Posts Tagged ‘Amali’

Break out Your Easter Bonnets for a Festive Easter Celebration in New York City

We might be together as a family this year, but maybe not. Still, there’s every reason to celebrate Easter and the arrival of spring. Here are some ways to make sure you have a sweet holiday with zoom classes, Easter brunches and sweets for every taste.

Enjoy an Easter Brunch with Your Family

NYC restaurants are back in business and are celebrating this year with wonderful Easter brunches. The range of international dining options and the choice to dine indoors or outdoors add a new dimension to this holiday tradition.

Bar Room at the Beekman Courtesy Crafted Hospitality

The Bar Room at the Beekman

From the team behind Tom Colicchio’s Temple Court comes a classically influenced multi-course Easter brunch that’s purely American.  The Bar Room at the Beekman’s first brunch since the return of indoor dining highlights a spring menu from Matthew Dahlkemper and Abby Swain with savory cheddar biscuits, caviar deviled eggs, braised Colorado lamb shank, smoked salmon benedicts & more.

Courtesy The Osprey

The Osprey

At the foot of the Brooklyn Bridge, in an airy garden setting, The Osprey has cooked up farm-to-table Easter specials with choices reflecting the global nature of New York City. It’s a tour around the world with the likes of the Osprey’s Nest (poached pasture -raised egg, kadaifi, smoked sablefish, lemon crème fraiche and caviar), chitarra carbonara or rhubarb Pavlova with mascarpone sabayon. The menu comes with a bonus — you can walk over the Brooklyn Bridge when you’re done, so the calories come free of charge.

Courtesy Amali

Amali

Your celebration at Amali is a double Easter fête as it includes a treat for Greek Easter as well.  The Mediterranean-inspired Upper East Sider is all about spring with specials like asparagus salad with a soft boiled red egg, leg of lamb, and ricotta pie with candied lemon and lavender. The bonus is koulourakia, a traditional Greek Easter cookie.

Courtesy La Goulue

La Goulue

A few blocks away, La Goulue adds a French flourish to brunch, as conceived by award-winning Executive Chef Antoine Camin. The special prix fixe menu begins with a patisserie selection of croissants, chocolatines, lemon cake and raisin Danish. The menu itself is a mélange of French and traditional with Easter specials including smoked salmon “Maison,” French toast on brioche, and Croque Monsieur.

Courtesy Via Vai

Via Vai

Astoria’s Via Vai invites you to enjoy an Italian Easter with a four-course prix fixe menu by chef-owner Antonio Morichini. Start with baked eggs with porcini mushroom and fontina cheese, for example, followed by a traditional secondo of pasta. Since lamb is traditional for Easter, order the pappardelle with lamb ragù and, for your main, the scottaditto alla Romana. For dessert, Morichini’s bombolone — sweet Italian donuts filled with vanilla pastry cream — will have you saying grazie mille.

Courtesy Ocean Prime

Ocean Prime

Ocean Prime has an at-home kit should you choose to stay home, but the special Easter brunch at the midtown location might be more of a temptation. Putting a spin on classic American brunch favorites, the in-restaurant menu includes lobster toast, blackened salmon salad, crab and eggs hollandaise, or French toast for something sweet. Known for its innovative cocktails, Ocean Prime serves an Easter-perfect blood orange mimosa to accompany your meal.

Stay Home with the Family

Courtesy Zoom & Bloom

Zoom & Bloom

There may not be an extravagant Easter bonnet parade to watch but Zoom & Bloom has a different idea for a hands-on family activity. You’ll receive a beautiful box of assorted flowers in preparation for a zoom workshop led by NYC floral designer Rebecca Merritt. Everyone can arrange a bloom to make a gorgeous Easter centerpiece.

Courtesy Institute of Culinary Education

ICE

The Institute of Culinary Education will help you ramp up your cooking skills with a Spring Easter Dinner virtual cooking class. Family members, whether in the same room or not, can all participate as Chef Sue Gonsalves demonstrates how to make roast rack of lamb, potato gratin and asparagus with lemon vinaigrette. Attendees will receive recipes and ingredient and equipment lists in advance.

Courtesy Bubby’s

Bubby’s

You could go to Bubby’s in Tribeca to enjoy Chef Ron Silver’s homestyle brunch with sourdough pancakes, Easter ham and his famous pies, but why not turn the pie experience into an at-home activity for all? Bubby’s DIY pie kits come with frozen pie dough, apple or sour cherry filling, a disposable pie tin and a fluted pastry wheel, everything you need to make your own Easter sweet.

Chocolate Eggs, Sprinkles and Sweets

Courtesy Venchi

Venchi

International chocolate sensation Venchi Fine Italian Chocolates has a gift for you for Easter: if you stop by their boutique in Union Square or Columbus Circle, you’ll get a tasting of three of their mini Easter eggs on Easter weekend. True chocoholics will love this place and you’d be remiss if you didn’t take some of their gorgeous (and huge) chocolate eggs home with you. Did I mention that there’s a chocolate waterfall in the downtown shop?

Courtesy Magnolia Bakery

Magnolia Bakery

Everyone goes crazy for Magnolia Bakery‘s cupcakes, but their Easter ones might just be the cutest you’ve ever seen. The special holiday “cupcake dozen” are classic vanilla and chocolate cupcakes done up with pastel buttercream frosting with festive Easter decorations.

Courtesy DO Cookie Dough

DO Cookie Dough

Another contender for most creative Easter sweet treat, DO Cookie Dough’s “Easter taster” is a beautifully packaged two- pack of their classic, safe-to-eat flavors. Divide the packs and share all the great flavors — each one comes with three jars of edible cookie dough with irresistible recipes like cake batter, sugar cookie and gimme s’more.

Courtesy Chip City

Chip City

Gourmet cookie company, Chip City is offering a colorful Easter special that’s sure to sell out early. All ages will love the “Bunny Funfetti,” vanilla sugar cookies mixed with rainbow sprinkles and topped with bunny sprinkles – they’re an Instagram natural.

Courtesy Citarella

Citarella

If all the chocolate, cookie and pie conversation has made you yearn for something that’s not overly sweet, food market Citarella has an option for you too. Their Easter-style buttery Challah bread has just a hint of sugar – it’s decorated with dyed eggs and topped with colorful sprinkles.

For Something Completely Different

Courtesy of The Standard, High Line

The Standard

Play bingo for at The Standard in the Meatpacking District. At 8pm on Easter Sunday, The Standard Biergarten will host a special “Naughty Bunny Bingo” at Not Your Standard Bingo, with games, bunny-themed costumes and an array of colorful shots for guests to win with their bingo successes. The menu is equally fun with a variety of specialty cocktails, punch bowls and “bingo bites” like Korean fried chicken, shrimp spring rolls and fish tacos. Reserve in advance so you won’t be disappointed.

January 11 is National Hot Toddy Day – Here’s Where You Can Sample Some of the Best in New York City

Dining outdoors is fun but chilly. You need to pick your menu carefully so food stays warm. Think piping hot French onion soup, boeuf bourguignon and a bowl of spicy chili to stick to your ribs. Your drinks of choice need to stand up to the cold as well. Fortunately, winter is a time to imbibe hot toddies, a beverage famous for its abilities to ward off shivers and the flu, attend to nascent coughs and sniffles, calm a sore throat and provide an overall feeling of warmth. A hot toddy, also known as hot whiskey in Ireland, is typically made with a base of whiskey or rye (or even rum) enhanced with water, honey, herbs and spices. It’s served hot in a glass or mug that will warm your hands as well. The hot toddy is so popular, in fact, that it has its own holiday on January 11, but feel free to order these at any time. They’re just what we need to stay comfy (and healthy) outdoors during the long, dark winter ahead.

Here are six choices in New York City that will keep you toasty through these chillier months.

MANHATTAN

Upper East Side

Amali - Lovers and Liars

Amali (115 E. 60th St.) takes a traditional hot buttered toddy and gives it a Mediterranean twist with peach brandy, Rockey’s liqueur, hot orange saffron tea, honey and butter. If you’re not familiar with it, Rockey’s liqueur is a delicious blend of green apple, pineapple, green tea, black tea, and citrus inspired by classic, clarified milk punch. Pair this with the restaurant’s black cod gyro, their labneh flatbread or any of their pastas, for a mini trip to Italy and Greece. The drink is called Lovers & Liars for reasons that you’ll have to figure out after you’ve had a few.

Theater District

Haven Rooftop

Haven Rooftop above the Sanctuary Hotel (132 W. 47th Street) in Midtown has put together an inventive Hot Toddy menu with versions like Apple Cheer Hot Toddy with lemon, cinnamon syrup, black tea, apple cider and bourbon; Bailey’s Hot Toddy with black tea, agave and Bailey’s Irish Cream; and Hibiscus Hot Toddy with black tea, hibiscus syrup, lemon, agave and bourbon. The drinks pair well with Haven’s eclectic menu of small plates, pizzas and steaks. To warm you up upon arrival, Haven offers a welcoming non-alcoholic shot of hot chocolate or hot tea, a wonderful option, too, if you’re observing Dry January.

East Village

Kissaki - Tokushima Toddy

Putting a Japanese spin on a hot toddy, elevated sushi favorite Kissaki (319 Bowery) features the Tokushima Toddy with Maker’s Mark, passionfruit, yuzu, sake, apple caramel and ginger beer. While hot sake is just so mundane, adding it to a Hot Toddy makes a lot of sense. It also goes surprisingly well with cold sushi and sashimi like chef’s creative nigiri and futomaki fat rolls.

The mixologists at cocktail mecca Death & Co. (433 E. 6th St.) have also embraced the Asian spirit, adding Japanese whiskey with dashi kombu, soup stock made with dried kelp, to their toddy. While bar seating isn’t currently offered, you can order the drink via Tock or Caviar from Death & Co.’s to-go and delivery menu. If you choose to dine on your balcony or in the park, The Super Cult Toddy is guaranteed to keep you happy.

BROOKLYN

Williamsburg

Ainslie

Italian sensation Ainslie (76 Ainslie St)  has a Sip, Stir, Cuddle hot toddy from mixologist Jessica Dure, made with Vecchia Tres Botti brandy, rye whiskey, Amaro Montenegro (from Bologna), honey, lemon, baking spices and Angostura bitters.  This is just the right drink to sip in their outdoor sidewalk patio or in their expansive beer garden with its open roof. Pair it with Ainslie’s shareable saltimbocca pizza, with just the right amount of prosciutto and sage adorning the melty cheese, or the lasagna with Bolognese sauce and linguine vongole.

Ten Hope - Todd’s Hot Date

Nearby, Ten Hope Outdoor Garden (10 Hope Street) offers a hot toddy called Todd’s Hot Date made with brandy, bourbon, date molasses, lemon and clove perfect for enjoying on the open-air, vine-laced patio. The Mediterranean restaurant’s flatbread with zaatar oil is a perfect accompaniment.  Naturally, there are heaters throughout to keep you toasty on the outside, too.

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