Veritasty: Truthfully Delicious

One of my favorite holidays, especially when we were in college, was Macaron Day.  On Macaron Day, you go around the bakeries and patisseries around New York and smile and get free macarons.  Okay so maybe it's not a bank holiday, but it should be.  The fabulous Frenchman who brought the miracle of Macaron Day to New York was Francois Payard.  Chef Payard has several bakeries in New York and around the world, and he has just opened Francois Payard Patisserie to be his flagship restaurant. Francois Payard Patisserie is in a pretty swanky neighborhood with boutique shops, right next to the Museum Mile on the Upper East Side.  Incidentally, there is another Francois Payard outpost in the Village, Francois Payard Bakery on West Houston.  It's conveniently located right around NYU and definitely reflects the clientele.  You could definitely whip out your laptop and linger over coffee and macarons at the Bakery. Similarly, the Patisserie...

One of my favorite places in the world is Italy.  One of my favorite places in New York City is Eataly. Eataly is a sprawling establishment across from Madison Square Park that contains several restaurants, an enormous marketplace, and a cooking school.  It was the brain child of Mario Batali, intended to be like a European food hall . Usually, I'd be a bit cynical about projects that intend to turn American things into European institutions, but two thumbs up to Mario Batali and the Eataly team because it is really just spectacular. One of the best things right up at the front of the store is the gelateria.  Alex and I contend that Eataly's gelato is the best in the city... perhaps even good enough to rival the gelato in Italy .  I've had plenty of gelato in Italy, and while nothing has really disappointed, few were memorable as the gelato in Eataly. Interestingly, at Eataly, one scoop in a cone is cheaper than one scoop in a cup! They have a smal...

I know I've just written about Otto, but tonight I had a marvelous dinner that cemented its reputation as one of my favorite restaurants in New York City.  Did I mention that I shook hands with and exchanged a brief conversation with Mario Batali???  STARSTRUCK. We ordered a cheese platter that came with a trio of condiments: truffle honey, cherries in brandy sauce, and apricots in mustard and chili oil.  The cheeses that we ordered were: triple cream goat cheese, ricotta, ubriaco, quadrello, and rosso di langhe.  Hands down, this cheese platter was the highlight of the meal for me.  Although I wasn't really sure what I was eating, besides the more obvious ricotta and creamy goat cheeses, all the selections were delicious, creamy, and rich. We specifically asked for cheeses that wouldn't assault our noses and taste buds, and this was a great selection.  The ricotta was fluffy and light, the goat cheese was similar to French brie that Alex loves so mu...

As fate would have it, last week I basically met Mario Batali. Met his gaze, that is.  I was walking to campus when I saw an unusual sight stopped at a traffic light.  I promise you, it was the orange Crocs that I saw first.  Then the orange helmet.  And that sexy green Vespa!  It had to be Mario Batali!  And, as I walked in the crosswalk no more than 5 feet in front of him, we totally made eye contact.  Actually just last night by pure coincidence, I watched A Day in the Life: Mario Batali.  He explained his philosophy behind food and even though it sounds a little cliche and cheesy, it was basically: to use simple, fresh ingredients to cook things people wouldn't normally make at home.   Today, Alex surprised me with an after-8-hours-in-lab dinner at Otto Enoteca Pizzeria, one of Mario Batali's restaurants in New York City.  We've eaten here before, last summer when we all looked kind of like little...