Ay Jalisco: La Comida Era Mala

For my readers that don't speak Spanish (I don't either), la comida era mala means the food was bad. Over the Thanksgiving holiday, my family visited one of the Ay Jalisco Mexican restaurants in our town. I had actually been asking to go here for years but my mother refused claiming it was run by a Chinese family that knew nothing about Mexican food. I have no earthly idea where she got that from but suffice to say, she changed her mind when she heard a neighbor rave about the food. The restaurant was designed to look like a mariachi band gone wild. Lots of flare and color all over. I liked it. We were seated in a cozy booth toward the back of the restaurant near the kitchen. Our server immediately came over and greeted us and gave us menus and the obligatory chips and salsa. The chips were great. Crispy and just enough salt. The salsa was spicy but could have been chunkier and less soupy. We all ordered something different. Mom tried the chicken fajitas. Karin had the veggie burrito and I ordered the skirt steak tacos. My tacos were served on a plate with refried beans, guacamole, and rice. The steak was really fatty and not at all what I expected. The corn tortillas broke apart so I couldn't really eat them as tacos. The rice was really cold and the guacamole was so so. Karin said her burrito was OK. Passable but nothing she would jump up and down for at all. Mom's chicken fajitas looked great but they were drenched in oil and were lukewarm.

I really had high hopes since there are several locations and they always seem crowded. Perhaps the one at Miracle Mile just isn't a good one? I guess I will just have to cook Mexican food in Vero for now :) Luckily, I have Penzey spices to help me!

Bottom line: Skip Ay Jalisco at Miracle Mile. If anyone tries another location and likes it, please let me know. For now, I will stick to cooking Mexican food myself when I visit!

3 Cheers for Corsino

I hit the new restaurant jackpot a few Friday night's ago. I went to a place called Corsino that is owned by the guy who did 'inoteca and 'ino. I can't remember the last time I was so excited by a restaurant! Not only was my company top notch, but I also got 1,000 points on Open Table! The West Village location makes for a cozy spot on a chilly Friday night. We started with a glass of Montepulciano while perusing the menu. We decided to order a medley of things and share. First to the table was the assortment of crostini. We had the brussel sprouts and pecorino, the butternut squash and garlic, ricotta and honey, shrimp and arugula, and basil pesto. As I learned that evening, a crostino is a smaller slice of bread that is crispy. We liked all of them but my favorite was the brussel sprout and pecorino. I thought the pecorino would be grated into the brussels but in fact it was under everything. Lovely! We then feasted on baked ricotta with toasted ciabatta. A nice mid course before our cheese plate. Cheese is always a treat indeed. We ordered a selection of Italian cheeses that were served with a spicy jam. While I love cheese, I think I could have skipped this course and ordered more crostino! The superstar of the meal was hands down the Heritage Brisket Meatballs with tomato and pecorino. 3 GIANT meatballs that were just taking a nice tomato bath waiting to be forked by me! As a compliment to the GIANT meatballs, we ordered a side of their brussel sprouts and butternut squash. Both lovely but if I had to pick I would go with the brussels!

Bottom line: Corsino is such a nice addition to my rolodex of restaurants. I love everything about the place. The value, the food, the atmosphere. Everything gets a 10 from me. Families will be comfortable too as the back part of the restaurant has several 10 person tables. Foodie Chick readers, I highly, highly, highly recommend.

www.corsinocantina.com

I Love America's Steel City

My parents are both from Pittsburgh,Pa. I was born there and lived in the North part of the city till I was about 5. The city was built by my great grandparents. I think everyone my age can say their elders had a hand in shaping Pittsburgh. The city is a true melting pot of different people and cultures. While my parents loved their steel city, they had one too many winters and decided it was time to hit the road and go South. Fortunately, my grandparents and cousins remained in Pittsburgh so I had the opportunity several times a year to go back and see them. My grandparents took great care of me and my younger brother Fritz when we came for the summer. My gram cooked 5 nights a week with Friday and Sunday's off. She was such a funny cook. She was a product of the great depression so we never bought anything without a coupon and she recycled every Ziploc bag 3-4 times before it was so gross looking I had to pitch it or fear being poisoned. Once when my gram was not feeling well she asked me to stop at the store and buy a few things. I came home and handed her the receipt and change. She told me I paid too much for the tuna and I bought the wrong mayo. So, we got in the car and headed back to the store and she returned these items. I was mortified. Absolutely mortified. I said, "gram, you are so cheap. It's less than a dollar that you will save buying the other brand." She fired back telling me a dollar is a dollar and we are getting it back. When I was 15 I didn't really appreciate this at all. 20 years later, I get it. I wouldn't do it but I understand:) I digress....

I recently went to my city of birth to see my cousins Liz and Rachel. Liz is a mom who has two kids, Jack and Sam, that I adore. I picked Halloween weekend on purpose as I wanted to trick-or-treat with all the kids. I also picked this weekend as it was my cousin Rachel's 39th birthday. In celebration of her big day, we went to a wonderful little bistro called the Point Brugge Cafe. Nestled in a little neighborhood on the East side of the city, Point Brugge serves up inventive fare in a cozy little brownstone. We started with pomme frites with a basil mayo that was to die for. Delicious with a capital D! We also ordered their crab cake to share that was paired with a spicy tartar. Also, awesome. I ordered the cuban sandwich as my entree. Can't say I was a fan. The sandwich was not pressed enough and I expected more garlic in the mayo. I was disappointed but relieved when my cousin Liz gave me a piece of bread to soak in her mussel pot. She made the best order of us all with the red curry and cilantro mussels. The sauce for the mussels was dynamite. I would go back there just for it! The birthday girl had a grilled cheese with red pepper that was tasty and my cousin Noel had a pesto shrimp sandwich that was lovely. I think I had bad order luck. But....we toasted Rachel with some champers so all was just peachy.

Bottom line: Check out Point Brugge for their good beer list and yummy pomme frites. Stay away from the cuban sandwich my friends. Go for the mussels and ask for extra bread!!

www.pointbrugge.com

Absence Makes the Heart Grow Fonder

I have been MIA way too long. Good reasons though: 1) I was swamped at work and couldn't bear to turn on my computer at home after a long day at the office. 2) Because I was "over" eating out so much and had to take a break and 3) my wallet needed some relief!

Now, the show must go on!

I had an absolutely AMAZING dinner at Keste. For those that read other food blogs and follow the local restaurant beat, you will know that Keste was rated the #1 pizza place in NYC. If I told you I knew Keste was awesome before NYC did you all wouldn't believe me. But I knew months before that Keste was the pizza destination of Manhattan. All thanks to my cousin Liz from Pittsburgh. As it turns out, the owner of Keste is a man named Roberto Caporuscio who hails from a town outside Naples. Roberto moved to Pittsburgh years ago and opened up a shop in Bellevue, PA. My cousin Liz found Roberto's place and instantly became hooked. So when Roberto decided to pack up and head for the big apple, he naturally emailed his best customers and told them to come see him on Bleecker street. Naturally, Liz forwarded his email to me and then I was in the know! My mom recently came to see me and we went to Keste for dinner one evening. There were a few of us and we all ordered different pizza's. In hindsight, I think my friend Alicia had the best looking pizza--and I know it was tasty as she didn't share a bite!!! Below is her sausage and broccoli rabe pizza that was cooked to perfection:

Bottom line: Keste is a great deal in our city. Cheap wine and delicious pizza. Great for kids! They don't take reservations so make sure you are OK waiting!

www.kestepizzeria.com