Chopsticks/Sake is da BOMB!

I have an Asian fetish, nothing unhealthy or queer, but definitely a strong reverence for the culture, people, clothing, food. A past-life connection. I fondly recall my first instructions using chopsticks as a child and have never lost my attraction for their use. Cereal with chopsticks? Totally possible.

Naturally a love for Asia should include a love for SAKE, I mused, although my experience with sake was limited to the too common collegiate event (I went to a top ten football school, don’t judge) where one places two chopsticks parallel on top of a glass of beer with a shot glass of sake resting on top. Chanting loudly "sake, sake, sake" the table is pounded powerfully by one’s fists to "bomb" the sake into the beer, which is instantly chugged down with gusto. Bomb to the head. I was itching for a new education.

It was time to give sake a real go, a proper test, and guess what? It is AWESOME…a refined beverage with flavors that retain ones origin, a luxurious product akin to a fine wine in sparkling, sweet, unfiltered varieties. Truth. Plus the bottles are so damn cute.

At Laut in Union Square I made this initial sake unearthing after sampling a delicious milky sake in lieu of dessert wine and was determined to continue my edification. So I headed to the East Village to Sakaya to peruse the options, receiving instruction on the terrior, style, etc. of this enchanting Asian potion. The store is brightly lit and intimate, the personable owner extremely knowledgeable and eager to impart his sake skills. And the store is home to the first sake club in America. Woot woot! Join the ranks!

Sake mimosas with cereal munched with chopsticks sounds like a perfect brunch!

Bird Tribes

Living in NYC after a year in beautiful Bali is challenging - the cold weather, tall buildings, high expenses, NOISE, and so on - an entirely different universe lacking supple coconut trees and lush rice fields. I am here in NYC because my dreams guided me to return. I am listening to my inner voice, I am present.

“The reason birds can fly and we can't is simply because they have perfect faith, for to have faith is to have wings.” ― J.M. Barrie, The Little White Bird

Tea for Two

Some days I simply want to feel regal, to behave like a pompous queen who can leisurely sip on tea…or I purely need to warm my insides from NYC callous winter weather. So I head to Graffitea in the East Village. A tiny shop with only four tables and colorfully painted walls, the choices of loose leaves are fantastic. There are more than 200 varieties of tea, organized well by black, green, oolong, mate, jasmine, fruity herbal infusions, and more, in large silver tins with cheery labels. The single staff associate will assist kindly, letting one sniff away at the options before making a final decision. They also offer in-house brewed kombucha.

I decided on a Toffee Pu-erh selection, with a deliciously attractive caramelized aroma, which was served personally to me at my table shared with a cute couple nuzzling in the corner. Pu-erh tea is a wonderfully medicinal tea from China known to produce soothing qualities, and is also a great digestion aid, blood cleanser, and cholesterol reducer. The tea was both calming and delightful to my palette.

There are a few treats to purchase to nosh on although I was fortunate to be sharing tea time with a talented chef/companion who carried some scrumptious homemade raw vegan cherry pie in tow. 

Tea and raw cherry pie? Majestic.

 

Caveat: be cautious of your bladder for the shop is so petite that there is no public restroom.