For the moment, long distance travel to Italy, one of my favorite destinations, is not possible. To remind myself of my trip last fall to Milan and the Piedmont , I have been enjoying Italian treats. Charred red peppers topped with anchovies. Homemade pasta. And, limoncello. From the scourges of the pandemic, we can learn that our good fortune is fragile and that our determination to overcome adversity is indomitable. Staying safe at home, we're taking the long view. The days are good. We do our work remotely. At dinner we watch the PBS NewsHour , then we stream episodes of the Swedish The Restaurant or the French The Bureau or the Israeli Shtisel . We look forward to the time when we'll be able to have a meal at a restaurant, meet friends for a walk on the beach (even as we still observe social distancing), go to a movie theater and have a dinner party at our house. To celebrate that time, I'm infusing spirits. Italian limoncello is made with vodk
Ever since I was a babe-in-arms, I have visited New York every year from my home in Los Angeles. I grew up visiting New York City because my grandmother lived on 110th close to Amsterdam, with a view of St. John the Divine. For several years I taught at RIC in Providence, R.I., so I visited more frequently. Since I am now LA-based, on average I visit the city at least twice a year. When I visit, it's only for a few days, which means I walk a lot (LA is a city-for-cars-only) and I revisit my favorites. New York City has thousands of restaurants and millions of residents and visitors. Everyone has their favorite restaurants. These are mine. Downtown Chinese, Japanese and Vietnamese (you can see posts on Instagram - mr.manmade): Nha Trang One Restaurant 87 Baxter Street, NYC 10013 212) 233-5948 #18 salt/pepper shrimp + order a plate of steamed rice The shrimp arrive on a mountain of shredded lettuce. Delicious. Add shrimp, lettuce