Lingbo Li
The Berkshires’ Amazing $5 Tomato
I picked up some beautiful heirloom tomatoes at Rubiner’s in Great Barrington, MA. One of them was truly a beaut: a giant green tomato that tasted better than any ketchup-red supermarket pretender. But it did cost about $5.
The finished display, with slices of mozzarella, drizzled with olive oil and liberally doused in kosher salt.
I have to say, if you’re in Great Barrington, Rubiner’s is a must-see. They have a beautiful selection of artisanal cheeses and other rotating specialty foods. One time, my better half and I decided to get the smallest possible quantity of five different cheeses for a picnic lunch. The employee was extraordinarily gracious about it.
Good job, Rubiner’s.
Attention, NYC Chinese Food-venturers!
I got this interesting email the other day. Josh is starting up a group to explore NYC’s food scene, with the first trip using my two guides for the Golden Shopping Mall. If you’re interested in joining other people to eat Seriously Good Chinese food at the Golden Shopping Mall in NYC, do take Josh up on his offer this Saturday…
My name is Josh and I just started a new Meetup Group, called the New York Epic Food Adventurers Club. The idea of the club is that we will go on long walks to get to our food destinations as a way to explore the city, get exercise, and work up an appetite. For the first meeting, this Saturday, September 4, we will meet at the Manhattan side of the Queensboro Bridge at 9am, walk across it, and make our way to Flushing, where we will dine at the Golden Shopping Mall. I intend to use Lingbo’s guide (basement guide here) as a reference.
Anyway, I just started the group and I am trying to recruit members. If anyone on your team is interested, or if you even think the group merits some kind of note on Serious Eats, I would very much appreciate it. Thanks!
Josh Goldblatt
Founder
New York Epic Food Adventurer’s Club
http://www.meetup.com/New-York-Walk-to-Eat-Club/
Persian and Italian Prix Fixe Traveling Meal
I ignore a lot of press releases, but I got an interesting one recently about a Persian/Italian dinner done by Lala Rokh and Bin 26 enoteca.
I had to reread the description before I figured it out. This is not some fusion dinner, per se. It involves two courses at Lala Rokh (Persian homestyle food) before getting up and walking over to Bin 26 enoteca (for the Italian portion). You can also pair it with wine for a surcharge, of course. This place would be a great recommendation for foodies like Chantal Royer, who enjoys travelling to seek out great food. Click through the jump to see the menu and deet – it’s every Tuesday. I actually might go.
I’m also doing a review soon of some cookware (ehm, I’m thinking of a chef’s knife or a cast iron skillet) sponsored by CSN who sells all kinds of crazy stuff in their 200 niche e-commerce stores – shoes, kitchen tables, etc. They’re also Boston-based, which is cool. I wonder if they deal with wholesalers or dropshippers. How many people doing SEO. Whether they outsource support staff. Anyway. That’s the ecommerce/Tim Ferriss-obsessed nerd in me.
Zinneken’s in Harvard Square Brings You Belgian Waffles
This exclusive tip just in: Zinneken’s, a Belgian waffle shop, will be opening in about four months in Harvard Square.
Zinneke in Brussels dialect means someone of mixed origins, which not only represents the founders, but also their ambitions to introduce authentic Belgian food to Bostonians. They promise that Zinneken’s baked-to-order offerings will to put your standard Americanized “Belgian waffle” to shame. Zinneken’s signature showpiece is the Liège waffle, aka sugar waffle, which is sweeter, smaller in size, and denser than their conventional brethren.
But it gets better!
All photos courtesy of Nhon Ma.
These sugar waffles ($4-6) are named for their caramelized sugar coating and will be served with everything from Nutella to Chantilly cream. I particularly like the proposed “Oreos Freakin’ Party” (no joke) special which involves a grind-tastic blend of Oreos, strawberries, and whipped cream. See the menu from their brochure below.
Harvard Square’s Waffle Pioneers
Who would chase the perfect waffle recipe across continents? One founder, Nhon Ma, is a Harvard grad who jumped from the corporate world to pursue his true passion: food. But it wasn’t a random coincidence, by any means. In fact, his mother was the only Asian chef to ever get a coveted Michelin star in Europe. After spending his childhood taste testing her creations, Nhon cut his teeth by working for her.
He met his business partner Bertrand Lempkowicz in high school, who’s leaving behind his Brussels communication company to join the venture. They’re still in the process of signing the lease, but envision the shop will be “a cosy European atmosphere” that serves up authentically light and fluffy waffles to passing crowds.
Photos from their Facebook page and Twitter show a test run of snackers munching on waffles with a variety of toppings.
Beyond waffles, Nhon promises that Belgian chocolate, French macarons, flourless fudge, Belgian chocolate brownies, and sweet crepes are also in the works.
Their retail space will be at 1 Mifflin Place, #400. Looking on Google Maps, it looks like it’ll be near FedEx and Harvest. Actually, this is their administrative space – the actual location is under wraps. Nhon reveals that it’ll be closer to Harvard Square, not far from Tommy Doyle’s andUpstairs on the Square.
Can’t wait! Look forward to an interview with Nhon Ma coming soon.
Their tentative proposed menu – with delicious photos! – after the jump.
How To Make Trailer Trash Eggs Benedict (Recipe!)
Eggs Benedict with Hot Dogs. I’m not joking. (My photo, with a Canon Rebel XS + kit lens + PS)
I was cooking up breakfast one Saturday morning for my better half when the urge hit me. You know. The urge. That crazy little idea in your head.
Yeah, I thought. Yeah, I’m a cooking badass. I’m going to make EGGS BENEDICT.
You don’t understand how exciting this idea was. I had never successfully poached an egg, nor had I ever attempted a French sauce. This recipe also contained four simultaneous (sort of) components.
To my “lazy girl curry”-making self (instructions: chop up onion/garlic/ginger, fry and add curry paste + protein + veggies, dump in coconut milk, cook it ’til it tastes good) making eggs benedict seemed like nothing less than scaling a cooking Everest.
Ok. So a real cooking Everest for me would be doing something like brining and deep frying a Thanksgiving turkey, but regardless.
There was only one problem. No, two. No bacon. No lemon (for the Hollandaise).
Being like any other lazy human being, I didn’t want to put on clothes to run to the corner store. I preferred to let the oil splatter my bare skin, of course. (Don’t try this at home, and don’t try it in high heels.)
So I subbed in hot dogs from the freezer and figured out I might as well use up the chicken stock in a velouté sauce, a French sauce made by combining roux (flour and butter) with stock. It’s more often paired with poultry and seafood dishes, but hey, I was gonna try.
Click on the link to get my humorous (but totally serious!) recipe.
Lana Lingbo Li
I'm a world traveler / enthusiastic eater who's now blogging and producing videos over at HelloLana.com. Visit me there!
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