Neighborhood TrEats: Harlem’s Red Rooster

Posted on March 18, 2011August 4, 2013 by Marcia Mayne

Whenever my friend, Anneli, comes to town, we always meet for lunch at a different restaurant. This time, I told her to come uptown to Harlem so we could try Red Rooster, one of the newest additions to my neighborhood.

One of award-winning chef Marcus Samuelsson‘s restaurants, Red Rooster, features American cuisine with a nod to the rest of the world.

Facade, Red Rooster — Red Rooster, Harlem

I knew dinner would have been impossible without a reservation but I didn’t realize lunch would be so popular. At 12:15 when we arrived, most of the tables were already taken. But we only had to wait about 5 minutes at the bar until one opened up.

Crab claw on a bed of greens from Red Rooster — Crab Salad

Both Anneli and I had the lobster salad which had juicy claw and bite-sized chunks of lobster on a bed of greens. I’m not normally a salad person but this one was delicious and filling. I could have stopped there but a Pulled Pork sandwich was on its way.

Open Faced Pulled Pork Sandwich, Red Rooster — Pulled Pork Sandwich

The pork almost melted in my mouth.

Grilled Salmon on a bed of spinach, Red Rooster — Grilled Salmon

After finishing the Grilled Salmon, Anneli told our waiter that she was “in heaven.”

Slice of Apple Pie, Red Rooster — Apple Pie

I liked that the waiter didn’t rush the courses and once they served us, left us alone to enjoy our meal and catch up. We hadn’t seen each other in a while and had lots to talk about.

Red Rooster has an extensive menu. I’m curious about the Yard Bird and a few other dishes I noticed other people eating so I’ll be going back.

All in all, Red Rooster was a delicious way to spend the first 70+ degree day in 2011.

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You: Restaurant Review: United at Tables in Harlem (nytimes.com)
Harlem Restaurant To Get The Obama Boost (huffingtonpost.com)

Regifting Japan’s Cherry Blossoms

Posted on March 17, 2011July 16, 2011 by Marcia Mayne

I have been unable to look at the images that have been coming out of Japan since the magnitude 8.9 earthquake and 23-foot tsunami devastated the north eastern portion of that country. They’re too surreal.

That the people I know, former co-workers, who have returned to work at headquarters in Tokyo and their loved ones are okay, have brought little consolation. I can’t even begin to imagine what it must be like being in Japan at the moment or being a Japanese outside of Japan. My friend, Maiko, misses her family and wishes she could go home. My co-workers are torn.

It’ll be several years before things will be “normal” again. The emotional impact will take even longer to heal.

But I know Japan will recover and rebuild – just like she did after Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

Instead of looking at the images of destruction, I find myself being drawn instead to photos of the cherry blossoms my cousin took last year when we met in Washington, D.C. Cherry Blossoms were given to D.C. in 1921 by the then mayor of Tokyo. Every year, they turn the area around the Tidal Basin pink, perfume the air with a sweet, clean scent and invite thousands of visitors to stroll, stop and smell the beautiful flowers. It is a sure indicator of spring’s impending arrival.

This year, the festival will be held from March 26th – April 10th. If you’ve never seen it, you owe it to yourself to do so. In an interesting twist, the National Park Service announced a few weeks ago that it would be sending cuttings from the original cherry trees back to Tokyo for propagation.

In the aftermath of the earthquake, tsunami and nuclear threat, this is a wonderful regifting.

You can do your part to help Japan by sending a donation to the Red Cross, the Japan Society or other relief agencies that are assisting the Japanese people in their time of need.

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12 places to see beautiful spring blooms (cnn.com)
Early bloom predicted for DC’s cherry blossoms (seattletimes.nwsource.com)
Day 136: Cherry Blossoms (whitneytphoto.wordpress.com)
The Cherry Blossom (pathpics.wordpress.com)

Why Do We Need All Those Lights?

Posted on March 16, 2011July 19, 2011 by Marcia Mayne

Why do we need all those lights, my 12 year old niece asked as we walked towards Times Square. Frankly, I didn’t have a ready answer.

Like most people who live in New York City and have family and friends everywhere, I’ve come to accept that from time to time, someone will be asking to use my fouton.

This past weekend, it was my sister. Her 12 year old, Justin Bieber-crazed only child told her that she wanted to spend part of her spring break in the city. Most of her friends had gone away for spring break as well.

I took the morning off yesterday to shepherd them from Grand Central to Times Square and parts in between.

It was eye opening to see how excited she got at things that I have become inured to.

Like when she screamed, Rachel Ray! I thought she had seen the television host. She hadn’t. All she had seen was the awning over the back entrance to Rachel Ray’s studios. I’d noticed people standing on line but I’d completely missed the glaring orange RR logo and had forgotten that her studio was there. Just seeing the name had made my niece so excited, she was smiling from ear to ear. Of course we had to take a picture for her.

I should have halted the tour there and head for one of the television studios. She did ask where Good Morning America was taped but we had a few more places to go and reservations to keep.

Klieg lights, dollys, booms poles and rolls of wires seemed to sprout out of the sidewalk near the intersection of Fifth Avenue and 28th Street, leaving a path just wide enough for us to pass single file. When I mentioned, casually, that they had probably just finished filming, she came alive again, There must be a celebrity around! she gushed, eyes bulging with excitement. There was, indeed, a limo, and crew near one of its doors. But with no trailers or food trucks, I wasn’t sure. Auntie, can we go see who it is, pleease?

When did my niece become so label savvy and celebrity obsessed, I wondered. But I probably should have expected it. This is the same niece who speaks with me via Skype and has had a page on Facebook since she was about 10. Well, it’s actually my sister’s page but she’s the one who updates it and most of the friends are hers. My sister monitors the page and her usage.

Was I this crazy about anyone or anything when I was 12? Music, maybe. But I had no opportunity to get up close to any of the musicians I liked, so their music and my imagination were all I had.

As the lights in Times Square came into view, I was surprised, no, shocked when instead of saying how beautiful they were, she asked, with the innocence of a 4 year old, Why do we need all those lights?

It was so totally unexpected, I began laughing, partly because I couldn’t find a plausible answer at that moment and partly out of relief. There’s hope for her, I thought. Maybe this is just a phase that she’ll grow out of. Eventually.

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FarmVille English Countryside hits Times Square, nowhere near a farm (games.com)
Guy Hacks Times Square Video Screens with iPhone and Transmitter (VIDEO) (blippitt.com)

Above a Cloudy Canopy

Posted on March 15, 2011July 16, 2011 by Marcia Mayne

Whenever I travel, I always opt for the window seat so I can enjoy the scenery. But for most of this flight over the U.S., thick clouds prevented me from seeing the terrain below.

So I decided to look at them instead of reading or snoozing.

Each time I looked, the pattern and thickness had changed.

Finally, it covered the land below. And I remembered the line, I really don’t know clouds at all, from Joni Mitchell‘s song, Both Sides Now.

How Will I Postaday When I’m on Vacation?

Posted on March 14, 2011June 12, 2011 by Marcia Mayne

A few weeks ago, I was speaking with my 80 year old aunt who, except for a spell in Canada, has lived in the U.K. since 1954 – way before I was born.

I’m not sure how the conversation veered towards her trip from Kingston, Jamaica to London but for the first time I heard that she and 16 others had traveled on the Reina del Pacifico, the ocean liner aboard which a former British Prime Minister, James MacDonald, had died and King Peter of Yugoslavia had sailed.

But that’s not what caught my attention. According to Aunt Connie, her voyage had lasted three weeks. Three weeks?!

Could I survive being unplugged for that long? I doubt it seriously.

When did I get so connected? Every so often, I leave my phone at home intentionally or turn off the television.

But I’m getting ready to go on vacation and remaining connected is my biggest concern. Always has been.

Living in the U.S., I’ve become so used to being always ‘on’ that I take for granted the limitations of technology elsewhere.

On my last trip, my laptop traveled with me as it always does. However, in two and a half weeks, I got online for only a few minutes. When I did, it was like winning the lottery – miraculous and unexpected. My first few days had been tortuous. Like quitting smoking cold turkey, I felt ‘whole’ again once I got online.

So how will I be able to postaday when I’m on vacation?

I plan to have a few posts queued up and ready to go but I love to share my experiences shortly after they happen – not when I get back. So I’ve spent the last day trolling the Internet to make sure there’ll be free WiFi hotspots near my hotel (T-Mobile tells me I can turn off the data service and connect using WiFi but I’d rather have my phone off completely) that I’ll be able to find a convenient location to buy a SIM card when I arrive (I have an unlocked phone that I use whenever I travel) and that my adapters will work (They didn’t in South Africa). I’ll buy a few minutes on Skype so I can call home in case there’s an emergency or use GoogleChat.

I’m confident these steps will keep me connected so that I can keep my commitment to postaday while I’m away. I’ll know for sure once I arrive.

How do you stay connected when you’re traveling outside the US?

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Soulful Sundays: Tarrus Riley

Posted on March 13, 2011June 12, 2011 by Marcia Mayne

Sundays, for me, are usually lazy days. I putter, lounge, read, snooze and, of course, listen to music. What I listen to depends on my mood. Sometimes, it’s soothing jazz. Other times, it’s music that gets me on my feet – I just love to dance.

For this week’s Soulful Sundays post, I want to share the work of a musician who has become one of my favorites.

I was first introduced to reggae musician, Tarrus Riley a few years ago when I heard his anthem to women, She’s Royal. Then my friend, Sandra, and I attended his performance at the Calabash Literary Festival in Treasure Beach. We enjoyed it so much, we concluded we had to see him again. We did, in New York, a few months later and we weren’t disappointed. I even went back stage to get his autograph – something I never did when I was a teenager!

So here now, is I Sight

Hope you like it as much as I do.

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Tarrus Riley: “Shaka Zulu Pickney” (theiiirdworld.com)
Jamaica’s Caribbean Marketplace 2011 (repeatingislands.com)
Catching the Vibe in Treasure Beach (insidejourneys.com)

Weekly Photo Challenge: Home

Posted on March 12, 2011June 12, 2011 by Marcia Mayne

Weekly Photo Challenge: Home (dailypost.wordpress.com)

Out of Many, One: The Outameni Experience

Posted on March 11, 2011June 12, 2011 by Marcia Mayne

My cousin and her husband kept raving about this place he said they knew I would love. But they wouldn’t say what it was or why they were so sure I’d love it.

I was curious.

We loaded up the car and headed north east from Montego Bay towards Trelawny. Once at the sign to the Outameni Experience, we turned off the road.

So this is where we were going!

Outameni, the Jamaican lingo for Out of Many (as in Out of Many, One People – the Jamaican motto) is an interactive look back at Jamaica’s history from the time of the indigenous people, the Arawak or Taino, as they’re now called, through the present.

Jars like these were used to keep drinking water cool

Our entertained us with mento dancing and storytelling while we waited for the tour to begin.

Each period is represented by its own display with guides in period dress narrating the story of that time.

The Taino arrived in Jamaica around 650 A.D. from South America. They were said to be peaceful people who planted cassava, corn, sweet potato and got most of their food from the sea. When Columbus arrived in 1492, it was the Taino who greeted him. Unfortunately, within a few years of his arrival, the Tainos in Jamaca were exterminated. It is said that some killed themselves rather than be put to work by the Spanish, others died after coming into contact with European diseases for which they had no immunity.

Christopher Columbus and his merry band of sailors stumbled upon Jamaica on May 5, 1494 on his second voyage on behalf of the King of Spain. Thus began the period of Spanish settlements in Jamaica which lasted until the British took over in 1655.

The first Africans in Jamaica came as servants of Spanish settlers. These were freed when the British took over Jamaica in 1655. As sugar production exploded, Africans were again brought to the island, this time to work on the plantations.

Nearly 40,000 Indians were brought to Jamaica beginning in 1845 as indentured workers to work in the sugar cane industry after slavery was abolished. Many were repatriated but far many remained. Today, their descendants make up the second largest racial group in Jamaica.

The Chinese began coming to Jamaica in the 1845 to work on sugar cane plantations. Today, they make up the majority of the merchant class.

The Outameni Experience ends with Jamaica today, a vibrant country that approximately 2 million people – African, Indian, Chinese, Jewish, Lebanese, Scottish, German, Cuban, Haitian, American, Canadian and Latin American – call home.

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Taino Symbology Review (carolefdee.wordpress.com)

Tasty Thursday: Ackee and Saltfish (Cod)

Posted on March 10, 2011June 12, 2011 by Marcia Mayne

This dish has won me friends and lovers each time I serve it.

Vegetable Dumpling with Saltfish — Ackee and Saltfish with Johnny Cakes

Every Jamaican I know either has an ackee tree out back or ackees in the freezer. And the ones “a foreign” have a can or two in the pantry and/or frozen ones they or someone brought back from Jamaica for them.

Ackee is a very popular and versatile dish. Serve on toasted bread for a tasty bruschetta or ackee and saltfish sandwich. Add a little curry to sauteed onions and peppers then mix in ackee for delicious curried ackee (no saltfish needed).

What’s ackee and saltfish, you ask? Well, it is Jamaica’s national dish. Ackee, a relative of the lychee, was brought to Jamaica from West Africa, probably on a slave ship. In 1962, it took pride of place next to the coat of arms, flag, lignum vitae, blue mahoe and humming bird as one of the symbols of the newly independent island nation.

Ackee and saltfish is made of two main ingredients: ackee and salted cod. As with most dishes, different people add their own twist. Here’s how I make it:

1lb boneless saltfish
2 dozen ackees or 2 cans
6 strips of bacon, cut up
1 Scotch Bonnet pepper, seeded
2 stalks of scallion, chopped
1 sprig of thyme
1 medium onion, chopped
1 medium tomato, chopped
1/2 tsp finely ground black pepper
1/4 cup of cooking oil (optional)

Screen shot 2011-03-09 at 7.04.51 PM — Ackees

Note: Unripened ackees contain a toxic substance that is released when the pod is opened. If you’re using them, make sure they are completely opened, like these in this photo are.

Remove the ackees from their pods, discard the pinkish-red membrane and seed. Wash and put them to boil in a large pot with saltfish that has been washed to remove traces of salt crystals.

You can also cook the ackees separately in lightly salted water or use the water from the saltfish.

(There are different varieties of ackees. Some really soft ones, so called ‘butter’ ackees, take just a few minutes to cook. Others are firmer and take a bit a little longer. You want to make sure whichever one you use, you don’t over cook them or they will break apart.)

Canned ackees are already pre-cooked so if you’re using those, all you’ll need to do is wash the salt off the saltfish then put in a pot with enough water to cover and boil, or soak overnight to remove the salt then boil. Drain. Flake with a fork or your fingers.

Fry bacon strips, remove from saucepan. Saute onions in same oil until tender. Add strips of Scotch Bonnet pepper, chopped scallion (leave some for garnishing) and tomato. Then add flaked saltfish and stir. Add the ackees. Season with freshly ground black pepper and thyme. Stir carefully so as not to break the pods. Lower heat and let cook for about 5-7 minutes.

Plate, garnish with chopped scallions and serve as an appetizer or main course with avocado wedges, bammie, fried plantains, boiled green bananas or Johnny Cakes.

Enjoy!

Quick Bite | Ossining: Jamaican Restaurant Pon De Riva Opens in Ossining, N.Y. (nytimes.com)
Jamaican Johnny Cakes (notecook.com)
World’s strangest illegal souvenirs (msnbc.msn.com)

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Catching the Vibe in Treasure Beach

Posted on March 9, 2011April 3, 2016 by Marcia Mayne

Treasure Beach is small community on Jamaica’s south western coast that prides itself with being friendly and very laid back.

A fishing community with six miles of beaches, rocky coastline and private coves, it is the perfect place to get away from it all and with not much activity besides swimming, snorkeling, bicycle rides, etc., you’ve got little choice than to relax and catch the vibe.

I’ve been going to Treasure Beach for several years now, most times to attend the international literary festival, Calabash, which brings scores of lovers of the word to this far off the beaten track place to listen to world class literature.

I’ve also been when the festival is not in session. Besides the people, here are a few of the other reasons I keep returning.