- I had late breakfast/early lunch at the venerable Katz's Deli, on East Houston Street. I had their signature sandwich: a pastrami on rye, with a side of pickles. The pastrami was not what I expected; I figured I would essentially be getting a smoked meat sandwich. This was a lot dryer (and less salty), but far less 'fatty' and thus lighter.
The walls at Katz's are covered with pictures of celebrities that have visited/eaten there. I was a bit disappointed in that the biggest celebrity name on the wall next to me was 'only' Milla Jovovich. Once I got up to leave, I saw that immediately behind where I was sitting was a huge (2x3) pic of none other than Chris Noth and Jerry Orbach at the Deli. That brought a smile to my face. I am also taking it as another good omen for the trip that Logan and Briscoe were watching over me...
- Blue Ribbon Sushi
I had been to Blue Ribbon Sushi in the West Village (Sullivan Street) on one of my many late '90's trips to NYC with the ex, because she had found a website that had ranked the restaurant as one of the best sushi spots in the city. I had completely forgotten about this until recently when Arizona Diamondbacks pitcher Brandon McCarthy's wife Amanda tweeted about eating amazing sushi at thee Blue Ribbon in NYC. So I had to go back.
From their website, it is not entirely clear whether it is the same owners and/or chefs as the original Blue Ribbon, but they seem to be following the same approach to serving high end sushi. I ordered the omikase (i.e., chef's choice). The first course was a plate of sashimi, which included a tofu-marinated tuna, king salmon, two other fish and mackerel. The three or four pieces of mackerel were carved out of the entire fish, which was craftilly displayed on the plate.
The sashimi was followed by a plate of sushi, which included a very nice spicy lobster roll, some salmon, something akin to whitefish, sea urchin (which I have now come to tolerate) and a few others. There was one more course to come. Remember the mackerel? Its remains were deep fried served with a nice, sesame (I think) dipping sauce. Evidently, I was supposed to eat the whole thing. It did kind of grew on me as I was working my way through it, but, although I did pick at it, I could not bring myself to consume the head (or the tail for that matter), which I think disappointed the waiter.
It was definitely one of my more interesting sushi experiences.
- The Bitter End
After dinner, I ambled towards The Bitter End, on Bleecker Street, which proclaims itself NYC's oldest rock club. Having opened in 1961, the club has hosted artists as diverse as Bob Dylan, Woody Allen and Lady Gaga, when they were up-and-comers. It is a small venue (roughly 150 capacity), and looks a bit lived-in (if you have been paying attention, you will know that is my kind of venue...) Of note, the acoustics are great for a club of that size.
I caught the last half of a set by a young female slide guitarist from Israel (how often have you seen those particular words strung together?), 'Kalo', according to the website. She is an accomplished guitar player and was doing a great job of channelling the Delta sound, after evidently having spent the last few months in Mississippi.
Sent wirelessly from my BlackBerry device on the Bell network.
Envoyé sans fil par mon terminal mobile BlackBerry sur le réseau de Bell.
and looks a bit lived-in (if you have been paying attention, you will know that is my kind of venue...)
RépondreEffacerA quote that means I'll be meeting you at the Dom in a couple of months? :-)
Fun to read, as always.
Mandy