Shopikon London App

Welcome foodies! Shopikon is releasing a new London version of their shopping app. To kick it off food bloggers have been asked to get conversation started about the restaurant scene in London. I have not yet been to London, but one restaurant I really want to visit is Pied à Terre. The menu makes my mouth water with some of my favorite ingredients. Of the 7 course tasting menu, one stand out item that I am dying to try is the Salad of Cornish Crab with Crab Mayonnaise, Nasturium Leaves (similar to a water cress), Chilli and Cucumber. It sounds so fresh and flavorful. In addition, I would love to taste the Slow Cooked Veal Rump with Globe Artichoke Purée, Braised Celery and Lemongrass Jus. My mouth waters at the thought of that slow roasting veal and braised celery. To end my meal, I would order the Tart of Earl Grey Tea with Milk and Vanilla Gel, Bergamont Ice Cream, and Candied Orange. This dessert sounds so interesting with flavors like orange and earl grey tea that I love. I hope to enjoy this upscale dining experience soon. Pied à Terre is going to be my first stop when I get to London. On the Shopikon London app there are many great reviews of other restaurants and shops. Whether you are dreaming of going to a specific London shop or restaurant because of its celebrity status, its incredible looking menu, or its name recognition, share this experience with others by leaving a comment here on Foodie Finders NYC or on the Foodie Finders NYC Facebook page.

-Mike

Coming Up - Zarela Martinez Cooking Class at Suenos

Hi foodies! On June 9th Zarela Martinez will be doing a cooking class at Sue Torres's restaurant, Suenos. From 11am to 2pm, Zarela will be teaching about the food and culture of Chihuahua. Don't miss out on this golden opportunity! For more information and to sign up click here.

-Mike

Wellness in the Schools Annual Benefit

Hi foodies! Tuesday, May 22nd, was the Wellness in the Schools Annual Benefit. It was a wonderful event with amazing food and people for a great cause.

Wellness in the Schools is bringing healthy food, environmental awareness and encouraging more activity in school. They provide this for New York City public schools and have now expanded to Kentucky with Florida on their radar as a future project. WITS, created in 2005, is now servicing twenty five schools with their three programs, Cook for Kids, Green for Kids, and Coach for Kids.

The benefit was a blast with a silent auction, a live auction and great food from 26 amazing restaurants. One highlight of the night was the Shrimp Ceviche from Josh Capon of B&B and Lure. It came with a great avocado mousse and I could have just drank the liquid on the bottom all night. Josh became involved with WITS because it hit home. His daughter started school and the lunches were not acceptable. If you did not decide to pack a lunch, the alternative was not good. He said it was time to "rock the boat".

Sue Torres of Sueños, returning for her second year at this event, served a delicious Cochinita Pibil Taco.   The pork was very tasty and the hand-crafted tortilla was like no other. Together it was a spectacular dish. Sue also served chips and a homemade salsa as a vegetarian option. Sue Torres is a pleasure to talk to and her food is out of this world.

The cookies at Levain Bakery were amazing. They are monstrous size cookies that come in four different flavors. Levain Bakery serves Chocolate Chip Walnut, Oatmeal Raisin, Dark Chocolate Chocolate Chip, and Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Chip. These cookies are some of the best I have ever had, and my favorite is the Oatmeal Raisin Cookie.

At Candle 79, they prepared a plantain chip with an avocado mousse, chipotle sauce and tempeh bacon. Tempeh is a soy product that is cake-like and commonly found in Indonesia. This smokey product acted as a replacement to bacon. The dish was delicious.

Dessert was being made over at Craft's booth with the executive pastry chef Meredith Tomason. She presented a Greek Yogurt Panna Cotta along with cucumber and watercress. It was refreshing and reminded me of the Summer days quickly approaching.

Bill Telepan of Telepan was serving great raw oysters with a cucumber mignonette. Telepan also served a Strawberry Granita Parfait with almonds, verbena cream, and prosecco. This was a beautiful and fresh dessert. Bill is the Executive Chef of Wellness in the Schools and said that he got involved in 2008 with the idea of having volunteers improve the food in schools. The first days that he started helping schools, they set up three programs of salad bar day, vegetarian chili day, and sandwich day. They began hiring employees when there was inconsistency in volunteers skills of being able to cook and having great personalities. They brought the program from three schools to eight schools and by the end of 2011 they were working hard in twenty five schools. Now WITS has just undertaken a huge project of expanding their program to the entire state of Florida.

Guacamole and chips were being served over at AG Kitchen from chef Alex Garcia. AG Kitchen is Alex's new restaurant that will be opening soon. 

Harold Moore, the chef and owner of Commerce Restaurant, prepared a vegetable fricassée with black truffle and a poached egg. The dish was very rich and flavorful. 

A great sausage and peppers sandwich was being served from Marco Canora's Hearth. Yum!

Michael Anthony of Gramercy Tavern was a pleasure to meet. Gramercy Tavern served Chicken Mortadella with an asparagus salad on a Thai cracker. This was a delicious bite. 

Wellness in the Schools is an amazing organization that just continues to achieve. For more information on this charity click here.

For more pictures on this event go to the Foodie Finders NYC Facebook page. More restaurant reviews and food events in New York City are soon to come.

-Mike

Los Angeles Resraurant Review - Susan Feniger's Street

Welcome foodies! After a great food filled journey through Los Angeles, I am going to share my dining experience at Susan Feniger's Street.

Street     742 N Highland Avenue Los Angeles, CA 90038

(April 2012-Dinner)

Street is an incredibly fun and lively restaurant. The staff, a beautiful reflection of the lovely Susan Feniger, is so nice and knowledgeable. The concept at Street is about different street foods from all over the world served tapas style. In the Izakaya + Asian Pub Food section I loved the West Sumatra Beef Curry. The flavors were so elaborate and bursting with flavor. The Pea Shoots + Pork Belly with coconut rice and a soft egg was very good. The richness from the egg was a wonderful addiction to the dish. Another great dish was the Edamame Hummus. It came with papadum chips that put together was amazing. In the Meatballs + Fritters section, I enjoyed the Syrian Lamb Meatballs. They had a great subtle gamey taste that was paired amazingly with the date molasses. The Korean BBQ Meatballs were delicious too. They were very flavorful. The Chicken + Waffles Croquettes were a fun and tasty dish. It came with an amazing spicy maple syrup that sealed the deal. In the Classic Street section my mouth still waters when I think back to the Kaya Toast. It was salty and sweet, crunchy and gooey. The dish was a piece of toast with a yummy coconut jam that gets dipped into an egg and dark soy. In the Veggie Sides section I greatly enjoyed the Braised Greens + Chorizo. It was smokey and extremely flavorful. Next up, dessert! The Egyptian Basbousa Cake was scrumptious. It was a light cake with a citrus-y lime curd that was delicious. The Croatian Apple Fritters were outstanding. The fritters were perfect and complimented by the incredible apple butter and whiskey cider sauce. The Thai Tea Creme Caramel was great. The tea taste was perfect and the lime caramel on top was amazing. Street was a wonderful dining experience.

Edamame Hummus

West Sumatra Beef Curry

Kaya Toast

Chicken + Waffles Croquettes

Croatian Apple Fritters

Egyptian Basbousa Cake

I highly recommend eating at Street if you are in the Los Angeles area. If only Street was a little closer to my street! Also, back in NYC, Madison Square Eats is starting today, May 4 open through June 1. For more information check out Foodie Finders NYC Facebook page. Also for more pictures of the spectacular food at Street, go to Foodie Finders NYC Facebook page. 

-Mike