Right before Thanksgiving my husband and I made a quick trip to The Big Apple to do Christmas shopping. Still, we managed to have two delicious meals and get to a terrific Broadway musical as well.
Reynard interior, photo from OpenTable.com
The first night we took the subway to Williamsburg in Brooklyn to have dinner with friends at Reynard in the Wythe Hotel. Located in a large space on the ground floor, the restaurant has soaring ceilings, tiled mosaic floors, and exposed brick walls all seemingly preserved from the building’s former life as a textile factory. But if the setting is lovely, it’s the food that makes Reynard worth a visit.
The menu changes constantly to reflect what is in season. My first course–grilled kohlrabi (a knobby vegetable you don’t see on many menus), tender mache, and apples arranged atop a swathe of apple butter, then sprinkled with a crumbled white German cheese–was exceptional for its blend of tastes and textures. Thinly sliced mushroons on a bed of spinach pesto showered with shaved Parmesan won kudos as well.
Scallops, Rutabaga, and Radicchio
For mains, grilled scallops, rutabagas, and radicchio leaves garnished with some sweet potato puree as well as a risotto with fork-tender shredded short ribs were both winners. We passed on dessert, ending our meal with a trip to the bar on the 6th floor where ceiling-high windows offer a stunning view of Manhattan.
Interior Ippudo
The next day we had lunch at Ippudo, a lively noodle bar that doesn’t take reservations in the East Village, and arrived early to avoid the long lines that form after 11:30. For appetizers we loved the lightly battered, fried shishito peppers with yuzu salt and the ethereally light buns stuffed with crispy chicken bathed in a spicy barbecue-style sauce. Next we ordered huge bowls of ramen noodles, like those everyone at our communal table were slurping.
Fried Shishito Peppers with Yuzu Salt
My version included cabbage, pork, and a smooth miso paste, while my spouse’s was spicier, with wider noodles. Both were delicious.
We ended our stay at the theatre where we saw “Kinky Boots” (the 2013 Tony award winner for best musical with a score by Cindy Lauper and lyrics by Harvey Fierstein).
Nothing could have been more fun. The songs are catchy, the acting and singing superb, and the choreography very clever. At the close, along with the entire audience, we were on our feet giving a standing ovation!
After three blissful weeks in Paris where the thermometer rarely registered out of the 40s, we returned to blizzard conditions in New England and temperatures so cold (try minus 5 as a low and 12 as a high) that we haven’t ventured far from the warmth of our home. Although the Artic blast has prevented us from walking for exercise, it hasn’t diminished our appetites. In fact, the weather has made us ravenous, especially for comfort food.
