Oops.

From the article located here.

THE SALTIEST FOOD IN AMERICA
P.F. Chang’s Hot and Sour Soup Bowl
6,878 mg sodium
336 calories
12 g fat (2 g saturated)

Sodium Equivalent: 208 saltine crackers

P.F. Chang's has published their nutrition facts for years without providing sodium counts for basic menu items, which was cause for concern and—as it turns out—justified suspicion. Chinese food tends to run high on the sodium spectrum because of its reliance on viscous stir-fry sauces and salt-laden condiments like soy sauce. But this an unfathomable amount of salt to pack into one 336-calorie bowl of soup. The sad truth is that unless you stick to vegetable sides and small servings of a select few entrees (Crispy Honey Chicken, Orange Peel Beef, Lemon Scallops), you’re all but guaranteed to absorb one or more day’s worth of sodium in a single sitting at P.F. Chang’s.

Oops. Well, okay. But it's darn good soup.

On a side note, if you haven't seen Eat This, Not That
it's quite good! I own a copy, and find myself constantly staggered by the statistics.

Quote of the Day

We went to Maya last night for a family dinner to celebrate Priya & Vinny's Anniversary. (Which means that it was me, Ash, Priya, Vinny and Prammy--it's so cool when your sister's marriage now means your family dinners involve some of your greatest friends.) :-)

In any case, we found ourselves talking briefly about the suspect in the "Craigslist Killer" case, as he is a BU medical student. There were a lot of great comments, but one made all of us burst out laughing, so I thought I'd share it.

Prammy: "Well, it's obvious that guy isn't going to get a residency."

For anyone who knows (either first-hand or through a loved one) the stress involved with getting a medical residency or fellowship, it's funny just to think about what his application would look like. I'm still laughing just thinking about it...

As for Maya--fantastic entrees, thumbs down on the desserts. (We ordered four different ones, and none was above average. Instead, walk to Payard.)

Blue Smoke

My experiences at Danny Meyer's restaurants have been mixed. I absolutely love Shake Shack, but I found Tabla's Bread Bar to be a huge disappointment. Union Square Cafe was somewhere in the middle. However, I heard great things about Blue Smoke, so Ash and I decided to venture out there on Sunday night. (It's on 27th between Park and Lex.) There is a jazz bar downstairs, but we stayed upstairs, where the atmosphere was what you'd expect for a barbecue place, but somewhat cozy at the same time.

Overall, I definitely would go back, but for a few choice items. The reviews all said the ribs were something to stay away from, and since I only eat chicken, that wasn't really a problem. I stuck to side dishes, and Ash tested out the chicken. Here's what we ordered:

Applewood Smoked Chicken (served with mashed potatoes)
Eh. Well cooked, but nothing to write home about. The mashed potatoes were very average. Ash liked the chicken enough to bring some home, so I guess it was good.

Macaroni and Cheese
Yum--I'd get it again. Now be warned--it does NOT have a crispy top. It's more of the creamy-type mac and cheese, but it was burned on the top. If you stay on the website long enough, you'll see a picture of it. It looked exactly like the picture. Tasted like it had been sauteed with onions for a long time--delicious! And they give you enough for it to be an entree for one person.

Fry Bread
Get this. It was the second best thing we ordered. There were four pieces of fry bread (picture fried dough, but lighter and fluffier) served with chipotle butter. Yum. It gave me a stomach ache, as I don't really eat much fried food, but it was totally worth it.

Cornbread
Pass. Not bad, but by no means great. I wouldn't get it again.

Biscuits and Gravy
This wasn't on the menu, but we asked for it. The biscuits were good, and the gravy was average (chicken gravy, for those who are wondering). I'm still back and forth on whether I'd get it again.

And the best thing we ordered...

Sticky Toffee Pudding
This dessert is not a dessert I would typically order. However, I like to read reviews of restaurants before I go, just to see if something is repeatedly mentioned, and this was. And they were right. It was delicious. Sweet with a tiny bit of salt--yum. Both of us were stuffed (we were debating passing on dessert), but we cleaned off the plate. Definitely order it. It's not really a pudding--it has more of a cake-like consistency.

Next time I will definitely try the beignets for dessert--if the fry bread was that good, they must be amazing. But the sticky toffee pudding was certainly a welcome surprise, so I don't regret that decision. And, next time I'll probably get both. I can't not get the sticky toffee pudding now that I know how good it is.

I think our game plan will be to head to Blue Smoke for dessert after eating at one of the many Murray Hill indian restaurants. The "regular" food didn't blow me away, and indian restaurants don't really have great desserts. So, this would be the best of both worlds. Blue Smoke does have a cool "dessert sampler" platter that has five different desserts--seems like it'd be great for a few people to share.

Long story short--not absolutely fantastic, but not bad either. It certainly doesn't break the bank. Our bill came to $52. (No drinks, but we had enough for 4 people to eat--my eyes might have been bigger than my stomach.) But, if you're in the area, give it a whirl. Order the fry bread, and definitely stay for dessert!

Exciting Weekend!

It doesn't take a lot to get me excited. The weather was absolutely gorgeous in Manhattan yesterday, so Ash and I started the day with lunch at Tiffin Walah (great south indian food), and then strolled up Fifth Avenue. It was a beautiful day, but that wasn't all!

Saturday evening was spent at Priya and Vinny's, watching the NCAA tournament. This tournament is quite stressful--not because I follow basketball, but because I love to eat. For the past few years a bunch of us have been "betting" dinner on the tournament. Bottom half cooks the entrees, and top half (minus the winner) has to cook the dessert of the winner's choice. (There is also trash talking and bragging rights involved, but that's nothing new...) It is a great excuse to get together, and also adds excitement for all of us who don't really follow the NCAA. This time around, there are three people who can potentially win the bracket, all with very different dessert preferences. Desserts in the past have been brownie sundaes and s'mores, both of which I can get around. If UConn had won, we'd be eating Vinny's dessert--it'd probably have something to do with fruit (bananas is my best guess). If UNC loses the finals, Rahul will win (I think), which means the dessert will involve walnuts...blah. However, if UNC wins the finals, Priya gets to choose, and it will DEFINITELY involve chocolate. (Not to mention if UNC wins, I am high enough up in the rankings that I don't have to cook entrees--score!) So, let's all root for UNC tonight!

Now, back to my excitement--two super exciting things. One--Priya taught me how to make chocolate mousse!! We'll see if it actually comes out as good when I have to watch out for stiff peaks vs. soft peaks with a hand blender--it all seems a bit tricky. However, she learned a great recipe from a chef, and then taught it to me in between the two basketball games Saturday night. I, in turn, can't stop eating it. Yum!

Second, I think I may have found a place to order my favorite enchilada sauce! Enchilada sauce is one thing I can't master--I've tried recipe after recipe from scratch, but it never ends up tasting as good as El Rio's Hot Enchilada Sauce. (See picture--though the picture is of the "mild" kind--not as good.) I used to buy El Rio when I lived on the Upper West Side, but now no one in the city seems to carry it. They carry El Rio Nacho Cheese Sauce (cheese? in a can?) and other El Rio products, but not the enchilada sauce. I tried Old El Paso (the yellow can), but it did not even come close. It was much thinner than El Rio, and didn't have as much flavor. Yesterday I randomly googled where I could purchase it online, and it seems Hannaford started an online grocery store! So, I placed an order for a case of the sauce (yes, a case--it's THAT good!) I'll keep you posted when it arrives! If you happen to see it in your grocery store, definitely give it a try! You'll never need to order restaurant enchiladas again...

So exciting!

Zagat Time!

Sometimes I don't post for two weeks, then I post twice in one day. Ah, well, so it goes.

In any case, it's Zagat time! If you don't know how it works--all you have to do is register and rate NYC restaurants (one or one hundred, doesn't matter), and then once the analysis is done, you'll get a free copy of the book! I believe this year you can also opt out of receiving the book and receive a 90-day free subscription to zagat.com instead. In case you want to make your voice count, the link is below:

Zagat Open Surveys
(I believe the NYC one closes on May 17th. Be sure to finalize and submit your votes, otherwise they won't be submitted and you won't get your book!)

A Story

I heard Kenny Moore, author of The CEO and the Monk: One Company's Journey to Profit and Purpose, speak at JetBlue this morning. Though much of what he said stuck with me, I wanted to share one of his personal examples.

He talked about how you can do whatever you choose, as long as you're willing to live with the consequences. Simple enough, right? Then he told a story about what happened when he said that to his six-year old son. It went something like this...

Son: (Jumping on the bed)
Dad: Stop jumping on the bed!
Son: (Continues to jump on the bed)
Dad: If you don't stop jumping on the bed, you're going to break the bed. Stop jumping on the bed!
Son: (Continues to jump on the bed)
Dad: Okay, forget the bed. If you don't stop jumping, you're going to break your leg! Stop it!
Son: (Continues to jump on the bed)
Dad: Okay, you know what. You can keep jumping on the bed all you like. You'll just have to live with the consequences. (Walks out of room)
Son: (Stops jumping on the bed, runs after Dad, almost in tears) But I don't want to live with the consequences. I want to live here.

I'm still smiling even as I type it. So cute. :-)

Happy Birthday to Me!

I had a fantastic birthday. I have the greatest family, the sweetest friends, and I am touched every year by all those who call/email/facebook/text message me good wishes. I am terrible at remembering birthdays, so it really does mean a lot.

My birthday for the past few years has typically consisted of going to work and then going out to dinner with Ash, Priya and Vinny. This year, Ash was on vacation on my birthday, so I figured I'd take the day off too. Since Priya and Vinny both had to work into the evening today, they took us out to dinner on Sunday night for an early celebration. That left my actual birthday to do, well, whatever I wanted!

So what did my day consist of? I had to double check with Ash that you can't cause diabetes by eating too much sugar all at once. (Luckily, as far as he knows, you can't.) Here's the rundown:

7:00 am- Woke up and picked up a few phone calls from family and from India.
8:30 am- Ash sang happy birthday with a candle in a slice of PF Chang's "Great Wall of Chocolate" cake. (Cake before breakfast...does it really get better than that?)
11:00 am- Bloomingdale's for 40 carrots frozen yogurt. (I got a coffee smoothie, Ash got the pina colada one. His might have been better.)
12:00 pm- Museum of Natural History
4:00 pm- Levain Bakery for a variety of cookies. I can never decide which one to get--today, I just got all of them! Hands down, best cookies in Manhattan. (I can't remember if this was due to Swati or Sameer--but whoever said it, totally right!)
5:30 pm- Nanoosh for hummus and pita to soak up some of the sugar
6:30 pm- Magnolia Bakery to pick up banana pudding and apple crisp
7:30 pm- Went to Priya's to eat the Magnolia desserts (Vin- the banana pudding is surprisingly good. I'd get it again!)

So yes, I had frozen yogurt, delicious cookies that weigh half a pound, and banana pudding all in one day. And I'd do it again. (Ash was kind enough to indulge me all day--he actually ate everything with me. Such a good sport.) It was delicious. Good thing my birthday is only once a year, or I'd weigh 600 pounds. Happy birthday to me! :-)