Ed's Lobster Bar

When the temperature is hovering around triple digits, humidity is 100%, and dinnertime rolls around, you're not thinking steak & potatoes. This Saturday night during Heat Wave 2011, a seafood meal was calling my name. Having just eaten at Pearl's twice in the recent months, we ventured east to Ed's Lobster Bar (read our friend's blog and inspiration here) to see what it had to offer.

You walk in to an enlongated bar, which I enjoy sitting at for a meal like this. There are tables in the back, but I think it adds to the experience when you're slurping oysters and dipping steamers elbow-to-elbow with your fellow diners. We sat down at the bar and ordered some white wine and beer as a prelude to our bucket o' steamers. I love steamers for the experience of eating them as much as for the taste. First remove the clam's "sock," dip in warm water and then in warm butter...delish!

Afterwards came two lobster rolls, just the way we like it: a warm, toasted bun housing cool, lobster chunks with not too much mayo. I must say that this lobster roll stacks up there with Pearl's, and that I couldn't say either is better. Regardless of its stance, it totally hit the spot and provided for the perfect summer dinner.

We left stuffed, but not too full to indulge in a mini chocolate lobster...

I'm sure we'll be back to Ed's...perhaps to try the whole lobster or one of their other seafood entrees.

Go soon and get your summer seafood fix!

From the shores of Baltimore to our chops at Choptank:

What an appropriate day to write this review: last night, Eric and I just finished up the fifth and final season of The Wire, a show that stars Baltimore, "the game" on the streets, and the city institutions. And now I sit down to write about Choptank - a restaurant named after a river that runs from Baltimore across the Chesapeake Bay - conjuring up the complete opposite image of Maryland... preppy twenty-somethings, khakis, mallards, pink shirts and country clubs.

Choptank just opened this year and we were eager to take advantage of the BlackBoard Eats 3-course meal (nibble, entrée, desert) paired with either wine or beer (of Choptank’s choosing). We had heard good things and it’s located just a short jaunt away from our apartment. It was packed at 9:15 when we arrived – I guess the buzz hasn’t died down.

They serve up a basket of Old Bay chips, which is a nice little treat and a good way to dive into a Maryland seafood experience. Eric promptly dropped the basket all over the floor. Oops!

We started out with a "nibble" (aka "appy" or appetizer) of the crab dip and fried oysters. The crab dip was very rich…almost too rich and heavy…but it was quite tasty despite lacking in the crab meat department. It’s served with bread for dipping and wasn’t finished by us, which is rare. The fried oysters were delicious…hard to go wrong with this dish.

Along with each course came a very full glass of wine for me and a beer for Eric. We were both impressed with the drinks they brought to our table. We were expecting half-filled glasses of cheap wine & a "standard" beer. We were wrong, thankfully.

For the entrée, I went with the jumbo lump crab cake served with salad and sweet potatoes. Eric commented that there should have been two crab cakes, as it wasn’t a huge portion, but it was certainly delicious and full of crab meat, not mayo. I would order this again.

Eric had a hard time deciding between the fried chicken and the burger, two odd options for a seafood joint, but our waiter and the online reviews really pinpointed these two as signature dishes. He went with the fried chicken.. It was a heaping portion of goodness - crumbly fried batter & piping-hot chicken below. The pepper-honey dipping sauce brought it to another level and he was happy with the decision he made.

For dessert (which is a little hazy, after a drink before dinner and two large drinks at dinner), we got the Bailey’s ice cream and vanilla-coconut 7-layer cake. Both were good, but certainly nothing special.

So…to sum up, this restaurant is good, not great. It’s one of those times when the whole somehow doesn’t add up to the sum of its parts. Each dish was good but after the meal was over, I didn’t get the I-have-to-go-back-and-recommend-this-place feeling like you can get at so many NYC establishments – post-meal glow, if you will.

As Sam Sifton says in his New York Times review of Choptank (I guess any mention of Baltimore allows people to draw upon the.best.show.ever):

New Yorkers probably deserve better. Certainly better is available. But as Snoop once said on “The Wire,” a stone-cold gangster making sense of the Baltimore night, “Deserve got nothin’ to do with it.”

Cape Cod Rocks the Lobsta!

During a recent ladies getaway to Cape Cod, I had the chance to enjoy some superb seafood.  Living in New York City, I benefit from the island location, as well as having some of the best chefs the country has to offer, but there ain't nothing like fried seafood and fresh lobster on Cape Cod.

Our first stop for lunch was Cataumet Fish - a bare bones fish shack with a plethora of raw fish, clams and lobster for sale.  We ordered basically the only thing on the take out menu- lobster rolls - plus a pound of shrimp with homemade cocktail sauce.

That beautiful image above had to have been the best lobster roll I've ever had - Pearl's Oyster Bar included.  It was filled to the brim with chunks of fresh lobster and despite how the image may look, it did not have too much mayo.  The flavor, the freshness, the soft bun...it was amazing.  And the shrimp was definitely a nice side dish - the homemade cocktail sauce was nice and horseradish-y, which I love.

Check out Cataumet Fish if you're ever in the area - it's definitely a quintessential Cape Code experience.

Marlow & Sons

On Saturday we had plans to go to a friend's rooftop party in Williamsburgh, so we decided to hit up Marlow & Sons before. It's not every day that we find ourselves in the outer boroughs so when we do, we want to take advantage of the great food options that exist.
It's not very big but the space is filled with soft lighting, old school decor (think lots of dark brick & chandeliers), good music and people everywhere. We sat at the bar since there were no tables available and we got placed right in the heart of the hustle and bustle.

Even though the menu is tiny, we still had trouble deciding what to order (not surprising for the two of us)! It's one of those places where you know anything you get is going to be tasty, but you still want to make sure you nail your order. We opted not to get oysters, which seemed to be a big deal there, because there were too many other items we wanted. We started with the fried corn which was buttery and delicious. It's not coated in anything, just simply fried until the edges get crispy and super tasty. It was served with tomatoes, herbs and a delicious butter sauce. Corn & butter is a classic combination.

For the entree, I got the seafood salad appetizer because it sounded too good to pass up. Scallops, calamari and clams in a white wine sauce with huge chunks of tomatoes served over crusty bread - it was deliciously flavorful.

Eric went with the brick chicken. What's brick chicken? I think it's chicken served on a brick, but I really can't be sure. (NOTE: I've since learned "brick chicken is usually chicken that is cooked on a grill or griddle with a brick on top so as to smash it and make it cook more evenly." Thanks Val!) What was put in front of me was a half chicken (bones in) oozing with flavor juices. The bird was cooked perfectly and wasn't the slightest bit dry. Just the opposite as there was more than enough juices so that each piece could be dipped in said juices. The skin was crispy & seasoned well, providing a little texture to each bite. Served alongside the chicken is eggplants, zucchini, capers, & squash. All well & good, but the star of the dish is the chicken. And you should know by now that nothing was left on my plate.

All & all, we both really enjoyed our entrees (hooray for good ordering!) and would happily come back here with some friends to try some of the other tasty offerings on the menu. We recommend you check it out & let us know what you think.

Rooftop view of NYC