Fig & Olive

On our trip to NYC a few weeks ago we had lunch at Fig & Olive in the meatpacking district.  I wrote about Centrico already, but Fig & Olive was really my favorite part of the day.  When my sister sent me several menus to choose from when we were planning our trip, this was first on the list.  I opened it and immediately knew I was going to choose this place.  I did look at the other menus, but I was right, and it was a perfect choice.

We started off with some bread and three different olive oils from different parts of the world.  We don't have distinguished enough palates to really comment on any of them.  The bread was pretty good, but after trying all three types we were really sick of olive oil and none of them tasted that good.  I wish I was enough of a foodie to enjoy it, but oh well!

Luckily, the following courses made me forget all about the bread.  As I did with Centrico, I'll copy the menu descriptions with a few photos.  Unfortunately, Deanna's phone has the remaining photos and we have no way to retrieve them, so you'll just have to picture them from the descriptions!

Appetizers:

Mediterranean Cold Soup - Cucumber and Pink Peppercorn  (Deanna)

Steak Tartar - Ground filet mignon & NY steak, shallot, caper, parsley, mayonnaise served with olive oil toast  (Andrea)

Chicken Samosa - Free range chicken, cilantro, Greek yogurt, bell pepper, scallion, cumin, harissa oil  (me)

Main Course:

Shrimp & Scallop Paella - Grilled shrimp & scallops marinated with pimenton served on saffron rice, eggplant tapenade, bell pepper, tomato, garlic  (me & Andrea)

Provence Vegetables Chicken Salad - Free range rotisserie chicken marinated with Herbs de Provence, lemon & garlic grilled zucchini, eggplant, tomato, asparagus, red onions, avocado, arugula, parmesan, pine nuts, 18 year balsamic vinegar- Picholine Olive Oil  (Deanna)

Dessert:

Dessert "Crostini" - Local-farmed strawberries, mascarpone, 18 year aged balsamic on shortbread with micro-basil

The dessert was, without a doubt, the highlight of my day - probably my week, actually.  It was amazing.  And Andrea has superior portion control abilities and was able to eat two and leave the third - so naturally I snagged it.  Delicious.

Crisp French Toast

Here's another little nugget of inspiration: a baked cornflake-crusted french toast.  I like french toast, but with that, pancakes, waffles, whatever - I never eat syrup.  Ever!!!  Until this french toast.  Just the tiniest dip in the syrup elevated each bite to greatness.  And the crispy crust... I never would have thought of it, but what a stroke of genius.  Delicious.

Magnolia Bakery: Hummingbird Cupcake

Here's a little inspiration that I wanted to save for a future occasion.  I went to New York City for Restaurant Week, and before checking out a few galleries we stopped at Magnolia Bakery for a breakfast cupcake.  ("Breakfast" and "cupcake" are allowed to be used in the same phrase on rare and special occasions!)

There were a lot of classic choices - vanilla with chocolate frosting, chocolate with buttercream frosting, etc etc etc.  Those don't excite me too much.  If I have a cupcake, I want it to be a special one.  I chose the Hummingbird Cupcake based on the description: banana and pineapple with a cream cheese frosting and pecans on top and crushed up inside.  YUM!  It was absolutely delicious.  I thought this would be great to recreate at home next time I need to make a sweet treat like this - and I can make it healthier too.  It's also a neat flavor combination for a potential future muffin.