Prince William's Betrothal, Peetie the Bird + Luzzo's Food for Italians

ART - Now Showing:

Jennifer Rubell and HRH
at Stehpen Friedman, London!

Kelly Crow reports that during artist Jennifer Rubell's opening at London's Stephen Friedman Gallery, Bianca Jagger splashed a glassful of red wine across one of the artist's $25,000 blank canvases with a protruding whisky spigot. Auctioneer Simon de Pury saw Ms. Jagger's gesture and threw his red wine on another, so did designer Marc Newson. Ms. Rubell, watching nearby, encouraged the interaction and audience participation. It is a reason she is one of the art world's new favorites. (She is also the daughter of major Miami collectors Don and Mera Rubell - see the Feb 3. issue of ARTSnFOOD ie: Rubell Family Collection.) 

Her show, titled "Engagement", is about the mania surrounding England's Prince William and his fiancee Kate Middleton. The show's main work is a lifelike wax figure of the prince modeled to match the pose he assumed during last month's televised announcement of his engagement. The artwork is made so people can step into the place where Ms. Middleton would be and slip their ring finger into a oversized, faux sapphire-and-diamond ring which Ms. Rubell has stitched onto the "prince's" sleeve. The effect is equal parts satire and awkward Madame Tussaud near-miss likeness of Prince William. Women and children have done most of the mugging alongside the prince, but every once in a while a man slips on the ring. One male poser, made for an unusual couple, he was an octogenarian in a pin-striped suit. This work, also titled "Engagement" is priced at $125,000.

Rubell is known for creating clever installations that always invite participation. Last year at a Brooklyn Museum gala, she carved a series of cheese sculptures of her own head and suspended them underneath heated lamps so they would melt onto a huge pile of crackers on the floor below. Gala guests ate it up! (The "Engagement" exhibition runs through March 5, 2011 25-28 at Stephen Friedman Gallery, Old Burlington Street, London W1S 3AN  T: +44 (0) 20 7494 1434)

. http://www.stephenfriedman.com/  (Source: The Wall Street Journal)

Quakes stops New Zealand's "Scape" Biennial again!

Feb. 24, 2011 breaking news: "Due to the extraordinary circumstances of the recent earthquake, SCAPE will not be going ahead as planned 4 March – 17 April. The SCAPE Team of staff and trustees, and their families, are safe and have been able to get to a secure place. Our thoughts are with our friends and neighbours who have suffered loss at the hands of this tragedy." 

The New Zealand city of Christchurch has been struck by a second major earthquake in five months. The 6.3-magnitude quake, which struck at lunchtime on February 22 caused at least 118 fatalities, with many more people unaccounted for and widespread destruction. This second disaster comes just two weeks before the rescheduled opening of the public art biennial “Scape”, which was postponed last September until March 2011, after the first earthquake. No new plans for the Biennial have been considered at this time. (source: The Art Newspaper & SCAPE)

NOW SHOWING
At the Whitney:

"Singular Vision"

12 Rooms with only 12 Works of Art

Paul Chan - Digital animated projection dealing with the World Trade Center tragedy among other concepts.

This exhibition features only twelve works, each in its own room. The works will change every three months for a year. This luxury of space is a curatorial experiment to focus on only one work of art at a time. I have seen a tremendous amount of art in galleries and museums, most art gets only a few seconds of my time as I stroll past. When I stop and study a work, it is truly fascinating. This exhibit forces everyone to look. "The Wait" by Keinholz, "Tenrife" by Grosvenor, "Walk, Don't Walk" by Segal and Paul Chan's projection all take time to check out and deserved a room of their own. If a piece is less than stellar, this presentation technique seems to emphasize that fact, also. 

George Segal's 

 "Walk, Don't Walk"

A highlight of the 12 pieces is "Peetie the parakeet", blue and chirpy and part of Edward Keinholz’s The Wait, an installation from 1964–65. The installation is the figure of an elderly woman, constructed from cow bones, siting atop an upholstered chair with a very dead taxidermied cat in her lap. Dusty, nostalgic and colorless relics surround her. The bright blue and yellow Peetie is constantly in motion and the only sign of life, his cage is next to the elderly woman's chair.

Peetie will be given to the most appropriate applicant when the installation is put back into storage. The following artists are included in this installment of Singular Visions: Jonathan Borofsky, AA Bronson, Paul Chan, Sarah Charlesworth, Robert Grosvenor, Eva Hesse, Edward Kienholz, Ree Morton, Georgia O’Keeffe, George Segal, Gary Simmons, and Tom Wesselmann.

The Whitney is currently building a new Museum structure in New York's Chelsea Arts District and I have been told they will lease their upside-down, stepped Marcel Breuer masterpiece of architecture to the Metropolitan Museum of Art, for its contemporary art annex. I hope this does happen, the Whitney building on Madison is starting to feel neglected. Currently there is no gift shop, no restaurant - just coffee service and something about the spirit of the building is missing. The administration's attention has already shifted to the new Chelsea venue. The Whitney is one of my favorite museums, I am looking forward to seeing the exciting things to come at the new Whitney. The current/old Whitney will be missed also, it was an exciting venue for new American Art in the heart of New York's Museum Mile.

Josh Owen's Time Lapse of NYC

NYC - Mindrelic Timelapse from Mindrelic on Vimeo.

FOOD

Where do native Italians

eat in NYC?

Italian foods (pizza and great pasta dishes) are probably the most popular type of food sold in hundreds of restaurants in New York City, but where do people, who are from Italy, go when they want to eat Italian food? Many choose Luzzo's Restaurant on 1st Avenue at 13th Street. This small store front was a 100-year-old bakery which had a coal burning oven. Since there is a moratorium in NYC on any new coal burning ovens, Luzzo's bought the bakery, inheriting the "grandfathered-in" coal burning oven, for their Neapolitan style pizzas.

"Each patch of mozzarella 

is like a fallen cloud

from Heaven."

The pizza is prepared with fresh ingredients from Naples following traditional recipes handed down for generations. Great Neapolitan pizzaiolos (pizza makers) always cook with love and passion. At Luzzo's you might be fooled into thinking you're actually in Italy when you will hear Italian customers speaking their native language. Even if you have never met anyone who speaks Italian, this restaurant is one of those off-the-beaten-path jewels you will love finding in Manhattan. 

Reservations are recommended, often it is very crowded. Luzzo's is casual, family and kid-friendly, open late, accepts credit cards, offers take out, (the plaster walls, gregarious crowd, TV, music and servers make it) noisy, the spaces are tight with just enough room to squeeze past to your table and sometimes the service is as unpredictable as the Italian train system. They offer excellent wine by the glass and fabulous, authentic Italian food. Because of all of the above, people from Italy LOVE this place! 

Luzzo's 100-year-old Coal Fired Pizza Oven.

Luzzo's Restaurant

211 1st Avenue, 

(Btwn 12th & 13th St)

New York, NY 10003

(212) 473-7447 

Neighborhood: East Village

Tue-Sun, noon-11pm; Mon, 5pm-11pm

www.luzzosnyc.com

LUZZO'S  MENU:

SFIZI E ANTIPASTI

OLIVE MARINATE Marinated Olives $7

FRITTO DI CALAMRI Fried Calamari $10

PATATA A MODO NOSTRO Potatoes Gratin with Mozzarella Ham and Truffle paté $10

CARCIOFI GRATINATI Artichokes Gratin $10

PARMIGIANA DI MELANZANE Eggplant Parmigiana $10

ARANCINI DI CARNE Rice balls stuffed with Meat Ragú (4 pieces) $9

CARPACCIO DI BRESAOLA Carpaccio in lemon dressing $11

POLPETTINE Meatballs in tomato sauce $10

BUFALA E PROSCIUTTO Mozzarella di Bufala with Prosciutto di parma $11

MOZZARELLA PIZZAIOLA Mozzarella di Bufala, tomato sauce and basil $9

INSALATA DI POLIPO Marinated Octopus salad $12

PANZAROTTI NAPOLETANI Fried potato croquet (4 pieces) $9

SALUMI MISTI Mix of Imported Cold Cuts $14

FRITTO NAPOLETANO Mix Fried Neapolitan specialties $20

BRUSCHETTE

TRADITIONALE Marinated cherry tomatoes $7

ROMANA Speck and Goat cheese $7

CALABRESE Spicy salame and smoked Mozzarella $7

ZUPPE

MINESTRONE Vegetable soup $7

ZUPPA DI FAGIOLI Neapolitan Beans Soup $7

ZUPPA DEL GIORNO Soup of the day $MP

INSALATE

CARPESE Mozzarella di Bufala and Tomatoes $11

RUCOLA Arugola, Apples and shaved Parmigiano Cheese $9

CESARE Classic ceasar salad $8

MISTA Mix Green salad and Cherry tomatoes in balsamic dressing $8

AMALFI Arugola, Walnuts, Cherry Tomatoes and Goat Cheese in balsamic dressing $10

MEDITERRANEA Italian Tuna, Green Olives, Beans and cherry tomato $11

INDIVIA Endive, Gorgonzola, Pear and Walnuts in lemon dressing $12

Le Paste

GNOCCHI ALL SORRENTINA Homemade Pasta with Mozzarella, Basil and Tomato sauce $15

BUCATINI PESTO E GAMBERI Pasta with Shrimp and Pesto sauce $15

SPAGHETTI GORGONZOLA E RUGHETTA Pasta with Proscuito, Gorgonzola and Arugola $16

PAPPARDELLE SPECK E PORCINI Homemade Pasta with Speck, Prcini Mushroom and Truffle Oil $18

PACCHERI AL RAGU NAPOLETANO Pasta with Italian Sausage, Baby Ribs and Meatballs in tomato sauce $16

LASAGNA DI CARNE Traditional Meat Lasagna $14

TAGLIATELLE BOLOGNESE Homemade Pasta with Bolognese sauce $15

SPAGHETTI CARBONARA Spaghetti with Eggs, Pancetta and Parmigiano cheese $15

RIGATONI ALLA NORMA Pasta with Eggplant and Ricotta cheese in Tomato sauce $15

Le Pizza       Pie sizes: 12 inches / 16 inches

1. BUFALA Tomato sauce, bufala mozzarella, basil $17 / $21

2. NAPOLETANA Tomato sauce, mozzarella, anchovies, basil $18 / $23

3. CAMPANA Tomato sauce, mozzarella, cherry tomato, shaved parmigiano, basil $15 / $23

4. FUNGHI Tomato sauce, mozzarella, mushrooms, basil $18 / $23

5. ARUGOLA Tomato sauce, mozzarella, proscuito, shaved parmigiano, arugola $20 / $25

6. SALSICCIA Tomato sauce, mozzarella, sausage, basil $18 / $23

7. TARTUFATA Tomato sauce, mozzarella, truffle, pâté, basil $18 / $23

8. CALZONE Tomato sauce, mozzarella, ricotta, mushrooms, spicy salami, ham, basil $19 / $24

9. DIAVOLA Tomato sauce, mozzarella, spicy salami, basil $18 / $23

10. 4 STAGIONI Tomato sauce, mozzarella, mushrooms, ham, olives, artichokes, basil $19 / $24

11. BRUTTA MA BUONA Tomato sauce, mozzarella, ricotta, sausage, olives, basil $19 / $24

12. MARTHA Mozzarella, prosciutto, truffle pâté, basil (no tomato sauce) $20 / $25

13. PICCANTE Tomato sauce, mozzarella, ham, git cherry pepper, basil $20 / $25

14. 4 FORMAGGI Mozzarella, gorgonzola, ricotta, parmigiano, basil (no tomatoe sauce) $19 / $24

15. ORTOLANA Tomato sauce, mozzarella, mushrooms, zucchini, eggplant, basil $19 / $24

16. MICHELE Mozzarella, prosciutto, funghi and truffle pâté (no tomato sauce) $19 / $24

17. SALSICCIA E BROCCOLI Mozzarella, sausage, broccoli rabe, basilco (no tomato sauce) $18 / $23

18. SPECK Tomato sauce, mozzarella, speck, shaved, parmigiano, balsamic basil $20 / $25

19. EST Tomato sauce, mozzarella ricotta, spicy salame and basil $18 / $23

20. AGLIETTA Tomato sauce, mozzarella, parmigiano, roasted garlic and basil $18 / $22

La Quadrata

Old Fashion SQUARE PIZZA with choice of buffala or marinara (tomato sauce, garlic, oregano, basil) $17 / $22

'A Frusta

QUARTIERI Mozzarella, salsccia e broccoli rabe $15 / $21

SCAMPIA Mozzarella, ham, funghi $15 / $21

VIA ROMA Eggplant Parmigiana $15 / $21

Pizza Cono

CONO ANDRES Mozzarella, Mixed Green Olives, Cherry Tomatoes $11

CONO LUZZO Mozzarella, prosciutto, arugola, shaved parmigiano $11

Pizza Fritta

FRIED PIZZA stuffed with Mozzarella, Ricotta Cheese, Tomato Sauce, Ham and Black Pepper $17

Until later,

Jack

© ARTS&FOOD,(ARTSnFOOD.blogspot.com) All rights reserved, © Copyright Jack A. Atkinson 2011 Under All International, Digital, Intellectual Property and Copyright Laws. Images © Copyright individual Creators, Lenders or Fabricators.

Tara Donovan's Straight Pin Drawings, D. Judd + TV Dinner

ART - Now Showing:

  Tara Donovan - Drawing (Pins) detail below

Artist Tara Donovan makes large-scale sculptures and beautiful wall objects from drinking straws, buttons, pins, No. 2 pencils, etc. She allows the shape of the object to determine the form, transcending the commonplace usage of their intended purpose. 

Donovan, age 42, earned a $500,000 MacArthur Foundation "genius" grant when she was 38. This allows her a fairly normal family life; home / studio ownership in Williamsburg, Brooklyn; the luxury of a second 7,000-square-foot studio a few blocks from her house; all of the millions of everyday objects she needs to create her art; and a staff of ten full time assistants to help piece together her visions. Her art is made-up of things like dressmaker's straight pins, pushed into Gatorboard. This straight pin series titled: ‘‘Drawings (Pins),’’ is being shown this month at The Pace Gallery in the Chelsea arts district of New York City.

Artist Tara Donovan

‘‘It’s all about perceiving this material from a distance and close up and how the light interacts with it,’’ Donovan says, like how Scotch tape, stuck to itself creating swirls, takes on color in sunlight. 

‘‘I think a lot of people get caught up when they ask me about the labor,’’ she says, ‘‘and I always think the labor is sort of the reward: I’ve already figured this thing out. All I have to do now is do this thing. It’s very freeing. I can think about what I want to cook for dinner!"
Drawing "Pins" is up at Pace from Feb. 12 until March 19, 2011

Also at Pace Gallery Chelsea 

Donald Judd: Works in Granite, Cor-ten, Plywood, and Enamel on Aluminum, featuring thirteen wall and floor pieces from 1978 through 1992. He  considered material one of the three “main aspects of visual art.”  This exhibition focuses on some of the “lesser known materials” Judd worked with in the later years of his life.   

Donald Judd 

Donald Judd (1928–1994) attended, among other schools, Columbia University, where he graduated cum laude with a B.S. in philosophy and pursued graduate studies in art history from 1957 to 1962.  Beginning in the 60s, Judd exhibited regularly in the United States, Europe, and Japan. He was also a critic for Artnews, Arts Magazine and Art International producing many important theoretical writings on art and exhibition practices, which remain central to his legacy.  Judd taught Art at the Brooklyn Institute of Arts and Sciences, Dartmouth College, Yale University and Oberlin College.   

In 1972 Judd and his family moved to Marfa, Texas where he created the Chinati Foundation, an independent, non-profit, publicly funded institution which preserves and presents permanent installations by Judd and a limited number of artists, including John Chamberlain, Dan Flavin, Claes Oldenburg and Coosje van Bruggen.  The remote site attracts over 10,000 visitors annually.  Today, Judd’s legacy also survives through the Judd Foundation, established in 1996.  The artist’s former studio and residence at 101 Spring Street (built in 1870), was given the distinction by the National Trust for Historic Preservation as the only intact single-use cast iron building remaining in SoHo.  

Judd’s work is in the collection of nearly every major public art institution in the United States and abroad. Important examples of Judd’s work in plywood can be found permanently installed at Dia: Beacon.

The exhibition will be on view from February 18 through March 26, 2011 at 534 West 25th Street.

For purchase availability regarding: Tara Donovan: Drawing (Pins), and Donald Judd:  Works in Granite, Cor-ten, Plywood, and Enamel on Aluminum, please contact The Pace Gallery,NYC. All information and quotes came from Pace Gallery press releases and from the New York Times blog about these new Pace exhibitions.

NEWS:

Egypt's Museum looted during protests for democracy.

Important archeological sites in Egypt and The Egyptian Museum were looted during the antigovernment protests, Egypt’s antiquities minister, Zahi Hawass, recently said. The announcement contradicted earlier statements that Egypt’s archeological sites and treasures were safe. Mr. Hawass said that tombs at Saqqara and Abusir and storage buildings at Saqqara and at Cairo University, among other sites, had been looted. 

Sotheby's auction prices up - Contemporary Art Evening in London realized $71,051,252 with strong multiple bidding on many of the lots. This sum brings the total for Sotheby’s Contemporary Art Auction, London Series this season to $138,728,359, well above combined pre-sale expectations and representing the second-highest total by February ever and the highest total for a Contemporary Art Sales Series in London since July 2008. 

Source, Sotheby's press release.

Juan Muñoz's  "Conversation Piece"
in polyester resin, sold for $1.5 million

[Note: According to the Wall Street Journal, midway through this Feb. 15 contemporary sale in London, demonstrators interrupted bidding by spreading out a red banner that read, "Orgy of the Rich,” and throwing counterfeit £50 notes into the air before being escorted out. The demonstrators belonged to a group of artists and students protesting plans by the government to cut arts programs in the wake of the current recession.]

Beautiful Cars

125 years ago, in 1886, Carl Benz filed a patent for "vehicle with gas engine drive". To celebrate the anniversary of this event, Daimler AG and Mercedes-Benz flew four cars - two classic and two concept - to a Hong Kong auto show at Ocean Terminal. Unfortunately the show ends today. If you missed it the Wall Street Journal has some pictures to share of the cars at this link: http://blogs.wsj.com/scene/2011/02/19/mercedes-benz-classics-and-concepts/?blog_id=169&post_id=6934

FOOD:

The downfall of the American diet didn't start with fast food restaurants, but with the frozen "TV Dinner". This "progress" first came to us in the 1950s and usually consists of a cut of meat, a vegetable, mashed potato or rice, and a cobbler or cooked fruit. Most processed food has added salt, added trans fats and "chemical additives".

What are our alternatives?

Here is my healthy and delicious microwave, TV Dinner for two:

FIRST: Buy FRESH salad greens in bags, plastic boxes or by the head in produce.

SECOND: Pick up an ear of fresh sweet corn, a baking potato, sweet potato or yam, an apple or orange, a small package of fresh skinless chicken breasts, and your favorite salad dressing. 

• Rinse one potato, poke a few fork holes here and there in the skin and cook on high for 10 minutes. Remember its HOT, remove, divide into two halves, splay open and dress as you like on two plates.

• Rinse a skinless chicken breast, blot dry, sprinkle with salt & pepper and wrap in microwavable plastic wrap - cook on high for 2 1/2 to 4* minutes. Unwrap (careful it is hot) and set chicken aside to rest. (*Cooking chicken is a little tricky because the thickness varies so much, so cook based on the size of the breast. For very thin breasts cut time back to 1 1/2 minutes, if there is still a raw center patch, cook in 10 seconds increments until done, but still juicy.)

• Corn-on-the-Cob - Wet a paper towel, place the shucked ear of corn in the towel and roll-up. Cook on high for 3 minutes, turn and cook for 2-3 minutes more. (For unshucked corn you just peel some leaves slightly back and put under the faucet to wet inside, fold the leaves back over corn and cook.) Remember its HOT, halve the corn and place next to potato on serving plate.

• Open some salad greens.

• Cut Apple or Orange into wedges.

To Serve:

On the plate with the potato and corn halves place a bed of greens. Slice the chicken breast, place on top of the greens. Drizzle your favorite salad dressing over both the chicken and greens. On a separate plate, present the wedges of apple or orange for dessert.

The chicken can also be purchased preseasoned, in individual pouches - remove and microwaved for 1 1/2 to 2 minutes covered by a dry paper towel. Check for doneness, if there is still a raw center patch, cook in 10 seconds increments until done, but still juicy. 

This is fast food with nothing to clean up except a plate or two, and you can catch your favorite TV show while you're eating. No plastic food, no Styrofoam, less wasteful packaging + delicious and healthy food!

Until later,

Jack 

© ARTS&FOOD,(ARTSnFOOD.blogspot.com) All rights reserved, © Copyright Jack A. Atkinson 2011 Under All International, Digital, Intellectual Property and Copyright Laws. Images © Copyright individual Creators, Lenders or Fabricators.

Rothko Chapel + Noodles: Dough-Thwacking & Hand-Stretching

A Mark Rothko Painting in Houston's Rothko Chapel.

Art: Enjoying

HOUSTON'S

ROTHKO

CHAPEL

"The Rothko Chapel is a place apart. It calls for a different form of attention, 

a more hypnotic gaze than we are accustomed to expect.” –David Anfam

If you are ever in Houston, Texas, you must search out and visit the Rothko Chapel, located in central Houston. It is a part of The Menil Collection museum and located on the same grounds as that wonderful art museum (not far from Rice University and one block from the University of St. Thomas).

For the intimate, octagonal chapel,
the de Menils commissioned fourteen
massive canvases from Rothko
(who did not live to see the installation). 

Mark Rothko's paintings are sublime color field works, that always evoke emotion in the viewer. Taken as a complete experience these huge paintings by the artist at the Rothko Chapel move into the realm of the spiritual. When you enter the chapel the paintings appear black due to the dim outdoor light coming indirectly  from the few openings in the building. As you sit quietly, your eyes adjust to see a rich field of varying deep purples. It is a place to quiet your soul and to think or to pray or to clear your mind and meditate. It is contemporary art,  as a non-denominational religious experience.

ABOUT THE CHAPEL

Dominique de Menil in the Rothko Chapel, c. 1987 photo by Adelaide de Menil Carpenter

In 1952 John and Dominique de Menil visited Sacré Coeur in Audincourt to see the stained-glass windows created by Fernand Léger; the Chapelle de Saint-Marie du Rosaire, designed by Henri Matisse with windows and murals by the artist; and the site where Le Corbusier’s design for Notre Dame du Haut in Ronchamp was to be constructed.  Back home in Houston, John wrote, "The split that now exists between the Church and creative art is of a concern to many. It is also a challenge . . . I have promised myself to encourage, within my means and reach, any attempt made to keep up the great tradition of the church.”

That  opportunity came in 1959, in the New York studio of artist Mark Rothko.  As Dominique wrote after the visit, the artist’s work would be “remarkable... for a chapel... so beautiful....” In 1964 the de Menils asked the painter if he would be willing to design a suite of paintings for a chapel for the University of St. Thomas in Houston. Architect Philip Johnson agreed to collaborate with Rothko on the project.  

As it evolved, the de Menils and the University of St. Thomas diverged on the purpose of the chapel. The Fathers’ ideas were more traditional and in 1969 the couple redefined the chapel as a non-sectarian worship space, siting it on land one block west of the university campus.   

Barnett Newman's Broken Obelisk

 While the chapel was being constructed, the de Menils presented the City of Houston with the Barnett Newman sculpture Broken Obelisk. They attached one condition to the gift: that the sculpture honor the memory of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. When the city declined the gift, the de Menils decided to install it outside the Rothko Chapel. Newman, in collaboration with Johnson, sited the work (the sculpture rises from a reflecting pool, in perfect alignment with the chapel entrance).

Since its dedication in 1971, the Rothko Chapel has become a spiritual landmark, central to Houston.

The Rothko Chapel

1409 Sul Ross Street

Houston, Texas
Hours: 10 a.m.–6 p.m.
Open every day of the year.
Now Showing:

Tony Smith Drawings

The Menil Collection 

December 17, 2010–April 3, 2011

“Tony Smith: Drawings” is a selection of rarely exhibited and early drawings by American artist Tony Smith (1912-1980). The work, executed within a limited time-period in the 1950’s, precedes Smith's emergence as a sculptor. Some 30 drawings were selected from Smith's estate and private collections.

Smith's drawings show forms inspired by nonobjective modular structures including staccato linear hatching, irregular interconnecting forms, and often brilliant colors. 

Smith, born in New Jersey, studied architecture under László Moholy-Nagy. After working for Frank Lloyd Wright, he moved to New York where he became friends with Barnett Newman, Jackson Pollock and Clyfford Still. Smith was interested in Jean Arp's work and the geometric order, harmony, and structural patterns in natural forms.

THE MENIL COLLECTION
1515 Sul Ross Street 

Houston, TX 77006

Phone: 713-525-9400

11:00 a.m – 7:00 p.m.   Wednesday – Sunday
Closed Mondays and Tuesdays.

http://www.menil.org/exhibitions/current.php

FOOD:

The fine art of hand-made Chinese noodles.

Ever since I first experienced hand-stretched Chinese noodles, known as "la mian", they have become one of my favorite meals, but difficult to find.

The New York Times reported in October, that a new noodle shop opened in the NoLIta section of NYC, named Hung Ry. I will eat there as soon as possible. Why? My family and I were lucky enough to experience la mian noodles being made and were able to sample them, presented in a clear broth. No other food I tried during our trip to China was as subtle, delicate and delicious to me, as this meal.

Chinese noodles are categorized by the flour used in preparation: rice noodles are Fen and wheat noodles are Mian. Also you will find rice noodles with wheat starch and wheat noodles with rice, tapioca or corn starches added. 

Each creates a different effect on the palate when eaten. These noodles are either stir-fried or boiled in a broth.

Long noodles are traditionally served during Chinese New Year, Feb. 3 - 17 and Longevity Noodles are served on birthdays which should be eaten without biting through the long noodle.

Noodle makers in the Gansu province learned a thousand years ago, that adding "peng", a form of ash, tenderizes the dough. Hung Ry imports packages of peng for this purpose. The more the maker pulls the thinner the noodles become. Thin noodles are called "xi" and thick noodles are called "cu".

Good Chinese noodle dishes are also available at the Sheng Wang restaurant and at the Super Taste. The more pulled noodle shops, the merrier!

Sheng Wang

27 Eldridge St

(between Canal St & Division St) 

New York, NY 10002

Super Taste Restaurant
26 Eldridge Street

New York, 10002

(212) 625-1198

Open Weekdays 10am-11pm

Hung Ry 

55 Bond St., New York, NY 10012 nr. Bowery  212-677-4864

(menu below)

Bites

Quail egg, chili, seeds. 3

Daozi. 3

Stuffed pancake. 4

Beef momo. 3.5

　

Starters

Young greens, apple, ginkgo. 5.5

Seasonal vegetable plate. 6.5

Beef tongue, black chickpeas, carrots, pickled garlic broth. 7.5

Monkfish liver, pak shoi, longan, hen of the woods. 9

Lobster, black bean shoots, cucumber, radish, salted chilies. 9

Roasted marrow bone, fresh grated wasabi, celery root. 8

Veal head, broccoli, peanuts. 7

Noodles

Brisket, tripe, smoked egg. Purple potato, onion, black mustard. 13

Chicken, liver ballotine. Corn cake, mache. 14

Mutton sausage, its sweetbreads. Salt preserved black cabbage. 14

Peking duck breast, leg, gizzard. Szechuan pepper, sweet peppers. 15

Lobster, scallop. Sunchoke, matsutake, truffle. 19

Pork belly, tail, tongue. Apple, turnip, crispy leaf. 13

Cold buckwheat noodle. Tomato, bush beans, sesame. 11

Rye noodle. Tamarind, squash, peppers, radish. 11

Desserts

Apple soufflé, honey, walnuts. 8.5

Sorbets: pear, raspberry, blueberry. 

All with candied fruit. 2.5 ea.

Art Shopping:

Sacred Art (Book)

by Marie-Alain Couturier102 b/w illus.  Cloth
159 pages     1989ISBN:029277639X
Price: $35
https://www.menil.org/secure/modern.php

Year of the Rabbit
Tile Coaster

Tile coasters, measuring 4.25" x 4.25" and 1/6-inch thick. Images are applied with a polyester resin that accepts dye as part of the coating. Four felt pads protect your furniture from scratches. Dishwasher safe.

Price: $10.00

http://www.cafepress.com/+year_of_the_rabbit_tile_coaster,348052871

Until later,

Jack

© ARTS&FOOD,(ARTSnFOOD.blogspot.com) All rights reserved, © Copyright Jack A. Atkinson 2011 Under All International, Digital, Intellectual Property and Copyright Laws. Images © Copyright individual Creators, Lenders or Fabricators.