Brunch at Bubby's

This past Saturday, with Jess in Austin for her bachelorette party, I went to Bubby's in Tribeca with my parents. Based on the name, I assumed that Bubby's was going to be an old, small spot that served Jewish food. I showed up and quickly saw house cured bacon on the Specials sign outside. My assumption was wrong. We got there at 12:45 and had to wait 30 minutes for a table of 3. Not too shabby since it was seasonably warm and the sun was shining.

Bubby's has a great, homey vibe in the main dining room... high ceilings with floor-to-ceiling windows give it a very open feel, and there's great art and decorations all over the room.

This would all be for naught if the food didn't live up to the expectations. All three of us got some combo of the griddle special (2 pancakes + eggs any style + bacon, grits, or sausage). I did banana-walnut pancakes with 2 sunny-side up eggs and chicken sausage. Pancakes were tier 1... light and fluffy with lots of taste. The walnuts were baked into the pancakes and were topped with a healthy amount of caramelized bananas. The eggs were cooked perfectly and along with the tasty chicken sausage & whole wheat toast, it was a fantastic compliment to the flapjacks.

My mom & dad both agreed that this was a fantastic brunch spot and well worth the 30-minute wait. It should be noted that I was full from this meal 8 hours after eating... it's hearty. I'll definitely be coming back here in the near future, and recommend you check it out as well. Enjoy!

Locanda Verde

A very long overdue apology for our lack of blogging – not only has the winter resulted in us cooking and eating in more, but the proximity of our Cinco de Mayo wedding means that a lot of our time is spent planning and looking forward to 5.5.12! Thanks to our pals Carly and Ilana, we booked a much needed meal out at Locanda Verde recently, and crossed one off the top of the list!

LV is great for so many occasions – a meal out with a group of friends, dinner with the parents, date night and even drinks at the bar.  It’s the kind of place that invites you in and makes you feel at home.  Do yourself a favor and sit in the back room - not only is there less traffic of people walking through, but the vibe is much better. 

We started out the night with some cocktails, naturally, and they have a great selection of wines and beers.  To kick the meal off, we ordered the Blue Crab crostini with jalapeno and tomato, as well as the Sheep’s Milk Ricotta with sea salt and herbs.

Any google or Yelp search for LV will have you reading people’s raves about the Sheep’s milk ricotta, and they’re pretty on-point.  Not only is the portion huge, but the soft and spreadable cheese is super fresh, which results in a simple yet amazing dish.  The crab crostini was very tasty, but didn’t feel very original or necessary.

Next up we shared a pasta, the Gigantone with Sunday night ragu and provolone picante.  LV makes their own pasta, and this dish was huge ribbons of fresh pasta with a tasty meat sauce.  It was good, but a little light on the meat sauce. 

The highlight of the meal for both of us was the Wood-Fired Pork Chop with Yukon gold potatoes, trumpet mushrooms and walnuts, which we also shared.  The chop was perfectly cooked and moist, and the accompaniments really complemented the pork well – the dish was fairly large and left us completely satisfied. 

And because we always need a little something sweet, we capped the meal off with the Chocolate Torta with hot fudge and hazelnut gelato – I mean, how can you go wrong there?

All in all, Locanda Verde left a great taste in our mouth, pun intended.  It was a solid, totally enjoyable meal and has a great atmosphere, so if you’re looking for your next dining experience, head on down to Tribeca!