worst. lunch. ever.

Lunchtime is precious to me- as a working mom, it's the time of day when I can choose to go wherever I want to, and eat whatever I feel like. I try to choose lunch places wisely because of this. Especially now that I'm pregnant with #2- I want to satisfy all of my cravings, which mostly means cheese. A few of the 'busties' and I decided to pay a visit to Danku for lunch. Y and P always pass by and were intrigued by the use of 'organic' 'natural' and 'eco friendly' in their menu. I have been avoiding this place because I've read a few negative reviews, but they apparently offer Dutch and Indonesian fare in an enviromentally friendly atmosphere, so we figured we could give it a try. It had been awhile since I read anything negative, so perhaps they worked out the kinks... Oh, how wrong we were!! We were in for one of the worst lunches we ever had, anywhere...

The place itself seemed harmless enough- minimal decor, with the appearance of cleanliness. They had a very elaborate recycling program, which I wish was adopted by more places. We walked in close to 1pm, and we were the only patrons. The staff behind the counter were actually quite friendly (perhaps just thrilled to see patrons), and were excited to give us their lunch recommendations. I do have to wonder if they actually ate the same food that we did. I wanted to try some of the Dutch offerings, so I ordered three 'krokets', which basically look like fried turds. The first one I tried was 'chili con carne'. I had a feeling that I'd regret this order, but I was trying to be adventurous. The outside was crunchy and acceptable, but the inside...it had a horrible pasty consistency, and tasted worse than something you would get in a public school cafeteria (and smelled as such). I do not know how it was 'chili' or 'carne' but there was some sort of gristle that was apparently meat, with a very salty taste. It was revolting. Ok, the next one I tried was the mozzarella and tomato kroket. How bad can that be? It's fried cheese! I love the greasy goodness of the mozzarella sticks found in various bars and chain restaurants in every part of the country. Never met a fried cheese product that I didn't like...until now. Same horribly pasty consistency, with a nauseating slight sweetness and strange tang that was probably the 'tomato'. Again, very salty. If it had just been cheese, it may have been edible. I'd say it was the 'best' of the worst. The worst one was actually the spinach and artichoke kroket. I love spinach artichoke dip, so I thought this one sounded promising. It was so sticky I wouldn't even call it pasty...more like beige liquid concrete with bits of green inside. The flavor was so off-putting that I can hardly describe it. I could hardly believe what I was eating. Dipping sauces accompanied the krokets, but they are not worth mentioning, and if anything, made them worse. Now, I can't claim to know what authentic krokets taste like, but I cannot believe that they would taste anything like this. I have had croquets from many different cultures, and they have all been at least 'good'.

Y and GB opted for the Indonesian noodles with tofu satay. They were both so horrified with their lunches that they were speechless. Y said that it tasted like the lowest form of airplane food, and GB seemed to agree. I couldn't understand how they could mess up noodles so badly, so I had a taste for myself. They may actually have been worse than my krokets. P ordered a sandwich and asked for it without cheese, and of course it showed up with cheese. He waited a long time to get a replacement. He did say that it tasted ' fine' though. He also ordered a 'spicy kale soup' that tasted ok, but lacked any hint of spicyness. The only thing that seemed passable was the green salad that came with the kroket combo that B ordered. She said the salad was fresh and crispy. The one amusement of our experience was watching AP attempt to re-arrange the wooden tulips that were sitting in a vase at our table. He kept trying to make them look better.

Our lunch experience was so disappointing, that I actually wanted my lunchtime back. I left feeling full but completely unsatisfied, and a little sad. Thankfully Y knew of a small Swedish cafe called Fika around the corner that had lovely looking pastries and delicious coffee. At least we had a tasty dessert, so not all was lost.

xie xie sandwiches

I've been hearing/reading a lot about this Asian inspired sandwich shop on 9th avenue, and so I finally decided to check it out. Chef Angelo Sosa has an impressive resume (you can do a google search if you really need to know), so I would hope the 5 sandwiches on the menu would all be delicious. But I've been hearing very mixed reviews, most of which were disappointing. I've been curious, so I figured it was time to try it for myself.

Last week Hana, Mark, and I went to Momofuku noodle bar and had David Chang's version of pork buns (soooo good), and since I was still craving the flavor, I decided to try Sosa's version. I love pork buns with their sweet and savory filling, and fluffy steamed doughy exterior. I took my order to go, and it was thankfully all in separate parts. A box for the buns, a container for the pork, and a small container of a pickled condiment, which I've since learned is sweet and sour shallots. Keeping the elements separate allowed the buns to stay fluffy without getting soggy or tough. For a takeout meal, I thought the buns were nice and soft and had a good texture. The glazed pork was tender with all the right flavors, but there was a little too much sweetness for me. I prefer a more savory taste. But the quality of the ingredients was great, and the sweet and sour shallots really pulled the whole thing together with a nice tang to cut through the sweetness (although they were also on the sweet side). I think you could give me anything that has been pickled, and I'd eat it! I thought the portion was good, I had more than enough filling for the three buns. At first I wanted a fourth bun, but 10 minutes after eating, I am quite full.

The place is small, with just a few tables inside. The music was quite loud and the place was busy. I'm not sure that I'd want to sit and eat there, unless I was in the right mood and with a chatty companion. When I eat by myself, I tend to look for a more relaxing experience to escape from the office for a little while. Even though it was busy, the service was quick, and I didn't want to wait too long for my order. I'll probably be back at some point for the pork buns, but after hearing about the other sandwiches, I'm not sure that I'd try them. Perhaps if I want to try something new, but with pork buns on the menu, why would I? I apologize for the blurry picture of my assembled bun, I forgot my camera and my phone just didn't want to take a clear one.

Unfortunately I washed the meal down with a mediocre bubble tea from Aru Sushi, a small sushi spot on 9th ave that was on my walk back to work. I love plain black milk teas (I usually skip the boba), and usually have a high tolerance for failure. This one was just plain bad though. I think next time I'll try one of the juices or natural sodas that were on offer at Xie Xie.

Tea rambling

I'm a huge fan of various types of black tea, but usually not scented or blended teas (especially blended teas). I just like to enjoy the pure flavor of each individual tea. One example is Earl Grey tea. I loathe Earl Grey, and for whatever reason, the bergamot just drives me crazy. I can taste it even in the smallest amount in a cup of tea. The smell also irks me. So I was really baffled when a few weeks ago a friend of mine ordered an Earl Grey Chocolate Chip cookie from Radiance Tea House, and I tasted a little bite. It was...good! I don't know why, but I liked it. So when PeeWee, GB, and I returned to Radiance for lunch today (a favorite spot of ours), I ordered one of these cookies. I'm finishing it right now, and I still can't understand why the flavor combination is working for me. I can definitely taste the bergamot, but combined with the chocolate and the sweetness, it's pleasing my palate. It almost gives the cookie a more delicate flavor. I also ordered a 'sweet' iced tea with my lunch, another thing that I never usually do. I'm a tea purist, and usually hate sweetened teas. But for whatever reason, I was feeling adventurous. It was actually not bad, there was a nice amount of lemon that cut the sweetness. But I think I'll stick to regular teas from now on. I just don't have a southern palate, but it was nice to change things up a little bit.