Hey friends,
Iβm writing from an airplane somewhere over Indianapolis (I can see that on the screen of the person in front of me) and Iβm still digesting, both literally and figuratively, our big, neighborhood-scouting week in New York.
In case youβre new to the story: my husband Craig and I met in NY in 2006 after finding each other on Friendster. (Remember Friendster?) We were both NYU grad students: he was in film school, I was in the Dramatic Writing Program. Within the first year, we were living together in Park Slope and three years later our friends helped us get into their building on Barrow Street in the West Village: the most dreamy, romantic NY apartment.
About a year into that, Craig was offered a job in L.A. and because heβd just made his first feature and was well on his way to making his second, we saw the move as really important for his career. Since I was (and still am) a food writer, I was totally on board for moving to the city that was quickly becoming the nationβs most exciting food city.
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That was in 2011. Now itβs 2023 (at least I think it is?) and, after twelve years in L.A., weβre ready to move back. Being away for this long made it clear how much we love and miss New York and even though weβve made wonderful friends in L.A. who we love and weβll miss terribly, weβre now in our forties and it feels like itβs time to settle in the place that we want to live the most. And that place is NYC.
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So this trip was all about figuring out where, exactly, in New York we want to live! It was also about eating amazing food. But mostly scouting neighborhoods.
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This meal that you see was at Tatiana in Lincoln Center where we went to celebrate my friend Dianaβs birthday, which is coming up in ten days (you still have time to get her a present). Tatiana was recently named The Best Restaurant in NY and the food totally lived up to the hype! Everything that we ate was packed with flavor, and even though the service was a little spotty (weβre still waiting for our goat patties), the Crispy Okra with Peppa Sauce and Mom Dukeβs Shrimp with Creole Butter are dishes that Iβll think about for a long time.
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That dinner took place on our Upper West Side day, which started out meeting one of our favorite writers, Mark Harris, for brunch at The Smith. I guess you could say The Smith is a chain, at least in New York, and the place was packed. I loved my Benedict Johnny with cheddar cornbread, maple chicken sausage, poached eggs, and roasted tomato hollandaise. (Iβd love to recreate it at home.)
The rest of that day was spent traipsing through Central Park and popping into Zabars where I saw my future self yelling for a tub of whitefish salad without any bones.
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My favorite meal of the trip was a pre-theater meal in Rockefeller Center at Lodi. (We saw Parade that night and I was fighting back sobs in the first act when this song came onβ¦ it always gets me.) We ate at Lodi the last time we went to new York and I liked it so much, we went back again. I think itβs a great pre-theater hack, especially if you go at 5:30 and can be leisurely.
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We had fresh ricotta and tuna toast (isnβt that cool how they do that?) and a pasta with morels and asparagus, plus expertly made Negronis. βFour stars!β - Adam Roberts, Amateur Gourmet Newsletter.
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The big headline of our trip, though, is that we started to feel the pull back to Brooklyn. It started in Carroll Gardens at Court Street Grocers where we ate an incredible sandwich called The Ollie with turkey breast, broccoli rabe, hot honey, Provolone, and Dukeβs mayo. I donβt know who came up with the idea of putting broccoli rabe on a turkey sandwich, but itβs totally brilliant. Bitter, refreshing, and texturally interesting, I think you should give it a try.
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The love affair continued at The HiHi Room in Cobble Hill, where we had brunch one day (thatβs a smoked fish dip on the right and a bitter green salad with buttermilk dressing on the left).
There were many walks through neighborhoods, like Bed-Stuy and Brooklyn Heights, to see what we liked and what we didnβt.
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Of course, my stomach mostly led the way, so we stopped for a celebrated chocolate croissant at LβAppartement 4F, which started during the pandemic in an actual apartment; and Otway Bakery near Bed-Stuy, where I ate this chocolate cherry cookie βwith little goobers in itβ (thatβs what Craig called those little yellow crunchy things, no idea what they wereβ¦ but I liked them.)
And, finally, we had a lovely dinner in our friendsβ Rob and Kathβs backyard back in Carroll Gardens, featuring a Molly Baz poached chicken recipe and a traditional Pavlova with strawberries and whipped cream.
Will we be hosting a dinner party in our own Carroll Gardens backyard someday soon? Or Fort Green? Or Cobble Hill?
Weβll find out in July when we go back and start the apartment hunt for real (weβre looking to move mid-August or September). If you hear of anything with two bedrooms and a nice kitchen, let me know!
In the meantime, Iβve got a lots to chew onβ¦.
See you back here next week!
Your pal,
Adam
As a New Yorker who has only been following you in your LA era, I am SO excited to see your future nyc food coverage. LODI is a new fav of mine, too, & Im green with envy you were able to get a res at Tatiana. Looking forward to your move!
I love when you use "dreamy" in your descriptions. Thanks.