Bollywood Calling

On Sunday, I was very anxious to head to the city to watch Kurbaan, the latest Bollywood release. It wasn't the Saif-Kareena pairing that attracted me to the movie but the comeback of sorts of the supporting actor, Vivek Oberoi. I had really enjoyed the movie New York that released earlier in the summer, which dealt with similar themes of Islamic fundamentalism and terrorism. So I was really looking forward to an emotional thriller. But this movie experience didn't go anyway as planned.

Firstly, I was disappointed that this movie was not being screened at the smaller theater near Union Square, where we usually watch all Hindi movies. So we decided to go to AMC at Times Square. Being at such a centralized location must mean that poor customer service goes unnoticed, and everything about this place was infuriating. There was only one attendant at the counter despite how long the line was and no one attended to the people lined up at the theater until after the supposed start time to tell us that the movie was going to be screened at a different theater. Then the movie it self was disappointing with a weak and unoriginal plot.

Then we headed to Curry Hill on 28th & Lex to brighten up our evening by having some great Indian Chinese cuisine at Chinese Mirch. The food can be quite spicy but I love the blend of these two cuisines. The chilli panner and Manchurian vegetable balls remain my all time favorites. I wish I had taken a picture before I devoured the food that made our trip to the city completely worthwhile.

Going along the Hudson

This past weekend the weather was uncharacteristically warm and dry for late November. So Nelson decided to take me for a nice stroll at a public park in Irvington which is just south of the Tappan Zee Bridge. This park bordered the Hudson River and had a great view of the Tappan Zee Bridge from one side and the Manhattan skyline from the other. Though only Irvington residents are supposed to have access to this park, at this time of the year no one seemed to care. Except for a few people, the park was filled with a large flock of geese. I was actually little afraid to be so close to them.

Then we headed to Half Moon, a fine dining restaurant in Dobbs Ferry that served Hudson Valley produce. The service was great and the restaurant was fully booked during typical dinner hours. We arrived early enough and were able to get a table with a view of the Hudson without a reservation. The butternut squash soup was my favorite part of the meal. It was nice to know that our food had very limited gas mileage. I'm becoming more aware about my food habits and have been looking for ways to support locally grown products. We finished the meal with some pumpkin cheesecake which was special offering this season.

Since it was still early into the evening, we decided to explore more shopping options along the Hudson. We headed to the Mall at Cross County in Yonkers, a place we have seen from the highway along our drive to the city. This mall was really rundown and didn't have many stores (maybe TJ Maxx if you wanted to do some bargain shopping) worth stopping by. But the Cross County Shopping Center which is on its way being an outdoor mall was a pleasant surprise. There were many regular clothes stores such as NY & C, H&M, Express and Macy's. The most high end stores were Bebe & Armani Exchange. The Christmas tree was already lit up and place was moderately decorated. But a main drawback was that there were hardly any eating areas. This place has a long way to go before it can be a nice outdoor mall that is worth visiting. But the construction around is an indication that some improvements are coming along.

Precious: Based on the Novel Push by Sapphire

This movie has been receiving rave reviews and lots of attention with Oprah and Tyler Perry having joined in as executive producers. The protagonist, "Precious" a newcomer does a fantatstic job with a great ensemble cast. I was so moved by this story and so amazed at the amount of cruelty bestowed upon children by their own families. The audience breaking into applause, everytime Precious registered even the smallest of victories, made watching this movie in the theater worthwhile. But with the release of New moon, White Plains City Center 15 was a really a mad house on friday evening. We were happy that we decided to watch Precious instead.

Sweet Bakery

This is my 28th birthday cake. Nelson ordered it from a bakery (El Monito Bakery) on 26, South Highland Ave (route 9) right next to Lucy's Pizza in Ossining. This bakery specializes in many different types of cakes and sweets and they were able to accept the order on relatively short notice. It was a delicious vanila & chocalate cake with fresh starwberries for a reasonable price.
http://www.delsolsweetbakery.com/

New York City Performs

Last Friday gave us the perfect excuse to leave work early...going to Broadway to see Wicked.  Had a nice evening planned, including dinner in the West Village beforehand.  However, traffic struck, and we had to adjust by finding a quick dinner close to midtown.  Street parking out by 11th Ave this time of night was easy, and there were plenty of small and simple restaurants on 9th to choose from, where we found a basic Thai place.  This is really a great part of town if you want to spend a modest amount while enjoying NYC! (before dumping a lot a money anyway on a Broadway show).

Traffic struck again heading into the city on Sunday afternoon.  Just when I was beginning to think that driving into Manhattan wasn't that bad, I have had horrible luck.  Is NYC so car-unfriendly?  Maybe not: I had no problem parking right in the village to join Anuja and her friends at the tail-end of their SoHo shopping trip.  From there, a short walk to the West Village got us some Kati Rolls and and a fabulous night of stand-up at the famous Comedy Cellar.  Most of the comics were hilarious, and Jim Norton and Tom Papa were just two of the many acts that night!  Both places are shockingly small, but hey it's NYC!

South of the Border is close to home

After a quick weekend trip back to Ithaca, our home of ~5yrs, we were back in Ossining in time for dinner. We headed to South of the Border on route 9, conveniently located opposite the supermarket & CVS. We've passed this place dozens of times this past year but this was our first time actually stepping in for dinner.

The restaurant decor was extremely colorful with vibrant pinata type decorations and interesting artwork adorning the walls. The Sunday dinner crowd was slim but everyone there seem to be enjoying the food and sipping margaritas. We wanted a quick dinner and the restaurant offered the typical Mexican fare.

http://www.guidetoossining.com/page/1580/Sob-Dinner-Menu

I decided on seafood enchiladas and Nelson opted for a combination plate. The food was quite good and we ended up with leftovers. We were too tired and full to try any desserts but may stop by another day when we are too tired for a home cooked meal.

Halloween in NYC (sort of)

Anxious to prove we are still cool young people, Anuja and I decided to check out New York City for Halloween.  However, I guess we weren't that anxious, because all we did to dress for the occasion was wear orange shirts. (yes, lame).  Anyway, the focus of the evening was to check out the Village Halloween Parade, so we headed to Union Square.  We had a quick dinner at the "Coffee Shop", where the staff was definitely in the Halloween spirit, and then headed to 6th Ave.

The real parade was all around us, as about 60-70% of folks on the street were dressed in all types of costumes, from Superman to Lego-men...and, of course, the almost mandatory slutty female costumes.  Excellent people watching!  Just as the parade was finally reaching us around 8pm, the rain started in earnest.  It was worth staying for the first few minutes to see the cool giant puppets.  They were very Dia de los Muertos / Grim Fandango, and thus very creepy and perfect for the occasion.

Once the remainder of the parade started to come by (basically whoever wants to jump in and walk in their costume), we couldn't see anything over the crowd and decided to leave.  Raining very heavily now, we decided just to drive home...taking the long way home around Union Square for some more costume watching!

Amazing Lentil Soup

Lefteris Gyro in Tarrytown is hard to miss if you are driving on route 9. In the summer, there are always people eating outside and in the winter, people are hovering by the door. We have been here on a few occasions and I've always ordered a bowl of lentil soup. It is REALLY good esp with some pita bread on the side. At only $3.75 per bowl, this is really is a very tasty (and I'm assuming nutritious) steal of a meal.

http://www.lefterisgyro.com/

With generous servings of meat and fries , the gyro platters are worth their money too. Nelson always ends up with leftovers. So if you're looking for some affordable great greek food, stop by Lefteris. Be prepared for a long wait, esp. in the winter as they are confined to only a few tables inside. But the lentil soup makes it completely worthwhile!

Blue at Mount Kisco

On Friday (10/30/09), we headed to Mount Kisco for dinner after work. Our first choice, Cafe of Love, was fully packed and we crossed the street to try Blue Asian Fusion restaurant.

http://www.bluemountkisco.com/

Luckily, we they were able to seat us immediately, the place was only half full when we arrived past 6.30pm. The newest entry to their menu was Korean BBQ in addtion to their long list of sushi and thai entrees.

I ordered the red snapper with tamarind sauce which was presented quite beautifully. Nelson ordered a mixed seafood dish which we also enjoyed. They also had an interesting dessert menu with real asian fusion item such as green tea crème brûlée. But we settled on a more traditional bitter sweet choclate cake which satisfied our sweet craving for the night. Though this place didn't look that impressive from the outside, it really was a great find:)) The several take out orders being picked up that night, along with the reviews online, confirm that Blue has begun form some loyal fans.