more oysters (and our 15 min of J&M fame)

When we got married, there was such a whirlwind of planning that engagement photos did not make the priority list. I've often had regrets about this and so to celebrate our third anniversary I wanted a NYC photo shoot with fabulous New Haven-based Justin & Mary Marantz. I had no problems drumming up location ideas for this shoot: Tudor City, Campbell Aparment, Grand Central Terminal, NY Public Library & Bryant Park. The High Line opened a few days later, but sunset on the West Side would have been a killer spot as well!

The list goes on and on, but my favorite location is still the Oyster Bar. My first time inside this restaurant was on a tour with Andrew Dolkart in '97 when I studied architecture at Columbia, but it was my husband who first introduced me to oysters. Though these bivalves have Manhattan skyline-high prices, I think the Oyster Bar is a magical place to sample from a large selection of oysters and to take a breather from the hustle and bustle of the train terminal.

You can see more our day in the City at >http://www.justinmarantz.com/index.cfm?postID=227

lost and found

D's mom found some old documents at home. A letter (1873) and a family marriage certicate from the beautiful Church of the Transfiguration, in New York City (1935). I thought this illustration looked familiar and I went and dug up my AIA guide to New York City and there it was, starred and tabbed with a hot pink post-it note on that very entry for the Little Church Around the Corner. I remember passing it the semester I studied at Columbia. It's such a charming low slung building in the heart of the City I always wanted to go back and check it out.


The Church of the Transfiguration
"The Little Church Around the Corner"
One East 29th Street
(Fifth & Madison)
New York, New York
http://www.littlechurch.org

tudor city

Yesterday I got into the City a little early before meeting a friend for lunch at Momofuku Noodle Bar. I remembered Tudor City was not far away and love this neighborhood perched above 42nd Street. We first went there for dinner at L'impero in 2004... Now I see the restaurant is still Italian, but called Convivio. We will have to check it out. This morning i opened the latest Food+Wine and it was a featured New York restaurant.

Convivio
45 Tudor City Place
NY, NY 10017

no time to tarry

There was a lot of chatter when Mario Batali & Joe Bastianich came to Port Chester, NY last fall. I was curious, but thought the new restaurant would be crowded during the holiday season and might need some time to settle in. Months later the Tarry Lodge website is still non-existent, but you can get the lowdown in their press kit pdf and easily see they have a strong brand going. From the pizza box to the wonderful round business cards... I love the black, white & goldenrod that is is dead-on consistent everywhere you look. I declared that our leftovers were packed up in the most appealing pizza box ever, but my husband corrected me. The flimsy pizza box from Pepe's in New Haven is a beautiful sight to behold.


















But I digress...
We had an 8:30 reservation (try opentable) for 4 on a Friday night. After leaving the parking to the valet and any cumbersome layers to coat-check, the hostess dispatched us to the bar for a cramped (standing room only) 20 min wait. Everything improved dramatically once we were seated at a corner table on the elevated level behind the bar. The waitstaff rewarded with a complimentary round of "Fleur" champagne for our troubles. Tarry Lodge has a very comfortable, warm & inviting atmosphere. It was full up at 9 PM which I partially attribute to the chef's reputation and the pizza and pasta dinner options for under $20. In this economy, it's great to sample a wider variety sharable food without having to ordering a full dinner entree.

Some of our table favorites were the pizza with goat cheese, sliced potato and pancetta, the calamari paired with isreali couscous and a pappardelle bolognese. Ordinarily I would never order such a simple pasta dish, but our waiter wisely steered us in the right direction.

What's still on my mind?
Fusilli alla crazy bastard which Food + Wine revealed was inspired by the New Yorker cartoon. I can't explain why, but I've always loved this rigatoni (on the telephone) so much that I frequently repeat the caption out loud whenever I see spiral shaped pasta.


"Fusilli, you crazy bastard! How are you?"


Tarry Lodge
18 Mill Street
Port Chester, NY 10573
914.939.3111
tarrylodge.com