jp's food adventures

I’ve heard complaints that our neighborhood isn’t so good when it comes to shopping. I may not buy much “stuff,” but I spend a sizable chunk of change on food, wine and other kitchen-related items. I think our neighborhood...

I’m proud to be associated with two neighborhood bars that pour good wine by the glass. I did the opening list for Sweet Grapes and continue to consult for Clandestino. I love ordering wine without hesitation. This should be...

I’m no stranger to goat meat; been eating and cooking the stuff for years. A Trini friend showed me how to marinate the meat in green spice and burn sugar on the bottom of the pot for curry goat....

I was among those gutted when Jeffrey Ruhalter closed his iconic Essex Street Market butcher shop. The market lost one of its colorful characters that day, not to mention the most direct link with its history, aside from the...

The first cool nights are upon us, meaning  rose season is over. That’s fine by me, as my rose of choice this year, Massaya, from the Bekaa Valley in Lebanon, sold out its entire bottling weeks ago. What to...

Like many New Yorkers, I take pride in having a list of  "off the beaten track" food establishments I hit on a regular basis. This is practically a cliché: it seems like every old schooler knows where to find ...

Buzzwords are funny things, especially when it comes to restaurants. Some places comically tout “authenticity," others present an expensive mishmash of ingredients as “fusion“, while still others bandy about words like “original," “modern” or “seasonal”. “Tapas” has come to...

Our neighborhood has traditionally been the home of immigrants, and continues to be so today.  I was surprised when a few friends, people who were raised outside of this country, expressed a dislike for chicken, America’s most popular menu...

Neighbors ask me: Do you buy fish in Chinatown? I do. “Where?,” is the next question.  It’s not quite that simple. Buying seafood is a caveat emptor scenario; ignorance is not rewarded. I know people who rarely eat seafood at...

Last year I lived in LA for a few months. That town is set up to keep the hoi polloi from mixing with the celebrities and big shots . One thing I love about New York is that, in...