Sinanation

I get it. Paris should be about la nourriture Francaise, but my great experience at this place force me to write about another cuisine. I guess a few of my friends (two in particular) will agree with me when I say that Lo Sushi is one of the funnest restaurants in Paris. I won’t claim that it has the best sushi in France, but I can gladly say that it is the most social and interactive restaurant in the capital of fashion. Like many other sushi places around Europe, Lo Sushi has that sushi railroad mechanism installed, from which you get to pick your favorite wagons and eat their contents. Each plate is colored based on its pricing and can be stacked on top of one another to display the strength of its user’s appetite. Yet what makes Lo Sushi so special is its Pont Neuf location enhanced with individual touchscreen computers. Once you take your place around the bar you can interact with anyone at the restaurant through the screens. You can send drawings, images and messages by just clicking on the target seating. I am pretty sure that the Champs-Elysees location is still open, but our favorite Pont Neuf might not be there any longer.

Details at www.losushi.com

It is a really weird feeling to go back to your parents’ home and not see it as your actual home anymore. This seems to be especially true for the ones like me, living overseas, away from family.

Up until the point you walk in through the entrance door, you assume that life here must have frozen right after you left. Yet, you see parts of the home renovated, furniture changed and neighbors moved. You can no longer find the things you are looking for, your eyes closed. There are too many people under one roof. You are not used to the crowd: too many moving particles, too many questions. You remember you were almost all alone where you came from. You had your space.

The whole house is excited to have you back. The childhood photos pop up on racks, smiling directly at you. The food you love the most is ready to be served. Everyone, including you, have taken extra time to look good for another. Besides a few gray hair and tiny wrinkles on the face, age is not there to remind you that you have been away. You are certainly not used to this much tolerance and care. Grandma does not stop you when you reach for a second round of deserts. Sister lets you borrow all her DVDs and comes  around to hug you more than once a day, something you wished you always had. You catch mom gazing into your eyes unexpectedly. You ask if something is wrong and she answers you with a kiss and a shy smile. You are pampered as if you are at a 5-star hotel. Fresh bed sheets and puffy pillows in your bed are only missing those little chocolate bars you find in hotel beds.

Rather than testing to see if this hotel you used to call home has now a concierge service, you leap onto your bags, fresh out of the airport. You open your closets, which are now partially filled with out-of-season clothes and start decorating them with the stuff you brought back. You quickly give away all the gifts and sweets. Once done with unpacking, you run into the shower to get rid of that unique plane odor. Back in the bedroom, you feel a little relieved. The desperate attempts to win back your nest stat to work through your system. You feel you have broken the surreal dream you walked into. You instantly fight back the jet lag and the strangeness of your bed with an extra dose of sleeping pills. You fall  asleep where you grew up only to finally wake up feeling like you are home again.

The first night will be the start of a few day marathon where you will move back to what you found the hardest to leave. You will slowly get used to the  idea of finding your bed made every morning. You will be speechless to see the breakfast already prepared. You will become addicted once again to having all your clothes ironed with that irresistible homey scent. The refrigerator will always be filled with delicious food even if you skip grocery shopping. The convenience of fast-food will finally make way for home-cooked meal.

You will arrive as a tourist, but you will leave a resident. The hardest part of the transformation will be saying “goodbye” to all until you meet once again.

Having been to a few famous burger shops around Manhattan, I thought it would be wise to compile the best ones in a list. Here are my favorites so far. Grilled, juicy and rare hidden in between two soft buns:

5 Napkin Burger

Located in Midtown on the corner of 45th and 9th Ave., 5 Napkin burger came highly recommended by my girlfriend. She was not mistaken. The place has one of the best burgers I have ever eaten in Manhattan. So do not be alarmed by the small section of sushi on the menu. Get the onion rings to start and then a medium rare 5 Napkin Original Burger. The melted comte cheese on top with caramelized onions makes all the difference. Smores shake for desert.

Ruby’s

Located in SoHo on 219 Mulberry St., Ruby’s is a tiny burger sport run by Australians. Bronte from the burger list is my favorite. Bear in mind that it is a little on the sweeter side because of the sweet chili. The creamy chicken pasta is also delicious. Ruby’s accepts cash only.

Shake Shack

The famous burger stand found inside Madison Square Park. There is always an unbelievable line. Shack Stack with beer is the favorite.

Burgers at Le Parker Meridien

You will feel like you are in an adventure while spotting this simple burger joint inside the fancy lobby of Le Parker Meridien Hotel located at 119 W. 56th street. It is actually located right behind the front desk and is definitely worth trying. Keep in mind that the place accepts cash only.

Five Guys

The only chain in the list that deserves unique credit. Five Guys has multiple locations around Manhattan. The menu is pretty self-explanatory.

Managed to complete the sequel to my previous Dinner set this weekend. As always slow songs are the worst to work with. There is usually no instrumental entry to them, making it extremely hard to blend one into the other. All aside I think I have done a better job in Volume 2.

I randomly bought one C.O. Bigelow soap from a Bath & Body Works store a long time ago, not knowing anything about the company and the history behind it. It all came together once I visited the original store. Located in the West Village (414 Sixt Ave. between 8th and 9th streets), this place has everything you are looking for if you are a fan of pharmacies/neccessity shops in Europe. Once inside it looks like the magic shops found in the Harry Potter movies. Supposedly this original store dates back to 1800s, making it the oldest pharmacy shop in America. It is still run by the same Ginsberg family with the cabinets inside dating back to 1902 and has Mark Twain and Thomas Edison among its list of customers. The store has everything from soaps to medicine with numerous varieties, but I recommend trying Bigelow’s own products.

It was easy to spell it out in the title. Yet, when it comes to actually writing about contentment I get into a fight with the blank space on the screen. I don’t know how to put it all together. There must be hundreds of instances where I have witnessed close friends between the ages of 20 and 30 question their contentment from life. We all hope and reach for it, but have desperately failed until this point. The preparation never seems to end and we are humiliated by the fact that we are still not there. Not there after years of education, maturation and saturation. The SATs, the foreign language classes, the private tutors and the college degrees have all come and gone, but we are still not where we want to be.  We are not making the difference. The difference we thought we were ready to make. What happens now? When will we get to leap forward?

Too afraid to accept failure, some of us re-certify the preparation-to-life period by going back to school. Others insist on being partially satisfied by sticking with jobs that pay just enough to get by. A smaller group puts the generic capitalist yearnings aside to try out the voluntary non-profit work. The rest dive into the family businesses to avoid risk. One way or the other, we all wait for the day when we can look back and say “it was worth it”. “It was worth it” for my parents to spend that much money on me. “It was worth it” to dedicate that much time to education. “It was worth it” to take this job away from my loved ones.

We, the generation of 1980s, have a great task ahead just like the generations before us. Yet, with all the advanced technology and the far reach of globalization, our expectations and desires might have quadrupled. Contentment, in its true meaning, will not come easy. We first have to be persuaded that we have achieved enough in life to make our sponsors content. Then we have to be convinced that we have gotten enough from life to make ourselves content. Content spiritually. Content materialistically. We felt that we have been ready to pay our dues. Maybe we became to impatient after reading about all the others that made it. The successful entrepreneur biographies online, the published diaries, the daily articles, the fancy photos and the TV exposes have brainwashed us.  We grew envious and wanted our share of the spotlight. We became desperate for appreciation.

We have been dependent and we crave to be independent. We thought we would achieve so much in so less. Have we been fools? Have we been fooled? We keep hearing that we are still young when we confess our disappointment. We are ready to grow up. One way or the other we should get there. Let’s just hope we can soon find how to make and/or where to find the opportunity.

I don’t think there will ever be a competitor to LaDuree in the category of deserts, but after a million of vanilla macarons one might like to try a different, unexpected flavor. Pierre Herme is a cave of wonders when it comes to mixing weird ingredients to make a delicious macaron. Not all turns out good in my opinion, but some are definitely worth eating. The bakery comes out with new flavors every season. The regularly changing display is also a site to see. Locations available at www.pierreherme.com

Recommended flavors: Fruit de la Passion & Chocolat au Lait, Abricot & Pistache, Wasabi & Pamplemousse

Most Londoners must already know about this bar chain. I have been to both the South Kensington (158 Old Brompton Rd.) and the Chelsea (111 Walton St.) locations and must have tried 80% of the cocktails on the menu. Not a single one was a disspointment. Each location satisfies a different purpose. If you are up to enjoying the nice weather and checking out some of the most amazing antique and modern sports cars in London, then head to the Kensington location. Pick a table outside in the afternoon and let the drinks flow while the machanical beauties pass you by. On the other hand if it is already sunset and you are ready to socialize, then get to the Chealsea spot.

Favorite drink: Watermelon Martini on the rocks in a regular large glass, Koshiku, Miyabi

DJ/Producer Alex Roque’s remix to Turkish DJ, Huseyin Karadayi and singer, Betul Demir’s “Geri Don”. I think it has great potential, but needs a stronger build up. Could do without the English “get in the floor” refrains. The part after 2 min. is my favorite.

The favorite Chicago restaurants:

Ralph Lauren:

This time it is not about the clothes, but the food.  While in college this place (at 115 E. Chicago Ave.) used to be a favorite of mine and my family. I would go for the mimosas, the tomato soup, the steak sandwich and the burger. My aunt and mom would go for the smoking section in the bar area, where you can also enjoy the full menu. No matter what this place will always be exceptional with its homey interior design and delicious, fulfilling food. The cozy bar area with a working fireplace does not accept reservations. The dining room does.

Avec:

First became aware of Avec by mistake while driving around. Since then, I have been a dedicated customer. The restaurant (615 W. Randolph St.) is a modern wooden corridor with communal tables and a bar running through it. If you are lucky your scenery from the huge rectangular window will be the owner’s red classic corvette parked right in the front. Avec has the most interactive kitchen I have seen so far at a restaurant. Customers sitting at the bar can actually watch the chefs cook in the open kitchen. Don’t worry about stinking as the vents work pretty well to keep the smell away. The wine menu is exceptional and a cheese platter with almonds, grapes, parsley and jam is recommended with it. If you are a light beer fan, try the Blanche de Buruxelles. Keep in mind that all the dishes are to share. Although the menu partially changes seasonally, I strongly recommend the focaccia, the whipped brandade, the hanger steak, the pasta and the Nicholas Farm cauliflower and potato salad.  Remember that there is always a long wait for dinner.

Bistro 110:

Perfect especially for lunch after a long morning of shopping on Michigan Ave. The steamed garlic spread on butter on a warm homemade bread is delicious. There was once a special risotto with lobster, which was the best I have ever eaten anywhere. The french onion soup and the Bistro 110 steak frites are the other favorites. Located at 110 E. Pearson St.

Fogo de Chao:

Typical Brazilian “eat until you burst”, fixed-menu steak house. Still it is one of the best in America. Make sure you enjoy the salad bar while you are having your steak and chicken. If you separate the two, you will never have enough room for the protein and you will regret it. Chunks of Parmesan from the salad bar and the Picanha from the steak menu are definitely recommended. Located at 661 N. Lasalle. You need reservations.

Tavern on Rush:

Rush St. in Chicago is equivalent to Madison Ave. in New York. It is the street the fancy cars choose to drive by and park on during the weekends. So, all the action happens around Tavern on Rush (1031 N. Rush St.). Besides people and car watching, this place should be famous for its tomato soup, Papardelle with shrimp and 7-layer chocolate cake with a scoop of vanilla ice-cream. Sitting outside during summer is the best. The leather couches next to the bar inside are great for cold winter days.

Stash’s:

Located 40 min. away from the city in Highland Park, the “Mansion” zipcode of Chicago, Stash’s has one of the best burgers and hot dogs in town. Do not expect a fancy restaurant. This is a typical fast food spot founded to satisfy the comfort food cravings of its quiet ultra-rich neighborhood.

Potbelly Sandwich Works:

New Yokers wouldn’t know about this place since the franchise did not land here yet. If you are looking to grab a quick bite, you have to try Potbelly. The breads are freshly baked and the ingredients are delicious. It has multiple locations around downtown Chicago.