For a long time, being a gastronome to me meant having unbiased, unrestricted access to savory meals that infused my taste buds with an array of different flavors. In addition, being raised an omnivore, just caused my reflexes to naturally intake all types of food placed before me, without so much as giving a second thought to distinguishing between it's sources: plant or animal. This attitude very well allowed me to explore foods from almost all groups and all levels of the food pyramid!
Culinary satisfaction to it's fullest! At least that is what I thought.
But for a few years now, my omnivorous routines have been raising my concerns about health, food safety, sustainable fishing and not the least, animal cruelty.
It all started with a prolonged bout of feeling weak and unhealthy, mainly due to the lack of a well-balanced diet and one that mainly comprised of sugars, 'food toxins', animal fats and hardly any greens, fibers or healthy fats.
I investigated my diet, questioned my health habits and read intensively on what could possibly deliver the feeling of being healthy from within. I didn't immediately seem convinced that going vegetarian was the way towards my goals, especially since I was losing weight by the pounds and was diagnosed for iron and vitamin B12 deficiency - 2 important nutrients that are more easily assimilated by our digestive systems through animal food sources.
But an increased intake of meat wasn't the right solution, in fact it did further damage to the way I felt about my skin, my energy levels and my general well-being. Also, I learned gradually that my specific nutrient deficiencies just required to be combated through supplements.
At the same time I started reading a book, the autobiography of a great leader and humanitarian, who preached non-violence. Mahatma Gandhi, even though raised a vegetarian, describes how he had several phases where meat was a primary ingredient in his diet and how he mentally reasoned for and against his meat eating habits. He eventually succeeded in his emotional battle and turned back to vegan-ism for life.
Another book called Skinny Bitch is what I read that further helped calm my feelings towards vegetarianism :)
Today, I try to make an educated choice from the food options that are available to me. Every time I decide to go 'veggie' at a meal, I feel more confident of taking the step effortlessly the next time.
With this 'slight' diversion on my culinary path, I hope to more gratefully savor the fruits of a healthy and yet proportionately, balanced diet. Being a faithful herbivore, while not compromising flavor, comes with a variety of tricky dilemmas and odd challenges. But with an evolving creativity, a constant yearning for variety and a dash of openness towards embracing different cuisines, you won't have to make many culinary sacrifices while your omnivorous counterparts release satisfactory but slight belching sounds :-)
To make the entire transition less stressful, slight flexibilities and altercations are the keys you can keep handy!
It seems tough to give up an essential quality of being a true, unrestricted gastronome - the one which lets you indulge in all sorts of flavors and aromas. But setting out into the world of herbivores, I am excited as ever about my prospects of diverging from the beaten path and working towards defining new norms of what a tasty plate of food can constitute.
And then there is always the prospect of jumping into the parallel worlds of frugivores (predominantly fruit), gramnivores (nuts, seeds, etc.), folivores (green leaves) ...etc.
Throw in a few gallons of my favorite liquid - water and there you go ... healthy eating redefined!
Some favorite restaurants in New York City that serve vegetarian fare or are at least vegan friendly:
Buddha Bodai
Location: 5 Mott St (between Chatham Sq & Mosco St)
http://www.yelp.com/biz/buddha-bodai-new-york
Lan Cafe
Location: 342 E 6th Street (between 1st Ave & 2nd Ave)
http://www.yelp.com/biz/lan-cafe-new-york
Red Bamboo
Location: 140 W 4th St (between 6th Ave & Mac Dougal St)
http://www.yelp.com/biz/red-bamboo-new-york
Cafe Himalaya
Location: 78 E 1st St (between Ave A & 1st st)
http://www.yelp.com/biz/cafe-himalaya-new-york-2
Tuesday, November 17, 2009
Wednesday, November 11, 2009
Japanese language basics
A visual online site to learn a few basic phrases and pronunciations in the Japanese language.
http://web-japan.org/kidsweb/language/quickjapanese/quickjapanese01.html
Enjoy :)
http://web-japan.org/kidsweb/language/quickjapanese/quickjapanese01.html
Enjoy :)
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
New York City hangouts open all night long
When you are craving that late night snack or are absolutely famished from an eventful night out, there are more than just a handful locations to head to for nourishment!
Presenting New York City go-to spots that cater to the ever-growing population of spirited people! Late night, early dawn or just about at any other time of the day, these establishments never seem to shut their doors .. Go NYC!
Yaffa Cafe
Neighborhood : East Village
97 St. Marks Place
(between 1st Ave & Avenue A)
Categories: Diner, American
Review from Yelp: http://www.yelp.com/biz/yaffa-cafe-new-york#hrid:yK60jhmlCpw7PhkFgSJKSA
Veselka
Neighborhood: East Village
144 2nd Ave
(between 9th St & St Marks Pl)
Categories: Diner, Polish, Ukranian
http://www.yelp.com/biz/veselka-new-york
Kun Jip
Neighborhood: Murray Hill
9 W 32nd St
(between 5th Ave & Broadway)
Category: Korean
http://www.yelp.com/biz/kun-jip-new-york#hrid:QyNdLijydkmrUIZm2GSaEg/src:search/query:late%20night
Hallal cart on 53rd & 6th
Neighborhood: Theater District
53rd St & 6th Ave
http://www.yelp.com/biz/53rd-and-6th-halal-cart-new-york#hrid:oMrSWDJrZSiWvBsxpO7sqw/src:search/query:late%20night
More to be explored and noted..
Happy around the clock dining :)
Presenting New York City go-to spots that cater to the ever-growing population of spirited people! Late night, early dawn or just about at any other time of the day, these establishments never seem to shut their doors .. Go NYC!
Yaffa Cafe
Neighborhood : East Village
97 St. Marks Place
(between 1st Ave & Avenue A)
Categories: Diner, American
Review from Yelp: http://www.yelp.com/biz/yaffa-cafe-new-york#hrid:yK60jhmlCpw7PhkFgSJKSA
Veselka
Neighborhood: East Village
144 2nd Ave
(between 9th St & St Marks Pl)
Categories: Diner, Polish, Ukranian
http://www.yelp.com/biz/veselka-new-york
Kun Jip
Neighborhood: Murray Hill
9 W 32nd St
(between 5th Ave & Broadway)
Category: Korean
http://www.yelp.com/biz/kun-jip-new-york#hrid:QyNdLijydkmrUIZm2GSaEg/src:search/query:late%20night
Hallal cart on 53rd & 6th
Neighborhood: Theater District
53rd St & 6th Ave
http://www.yelp.com/biz/53rd-and-6th-halal-cart-new-york#hrid:oMrSWDJrZSiWvBsxpO7sqw/src:search/query:late%20night
More to be explored and noted..
Happy around the clock dining :)
Monday, October 26, 2009
Bucket List - Places to eat before you die
1. St. John (London)
Roast bone marrow in Fergus Henderson's plain-white dining room at St. John. Scooped out and slathered onto a crust of toasted bread and sprinkled with sea salt, it's simple yet luxurious.
The menu is proudly English, a rebuke to anyone still laboring under the impression that English food sucks. Famously pork-centric and focused on traditional offal and game dishes, St. John is as wonderful for what it does as for what it doesn't do: compromise. It specializes in good ingredients from 'happy' animals that are treated with love and respect.
Henderson has become a reluctant spiritual leader to a whole generation of chefs -- and even the old-guard guys love to stop by for crispy pig tails, ham in hay or a properly roasted bird. This is one of the truly bullsh---free zones on the culinary landscape.
2. elBulli (Girona, Spain)
It's the hardest reservation in the world. And everything they say is true: It's an adventure, a challenge, a delicious and always fun acid trip to the farthest reaches of creativity.
Brothers Ferran and Albert Adrià and their team are the most influential and creative people working in food -- and this surprisingly casual restaurant on a sleepy cove on Spain's Costa Brava is probably the most important restaurant of our time.
Love it or hate it, if you have the opportunity to wangle a reservation, do it. It's like seeing Jimi Hendrix's first show. Forget any preconceptions you might have. Is it good? Yes. More important -- is it fun? Yes. Yes. Yes.
3. The French Laundry (Napa Valley, Calif.)
4. Per Se (New York)
The best sit-down, multicourse, white-tablecloth meal of my life was at the French Laundry. And subsequent meals at Per Se, also run by chef Thomas Keller, were no less wonderful.
There's no better way to go than the full-on tasting menu, a once-in-a-lifetime marriage of the best ingredients, creative thinking and high standards, along with the personal imprint of the most respected chef in the world.
How can Keller be at both restaurants at once? It doesn't matter. Pick one. Fast for 2 days, stretch your stomach with water the day of, and then see how they do it at the very top. It's a level of perfection in food and service that few even try to approach.
5. Sin Huat Eating House (Singapore)
It's grimy looking, the service can be less than warm, the beer is served in a bottle (often with ice) and the tables sit halfway into the streets of Geylang, Singapore's red-light district.
But the crab bee hoon -- giant Sri Lankan beasts cooked with a spicy mystery sauce and noodles -- is pure messy indulgence. The whelks, steamed spotted cod, prawns, scallops (in fact, any seafood available that day) are all worth having. Warning: It looks cheap, but it's not.
6. Le Bernardin (New York)
This is the best fish joint ... anywhere. And it's relevant and fun, despite its formal service and fine-dining ambience.
The grand tasting menu is a stripped-down thing of relatively austere beauty. And whatever they're doing this year or this month is always, always interesting.
7. Salumi (Seattle)
It's a sandwich shop with a couple of tables and a true mom-and-pop -- even if they're the mom and pop of famous chef Mario Batali.
Anything cured, anything braised, any of the limited hot specials ... in fact, anything the Batalis make is worth grabbing with both hands.
8. Russ & Daughters (New York)
9. Katz's Delicatessen (New York)
Russ & Daughters started as a pushcart nearly a century ago, and it now serves some of the last traditional Eastern European Jewish-style herring and smoked belly lox, sable and sturgeon.
And since you're close, walk down a few doors to Katz's to remind yourself how pastrami is done right. This is what New Yorkers do better than anybody else. And here's where they do it.
10. Etxebarri (Axpe, Spain)
Victor Arguinzoniz grills unlikely ingredients over homemade charcoal: baby eels, imperial beluga caviar, oysters. (The fresh chorizo and prawns work, too.)
Theoretically you can't grill a lot of this stuff, but a handcrafted series of pulleys that raise and lower each item makes it possible. Eat here, and no one is eating better.
11. Sukiyabashi Jiro (Tokyo)
The best sushi on earth? Maybe. Jiro Ono is more than 80 years old, and he's been doing old-school Edo-style sushi his whole life.
Every piece of fish is served at precisely the right temperature and the rice and seaweed alone are blackout good. Ono will ruin sushi for you from anywhere else.
12. Hot Doug's (Chicago)
This place convinced me the Chicago red hot is, in fact, superior to the New York hot dog.
And it's home to two great innovations in American gastronomy: the 'foie gras dog' and the weekends-only practice of cooking French fries in duck fat. It's proof that food doesn't have to be expensive to be great.
13. Oklahoma Joe's Barbecue (Kansas City)
People may disagree on who has the best BBQ. Here, the brisket (particularly the burnt ends), pulled pork and ribs are all of a quality that meet the high standards even of Kansas City natives.
It's the best BBQ in Kansas City, which makes it the best BBQ in the world.
Anthony Bourdain is the host of the Travel Channel's 'No Reservations.'
Roast bone marrow in Fergus Henderson's plain-white dining room at St. John. Scooped out and slathered onto a crust of toasted bread and sprinkled with sea salt, it's simple yet luxurious.
The menu is proudly English, a rebuke to anyone still laboring under the impression that English food sucks. Famously pork-centric and focused on traditional offal and game dishes, St. John is as wonderful for what it does as for what it doesn't do: compromise. It specializes in good ingredients from 'happy' animals that are treated with love and respect.
Henderson has become a reluctant spiritual leader to a whole generation of chefs -- and even the old-guard guys love to stop by for crispy pig tails, ham in hay or a properly roasted bird. This is one of the truly bullsh---free zones on the culinary landscape.
2. elBulli (Girona, Spain)
It's the hardest reservation in the world. And everything they say is true: It's an adventure, a challenge, a delicious and always fun acid trip to the farthest reaches of creativity.
Brothers Ferran and Albert Adrià and their team are the most influential and creative people working in food -- and this surprisingly casual restaurant on a sleepy cove on Spain's Costa Brava is probably the most important restaurant of our time.
Love it or hate it, if you have the opportunity to wangle a reservation, do it. It's like seeing Jimi Hendrix's first show. Forget any preconceptions you might have. Is it good? Yes. More important -- is it fun? Yes. Yes. Yes.
3. The French Laundry (Napa Valley, Calif.)
4. Per Se (New York)
The best sit-down, multicourse, white-tablecloth meal of my life was at the French Laundry. And subsequent meals at Per Se, also run by chef Thomas Keller, were no less wonderful.
There's no better way to go than the full-on tasting menu, a once-in-a-lifetime marriage of the best ingredients, creative thinking and high standards, along with the personal imprint of the most respected chef in the world.
How can Keller be at both restaurants at once? It doesn't matter. Pick one. Fast for 2 days, stretch your stomach with water the day of, and then see how they do it at the very top. It's a level of perfection in food and service that few even try to approach.
5. Sin Huat Eating House (Singapore)
It's grimy looking, the service can be less than warm, the beer is served in a bottle (often with ice) and the tables sit halfway into the streets of Geylang, Singapore's red-light district.
But the crab bee hoon -- giant Sri Lankan beasts cooked with a spicy mystery sauce and noodles -- is pure messy indulgence. The whelks, steamed spotted cod, prawns, scallops (in fact, any seafood available that day) are all worth having. Warning: It looks cheap, but it's not.
6. Le Bernardin (New York)
This is the best fish joint ... anywhere. And it's relevant and fun, despite its formal service and fine-dining ambience.
The grand tasting menu is a stripped-down thing of relatively austere beauty. And whatever they're doing this year or this month is always, always interesting.
7. Salumi (Seattle)
It's a sandwich shop with a couple of tables and a true mom-and-pop -- even if they're the mom and pop of famous chef Mario Batali.
Anything cured, anything braised, any of the limited hot specials ... in fact, anything the Batalis make is worth grabbing with both hands.
8. Russ & Daughters (New York)
9. Katz's Delicatessen (New York)
Russ & Daughters started as a pushcart nearly a century ago, and it now serves some of the last traditional Eastern European Jewish-style herring and smoked belly lox, sable and sturgeon.
And since you're close, walk down a few doors to Katz's to remind yourself how pastrami is done right. This is what New Yorkers do better than anybody else. And here's where they do it.
10. Etxebarri (Axpe, Spain)
Victor Arguinzoniz grills unlikely ingredients over homemade charcoal: baby eels, imperial beluga caviar, oysters. (The fresh chorizo and prawns work, too.)
Theoretically you can't grill a lot of this stuff, but a handcrafted series of pulleys that raise and lower each item makes it possible. Eat here, and no one is eating better.
11. Sukiyabashi Jiro (Tokyo)
The best sushi on earth? Maybe. Jiro Ono is more than 80 years old, and he's been doing old-school Edo-style sushi his whole life.
Every piece of fish is served at precisely the right temperature and the rice and seaweed alone are blackout good. Ono will ruin sushi for you from anywhere else.
12. Hot Doug's (Chicago)
This place convinced me the Chicago red hot is, in fact, superior to the New York hot dog.
And it's home to two great innovations in American gastronomy: the 'foie gras dog' and the weekends-only practice of cooking French fries in duck fat. It's proof that food doesn't have to be expensive to be great.
13. Oklahoma Joe's Barbecue (Kansas City)
People may disagree on who has the best BBQ. Here, the brisket (particularly the burnt ends), pulled pork and ribs are all of a quality that meet the high standards even of Kansas City natives.
It's the best BBQ in Kansas City, which makes it the best BBQ in the world.
Anthony Bourdain is the host of the Travel Channel's 'No Reservations.'
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