Laren Spirer’s Profile
Recent Comments
Mix it Up: Stocking Your Home Bar
Is there a Mexican market that you'd suggest in NYC?
Off the Beaten Path: Qingdao Cuisine at Flushing’s M&T Restaurant
If there's an expedition, I want in!
See more comments by Laren Spirer »
Recent Posts
Mix It Up: Blood & Sand at Highlands
Posted by Laren Spirer, November 20, 2009 at 4:00 PM
Meet & Eat: Amy Thompson, Lucy's Whey
Posted by Laren Spirer, November 19, 2009 at 2:30 PM
Meet & Eat: Chef and Iron Chef Michael Symon
Posted by Laren Spirer, November 12, 2009 at 2:30 PM
Mix It Up: The Bubbly Scribe at Raines Law Room
Posted by Laren Spirer, November 6, 2009 at 3:00 PM
See more posts by Laren Spirer »
Recent Favorites
Dinner Tonight: Roasted Asparagus with Poached Eggs and Miso Butter
Posted by Nick Kindelsperger, May 13, 2009 at 4:30 PM
Cook the Book: Fried Chicken Livers with Hot Pepper Glaze
Posted by Caroline Russock, April 22, 2009 at 1:15 PM
Sunday Brunch: The Greatest Waffle Recipe Ever
Posted by Ed Levine, February 22, 2009 at 6:28 AM
See more favorites by Laren Spirer »
Recent Polls
Laren Spirer hasn't answered any polls yet.
Recent Quizzes
Laren Spirer hasn't taken any quizzes yet.
Recent Comments | Response to Comments
Best Tiki Bars in NYC?
Joe Swifka, who used to create tiki drinks at the now defunct Elettaria, is working at Flatiron Lounge serving tiki drinks on the weekends, I believe. You might want to call to double-check his hours.
Mix it Up: Stocking Your Home Bar
Is there a Mexican market that you'd suggest in NYC?
Off the Beaten Path: Qingdao Cuisine at Flushing’s M&T Restaurant
If there's an expedition, I want in!
Bo Ssam Tonight?
It's a dinner consisting primarily of a slow-roasted pork shoulder at Momofuku Ssam bar. Delicious!
Thoughts from Di Fara First-Timers
I hadn't been there either, until recently and Adam was shocked (and admittedly, I was embarrassed.
Raising the Bar: Happy Hour Sandwiches at Marshall Stack
That duck club is generally one of my favorites -- I can't resist it when I go there.
A Primer to 'Star Trek' Food and Drink
I am now officially scared of you.
Great Jones Cafe: A Great Burger Whose Bun Renders It Merely Good
I ADORE Great Jones Cafe. Practically lived there during law school. I don't go there nearly enough anymore, although recently wiled away a great afternoon at the bar playing Scrabble and drinking their killer "Old Shaggy's."
Deep-Fried Peeps
I thoroughly enjoyed your use of the word "ploop." I will try to use it more often as well!
10 Best Snow Day Eats in New York
I'd rather be able to have it delivered to me in my PJ's!
Top Ten 'Hamburgers That Matter for New York City'
That picture is a thing of beauty. Drooool.
Slow Cookers -- Hot or Not?
I most certainly do NOT have the counterspace for it (nor for anything else I have -- which all stay in the closet until I use them), but that's not an issue. Not being house-bound is definitely appealing . . . .
Fornino Pizza Delivery to Serious Eats Holiday Bowling Party
So sad I missed it! I would have gone for the shroom and/or the sausage.
12 Days of Hot Chocolate: Otto
This is some seriously delicious hot chocolate. And if you're in the mood, ask the bartenders for a recommendation for a DIY boozy add-in. Perfect on a bitter cold day.
Drink Wine Out of Baby Bottles at La Cave des Fondus
The fondue sounds great, particularly on a day like today. Wine in baby bottles? Ridiculous.
Meet & Eat: Don Lee, PDT
I'm secretly mad at Don for telling the world about Kanoyama -- it's one of my favorites!
Happy Birthday to Us: Serious Eats Is 2
Happy birthday and congrats! Happy to join in the fun.
Maybe The Only Breakfast Worth $19
This is INSANE. I'd be in an all-day food coma from this.
Meet & Eat: Aricka Westbrook, Jive Turkey
I had my first turducken this past Sunday. Will be posting about it soon . . .
La Nacional in threat of being closed?
This is a fantastic place and I would be heartbroken if it closed!!
Meet & Eat: Aricka Westbrook, Jive Turkey
Well there's always next year! Plus, they're open year round -- and anytime's a good time for deep-fried turkey goodness. . .
Best Tiki Bars in NYC?
Queens really does have it all, except for a tiki joint with a website. You'll have to rely on The Queens Tribune's review:
King Yum
181-08 Union Tpke., Fresh Meadows
http://www.queenstribune.com/archives/diningguide/reviews/kingyum.htm
Best Tiki Bars in NYC?
walk to the back and go downstairs here: http://www.niagarabar.com/
there's a small basement with a thatched bamboo bar where you can catch guys playing weird hula-fusion ukelele rock. or at least that's what happened when i was there.
Best Tiki Bars in NYC?
Thanks for the help, everyone! Has anyone been to that tiki bar on staten island that anthony bourdain visited recently?
Mix it Up: Stocking Your Home Bar
To Sov, use just your hand, really??? Do you ever make cocktails with fresh juice? I doubt it or you would realize how counter productive using just your hand would be, not to mention getting your hand all messy(and you do get way more juice with a juicer). Plus when you use a juicer you can juice the fruit right into your mixing container or measuring cup/jigger.
Mix it Up: Stocking Your Home Bar
The lemon/lime squeezer is the classic gadgeteer's money hole. Think about it: you can use the squeezer or you can roll the fruit well, then cut in half, and squeeze the juice out with your hand, using your fingers or a strainer you already have in your kitchen to catch the seeds. Now, how much more juice are you going to get using the squeezer? A penny's worth? A nickel's worth? That's a lot of squeezing for the thing to pay for itself. Same for garlic presses, in my book.
Off the Beaten Path: Qingdao Cuisine at Flushing’s M&T Restaurant
Thanks Joe for the great review and wonderful photos. Oh and for the shout-out too! If see Oliver Strand of the NYT about town tell him I am looking for him. I am the one with the eye patch and cutlass!
Off the Beaten Path: Qingdao Cuisine at Flushing’s M&T Restaurant
@fressa...aw don't playa hate participate..it's not my fault you're going to law school...look me up when you're in town we'll get our grub on
Off the Beaten Path: Qingdao Cuisine at Flushing’s M&T Restaurant
I am sooooo jealous of your posse!
Off the Beaten Path: Qingdao Cuisine at Flushing’s M&T Restaurant
we were in qingdao in april, and had some of the best food i've eaten in china (and i've eaten a lot of food all over china!). the variety of fresh seafood is astounding. so i'm psyched to hear about a qingdao restaurant nearby.
Thoughts from Di Fara First-Timers
@steamsoldier yeah dude, we've all since your stuff. Remember that time Adam made fun of you for ordering a junky pie?
Thoughts from Di Fara First-Timers
Check out my recent visit, I had a much different experience...
Thoughts from Di Fara First-Timers
@Laren Great shot of Dom putting some serious love on your square pie.
Ciao,
Paulie Gee
Raising the Bar: Happy Hour Sandwiches at Marshall Stack
@gastrodamus - They also have sloppy joe sliders. Next time, sloppy joe sliders, tater tots, and beer on tap!
Raising the Bar: Happy Hour Sandwiches at Marshall Stack
their sandwiches are so good. don't forget the tater tots.
Raising the Bar: Happy Hour Sandwiches at Marshall Stack
@jerkfaceirl - Thanks for the rec! Will do.
Raising the Bar: Happy Hour Sandwiches at Marshall Stack
Nice review, once my brain was able to struggle around the phrase "nine dollar glass of Malbec". We'll just pretend we didn't hear it
Raising the Bar: Happy Hour Sandwiches at Marshall Stack
Check out Mc'Garrys on 34th and 9th - Their crabcakes are superb.
A Primer to 'Star Trek' Food and Drink
@mrslucas, we watched that episode the other night! and all it is is like a plate of lettuce, and kirk has maybe one piece and then leaves the room.
what about the instant meals that they put in the ship "microwave" - like the chicken soup in the episode in TOS first season when they travel back to the 1960s and take up two humans as though they're a UFO?
great, great post adam. and incredibly well-researched!
Deep-Fried Peeps
When I was about 17, I was looking for junk food all we had was chocolate chips and peeps. I would have done marshmellows, but we were out and it happened to be just after Easter. Add some butter to the pan before melting chocolate and coat the peeps completely or leave out the head.
I have also rolled them in rice crispies or grahm cracker crumbs after dipping them in chocolate (obviously have made them more than once), cool them on parchment paper or a glass plate. I have also cut them up into Hot chocolate, I know, I know, barbaric! LOL. I'm not a hater of Peeps, I just have to modify them to eat them (they are super sweet).
I think deep fried peeps would actually be pretty good, just one! Like a deep fried Twinkie. Something to try is a deep fried PB sandwich (or PB and strawberry jam). Cut sandwich in 1/4, (crust optional) dip in batter and deep fry. Yum. Yes, I have a Mad Science kitchen. I have not made those in many years though. Teens love them! Try to think "Out of the box", it doesn't hurt to play with your food! I cracked up when Robyn said "If you lose weght while eating these, there may be something wrong with you" LMAO. So true.
:) T.
Deep-Fried Peeps
Ewwwwww, they look like squaw. Eeep! Peeps!
A Downtown Date Idea: Urban Lobster Shack on the Staten Island Ferry
Yes. Romantical advice. It's different from dating advice or romance advice.
A Primer to 'Star Trek' Food and Drink
@mrslucas: You're right, but the food thing, to my mind, is only a by-product of why Star Trek is superior to Star Wars. Trek is so much more realized in regard to character development and nuance. As I said in the post above, SF often just holds a mirror up to our current world, and the Trek franchise is one of the best examples of that. So it's natural that you'd see the characters in a variety of everyday situations that we would find ourselves in. In contrast, Star Wars, is the basic hero myth set in space. It could exist anywhere, anytime and is really not reliant on the everyday strengths, weaknesses, and struggles of ordinary humans—like Kirk eating greens because he has to lose weight.
A Primer to 'Star Trek' Food and Drink
I have long thought that what set Star Trek off from Star Wars was that the Star Trek characters actually eat. In all the six Star Wars movies, I think the characters attempt to eat nothing but one floating pear and Aunt Beroo's blue milk.
Now ... does everyone remember the episode where Kirk is eating greens because he's on a diet?
A Primer to 'Star Trek' Food and Drink
And don't forget about the Golana Melon (aka Kiwano), which played a pivotal role in Episode 24 of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine.
A Primer to 'Star Trek' Food and Drink
Oh, so when is the first official Star Trek feast going to take place?
Recent Posts
Mix It Up: Blood & Sand at Highlands
Posted by Laren Spirer, November 20, 2009 at 4:00 PM
Meet & Eat: Amy Thompson, Lucy's Whey
Posted by Laren Spirer, November 19, 2009 at 2:30 PM
Meet & Eat: Chef and Iron Chef Michael Symon
Posted by Laren Spirer, November 12, 2009 at 2:30 PM
Mix It Up: The Bubbly Scribe at Raines Law Room
Posted by Laren Spirer, November 6, 2009 at 3:00 PM
Meet & Eat: Jill DeGroff, Artist and Author of Lush Life
Posted by Laren Spirer, November 5, 2009 at 11:00 AM
Mix It Up: Kings County Sour at Henry Public
Posted by Laren Spirer, October 30, 2009 at 3:30 PM
Mix It Up: The Good Word at Prime Meats
Posted by Laren Spirer, October 23, 2009 at 2:30 PM
Meet & Eat: Marnie Old
Posted by Laren Spirer, October 22, 2009 at 11:00 AM
Mix It Up: Learn Your Basics
Posted by Laren Spirer, October 16, 2009 at 3:30 PM
Meet & Eat: Cesare Casella, Salumeria Rosi Parmacotto
Posted by Laren Spirer, October 15, 2009 at 2:30 PM
Mix it Up: The Golden Ticket at The Randolph at Broome
Posted by Laren Spirer, October 9, 2009 at 2:30 PM
Manhattan Cocktail Classic Preview
Posted by Laren Spirer, October 7, 2009 at 2:30 PM
Mix It Up: The Venetian at White Star
Posted by Laren Spirer, October 2, 2009 at 3:00 PM
Meet & Eat: Lynette Marerro, President of LUPEC
Posted by Laren Spirer, October 1, 2009 at 12:00 PM
Mix it Up: Stocking Your Home Bar
Posted by Laren Spirer, September 25, 2009 at 1:30 PM
Meet & Eat: Jessica Mahady, Veggie Conquest
Posted by Laren Spirer, September 24, 2009 at 12:45 PM
Mix It Up: A la Louisiane at Eleven Madison Park
Posted by Laren Spirer, September 18, 2009 at 2:30 PM
Meet & Eat: Annie Hauck-Lawson and Jonathan Deutsch, 'Gastropolis'
Posted by Laren Spirer, September 17, 2009 at 2:00 PM
Mix it Up: 'The Camptown Twist' at Fatty Crab Uptown
Posted by Laren Spirer, September 11, 2009 at 4:00 PM
Meet & Eat: Liz Thorpe, The Cheese Chronicles
Posted by Laren Spirer, September 10, 2009 at 10:00 AM
Mix It Up: 'The Division Bell' from Mayahuel
Posted by Laren Spirer, September 4, 2009 at 4:30 PM
Meet & Eat: Lesley Townsend, Manhattan Cocktail Classic
Posted by Laren Spirer, September 3, 2009 at 2:00 PM
Meet & Eat: Greg Boehm, Mud Puddle Books
Posted by Laren Spirer, August 27, 2009 at 12:45 PM
Meet & Eat: Emily Wines, Master Sommelier
Posted by Laren Spirer, August 20, 2009 at 11:00 AM
Recent Favorites
Dinner Tonight: Roasted Asparagus with Poached Eggs and Miso Butter
Posted by Nick Kindelsperger, May 13, 2009 at 4:30 PM
Cook the Book: Fried Chicken Livers with Hot Pepper Glaze
Posted by Caroline Russock, April 22, 2009 at 1:15 PM
Sunday Brunch: The Greatest Waffle Recipe Ever
Posted by Ed Levine, February 22, 2009 at 6:28 AM
Polls
Laren Spirer hasn't answered any polls yet.
Quizzes
Laren Spirer hasn't taken any quizzes yet.
About Laren Spirer
Website: http://www.sweetblogomine.com
Location: NYC
About: I'm yet another lawyer obsessed with food. When I'm not eating, drinking, cooking, or thinking about what to eat, drink, or cook, I can often be found cycling, running, or swimming, likely in preparation for a triathlon.
Favorite foods: Lobster (but mostly when eaten outside), truffle butter, homemade raspberry jam, comte and other cheesy things, lamb, dark chocolate, potato chips (my achilles heel), a perfectly ripe tomato, all things porky.
Last bite on earth:
Joe Swifka, who used to create tiki drinks at the now defunct Elettaria, is working at Flatiron Lounge serving tiki drinks on the weekends, I believe. You might want to call to double-check his hours.