The New York Dragonista!

This weekend  my friend Vern & I, ushered in the year of the Dragon in NYC with an oriental theme without even having to go to China Town... We meet at Grand Central under the clock and checked into The Mansfield suite #1107.

In order to decompress we had to sip some Johnny Black & munched down some dark sea salt caramel chocolates while watching Monsieur Depardieu.

“My Afternoons with Marqueritte” (“la tete en friche”) was a wonderful film about random encounters and human compassion and that set the mood for our ZEN weekend.

Friday night our first stop was O'mai, a small Vietnamese restaurant on 9^th avenue. The space was small but the kitchen produces some remarkable dishes. We started with spring rolls & grilled prawn (some how lobster roll was translated as grilled prawn...) but both were superb... I was not really in the mood for bitching... remember ZEN!

The roast duck in tamarind sauce is not to be missed. The skin was crispy, the duck was tender and the sauce was light yet spicy without being overwhelming. The side dish of "bok choy" could be a meal on its own with jasmine rice & for us it was the star of the weekend.

We passed on desert and thanks to Google found Grom in the West Village. The pistachio gelato is pure bliss in a cup! It is smooth and creamy and it tastes as if you were eating fresh Turkish pistachios.(They claim it is Syrian pistachio, but I know better!...) 

Worth the walk and the price.

For Saturday night we found our way to 32^nd street between 5^th and 6^th and found a selection of Korean restaurants. Once again, Vern not being well versed in Korean cuisine, we had to have the real BBQ experience... Sizzle!...

Keeping with our theme we decided to take in Yimou Zhang’s “The Flowers of War”... in  the cineplex midtown. Okay, so no weekend can be perfect. From the first scene with Christian Bale something just wasn’t right and it all went down hill from there. It was more like a SNL skit than a serious movie about the atrocities that occurred in Nanking. Yet is worth seeing just to laugh at some of soon to be classic dialogue & possibly a cult movie in an obscure manner.

We finished our weekend on Sunday morning after reading the Times at Le Pain Quotidien, by Central Park West and as chance would have it, our waitress was Chinese...(no way!)

It had snowed the night before so the park was beautiful in its white blanket as we walked and talked and slowly. We passed by the Bergdorf windows and there were three beautiful red, paper cut dragons flowing though the three windows to welcome the New Year. A good end to a wonderful weekend...

Unlike "Thelma & Louise" we managed to stay away from cars & cliffs... and both made back to our routines in Florida & Connecticut...safely!

快乐新年份 vern = "Happy New Year Vern!"

谢谢你为一个伟大的周末及合作写这 = "Thank you for a 

great weekend & for co-writing this..."




PS: Vern is Director of Clinical Research for HIV and Pulmonary Diseases... saves lives daily!

            {Ginger & Garlic Bok Choy}

1 1/2 pounds very baby (dwarf) bok choy, each one halved lengthwise

Flavoring sauce:
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1 tablespoon oyster sauce
1 teaspoon fish sauce
11/2 teaspoons canola oil or sesame oil
2 teaspoons water

1 1/2 tablespoons canola oil
2 teaspoons chopped fresh ginger
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
11/2 teaspoons cornstarch mixed with 2 teaspoons water

1. Bring a pot of water to a boil and add the bok choy. When the water returns to a boil, let the vegetables cook for another minute, until just tender. Drain, flush with cold water and set aside.

2. Combine the flavoring sauce ingredients. Taste and make any adjustments needed. You want a savory-briny-sweet taste. Set aside.

3. Heat a wok or large skillet over medium heat. Add the oil, ginger and garlic. Cook for about 30 to 45 seconds until aromatic. Add the bok choy, give things a stir and cook for about 2 minutes, until heated through. Raise the heat to medium-high, add the flavoring sauce and keep cooking for another minute or so, stirring, to coat the vegetables well.  The bok choy will weep a bit of water.

4. Give the cornstarch a stir before adding it to the vegetables. Cook for another 30 seconds, or until thickened, and glossy. Transfer to a serving dish and serve immediately.

Enjoy!