Let's Kick It Off With Kashkaval! 12/16/2009
 photograph courtesy of flickr user pabo76 So I figured I'd kick it off with the most awesomely unexpected restaurant in Hell's Kitchen, and easily my new favorite: Kashkaval. Named after a yellow sheep's milk cheese, Kashkaval, nestled between 55th and 56th on 9th ave, is a wonderful surprise of a Mediterranean tapas bar. By day, it operates as a darling little cheese and gourmet food shop, offering up over 100 varieties of cheeses, olives and the like. But when the sun sets, this place turns into the ultimate date spot. But you didn’t just hear it from me! Get to this place early or you’ll be waiting in line with every other young couple in midtown... When I first discovered this little cheese shop was more than a little cheese shop, and that all of their cold tapas selections were vegetarian (yeah, you heard me right), I hauled my savvy butt over there to check it out. Dragging my very carnivorous boyfriend, Adam, along for the experience, we arrived at 7:30 on a Friday and the line was almost out the door. We were seated within the hour… and then it was decision time. 24- count ‘em- 24 freshly prepared vegetarian tapas to choose from. And here’s the savvy part: 5 heaping portions of whatever combination you’d like for only $12! Not to mention, the wine list was hardly expensive. $6 buys you a generous glass of red wine. Needless to say, it tasted like a $6 glass of red wine. After much deliberation, we decided on the $12 sample platter of Spicy Walnut Pepper Spread, Lentil Salad, Spinach, Piyaz, and Beet Skordalia. We also were intrigued by the Cheddar & Ale fondue (a medium-sharp cheddar blended with beer), $12. I figured anything that included beer and melted cheese and would be a winner in Adam’s book. Here’s what I thought of the tapas from favorite to meh: Spicy Walnut Pepper Spread: a complex flavor of garlicky roasted pepper and walnut- it was both sweet and savory. Fantastic. Beet Skordalia: sweet yet earthy, the creamy well-seasoned spread was absolutely delicious. If you like beets, you will adore this spread. Piyaz: Giant lemony garlicky white beans. They were surprisingly refreshing and had a nice zing to them. More of a fork food, less of a pita-dipping food. Lentil Salad: This had similar flavor to the Piyaz, probably because they were handled with the same ingredients. I’d go for the Piyaz. Spinach: Meh. Kinda bland. Get something else. The service was speedy and friendly, and within 10 minutes we were sipping our wine and dipping our tapas. The Cheddar & Ale fondue came a bit later with a basket of cubed French baguette for dunking. It was a bit oily, but delicious. Come on, it’s a pot of melted cheese… how could I not like it? And did I mention we were served free warm pita bread all night? Wining, dining, dipping and dunking; it was all very romantic- and pretty darn inexpensive. We could have easily filled up on the pita and sample platter- and that would have only cost us $6 apiece. The tapas were fresh and delicious, and even Adam, who generally cringes at all things green, was satisfied. Overall, Kashkaval was a great experience. CommentsBig Sis 12/16/2009 7:13pm
Great idea! But I knew you were creative. Loads of luck. Looking forward to reading your blog posts as you eat your "weigh" through NYC! Oh, Great web design, BTW. Dinner Club Catfisch 12/21/2009 10:00pm
Hey Sam, 02/01/2010 9:26pm
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