Specialty Brunch

James located in Prospect Heights just started their Sunday brunch recently. The brunch cost a bit higher than the typical egg and bacon brunch you see elsewhere. The brunch menu was well worth the price.

Flying pig farm pulled smoked pork with cheddar scones topped with a poached duck egg. The pulled pork marinated with spices created the smoky flavor in the pork and accompanied with a side of coleslaw.Blueberry Stuffed brioche French toast was filled like a jelly donut with blueberry cream and topped with fresh blueblerry. The broiche was soaked into egg and toasted to its perfectly crisp.
Prospect Heights: 605 Carlton Ave, Brooklyn (x St.Marks Ave)

Udon

Sometimes trying a new spot might not always be a good idea. Udon West located on the Japanese strip of St. Marks Pl was a disappointment. After being seated, we were greeted by the waitress dressed in dirty stained yellow t-shirt. It was questionable the cleanliness of the kitchen if the waitress can't present herself with clean clothes. Since I'm here for the food, i should not make any judgement beforehand.
The marinated beef udon didn't look too appetizing at first sight. It seems that the beef was in the cooking pot over couple of nights and the texture was like a old tangled rug. The soup base tasted like beef stock directly from the can. All-in-all, the udon bowl was so bland that it's totally not worth another visit.
East Village: 11 Saint Marks Pl, NY (btw 2nd & 3rd Ave.)

Gourmet Slim Jim

Dogmatic Gourmet Sausage System is the new hotdog joint in the former -Mandler's Original Sausage space. The space was renovated with cool modern white tiles with a cartoonish mural of Union Square lining the walls around a big butcher block cafeteria like dining table. Even though the renovation has brought new life to this old space, the sausages are missing the Mandler's sausage magic.

Dogmatic has a new twist on the pig in the blanket. They grill the mini french baguette on hot pokers creating a hole for the gourmet sausage. The presentation is original but the taste is disappointing. The skinny sausages were jerky-dried like a Slim Jim. The jaw-breaking hard baguette was injected with so much of their blend of specialty sauce that it proceeded to ooze out the bun and onto your hands.Union Square: 26 E17th St, NY (btw Broadway & 5th Ave)

Sala 19 - Tapas

We're off to a good start at Sala 19 with some strong Sangria while sampling a variety of tapas they offer. As a start, we ordered the open face Magret de pato tosta: grilled sliced duck breast with balsamic vinegar, shallots, and a hint of soy. The duck was tenderly cooked, infused with balsamic vinegar and a touch of sweetness from the caremelized shallots.
Followed by the Alcachofas con jamon: artichokes from navarra sauteed with garlic and serrano ham. The artichoke flower develops into a large head with numerous triangular scales and only the small edible heart will be served onto our plate- yum! The finale, a grilled lamb chop. We waited for quite sometime for the chops to get served but I have to say it was worth the wait. The meaty lamb chops were perfectly grilled topped with salsa verde sauce. Salsa verde is a popular spanish sauce using parsley as the main ingredient for the vibrant green. The chops were so tasty that I was tempted to lick the dish clean but not in front of so many people.Gramercy: 35 W19th Street, NY (btw 5th & 6th Ave)