Kookoo Cafe

This Christmas Eve morning both Eliza and I were post-call from some painful shifts: in Eliza's case she had actively dying patients, and in my case I spent the last 24 hours covering General Surgery call at a community hospital where the ancillary staff don't know the meaning of the term STAT... need we say more?

Eliza has been wanting to try a place called Kookoo Cafe in Brookline Village, so that's where we found ourselves this morning.

The shop is tiny and quaint with about 5 tables for 2 and 1 table that seats 4. Eclectic in style with various pieces of abstract art on the walls and mis-matched chairs and tables, the place was right up Eliza's alley.

She ordered a coffee while I opted for a caramel steamer and almond croissant:

Additionally, Eliza went healthy with a banana (not pictured because... well we all know what bananas look like) and we both ordered the avocado Parmesan sandwich:

I love avocado, and this sandwich also included some tomato, cucumber, and honey which was an absolutely delicious combination.


This place is definitely worth another visit


And finally to top it off, waiting for me when I got home was a beautiful pair of X-mas earrings and new fur-edged wrap. Who doesn't love gifts???

Happy Holidays!


Overall rating: 8/10

Kookoo Cafe
7 Station St
Brookline, MA 02445

Buvette

This Sunday I had brunch in the West Village with my friend Jesse, at a little French bistro that he and his girlfriend are quite fond of - called Buvette. This place doesn't take reservations, and is incredibly popular on weekends, so we were very lucky to be seated within 15 minutes of my arrival (granted Jesse had already been waiting for half an hour by the time I got there: darn the crazy holiday midtown traffic!)

I ordered Le Oeufs with prosciutto: Buvette's signature steamed eggs cooked via the milk steamer in their cappuccino machine

At first I didn't understand what was so great about cooking eggs with a cappuccino machine, other than the novelty and perhaps speed (?) but Jesse pointed out that the texture was different. The eggs look like scrambled eggs, but are perhaps a little fluffier

The combination of eggs, toasted fresh bread, and prosciutto was delicious and very very filling. Although the plate wasn't particularly large, I was stuffed and could barely finish it all

Jesse ordered the octopus salad (not pictured because of camera malfunction) and we got some scones with butter and raspberry jam to share:

The scones were good, but not amazing. They were no longer warm by the time they reached us, although this is to be expected, given how busy the restaurant was.

Last but not least, we also shared the Duck Rillettes: spiced duck confit on toast

This was also delicious (I'm always a fan of duck) but I didn't have enough stomach space for more than one piece


The only truly disappointing part of the meal was the fact that I didn't have any appetite left for dessert. Jesse mentioned that they have an amazing chocolate mousse, which I will have to wait until my next visit to NYC to try...


Overall rating: 8/10

42 Grove St
New York, NY 10014

Back Forty West

This Saturday my first activity after getting back into NYC was to grab brunch in Soho with a few friends. I had been spending the last 5 weeks (while working Transplant nights) browsing my favorite food blogs and came across a post by Kathy YL Chan about Back Forty. It looked delicious and they now have a location in Soho (Back Forty West), so I had to give it a try myself.

We arrived in time for brunch, and in the true brunch spirit, Daniella ordered the spiced pumpkin pancakes:

Anna opted for the healthy option of the hearty green salad: shaved vegetables, chicken breast, lollo rosso, and spiced pumpkin seeds with lemon mustard dressing

I chose the pulled pork sammy with BBQ sauce and rosemary fries

Jenny ordered the poached egg sammy - not pictured because she was sitting on the far end of the table - but it looked decent. What appeared to be the most popular item on the menu that day (but which none of us had enough appetite to order) was the pumpkin bread with walnuts, spiced currents, and cream cheese icing. It's normally not like me to pass up a yummy pastry, but my appetite hasn't been what it once was... I must be getting old O_O

Another person who's getting older is Daniella (pictured on the far left) who's birthday is today. Happy 27th to an awesome friend and psychiatrist! (Not my psychiatrist - because we all know that I'm perfectly sane...)

Portion sizes weren't exactly impressive at Back Forty West, but with America's obesity epidemic I guess that's not necessarily a bad thing. My sandwich was ok, but not memorable, and the fries were only ok as well. Everyone else seemed pretty luke-warm about their food too, so either we ordered all the wrong things on the menu, or else the place just isn't that great

After brunch, Anna and I met up with a few more friends and made our way over to Rockefeller Center to check out the Christmas tree:

Despite having lived in NYC for over 4 years and having spent at least part of every holiday season there for the past 6 years, this was my first time actually getting to see the tree in person. We had to fight through an insane crowd of tourists, but mission finally accomplished!!!

Overall rating: 5.5/10

70 Prince Street
New York, NY 10012