Holiday weekend extraordinaire
Mostly about the good things we ate. Trout roe! Latkes! Cassoulet!
Happy holidays, everyone!
I’ve come down with a cold, which I figure is the world’s way of telling me I’ve been having too much fun. December is always like this — big, beautiful, and a little too much for the unfortunately dainty human body. Eliza (Teo’s cousin and my bestie) and her boyfriend Andrew visited New York from Philadelphia this past weekend, and we immediately set off on a mission to pack in the good times. Pastries! Parties! Walking everywhere! I left the weekend with a happy heart and stuffy nose. Thankfully, Teo has remained healthy despite sleeping beside this snotty, Nyquil-gulping goblin, but the rest of us have had some recovering to do.
Worth it! Eliza and I started planning her New York trip months in advance, calling it our holiday weekend extraordinaire, and the anticipation buoyed us through many long hospital and kitchen days, respectively. There’s an ease with which I’m able to interact with Eliza, and it’s a feeling I crave when I haven’t seen her in a while. Eliza and I laugh about how we can only be apart for so long until we both tap our watches and decide it’s time to do something about it.
Other than my cold, I’m doing well, finally settling into my Brooklyn life, finding rhythm in new routines, and looking forward to all that 2024 has to offer. Today, I’m sharing food-related notes from the weekend and my annual more/less list.
Best bites of the weekend
I started compiling a list of delights from the weekend, then realized they were all food-related because Eliza and I are who we are. So here’s a list of the weekend’s best bites!
Endives with crème fraîche and trout roe
This is a family classic made by Teo’s mama Mary for her holiday party. I love the clean, bitter taste of endive with tangy crème fraîche and salty trout roe. And it matched Mary’s home! Neutral with a pop of orange.
Pain suisse from La Cabra
My vote for best pastry in New York City — at least for us chocoholics. Flaky croissant dough filled with the right amount of pastry cream and chocolate. There was a big line at La Cabra that day, and I kept hearing the cashier recommend the pain suisse. Validation!
Lily’s birthday party
Lily’s birthday party was always going to have good food and drink. Latkes with the works! Oysters! Meatballs! Endless Champagne! I ate and drank my fill. The birthday candles were tall, skinny beeswax prayer candles from Root & Tuber. So beautiful. The cake was cheesecake. Yum.
City Bakery hot chocolate
City Bakery was an institution on 18th Street that Eliza and I frequented in college for raspberry scones and hot chocolate. Lucky for us, Maury Rubin, the owner of City Bakery, brought back his iconic hot chocolate for a holiday pop-up near Grand Central. We braved the hordes of midtown tourists for two shots of rich, silky City Bakery hot chocolate. Nostalgia!
King cassoulet
A luxurious Sunday lunch for me, Eliza, and our significant others. Eliza and I shared the cassoulet, which came with spicy mustard, a warm demi baguette, and a frisée salad with shallot vinaigrette. No better place to treat yourself on a Sunday afternoon than King. If only we could do that every week!
More / Less
Inspired by Julia Rothman, who started the trend. Send me yours if you write one! Would love to see.
And now, back to bed with a box of tissues and The Gilded Age. I’m determined to be better by Friday, when I leave for Chicago. Wishing you all a cozy, healthy week with people you love.
xx,
Phoebe
Merry Christmas, Phoebe. Hope you feel better soon. I, too, love your more and less list and I share your insights more or less haha. But don't forget to add SINGING to your "more" column. :)
Love this more and less list