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A PureLeaf and Butter Afternoon Equals A Match Made in Heaven

Last Saturday I had the great pleasure to not only catch up with some lovely local bloggers but also sample new products and experience one of New York City’s top restaurants. The wonderful Lipton Tea and their PR company, Ogilvy, treated a number of local bloggers to a luxurious Saturday afternoon luncheon to celebrate their new bottled tea, Lipton PureLeaf 0 Calorie.

As an avid Gossip Girl fan, I’d heard of Butter not only through my tattered Zagat and countless friends but also from the episode regarding Lil J and a big party scheme. This combined with the news surrounding the head chef, Alex Guarnaschelli, had me very excited. For those of you who don’t know Alex has been featured on Iron Chef, Chopped, and her own show, Alex’s Day Off. In addition, she is an accomplished female chef who has made her mark at Michelin quality restaurants. That in itself is quite a feat and I only hoped that we’d have an opportunity to not only learn about Lipton’s wonderful teas but also Alex. I knew Lipton was dedicated to education and spreading the knowledge of tea from Kath’s journey last year with Lipton. 


Saturday’s event started at 11:30 when a black car picked me up from the apartment. This was such a treat and I thoroughly enjoyed being chauffeured into the city rather than taking the subway. I enjoyed the sites as we crossed over the bridge and ventured downtown towards Butter. Once I arrived the Lipton and Ogilvy folks ensured that I had a name tag and found the bar. The bar was setup with a special drink menu featuring the Lipton PureLeaf teas. I was excited when I found out that they didn’t all feature alcohol. I knew that I needed to avoid alcohol due to Sunday’s race. I quickly chose the Blackberry Spritzer which featured blackberry puree, sparkling cider, and PureLeaf Raspberry tea. 


003Holy yum! This was delicious especially since I was able to enjoy it with fellow bloggers. I was excited to catch up with Megan, Melissa, and Diana all of whom i’d met previously at the David Burke FoodBuzz dinner, blogger brunches, and other events. 

After we were all seated we had the opportunity to hear from Gilbert Kendzior. Gilbert is a hilarious older British man with a nack for tea. As Lipton’s Master Tea Blender he was able to explain the different types of tea, how he chooses tea, and more. Some of the information was difficult to hear due to the space’s acoustics but for the most part we all learned a great deal. He also discussed Unilever and Lipton’s commitment to sustainability. They have put many “green” practices into place over the past few years and have gone so far to educate, care for, and house those people who work on their farms! While he finished his discussion, we were able to sample the teas. They were better than I was expecting! Due to the fact that it isn’t sweetened with Splenda but instead the natural alternative, stevia, there was no artificial aftertaste and the tea is very refreshing. I prefer the lemon as it isn’t quite as sweet as the raspberry. Both were delicious served over ice. 



As we finished our last sips, the service began! We were all elated and were anxious to see what Butter would serve. 


First Course: Delicious biscuits with two types of butter (traditional and chive) both of which are made in house. The biscuit was perfectly moist and crumbled in my mouth ever so slightly. I told myself that I would only eat half of each thing served so that I would make it through the meal and Sunday’s race. 


Amuse-Bouche: A deliciously green arugala-leek soup topped with toast and truffle butter. Unfortunately my toast fell into the soup which meant it was laden with truffle butter flavor. But, I loved the base and would like to try this at home. It seems like the perfect summer soup and was exploding with fresh leek flavors.
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Second Amuse Bouche: Crispy Florida shrimp paired with a pickled vegetable salad.  The shrimp was delicious but the sauce had a bit too much horseradish for my taste.
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First Course (can you believe it?!): Roasted squash caponata with celery root, mache, and a lemon tea dressing. This was one of my absolute favorites and made me want to pick up mache at the grocery store that night. The flavors were light but intricate as Alex experimented with celery root and mache to create an untraditional salad. This was the one course that I ate 100%.





Second Course: Lots of wows, oohs, and aahs were released when the chef and kitchen staff surprised us with a HUGE striped bass. This striped bass, after being paraded around the table by the sous chefs, was cut into small portions and served with brussel sprouts, roasted heirloom potatoes and a tea buerre blanc. The combination was perfect and the fish could not have been prepared any better. Alex admitted that she was a bit apprehensive preparing such a large fish for the event but she delivered it flawlessly!


Our final course, was of course dessert. But, Alex put a twist on it by serving a Coffee and Tea dessert. This was coffee ice cream, struesel, lemon tea caramel, coffee granita and tea-soaked golden raisins. This was not my favorite as I don’t care for coffee flavored ice cream and this was more like ESPRESSO! It was very intense. But, the surprise dessert was a huge winner. After the coffee and tea, we were presented with delectable petits fours. The white chocolate with lemon tea and toasted almond praline was absolutely divine. I have a huge soft spot for white chocolate and this was some of the best white chocalte i’ve ever tasted. I normally do not care for fruit and chocolate pairings but the praline and lemon matched perfectly. I did not try the dark chocolate with citrus as I was too full and my taste buds were spent!

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Photo courtesy of Diana at Soap & Chocolate


This event was wonderfully executed by Ogilvy and Lipton. I was honored to be included and look forward to restocking my fridge with more PureLeaf 0 once it hits stores in a few weeks! Thank you Rachel, Priya, Nyala, and Kevin for the opportunity to enjoy Butter, catch up with fellow bloggers, meet Alex, and learn more about one of my favorite drinks! **Thank you Diana and Megan for pictures as my camera is at the office. Tomorrow I will update with my own pics.**
In addition, for reader’s enjoyment, Lipton has provided a recipe: 




LEMON TEA FORBIDDEN RICE
8 servings

Prep Time: 10 minutes  

Cook Time: 40 minutes    

Stand Time: 10 minutes    
1 Tbsp. butter
1/2 cup chopped red onion
1 bottle (16 oz.) Lipton® Pure Leaf™ Iced Tea 0 Calories Lemon
1-1/2 cups water
1/2 tsp. salt
2 cups Chinese black rice
1 cup chopped green onions
1/2  cup loosely packed fresh basil leaves, chopped
1/2 cup thinly sliced radishes
Melt butter in 4-quart saucepan over medium heat and cook red onion, stirring occasionally, 3 minutes or until tender. Add Lipton® Pure Leaf™ Iced Tea 0 Calories Lemon and water. Bring to a boil over high heat. Stir in rice and return to a boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer covered 30 minutes or until rice is tender. Remove from heat, then let stand 10 minutes.

Fluff with fork. Spoon into large bowl and garnish with green onions, basil and radishes.


Disclaimer: Ogilvy Public Relations extended an invitation to the PureLeaf 0 Calorie event on behalf of their client Lipton. I was not provided monetary compensation nor was I required to post about the event or product upon accepting the invitation. These opinions are my own.


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Barbounia: Gramercy Greek Chic Cuisine

Apartment hunting works up an appetite, especially when it is preceeded by an 11 mile run. In between two broker meetings on Saturday Bo and I only had an hour to find lunch and knew we wanted a restaurant where we could relax and have space to review the apartments we had seen throughout the morning. We were in the Gramercy area and quickly headed towards Park Avenue as we figured this large avenue would provide the most options. Cosi is always a reliable chain but we weren’t in the mood for a chain, Sushi Samba and City Crab weren’t serving lunch, and the 24 hour diner was jammed pack. That left us with Barbounia, a large restaurant we spotted across the street. We could tell it was open as there was a large sign out front and the door was propped open welcoming newcomers. As we approached we realized the sign was an advertisement for their brunch special: add $12 to your brunch and enjoy all you can drink champagne, belllinis, and mimosas. While this is definitely a good deal, unfortunately Bo and I knew we couldn’t enjoy the special due to our afternoon broker meetings.
Upon entering Barbounia, we were both amazed with the atmosphere. The space is quite large and airy, displying an open kitchen in the back, fun whimsical throw pillows along the side tables which all in all bring back visions of Aladin and Arabian Nights. The lavish warm gold and yellow tones are inviting and welcoming against the ornate decorations which channel the restaurants Mediterannean and Turkish roots. We were quickly greeted by a friendly hostess who was able to seat us promptly. Luckily the restaurant was only half full when we arrived though the bar area was alive with friends recapping Friday night’s events and girlfriends meeting for lunch. The seating was well spaced during lunch and we had ample room on either side which is a refreshing change from most New York City restaurants. The menu, while only one page, featured Mediterannean fare spanning from fallafel, hummus, eggs, and the classic greek salad. Bo quickly chose the Falafel sandwich (tahini, chopped salad, and zhoug) while I chose the Classic Greek which featured Classic greek romaine, tomato, cucumber, black olives, feta, and za’atar. I knew that a mere salad wouldn’t satiate my post long run hunger so I added grilled shrimp for some added protein. Upon our waitress’ suggestion we also ordered an the hummus tapas.

The hummus tapa came out quickly and looked absolutely decadent. The hummus did not come out with warm pita but instead a warm salt and rosemary encrusted doughy loaf of bread. The hummus had a light garlic and lemon flavor though the true winner was the bread. The doughy texture and warm salt was just what we were both craving. It was clear that this is one of their most popular menu items as every table around us was enjoying the same appetizer. I caught a glance of the eggplant tapas and regretted not choosing that instead as I bet the flavor would have been even better. Oh well!

Our main courses came out a few minutes later and were presented beautifully. Bo’s fallafel sandwhich was in fact a gyro and the warm hummus and tahini was oozing out the end. The flavor complex was spot on while the crunchy greek inspired vegetables (tomato, cucumbers, lettuce) balanced out the richness of the tahini and fallafel. In one word, Bo described it as a delicious vegetarian lunch. In fact, he was very proud of the fact that he ordered a vegetarian entree as he is trying to be more open to enjoying vegetarian meals instead of dwelling on their lack of meat. My salad blew my expectations away. I had prepared myself for a typical greek salad with bits of feta, chopped cucumbers, and way too much olive oil. But, intsead I was delighted and overwhelmed with the large triangles of feta, the jumbo shrimp, and the flavorful herbs. I was glad that I requested they serve the dressing on the side as it was far more oil than herbs and vinegar. However, when used in small amounts it was a perfect addition.
Overall, Barbounia was a perfectly chic brunch spot which we will hopefully enjoy again soon one evening with friends. I can only imagine what the space would be like at night with the energy of a Saturday night crowd and their creative drinks.
In addition to Barbounia, some of our other Greek recommendations in NYC are as follows:
Avra

141 Est 48th Street, 212-759-8550
Tends to be a bit pricey but this is a perfect restuarant to go when entertaining clients, enjoying a corportate meal, or celebrating.
Pylos
128 E. 7th St, west of Avenue A/212-473-0220
It’s lasted in the East Village for over six years. That in itself makes it a success!
Thalassa
179 Franklin St/between Greenwich & Hudson/212-941-7661
They have 5,000 bottles in their wine cellar, need we say more?


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One Fish, Two Fish…

If you are a seafood lover who happens to be in New York City, then Fish must swim to the top of your list.
Saturday night, Bo and I stumbled upon Fish while searching for a backup location with our two friends, Geoff and Elizabeth, after our first restaurant option ended up being a dissapointment. What do you do when your planned restaurant ends up being completely empty on a Saturday night? If you’re in the Village you have the great opportunity to just keep walking. It is guaranteed that you’ll discover a hole in the wall you never knew existed and often times end up loving it!
Fish was in a word…excellent. The unassuming restaurant doesn’t look like much from the outside and in fact could be confused for a fish monger or a dive bar. But, once you walk through the doors you are immediately greeted by a warm atmosphere, bistro like setting, and great music! The restaurant was packed when we arrived but luckily there was one free table. After being seated we were promptly given warm delicious rolls and cornbread each of which was very fresh and tasty. The menu is vast and offers everything from the traditional lobster roll to a gourmet seafood tower. The restaurant is well known for their Red, White, and Blue special. This special features a 1/2 dozen oysters and a Pabst Blue Ribbon for $8!
It took us a while to order anything beyond our beers since we were all in such a great mood and enjoying the atmosphere. The great music combined with the flowing beers made us quite a humurous bunch as you can see from the pictures. Due to our hunger we finally settled on an appetizer to share, the seafood tower. The tower included crab claws, oysters, clams, and sea urchin. I had never tried sea urchin before and was therefor a bit hesitant but it was divine!
Our dinner ideas were all over the place as I was craving fresh fish while Bo had his eye on the lobster roll. However, once the waitress came over and shared the specials with us the decision was a no brainer. Fish features a lobster special each night. For $18 you get a lobster feast which includes a lobster and two sides of your choice. In addition, it is only $12 to add an extra lobster. Therefore, we quickly decided that we would all order lobster dinners. Finding a restaurant in NYC where four people can enjoy a delcious lobster dinner for $100 is unfathomable.
All of us were extremely pleased with the freshness and simply prepared seafood we enjoyed all night. The lobsters were huge and some of the best we’ve ever tasted. The service was friendly and prompt. Even more impressive is the price point. I am sure they are able to deliver such wonderful price points due to the savings they must find by having a dive bar atmosphere but it makes the restaurant. It never crosses too far into the dive bar realm that you fear your seafood’s quality or that you’ll get a disease when you enter the bathroom. Even the esteemed Zagat agrees that Fish is a great neighborhood gem! Their latest rankings are as follows:
Ratings & Review
Food Decor Service Cost

22 14 19 $ 39
“They’ve done the fishing for you” at this “Cape Cod”–style Villager, an “unpretentious” source of “palatable” “basic seafood” and raw-bar fare served amid “divey” “nautical” decor; if “you’re watching your pennies”, the “oyster special is amazing.”


I highly recommend giving Fish a try if you’re craving bivalves or fresh fish. The atmosphere is conducive to a large group of friends as no one will tell you to be quiet or stop playing with the lobsters. In addition, if you’re in the neighborhood they even offer free delivery!


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