Pencil in a Solo Date

Plus knife skills, coffee cake, and unions!

I love restaurants and spend a decent amount of time and money on meals out. Probably 90% of those meals are eaten with other people, which means sharing dishes, debating bottles of wine and ultimately splitting the check. I love the idea of solo dining (and always think solo diners look cool) but I rarely do it myself. In college and after, I did a lot of solo travel, which meant many meals alone. Now I live in New York, the city where I was born and raised, and am lucky enough to have a deep bench of potential dining companions.

The other reason I don’t dine alone is money. Even though I know intellectually that a wonderful night out is sometimes more special when savored alone, it’s hard to wrap myself around treating myself in that way, even if I wouldn’t blink an eye at spending the same amount (or more) on a meal with a friend. I’ve been trying to rewire some of my ideas around money and I really wanted to check out The Esters, the new wine bar with pizza from the owners of Tuffet, one of my favorite local spots. I went on Saturday night and got a seat at the bar. I felt so relaxed, which I credit to the service, the space, this delightful book, and the delicious food and drink. Once I ordered, I had a ballpark amount of how much I wanted to spend on the outing. In a lovely move, they comped my second drink so I tipped a ton to reach my mental budget. I walked home listening to Cruel Summer (should have been a single), finished my book, and slept like a rock. It was so restorative and fun and it’s something I want to make time (and money) to do regularly.

I also really enjoy cooking for myself (and others) and Erica and I have two classes coming up (go with me on this transition)! First, we have Meal Prep class on Sunday with a spring forward menu. Everyone in this class is getting a special surprise, don’t miss it! Next, we’re hosting a Knife Skills Class on May 19th at 6:30 pm EST. It’s appropriate for all levels, including beginners, and we’ll cook up a simple meal with everything we chop. If you take this class with friends, make sure you each have a knife and cutting board you can use. See you there! Classes are on Zoom and you’ll get the recording after if you can’t make it live!

Now, let’s dive in.

Something to cook:

I didn’t cook a lot this week, but I did use the last of my challah as croutons in a lovely lunch salad, with arugula, dates, goat cheese, cucumbers, and pepitas. It was a real raid your cabinets for whatever you have situation. Also: I’m sharing my challah recipe in Thursday’s newsletter for paid subscribers! If you’re a student or the budget is tight, reach out and I’ll set up a comp, no questions asked!

I roasted chickpeas with a lot of spices (za’atar, cumin, garlic powder, chili flakes) and used them in a pita sandwich with arugula and cucumber (I didn’t have yogurt so I made a mayo based sauce).

Popcorn and nutritional yeast continue to be a stellar combo to accompany Bridgerton season 2 (far superior to the first IMHO).

Sunday night pasta is a great ritual. I make mine with Rao’s, parmesan cheese and a drizzle of olive oil and serve it with garlic broccoli topped with nutritional yeast.

Something to order:

I got some disappointing news on Monday and Dale ordered us Montesacro for comfort. I love their cacio e pepe and the little gem salad.

Lissette had a final meetup for creators and brands at the Fohr office (complete with spicy margs). Afterwards, a group of us walked over to Spaghetti Incident, which was so good and cozy. Julianne and I split the special arrabiatta with homemade pasta and the chitarra with mozzarella.

Oset and I caught up over dinner at Thai Diner (it’s a tough reservation—I set a Resy notify which didn’t lead to a reservation but they had bar seats open at 6:45 on a Wednesday). The food was fantastic—we split the vegetarian khao soi, my favorite dish and the phat thai. For dessert we had their coffee cake (that’s coffee flavored) which is adorably decorated to look like a monster. Don’t skip dessert!

There was a Thai place near campus that had khao soi and I still remember the first time I tried it

Erica, Tarn, and I met up for breakfast at Rosalu Diner in Clinton Hill (we were brainstorming a collab and catching up). It was a good meeting place and I thoroughly enjoyed my breakfast sandwich with a hashbrown and avocado.

more breakfast sandwiches should include hashbrowns, pass it on

On Friday, Hillary, Zoe, Julianne, Ian and I went to Bamonte’s, which was a treat as always. We ordered most of our go tos from last time—I think the mussels marinara is my favorite dish. Call to get a reservation.

I took a walk Saturday to pick up burritos from De Mole, which also has a great brunch. I love their nopales burrito and I always cut it in half for leftovers.

Then, I went on my solo date to The Esters which was the best. I got the T-Model pizza with cherry tomatoes, garlic, mozzarella, parm, and arugula, a negroni, and this chilled red wine from Greece (so good). The pizzas have been selling out and take a little while, so order one as soon as you arrive. They’re great for sharing or as a dinner for one.

Julianne hosted another successful clothing swap, this time at Nina’s at the Nomo Soho, a new bar inside the hotel. There was a post swap happy hour with custom cocktails and delicious fries.

Something to read:

I share five additional reads in Thursday’s newsletter!

Ramadan Mubarek! Oset wrote a beautiful piece about a halal taco iftar in South Philly

Speaking of Philly, Penn is actively trying to discredit the trauma and experiences of a student to preserve their reputation. Not surprised at all, but Mackenzie Fierceton’s story is worth your time.

Why are there so many shows and movies about Julia Child? Alicia Kennedy wrote about the latest iteration.

Conde Nast unionized! It’s been 2 years of work and I’m so excited for them! You can watch this video about why they unionized and support them by signing this petition.

Amazon workers in Staten Island unionized as well (and we got this iconic quote from union co-founder Christian Smalls, “We want to thank Jeff Bezos for going up to space, because while he was up there, we were organizing a union”). I hope this is the first of many Amazon unions and you can read more about the years of work that went into this victory here.

Yes, you do deserve a little treat.

Little gem lettuce is everywhere. Where did it come from and how did it get so popular?

My story on margarita salts is online now (and I wrote about how it came together)

Wine was a tool of conquest in California

Towards gender inclusive service in restaurants

Eric Kim’s new cookbook Korean American looks fantastic. And this essay from him about the meaning of home is beautiful.

This policy from Eric Adams is cruel and unnecessary: Dozens of city workers sent to clear homeless encampment under BQE. NBK Essentials is organizing to support unhoused neighbors.

BuzzFeed doesn’t deserve its newsroom

Andrea’s piece on flour tortillas is excellent (I learned so much)

Fattoria AL Fiore: rethinking wine in Japan

Nature wasn’t healing: The emboldened wildlife and low emissions during initial lockdowns didn't last long.

What Avril Lavigne can’t live without

Maple Syrup from New Mexico

Quinta Brunson talks season 2 of Abbott Elementary! Can’t wait.

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Let’s talk about grilled cheese! Y’all shared some stellar suggestions for this classic sandwich.

Hillary is loyal to the grilled cheese which I need to try next time I’m in London: have one singular thought when it comes to grilled cheese, which is what I've dubbed The Grilled Cheese. It's the cheese toastie from Kappacasein, a stand at Borough Market in London. I'm not exaggerating when I say I ate it at least once a week during my semester abroad, and it was my first stop when I visited in 2018. The sandwich is sourdough bread, some combo of sharp cheddar and comte/gruyere/raclette, and a mix of diced leeks, scallions, and red onion. It is SO. GOOD. I made it at home for the first time ever this past weekend and it was almost as good as the real thing. I mostly followed this recipe.

Kathleen’s grilled cheese has serious umami: I love adding chili jam to my grilled cheese, it adds such a nice bright pop of spice that sometimes can be missed! We’ve also been making miso grilled cheese which are to die for- I feel like miso is such an underrated ingredient for more “western” things like grilled cheese. 

Jen knows the importance of a cheese skirt: Important to make sure at least a little cheese is overhanging the edge of the bread so you get some of that crispy, lattice-y goodness. I also love dipping a grilled cheese in yellow or honey mustard!

M.Q. sees many possibilities in grilled cheese: I love grilled cheese sandwiches too!! We (my husband Joe and I) just had one a few moments ago. In fact I made our favorites (I'm a vegetarian and Joe is not :-). Mine: whole wheat bread, grey poupon, sharp provolone, munster, red onion, tomato, arugula, mayo. Grill and YUM! Joe's: whole wheat bread, guilden's, monterey jack, grilled black forest ham, red onion, tomato, lettuce (added after grilling), more guildens. Served with a pickle, chips, and homemade Jimmy (Maryland Crab) soup. It was REALLY GOOD. Here's to Grilled Cheeses' everywhere.

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This week, I’d like to hear your favorite treat yourself moments. When you need a treat after a good or bad day, what do you pick up? I’ve been loving this candle and I can always convince myself to get an everything bagel. Reply to this email with your treats of choice and I’ll share them next week!

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A programing note: Dale and I are taking a trip to Key West later this month so there will be no newsletters the week of April 18th. If you have any recommendations, particularly restaurants with good vegetarian options, send them my way!

I’ll see you on Thursday for challah, reads and the next installment of Recommendation Station, the TNHS advice column.

xo, Abigail