beXnlog

Art N Eats

We're off next week but since we never found any good flight+hotel deals, we're having Vacation in New York! It officially started tonight, Friday, so here's what we did:

- Checked out all 5 floors of the Whitney Museum of American Art. Both of us especially loved the Tim Hawkinson exhibit - what an artistic genius! Using mainly found objects and ordinary materials, he melded visual art with mathematics, mechanics and sound, while commenting on the notion of the body. I loved the "Signature" piece, "Secret Sync" and the aluminum foil works. Definitely check it out.

- Ate the giant "Chef Special Emperor's Meal with Steamboat" at Hangawi, a vegan Korean restaurant. It's pricey so we only eat there once every 2 years or so, but it's always delicious. Some people consider it the best vegetarian restaurant in New York. The interior is well designed, really warm and inviting; the service is quick even though your meal is leisurely and you always leave feeling very full but not barfy-full. The prix fixe meal has been slightly different each time i've had it; this time we received:

2 Starters: pumpkin and spinach & corn porridge; ginseng root salad with sesame dressing

3 Appetizers: Gala apple with pumpkin, water chestnut, pine nut and cinnamon filling; deep fried taro cake with tofu sausage and cinnamon sauce; lotus root, eggplant and mushroom with teriyaki sauce; Emperor's Rolls with mustard dipping sauce (fine shreds of assorted vegetables and seaweed, arranged for you to place into little wrappers)

2 Main: Sauteed mushrooms or Burdock Root; Steamboat Soup with jujubes, skinned walnuts and vegetables

Sides: multi-grain rice with red beans on a lotus leaf; kimchee (mild and hot)

Dessert: lemon-flavored tofu pudding with smokey pine nuts

The last time we had a meal at Hangawi, it was some special Valentine's Day prix fixe which included absolutely amazing deep fried, battered mushrooms with a sweet & sour sauce. Since we didn't get it tonight, i'm just going to have to order that for lunch one of these days. Other very noteworthy items i've had there: a yummy persimmon drink with pine nuts, the tofu patties and their japchae (glass noodles with vegetables and sesame seeds), which Q and i agree is the BEST japchae in all of K-town.

be and i realized that both Hangawi and Vatan have a lot in common: vegetarian Asian restaurants, upscale, prix fixe (although Hangawi also has a regular menu), nice decor, and you take your shoes off to sit at low tables (with cut-outs so you don't have to site cross-legged if you don't want to - although Vatan also has typical tables & chairs).

- Misc notes: Earlier, i picked up a cheddar biscuit from the Union Square Farmers' Market, which was flaky and floury with a great smokey cheddar taste. I don't know the name of the bakery but i'll find out - and keep getting great organic baked goods from them. They also had a Guinness + cheddar biscuit so next time i'll try that one.

posted by beXn @ 12:06 AM