Wii's Competive Eating Game Launch

Posted by Sarah DiGregorio at 2:51 PM, May 20, 2008

As far as competitive eating goes, I thought watermelon would be pretty tame. Turns out, not so much. It's a big mess, actually.

I went to Nintendo World at Rockefeller Center today to watch Tim "Eater X" Janus and Crazy Legs Conti battle it out with watermelon slices both real and virtual. That screen shot above is Crazy Legs and Eater X's Wii doppelgangers, eating burritos. (I couldn't get one showing the watermelon, so you'll just have to use your imagination.)

First, the two eaters battled it out with real watermelon, then they played the new Wii competitive eating game, their cartoon likenesses downing virtual watermelon on the screen.

The reality-based competition (as the Bush administration would call it) was highly entertaining. Watermelon has a lot of bulk to it. The two of them went at it like chipmunks, their cheeks stuffed and juice pouring down their chins. In a big upset, Crazy Legs, who is lower ranked than Eater X, won the 6 minute competition. He prevailed by one bite—15 wedges to 15 wedges and one bite. Drama!

Then the two played the new Wii competitive eating game, which actually looks like it might get old really quickly (although watching people play video games is always dull). Basically, you pick up the food (watermelon in this case) with a movement of your hand, and then place it in your mouth and chew by hitting the "B" button. You have to keep track of your "barf-o-meter" though, because if you throw up ("suffer an unfortunate reversal) you loose. You can out-wit your opponent by doing things like burping at him or her. Gross. Anyway! The virtual Crazy Legs threw up all his watermelon, leaving Eater X the overall winner of the day.

Eater X and Crazy Legs are actually roommates. (I'm profiling them as they prepare for Nathan's Hot Dog Contest on July 4th, so check in the paper for that story this summer.)

Hedonism at Lincoln Center

Posted by Sarah DiGregorio at 8:26 AM, May 20, 2008

Wine Enthusiast's Toast of the Town was at Lincoln Center last night. It was the sort of thing where way too many tipsy people were lurching around, trying to juggle wine glasses and plates of food. But hey, I was tipsy too, so I can't complain. There were hundreds of different wines to taste and plenty of food from restaurants around the city.

The best dishes:
Thalassa's raw diver scallops with roe mousse
Ilili's lamb dumplings with minted yogurt and fried sweetbreads
Devi's mushrooms with fenugreek on brioche toasts

We also really liked Fess Parker's Pinot Noirs and just about every Champagne, because I'm a sucker like that.

I also tried Serendipity's frozen hot chocolate, for the first time—that's the stuff that everyone stands in line for? It tasted like a frappuccino to me.

Free Cheese!

Posted by Sarah DiGregorio at 12:09 PM, April 24, 2008

I have never heard of "cheese season," but apparently, we are in it! To celebrate my new favorite season, the Pecorino Romano Festival will be kicking off tomorrow and continuing through next week.

Taste This TV’s Chef Joseph Ciminera and other New York chefs will be offering free cheesy pasta (presumably made with Pecorino Romano) at events at restaurants around town. Free. Cheesy pasta.

More info is here.

The free cheesy pasta schedule, after the jump.

Friday, April 25th 10:00am Remi Lounge (145 West 53rd St.)
1:00pm UVA (1486 2nd Ave.)
2:00pm Grotto (100 Forsyth St.)


Saturday, April 26th 10:00am Bistro Milano (1350 Avenue of the Americas at 55th St ).
1:00pm Grifone (244 East 46th St.)
2:00pm Il Nido (251 East 53rd St.)
4:00pm Cabana Restaurant (1034 West Beech St.)

Sunday, April 27th 10:00am Abboccato (136 West 55th St.)
1:00pm Aleo (7 West 20th St.)
5:00pm Café Toscano (746 North Broadway)

Monday, April 28th
11:00am Da Filippo (1315 Second Ave. near 69th St.)
12:00pm Lunetta (920 Broadway)
1:00pm Gino (780 Lexington Ave at 61st St.)
2:30pm ESPN Zone (1472 Broadway)

Tuesday, April 29th 11:00am Garage (99 7th Ave. South)
1:00pm Cibo (767 Second Ave. at 41st St.)
2:00pm Da Silvano (260 6th Ave. near Bleecker St.)
3:00pm Elio's (1621 Second Ave. near 84th St.)

Wednesday, April 30th 10:00am ROC (190A Duane St.)
1:00pm One If by Land, Two if by Sea (17 Barrow St.)
1:00pm In Vino (215 E. 4th St. nr. Ave. B)
4:00pm Intermezzo (202 Eighth Ave. nr. 20th St.)
4:00pm Baci & Abbracci (204 Grand Street)

Thursday, May 1st 10:00am Macelleria (48 Gansevoort St.)
1:00pm Islero (247 E 50th St. Btwn 2nd & 3rd Ave)

"Sleeping with the Fishes"

Posted by Sarah DiGregorio at 12:00 PM, April 7, 2008

I was looking through the list of events for Brooklyn's Cherry Blossom Festival (May 3-4), when I came across an event called "Sleeping with the Fishes," a sushi pillow photo op.

So yes, it turns out that not only will there be a photo op with sushi pillows, but also this photo op with sushi pillows will be five hours long.

The pillows come in either nigiri or roll varieties, and you can also get extras like a soy sauce packet pillowcase. Their website, here.

Overpriced and silly, yes, but smitten, totally smitten.

Most Creative Peanut Butter Sandwich

Posted by Sarah DiGregorio at 4:37 PM, March 20, 2008

Behold the Most Creative Peanut Butter Sandwich!

Today at the Culinary Loft in SoHo, Jif held its sixth annual Most Creative Peanut Butter Sandwich Contest. Emerging victorious was 11-year-old Samuel Sosa, who is sixth grade at Loma Vista Middle School in Riverside, California.

Sammy won a $25,000 college scholarship fund. And his sandwich looks pretty great. The recipe after the jump.

Crunchy Chinese Fortune Cookie Sandwich
Yield: 4 sandwiches
Ingredients:

Chinese Dipping Sauce:
1/4 cup Jif Creamy Peanut Butter
1/4 cup coconut milk
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon sesame oil
1/2 teaspoon chili powder

4 slices of wheat bread

Sandwich Mix:
3 tablespoons Jif® Creamy Peanut Butter
1 tablespoon finely diced celery
1 tablespoon finely diced apple

Directions:
To make the dipping sauce, combine all ingredients in small saucepan and cook over low heat while stirring with a wire wisk. When the mixture starts to bubble and thicken, remove from heat and let cool.

While the dipping sauce is cooling, roll flat with a rolling pin the four slices of bread. Use a large circle shaped cookie cutter to cut out each slice of bread into a circle. Mix the 3 sandwich mix ingredients together in a small bowl. Place a tablespoon full of mix into the center of each circle shaped piece of bread. Fold the bread in half so the sandwich is now a half circle. Crimp the edges of the sandwich together with your fingers so the mix will not come out. Then, while holding the center of the sandwich, pull the sides of the sandwich down so the edges touch each other, forming a fortune cookie shape.

Cut extra apple and celery slices to eat with the Chinese dipping sauce.

To make fortunes for your fortune cookies, use a clean plastic lid from a tub of butter, yogurt, or sour cream. Cut small plastic strips, then write your fortune on them with a permanent marker. Tuck the edge of the fortune into the edge of your cookies to make them real fortune cookie sandwiches.

Once the dipping sauce is cool, serve the crunchy Chinese cookie sandwiches with their fortunes, and apple and celery slices on a plate with a cup of dipping sauce. Dip the sandwiches and the apple and celery slices into the sauce, and you have a great after school snack that was fun to make and eat!

Choice Eats—'All I Could Do Was Lay Down'

Posted by Sarah DiGregorio at 3:33 PM, March 12, 2008

Last night's Choice Eats event, featuring samples from over 30 of Our Man Sietsema's favorite restaurants, was pretty amazing, if we do say so. Two gigantic rooms filled with tasty things like jerk chicken, beef rendang and barbecued pastrami make for a good night out.

See it for yourself, here

Choice Eats on the boards and blogs:

Worth a visit [Chowhound]

Around the world, down the gullet [Grubstreet]

Something for everyone [Gothamist]

"Copious amounts of food and alcohol..."[Chowhound]