Good Eats: ARGENTINEAN FOOD & EMPANADAS!!

People flock to this cozy (they have only around 8 tables) restaurant for their authentic baked Argentinean empanadas. This spot was once featured at Food Network's Pastry segment for its excellent empanadas.Gauchas is located bet. East 90 - 91st Street & 1st Avenue

LINK:

http://www.foodnetwork.com/food/show_sf/episode/0,1976,FOOD_17616_41117,00.html

During the course of our recent dinner, about 4 people came in to order empanadas for take-out. It's priced quite reasonably well at $2.00 each, so I ordered half a dozen assorted ones. They're great to bring as snacks for work or school. They have 8 kinds of fillings, and you can tell what the different fillings are by the shape of its dough (tasted a bit like puffed pastry). Easier said than done. The drawings were more well-defined. When I got home, they all kinda looked the same to me. Not that it mattered anyway - every single one tasted scrumptious.

Ham and Cheese {---------------------------------------------} Corn

Capresse (tomato, basil, mozzarella)

Had Provoletta Argentina (grilled imported provolone cheese with olive oil & oregano) for starters. It goes great with their freshly baked rolls.

For those who'd rather eat light: aside from the Empanadas, they also offer Sandwiches (Sausage, BLT, Breaded Beef Cutlet), Salads, and Pizza (Margherita, Ham & Sweet Peppers). For chicken lovers, sorry - they offer only a couple of poultry dishes, Pollo a la Brasas (roasted chicken) and Suprema de Pollo (breaded chicken breast). The main attraction is their grilled meats. Their 10 oz. Filet Mignon priced at $18.00 is way cheaper than most restaurants. All their entrees are served with a choice of 1 side (rice, mashed potatoes, criolla salad or french fries). For tonight, we had the Asado (Grilled Short Ribs) with Criolla salad. Since S. was not too keen on eating veggies, she had an extra side order of rice ($4.00) instead. They have a paste-like herb/olive oil condiment on the table that you could liberally slap on top of your meats. I love it! WARNING: - it has LOADS of garlic. For those who are planning to kiss anyone right after dinner, you may want to skip this one.

We didn't need anyone to prod us to order dessert. Their Panqueques con Dulce de Leche (homemade crepes filled with milk caramel) was simply divine. We polished 2 orders of them!!

Sounds Familiar?

Dinagyang Festival

This weekend, Iloilo City, Philippines is celebrating its annual Dinagyang Festival (Feast of Sr. Sto. Nino). Since I haven't been home in a while, here are a few 2 year-old photos to give you an idea what it looks like. This event is so popular that all hotels are booked solid for this weekend as early as six months in advance. This year, no less than President Arroyo herself (and other dignitaries as well) came to join in the festivities.

A short history of Dinagyang Festival:

http://www.sunstar.com.ph/static/ilo/2006/01/26/life/santo.nino.devotion.historical.notes.html

This weekend's schedule of activities:

http://www.sunstar.com.ph/static/ilo/2006/01/29/news/7.tribes.see.action.in.kasadyahan.saturday.html

S. and her "bodyguard".

A Pinoy version of the Phantom of the Opera mask.

Jiminy Cricket! Guess who Loves Bugs?

Sugar and Spice

and everything Nice,

That's what little Girls are made of...

Some girls like dolls and cute furry teddy bears...

Some girls like frilly lace dresses, pink tutus and dainty ballet shoes...

Some girls like large satin bows and long, curly silk ribbons...

My daughter likes all of the above and one other thing in particular. Something that would send every other little girl into a ditzy, screaming frenzy: BUGS. Not the cute, stuffed multicolored caterpillar they sell at F.A.O. Schwartz. She's interested in the real, creepy crawly ones with the twitching antennae and coarse spindly legs! I thought it was just a fluke that she would borrow an Insects book from the school library a month ago. I tried to humor her by going through each page with her.  It even had a picture of a Philippine beetle in it.   And then she borrowed the same book three weeks in a row! So every night, instead of the usual Princess-related bedtime story, were looking at pictures of... ...bugs (ugh!). She's just obsessed with trying to remember their scientific names, where they live, what they do, what their different body parts are called, do they bite and kill people??

Rhinocerus beetle pic: http://www.pbase.com/mr2c280/image/34744545

Er... What is the higher purpose of a bug's life? Aside from being bird feed? What's so particularly interesting about them? Aside from the fact that a giant water bug makes a "popping" sound when stepped on? (accidentally, of course). What does the Philippine ( Oryctes rhinocerus) beetle do? Aside from being a serious pest to the coconut palm trees - killing them and then breeding in its dead, rotting trunk? Beats me. What should I say to S.? "Stop bugging me with all these questions?". Well, at least we both learned an awesome stat: This particular beetle can support up to 850 times its own weight on its back. That would be the same as a man carrying 76 family-sized cars around on his back!

Then as I was browsing through the internet, VOILA!! I stumbled upon the perfect solution to my dilemma. Finally, a way to get her off my back! Get her a Lady Bug Land kit, of course! These guys from this site will mail you a kit with an enclosed certificate for 15-20 ladybug larvaes. This cool contraption has a magnifying glass on the top which allows the child to observe the larvaes as they gradually transform into ladybugs! You can feed them, make their "nest" moist... etc. and then release them to a garden once they become adult ladybugs. Her teacher was very happy when I offered to give it to the class as their "Spring Science Project". What she didn't know was that she was doing me the big favor!

LINK: http://naturepavilion.com/livekits.htm

As I was browsing through the site, I also found out that they were selling frog kits as well, for.. $29.95! As advertised, a few "100% captive-bred leopard frog tadpoles" are included with the kit. Holy shit! What kind of exotic froggy breed is that? And why didn't I think of this idea when I was kid? I would had happily sloshed around the kangkong swamps near our house, catching tadpoles to sell
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Good Eats: JAPANESE FOOD!!

For those who like Japanese food but have diet restrictions or just plain finicky (like P.), this is the place to go. The staff is friendly, courteous, efficient and the service is fast. The place is virtually empty if you go in for early dinner (bet. 6 - 7 PM), but all tables soon fill up. By 7:30 PM, the whole joint is packed.
All the sushis are great but for an extra-special appetizer, try the delicious Lobster Roll. P. complained that it had a tad too much mayo on it but since he scarfed the whole thing down in less than 3 minutes, I bet it wasn't that bad. The Grilled Squid (Maruyaki) was tender and tasty.  I was dissapointed by the Salmon Skin Salad, though. It tasted like they had liberally poured the dressing (tasted like soysauce/sesame oil/hoisin sauce combination) on the greens. The whole thing was soooo salty it felt like I had consumed my one week's body sodium requirement in one sitting!

Ichiro Japanese Restaurant: cor. of East 87 St. and 2nd Avenue

For the entree, P. had the Chicken and Shrimp Hibachi - "...with no onions, no peppers, no spice, more mushrooms, more zucchini".  To their credit, the chef gladly made the dish according to his specifications.

I ordered the Bento Box (Beef Negimaki) which came with salad and Miso soup. Included in the box are California Rolls, Edamame, Siomai, some pickles/wasabi, and white rice. Unfortunately, they dont offer brown rice as an alternative.
Alas! There's really nothing on the menu geared for kids, unless you have a child like S. who gladly devoured a whole plate of Siomai sans mustard - and two Eel handrolls.

Dessert choices was limited to diff. flavors of ice cream, so we took a scoop each of Vanilla and Red Bean (which looked like it should have been called Purple Bean intead).

At any rate, they always serve pineapple and orange slices gratis so you dont even have to order dessert....

Trash Mail of the Month: The Constipation of Mimi

My sicko cousin sent me this email.

(

(click pic to enlarge)

FUNNY!!!

It's Nelly Time!!!

The first time I stepped inside a club (Treasure Hunt) was when I was in 4th Year High School. Well, once was enough to get me hooked - line and sinker. This is one of the things that P. and I had in common when we were single: Endless Club Hopping. So to who else could we pass this "wriggling gene" on to?

Hint: S. would bust a move at the drop of a hat!

In fact, she had already beaten my "record". The first time she technically was in a club was as a 7-month old fetus!

Yup - I was 7 months pregnant when I chilled out at Cheetah's (then the hottest spot in NYC) for the last time. As P. and I were allowed to cut in front of the long queue, those young, skimpily dressed hot bods waiting on line were looking at me like:

"How the hell did this f*@#k!*#g walking balloon get a bloody VIP pass?!!"

For the record, we stayed only for half an hour since smoking wasn't banned in establishments way back then. Fast forward to the present: yesterday was "Girl's Nite Out". We took Kaye (S. friend) and her mom out dancing and then had dinner to celebrate Kaye's 4th birthday.

What's the best part in going out? Deciding what to wear, of course!! It was early enough for S. and I to have fun and play "Dress Up". She gamely tried on a few of my tops and heels.

And oh boy - those were some some gas-forming, bladder-bursting, tears-streaming, hilarious moments.

Should I wear this?

...or this?

...or this?

We finally decided that her own clothes fit her the best.

Minus the wig, of course.

LQ Club (Latin Quarter)

LQ Club is located at 511 east 48th street and Lexington Avenue. The easiest way to get there is by taking the #6 train and getting off 51st St. Station. All other trains stop at 42nd street-Grand central and its not that far to walk either.
This is a just a regular club at night which could pack in as much as 300 people at any given time. Like any other night spots, it has its share of notoriety when a man was shot and killed outside the club during rapper Ja Rule's After-Xmas Bash about 2 years ago. The place has managed to keep a fairly low profile since then.
Nowadays, for an hour and a half every Sunday afternoon, this club is transformed into a family-oriented disco. Aside from dancing (yes, there's a DJ spinning), the $12/pp entrance cover includes a lite snack of mac n' cheese, fries, chicken nuggets, chocolate cake and fruit punch.

Don't let the austere facade intimidate you. Behind this big steel door is a fun house! They have a different theme each week and today - it's Nelly's tribute!

"Hot in Herre"

Artist: NellyAlbum


Hot in....

So hot in herre.....

So hot in.....

[Nelly]I was like, good gracious ass bodacious

flirtatious, tryin to show patience

Lookin for the right time to shoot my steam (you know)

Lookin for the right time to flash them keys

Then um I'm leavin, please believin

Me and the rest of my heathens

Check it, got it locked at the top of the four seasons

Penthouse, roof top, birds I feedin

No deceivin, nothin up my sleeve, no teasin

I need you to get up up on the dance floor

Give that man what he askin for

Cuz I feel like bustin loose and I feel like touchin you

And cant nobody stop the juice so baby tell me whats the use

[Hook x2]

(I said)Its gettin hot in here (so hot)

So take off all your clothes
I am gettin so hot,

I wanna take my clothes off

[Nelly]Why you at the bar if you aint poppin the bottles

What good is all the fame if you aint fuckin the models

I see you drivin, sportscar, aint hittin the throttle

And I be down, and do a hundred, top down and goggles

Get off the freeway, exit 106 and parked it

Ash tray, flip gate, time to spark it

Gucci collar for dollar, got out and walked it

I spit game cuz baby I cant talk it

Warm, sweatin its hot up in this jointVOKAL tanktop, all on at this point

Your with a winner so baby you cant loose

I got secrets cant leave Cancun

So take it off like your home alone

You know dance in front your mirror while your on the phone

Checkin your reflection and tellin your best friend,

like "girl I think my butt gettin big"

(Hookx2)

(Nelly hang all out)Mix a little bit a ah, ah

With a little bit a ah, ah(Nelly just fall out)

Give a little bit a ah, ah

With a little bit a ah, ah

(Nelly hang all out)With a little bit a ah, ah

And a sprinkle a that ah, ah

(Nelly just fall out)I like it when ya ah, ah

Girl, Baby make it ah, ah
[Nelly]Stop placin, time wastinI gotta a friend with a pole in the basement (What?)

I'm just kiddin like Jason (Oh)

Unless you gon' do itExtra, extra eh, spread the news

Nelly took a trip from the Luna to Neptunes

Came back with somethin thicker than fittin in sasoons

Say she like to think about cuttin in restrooms

[Hook x4]

(Nelly hang all out)Mix a little bit of ah, ah

With a little bit of ah, ah

(Nelly just fall out)Give a little bit of ah, ah

With a little bit of ah, ah

(Nelly hang all out)With a little bit of ah, ah

And a sprinkle of that ah, ah

(Nelly just fall out)I like it when ya ah, ah

Girl, Baby make it ah, ah

The place has 3 bars on the main floor alone and one is open today to cater to parents who prefer to have their fruit punch spiked (with additional charge of course).

Hey, since when did Princess Aurora hang out in clubs? You go, girl!!!



Kids young and old alike are having a blast!!!

LINKS:

http://www.familydisco.com/mainpage.html

http://newyork.citysearch.com/profile/36913380#editorialreview

Going Loco for Coco

I've had my fill of different chocolates: Richart, Neuhaus, Teuscher, Leonidas, Godiva, Lindt...

But do you know which one I like best?

Plain M&M's!!!

Hey, wait a minute - What's this?

Hershey's Kissables??!

Awwww... How much cuter can they get?

Collection Business

"With Deepest Sympathy"

Due to the inflating costs of burying a loved one, it is customary at work to start a monetary collection anytime an employee's immediate family member dies. Usually, everyone is sympathetic to the plight of a grieving co-worker and would gladly go out of their way to chip in some dough. A single card would be passed around and people who gave monetary assistance would sign their names and write a short note. For the sole purpose of record keeping, the names of the people and the amount of money they gave are listed in a separate piece of paper. This was to make sure that the total amount of money in the envelope matches the total amount of money on the list. This paper is kept by the person who's in charge of collecting the money.
Collections aren't being done only in cases of sad and tragic situations. We also do it during celebratory events - like retirements or baby showers. A huge party in this person's honor is given on their last of work, in which they'll receive an envelope full of moolah as a proper send-off.
With this said, let me tell you about this lady who became a one-of-a-kind interpreneur when she decided to twist this tradition and turn it into her own personal cash cow. It started when she unofficially appointed herself the "Collector" of the facility . Then she made it her mission to stick her nose in other people's business to find out who's family member had died (if none, then who's gravely ill), who's been out on disability, who's retiring, who's resigning, who's moving to another department, whose being promoted... Demoted... Fired...

It wouldn't have made a great deal if not for the fact that she soon started a collection - after collection - after collection - with surprisingly speedy regularity.

It's like - everytime someone farts, she starts a collection!!

It became so frequent that people started treating her like a walking plague - scattering all over the place everytime they see her walking around with a card.

On top of that, she started "misplacing" the paper which listed the total amount of money that she had collected.

"Why, don't you trust me?"

was the defensive answer anytime she was asked to provide detailed accounting of the money.
Is she for real? Was this woman a Knight In Shin... er.. I mean - a Dame In Shining Bustier with a matching heart of gold - or just a plain low-life thief in disguise?

The final straw came when she recently started collecting money for a death in the family...
of her friend's second cousin....

...in another continent!

By then, people had caught on to her antics and she would often be met by icy stares before she could even pitch her "cause".

I guess this meant that her milk has finally run dry...

My question for her is: Was the chump change worth the cost of her integrity?

Times Square

We walked along Time's Square for a bit. It was a very cold and blustery day so the streets weren't too congested with people.






Passed by Nederlander Theatre where RENT is playing. Saw this show once with a good friend many years ago, and is highly recommended. Better than the movie, I'd say. My friend watched it 8 more times since then! *groan*. Talk about a die-hard RENT fan. Former American Idol contestant Frenchie Davis is still part of the current ensemble.

SEASONS OF LOVE

COMPANY:

525,600 minutes, 525,000 moments so dear.

525,600 minutes - how do you measure, measure a year?

In daylights, in sunsets, in midnights, in cups of coffee.

In inches, in miles, in laughter, in strife.

In 525,600 minutes - how do you measure a year in the life?

How about love? How about love? How about love?

Measure in love. Seasons of love.

SOLOIST:

1525,600 minutes! 525,000 journeys to plan.

525,600 minutes - how can you measure the life of a woman or man?

SOLOIST 2:

In truths that she learned, or in times that he cried.

In bridges he burned, or the way that she died.

COMPANY:

It’s time now to sing out, tho the story never ends

let's celebrate remember a year in the life of friends.

Rememberthe love! Remember the love! Remember the love!

Measure in love.

Seasons of love! Seasons of love.

S. going gaga over the Hello Kitty Store

Here's P. and S. standing in front of the huge Mc Donalds - the only one that features sit-down waiter service and live piano music during peak hours. I can't imagine them making much in tips here, though. 25 cents for each Happy Meal? Just a thought...



'Dropped by Madame Tussaud's Wax Museum where P. and S. had a ball posing with the Yankees' Derek Jeter and The Matrix's Samuel L. Jackson (wearing his trademark Kangol hat).

LINK: http://www.ny.com/cgibin/frame.cgi?url=http://www.nycwax.com/&frame=/frame/museums.html

WHAT? It's past one o' clock already?? It's chow time, baby!