So Bittersweet.

I was watching Guy Fieri on the Food Network this morning, and a commercial came on with a familiar voice. (Once you go to Graffiti a few times, you can quickly pick up on Jehangir Mehta's unique accent.) I thought it was a repeat of his Iron Chef show, but I was wrong! He is actually competing on the Next Iron Chef series that premieres tonight on the Food Network! (The winner becomes an Iron Chef--Michael Symon was the winner of the first season.)

How bittersweet. I love Jehangir Mehta, so I really hope he wins! But, on the other hand, I love eating his food at Graffiti, and I love having him come over to our table. That's probably going to disappear. :-( His appearance on Iron Chef has already made it near impossible to get reservations at the restaurant--I loved when it was our secret hole-in-the-wall place that very few people knew about. Ah well, so it goes. At least we got to experience it numerous times, and I even got to purchase a cookbook from him--not from a bookstore, but him as an individual. So cool.

Now, I can't be mad. I do recall telling him to try out for Top Chef while we were eating there once with Priya and Vinny. (That's when he told us he had just finished filming his Iron Chef episode.) But you can't blame me--his food is fantastic! I dream about the paneer and the lychee martini, and our family's "pau bhaji" lovers (Priya & Ash) rave about the tamarind buns. I'm sure hundreds of diners probably said the same thing...and now we're all paying for it. Crap.

If you haven't yet been to Graffiti, be sure to call ahead of time to see if he's going to be working. Though the food is amazing on its own, his presence adds a really unique element to the dining experience. Either way, go soon while you still can! And don't forget to watch tonight--the Next Iron Chef on the Food Network, Sunday nights at 9:00. All selfishness aside, I'll be rooting for him the whole way!

Talk about service!

Last week we went to Roy's in Desert Ridge, AZ. Priya and Vinny went to the flagship location in Hawaii, and said the seafood was amazing. I don't eat seafood, but Ash enjoys it, and I was looking forward to their signature hot chocolate souffle, so we made a reservation. :-) FYI--though this is a "chain" restaurant, each menu is different, as each branch depends on local ingredients. There are a few signature items that you'll find on each menu, but other than that, each restaurant is its own.

We happened to visit the one in Desert Ridge, so I can only speak for that location. The food was fantastic. I mean fan-tas-tic. Aside from that, the service was impeccable. The restaurant was located in the JW Marriott resort, which was beautiful, and the outdoor seating area had a fire pit and tiki torches, while the inside had cozy booths. Due to the ninety degree weather, we ate inside, and were pleased all around.

Ash kept raving about the butterfish he had for the remainder of the trip, so we almost debated going back for a second meal. However, we wanted to try other places, so we chose not to. When we picked up our mail upon our return, we found a postcard with a Roy's signature cocktail recipe on the front, and a personal handwritten message on the back (I've blacked out our name and address, but everything was personalized):



Who does that? Who sends a personalized postcard to diners through snail mail after they've eaten at the restaurant?? Talk about amazing service. I almost wanted to call up Tony (who did drop by our table when we were eating to make sure everything was to our liking) and thank him! For those of you wondering how he got our address--I signed up for their mailing list, as they send out recipes every now and then. (If you watched Top Chef Master's, this restaurant was created by and named after Roy Yamaguchi, who was a contestant on the show.)

To make a long story short, if you are in the vicinity of Desert Ridge near Roy's Hawaiian Grill, I recommend you visit. It's wonderful!

Some people know me so well...

Sometimes I can only laugh at how well some people know me. Yesterday I received an email from Jenny containing the subject line--"ALERT ALERT." She knew to brace me before I opened the email. A million thoughts ran through my head--none of which I'll share here--but I prepared myself mentally before opening the email.

What was the message? Payard has closed. Now, to anyone else, that may not be big news. To me? Oh. My. God. I loved Payard. (Evidenced by the previous blog posts here and here.) However, in order to break the news lightly, she mentioned that she was going to get to the bottom of it--as though it might not be closed, but I should brace myself in case it has indeed shut its doors.

As if that wasn't enough, Priya was also cc'ed on the email, and quickly sent a follow up email stating that perhaps they needed to check on my well-being. Before I read these emails, I called Priya, and the first thing she asked was if I had received Jenny's email. I said no, so she proceeded to break the news to me. Once I got over my initial shock (I even visited the website hoping it was all lies--no such luck), I read the email exchange and couldn't stop laughing. Every now and then I realize how well some people know me--it gives me a warm and fuzzy feeling and makes me laugh--all at the same time.

PS- When I broke the news to Ash, his reaction was "NOOOOOOOO. That's TERRIBLE news." And then he was quiet for a minute. Perhaps I should've prepared him the way Jenny and Priya prepared me. Oops.

DVR Alert!

Jehangir Mehta (who I raved about here) is on Iron Chef America tonight! If you're reading this post late, go ahead and check your program guide anyway, as they repeat the show rather frequently. I can't wait!

If you enjoy seeing famous people, perhaps watch the show and then head over to Graffiti to have him cook for you! (If you didn't read my previous post--order the paneer!!) The only downside is that now I think Graffiti is going to be MUCH more crowded. Bummer.

Supercook!

I was watching the Today show this morning, and they covered one of Time Magazine's best websites. Holy crap. I found my new favorite website! Go here. Immediately.

Supercook!

You can actually create an account (for free) and enter the ingredients you have in your kitchen. Then, it continuously searches major recipe sites and provides you with recipes of what you can make with what you have on hand! I found it greatly entertaining to enter a few things and see it constantly update what I could make as I entered more ingredients. Once you enter a few things, it nicely asks "Do you have..." with a list of ingredients--all you have to do is click on those you have!

I'm think in love. (sigh)

Recipe for "healthy" brownies!

Yes, I've tried the black bean brownies--they're surprisingly not bad. I haven't tried the canned pumpkin, but I've heard that they are decent as well. However, I wanted a recipe that didn't need brownie mix, and this one just seemed WAY too weird to work. What did I stumble across? Zucchini brownies!

Oh. my. god. They are fantastic! I wish I could claim the recipe as my own, but I found it here. I followed the recipe as written, but I made two changes-- instead of 1/2 cup vegetable oil, I used 1/4 cup oil and 1/4 cup applesauce. Also, I swapped the walnuts for chocolate chips into the batter, because hey, everything is better with chocolate chips! When you're making it, the batter is VERY dry until you add the zucchini. Also, I didn't use the frosting recipe--I just made a basic chocolate icing and used that instead, since I wanted a very thin layer.

All things said, this recipe is WONDERFUL. Probably good enough for me to keep zucchini in the fridge. And eat brownies for breakfast. Yum!

Have I been blind?

I've passed Godiva hundreds of times. (I LOVE their biscuits, so I always walk a bit faster past the shop so I don't get tempted.) However, I don't ever recall seeing frozen drinks! I was walking in the Prudential the other day, and I was waiting in a very LONG lunch line at Qdobo. Godiva happens to be right next door. (You can see where this is going....)

Since the line didn't seem to be moving, and Godiva had no line, I figured I'd forego my burrito and instead indulge in one of their heavenly looking chocolate drinks for lunch. Why waste time waiting in line? Plus, that way I'd be able to continue walking--a burrito is hardly portable mall food. (Everyone knows it's all about portability!)

So, I slid out of line and walked into Godiva, ordered the "Dark Chocolate Decadence," and waited. (In the meantime, I also signed up for their free rewards card. A free piece of chocolate every month without a necessary purchase? Score--where do I sign?) When I got it, it looked eerily similar to a Starbucks frap, just more chocolate-y. Oh boy, was I wrong--this drink is in its own league.

It is a bit less icy than the Starbucks consistency, but there are actually ground up pieces of chocolate in the drink itself, so it's like you're drinking and eating chocolate at the same time. (I can already see a bunch of you squirm...I'll never understand those who don't like bits in their drinks. No bubble tea? Really??) In my case, I LOVED it. I almost did a little dance after my first sip. Then, I realized I was in a mall, and took out my phone to call Ash. Halfway through dialing I realized he was probably busy saving lives, and didn't need to be interrupted because I had found a cool new drink, and hung up. Then, I thought, well, who would want to be interrupted because I found a cool new chocolate drink? And I immediately called Priya.

She, however, was busy with all her smart kids, so I left a message. When she returned my call, I remembered that she was one of those crazy ones who doesn't like bits in her drinks. (::shaking my head::) But, she was happy for me! Finally, when Ash got home and asked me what I had for lunch, I told him, and braced myself for a that's-great-but-it's-not-a-healthy-lunch comment. His reaction? He smiled and shook his head. (Not even one word of disapproval. Is there anything not to love about this man?)

At around $5 for a grande size cup, it ain't cheap, but it's worth it. This might be enough to pull me into every Godiva I walk by. Somebody send me some will power. Actually, forget it. I'm probably a lost cause anyway.