You Want to Taste and Help Yourself

Amidst the tomfoolery of the local establishments trying to sell us on silly food themes or gimmicks instead of straight awesome eats, something exciting is taking place on the streets.  Brave cooks are popping up with their makeshift gear and setting up sans food trucks, just hot plates and tables, selling their smoked BBQ or tamales, jerk and assorted other offerings.  If you're not a social media partaker, you have to be lucky to catch them but when you do, it's a kismet!  Like these delicious fall off the bone ribs....

....and this smoked chicken with greens and the meatiest dirty rice we've ever tasted! It becomes more special because when it's a chance encounter, the treat is that much better.

Earlier, the morning provided treats from Alamo Draft house City Point here in Brooklyn in the form of the tenderest chicken tenders and dreamiest queso with chips.  The Accountant 2 matinee and the surprise wonderfulness of Jon Bernthal. 

On Such a Winter's Day

Sometimes birthdays are no big shakes.  A frozen pizza, tons of snacks at a local movie theater and a Whole Foods cake is all you need to celebrate another year on planet earth.

Winter birthdays are harder to bring your enthusiasm game. On the other hand, any little fun had in February is a good time comparatively. 

Bring Them Down Movie with Barry Koeghan, my favorite actor of the present.  Sick and Twisty, as you would expect from him. 

Birthday Cake, slightly whomper-jawed, like me.

Its a joke, but also a big love of George Jefferson

You're Dirty and Sweet, Oh Yeah!

Went to see Longlegs, a refreshing American horror film by Oz Perkins, starring Nicolas Cage (at his absolute finest btw).  When he was on the screen, I felt my whole body arch like a cats back.  Giddy with frightened excitement, I would say.  Absolutely taken aback for sure.  His character teetered right at that cliff edge of sanity that you felt yourself being pushed over and I for one didn't fight it.   This movie will become a cult classic, most definitely.  I loved it!

I ordered the Make it Beefy Queso and chips, which was out of this world.  I don't know what they do to make it so smashing, possibly wine I suspect.   And we split a chicken tenders dinner and the cutlets were the size of breasts but delicious and as tender as the name implies.  There is something sensual about eating in the dark that I've come to love.  A restraint of sort, not able to see your food forces you to use your other senses in a way that feels playful.

Later we split some pizza slices and salad at home and gushed on Cage's performance. 

The Gothic tower that lost funding and now stands unfinished and at night looks ghostly.

The CityPoint Marketplace downstairs in the basement from the theater, was filled with foodies, cooler air, music and afternoon drinkers.  Jerk, Sushi, Mexican, BBQ, pizza, burgers and desserts to choose from along with some other delights that I feel its my duty to check out soon. 

 

There's A Party Going on Right Here

Birthday Enchiladas

A 60th celebration for my mate called for a Deluxe plate of Beef Enchiladas with Mexican rice and saucy beans.  I made a platter of stuffed jalapeno peppers with homemade hot sauce and chips. 

My mom's special secret sauce recipe was requested again and I believe I may have perfected that balance of creamy and chili texture and flavor.  I can't do it everytime but baby when I do, it's dang special. 

The night before, we got John Wick'd at Alamo Drafthouse with snacks and sweets as is now customary. Tradition is good.  I used to think it was boring but there's something comforting about it, especially in these odd times.   I guess tradition is the comfort food of life.

Baked Jalepenos stuffed with cheese, garlic, hard chorizo and onion.  Never underestimate the bounty of flavor that emits from a roasted pepper.   

We Sweat and Laugh and Scream Here

A matinee trip to Alamo Drafthouse Citypoint in Brooklyn

Movies are certainly approved escapes from worry, sadness, boredom, and assorted weaknesses.  But what happens when nothing you care to see is playing, especially early in the day?  You psych yourself into a movie that might surprise you, like Nope.  I'm neither a Jordan Peele fan or foe, like M. Night Shyamalan, I agree they've helped to progress the horror genre further but they've failed to take me to a happy ending so to speak in their story conclusions.  There is enough creativity in their ideas and characters, that I feel they could elevate further.  But also I realize it must be so difficult to produce quality fear in this era.  There is too much real terror happening every day in the world so we need scary to be entertaining with just enough 'real life' elements thrown in but not enough to remind us of our impending doom.  We want to be taken to another space where fantasy still exists however, we're more sophisticated now, so the monsters need to grow with us. This isn't a movie review, I'll leave that to the experts but spoiler alert, I loved the beginning, the middle and the characters. 

Angry Omnivore Flatbread - 860 cal 16 Pepperoni, roasted peppers, Kalamata olives, fresh tomatoes, red onions, mushrooms, Tillamook mozzarella, parmesan, home-made marinara, and Loaded Fries - 1100 cal 13.5 Made-to-order fries, Hatch green chile queso, Tillamook cheddar, cotija, bacon, cilantro, scallions, sriracha sour cream were consumed and enjoyed wholeheartedly.  Again, the person that came up with making pizza's angry by adding pickled jalapenos, crushed red pepper and fresh basil at this popular theater is a genius.  Mentally it works, builds excitement with a supersizing of flavors and it delivers, even more importantly. 

I love the escapism of these dark theater hallways and how walking through your paid for doorway is an entry to another world entirely if only for two hours.

A spooky but lovely tree in Fort Greene Park

I Smoked My Brains the Night Before

P's Birthday Beef Enchiladas

P had a festive outing with friends the night before and was feeling less rambunctious on his birthday, so we chose a mellow afternoon with a matinee of The Outfit, in a dark, quiet theater.  We had Fried Chicken sandwiches, chips with queso, and this time a few more patrons were in the local venue but not many.  I should get paid for how much I promote the value of the Alamo Drafthouse theaters.  For folks without a ton of money, it's an incredibly satisfying way to spend a little extra and get the pampering movie experience of my dreams.  P wants a cup of hot coffee or I want an ice cream sundae, the silent ninjas are there for it, quickly and quietly.  The funny reels they play before the main feature feels old timey and gets you revved up like you're going up a roller coaster.  It's super clean and people are well behaved or they'll get 'removed' as the pre-feature ad warns.  This allows you to get completely immersed in the surround sound without any unpleasant noises or cellphone lights.  I love everything about it and most of all, we can walk to one of the locations. 

Later I made homemade beef enchiladas with my mom's famous secret sauce and a spicy shrimp cocktail as an appetizer.  

Coctel de Camarones - Mexican Shrimp Cocktail

We walked home from the theater noticing more small changes to downtown Brooklyn and had a nice chat about how strange life has become when we came across a sign on a shop window that coined the moment brilliantly.  Whatever, Forever.

A gorgeous new mural of Greg Tate, the music journalist who recently passed, and a fellow Ohio born compadre.

Delicious Carrot Cake Slice from Mr Mango Market

The birthday boy in his new sweater.  It's good to be alive, to quote lyrics from his upcoming album. 

You Gave Me Loving in the Palm of My Hand

the ominous new structure going up in Downtown Brooklyn

Went to see Licorice Pizza at Alamo Drafthouse Theater in Brooklyn.  What a treat, for so many reasons.  One, to get out and enjoy a public space was rare but since it was not crowded and everyone booked their seats far away from each other, it felt relatively safe.   The Paul Thomas Anderson film put you right there in another world, which is something well worth the major bucks you pay to 'get away' these days.  I loved the movie, although other than the pains of first love, I couldn't quite tell you what it was about, but I did enjoy all of it.  I couldn't take my eyes off Haim, who was so surprisingly mesmerizing. You can't do wrong by anything 70's related, as it is my favorite decade and I lived that age, at that time.  

Food-wise, it is a culinary adventure to order by description and never set eyes on the plate, other than low light glimpses. Your taste buds must decipher all the nuances and detect ingredients.  This is a huge part of the Drafthouse experience.  P likes to start with beer and end with coffee.  I went straight for the loaded fries, followed by the Angry Pepperoni and ended with the Holiday Special cookies.  The food offerings here are special and sometimes made especially for the movie.  Angry Pepperoni Pizza?!  That's a dream combo made by an angry wizard.  

The cookies are freshly baked and so warm when they bring them out that you have to let them cool off.  They have the crispy hard edges, and the soft slightly salty gooey chocolaty center that you crave in a freshly baked cookie.  

That coupled with the pulling of the mystery fries that would either come with bits of bacon, cheese sauce, green onions, jalapeno or nothing at all, like a game of drawing straws.  The beauty of this game is that the random crispy naked fry is a welcomed treat when mixed with all of these incredible flavors. 

It's too expensive to do this much anymore, but when Let Me Roll It blasted out of those speakers in a key scene and the guitar part echoed across that big room and the director allowed the song to play out longer, I thought I just might pay anything to feel that alive again. 

But Get That Ice or Else No Dice

Hidden Gems at Alamo Drafthouse Citypoint Brooklyn

The M Train Flatbread

Loaded fries

Fried pickles

Hidden Gems was incredible and Adam Sandler really transformed into a character that I'm positive I've literally bumped into in that district of Manhattan several times through the years.  Julia Fox became an instant movie star as far as I'm concerned.  Everything about her role was perfect and she could not have been more mesmerizing to watch.  Alamo is an experience when there is a great movie and I can't say enough about the awesomeness of being in a darkened theater, large comfortable chairs and never having to get up to get a thing.  You want more coffee?  Write it on the card.  Are you feeling like a big ice cream sundae? Write it on the card and ninjas come to grab it for you with lightning speed without blocking the screen.  Enjoying this M-Train flatbread in that setting is somehow so much more special.  Little slices cut on the bias.  Grabbing at loaded fries in the dark, not knowing what you're shoving in your mouth is again, fun as heck.  It's gluttonous and should be kept for special occasions but a movie debut can be that and this was.

My sister sent me this Jim Morrison-like vintage coat for Christmas so I sported it fresh for the matinee.

Later that night I made a really bright shaved Brussels sprout salad with pumpkin seeds and apples and with the tomatoes and wine vinegar dressing I thought it was a bit of heaven. This could be a light lunch for sure. 

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