Duck confit at Flea Market Café

Ya know that restaurant you pass by in your neighborhood all the time and keep saying “it’s so cute – we should go there”? Flea Market Café is that place to me. I finally went in and not only is the space absolutely adorable, and it’s staffed with servers who care, but it has duck confit on the menu (what did you think this post was going to be about?) And not a crazy preparation, this little café serves simple classic French dishes, so the set is simply French fries and a green salad. Did I mention this place is about a two minute walk from my apartment?

All of my requirements have been met in order for this café to become “my” local restaurant.

Ok. Well.


The French fries were great – with just a few overcooked (which I dig) and seasoned perfectly. The food runner even asked me as my plate landed whether I prefer mayonnaise instead of ketchup (duh). The salad was well dressed, not over doused, not naked, with a simple vinaigrette.

Aaaaaaaand I should end my post there. The duck confit was meh. The saltiness was in check, and that’s about the best thing I can say. The skin was rendered completely out so no pockets of fat at the corners like I enjoy. The meat itself was dried out, and whatever caused it to toughen out so much also subtracted the slightly gamey ducky favor in the meat.

The wine list was brief and listed by varietal and wines were from France and the US. In addition, they had a bottle of Guigal Côtes du Rhône open when I was there that they offered by the glass.

I will return someday, because it is a charming space, prices were reasonable, and there were enough people in the restaurant on a quiet Monday night to suggest that they do serve good food (mussels seemed to be the popular dish that night). I just can’t recommend the duck confit.

Flea Market Café
131 Avenue A between St Marks Place and 9th St.

Duck confit at Casimir

First off, this is the first French café I’ve been to in New York City where I really felt I was back in Paris: beat-up furniture, traditional menu (including an affordable wine list that only included the color of the wine and its AOC), and marginal service delivered by a French-speaking staff. Only the three top of dudes next to me in oversize Ranger jerseys bring me back to my Avenue B east village reality.

I started with a special that day: Cesear salad made with kale. The bitter, tough greens against creamy dressing worked really well. In fact, I much prefer it to romaine in the Cesear. But let’s talk about duck:



First off, the entrées come in two sizes: small and large. My server couldn’t explain to me how one divides a single duck leg in half (I actually don’t think she really understood my question), so I went for the full sized. I’ll just have to go back, in the name of science, to report on how a half of duck leg is delivered.


This is among the very good duck confit I’ve had starting with the seasoning. This one was not super-salty so the gaminess of the duck came through. And everything else hit just the right note: tender meat – check; well-rendered crispy skin – check; traditional set (in this case, garlic-roasted potatoes and frisée salad) – check. The sweet element I insist on came from balsamic-caramelized onions scattered throughout the potatoes. There was diced bacon on the frisée salad that I thought was a bit of overkill next to duck, but hey, it’s bacon.

The wines by the glass were rattled off by the server by AOC so I went with a glass of Bergerac Rouge, which I later discovered was from Chateau Laulerie (a wine carried by my employer). I was craving a Chinon or the like, so this was as close as I got. The other red wines by the glass were all from southern portions of France (Côtes du Rhône, Minervois, and a Vin de Pays which the server didn’t know the grapes nor the greater region it came from).


Overall, it’s a solid duck confit in a très Français setting (did I mention a garden out back?) at an affordable price. All that plus it’s only a five minute walk from my apartment means that you’ll be able to find me there several nights per week. Who knows. I might even try something other than the duck confit (they also had duck breast on the menu…)



Casimir
103 Avenue B (between 6th and 7th Streets)

Latterals: The Spicy Reds

Sight
All three wines exhibit a medium to medium+ intensity of ruby possibly suggesting intense wines of higher extractions. Wine #2 has a more pronounced watery rim, which could indicate a higher level of alcohol.

Aromatics
On the nose, all three wines have medium to medium+ intensity of aromas, with many notes of baked and jammed fruits, which indicated these wines came from a warmer climate. Aromatics on wine #1 include dark cooked berries, spice, and some smokiness. Wine #2 has more aromatics of red jams. Wine #3 smells of figs and port. Wines #1 and #2 have light aromatics of vanilla, suggesting oak influence.

Palate
On the palate, all wines show higher levels of alcohol and all lack high acidity, supporting the view that these wines come from a warm to hot climate.

Wine #1 has spicy fruit on the palate with medium- acidity, medium+ alcohol, and medium- burlap tannins. This wine is probably most prized for its structure.

Wine #2 is dry, though seems sweet on the attack suggesting very ripe fruit. The wine has medium acid, high alcohol, and a medium+ finish of fruit and vanilla, and heat from alcohol. This wine is definitely from a hot climate.

Wine #3 is also dry but seems sweet on the attack, suggesting very ripe fruit. The wine has medium acid, medium+ cottony tannins, and a medium- finish of cooked figs and dark fruits.

Conclusions
Wine #1 is a Malbec from a warm climate (Mendoza, Argentina) because of its firm structure and spicy fruit. The firm structure would also suggest Cabernet Sauvignon or Nebbiolo, but neither would would not exhibit such spicy fruit, and Nebbiolo would not have such a saturated color. The Malbec also distinguishes itself from the Shiraz and Zinfandel because it is lack of overly ripe fruit.

Wine #2 is a Shiraz from a warm climate (Australia) due to its high alcohol, soft texture, and very ripe fruit. This description could also fit a warm climate Grenache or Merlot, but Grenache is typically not as saturated in color. I rule out Merlot because I would expect more cocoa and espresso characteristics to accompany the ripe fruit aromas.

Wine #3 is a Zinfandel from a warm climate (California). The tell-tale aromatics of figs and port lead me here and the medium+ amount of tannins is likely from oak influence, a common technique used for Zinfandel. The firm structure could also suggest Malbec, but I would expect spicier fruit from Malbec.

The wines
Wine #1: Altos Las Hormigas Malbec 2009 (Mendoza, Argentina), $13, 14.2% abv
Wine #2: Woop Woop Shiraz 2009 (Australia), $13, 14.5% abv
Wine #3: Joel Gott Zinfandel 2008 (California), $18, 14.4% abv

How’d I do?

Channing Daughters, Pinot Grigio 2009 (Long Island) $20, 12.5% abv

::: peeking out :::

Hi.

Remember me?

You probably thought this blog was dead.

Well, it was mostly dead. See, there's a big difference between mostly dead and all dead. Mostly dead is still alive.

And as such, I still have things -- well, wine mostly -- that I want to talk about. For instance, this 2009 Channing Daughters Pinot Grigio.

This wine is 100% Pinot Grigio made from grapes coming from both Channing Daughters' Bridgehampton estate on the South Fork of Long Island (aka The Hamptons) and Mudd's vineyard on the North Fork. Aromatics are heavily weighted towards orchard fruits (especially golden delicious apples and pears) and pretty white flowers.

I found the palate to be medium weight with juicy acidity -- not too searing, not too soft. The wine was aged in a mix of stainless steel and various-sized oaks that helped elevate this to a classy sort of Pinot Grigio (not to be confused with the water-like cheap & cheerful versions all to prevalent in the marketplace). There was also a gentle wash of Lemonheads outside shell (ya know? The sweet outside part? Not the sour middle?) and bitter zest on the finish that I really enjoyed.

I opened this wine at home with a pu-pu platter from the local ghetto Chinese takeaway joint. The caramelized plummy spare ribs were a bit too intense (but I was dreaming of a Loire Valley gamay for that) but the Channing Daughters wine stepped up as a refreshing counterpoint to the fried chicken wings.

That's right. BBQ spare ribs and fried chicken wings. Only authentic Chinese takeaway for me.

Leftovers from a cocktail party

After volunteering with the Manhattan Cocktail Classic last weekend, I missed the boat on taking leftover booze home, but I did raid the walk-in for leftover ingredients.

That’s how I ended up with cocktail-leftover salad. There’s something satisfying about clearing out the refrigerator and making something new. In this case, I simply chopped up the veggies (I already had the carrots) and blanched the carrots and baby zucchini. The veggies were tossed in a dressing made of the lemon juice and olive oil. The egg whites were baked with chopped herbs (thyme & sage), and all of the above were mixed with cooked bamboo rice and chilled. An orange for dessert. The English cucumber was used for…a simple lunch tomorrow of cucumbers and cheese (what were you thinking?)


Ok, maybe not the most delicious thing I’ve ever created (technically, this is a wine blog, so don’t come here for recipes and inspiration) but it was fun and filling.

Seeing as I only used about a tablespoon of a ½ gallon jug of lemon juice, I used more lemon juice (plus simple syrup) to make a saké lemonade.


Yum.

Oak in drinks

At The Standard Grill in the Meatpacking District for a bite.

Interesting cocktials. I ordered their version of a mint julep, which is made of bourbon, mint and oak-infused simple syrup.

The cork dork is literally drinking oak juice!

Altos Las Hormigas, Vineyard Selection Reserva Malbec 2007 (Mendoza, Argentina) $19, 14.6% abv

Tips for pairing wine with procrastination:

1. Do choose a wine that is widely available, either via your own cellar or at the wine shop. Since you really should be writing the chapter that’s due this evening (I’d like to point out that there is technically still three hours of “Sunday” left), you shouldn’t be opening something you’d linger over. Plus if it turns out you open a bottle you dig, you can always go back for another when you don’t have a deadline looming.

2. Do choose something on cheap & cheerful side. Again, since you really need to churn out four more pages (single spaced), don’t be getting into a wine so profound that it distracts you from your storyline.

3. Do choose something that might turn you on. Some writers talk about making a soundtrack to get them into the mood to write. Like that background music, you need to pick a wine that balances your need for it to fade into the background (so you can concentrate on nailing dialogue) with keeping your mojo flowing.

4. Do choose a wine that is versatile enough to pair with anything lurking in the deep recesses of your refrigerator. Staring at a blank Word document long enough will cause you to wonder if the caramelized onions you made this morning will taste good wrapped around pickled okra. Or is that just me?

5. Don’t choose a wine high in alcohol. For obvious concentration reasons.

So the Altos Las Hormigas wins on all points but the last one. It’s absolutely saturated in a purple-y ruby all the way to the rim with lots of staining tears. Yet the nose is not super-explosive, and it’s dominated by blackberries and dried black cherries with granite and a hint of florals. It’s medium (+) in body with velvety tannins, medium amount of acid, and flavors of bright blackberry and more granite on the palate.

As for the alcohol, I didn’t really smell it or taste it harshly on the palate. Just to be safe (as the book is not just going to write itself), I recommend pairing this wine with Procrastination Pizza. Tonight I’ve chosen Mystic Pizza, but you may feel free to substitute your favorite frozen pizza here.

Transparency: this wine is imported by my employer.