Basically unrelated to my poem, here is a picture of a trashcan in Aachen, Germany. As part of an initiative to get citizens to clean up the town, they starting making talking trashcans. I wasn’t going to throw my garbage on the ground regardless, but I love this little guy! He is telling me how fun cleaning is.
Back to business, I wanted to share a poem I recently had published, Rear Window on Wheels. You can check it out here, on The Flexist.
You might remember this slightly mysterious photo from last week… and here is the big reveal…
It is an entire pound of Gravlax! Acme Smoked Fish is a wholesale supplier of various kinds of smoked fish. That really great bagel place in your NYC neighborhood, they most likely stock Acme products. Located right in between Greenpoint and Williamsburg (the border argument can wait for another day), the factory sells its goods Friday mornings to the public. Since learning about this nearly three years ago, I have always wanted to buy a ridiculously large amount of smoked fish for a crowd but have never had this chance. However, as I was going away for the weekend with six other people, I finally got my chance.
I got to the Acme warehouse around 9am Friday morning just as all of the factory workers were trickling in. They were all dressed in rain boots, fleece jackets, and hairnets. I wandered around the outside since the entrance was not clearly marked. Luckily one of the foremen noticed another hipster and myself looking lost and got us in the right door. The line wasn’t too terribly long, but it was slow moving since everyone wanted to sample everything they could. I wish I had pictures, but they weren’t allowed. Basically, a side of the warehouse is designated to sell to the public. There are tables of Acme products, from packaged to fresh. You could buy an entire smoked fish to take home! I went the less adventurous route and bought a pound of the regular Gravlax, which at wholesale prices was incredibly reasonable considering the quality. A really neat experience if you ever have the need to buy bulk smoked fish and some extra time on a Friday morning. I wouldn’t get there much after 9, the line just got longer and longer after me.
After Acme, it was only a short walk to one of my favorite bagel places in the city, Bagel Smith, located near the Bedford L train. I got a pound of cream cheese, which you can see snuck into both pictures, and a dozen bagels (plus two free ones!). The cream cheese was so much fluffier and richer than the store tub cream cheese. Above, you can see the classic bagel I made Saturday morning. Luckily I remembered to take a picture before eating it all. The gravlax was a perfect addition to my bagel. We also got more adventurous with these New York staples. For example, we put the lox in a salad. We also made bagel-esque burgers with the bun, patty, lox, cream cheese, onion, tomato, and pepper. It delicious! It felt a bit silly bringing so much New York to West Virginia but a great way to feed a crowd.
I have waited to go on this adventure for the past two years…but you will have to wait until next week to read about it! I am going on vacation. Enjoy the holiday weekend!
A little bit of shameless self promotion, I just had a piece published yesterday on the awesome website, The Flexist. You should immediately click here and read it. The picture above isn’t quite Eunice, it is actually Avery Island, LA, an name you might recognize from your bottle of Tabasco. Go check out The Flexist to see Saturday Night in Eunice, LA. While you are there, check out the right of the site, it has cool poems, great nonfiction articles, and pictures!
Although it is a bit of a geriatric activity, we decided to take a sunset cruise of the harbor on my last night in town. After some quick Google research, I quickly learned that there were not many available on Sunday nights a few hours before they set sail. The weather also looked ominous all day; there was a quick thunderstorm that afternoon. Would it even be worth buying tickets? In the end, we went with the Schooner Pride cruise. It was absolutely worth the cost of the ticket. We set sail around 6:00pm that evening from a pier near the aquarium for a two-hour crusie. Here you can see a giant freight ship as Charleston is one of the busiest ports in the country. In the background is the Ravines Suspension bridge, which connects downtown Charleston to Mount Pleasant.
Leaving the harbor! That is not Fort Sumter. It could be Castle Pinckney? I never did figure that out. There wasn’t a narrated tour, which made for a very pleasant ride (although a few sights slipped through the cracks).
After a bit, the crew cut the engines so that we could hoist the sails. They called for volunteers, and I got to help with the main sail. It was not easy. That thing is heavy! It also requires two people to make sure that it goes up evenly. From the angle where I was standing, it looked even but apparently I was moving too slow. Eventually, we managed just fine!
After all of that hard work, I enjoyed a nice airplane bottle of white wine. They also had beer, soda, and champagne for sale along with snacks.
A sunset shot of the Charleston skyline. Using my handy brochure they gave us, I think I can identify a few buildings. The large one could be the Frohling building. The spire might be the St. Matthew Lutheran Church. You can see why Charleston is nicknamed the Holy City when you see how many spires are clear along the skyline!
Here is the Ravenel again as the sun is going down. Eventually, I will walk that bridge. It just hasn’t happened yet.
The sails of the schooner against the sunset.
Look how romantic sailboats look in the sunset!
I’m pretty sure this is the Battery, a neighborhood in downtown Charleston. These are some of the largest, stateliest homes in the city. If it isn’t the Battery, those are different coastal houses.
More proof about how awesome sailboats look in the sunset, just in case you weren’t sold.
Here is a slightly different angle for the downtown Charleston coastline/skyline at sunset. Overall, the cruise was a lot of fun. The weather ended up being perfect. I needed a sweater but never felt freezing. The crew was quite skilled and very knowledgeable about both their ship and Charleston history. I liked that they encouraged everyone to ask them questions and were excited to talk and mingle with the guests. There aren’t many things more relaxing than a glass of wine out on the water!
After a sunset cruise through the Charleston Harbor (which I promise I will chronicle soon), the only next logical place to go was out for paella. We were in luck, Charleston has its very own tapas and paella restaurant/bar named Basra. It was located on the very edge of downtown but by no means a far drive from the harbor. The inside of the restaurant was all dark wood, very modern feeling but we decided to sit outside on their lovely patio. Unfortunately, all of the bugs were also on the patio, so we had to move inside. They had a selection of $9 bottles of wine served food until midnight. On that fact alone, I would highly recommend checking them out for late night drinks and eats, which aren’t easy to come by there.
As a great paella is made to order and takes about an hour, we did the sensible thing and ordered some tapas. First up was the calamari. I love calamari, but it seems all to easy to get wrong. It could be too rubbery or over-friend. I liked that here it was served lightly fried, very delicious.
Our second tapas was very simple: toasted bread with a tomato spread and thinly sliced ham. I think it might have been my favorite dish of the night as it was delectable in its simplicity.
And finally, the main event. The large seafood paella. I wish I had something near it to give you an idea of the scale, but it was too much food for three people. Mussels lined the outside. The inside was the rice, a white fish, shrimp, and bell peppers. The presentation was quite impressive as was the taste. The best part is always the burnt-y rice at the bottom. I also really enjoyed the fresh shrimp, too. I had some of the leftovers the next day, and it made a great lunch. If you are in the Charleston area and looking for a great paella, late night eats, or even just tapas and reasonably priced drinks, you should absolutely stop by Basra.
While Charleston has incredibly lovely historic homes, the natural landmarks are also stunning. No, I am not being sponsored about any sort of tourism department there, I just have to share how remarkable of a place it is. The picture above is actually the branches of a single tree- Angel Oak. This is the largest tree east of the Mississippi river. The branches are so large that they are supported by man-made wooden beams, which the tree has grown into. The branches also touch the ground, go through the ground, and up again like a root system.
It would be nearly impossible to capture the entirety of the tree without a professional camera, but I tried my best here. I don’t even know that I could put my arms around the branches. It’s an awe inspiring sight to see a tree so magnificent. A bit off the beaten path on James Island but well worth the trip.
In addition to beautiful wooded areas and back roads, Charleston has fabulous beaches! The day was a bit overcast, but we ventured out to Sullivan’s Island for an afternoon at the beach. Here’s the iconic lighthouse. The beach had the perfect light, fluffy sand that you can just fall asleep for hours on while listening to the waves crash against the shore. I liked that it wasn’t too crowded, but there were still plenty of monstrous beach houses to gape at. Near the beach is a strip of really excellent restaurants. We ate at Poet’s, which has a wide selection of burgers and chicken sandwiches, but the other places looked great, too. I think Sullivan’s is one of the nicest beaches to spend the afternoon in the Charleston area.
After a fantastic weekend in Charleston, I am back in New York but have to share all of my foodie adventures! In addition to soul/low country food, seafood is another specialty. I had a lot of fun Friday night venturing out to Bowen Island (yes, an actually marshy island) near downtown Charleston. What used to be a little shack near the water is now a formidable two story wooden shack. I wish had gotten a picture of the “oyster bar” area downstairs but that was basically plywood tables with holes in the middle (for your oyster shells) and little else. Upstairs, long tables line the wooden hall. You order from the bar, very little frills here. The best deal is the oyster plate, which is a entire tray of boiled oysters. There is also an all-you-can eat option for the very hungry or those feeling challenge. Other food option included a variety of fried and fresh seafood. All of the beers on tap were local brews, and the bartender was very knowledgeable about them, asking what brands we would normally pick to find the best beer. I went with a hoppy IPA.
Here is the oyster tray! To pick it up, you go downstairs to the oyster bar area, and they are boiled up right in front of you. I had never had boiled oysters before, only baked or raw on the half-shell. I will have to say that this way is not only more fun, but I thought it tastes even better. They proved a shucking knife, and you open them yourself.
Here is the first oyster I opened! I didn’t realize that they come in clusters with multiple oysters. I though the taste was almost sweet and absolutely delicious.
No meal is complete without hush puppies and French fries. We also ordered the boiled shrimp. I think it was maybe boiled in beer or at least very nicely seasoned. It great flavor to it.
Here is our plate of fried fish (and more French fries). I actually liked the fried shrimp, it felt more lightly battered. Also a side of slaw to get our veggies (and mayo) requirement.
Lastly, an action shot of me hard at work to get my dinner. The place was a bit funky, my elbows were sticking to the table. Regardless, it was so much fun to shuck my own oysters. I will be going back the next time I visit. However, we didn’t get there until almost closing time. I would highly recommend going around sunset time and enjoying a few beers along with your oysters. I don’t know if I would try the all you can eat, but it would certainty be fun to see someone else try!
Last night, I arrived in Charleston, SC for a little mini-vacation. Getting out of New York was a challenge, to say the least. My original flight was scheduled to leave at 11am, but I didn’t actually get off the ground until probably near 4pm. Between the weather and general incompetence at LGA, there were some major delays. Luckily, I finally arrived! For dinner, we went to the Hominy Grill, which is a local Southern/Soul food style restaurant. The first picture is the boiled peanuts they brought out, a great mix of highbrow and lowbrow with the roses and bubbly. I haven’t had boiled peanuts in forever, but each bite takes me back to summers spent along the Grand Strand in Myrtle Beach. You can almost smell the ocean when you eat a boiled peanut.
Here is my meal: fried chicken, cheese grits, and coleslaw. The fried chicken was delicious. Hot, crispy, seasoned just right. The sides I wasn’t as wild about. The grits were good, but they just weren’t as good as my dad makes them. I think that’s a problem you often come across when eating food that you grew up with. On the other hand, the coleslaw was not at all what I was expecting, so it was interesting to try. It was red, very tangy. I would highly recommend the fried chicken, but maybe try out different sides next time.
Here is the vegetable plate. This one is collard greens, lima beans over rice, cornbread, and other vegetables.
And the rib plate! Like the chicken, it came with two sides. Here are the lima bean, which were great although a bit salty, and picked vegetables. For dessert, we all shared a lemon cake, but it was eaten too fast for me to get a picture! I was surprised by how much I liked the cake. It was very tart and plenty of moisture, not the dry white cake I was expected. Overall, a good experience, I would recommend it to someone visiting Charleston looking for some old-fashioned Southern Cuisine.
Sunday night, I decided to try a new mac and cheese recipe. This one comes from a friends Beer of the Month Newsletter, but they found it via livelovepasta. I’ve been wanting to try this one for awhile. I did make a few adjustments to the recipe just to save some money. I didn’t add the Romano cheese, Panko bread crumbs, or Parsley. I was able to find all of the ingredients I didn’t have at my local grocery store. For the beer, I choose Bell’s Amber Ale. Bell’s is a Michigan brewery, and it is always really exciting to see how it has grown in NYC. There is my Gouda ready to be shredded.
Here are my ingredients all ready to go while the water boils. I personally find it easiest to get everything chopped, shredded, and measured out before I start cooking (or waiting for the water to boil). As a general rule of thumb, the time it takes for the pasta to actually cook is about equivalent to the time you need to make your cheese sauce. If you can time it just right, you will only need one timer going and everything will end up ready at about the same time. Also, Bell’s Amber is delicious! Not that I sampled any while cooking…
Here is my cheese sauce. It was a bit darker in the pot. This was an incredibly easy cheese sauce to make. The recipe does warn that it won’t thicken like a regular cheese sauce, and it was correct. It is going to bake with the pasta for another 30 minutes (so be sure your pasta is also super a la dente), so it will thicken and adhere and do that mac n cheese sort of thing in the oven.
Here is the finished result after 25 min. in the oven! I should have taken a video, this guy was bubbling. So delicious. The mac and cheese was the perfect creamy thickness with a smokey edge. It was perfectly fine without the extra garnishes (Panko, Romano, and Parsley), but if I were making this for guests, I would add those. I think this would also be really great with a smokey meat (panchetta or a thick cut bacon) and chives. I also would maybe sprinkle a bit more paprika at the end to taste. Overall, a great, quick mac and cheese for any beer lover.
