Triple Cream, Roquefort and Goat Cheeses
Close friends of mine know that I have dragged back some 
of the strangest, smelliest, yummiest, heaviest, juiciest, and the “hardest to find in Manila” foodstuff in my luggage. This last trip was no exception… over 10 pounds of delicious cheese (vacuum packed, thank goodness!) was in one of our suitcases. First, a creamy, rich and “stuff of dreams” triple cream cheese that has 75% butter fat…this particular one from Le Delice De Bourgogne but an Explorateur or Pierre Robert all have the same impact. I only discovered triple creams last year and they are heavenly. In warm weather triple creams soften rapidly, and spread generously on a cracker, they are superlative. If you have never tried a triple cream, please do so the first chance you get. Triple creams are buttery, mild and smooth. We brought back a whole wheel of this cheese that weighed about 5 lbs and shared some of it with friends.
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was to shop for the “last supper” in New York. Almost everything used for the dinner was locally grown. What a great way to end a hectic but fattening trip to New York. First up, an appetizer of Long Island mussels with a shallot vinaigrette. My daughter has taken a liking to many shelled beings (clams, mussels, and even snails) so this starter was for her. Served on an interesting half moon shaped side dish that is designed to sidle up to your plate, the mussels were plump and very tasty. We had just a few mussels each because we had several more dishes to enjoy.
I return to Manila. Not much commentary as the trip has been totally crazed and it’s down to the wire of shopping, packing, etc. Just revel in the variety of Spring produce on offer (with some stuff left over from the winter)…wish I were here to capture the summer bounty but it’s time to head back home. The first photo in this “market album” are just picked stalks of rhubarb, a classic spring find that is great in rhubarb and strawberry pies, rhubarb compotes and other desserts…
legendary…originally specializing in smoked fish and bagels and cream cheese, it has since expanded to a full line of gourmet foods and a second floor filled with cooking utensils. I have eaten smoked fish from Zabar’s for perhaps 30 years, but it has been at the same location for over 70 years! To many visitors, the place is chaotic, difficult to navigate, sometimes intimidating. The blaring PA system screaming the daily smoked fish special or free tasting of some other promotional item can be disconcerting for some shoppers, Marketman included. However, it is still one of the top food store destinations in New York. If you hit it at the wrong time, say a Friday in the summer before everyone skeedadles to Long Island for the weekend or in preparation for all the neighborhood brunches, the place is a zoo!
hurtle back to Manila at just under the speed of sound… can you imagine how much junk would end up in the ears of Superman if he flew from Washington, DC to New York City to rescue Lois Lane from a burning skyscraper??? At any rate, I intend to cram half a dozen or so entries into the next two days, make my way back to Manila, miraculously avoid any jet lag whatsoever and report on the Manila market scene and produce finds once again… But first, a quick post on the Grand Central Market, a superb alley of several dozen fine food purveyors that is tucked into one side of the recently refurbished (and spectacular) Grand Central Station at 42nd street and Lexington Avenue. When the building was refurbished, several upscale retailers and fine food purveyors were invited to locate here to capture an affluent market of tens of thousands of commuters that passes through the station each day. 
stock up on all of those hard to find goodies that I always carry home in my luggage or send in balikbayan boxes. Located at 74th and Broadway, Fairway is the genuine article. Everything about it feels “real” and not one bit contrived. Fruit is stacked up to 8 feet high and I often wonder how the average American at say 5’6” in height (average between male and female shoppers) can reach the top of the stack! I soon found out as a vertically challenged shopper asked me to reach up there for some fruit… New Yorkers come to Fairway to stock up - most leave with the maximum amount of weight they can carry around the block to their apartments. On a recent visit to Fairway, I spied superb unripened green grapes (to make verjuice) which are used in various sauces for meats. There were also cherries, stone fruits, a dozen different apples, melons, berries, etc. The vegetable section was bursting with produce and the turnover was still impressive despite the opening of the Whole Foods Market just a half-mile down the road at the Time Warner Center.
The Harrods Food Hall certainly does this for me (odd for a country not known for great food until recently…) and so does the food hall at the La Grande Epicerie at Au Bon Marche in Paris. New York doesn’t really have anything that comes close to either of the two food halls in London or Paris. Sure they have great food or gourmet stores such as Dean and Deluca, Balduccis, Zabar’s, Citarella, etc. but none with the size, scope and impression of Harrods or Au Bon Marche. The closest I have found to date? The new Whole Foods store in the basement of the new Time Warner Center at the southwest corner of Central Park. By New York standards it is quite stunning.
favorite food stop is Dylan’s Candy Bar on 60th and 3rd Avenue, in Manhattan. Just “behind” the Bloomingdale’s that takes up the entire block between 59th and 60th Street, this is a great way to do some shopping then stop off for an over-the-top ice cream sundae. Opened by one of the daughters of Ralph Lauren, this shop is indeed candy heaven. On two levels there are thousands and thousands of pounds of sweets and related paraphernalia ranging from an enormous selection of gummies, chocolate covered raisins, oreos, malts, to several thousand dollar one-of-a-kind Pez dispensers. There are over 15 colors of M&M’s that you can buy by the color or mix them up… They stock every color of skittles sold by the pound, cotton candy, wrapped chocolate bars…yikes, everything you could possibly dream of from age 2-10.