Saturday, March 25, 2023
Passover is soon upon us, days away, giving rise to the perennial vexing question: How do you spell matzo/matzah? An article in the Forward, the leading secular Jewish newspaper in the United States aside from the New York Times, says that the “Associated Press Stylebook, which the Forward follows unless there's a compelling reason not to, uses ‘matzo,’ as does Merriam-Webster. Ditto The New York Times and . . . the Los Angeles Times. But our partners at the Jewish Telegraphic Agency and Haaretz[, the Israeli newspaper,] prefer matzah.”
Google chooses “matzah” as the search term and then displays boxes of “matzos” from Manischewitz, Streits, Holy Land, Rakusen, Yehuda and Aviv. Is this Jewish or what?
Sunday, March 26, 2023
An interesting new survey measures whether it is cheaper to build than to buy a house.
Hawaii, California and Colorado are supposedly the best places to build, while Pennsylvania, Ohio and Illinois are the best places to buy. It seems that the availability of open space versus the density of existing structures is controlling.
This state-by-state information is fun, but it isn’t very useful in making a personal decision. As a practical matter, you don’t buy a house in Illinois, you buy in Chicago. Building in Lee, Massachusetts is quite different from building in Lexington, Massachusetts.
. . .
On this lovely Spring day, we headed to Harlem for brunch at Archer & Goat, 187 Malcolm X Boulevard. It is owned by an Ecuadorian, Puerto Rican, Bangladeshi family, which still doesn't explain the name. The place was very busy as were several neighboring restaurants and cafes. It has a patio in front, a main room and a back garden where we chose to sit. That might have been a mistake; although the setting was pleasant with 6 small two-tops, the undermanned (underpersonned?) wait staff rarely appeared back there. It took more than 45 minutes to serve our food.
When it came, the food was interesting and very good. I had Skillet Lamb Hash, braised lamb, potatoes, peppers and onions topped with two poached organic eggs ($23). My young bride had Veggie Breakfast Arepas with cauliflower, shishito peppers and cilantro hollandaise also topped with two poached organic eggs ($24). The menu is obviously multicultural, befitting the ownership, and seems to work, slowly but surely.
However, we weren’t willing to see how long it would take to get dessert, so we crossed the street to Sugar Hill Creamery, 184 Malcolm X Boulevard, an artisanal ice cream parlor. The small interior is quite bland, in dramatic contrast to most of the 10 flavors on hand. Without delay, I had two scoops in a cup — Brown Bombshell, milk chocolate ice cream with swirls of caramel, pecans and blondies, and Orange Blossom Special, orange blossom water ice cream with (unnecessarily) gluten-free pistachio cake ($8.20 tax included). Actually, it would have been worth waiting for.
Monday, March 27, 2023
Parents beware. Our children are regularly being exposed to “Incest, onanism, bestiality, prostitution, genital mutilation, fellatio, dildos, rape, and even infanticide,” all in one place. Ban the Bible.
Tuesday, March 28, 2023
Michael Ratner, Terrific Tom and I were in a mood to explore, leading us to Voilà Afrique, 844 Second Avenue (around the corner on East 45th Street), for lunch, a West African restaurant. It features food from Ghana, Nigeria, Senegal and Ethiopia, a lot to offer in a joint that barely holds two small tables indoors and a couple more on the sidewalk.
We enjoyed sharing the Ethiopian Special, 'Njera bread, chickpea curry, a boiled egg in chunky tomato and onion stew, greens, Egusi (collard greens, sweet peppers, melon seeds, dried shrimps, palm oil), and beef stew ($25.99); goat stew and jollof rice (a signature West African dish typically made with long-grain rice, tomatoes, onions, spices and vegetables) ($21.99); and fried plantains ($6).
The manager said that they are moving to a larger space, necessary to handle the African United Nations staffers and the indigenous New Yorkers crowding in.
Wednesday, March 29, 2023
Is it important to know what is the happiest country in the world if you’re not there?
Thursday, March 30, 2023
Laut, 15 East 17th Street, was very busy at lunch time. It holds 20 tables in a comfortable setting, exposed brick walls, tin ceiling, full bar. It offers Malaysian, Singaporean and Thai cuisine. It once carried a Michelin star, but I would have taken it away with the first dish, Roti Canai, ($10.50), my litmus test for Malaysian cooking. The pancake was okay, but there was a paltry amount of dull sauce absent a piece of chicken or potato to give it bulk.
The Drunk-Man Noodles were quite good, on the other hand ($17). They were cooked with onion, bell pepper, basil, eggs, chili bean paste, fish sauce and chicken. A little pricey, but I would return for them.
Friday, March 31, 2023
David is 50. Can you believe it?
. . .
Where are you going to find twelve unbiased jurors?
Matzoh
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