For Christmas this year, we made baskets from Jim's family made up of neighborhood favorites: Zywiec, Zubrowka, Torcik Wedlowski, sparkling lemonade, candies from Slodycze Wendel, kielbasa, and babka and makowiec from the unbelievably stark but excellent bakery Rzeszowska Bakery.

This slim, unassuming place where nearly no English is spoken smells of piping hot baked goods all day, and I was lucky enough to get the cheese babka right from the oven. I am waiting for the day she has cinnamon available, but there's no rhyme or reason that I've discovered about what why or when they bake what they do and there is usually no more than two or three things available at any one time. I just have to be patient, because if the cheese version tastes this good, I simply can't imagine the cinnamon.

Less patient people who don't live in Greenpoint can get the delicacy from Dean and Deluca. A generous co worker brought some in to share and I admit it's delicious, but at 24 dollars for two, it's also (like most anything in that store) over priced. But I have it to thank it for leading me to Rzeszowska Bakery as it got me researching where to get the city's best (cheaper) babka and not surprisingly?- it was right around the corner. It just goes to show that there's always something to discover when you live in the city and it's one of the reasons I love it so.

Aside from babka they were also serving makowiec for Christmas, an extremely popular poppy seed bread that was traditionally made for Easter but has since become a Christmas specialty too because people love it so much. (Thank you to Dora for all the helpful information!) This bread has a drier, cake like texture, a chocolate swirl and the poppy seeds almost taste like coconut.

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Posted on December 28, 2008

With the culinary school of Johnson and Wales, Providence is perhaps surprisingly, a hotbed of delicious food. On a recent trip back to my college town (where my old apartment building has certainly seen better days) we decided to partake in some new culinary offerings as well as visit some old Federal Hill favorites.

Federal Hill is a landmark area, cluttered with Italian restaurants, markets, and shops. In school we often would stop by Bob and Timmy's and recently had a nice meal at Walters, just two of many spots for pasta. This time we headed to the markets, first stopping by Tony's Colonial Food Store for a meatball sandwich to share and a pack of these lovely Leone Violet candies. The small market is brimming with imported goods and about sixty varieties of olive oil.

Down the street is Constantino's, another market that's much more intense with crowds (which is why we avoided it on arrival after a long car ride) but we went back before heading home with lots of delicious goods like fresh made Walnut and Gorgonzola Ravioli and a Sweet Pumpkin Pesto to go with it. We also picked up home made Torrone, a delight that is immeasurably greater than the boxed version that is readily available. If you get nothing else on your visit to Federal Hill, bring back a square of this nougaty sweet.

Jut around back of the main square you'll find Pastiche for your fine dessert needs. It's not cheap (it was about $12 for two slices of tarts – pecan and apple) but the slices are sharably and very yummy. It's been around for 25 years for good reason.

For a sit down meal we had intended to try the newish and recommended place New Rivers, but they were closed, so we found another fairly new spot called La Laiterie Bistro, a dimly lit, comfy brick restaurant nestled next to a sister reputable cheese shop. It is an excellent addition to the already glowing food scene in town.

We ordered the Berkshire Pork Chef's Whim tasting menu with accompanying beers (not a usual option, but one I'd love to see on more tasting menus instead of wine). The meal began with an IPA and a delectable pork cheek with poached egg, winter vegetable and black eyed pea puree. Next was a terrific, almost sweet multi-grain ale called Sphinx, by Otter Creek (friends, keep an eye out for this at beer shops!) and a filling, salty loin with warm sauerkraut and potatoes. We finished the reasonably priced ($50 with the beers) three course meal with feta, oatmeal crumble and pea shoots paired with the best mead I've ever had from England (not that the stuff at the Ren Faire is that hard to outshine). He also recommended a Danish mead called Viking Blood that I am on a quest to find in New York.

The service was enthusiastic and affable, and La Laiterie is clearly becoming a neighborhood favorite. The place was packed by 6 pm. It's very on trend with an interest in local farming, seasonal foods, and an informal but refined environment where the wait staff dresses impeccably and Belle and Sebastian is piped through the speakers.

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Posted on December 28, 2008

New Museum's retrospective of Elizabeth Peyton, a first for the artist, is worth traveling through slush and rain to see. An artist with a wonderful color sense and true intimacy (see the sleeping portraits of “Tony”) in her work. She's also the kind of artist that would have made the boys club “artistes” back at RISD shudder.

Mixing both the “lowly” subject of pop culture ( subject range from Kurt Cobain to sometimes even interpreting film stills from movies like Age of Innocence) and the out of style traditional portraiture, Peyton dared to do what no one else was at the time and ends up a unique figure in painting for standing alone in all her unabashedly girlie, classical, and crushy way.

The faces are always the focus of her paintings, everything else – aside from a few textile patterns – become vague strokes of color. The almost realism detail to faces can be seen in the painting Liz and Diane especially. Whether the portraits are of friends, famous faces from the past (Napoleon, Delacroix and Frida Kahlo to name a few) or the present (Jarvis Cocker, Liam Gallagher and Sid Vicious) they are recognizable but similar. Under her brush all her subjects become part of the same angelic handsome and skinny hip family.

I was surprised by how little paint she often uses, particularly with oils as if many were just quick unplanned sketches. Silver Bosie is one of the most beautiful pieces in the collection and parts are left completely unpainted.

In a short time Peyton has accumulated a large body of work, all very consistent but never repetitive. Each one still draws you in on it's own, even after gazing at two floors of them.

As for the other floor of work by Mary Heilmann, eh, I say skip it. There were only two pieces I liked: Pink Jackie P and the duo The Third Man and Neo Noir, but otherwise it reminded me of Freshman foundation from college. Spend your time in the bright, cheery and browse happy book store instead where Peyton buttons can be got for two dollars before they sell out.

After Jan. 11, the show will go on to The Walker Museum in Minneapolis (look for it Devon). If you live in New York, make sure to stop by before then!

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Posted on December 28, 2008

Walter Foods was surprisingly hopping with Brooklyn sophisticates on Christmas Eve, so I would highly recommend making a reservation for what is clearly becoming a neighborhood favorite. It's dimly lit (hence the blurry photo) with a clean dark wood and white old timey ambiance.

It fits in well with the speakeasy trend and even the waiters are impeccably dressed with bow ties and crisp whites. As much as there's seems to be a backlash to this look, and whatever is popular always has a backlash – just ask the men from Queer Eye for the Straight Guy, it's a trend of good taste that I am in no rush to see abandoned, especially when the result is a restaurant as comfy, happening, and tasty as this one.

The brain child of Balthazar bartender Danny Minch and Barrio Chino owner Dylan Dodd, Walter Foods specializes in seafood and steak house favorites like pork chops and filet mignon. Lobster seems to be the chef's favorite though, as it's featured in several dishes including the club and the salad that Jim and Laura ordered and enjoyed. I ordered the special because, as an unhealthy fan of the magnificent sauce we call Bearnaise, I can not resist it drizzled on anything and in this case it was four plump scallops, asparagus, and haricot verts, a combination I've never tried but found very satisfying.

We all began with oysters, each trying one of the four available, I can't recall all the names – one bourbon drink was already served – but one was blue point and one of the best and briniest was the Hamma Hamma from Seattle. I love oysters and until Five Leaves truly serves them closer to my house, I certainly wouldn't mind a few more trips to Walter Foods if only for a half dozen and a cocktail.

Speaking of which, their cocktail menu is extensive and good, (I intend to try the bramble next time, which I overlooked) but like everything on the menu, a bit too pricey to make this a restaurant you could eat at regularly: Worth it for a nice night out, a bit of a end of the meal shock otherwise. Still, as long as you're aware of the price (entrees between 18- 28 or so, cocktails are 11), you are bound to enjoy your meal.

The service is beyond competent, every water glass was filled, every accidentally blown out candle was lit, free shots of eggnog were dispensed (you've noticed how often that's been happening to my friends and i lately, right?) and it's all done with a smile and charming affability.

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Posted on December 28, 2008

American sportswear legend Bill Blass created his own brand in 1970 and brought chic, wearable clothes to a certain kind of fashionable, very American woman. He passed away at the age of 80 in 2002, but for the past six years his namesake company has carried on with both Michael Vollbracht and most recently the talented Peter Som at the helm.

Their shows have been classic and quite pretty – just imagine yourself walking into a party in one Spring 2008's frocks – but all good things must end and, after decades in the business, Bill Blass is finally saying adieu.

It was a brand that embodied a feminine woman who respected expert tailoring and high class ladies like Gloria Vanderbilt, Nancy Reagan and Candice Bergen were devoted fans. Those names kind of sum up the feel of the brand; it was admittedly a little stuffy, a little bit elite and buttoned up (though Som did infuse it with some girlish charms later), but that traditional style and class is also what makes the clothing so timeless. If you find a choice vintage piece of Blass, it's bound to be both wearable and quite special.

While it's sad to think of old William Ralph Bass turning over in his grave fretting about the rough new world of corporate take overs, subsequent squandering of acquired businesses, and the terrible pre-holiday layoffs of his entire staff (without severance), he can take solace in the fact that he left behind a dignified empire of American style… before other people ruined it.?

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Posted on December 28, 2008