After roughly three years of writing about food I have arrived at my 300th post published on this thing called MyAmusedBouche. And while I am not generally the sentimental type when it comes to benchmarks or anniversaries, I did spend some time thinking about a post to make this special. At any given time I…
Autumn is a time of change. Green leaves yellow, the time clock rolls forward and my preferences shift just as naturally. As comfort starts to outweigh elegance, a steaming bowl of something substantial starts to look far more appealing than a million dainty small-plates perked up with micro-garnish. It seems Daikaya, the popular double agent ramenya-izakaya…
Sourdough and sausage stuffing, roasted beets and pearl onions, my mother’s crispy spinakopita defined my most recent visit to Boston. I wasn’t really looking to review new restaurants or to write anything at all, really. I wanted to enjoy food as sustenance and familiar love expressed through flavor instead of searching for words to describe…
One reason I love when friends visit me in D.C. is that it gives me an excuse to get away from work, venture out on foot and explore the city, treding paths that would normally be out of the way and, consequentially, ignored. I had this opportunity again recently, when a friend from Boston was…
Last week I attended a preview party for the newest member of Jeff Black’s Black Restaurant Group, Republic. The restaurant will soon become a Takoma Park landmark, providing residents with a casual-chic venue to enjoy as their own. The name “Republic” itself hints at the neighborhood’s nickname, “The People’s Republic of Takoma Park.” In line with…
Having heard many great things about a horseradish vodka based brunch Bloody Mary, I was excited to visit Mari Vanna near DuPont Circle last week. I knew their infused vodkas were popular around town, but I honestly never expected them to be paired with Russian food that kept it so dang real. Because while some…
New Chef de Cuiz’ in the house at Masa 14, Richard Sandoval’s Latin-Asian small plates restaurant on the bustling 14th Street corridor. D.C. native Eric McKamey brings to the table (or to the masa, rather…) skills he has honed at some of the city’s most respected establishments, including The Oval Room, Proof, Central Michel Richard,…
I received a pair of keys in the mail last week in a package sent from Texas to my apartment in D.C. They were to a friend’s apartment in Queens, NY. So I went there. During my 5-day stay I crossed over to Manhattan maybe 3 times, mostly for gourmet groceries and to see a…
The main yard of the Princeton University campus seemed a cold, dreary, and largely lifeless place to me as I strolled through it with my brother and sister-in-law a few days ago. Gothic spires towered over naked trees and shrubs, bells rung ominously. The cool, moist air felt saturated with grim intellect and oppressive, stern…
I packed up my things and scoured my mother’s house for loose objects to take with me, little things she would not notice were gone. I opened the fridge, said goodbye to everything in there, and closed it. My brother rang the bell when he and his wife arrived outside. They helped me load my…
That Best Bite 