Bar Veloce

Bar Veloce, an Italian wine bar in the East Village, recently underwent a renovation.  When I stopped by for a drink recently, I was so surprised at how the space has changed!  Still located in the same spot on 2nd ave between 11th and 12th street, Bar Veloce has redecorated as well as expanded into what used to be Bar Carrera next door.

When you walk in, you'll see its a much bigger space than it used to be.  It has a  modern yet cozy feel with interesting wine racks that go up to the ceiling.  There is seating around the middle bar area as well as long high tables along the sides.  I especially loved the lamps with aviators as the lampshade!

Lamp with aviator shades!

Vino Compadre and I snagged a seat at the bar as that's where it looked like all the action was.  We got a great view of the food prep station - loved watching them make everything fresh!

Mozzarella Stuffed Cherry Tomatoes

Looking for a light hors d'oeuvres recipe that will also impress with presentation?  I made these adorable Mozzarella Stuffed Cherry Tomatoes while having friends over for pre-dinner drinks recently and they were delicious!

There are some nice recipes online for this, but I didn't really follow any of them.  I kind of made it up along the way, here is my take on it:

Pre-dinner Cocktails and snacks: Mozzarella Stuffed Cherry Tomatos and Roasted Chickpeas

Brunch: Le Tarte Flambe

A friend and I stopped by Le Tarte Flambe for a quick brunch before darting up to the Bronx Zoo (for those of you who don't know, I LOVE the zoo!).  This cute spot on the UES offers your standard and non-standard brunch fare!

Cafe Flambee

When you walk in, you'll notice that its a small and narrow restaurant.  The brick wall and fun posters definitely warm up the space!

Funny posters on their walls!

During brunch, you get their regular menu, which features different varieties of their specialty the tarte flambee (bread dough rolled thin and covered with cheese and onions), as well as a brunch menu, which offers the more standard brunch items such as eggs, sandwiches, etc. 

Regular menu

Brunch menu

Institute of Culinary Education: Techniques of Fine Cooking I

If you've noticed I've been quiet on the blogosphere lately, it's because I've got my learning cap on and have been busy with school (the cooking kind, as well as the more serious kind)!  The Hubby had the brilliant idea to enroll me in the Institute of Culinary Education's Techniques of Fine Cooking 1 as an Anniversary gift.  Smart, isn't he?  It's the gift that keeps on giving! He sure has been enjoying the new kitchen skills I've picked up lately.

The Institute of Culinary Education ('ICE') is located on West 23rd Street and offers career training for real chefs-to-be, and also holds a lot of recreational classes for people like you and me.  It's pretty fun walking by the real chefs in class and watching them in action.  There are recreational classes which range from just a few hours, to others that span several days like the one I took.  Check out their website, it's hard not to find one that doesn't pique your interest!  You can sign up for classes online so the whole process is pretty easy.

Photos from Techniques of Fine Cooking I

Techniques in Fine Cooking is a program which focuses more on teaching technique rather than recipes.  (Though admittedly, I've been loving practicing the recipes at home).  It is a 5 day course, with 5 hours each day.  ICE offers sessions which are either 5 days consecutively, or 1 day a week over 5 weeks.  

I learned how to truss a chicken, poach eggs, make mousse (hello, arm workout), wet and dry braise and work with mussels.  The list goes on and on!

The class introduced me to working with foods that I'm unfamiliar with, or had been intimidated of.  The techniques taught are not actually that complex, but I think the class gives you the confidence that you can do it!  There's also no better way to learn how to make something than to actually do it yourself. 

Though class sizes vary, my session of Level 1 Techniques had 16 students, along with a Chef instructor and a kitchen assistant.  Chef Anita was an energetic lady who sure kept us on our toes each day!  She has been teaching at ICE for many years so she's a true veteran and knows how to keep the class moving.  

We were in a nice sized kitchen and split into groups of 4.  Each group works together to prepare dishes.  I loved that Chef Anita structured the class so that for the most part, each group made everything in the curriculum - i.e., granted each group may make a different type of vegetable, we all learned how to blanch.  

Here are a few pictures of my group's accomplishments:

Casimir

It always amazes me how a restaurant can really transport you outside of the city.  I stopped by Casimir for dinner in the East Village last week - once you step into this cute French bistro, you really do feel like you're somewhere in Europe!

Entrance to Casimir

Inside of Casimir (my pic is a bit dark, but I love the globe lights!)

The atmosphere was relaxed and filled with soft lighting.  I especially loved the simple decor, circular bistro tables, globe lights, and tiled ceiling.  This was all complemented with a great waitstaff, many of whom came with totally attractive French accents hehe

The menu offers all your standard French bistro fare, which means I've got some hard decisions to make!

Casimir's menu

To start, dining compadre went with the the Escargot Provencal and I couldn't resist the call of the French Onion Soup.

Nyonya

Looking for some cheap eats?  In a bid to keep costs down for a dinner out, my friend suggested Nyonya, a Malaysian restaurant just north of Chinatown (around Little Italy) she had been going to for years.  I'm so glad she introduced me to this place!

For appetizers, my friend and I shared an order of Homemade Roti Canai.  The pancake is flakey and crispy and the curry dipping sauce has some nice heat.  Love! Seriously, you won't regret getting this dish.

Nyonya is known for their Hainanese Chicken with Rice, a steal at $5.75! The chicken is served room temperature (not hot) in their chef's soy sauce.  It's served alongside a serving of rice flavored with chicken - ohmygosh I could eat bowls of this.  Oh wait, I did!  I definitely licked my rice bowl clean.  The chicken is delicious with the soy sauce, but it also comes with a side dish of some spicier sauce.

Hainanese Chicken with Rice at Nyonya

ba'sik

Over the summer after a delicious dinner at Gwynnett St. in Williamsburg, my friends and I stumbled on a bar just up the block called ba'sik.  It's a cozy place with a great neighborhood feel to it.  Apparently there is also a sizable outdoor patio in the back, but unfortunately I didn't know to scope it out at the time.  More reason to return (...next spring *sob*)!

[courtesy of basikbrooklyn.com]

We grabbed some seats at the bar, and I'm glad we did because the bartenders were really nice and friendly.  They have a small cocktail menu but they are all creative.  Of the ones we tried (Picket Fence, and how, Poppa's Pride, o.v.c.), they were all delicious!  Oh darn, I just realized that was 4/5 of the menu, now I'm just bugged that we missed one.

Most importantly at $10 a cocktail, it's a steal compared to NYC prices!

Not only do they have cocktails, but they have a food menu too.  We were pleasantly full after dinner, but in order to do some due diligence for you (or at least that's what I tell myself), we ordered a little snack to help the cocktails go down.