Tag Archives: brunch

Brunch at Bar Boulud

2 Dec

Mike and I have walked by Bar Boulud many times on the Upper West Side (Broadway between 63rd and 64th to be exact).  Mike and I were running some errands in the area and decided to grab brunch in the outdoor “patio” on a beautiful fall day.  I have realized that I LOVE to eat outside if not only for the fact that my photos turn out so much better in natural light.

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Right after our order was taken, we were presented with bread and pastry options.  Mike picked an impressive looking croissant.

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And I chose a cinnamon raison pastry (note: whenever faced with a choice of pastry, I will always choose something that looks like a cinnamon bun… always).  And it was gooooooood.

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Mike started with the Pâté Grand-mère, which I believe contained liver, pork, and something else… it was tasty, but I’m starting to discover that I may just not be a pâté person (not to mention the complexity in trying to type it in a blog with all those symbols!)

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I played a bit out of my usual sandbox and got the quiche of the day to start.

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It was very fresh with great flavors. Not too dense but not too light.  Great balance of flavors.

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Mike made a good choice with the Croque Madame. It was delish!

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I ordered the housemade tagliatelle pastacolorado lamb bolognese, because it just sounded too good to pass up.  It lived up to expectation!

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Even after all that food, we split the “floating island” which said it had praline rouge, crème anglaise.  I still don’t know what that is, and I still can’t tell you what we ate, other than it faintly resembled a meringue… but it was delicious.

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And quite beautiful to look at.

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AND we split my selection of the hazelnut chocolate torte (which I believe was their dessert of the day).  It came with cherries, pistacchio, almonds, and all sorts of other goodness that I can’t remember besides the fact that it was RICH and DELICIOUS.  Nom Nom Nom.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Overall, I was very impressed by Bar Boulud.  This meal was $26 per person and included all 4 courses (bread & coffee were in there).  For a meal that counts as 2, I think that’s a steal for food this artfully prepared and with such fresh flavors.  Even if you don’t eat outside, the inside looked quite lovely.

Total Nom Points: 7.5 out of 10

Total Nom Points: 7.5 out of 10

Crustlesss Ham and Egg Tarts

26 Feb

I had seen this recipe a while back and was going to make it for the last family brunch, however, my sister doesn’t like ham, so I filed it away.  When I decided to have a brunch for six but knew I’d have very limited prep and cooking time, I pulled this one back out.  It has to be one of the easiest and most impressive looking brunch recipes I’ve ever seen!

You get sliced ham from the deli (go for the better stuff since it’s a big part of the dish) and lay it into greased muffin cups.  My ham was a bit thin, so I doubled up slices to prevent breakage.

Then you crack an egg in each and place a tomato in each cup.

Sprinkle with cheese.

And bake!  Voila!

It not only looked great, but it tasted great!  It looks so fancy, so it’s perfect for brunch, but it’s so quick and easy that it could definitely be an anytime breakfast!

You can find the full recipe at this link.  I went without the chives, and they tasted just fine. 🙂

 

Steak Frites

15 Jun

On various days, Mike and I will walk through the city in a single direction while looking at menus until something sparks our interest.  We’ve been pretty lucky in our “stumble upons” and Steak Frites on Varick at Clarkson (West Village) was no exception.

Since the inside was mostly red, I already liked it.

We were there right around late brunch time (it could have been linner by then) but we both still went for variations on egg dishes.  My dish was unbelievably good, with the exception of the egss being overpoached (why is this so common when mine turn out perfectly almost every time? Ok… I’m not a chef in a restaurant… maybe I shouldn’t say anything).  I think it was a special, since I can’t find it on their menu, but it was a parmesan (perfectly crispy) thick piece of toast with spinach, tomatos, poached eggs, bacon, hollandaise and shaved parmesan.  The blend of flavors was impressive.

Mike went with the steak and eggs, which seemed to be quite enjoyable (though also with overpoached eggs).

Total Nom Points: 7 out of 10