Happy Birthday To Me!

Ok, so big news! This past Saturday, May 4th, was my 24th birthday! That's right, as of this Saturday, I have been on this Earth for 24 years. Wow, time flies by! Before I tell you about my birthday feast...here are some interesting facts about May 4th.

My co-birthday persons include: Audrey Hepburn, Lance Bass, & Will Arnett

Interesting events: 

- 1715: First umbrella is unveiled in France

- 1886: Haymarket Riot

- 1896: First edition of the Daily Mail

- 1923: New York State revokes Prohibition laws

- 1932: Al Capone enters prison for tax evasion

- 1959: First Grammy Awards

Random Fact:

In Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's 1893 short story entitled " The Final Problem," Sherlock Holmes fights to the death with his nemesis, Professor Moriarity. In a climactic moment, at the Reichenbach Falls, both Holmes and Morarity fall into the waterfall, plummeting to their deaths.
This happened on May 4th 1891! How weird is that?!

Anyway enough of that. So, I will say, my birthday was pretty low key. I hung out, caught up on errands, and went to the gym. The morning was wonderful because I spent it skyping London and Brussels. First, I spent some time skyping my friend from London "S", who's birthday is on May 2nd! It was wonderful seeing her, especially since I don't think we've spoken since she came to visit me in NYC in February! Wow.

After S, I ended up skyping my family in Brussels by chance. I noticed that my cousin, E, was online, so I decided to send her a message. She told me that she was siting with her siblings, so we ended up skyping for about an hour. My aunt made an appearance too, as well as their super cute pomeranian, Pookie. 

I'm very much a family person, so I loved being able to chat with my Belgian family, especially since I don't get to see them very often! It was fun exchanging stories, updating each other on what's going on, and just shmoozing. What a great way to start off my birthday!!! The only thing that could've made this better, if I was chatting with them in person, but you can't have everything --- right? 

After a morning filled with skype and an afternoon of running errands and exercising, the festivities commenced. 

My parents drove into the city to spend my birthday with me! How wonderful? They were staying overnight, so I met them at their apartment (it's sort of a time share thing...very complex), to have some afternoon tea and just relax. As I arrived, my father had just returned from his Mecca to Zabars. He always refers to Zabars as "heaven on earth for Jews," and my goodness he bought all of the classics. Bagels, lox, whitefish, pickled herring, cheese...so much food! 

We settled in, made some tea and enjoyed a few of my carrot cake cupcakes, which I had brought with me. It was lovely. After tea, we changed and made our way downtown to go to my favorite restaurant for dinner, Kyo Ya.

Now, I am pretty sure I have blogged about Kyo Ya before, but in case you haven't read it or have forgotten, Kyo Ya is a really small, hidden, and unassuming Japanese restaurant in the East Village. We have been going for at least a decade...pretty much from when it opened its doors. This restaurant is truly authentic to Japanese cuisine and when I am here, it's like I am dining in Tokyo. I love love love it!

To help me celebrate, I invited my best friend "M" along to join us. He has always wanted to try Kyo Ya, but was always intimidated by the menu. Not to worry, we took care of all of the ordering! True to form, we had such a feast!!!! (We usually order a bunch of dishes and share them). 

Dish 1: Large Kyo Ya Salad with a Sesame Dressing

(sliced daikon radish with a selection of small seasonal vegetables)

Very refreshing and light. The dressing is particularly delicious. 

Dish 2: Mame Age

(Fried horse mackerel)

 This is a family favorite. Once I start eating these, I can't stop!  

Dish 3: Chef's Selection of Assorted Sashimi

(red snapper, fatty tuna, aoyagi clam, and mackerel)

Chef Sono also serves us the most amazing sashimi. Consistently the best sashimi ever!  

No sashimi platter would be complete without some uni, my favorite! 

Dish 4: Shishamo Nambazuke

(Smelts served in a vinegar based sauce with picked onions)

I am a shishamo fried. These fishies are so delicious! 

Dish 5: Soft Shell Shrimp Tempura with Fried String Beans and Gobo

I always get this when we come to Kyo Ya. It's super delicious and never disappoints.

Dish 6:  A Gift from Chef Sono

I don't know if it was because it was my birthday or because we are loyal customers, but Chef Sono treated us to an extra dish. He grilled some monkfish, sauteed some broccoli rabe that is topped with a mustard sauce, placed some daikon kinpira on the plate, as well as my favorite, "yamamomo" --- which is a sweet berry. Everything was exquisite! 

Dish 7: Chawanmushi

(steamed savory egg custard)

This is a Japanese staple and for me comfort food. This chawanmushi had crab, mushrooms, ginkgo, and spinach, but you can pretty much put anything in chawanmushi. This is one of my absolute favorite Japanese dishes! My mom makes it at home and I go crazy for it! Like a cat goes crazy for cat nip!  

Dish 8: Seasonal Tempura

This was recommended to us by one of the hostesses. The tempura included: shrimp, kabocha, bamboo shoots, fiddleheads, beans, asparagus, and a mustard plant of sorts. It was very very tasty. God I love tempura! 

Dish 9: Gindara Nitsuke

(black cod simmered in a sweet soy sauce)

This is an absolute Japanese classic and my dad's favorite. You may be thinking, "Sweet soy sauce? Gross!", but trust me, it's really tasty. The fish was served with simmered taro and gobo (burdock). 

Dish 10: Kurobuta Kakuni

(simmered pork belly)

Gosh, this is such a guilty pleasure of mine. I know it's not healthy, but it is so decadent and delicious. The meat is so beautifully prepared and it is so soft, it falls apart in your mouth. I am salivating just thinking about this. 

Dish 11: Kamadaki Gohan with Salted & Grilled Salmon, Peas, Seasoned Ikura, and Nori

This is the last dish of the meal. In Japan, meals customarily end with rice and miso soup. Now, kamadaki rice is sort of unique because it isn't made in a rice cooker. The rice is cooked in this special clay pot, which means it takes a while. When ordering one of these, you have to order at the start of the meal, to allow for at least 45 min! Every time we go to Kyo Ya, there are new "flavors", all of which depend upon what is available seasonally. Personally, I think this was one of the best kamadaki gohan's I've ever eaten there. 

YUM~~~!!! Heaven. I order red miso soup. 

Dish 11: Kuro Mame An Mitsu

(sweet black beans, mochi, agar cubes, vanilla ice cream, molasses sauce)

This is my favorite dessert at Kyo Ya and probably in Japan. I get it every single time we eat here. This time, the staff made it extra special with candles and they all sang "Happy Birthday." It was really sweet of them!

Dish 12: Another Gift From Chef Sono

The night ended with one last treat from Chef Sono. House made grapefruit sorbet with a piece of candied grapefruit peel, sprinkled with earl grey tea. This was so refreshing. Perfect way to end the meal! 

I feel like superb is an understatement for my birthday dinner. Kyo Ya never fails to impress me. Chef Sono really is a master of his craft. In fact, I'd go as far as to say that HE is truly one of the pioneers of bringing true Japanese cooking to Manhattan. Over the many years we have been frequenting Kyo Ya, we have seen many of Chef Sono's sous chefs come and go, but then when we visit other Japanese restaurants, we usually find them there! In fact, that happened to us on my birthday, but it was a chef that we like from "Brushstroke" who was in fact working with Chef Sono. Wow! I have to say, the man is a culinary genius who attracts the attention and respect of other Japanese chefs working in Manhattan. I look forward to my next visit to Kyo Ya!

The next morning, I enjoyed a post-birthday breakfast with my parents. This is where all of the Zabar's goodies come out. Muhahahaha! So, on Saturday, I indulged my Japanese half and on Sunday, I indulged my Jewish side.

Bagel with cream cheese and... lox, whitefish, and salmon caviar. 

Decadent and delicious!

I also wanted to share this AMAZING birthday card that M made for me. We both love the Spice Girls and we are both obsessed with "Spice World." We chat every day and I would easily say that every other day, the Spice Girls come up. Knowing our love, M definitely made me one of the best birthday cards I have ever received! I love it so much, it's tape to my "academic wall", in front of my desk, so I can stare at it always.

Simply amazing

my "academic wall"