Jacques Torres Chocolate Haven
Wed 15 Jun 2005
My daughter is a Jacques Torres groupie. 
Who is this short, semi-rotund, balding Frenchman that works miracles with cacao? He is the host of several TV shows dedicated to chocolate and desserts. A superb pastry chef, he had a long stint at the Hotel Negresco in Nice, then worked as a Pastry Chef for the famed, but now closed Le Cirque in New York before he opened his own stores (first in Brooklyn, now in Manhattan). Before we even landed in New York, my daughter was resolved to pay homage at his new Tribeca store. Located at 350 Hudson (on the corner of King Street), this is way down the west side of the island of Manhattan.
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The church, St. Jean Baptiste on the Upper East Side is stunningly appointed, with beautiful stained glass, an opulent gold altar, paintings all over the walls and ceilings… just stunning. It would have been difficult to compete with such a stunning setting so we decided to just do a few large arrangements in classic white to just highlight the event. In the first picture is one of two enormous (4-5 foot diameter arrangements) at the start of the main aisle of the church. These arrangements were made with double white lilacs, viburnum, white French tulips, white peonies, Casablanca lilies, white hydrangeas and green ivy. The arrangement looks smaller than it really was and the dark surroundings made for less than stellar photos. I should have taken shots in natural light. During the wedding all of the lights were turned on so the church was brighter.
luncheon at Restaurant Daniel. The namesake and flagship restaurant of Daniel Boulud, an invitation to lunch there is rarely turned down as it is simply one of the best restaurants in the city. Several years ago, at its original location on 76th Street and Madison, the International Herald Tribune rated it “one of the ten best restaurants in the world.” It has since moved to larger and fancier (actually, opulent is more accurate) premises at the old Mayfair Hotel building and can now seat 120 people in the main dining room in addition to private function rooms. The luncheon was held in the lounge, a private room a few steps above the spectacular bar, that had cherry paneled walls, and drapes in cream and touches of red. First order of business, the floral arrangements…
In Europe, the flower is associated with May 1st, in the U.S., they are in abundance throughout the month of May, barring extreme weather complications. A member of the lily family, this stunning little family member has bell-shaped, drooping white flowers that have the most incredible sweet scent. The wild varieties grow in shaded or wooded areas, their underground rhizomes spread like weeds, and when it thaws enough, send out wide leaves of a medium green color. Then, the delicate blooms emerge. There are few things simpler and more beautiful than a bunch (small or large) of fresh lily of the valley in a vase in your home.
always served a taste of Paris in the heart of New York. What started out as a modest, unassuming brasserie at 411 Park Avenue South, has apparently blossomed into big business with branches in downtown Manhattan, Washington, DC and Miami. I remember Les Halles from its “simpler” days and we returned for lunch recently to see if things had changed dramatically. Besides a doubling in the size of the brasserie, the physical premises at the original Park Avenue South location still seemed dark, dingy and underlit. But the food was still very, very good and surprisingly reasonably priced.
I am helping my sister with the flowers for the church and at a pre-wedding luncheon. In preparation for the upcoming event, we made an early morning visit to the wholesale flower market on 28th Street on the West Side of Manhattan. I was just stunned by the volume, variety and quality of the flowers on offer. Thankfully, I remembered to stuff my camera into my jacket pocket and got tons of photos. I won’t put much commentary… just enjoy the following photos (first one is of cut hydrangeas):
unusual at this time of year, so when I saw dozens of pints of raspberries at the Union Square Market in mid-May, I had to ask where they were from. Grown in the tri-state area, they were raised in greenhouses and extremely pricey. But on closer inspection, it was clear why these were very special raspberries indeed. Most raspberries are picked by hand (not machines) by gently pulling the fruit off of their stems (leaving stems on the raspberry bushes), which leaves a hollow, easily bruised fruit. These fancy berries were harvested with a “small scissors” (think nose hair clipper size) leaving their stems intact. This is really unusual. It makes for “whole fruit” that is very rarely seen by consumers. My sister used these incredible berries during a pre-wedding tea that she hosted. She served an afternoon tea complete with several sandwiches, scones, sweets and tea and bowls of raspberries for everyone to munch on.
very satisfying visit by heading out to the likewise modernized sculpture garden and as I settled down on a very retro 60’s wire chair (think garden chairs in your parents backyard in Manila in the 1960’s), I spied a very modern stainless steel cart and white umbrella that was selling… one of my favorite boutique ice cream and sorbet brands: Il Laboratorio del Gelato. Yum. At a whopping $4.50 for a generous cup, this is the priciest cup of chocolate ice cream I have ever purchased (mind you, the location was super-prime). I first tried Il Laboratorio about 18 months ago when on another trip to New York I was down in the lower east side stocking up on underwear and socks from my wholesale source and I saw this very chi-chi storefront for ice cream…