italian eats...

started all my followups this week…started with a sonogram which was all good! all good!!! what a great thing to hear. clear, nothing. boring is good :)

to celebrate i met my friend, michael at marea for lunch at the bar. marea has one of the grooviest looking bars…its a translucent marble i think that is lit from underneath…very modern feeling. and the food….we started with the 3 crudos - fluke, tuna and snapper - all clean and small bites but nothing that amazing. esca’s crudo’s are all better….

michael ordered the lobster, burrata appetizer which, if i go again, i am so getting. it’s a decadent way to start your meal and is memorable!

then i had the signature pasta - fusilli with bone marrow and octopus braised in a red wine sauce. kind of a new, modern take on a bolognese. again, i wouldn’t get that again - while it was good and i’m glad i had it, i’d go for something else next time. just a little weird and rich for my palate. michael had the gnochetti with ruby red shrimp and beans. it was delicious!

the dessert is what blew us away..we had the crostata di cioccolata. amazing.the

best part about the meal though, was catching up with my old friend who jets in and out of the states and seems to have a knack for being around after doctor’s appointments.

last night, though, i went to the cookery in dobbs ferry. is you live in westchester, you must go. ….i thought the food there was BETTER than marea’s….it’s a little more homier- dark wood and kind of pubby looking. i think the winner last night was the dirty rice - duck liver sauteed into rice with a poached egg that was dipped in panko and fried on top. omg …wanted to lick the plate. hard to beat their fried scarmozo cheese which is one of my favorite dishes but i think the dirty rice wins.

we also had the baby arugula salad, the meatballs and their special pasta - ricotta, squash and pancetta…and the stripped bass….and their dessert - butta nutta pie (??) was like a creamier version of milk bar’s crack pie.

i have to say i love the way they divide wine - it’s by price point - you have your choice of a $9, $10, or $11 glass of wine. perfect!

don’t want to go on too much about it, as it’s still accessible to the common folk and you can still get a table during the week!

also, so much more affordable than marea.