http://www.thingsithinkarecool.com Mon, 06 Feb 2012 00:38:56 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 http://www.thingsithinkarecool.com/food/el-cortijo-mexican-restaurant http://www.thingsithinkarecool.com/food/el-cortijo-mexican-restaurant#comments Sun, 05 Feb 2012 21:35:07 +0000 admin http://www.thingsithinkarecool.com/?p=2297

HEY BURLINGTON. THERE IS FINALLY A GOOD MEXICAN RESTAURANT IN TOWN. It’s called “El Cortijo” and it occupies the downtown space at 189 Bank street where Katz’s Deli used to be. Started by the owners of “The Farmhouse Tap & Grill” which is just a few blocks away, El Cortijo does something that’s not very difficult, but has eluded all previous attempts at Mexican eateries in town (and up until very recently, in the state) – it serves delicious Mexican-style food you will gladly eat on a weekly basis. Hell, I’m going back in a few days for lunch. Up until the opening of El Cortijo, if Burlingtonians wanted to eat half way decent Mexican food they had to make the 45-minute drive to Frida’s Taqueria & Grill in Stowe. Before that, they ate something called Mexican food that barely qualified as food. *Shudder.* I don’t even want to think about those times. My good friend Richard Witting, chef extraordinaire, mans the brunch shift at El Cortijo on the weekends, creating specials that are sublime and exotic. This morning I had his 3 cheese quesadilla, containing goat, sheep and cow cheese, accented with pickled jalapenos and toasted pepitas (pumpkin seeds) nestled between 2 soft, organic corn tortillas. Really amazing. I also had a chorizo and a fish taco. Both were delicious and so far above the other tacos in town, it almost seems unfair. But not quite. I was sort of surprised to find that the guacamole at El Cortijo is actually better than Frida’s, where they make it fresh at your table with a pestle. One of the main differences is huge soft (but not mushy) chunks of avocado. It’s made every morning instead of on the spot. Despite this, I like it better. I’ve been waiting for simple, delicious, low-cost, city-quality Mexican food in Vermont for 20+ years. It’s finally here. Thanks El Cortijo. Burlington owes you one.

]]> http://www.thingsithinkarecool.com/food/el-cortijo-mexican-restaurant/feed 0 http://www.thingsithinkarecool.com/food/gelateria-del-teatro http://www.thingsithinkarecool.com/food/gelateria-del-teatro#comments Wed, 10 Feb 2010 00:45:38 +0000 admin http://www.whyilovevermont.com/?p=1920

On my last trip to Rome I made it my mission to find the best gelato. I walked around the city visiting all the top-rated gelaterias and many of the not-top-rated ones. In the process I ate lots and lots of gelato. Gelateria del Teatro, located in a hard-to-find alley near the Piazza Navona, was my favorite gelateria. Everything was made in the shop. The flavors were intense and refined. Its not as commercial as the popular Giolitti (which is very very good, but a complete scene and the servers are overworked and rude), and not as sterile and insipid as San Crispino which is a bit of an institution in Rome. Definitely try Gelateria del Teatro and Giolitti if you are ever there. For those of you who are curious, gelato is actually not the same as ice cream. Gelato is made with a greater proportion of whole milk to cream, so it contains about five to seven percent fat vs. ice cream’s 10%+. Additionally, gelato is churned at a slower speed, so it’s denser because not as much air is whipped into it. While ice cream is served frozen, gelato is typically stored and served at a slightly warmer temperature, so it has a softer consistency. Finally, gelato comes in much more interesting flavors like nutella, baccio, stracciatella, cream, pistachio, coconut, zabaglione. Yum.

]]> http://www.thingsithinkarecool.com/food/gelateria-del-teatro/feed 4 http://www.thingsithinkarecool.com/joy/nutella http://www.thingsithinkarecool.com/joy/nutella#comments Sun, 24 Jan 2010 00:17:54 +0000 admin http://www.whyilovevermont.com/?p=1892

I was just an empty shell, a body walking around without a soul, until I found Nutella. It’s ambrosia; the perfect snack. Nutritious (kinda) and delicious. The fact that Nutella is not the most popular sweet treat in the United States or probably even in the top 50 is an indication that something is very wrong with this country. In Europe kids eat it for breakfast, women take baths in it and lovers smear it all over each other. The guy to the left is clearly European.

]]> http://www.thingsithinkarecool.com/joy/nutella/feed 2 http://www.thingsithinkarecool.com/food/richard-witting-duino-duende http://www.thingsithinkarecool.com/food/richard-witting-duino-duende#comments Fri, 25 Dec 2009 02:07:41 +0000 admin http://www.whyilovevermont.com/?p=1745

My second holiday dedication is to my ultra-talented friend Richard Witting. Richard is the chef and culinary creative force behind ¡Duino! (Duende), the new Burlington, Vermont restaurant that is part of the recently expanded Radio Bean cafe/music venue. Duino Duende specializes in international street food, has an extensive menu and is reasonably priced. Everyone is raving about the food, including online reviewers. The menu will change frequently, but currently includes Hawaiian sliders, avocado milkshakes and churros dripping with chocolate. The ginger napoleon is delicious, by the way. Richard believes in using the freshest, local products whenever possible and his commitment to do so goes beyond that of most chefs (he gathers his own mushrooms from nearby forests in the summertime). He also designed the Duino Duende sign (shown at the left) and is musically inclined. Can you say “super talented”? You can read more about Richard in this 7 Days article. Duino Duende is open 7 days a week, until 2am on the weekends, serves lunch Monday through Friday and will serve weekend brunch in the coming weeks. ¡Duino! Duende – 10 North Winooski Avenue, Burlington, VT (802) 660-9346

]]> http://www.thingsithinkarecool.com/food/richard-witting-duino-duende/feed 1 http://www.thingsithinkarecool.com/food/seriously-serious-about-seriouseats-com http://www.thingsithinkarecool.com/food/seriously-serious-about-seriouseats-com#comments Sat, 19 Dec 2009 06:23:39 +0000 admin http://www.whyilovevermont.com/?p=1682

Serious Eats is my kind of Website. It’s all about food. The kind of food I want to eat, approached in my kind of way. It’s awesome. It contains news, recipes, restaurant reviews and a chat room. What makes Serious Eats even more appealing is that it hosts four other food-oriented sites, making it a sort of food-information Swiss Army Knife: Serious Eats: New York. All about great food in New York City – (Very handy) Slice. A national pizza blog – (Brilliant) A Hamburger Today. A national hamburger blog – (Perhaps even more brilliant) Photograzing. A place for people to share their best food photography Case in point. Serious Eats New York is searching to find the best chocolate chip cookie in NYC. When I lived in Manhattan, I went on similar quests: best chocolate chip cookie, best almond croissant, best slider burger, best taco al pastor, best lobster roll, best scone… Food is important and fun. Serious Eats seems to agree with me. You should definitely check it out.

]]> http://www.thingsithinkarecool.com/food/seriously-serious-about-seriouseats-com/feed 0 http://www.thingsithinkarecool.com/photos/ebi http://www.thingsithinkarecool.com/photos/ebi#comments Sun, 06 Dec 2009 17:09:02 +0000 admin http://www.whyilovevermont.com/?p=1507

And two perfect pieces of shrimp sushi with real wasabi (not the fake stuff).

]]> http://www.thingsithinkarecool.com/photos/ebi/feed 0 http://www.thingsithinkarecool.com/photos/swedish-fish http://www.thingsithinkarecool.com/photos/swedish-fish#comments Sun, 06 Dec 2009 16:50:14 +0000 admin http://www.whyilovevermont.com/?p=1498

I want one Swedish Fish…

]]> http://www.thingsithinkarecool.com/photos/swedish-fish/feed 0 http://www.thingsithinkarecool.com/photos/keiths-breakfast http://www.thingsithinkarecool.com/photos/keiths-breakfast#comments Tue, 20 Oct 2009 04:15:32 +0000 admin http://www.whyilovevermont.com/?p=808

In honor of my friend Keith’s visit this weekend, I am posting another one of his photos. This is me eating brunch at the Mercer Hotel in New York City. I’m so hungry now, I wish I could eat this all over again.

]]> http://www.thingsithinkarecool.com/photos/keiths-breakfast/feed 1 http://www.thingsithinkarecool.com/food/the-belted-cow http://www.thingsithinkarecool.com/food/the-belted-cow#comments Thu, 15 Oct 2009 03:12:16 +0000 admin http://www.whyilovevermont.com/?p=608

The Belted Cow in Essex more than exceeded my expectations. In fact, I want to write all about it, the food especially, since it was very very good. But I am tired and unmotivated. I guess since this is my blog I can do whatever I want, so I’m not going to write very much now. I’ll come back to it later. Tra la la. But, I will say that my frisee salad with local lardons and poached egg was better than I hoped, though I think the sherry vinaigrette could have had a bit more oomph. The scallops with celery root puree and grain mustard were more than impressive, as was my friend Marc’s penne with local veal, pancetta and roma tomato ragu bolognese… Yum yum double yum. To top it all off, the chef (who is a friend of Marc’s) gave us a complimentary tartine with smoked pork, pickled onions and cheddar fondue. Over the top tasty. In fact, “tasty” and “flavorful” are two words that come to mind when I think of the food we had tonight. “Impressive” also comes to mind. I wasn’t expecting much from an Essex restaurant, but now I’m already planning return trips to try out more things on the menu. The chef/owners obviously know their stuff. I hope this place does very very well. That’s all I can muster. I’ve already said way more than I thought I would.

]]> http://www.thingsithinkarecool.com/food/the-belted-cow/feed 0 http://www.thingsithinkarecool.com/food/burlington-farmers-market http://www.thingsithinkarecool.com/food/burlington-farmers-market#comments Sun, 11 Oct 2009 04:21:31 +0000 admin http://www.whyilovevermont.com/?p=440

The Burlington Vermont Farmers’ Market, located in City Hall Park. Which is, unfortunately, only open on Saturdays until 2pm from May thru October and then open once a month in Memorial Auditorium the rest of the year. It’s small, but fun. Occasionally there are new vendors. I like the beef and cheese samosas. The almond tarts. The cheeses and breads. The root beer and brownies. Just about everything.

]]> http://www.thingsithinkarecool.com/food/burlington-farmers-market/feed 0