rice vinegar meant for sushi, which is okay, but I believe there's better kinds out there) but the dish tastes wonderful anyways. Since I had leftover dressing I used rice noodles instead of chicken the next day to make a rice noodle salad. Rice noodles only take about 4-5 minutes to cook so it was a really quick dinner to make. 

Serves 6-8
For dressing
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tablespoon peanut butter
Pinch of sugar
Pinch of Chinese hot mustard (haven't searched for this ingredient yet)
1/4 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup rice wine vinegar
2 tablespoons hot pepper oil (didn't use this, although I'm sure the heat would add a nice touch)
1/4 cup sesame oil


3 cups chicken stock or water combined with 1/2 teaspoon salt
2 pounds chicken breasts, boned
1 tablespoon sesame seeds, toasted
1 medium European cucumber, julienned
2 green onions, thinly sliced on diagonal
2 tablespoons finely chopped cilantro


1. For dressing: combine all ingredients except the oils and whisk well to combine. Slowly whisk oils into dressing until combined. Set aside.


2. In a medium, deep skillet or a large saucepan, bring chicken stock or enough water to cover chicken to a simmer. If stock doesn't cover chicken, add water to cover. Add chicken breasts and simmer for 10 to 12 minutes, depending on size, or until just tender.


3. Cool chicken in liquid. Drain chicken and remove skin. Shred by tearing meat into long, thin pieces (or slice with a knife, if desired). Reserve in a medium serving bowl. 


4. To toast sesame seeds, place in dry medium skillet over high heat. Shake until seeds turn light brown, about 2 minutes. Remove immediately from skillet. Reserve. 


5. Add cucumber, green onions, and 1 tablespoon cilantro to bowl with chicken. Add dressing and mix well. Taste for seasoning. Garnish with sesame seeds and remaining cilantro. 


May be prepared up to 8 hours ahead through step 3 and kept in refrigerator. Toss with dressing just before serving. 

Chocolate in London, Paris and Zurich

Wow, what a week! Within one single week I tasted chocolate in London, Paris and Zurich. Not bad, huh? But I'm pretty sick of chocolate now (I never thought I'd ever say that!).

Last weekend I was in London and was able to stop by the shop Melt in Notting Hill. It was a very cute shop with a small selection of chocolates and chocolate bars. Perfect, as too large a selection makes me suspicious as to the freshness of the products. I bought the dark chocolate bar with mint (which never left London), the dark chocolate with sea salted caramel bar (which didn't make its first night back in Basel) and the dark chocolate bar with orange (which I just took a nibble of and presumably will disappear within 24 hours). As the name suggests, these chocolates melt in your mouth, creating a very smooth and fresh feeling. Very tasty and definitely worth another visit the next time I go to London.

When my sister was in Paris a few weeks ago she bought me a bar of dark chocolate with orange from Jean-Charles Rochoux, a shop I had recommended to her from my last trip to Paris last fall. It was so delicious that I decided to stop by the shop again this past Wednesday while I was on a work trip to Paris. And I was not disappointed. I bought a chocolate bar filled with praliné and caramel and topped with almonds as well as a selection of little chocolates. All were very tasty and fresh, but my favorite was the raspberry one called "maraba". Raspberry and dark chocolate are a couple wed in heaven. Mmhmm. 

When I found out that the Salon du Chocolat was to take place for the first time in Zurich at the end of March I knew I would have to go visit. That's exactly what I did yesterday. There was a small number of exhibitors from Switzerland and other European countries, most of which I'd heard of before, such as Sprüngli, Cailler, Honold, and Beschle. After snatching free samples of chocolate Luxemburgerli and dark chocolate truffles from Sprüngli (and they taste so much better fresh!) I went to the Beschle stand, a chocolatier from Basel. I'd only ever tried their chocolate here and there and was excited to have the opportunity to try some different flavors at their stand. I tried dark chocolate and ginger, white chocolate and lassi, white chocolate with blueberries and almonds as well as dark chocolate with rosemary and lemon thyme and dark chocolate with pistachios and fleur de sel. The latter two were my favorite and I bought a bar of each. Normally I don't care for chocolate that has flavors usually found in savory dishes, but the rosemary and lemon thyme chocolate was really delicious and fresh-tasting. A palate-cleanser.

Brioche French Toast with Pears & Walnuts in Gingered Maple Brandy Sauce

Only when I have company do I ever make something special for breakfast. Yesterday it was Denis Cotter's Brioche French Toast with Pears & Walnuts in Gingered Maple Brandy Sauce from his book For the Love of Food, the second breakfast recipe I've tried from the cookbook after buttermilk pancakes. Absolutely delicious! Although the lime mascarpone was yummy, we didn't feel it added much value to the dish. We were perfectly happy with the toast and the pear sauce. 

For the lime mascarpone

100 g/ 3 1/2 oz mascarpone

100 ml/ 3 1/2 fl oz double cream, whipped to soft peaks

finely grated zest of 1 lime

For the French toast

2 eggs

100 ml/ 3 1/2 fl oz milk

1 tsp ground cinnamon

1 vanilla pod, interior pulp only (I used vanilla extract)

4 slices brioche

about 15g/ 1/2 oz butter

For the pears and walnuts in gingered maple brandy sauce

50 g/ 2 oz butter

2 medium pears, cored and thickly sliced lengthways

1 piece of stem ginger in syrup, thinly sliced (I just used ground ginger)

3 tbsp maple syrup

1 tbsp brandy

1 tbsp chopped walnuts

First prepare the lime mascarpone: beat the mascarpone to soften it and fold in the whipped cream and lime zest. 

Make the French toast: whisk the eggs, milk, cinnamon and vanilla together in a large bowl. Soak the brioche slices for 1 minute in this egg mixture.

Preheat the oven to 180°C/ 350°F/ gas mark 4. 

Melt the butter in a frying pan over medium heat. Remove the brioche slices from the egg mixture and place 2 of them in the pan. Cook on one side until golden, then turn and repeat with the other side. Repeat with the remaining slices, adding a little more butter if necessary, and arrange on an oven tray.

Place the tray in the oven and bake for 10 minutes.

Make the pears and walnuts in gingered maple brandy sauce: in another frying pan, heat 15g/ 1/2 oz of the butter over medium heat and sauté the pear slices in it for 5-7 minutes, turning them to color all sides. Add the ginger, maple syrup and brandy, and continue cooking for a further minute.

Remove from the heat and add the walnuts and the remaining butter to give the sauce a pouring consistency. 

Serve 2 slices of toast per portion, topped with the pears, walnuts and sauce poured over. Add a dollop of the mascarpone and serve. 

Sour Cream Coffee Cake

I love the combination of sugar, nuts and cinnamon. That's exactly what makes this sour cream coffee cake delicious. I was flipping through The Essential Baker looking for inspiration for an afternoon cake to serve my friends and came across this recipe. I hadn't had coffee cake in a while and it sounded easy to make so I went for it. It did turn out to be very easy and quick to make. And it tastes really good! Guess what's for breakfast tomorrow...

6 ounces (165 g/ 12 tablespoons/ 1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened

1 1/2 cups granulated sugar

3 extra-large eggs, at room temperature

1 cup sour cream

2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

3 cups all-purpose flour

1 tablespoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup walnuts, finely chopped

1/4 cup granulated sugar

1/4 cup firmly packed light brown sugar

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Center a rack in the oven and preheat to 350°F (177°C). Generously butter the inside of a 9 1/2-inch (26 cm) round spring-form pan. In a large bowl, beat the butter on medium speed until it's fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add the sugar and cream together well. Add the eggs one at a time, mixing well between each addition. Add the sour cream and vanilla and blend together thoroughly. In a separate bowl, sift together the flour and baking powder. Add the salt and toss together to blend. Add the dry ingredients to the butter mixture in 3 stages, blending thoroughly after each. 

For the topping, combine the walnuts, sugar, brown sugar, and cinnamon in a small bowl and toss together to blend thoroughly.

Transfer half of the batter to the prepared pan. Use a rubber spatula to spread it evenly. Sprinkle half the topping over the batter in the pan. Transfer the remaining batter to the pan and spread it out evenly over the topping. Sprinkle the remaining topping over the batter. Bake the cake for 40-45 minutes until a cake tester inserted into the center comes out with a few moist crumbs clinging to it. Remove the pan from the oven and cool on a rack. 

Moroccan Chicken

I have a new favorite recipe that is easy and delicious. I love recipes that let you just throw everything into one pot et voilà! The recipe is Chicken with caramelized baby onions and honey from the Moroccan part of Claudia Roden's cookbook "Arabesque: A Taste of Morocco, Turkey, & Lebanon". I serve it with couscous: 1 part couscous to two parts water. Put the water into a pot, add salt, freshly ground black pepper and a swig of olive oil. Once it boils, remove from the heat, add the couscous and let it soak up all the water. This takes about 5 to 10 minutes. 

Serves 4

1 pound shallots or baby onions

1 onion, chopped

4 tablespoons sunflower oil (I used olive oil)

good pinch of saffron threads

1 teaspoon ground ginger

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 chicken, cut up in 6 or 8 pieces

salt and black pepper

1-11/2 tablespoons clear honey

To garnish: 1/2 cup blanched almonds or a handful of sesame seeds (optional)

To peel the shallots or baby onions, blanch them in boiling water for 5 minutes, drain, and when cool enough to handle, peel off the skins and trim the root ends (I just peeled the shallots by hand). 

Sauté the chopped onion until softened in the oil over a medium heat in a pan or casserole large enough to hold the chicken pieces in one layer. Stir in the saffron, ginger, and cinnamon, then put in the chicken pieces. Season with salt and pepper, and turn to brown them lightly all over. 

Add about 1 cup water and cook, covered, over a low heat, turning the pieces over, for 15 minutes, or until the chicken breasts are done. Lift out the breasts and put them to one side. Add the shallots or baby onions and continue to cook, covered, for about 25 minutes, or until the remaining chicken pieces are very tender. During the cooking, turn the chicken pieces and stir the onions occasionally; add a little water, if necessary. 

Lift out the chicken pieces and set to one side. Stir the honey into the pan. Check the seasoning. You need quite a bit of pepper to mitigate the sweetness. Cook, uncovered, until all the water has evaporated, and the onions are brown, caramelized, and so soft that you could crush them, as they say in Morocco, "with your tongue". 

Return the chicken pieces to the pan, spoon the onions on top of them, and heat through. A few minutes should be enough. Serve, if you wish, sprinkled either with blanched almonds fried in a drop of oil until they are lightly golden, or with toasted sesame seeds. 

Amsterdam: The city of Appeltaart and Slagroom

This time I decided not to research restaurants too much before heading to Amsterdam. I thought for once I'd wing it. Turns out that wasn't such a good idea. I didn't see Mark Bittman's recent article on good Dutch restaurants in Amsterdam till after my stay but he does make a point in that it's hard to find actual Dutch food there. Guess it's back to thorough research for whatever my next trip is. I did, however, find one restaurant before I left for Amsterdam that I would have loved to try but knew I wouldn't feel like trekking out to all by myself as it wasn't anywhere near my hotel: Restaurant de Kas. I love the idea of them using their own grown produce in their dishes to create seasonal and local fare. 

Most of what I ended up eating in Amsterdam was comfort food. I arrived early Saturday morning and was starving by the time lunch rolled around. I decided to go for a pannenkoek (a pancake), which is a common Dutch food, and went to The Pancake Bakery which Lonely Planet and The New York Times both recommend. I went for a pancake with cheese, ham and onions. If you're starving and want to put yourself in a food coma, then that's definitely the place to go!

Although I was stuffed after lunch I decided to go to Villa Zeezicht (Torensteeg 7) to enjoy a piece of their famous appeltaart met slagroom (apple pie with whipped cream). Definitely not the smartest thing to do but I was able to enjoy it nonetheless. 

Appeltaart is available in many cafés. On Sunday I had a slice at Café Nielsen (Berenstraat 19) after eating a veggie sandwich that was good but not special. The apple pie definitely made up for the sandwich. It had tons of cinnamon and was served with a nice portion of slagroom. Although it looks like a lot on the photo, most of it is unfortunately air. A cup of hot chocolate went well with the cake but I could only stomach it because I had spent a few hours at the Tropenmuseum in the morning and had worked up quite an appetite.

Amsterdam really catered to my current whipped cream addiction. Monday morning I went to the Dutch chain Coffee Company for breakfast. I had a fruit and nut muffin (tasted like it had flavorings in it, which I really don't care for, but at least the texture was good) and a panna montata, which is a strong coffee with milk topped with whipped cream. While I was deciding which drink I should get I told the girl at the counter that I really wanted a drink with whipped cream so she asked me whether she should put as much as possible on and I said "yes". She put so much whipped cream on top that by the time I got all comfy at my table it was starting to melt and drip down the side. A little girl nearby was so fascinated by the whipped cream that she kept saying "ijsje", the Dutch word for ice cream. It really did look like an ice cream cone.

Good thing I did decide to do some research on foodie places Sunday night and found out that what I had thought was a jewelry or fashion shop was in fact a chocolate shop selling locally made chocolates: Puccini Bomboni. I bought myself a box of chocolates to try as well as some presents to take back home. The chocolates were very fresh but a little on the sweet side for me. My favorite one was the raspberry. I got marzipan bars topped with almonds as well as chocolate-covered almonds to take home. The marzipan bars were good but the almonds on top could have been crunchier, as crunchy as the chocolate-covered ones, which are really good.