three fish tacos + three fresh sauces = three quick bites before you order another round

Barrio Chino on the NYC Lower East Side:

A rich, smoky reposado tequila, flanked by sangrita, mango and jicama.

Exposed brick walls that float fancifully suspended cocktail umbrellas.

A cool mojito with coconut. Take it sweet or savory. They mull your mint and pinch your juicy lime wedges to order, naturally...

Fish tacos the like of which you haven't seen since that week on the Yucatan.

Sangria that rolls heady and silken across the tongue with easy, even balance such that a first sip is enough to renew your sense of wonder at how people can drink — much less claim to enjoy — the world's lesser cocktails.

Arrive at 7. This laid-back shop of delights is all yours. But don't get smug. You'll find your little treasure must be soon be shared with the rest of New York, all of whom will attempt to press their shapely frames through the door within two hours' time. Sip your nectar slowly and savor the moment while you can.


Barrio Chino
253 Broome St.
(Btwn Orchard & Ludlow)
212-228-6710

Letter from an upstate NY farmer. I'm so fruit-obsessed, this rolls out like erotica for my tastebuds. Had to share.

Hi all,
Here is the update on pending crops…

STRAWBERRIES:
Next week will represent the peak in production, especially with high heat over the weekend. We should have product through the holiday.

CHERRIES: DARK SWEET OXHART & WHITE QUEEN ANNE
Delicious dark Oxhart variety is the predominant variety in New York, chosen for its delicious flavor and dark color. Our Queen Annes are very popular, with a rich flavor and attractive white base with red cheek (similar to Rainier).

9/1 clamshells DARK OXHART...
9/1 clamshells QUEEN ANNE...

Middle of July will bring:
Plums
Raspberries
Blueberries (late July)

Crop is developing well, and weather has been cooperative thus far.

Best Regards,
Devoted Family Farmer

Adding one more idea to "Damn... Wish I'd thought of that" file, getluky.net elucidates the differences in available Vote For Lunch programs.

Just one small step toward peace in a time of cubicle warfare.

Now that cherry season is in swing, let's take a gander at this fruit's evil doppleganger... the maraschino.

Like tiny Stepford Wives, maraschino cherries begin life as juicy tree fruits but are turned to the dark side through a process of bleaching, dying and flavoring.

A little background:

"Maraschino cherries, the kind most often used in drinks and on ice cream sundaes, are made from sweet cherries. The maraschino cherry originated in Yugoslavia and northern Italy where merchants added a liqueur to a local cherry called the 'Marasca.' This cherry product was imported to the United States in the 1890s as a delicacy to be used in the country's finest restaurants and hotels. In 1896 U.S. cherry processors began experimenting, using a domestic sweet cherry called the Royal Anne. Less liqueur was used in processing and almond oil was substituted for some of the liqueur. Finally, the liqueur was eliminated altogether. By 1920, the American maraschino cherry was so popular that it had replaced the foreign variety in the United States."

Uncle Phaedrus, self-anointed "finder of lost recipes" presents a duo of nifty DIYs for your home-brining needs (reproduced below). If you find yourself with a surfeit, may I also recommend my friend Ty's favorite cocktail adornment: Brandied Cherries

Homemade Maraschino Cherries Recipe

Ingredients
4-1/2 pounds pitted cherries
4-1/2 pounds sugar
3 cups water
juice of one lemon
1 ounce red food coloring
1 ounce almond extract

2 quarts water
1 Tbsp pickling salt
1 tsp alum


Instructions
Soak cherries overnight in heated brine (water, salt and alum).

The next morning, drain cherries. Rinse in cold water. Combine
cherries, water, sugar, lemon juice, and red coloring. Heat to
boiling point. Let stand 24 hours.

Again boil juices, pour over cherries and let stand 24 hours.
Bring to boil again. Add almond extract and cherries. Pack in
hot sterilized jars and seal.

Water Bath Time from The Ball Blue Book- pints 20 min,
quarts 25 min.
--------------------------------------
MARASCHINO CHERRIES

3 cups sugar
1 cup water
1 teaspoon red food coloring
4 cups Royal Anne sweet cherries, carefully pitted
1 teaspoon almond flavoring


Mix sugar, water and coloring. Boil 3 minutes and add cherries.
Add flavoring and cook slowly in syrup for 20 to 25 minutes,
or until juice is thickened to the consistency of jam.
Seal in sterilized jars.

My job has its perks. Last week they sent me out to visit a free-range duck farm on Long Island with the butcher, the photographer and a few important decision-makers. The ducks were healthy, terribly clean, seemingly happy and surrounded by grass, trees, sunshine, spring water, fresh breezes... all the stuff you'd hope a duck's life would entail.

Sadly, the less uplifting part of the story is that these little guys are a meat commodity. Their lives are short (just a few months) and after their speedy dispatch (a quick cut in the jugular) the ducks get dipped in parafin, stripped of their feathers (which are cleaned and used in pillows and coats) and prepared for sale.

Whole ducks for Chinese markets are prepped "Confucian-style" (whole, organs and all) and frozen, while breasts and legs for standard sale are trimmed by a loyal staff of workers who've been with this family business for years. Tongues and feet are also beloved by the Chinese restaurants, so they're frozen for sale by the pound.

This was such a meticulously clean and efficient farm, I came away with a feeling of satisfaction. My post-vegetarian guilt was assuaged. The ducks have short lives, yes, but their handful of numbered days seem pleasant, unlike the crowded, stifling chicken mills and turkey barns I've had the misfortune of encountering.

The butcher, a self-described "man at the top of his game" with more than thirty years in the business, left the farm shaking his head and sighing. "I hope someday in the future we humans won't have to do this," he said. "It's different when you get the meat on my end. You package it, and it's a product."

"But when you're here and you're looking at them... I mean, this is a beautiful farm, you know? It just seems so barbaric that we have to do this."

In competition for the deeper soul, I was out-hearted by the man who deals in death. I'm still not sure if the water rimming up in my eyes was more about fate of the ducks or my own loss of innocence.

I'm now officially in love with the herring. A trip last week to Grand Central Oyster Bar's Herring Festival struck me smitten with the briny, oily flesh of these little guys.

You see the split display with chives, egg and radish above, but my favorite item was the apple, beet, sour cream, dill pickle and herring salad off the appetizer menu. A gorgeous balance of sweet, salty, creamy, fatty and sour. Brilliant.

Two days left in the fest, so if you're inclined, don't delay.

Thanks to the news that kraut and kimchi are the new keys to virility and immortality I predict the ancient art of cabbage fermenting becomes the hot new hipster hobby, replacing crocheting, roller derby, kickball meets and scooter gangs.

Yes, that unmistakably sulfurous odor that comes only from stirring a bubbling vat of stinking crushproof vegetable will be our nation's newest aphrodisiac.

Mark my words, people. The time to buy up cabbage futures is now.

The Food Section's Josh kindly volleyed this book meme my way last week. Though I adore fiction and could go on for ages about it, I'm just going to shoot for simplicity and confine this quizlet to food.

There should be a question about essential reading here, but there's not, so I'll cheat (don't tell anyone!) and give special props to McGee's On Food and Cooking, which is amazing, The Best Recipe, which I refer to constantly and the Joy of Cooking, which should be standard issue equipment with every kitchen.

1. Total number of books I've owned
Can anyone really claim to know this with any accuracy? I'm doubtful. I'm a firm believer in the book as consumable good rather than collector's item. I use them up and give them away. That said, I do have an awful time giving up reference books, so my shelves overflow with cookbooks and dictionaries.

2. Last book I bought
Arhur Schwartz's New York City Food (Arthur Schwartz)
Pretty pictures, lots o' history, lots o' recipes... helped me get through a recent article on TriBeCa's food history.

3. Last book I read
The Botany of Desire (Michael Pollan)
Through apple, tulip, potato and pot, Pollan explores the reciprocal relationships between humans and plants. I love the idea that we're just essentially large bees. The apple section was particularly enlightening. Johnny Appleseed as patron saint of the pioneer-era benders. Who knew?

4. Five books that mean a lot to me:

The Sesame Street Cookbook (Tornborg) My first... ah! tweedleburgers!

Garlic is Life (Aaron) Another early influence illuminating an obsession with garlic that I wholeheartedly embrace.

Fish: The Basics (King) Grew up landlocked, so this is an invaluable fish guide. Love love love the drawings, recipes and background.

Larousse Gastronomique A gift upon graduation from culinary school. Made me feel like a genuine food professional for the first time.

A Moveable Feast (Hemingway) Paris. Food. Wine. Writing. Dreamy.

5. Which 5 people would you most like to see fill this out in their blog?
Adam K, Dara M, chika, Alton Brown, Heidi S

Here's my tips for surviving the 3rd annual Big Apple BBQ Block Party in NYC this weekend.

1. Show up before it begins at noon. By the time the dinner bell rings, you'd better be in line. With cash. (There's always that $100 Bubba Fast Pass for those who have money to burn, of course... and if you happen to know any of those people, please be a doll and send 'em my way.)

2. If you'd like to sample multiple 'cues (seize the day, people!), divide and conquer. Send someone out to each pit you want to taste. Have 'em buy multiple boxes.

3. Bring your own bottle of soda or water (or, hey! lemonade!) in your bag. No sense in paying a premium price and then having to carry it around. You'll need your hands for barbeque.

4. Sunscreen, sunscreen, sunscreen.

5. Bring a blanket and stake out a spot in the shade on the lawn. From there, you can listen to music, revel in your superior attack plan and pity all the poor, sweaty masses queued up for 'cue.


The Susquehanna Tool & Die Company sweat in their costumes before hitting the stage.


Don McLemore (Big Bob Gibson's grandson) slings smoky piles of pig at their mobile pit. McLemore, his wife, Caroline, and their son-in-law, Chris Lilly, have braved this madhouse event three years running.


Eleven Madison provides chocolate-chocolate cupcakes with cow and pig sprinkles.


Early attendees scarf down swine samples on the wing.

One of my coworkers came into work this morning raving about this (warning... you'll have to try not to be put off by the silly cow print): The Bialetti"Mukka Express"

It's apparently a cappuccino maker with a pressure-system frother that makes really lovely drinks. He says it's amazing and I'm pretty interested based on
1) the price (a fraction of the cost of those behemoth machines)
2) the size (petite! perfect for cramped nyc apartments!)
and 3) the fact that it breaks down far less often than regular cappuccino makers (pure conjecture on my part)

He'd heard about it from a friend and picked up one this weekend at Crate & Barrel, where the shop clerk had raved about it, saying they were having all kinds of trouble keeping 'em in stock.

You really have to watch the promotional video. Do it with the sound turned way down. It's creepy in a kind of Kubrick-esque way.

Hot day, cool soup.

Martha Stewart's May issue contained an enticing Chilled Yogurt-Spinach Soup with Shrimp.

It was pretty steamy and warm today, and although I didn't have the requisite cucumbers, Greek-style yogurt, chicken broth, red onion or fresh spinach, I really couldn't face going grocery shopping or doing any actual cooking. So I changed her recipe up quite a bit. Never fear! It's still really lovely and couldn't be faster or more satisfying on a stuffy June evening.

Served this baby up with a few steamed shrimp and felt blissful. Now if only my landlords would let me out into the backyard...

Chilled Yogurt-Spinach Soup
1 pkg frozen spinach (thawed and drained)
2 cups plain yogurt
8 oz sour cream
2 scallions (chopped roughly)
2-3 fat garlic cloves
Juice of one lime
1 Tbsp olive oil
1.5 cups light stock (I used lobster stock, but chicken would be fine)
Salt & Pepper to taste
Pea shoots for garnish

Blend spinach, yogurt, sour cream, scallions, garlic, lime juice, olive oil and stock in blender until smooth. Garnish with fresh pea shoots, chopped parsley, fresh mint, basil or maybe croutons and serve immediately.

Tired of brown-bagging cold sandwiches? Make hot, crusty pannini panini-style delights at your desk with no fuss and no mess. Real simple. I've been doing it all week and I'm hooked.

You'll need:
1 roll of aluminum foil
1 George Foreman grill or electrical waffle iron

Also: electrical socket, desk space and sandwich of your choice.

1. Plug in grill/iron. (Don't plug it into the same outlet as your computer. I'm not responsible for your productivity dive when you blow a fuse or something.)
2. Wrap sandwich in foil.
3. Toast sandwich in grill/iron for 12-16 minutes.

Some sample combos to try:

cuban sandwiches (mustard, pork, ham & swiss)

roast beef & cheddar

"rachel" sandwiches (turkey, sauerkraut, thousand-island dressing & swiss)

roasted onion, red pepper & sun-dried tomato

turkey, provolone & pesto with hummus

sauerkraut, coarse mustard & pastrami...

Easy-peasy, yummy and cheesy.

Omigod. It's like someone out there is trying to condense all my vices into one.

Via Curbed, the fight to save CBGB brings together an unlikely pugs-punks-chocolates triumvirate.

If they could somehow work coffee and garden-fresh tomatoes into the mix, I could just move to the Lower East Side and never leave.