MIA? Yes, I realize I have not written a post in quite some time. Quality over quantity though, right? Right…
I was actually pretty sick for a few weeks and couldn't even stomach most food. It was like the worst cold ever with a touch of the flu + a sinus infection. Enough said. My hunger for an appetite was literally a nagging pain and I FINALLY got it back this past week. What better way to celebrate than to hit up a super spicy Sri Lankan place and a trendy fried chicken joint in Harlem?
Enter Sigiri on Friday night. This little charm can easily be missed considering it is squished between about 3 Indian restaurants decked out in flashing and gaudy red pepper lights. If you can get past the "fireworks" and tune out the haggling "hostesses" trying to trick you into one of these places, you can glide up the stairs to this gem. It's a tiny place and there might be a wait, but man, if you can take the heat of spicy food...this is your place.
I consider myself to have a pretty dang high threshold for spicy food, but Paul can pack twice as much heat as I can. We ordered two different main dishes to share and wanted them to both be "Very Spicy" so a 4 on the scale of 5 we were offered. The waiter cackled under his breath and politely suggested we only get 1 super spicy dish and go mild on the 2nd one. Reluctantly, we agreed. If I could tell you this was the best advice ever I would, but my tears and sweaty temples told the story that night... It was WONDERFUL, but they don't joke around with their spices. SO I would only recommend those who like it HOT to attempt this for your next date night out... Although, you can get the lowest level of spice, somehow I feel it is still going to be a lot for some people to handle. BTW - we ordered the Kotthu Rotti with chicken and the beef curry (the Kotthu was amazing...and the waiter also said we should try the Chicken Lamprais).
After Friday night, I needed a spice break (if that is possible in my world) and had recently read an article in New York Magazine about some great spots in Harlem. There was a particular article chatting up "Red Rooster." It had me at fried chicken and apple pie... So for our Saturday night dinner, we ventured up to Harlem on 125th street and Lenox. Walking from the train, the neighborhood appeared quite grimy and deserted. Then out of seemingly nowhere, you open the door and enter an alternate universe that makes you feel like you walked into a cool new spot in SoHo like 40 years ago. The decor and atmosphere are a mix of the 30's, 40's and today...like old school and new school with an aura of "cool" reeking through the velvet curtains in the entrance.
The other interesting thing about this restaurant is that it was opened by a sort of well know chef, Marcus Samuelsson (a Top Chef Masters winner, among other achievements, for you Food Network snobs). He was raised on Swedish cooking and the vibrant menu items definitely bring in some of his Scandinavian upbringing...however the cool part is the mixture with traditional southern cooking. SO think Swedish meatballs and mashed potatoes to collard greens and fried chicken. AND those are exactly the two dishes we ordered. Of course we had to get the corn bread to start...slightly crunchy and sweet on the exterior and soft, warm and decadent on the inside. I am sure you can guess that we didn't pass up dessert as the apple pie was a no brainer. The crust has cheese baked into it and although this sounds slightly gross, it complements the pie in this whole new, salty + sweet = mouth wateringly good. Overall, I have to agree with NY Mag, if nothing else, go for the fried chicken and the apple pie…although, I would add AND for the fun atmosphere!
So there you have it, I am back on the food and writing wagon. Thank god as I have been drowning in GMAT studying, triathlon training, work and various other activities…I needed my “fun” thing back in my life! It just goes to show us all that it never hurts to slow down and get back to the basics to find balance.
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