Good Earth Winery

When you dine at an Italian trattoria, what might you drink? Si, bella - vino italiano! When eating at a Greek taverna, which wine might be your first choice? Probably one from Athens, Santorini, or Thessaloniki. So what wine do you choose when you go out for Indian cuisine? Uh...something from New Zealand or California, I guess.

So, you may have noticed Indian wines aren't a big thing here in the US of A. Well, allow me to introduce you to the one with which I have some level of familiarity: Reader? Meet Good Earth Winery.  Good Earth Winery? Meet reader. I think you are going to get along just fine.

My friend's father (Hi, friend! Hi, her father!) started this winery a short time ago in the Nashik region of India, which (if the interwebs are to be believed) is sometimes referred to as the "wine capital of India." Its wines were ready for introduction to Mumbai one year ago and have just launched in the US this month. I have, of course, heard about the venture from my (vaguely) aforementioned friend, but her (also vaguely) aforementioned father invited me to a tasting of the first vintage at Tabla last week (Tabla, as you may remember, avid reader, was briefly mentioned in this post a couple weeks back). I was honored to attend, and I have news to report: it's good stuff! Would have made for some awkward interactions with said friend afterward if it wasn't, huh?

Three wines were available from the 2008 vintage: Basso and Brio (two reds from the Concerto collection) as well as Aarohi (a white wine from the Raga collection). Now it's time for a breakdown (like the girls at 3:04). Basso is made with Cabernet Sauvignon grapes and aged in oak barrels; Brio is made from Shiraz and also aged in oak barrels; Aarohi uses Sauvignon Blanc grapes and ferments in stainless steel.

I am by no means a wine critic, sommelier, steward, or snob, but I can say with the utmost certainty that these were great. Getting paired with delicious offerings from Chef Floyd Cardoz didn't hurt their case either. (Oxtail ragu over mashed potatoes, mushrooms on polenta, and hamachi tartare? Yes, yes, and well, I was allergic to an ingredient in that last one, but it looked tasty too). When it comes to wine, I am predominantly a drinker of dry whites. I ultimately found the medium bodied Aarohi to be grassy and interesting in a good way. I'm looking forward to trying it again with seafood, as Good Earth Winery recommends enjoying a chilled glass with salads, prawns, and fish. Considering how infrequently I opt for red, I am happy to report I thoroughly enjoyed the medium bodied Brio and bolder Basso. Both had a hint of smokiness, but the Brio was a little spicy, while the Basso was more complex (encompassing pepper, fruit, and an overall smoothness). Surprisingly (to me alone), the Basso may have been my favorite of the night.

When it comes down to it, you don't have to eat food and drink wine from the same country during a meal, and, let's be honest, you don't have to pair wine with anything at all - an evening at home with some bottles and buddies works just as nicely. However, if you are itching to try Indian wine, it is nice to know that you may soon have the opportunity to do so at a restaurant near you. Selections from Good Earth Winery are also now available at several wine shops throughout Manhattan. Rumor has it they may sell for less than $20 a bottle, so whether you drink it with Indian, Austrian, Moroccan, or Swedish food, it is a sound choice all around.

Levain Bakery

In a city not hurting for bakeries, it sometimes takes a gimmick to get noticed (see Crumbs' enormous cupcakes or Magnolia's old-fashioned vibe - though don't get me wrong, I ain't mad at those joints either). However, Levain Bakery doesn't offer tricks so much as unique options, and those options are damn good. Ok, so they have cookies the size of softballs, but I promise there is more to this place than that.

In 1994, while Pam Weekes and Connie McDonald were training for an Ironman triathlon, they determined a good way to curb their constant hunger was with gigantic cookies. The women opened Levain on the Upper West Side in 1995 and have been selling six-ounce mounds of awesome ever since. The cookie exteriors are crispy, while the interiors are soft, and when eaten straight from the oven, they are a pleasantly gooey mess. The four varieties include walnut chocolate chip, dark chocolate chocolate chip, dark chocolate peanut butter chip, and oatmeal raisin. They cost $4 each at last check, and all were buttery enough to grease through the bag in which they were sold.

Maybe cookies aren't your style though (weirdo), so there are other reasons to swing by. The bomboloncini (not to be confused with the Gipsy Kings' breakout hit Bamboleo) are certainly worth a trip. They are essentially jelly donuts but are baked instead of fried and filled with tangy raspberry jam instead of miscellaneous red gel. Dusted with powdered sugar, the bomboloncini are a stellar combination of sweet, sour, and delicious.

Other baked selections include scones, olive herb semolina, ciabatta, cinnamon brioche, Valrhona stuffed sourdough, pizza-esque breads topped with the likes of artichoke and gruyere, blueberry muffins, and sour cream coffee cake. Levain cinnamon buns (served only in the morning) have been featured on Oprah, and former NYTimes restaurant critic, Frank Bruni, has waxed poetic on their baguettes with butter and jam (also typically a morning treat). The aforementioned cookies have been featured on various television programs and even won a Throwdown on the Food Network against Bobby Flay. Bottom line, you won't be disappointed - unless you order coffee, and they sell you lukewarm swill, which happened to me once, as these things sometimes do.

Levain Bakery is located on West 74th Street off the corner of Amsterdam Avenue. It is a tiny space down a few steps from the sidewalk, and there is little room in which to maneuver before hitting the display case. The ultimate goal is to reach this case to place your order, so that's not necessarily a bad thing. Behind the counter, you see the bakery in motion, as trays of cookies and other goodies are pulled from the oven before thine eyes. You may choose to revel in the appetizing aromas by eating on a stool by the counter below the window, but odds are you'll want to get the hell out of every other customer's way and eat elsewhere in peace. There's a bench outside if you can't wait long to find that peace...and by "find that peace" I mean "eat your cookie."

Stop by Levain for lunch when you have a hankering for something savory (hi, chive and goatcheese sourdough pizza), or swing through when you need to bring something sweet to a party (four cookies can probably sate eight to twelve people), but be sure to go early before they sell out of particular crowd-pleasers (bomboloncini, I'm looking at you). It must be noted Levain's goods are not cheap, but at least you get some pretty sizable, freshly baked bang for your buck (leftovers are donated every evening to charities). There is a second Levain location in Harlem and a third out in East Hampton, though the Hamptons outlet is only open seasonally (usually from July through Labor Day). Here, they sell rustic fruit tarts not available in the city, but I guess everyone's gotta have a gimmick.

Levain Bakery - 167 West 74th Street, between Amsterdam & Columbus Avenues
Levain Bakery - 2167 Frederick Douglass Boulevard, at West 117th Street
Levain Bakery (East Hampton) - 354 Montauk Highway, Wainscott, New York

Brunch, Part 3 - Splurge Edition

It is time once again to talk about that cherished New York past time - brunch. (Click here for brunch post numero uno and here for la deuxieme. Also, feel free to be impressed by my foreign language skills in that last sentence). Today's theme is splurging. Now, you can certainly leave the following two restaurants having paid a reasonable amount, but you will most likely walk away thinking, "What did I just do?" The sizable entrees are sufficient to get you through the day, but odds are you won't stop there. Hey, when brunch sirens call, (snacks, baked goods, sides, desserts, and cocktails), nobody blames you for giving in to temptation. Well, maybe some people do, but I would never. [Insert high-five here].

1) Cookshop - 156 10th Avenue, at the corner of West 20th Street

Cookshop feels both industrial and warm. What appears to be a polished cement floor is topped with wood tables sporting white surfaces and straight-backed chairs. This, along with a metal encased light hanging over the bar area, gives the room a modern edge. The cranberry banquettes, wall-mounted chalkboard, and potted plants (not to mention the tree in the center of the room) soften that edge. Then there are the impressive floor-to-ceiling windows that serve as the barrier to both 10th Avenue and West 20th Street - if the coffee doesn't wake you up, all that natural light certainly will.

So what do we have here? Pancakes and egg dishes (Cookshop Scramble, I adore your over sized biscuit, your silken eggs with creme fraiche and caramelized onions, and the option of smoked salmon) will run you $12-$15. However, you might want to start your meal with a snack ($5-$11). Say, deviled eggs or sunchoke soup? But you also like the sound of those baked goods - pecan sticky buns, banana bread, a currant scone. Mayhaps a bakery basket for $12? How about sides ($3-$6)? The white cheddar grits are too good to pass up. Will you have room for dessert ($7-$9)? For a coffee cream donut, you make room. You haven't forgotten about cocktails though, and at this point, what's another $12? After a potent strawberry caipirinha, you probably won't mind at all.

When can you indulge? According to the restaurant's website, brunch is available Saturday and Sunday from 11am until 3pm. Walk-ins are welcome, but you'll be better off making a reservation beforehand. Here's a helpful hint, friends - if you have an opentable account, you can make a reservation mere minutes before heading over (provided they still have room). When you arrive, you'll find patrons waiting for a table at which they could have already been sitting if they had just gone online first. Suckers.

2) Freemans - End of Freeman Alley off Rivington Street, between Bowery & Chrystie Street

First off, Freemans is in a unique location on the Lower East Side. With no real address, you find it by first going to Rivington Street between Bowery and Chrystie Street. When you come to an alley about halfway down the block, turn into it and walk to the end. This will lead you to a country style, wood-and-glass door beneath a web of strung-up lightbulbs. It's hard not to feel like you're in on a secret here, and depending on your mood, it can all feel a little magical. Once inside, however, it's all hipsters and taxidermy - but in a good way.

Sitting next to plaid button-downs and Keds while under stuffed geese and antlers, it's time to get down to business. Main dishes include frittatas and sandwiches, pancakes and waffles, which come in at a reasonable $10-$14. You know you're not going to stop there, though. First off, there are Devils on Horseback ($6) and salad options ($10-11), but I'm personally going to order the hot artichoke dip with crisp bread ($10). It is so good that if it wasn't such a waste, I'd want to rub it all over myself - especially after it cools down. (Awkward pause). Brunch may not be complete without a side of thick-cut bacon ($4) or stone-ground cheddar cheese grits ($5), but what about dessert? Don't mind if I do. I'll order the hot chocolate brownie, while you get the bananas foster with rum butterscotch sauce (both $9). We'll wash it all down with Stumptown coffee, and, sure, let's get finely crafted cocktails. They're $12 unless you go for something straight up off the extensive liquor list. I like to mask my mid-day booze with juice and various accoutrements, but to each his own (and other cliches).

According to their website, Freemans is open for brunch on Saturdays, Sundays, and holidays from 10am until 4pm. They only accept reservations for parties of six or more, so if you can't wrangle that many reliable dining partners, your best bet is to walk in with a small group and be prepared to wait. Parties will not be seated until all are present, so tell that one friend who's always late an earlier time than need be, or just cut him out of the equation altogether. Sounds harsh, but there's excessive dining to be done, and that artichoke dip waits for no man.