Eat, Play, Run

New York: Lupa

All things considered, Lupa is my favorite restaurant in New York. Now, that's saying a lot considering all the great places I've eaten. But, the food here is always amazing and the prices are quite moderate.

Today for lunch, I started with the Sweet Corn with herbs. It's served cold, crispy and oh so delicious. For my main course, I had the Ricotta Gnocchi with sausage and fennel. Yes, I order this every time I visit, but it's simply my favorite dish at my favorite restaurant. The gnocchi are light, pillowy clouds of pure Batali goodness.

I didn't order the beets this time because, well, let's just say that beets are the gift that keep on giving, and I was going to be doing a lot of walking after lunch, so that just wasn't going to work. But the beets w/pistachios are something you must try.

I can't give a higher recommendation than the one I give to Lupa. I love it.

Los Angeles: Mozza

Met my NY foodie friend Elaine in LA when I was there for work. Elaine moved back to Los Angeles about two years ago, and immediately visited every restaurant in the city.

She, of course, had numerous recommendations. I hadn't had good Italian for a couple of months, so I chose Batali's Mozza. Unfortunately, I forgot to take pictures.

Let's just dive in. We started with a mozzarella plate consisting of buratta, fiore di latte and bufala mozzarella. All three were wonderful, and served with a nice bread.

One of the first places Elaine took me in New York was the Spotted Pig. Sadly, the place seems to be known more for who you'll see than what you eat. But, honestly, they serve some of the best food in the city. It was here that I first tried gnudi. Gnudi is basically a nude ravioli... the center part without the wrapper. At its best, it's a soft, light, pillowy chunk of good. To this day, the Pig has the best I've ever had. The gnudi at Mozza had plenty of flavor, but was much heavier. Here, it would serve as an adequate entree.

For a main course, I had the grilled quail wrapped in pancetta with sage and honey. The bird was perfectly cooked, with a slight char on the outside, and juicy on the inside. I'm never quite sure how to carve poultry, and I made a mess of it. Elaine had the maltagliata pasta with wild boar ragu. Honestly, her dish was better than mine. I was sorry I didn't order a pasta plate.

We were actually too full for dessert! Normally, that doesn't stop me... but you know, diet and everything...