A Winter's Foodie Eve

In the event your Thanksgiving feast tomorrow night doesn't keep you full until Monday (or even if you just feel like gorging yourself twice in one week), Lincoln Square wants to ply you with all of it's best culinary offerings this Monday 12/1 for the 15th Annual Winter’s Eve at Lincoln Square.

Photo credit: Filip Wolak for the Lincoln Square BID

From 6:00 to 8:30pm, 35 of the Upper West Side's best restaurants will line the sidewalks around Lincoln Square (from Time Warner Center at Columbus Circle, along Broadway between 62nd and 64th Streets and at Richard Tucker Park on Broadway between 65th and 66th Streets) to serve mouthwatering bites and small plates, hot drinks and hearty soups all at nominal costs.

The newest restaurants and eateries to participate this season include:

• Gina la Fornarina: crispy focaccia robiola for $3 and porcini mushroom ravioli for $4
• Tavern on the Green: fennel and oyster soup for $4 and cinnamon oatmeal raisin cookies for $1
• Whole Foods Market Columbus Circle: local mulled hot apple cider with gingersnap cookies for $3

Other AINY favorites include:

• Asiate: Smoked Chestnut Chowder with duck confit, pickled cherries and foie gras emulsion for $4
• Bouchon Bakery: Chocolate Bouchon for $1
• Telepan: Mushroom Bisque for $4 and Coconut Cupcakes for $1
• Bar Boulud: Frenchie Burger Sliders for $4, Lobster Bisque for $4 and Duo of Macaroons for $3

The celebration begins (rain, snow or shine) at 5:30 pm with the Upper West Side’s Tree Lighting ceremony at Broadway and 63rd Street.  Food Tastings officially begin at 6:00 pm.

You Want to Visit the Park with Tequila in Its Name

Last night I went with my friend Jen to check out the grand opening of Tequila Park Taqueria in the Hudson Hotel. It was a tad chilly by the time we got there, but with my jacket on it was a super enjoyable night at a rooftop bar.

The place is very large by comparison to other similar venues, and the vibe is definitely downtown meets uptown ($16 for margaritas?! Holy cow!?), yet nostalgic and whimsical (hello strings of lights, fake grass, and foosball tables).

In all honesty, their menu looked super interesting. I started with the Horchata Apple Blossom Margarita with Riazul Reposado and apple blossom honey and Jen got the Smokin' Apple with Corzo Reposado, ginger, mezcal and red sea salt. These couldn't be more different apple margaritas if they tried. Mine was on the sweeter side while Jen's had quite the kick, but I enjoyed them both.

Horchata Apple Blossom and Smokin' Apple Margaritas ($16 each)

For food we split two orders of tacos, one from the "common" side of the menu--the crispy 48-hour pork carnitas ($8 for 2)--and one from the "uncommon" side of the menu--sriracha cheesesteak ($12). Both were served on homemade tortillas and the latter packed quite the punch with the sriracha. Would highly recommend both!

Crispy 48-Hour Pork Carnitas Tacos ($8)

Sriracha Cheesteak Tacos ($12)

No visit to Tequila Park is complete without at least 3 rounds of foosball (best of 3 wins of course!). We played 4 and yours truly won 2, leaving with sufficiently sore arms. I forgot how much fun those little men on poles could be!!

Ready, set, foosball!!

It's definitely the start of rooftop bar season, so what do you think? Will you check out Tequila Park?

A Store for Gourmet Addicts

Gourmet foodstuffs makes my heart tingle and my stomach jump for joy. When I heard that O & Co., the Maine based food chain that sources ingredients from all over Provence and the Mediterranean basin, had opened a new store in the Shops at Columbus Circle and was having an opening party, I had to check it out.

The store itself is fairly small, but it's packed to the brim with specialty olive oils (some wrapped in gold foils with hefty price tags), pastas, vinegars and other goodies like tapenades and truffle salts.

I was immediately offered a glass of prosecco with one of O & Co's vinegars. Vinegar with prosecco!?! The thought originally made me cringe, but these are not your average vinegars. In fact, I was told that to be truly considered a vinegar in France, a certain level of acidity must be achieved. The flavored vinegars the bartender was serving were really only "condiments" flavored with fruits like fig, pomegranate and apple. I tried the fig and it was surprisingly delicious in my bubbly. A salesman also let me sample a bit of the cherry "condiment" on a spoon, telling me that he uses it on everything from vanilla ice cream to salads to chicken. With the 15% discount they were offering that night, I had to take advantage and bought myself a bottle. I can't wait to experiment!

In addition to the prosecco, waiters passed hor d'ouevers made from all O & Co. ingredients including truffle-icious bites of potato and olive oil crisps, olive oil cakes with poppy seeds and jelly, as well as samples of pretty much anything in the store on cute little spoons.

Since I was traveling home the next day, I settled on the fried mussels in pickle sauce for my mom and basil oil for my dad. If you love basil and/or pesto, you have to pick yourself up a bottle of this one-drop-goes-a-long-long-long-way potion. At the end of the day, I'm glad to know I have another place to spoil myself nearby whenever I get the gourmet urge.