Tag Archives: Upper West Side

Chocolate Caramel Cake at Sugar and Plumm

23 Wednesday Jan 2013

Posted by in Cake, Uncategorized

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Chocolate Caramel CakeI am one of those people who associates cake with occasions: birthdays, weddings, office parties. I am not one of those people who simply eats cake because it’s a Sunday night and why not? However, I have been trying to adopt more of a, “You can become anything you set your heart on,” mentality this year, so if I want to become a cake-anytime person, then, dammit, that’s what I’ll strive to be.

So when I was on the Upper West Side on a Sunday evening, in need of a pick-me-up after sitting through three hours of Lincoln, I thought, “I can be that person! The person who eats cake whenever she wants.” So I marched myself over to Sugar and Plumm, Pichet Ong’s vaunted new bistro/bakery, for the very first time and bought myself a slice of cake.

When superfluously buying oneself cake, moderation should not play a role in the decision-making process. As I suspected (and hoped), the cakes on offer at Sugar and Plumm were decidedly excessive. But which to choose? If all decisions were so difficult, whole nations would crumble due to indecisiveness and neglect.

Eventually, after much deliberation, I chose the chocolate caramel cake.

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Tiramisu Bomboloni at Bomboloni

07 Wednesday Nov 2012

Posted by in Doughnut

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I hope that you are comfortably reading this in your office or wherever you elect (Ha, get it? Elect? Go Obama!) to spend your days, and, more importantly, that it didn’t take you hours to get to that location via hobbled, gridlocked public transportation. After a week in my beloved Brooklyn, even I had exhausted the bountiful online television options and tired of fighting off the other housebound young’uns for a seat at a standing-room-only coffee shop. Novelty wears off all too soon, but it goes even faster when you are confined to a limited swath of one borough. I was (shockingly) looking forward to a return to normality, the daily grind even.

And in my mind, there is one food that is a near metaphor for work and office life, and that food, my friends, is the doughnut.

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Blueberry Semifreddo and Mascarpone Panna Cotta at The Leopard at des Artistes

19 Wednesday Sep 2012

Posted by in Frozen Dessert, Fruit

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One of the reasons I love New York City is the rapid change. Even in a bear economy, stores and restaurants bud, bloom, and then die, supplanted by the next new thing. It can be exciting and stimulating, manna for someone who thrills with the vibe of transition. But it also means that nothing can be held sacred. Old favorites can never be taken for granted, and the idea of a “classic” has an unusually temperamental tinge.

So when a colleague of mine suggested meeting at Café des Artistes for a leisurely lunch, I immediately recalled this history of this archetypal “Old New York” destination, opened in 1917 and renowned for serving some of the city’s elite.

Except that it wasn’t Café des Artistes anymore. It was reborn in 2011 as The Leopard at des Artistes.

Despite the jazzy, exotic new name, The Leopard at des Artistes maintains the stately feel of its predecessor. The large-scale murals covering the walls, a holdover from the Café days, remind you that this is still a place to bring your parents (or grandparents), assuming they are as well-heeled as the rest of the clientele.

If you are in the mood to linger and really want to treat yourself, The Leopard at Des Artistes is a perfect place to sit and enjoy a sumptuous dessert.

But choose wisely. The Leopard, despite its pedigree, has some standouts, but it also makes some rookie mistakes.

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Fig Jam at Recipe

12 Wednesday Sep 2012

Posted by in Bread, Brunch, Fruit

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There are a lot of people who think brunch in New York is for lazy wastrels who would rather spend an hour and a half in line simply to pay three times more for their organic poached eggs and French toast than if they had taken the ten minutes to prepare them for themselves at home. To which I say: sometimes a person wants someone else to poach her eggs or French her toast for her.

And let’s not forget the inordinate opulence of brunch offerings. It’s not just an omelet; it’s an omelette with goat cheese, heirloom tomato, and chives. They’re not just pancakes; they’re lemon-ricotta hotcakes topped with macerated strawberries. Semantics, sure, but it is nice to feel indulgent for less than $20.

Then, every once in a while, you order a humble item that so exceeds its promise, you remember: this is why brunch in New York is worth the hassle and expense.

The jam jar at Recipe on the Upper West Side is one of those items.

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