November » 2009 » The Saucy Coq

WILD MUSHROOM PASTA with QUAIL EGG

We’re lucky enough to live across from a Whole Foods Market. Before you anti-establishment cooks ream me out for not shopping at a reeeeal market, I’ll tell you that I love buying the fresh, aromatic ingredients that any local purveyor has to sell me. Our weekends usually involve at least one trip to some destination food market; and NYC has no shortage of them. Any time we do end up at a food market, I tend to buy way too much of some obscure ingredient because it’s fresh, and then have to come up with something to do with it when I get home, and alas, I (often) manage. It’s one part of cooking that I love.

But, having a 62,000 ft² grocery store complete with its own artisanal cheese shop, craft beer store and culinary education kitchen across the street makes for an easy decision. The selection of choice, locally grown organic ingredients is unbeatable. Actually, any time I’m in there it reminds me of Seinfeld’s bit about supermarkets. Funny stuff.

So, I thought I’d buy a pile of mushrooms and make wild mushroom pasta. If you can’t find some of the varieties I’ve listed below, don’t sweat it; just try and get a nice selection of fresh mushrooms. Try to avoid button mushrooms if you can…they don’t offer much flavor here.

Wild Mushroom Pasta:

½ lb whole wheat spaghetti
3 tbsp unsalted butter
Extra virgin olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
½ lb cremini mushrooms, brushed and quartered
½ lb mixed fresh mushrooms like chanterelles, bluefoot & royal trumpet, trimmed and sliced lengthwise
½ cup dry white wine
Sea salt

Freshly ground black pepper
Small bunch chopped fresh thyme
Handful chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
Zest and juice of a lemon
Handful each of fresh pecorino and parmesan cheese
2 Quail eggs

Heat 3 tablespoons butter in a 12-inch heavy skillet over moderately high heat until foam subsides, then sauté fresh mushrooms with garlic, salt, and pepper, stirring occasionally, until liquid mushrooms give off is evaporated and mushrooms are browned, 5 to 7 minutes.

Cook pasta in a 6- to 8-quart pot of boiling salted water until al dente, about 5 minutes. Ladle out and reserve 1/4 cup pasta cooking water. Drain pasta in a colander, then add it to mushrooms in skillet. Add remaining 2 tablespoons butter and cook over moderately high heat, tossing and adding some pasta-cooking liquid if necessary to lightly coat, 1 minute. Add chives, parsley, lemon zest and juice, then toss well.

While the pasta rests for a moment, heat a small frying pan to medium and add a splash of oil. When it’s hot, fry the quail eggs until the whites are cooked, but the yolk is still runny. Quail eggs are small, so this only takes about a minute.

Serve pasta with cheese, fresh parsley, pepper and top with quail eggs.

Bon apetit!

CURRY SHRIMP PIZZA: A SAUCY SIGNATURE

I do not remember under what circumstances I made this recipe up. It doesn’t sound like it would be as good as it is, but for some reason I tried it once upon a time. I do know that I’ve made a few different incarnations of it in the last couple of years, and they have all been great. I’ve yet to see a similar dish elsewhere, so I’m going to go ahead and call this a signature dish of mine. One of my favorite things about this pizza is that it tastes even better as left overs the next day.

It’s a cold pizza and the sauce is cream cheese, so it may not satisfy your craving for a good old sloppy classic tomato pizza, but I promise you’ll want to make this again. And again. You can use the vegetables I’ve listed below or whichever you think would work. Let me know what you try!

Cold Curry Shrimp Pizza

6 oz cream cheese (3/4 of a package)
1 tsp curry powder

~14 medium sized shrimp
juice of 1/2 lime
1/4 tsp curry powder
tbsp grated fresh ginger
1 tbsp olive oil

orange pepper, julienned
red pepper, julienned
broccoli, broken into small florets
red onion, sliced thin
1 clove of garlic, minced

Pizza dough/crust

Fresh cilantro for garnish

First things first, fold together the curry powder and cream cheese. You don’t necessarily need to whip the cream cheese, but you do want a nice smooth soft texture so it’s fluffy and easy to spread later. You can also add a little more or less curry powder to your tastes. Let this rest while you work your magic on the rest of the ingredients.

Next up is the dough. The first several times I made this pizza, I used a store bought, precooked dough. I would typically just brush it with a little olive oil, maybe toss a pinch of salt on there and brown it in the oven for a few minutes. This works great and is definitely the easiest method here. This time, for the first time, I actually bought a ball of freshly made raw dough from Whole Foods to spin myself. Your grocery store may not sell raw dough, but you can try going to a nearby pizzeria. A lot of pizzerias will sell you dough if you ask nicely.

Once your dough is made (or unpackaged), you want to roll out about a 9 inch pie. How much dough you actually use depends on how thick you like the crust. I like a thinner crust for this pizza so I used a ball of dough about the size of my fist. Cook the dough on a pizza pan according to the instructions (or your experience). Remove from the oven and allow to cool on a wire rack until ready to use.

In a large non-stick pan, heat a glug of oil over medium-high heat. Add the vegetables and garlic and saute for 6 to 7 minutes, or until the veg is just tender. Remove from heat.

Heat another pan over high heat and add the last tbsp of olive oil. Saute the shrimp until they are just cooked through or pink, about 1 minute per side.

Now you’re ready to assemble the final product! Spread the curry cream cheese evenly over the pizza crust and top with the sauteed vegetables and finally with the shrimp. Tear up a handful of the cilantro leaves and SHAZAM, right there on top.

Cut this fine specimen in to slices and go to work.

GRILLED CORN w CHILI LIME BUTTER

I’m going to let you in on a secret. Corn.

Grilled corn is such a simple, versatile side dish that it gets it’s own post. Jealous? Whenever I’m short on time and need a “veg”, grilled corn is a solid go-to. It’s cheap, easy and you can dress it up any way you like. Yes, I realize the parallels to a dad joke there.

Like any food that grows, corn is best when it is in season (May through September), and is sweetest right after being picked (the sugars begin to turn to starch once it’s picked). Luckily, corn is loaded with so much natural sugar that grilling a mediocre cob will bring out some ace flavors. And, if that doesn’t work, I’m sure you’ll put way too much butter on it anyway.

This chili lime butter is good to have a bit of in the fridge. It works with this corn, other grilled veg, or even on a steak.

Gilled Corn with Chili Lime Butter:

2 Corn cobs
2 tbsp butter, room temperature
Zest and juice of 1/2 lime
1/2 chili (serrano or jalapeno), finely diced

For the chili lime butter, whip the butter with 1/2 of a finely diced chili, lime zest and lime juice. Set aside.

To prepare the corn, I always peel the outer most husks off (the darker green ones), then peel back (but don’t remove) the inner husk and remove the silk fibers. Sexy. Replace the attached husk and soak the corn cobs in cold water for about 30 minutes before you grill. This will prevent the husks from burning to a crisp.

Preheat the grill to high and grill the corn, husk on, for about 10 minutes or so, turning the corn every couple of minutes. You’re looking for a few blackened kernels, but don’t overcook it or it’ll be mushy.

To serve, gently massage each kernel with some butter, working out all the kinks. Or, just brush it on. Top the corn with a Quenelle of butter (university talk for a blob). I usually peel back the husk and leave it on for dramatic effect. Eating the husk does this as well.

Enjoy!

FRUIT MOE’UHANE: FRUIT PUTS ON ITS SUNDAY BEST

Here we are again, Friday. Seems like just seven days ago I was posting the first weekender brunch of Saucy Coq’s French Toast. I am a huuuuge fan of breakfast. It is without a doubt my favorite meal to eat. I never really understand when people say they are not hungry in the morning…I find it hard to believe. You’ve just gone 6 or 8 or 10 hours without eating anything at all. All that moving around, flipping over, dreaming in bed, how could you not have worked up an appetite? What are you hiding?

Sadly for me, breakfast during the week is limited to a bowl or two of cereal (for which, by the way, my tastes have remained unwavering since I was yay big; Weetabix, Cheerios, Just Right). But, there it comes. Can you see it? Just ahead there? I think its Saturday morning. Hi Saturday. You come here often?

I made this fruit concoction up one time a couple of years ago and haven’t made it again until recently. Not sure why. It’s absolutely delicious and looks pretty great if you’re trying to impress whoever you’re waking up with. We all know that melon makes for a cheap fruit salad. You get a ‘side of fruit’ with breakfast at a restaurant and its 5 cubes of dry melon and a grape. And, I bet the menu is at least 7 pages long. Here I just use the melon as the supporting cast for the breakfast.

Berries are the way to go and this is the way to prepare them:

Fruit Moe’uhane

Serves Four.

2 ripe Honeydew melons
1 lb strawberries, washed and cleaned
1 lb blueberries, washed
2-3 peaches, sliced
2 tbsp sugar
2 cups low fat cottage cheese
1 tsp orange blossom water
½ tsp cinnamon
1/4 cup triple sec
Coconut flakes, toasted

Mix the sugar with the strawberries, blueberries and peaches in a bowl and let macerate overnight. Stir the orange water and cinnamon with the cottage cheese and refrigerate overnight.

In the morning, mix the fruit with the triple sec and refrigerate for another hour or two.

Slice the melon in half on a diagonal and scoop out seeds. Cut a small slice off the bottom of the melon so it stands up at an angle (see photo) on the plate. Spoon the cottage cheese in to the melon, spilling it out on to the plate. Don’t be neat about it. Top the cheese with the fruit, and sprinkle some coconut flakes over top.

Good morning!

SEAR-ROASTED RIB STEAK w CHIMICHURRI SAUCE

Have you seen The Great Outdoors? The Ol’ 96′er? If not, I’ve just wasted a really good reference and you won’t get how this post relates to that movie. Thanks a lot. I would highly recommend putting it on the movie list. It’s a great classic comedy.

As you can tell by the photo above, I am not a vegetarian. I have never partaken in such trickery and do not plan to. Strangely enough, as much as I do like meat, I really don’t cook good steaks or roasts that often. I use ground beef and pork a lot, and I’m an avid seafood cook of all sorts. There’s something so incredibly satisfying about a plain ol’ steak. The primal feeling it gives me always reminds me of why I’m not a vegetarian; of why my body neeeeeeds meat. I can feel my blood getting warmer with each bite, my muscles growing. When I brought these home, I got a bit of a sideways look from my girlfriend. Yes, a nearly two pound steak is too much food. But on the other hand, shhhhhhh.

This method of cooking meat is a great way to produce a LOT of flavor with very little mess. It is also the way to go when you don’t have a grill at your disposal (my personal favorite). Searing the steaks first locks in the flavors and juices and gives you a really nice crust on the steak that will provide essential texture and taste.

Sear-Roasted Rib Steak

2 1.5 lb bone-in rib steaks
Unsalted butter
Grey sea salt (or regular if that’s what you got)
Fresh cracked pepper
1 tbsp oil

Heat the oven to 425 degrees F.

In a heavy-bottom ovenproof saute pan (I use a cast iron pan), heat the oil over high heat until very hot. Season the steaks with a little salt and pepper. Add the steaks to the pan and brown them well on one side, about 5 minutes. Turn the steaks and put the pan in to the oven to finish cooking, about another 5 minutes. This, of course, will depend on a variety of factors: how well you like your steak cooked, how thick they are, etc. If you’re new to cooking, use a meat thermometer. Otherwise, the best way to tell is just by touch. Feel the steaks and keep in mind that they will cook a bit more once they’re out of the oven.

Once done, LET THE STEAKS REST for 5 minutes. There are some rules that cannot be broken in cooking. This is one of them. It is essential to the quality of the meat (any meat) that it rests once it has finished cooking. Don’t cut in to it to test for done-ness. Resist slicing in to the meat as soon as it’s cooked. Letting the steak rest will allow the juices to re-absorb in to the meat and the protein to relax. I promise the meat will be exponentially better. I will repost this paragraph every time I talk about meat.

Chimichurri can be a sauce, a marinade or a rub. It’s an Argentinian concoction that, by some accounts, was named for an Irishman called Jimmy McCurry who first prepared it. Jimmy McCurry, being difficult for native Argentinians to pronounce, became Chimichurri. To be perfectly honest, I would much rather have my steak with Jimmy McCurry sauce. If it’s possible to make 28 oz steak more manly, it would most certainly be by adding Jimmy McCurry sauce. Whatever you want to call it, it’s an herb, citrus & oil mixture that is open to much interpretation. Classically, it is parsley, lemon, chili, garlic and oil. I’ve added in a few other herbs here and once in a while I’ll use some grated orange rind.

Chimichurri Sauce

parsley (1 bunch)
oregano (3 sprigs)
cilantro (handful)
4 garlic cloves
zest and juice of 1 lemon
1 serrano chile
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
Sea salt and fresh cracked pepper

Put all ingredients, except the oil in a blender/food processor and slowly add the olive oil until combined. I like mine to have a bit of texture rather than being a paste, so I just pulse it a few times in the food processor until the oil is combined.

You can really make this any time you want as it will (probably) keep in the fridge for a while. I’ve never tested the lifespan of Chimichurri since I typically use it all in a few days, but it should last a few weeks. Marinate chicken, fish, beef, pork, even veggies in this before you cook them. Or, just use as a sauce like I did here. I bet this would even be delicious with French (excuse me…Freedom) fries.

I served this with some nice roasted fingerling potatoes and Cippolini onions with herbs.

Fingerling Potatoes

15 fingerling potatoes (1/2 pound)
4 sprigs of thyme
2 big springs of rosemary
5 cloves of garlic (unpeeled)
2 tbsp olive oil
salt & pepper

Mix all in a bowl to coat the potatoes and onions. Spread the potatoes and onions out on a baking sheet and roast at 450 degrees for 25 minutes.

Enjoy the meat sweats!

SAUCY WATERMELON COQTAIL

Blog 004

If you can forgive the untimeliness of this post, we’ll all be in a better place. Summer has left us for dead with winter looming close by. Fortunately for us, science has given us the luxury of watermelons all year round. There’s absolutely no reason you can’t strap on the old long underwear and turn up the heat to enjoy this refreshing Coqtail.

NYC had week after week of signature Amazon-like heat this summer and this Watermelon Coqtail was a solid go-to to cool things off a bit. There’s just something about the cold, fresh watermelon juice and vodka that makes me want to put on some layers and keep trying to cool down with another pitcher. I get that it’s not the manliest drink there is, but you’ve read this far, so you’re not fooling anyone.

Chances are, you’ll need to make a multiple of this recipe. It serves 2.

Saucy Watermelon Coqtail

1 cup watermelon juice

1/2 cup vodka (4 oz)

1/4 cup triple sec (2 oz)

1/4 cup simple syrup

juice of 1 lime

salt

sugar

ice

watermelon for garnish

Simple syrup is just sugar dissolved in water in equal parts. So, heat 1/4 cup of water, add in 1/4 cup of sugar and stir until dissolved. Make this first so that it can cool down before you mix the drinks. You’re amazing!

To juice the watermelon, I puree it in a blender, then squish it through a fine sieve. Try to really work it through the sieve and even squeeze the pulp with your hand to get every drop of juice out. If you happen to have a juicer, well, use it. And, let me use it.

To make the rim salt, mix the sugar and salt 2:1 on a plate. Wet the rim of some chilled cocktail glasses of your choice with a piece of watermelon and dip in the rim salt.

Mix the watermelon juice, vodka, triple sec, simple syrup, lime juice and ice in a shaker and do your best. If you’ve done this before, flip the cocktail shaker around in the air for your guests. If your charm isn’t intoxicating enough, pour the drinks in to the cocktail glasses and garnish with a piece of watermelon.

These Coqtails are on the sweet side, so if you’re serving them with a snack, make it a salty one.

Enjoy!

THE WEEKENDER BRUNCH: SAUCY COQ’S FRENCH TOAST

I hereby declare Friday’s the official day for brunch posts on The Saucy Coq because brunch is my favorite meal. This is most likely due to its close association with the weekend. I’ll be posting a brunch on Fridays that you should make on the weekend.

Remember when America was replacing “French” with “Freedom” on menus? Do you remember that s**t?? Freedom Toast. Because France wasn’t worthy of the egg soaked bread meal. As an homage to this fine blip on the radar of American history, I’m making French Toast with French Baguette. And, I’m drinking it with a Latte, which sounds French, but is actually Italian. But, whatever.

Saucy Coq’s French Toast

1 french baguette, sliced on a bias in 1 inch pieces
4 eggs
1/4 cup milk
1 tbsp vanilla extract
1 tsp orange blossom water
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
2 tbsp butter
8 slices thick cut smoked bacon
1 pint of blackberries
Good quality maple syrup
Raw cocoa (optional)

I love cooking my bacon in the oven. Seems to come out so much better than in a pan. Most of the fat drips off and the bacon stays straight and crisp. Works very well for thick cut bacon like this. Preheat your oven to 375 degrees. Line a baking pan with tinfoil and lay the bacon out on a metal rack on the pan. Bake in the oven for ~20 minutes, until the bacon is crispy. I use the metal rack out of our microwave.

Crack the eggs in to a mixing bowl (minus the shells) and beat together with the milk, vanilla, orange water and cinnamon.

If your bowl is big enough, drench all of the bread in the egg mixture and let soak for 5-10 minutes, otherwise, transfer egg mixture to a large shallow baking dish and cover bread.

Heat a large non-stick skillet over medium heat. Melt 1 tbsp of butter (for each batch) in the pan until foamy. Cook French toast until golden brown on each side (about 5 minutes each side). You’ll notice the French toast I made is a bit too dark. Still tastes great, but I probably left it in a bit too long.

Transfer to a plate. Top with a pad of butter, fresh blackberries, grated cocoa and good quality maple syrup.

Now, here’s where things get sticky. You’ll notice I said “good quality” maple syrup above. I’m serious. Don’t mess around here. If you’re going to make this, wait until you’ve bought some really good syrup. Not EZ Plastic Squeeze Bottle brand. I grew up in Northern Ontario, Canada, near St Joseph’s Island. After 18 years there, I moved to Montreal, Quebec for 10 years. If you’re not familiar, St Joseph’s Island and Quebec produce the two best Maple syrups in the world. Chew on that!

Top ‘o the mornin!

FOR A GOOD TIME CALL APPLE POMEGRANATE SALAD

This salad of pomegranate seeds, crisp apple, roasted hazelnuts and peppery watercress is a very refreshing, light and flavor-packed dish. Goes great with any protein and tastes even better the next day.

My girlfriend and I were in London a couple of weeks ago and, as per usual, hunting for good food was a big part of the bill. We were very successful. And by successful, I mean that no vegetables were consumed. If I recall, there may have been some baby spinach in some ravioli I had and maybe some plantain with my roast suckling pig, but that’s it.

In typical post-vacation-depression style, we made an attempt to replenish our supply of essential vitamins and minerals. I set out for fresh, healthy, low fat, high nutrient foods. I’ve made this salad a few times and it seems to fit any season. Light and refreshing enough for the summer and hearty enough for the winter.

Pomegranate’s are in season (in the Northern hemisphere) from September to February. They really are a fascinating fruit. Historical and religious significance; sweet and tart at the same time; and may be helpful in reducing heart disease factors, systolic blood pressure and viral infections. Oh, they also fight dental plaque and are very high in fiber. Take that other fruit.

Apple Pomegranate Salad

2/3 cup hazelnuts, blanched*
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon hazelnut oil (I used peanut this time and it still tasted great)
Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper
3 tablespoons fresh pomegranate juice, plus seeds from one pomegranate
1 tablespoon sherry (or sherry vinegar)
2 teaspoons rice vinegar
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 medium apple, diced
1/2 lemon, for juicing
1 bunch watercress

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees. Spread hazelnuts on a baking sheet; toast, stirring once, until fragrant and lightly browned, 8 to 10 minutes. Let cool; coarsely chop nuts, and toss with 1 teaspoon hazelnut oil and salt. *If you don’t have blanched hazelnuts, you can put them in boiling water for two minutes, plunge them in ice water, then pinch the skins off. In other words, buy blanched hazelnuts.

In a small bowl, combine, pomegranate juice, sherry, rice vinegar, and salt. If you have them on hand, it would be very sophisticated and wise of you to add in some diced shallots here and let sit for a few minutes; about one shallot would do. Since I have no class and had no shallots I didn’t use any. Whisk in olive oil and remaining 1 tablespoon hazelnut oil.

In a large bowl, toss apple and pomegranate seeds with dressing; season with salt, pepper, and a squeeze of lemon. Gently toss with watercress. Arrange salad on a serving platter, and garnish with hazelnuts. Serve immediately.

I served this over some nice pieces of seared white fish and browned brussels sprouts. Give it a try with some red meat and let me know how it works out.

Enjoy!

HOLY ____ DARK CHOCOLATE ESPRESSO CHEESECAKE

What am I doing here? I’ve never made a cake in my life. I really just don’t like or enjoy baking. Baking the verb, not the noun. I really love baking the noun when it involves chocolate. Huuuuuuge chocolate fan. Don’t have much of a sweet tooth other than that, but I would fight children for chocolate.

I think the part of baking that just doesn’t turn my crank is its unforgiving demeanor. There’s really not much room for improvising in baking, which is my forte. No “some of this, if you have it” or “add this if you like”. It’s all “2.65 deciliters of this”, “12 fathoms of that”.

Needless to say, it was a buddy’s 30th birthday last week, so I decided to make a cake. A manly cake of course. And when I gave it to him, I kind of just tilted my head toward the cake slightly, as if to say “Yeah, whatever. Don’t make a big deal out of it”. Pffff. I showed him.

This dark chocolate espresso cheesecake is insane. Like, seriously intense. If you close your eyes and imagine riding that big white luck dragon from The Never Ending Story in to the center of the sun, that would approximate the intensity of this cake.

Dark Chocolate Espresso Cheesecake

Crust
9 ounce package Dark chocolate wafer cookies (from one 9-ounce package)
1 tablespoon sugar
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, melted

Filling
1 bar high quality 70% Cocoa Bittersweet Chocolate, chopped
4 (8-ounce) packages cream cheese, room temperature
1 1/4 cups plus 2 tablespoons sugar
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
4 large eggs
2 tbsp strong espresso

Topping
3/4 cup whipping cream
6 ounces high quality 70% Cocoa Bittersweet Chocolate, chopped
1 tablespoon sugar
Bittersweet chocolate curls
Roasted espresso beans

For crust:
Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter a 9-inch-diameter springform pan with 3-inch-high sides. Blend cookies in processor until finely ground; blend in sugar. Add melted butter and process until well blended. Press crumbs evenly onto bottom of prepared pan. Bake just until set, about 5-7 minutes. Cool the crust while preparing filling, but maintain oven temperature.

For filling:
Brew two shots of strong espresso and let cool. Stir chopped chocolate in metal bowl set over saucepan of simmering water (called a double boiler) until melted and smooth. Remove bowl from over water; cool chocolate until lukewarm but still pourable. Blend cream cheese, sugar, and cocoa powder in processor until smooth. Blend in eggs 1 at a time. Mix in lukewarm chocolate and espresso. Pour filling over crust; smooth top. Bake until center is just set and just appears dry, about 1 hour (but keep an eye on it). Ideally, if you have the time (which you should since you choose to bake a cheesecake) you’ll want to completely cool before refrigerating. You don’t have to, but cooling a hot cake will cause moisture to be trapped in. Run knife around sides of cake to loosen. Chill overnight.

For topping:
Stir cream, 6 ounces chocolate, and sugar in heavy medium saucepan over low heat until smooth. Cool slightly. Pour over center of cheesecake, spreading to within 1/2 inch of edge. Chill until topping is set, about 1 hour. This icing can be made a couple days ahead if you like. Cover with foil and keep refrigerated. Reheat slightly when ready to pour over cake.

Release pan sides. Transfer cheesecake to platter. Top with chocolate curls, espresso beans and grated cocoa. Let stand 2 hours at room temperature before serving. This actually makes a big difference believe it or not. The cake will be much more dense right out of the fridge.

Strap yourself in and go to town.

World-class air guitar upon presentation of cake.

¿PEKING CHEF BURRITOS TACO?

Peking Chef

I’m pretty much open to eating any kind of food. I’d be hard-pressed to think of a genre of cuisine that I’m opposed to. Really just depends on my mood and my tastes at the time. But, when I am on the fence about, say, Mexican or Chinese food, I never have so much trouble deciding that I’d end up at Peking Chef Burritos Taco.

First of all, let me point out that I’m not actually sure what the name of this restaurant is. It’s probably just Peking Chef, but you can’t argue that the front of the menu looks decidedly Mexican. Sure I see the plate of steamed and fried dumplings at the top with a couple of Chinese characters, but you can’t trick me Peking Chef Burritos Taco. That contemporary Mexican delivery man is blowing your cover. He’s either an alcoholic or his red nose and mustache are a disguise. WAIT! Is HE the Peking Chef ?!?!

Also confused as to why our speedy Mexican friend here has to deliver food by foot and balance it on a tray while the pastry chef lemon gets to drive around in a Rolls Royce.

If I weren’t surrounded by great options, this place might be higher on my list of places to try. Rest assured, it is on the list. I’ll let you know how it goes.

Sorry, no checks please.