I know I have been absolutely terrible at keeping up on my blog over the past two weeks and I apologize.  Let’s just say that I’ve been working on some pretty amazing things (most of which I have to keep under wraps) but in a sense they are legendary and world changing.  Seriously, I need to write a book.

That being said, in the past two weeks I have been working a lot, playing a little and seeing a bunch of films – either iconic classics because of how great they are or how absolutely horrific that they are.  London is a film based culture – I would argue even moreso than LA.  Yes, I realize what I just typed.  While the West End theatre gets a bunch of the credit for being artistic and cutting edge, the film scene is even a bit livelier and definitely more focused on history and quality.  This does translate into movie channels on Sky and Virgin Cable that are absolutely focused on classic films, in their entirety and in a lot of cases either uncut or restored to the original director’s cut.  For example, last week on Sky Classics, the following movies were on: To Sir With Love, Paint Your Wagon, My Fair Lady, Twelve Angry Men, Rebel Without a Cause, The Bridges at Toko-Ri, A Star is Born (1954) and Network.  I’d like to say there is a common theme here, but, it escapes me. Other than the fact that these are all classics and were Academy Award or BAFTA winners in their own right.

On another channel, there was a Steve McQueen marathon, and not just The Thomas Crown Affair, Bullitt and The Magnificent Seven.  The sublime (and subversive) Love With the Proper Stranger with Natalie Wood was on.  To see the range of his acting across all of those films shows what a consummate professional that he was, and why many people found him ruggedly sexy.  In the States, TCM is the only channel that seems to be really consistent with having this type of historical film context and it doesnt shy away from the lesser known films that made actors who they are.  It certainly isn’t without consequence, but, there ends up being more of a focus on the historical context of the film industry here in England than in the US.  I love it.

Which brings me to the British Film Institue – the significant center of the film scene here in London.  They have a couple screens throughout the city, but, the big center is at Southbank, the combination of theatres, the London Eye, Art Galleries, the Tate Modern, chain restaurants, graffiti and skateboarders that give a whole new meaning to modern consumption and angst.  The BFI is in the center of that location, and holds four screens. They are HARDCORE about film.  Right now on their screens is a special showing of Stage Door – with Katherine Hepburn, Ginger Rogers, Ann Miller (at 14!), Lucille Ball, and Eve Arden. This film would be classic enough in it’s own right there, until you think about the fact that it was 1937 and set the latter three onto the path of musicals and comedy in the future.  Without Stage Door, there wouldn’t have been I Love Lucy, Our Miss Brooks or any of the dancing talent that Ann Miller showed in the 40’s and 50’s.

Also at the BFI is Les Diaboliques, a French classic and probably one of my top five films of all time.  Simone Signoret is brilliant in this Hitchcock paced story about a wife and mistress of a lothario who plan to murder him.  Seeing this on the big screen is completely on my agenda for Sunday and I cannot wait.  Things to note about the BFI – Don’t arrive late.  You will not be seated.  Don’t think you will be able to get up in the midst of the movie.  You will not get back in.  There is also no popcorn, junior mints or 96oz sodas.  This is film appreciation at its most highbrow. Also, dress well.  You may be in there with MP’s, bankers, Professors or royals.  Stranger things have happened.

Work has been unbelievably busy during the same week that my stuff arrived in it’s ship container from the US. (note to other expats – don’t let the people packing your stuff pack toilet bowl cleaner in with your colored towels. They turn orange.)

I promise that this week will include a couple lovely posts about Hyde Park, Film in London, The Imperial War Museum and something snarky that I certainly haven’t thought of yet. Pip pip.

http://blogs.forbes.com/erikkain/2011/03/11/michigan-governor-plays-fast-and-loose-with-democracy-invokes-radical-new-powers/

Rachel Maddow is known as a very liberal pundit, but, Forbes is about as Republican as Goldwater and Reagan. This approaches on fascism in my home state.

Only two months in and I’m writing a blog about a British tradition.  Sunday Roast is a culinary institution here in the UK, usually served at lunch with roast beast, vegetables, different types of potatoes and in the case of roast beef – Yorkshire pudding.  This is a meal on which I was raised. My Memaw (maternal grandmother) made this all the time, as my maternal grandfather loved this tradtional British meal.  I vividly remember her creamy mashed potatoes, savory roasted potatoes tossed in beef dripping, airy Yorkshire pudding, the vegetables that I never ate, and the pungent horseradish that was served along side. I can almost taste the combination of the horseradish, beef gravy, roast sirloin and mashed potatoes if I think about it for a minute.

It also happens to be one of my favorite meals to cook for a group of friends.  There’s nothing more satisfying than this type of meal, whether it is a roast chicken served with potatoes Dauphinoise and Petit Pois cooked with shallots and chicken stock, or roast turkey, Thanksgiving style – with homemade cornbread stuffing and glazed carrots, or even roast lamb, which I never do, but it tastes great nonetheless. In fact, the best meal I have ever cooked was Roast Tenderloin with mashed Yukon Golds, caramelized onion gravy, glazed carrots and Yorkshire pudding, with a homemade blueberry buckle for dessert for my friend Rachel’s going away party in 2008.  The meal was sublime, due to the company, the food and the overall goodwill.

That goodwill is the spirit of Sunday Roast here in the UK.  Hence, why it is served in almost every pub here in London.  Believe me, you will see all makes and models of the Sunday roast meal from the downscale £5 meal to a £50 full on meat fest at other locations. I have eaten Sunday roast at four places and each of them has their own “joie de vivre”.

First there is my local pub, the Victoria, aptly named after the Queen who was reigning when the pub opened in the late 1800’s.  It is a small pub, with a large bar and about seven tables on the ground floor and two chatting rooms on the first floor, one with wing chairs and a fireplace called the Library.  It is exactly what you think about when you think historic English pub.  They have a great pub quiz on Tuesday nights and they serve Crabbie’s alcoholic Ginger Beer, which may turn me into a raging alcoholic, if I have too many. Their Sunday roast is pretty basic, but absolutely still homemade.  You get your choice of Roast Beef with Gravy and Yorkshire pudding or Roast Pork with spiced applesauce and sage stuffing or a veggie roast for which I have no need.  All of these are served with roast potatoes, a few haricots verts, roasted root vegetables, glazed carrots and a couple broccoli florets.  The thing about Sunday roast is that while the meat is the shining star, the vegetables are a supporting cast worthy of Agatha Christie’s Murder on the Orient Express.  At the Victoria, the meat is roast Sirloin, sliced very, very thin, and the vegetables are all fresh, cooked just right, with a thyme beef gravy slathered on the plate.  It is simply lovely, and a good value for £8.00.

Next up is actually the second place that I had Sunday Roast here in London.  My friend, Jeff, who is also another American expat, working here in the banking industry. We decided to meet up at a place that was very near my corporate apartment in Notting Hill, the overpriced, trendy neighborhood that was pretty sketchy prior to the Hugh Grant/Julia Roberts film of the same name.  We met at the Notting Hill Brasserie, an amazing local restaurant in a row of immaculately restored Edwardian townhomes about four blocks from the main commercial of Notting Hill.  This is not a restaurant you would find by accident, as they state on their website.  But, it is definitely one that you will return to again and again due to their succulent meats and spectacularly prepared sides.  You choose from Roast Prime Rib of British Grass Fed beef or Roast Rump of Elwy Valley lamb, services with green beans, glazed carrots, celeriac puree, roast potatoes and Yorkshire pudding.  The meat is absolutely divine, better than any prime rib that I have ever had before – (and I managed a steakhouse where prime rib was our specialty.) – in a relaxed setting with pure white tablecloths, a fantastic bottle of Argentine Malbec and a Dinah Washington soundalike, singing jazz standards in the main room.  Dessert was a chocolate fondant, a molten flourless cake made with bittersweet dark chocolate, a tinge of orange zest and a small scoop of vanilla bean gelato.  I think I died and went to heaven with that stroke of brilliance. One thing that also struck me was that this place was a cocktail haven.  The bartender makes his own bitters, and classic cocktails like the Sidecar, Pink Lady and the French 75 actually are made and drank here.  I will definitely go back when I have an extra £50 to spend.

Last but not least is my favorite of the three – Roast, in Borough Market.  My friend Aishling and I had an outing last Sunday that included the Tate Modern, the Imperial War Museum and Sunday lunch at Roast.  More on the two museums later, but, our meal at Roast was truly sublime.  By the time that we arrived there, we both could have eaten a whole side of beef after walking all over South London and viewing great art and military might.  Roast is in Borough Market, in Southwark by London Bridge Tube and Rail stations.  Borough Market is a working wholesale and retail food market that makes Pike Place market in Seattle or Eastern Market in Detroit look like your local A&P.  It is absolutely abuzz during the week as the creme de la creme of London restaurateurs procure their organic produce, grass fed beef, and locally fished wild seafood to serve at the Michelin starred restaurants around the city.  It has a smell and feel unlike any other, and is thankfully closed on Sundays. We arrived there at 3pm for our reservation to this open dining room with 12 foot ceilings and pane glass windows overlooking the market and the street outside.  Roast has a deal – 2 courses for £24, 3 courses for £30.  Our choices of mains were Roasted Prime Rib of Organic British Beef, Pork Belly with Bramley Applesauce, Roast Lamb with fresh mint jelly, and Roast Chicken with forty cloves of garlic. I went for the beef because I am predictable, Aishling went for the pork belly because pork is God’s food.  The beef was absolutely perfect, served with fresh horseradish sauce and English mustard, looking like a fried egg on the side of the plate, and sides galore – braised Swiss Chard, roasted potatoes, roasted parsnips and haricots verts.  There were enough vegetables to feed an army.  We were that army, and we ate them all.  Then, there was the dessert.  I had a Lemon Pot de Creme with a vanilla biscuit, that was decadent and crisp at the same time, and Aishling had the Apple crumble with steamed custard – a traditional finish to a regally British dish.

As soon as I have my kitchen utensils, I will make this at home, as the leftovers lead into other meals for the rest of the week.  Bubble and Squeak anyone?

Susan, who is basically like my aunt or a second mother to me, asked me the other day what I miss from the US and I gave her a couple answers.  Her response was “I should know better than to expect a serious answer from to any question that I may ask.” Now, some of these things may sound like I am being a little flip or sarcastic.  But, I’m (mostly) not.  So, in no particular order….

Tumble Dryers – This has to be the biggest thingk that I took for granted when living in the States.  Due to space considerations and the lack of ventilation for dryer vents make it pretty much impossible to find a rental unit with a real, gas or electric heated, forced air tumble dryer.  Instead, I have a combination washer/dryer, which cleans the clothes very well.  However, it basically boils the water out of the clothes when you use the dryer.  They are unpredictable and most of my clothes do not end up dry and they take forever to get basically hot and wet.  Not that air drying clothes is bad.  It is not.  However, towels feel like loofas when they are air dried.  Ugh.

Downy Fabric Softener – Staying in the laundry based theme, the fabric softeners here in the UK absolutely blow.  Downy works, and isn’t overwhelming in the fragrance department, especially when clothes are actually dried in the tumble dryer.  I never thought that these would be the two things I would miss first. If there happens to be a fabric softener that works well here in the UK, I would love to know what it is. 

Soup – Yes, I know that there is soup over here.  However, almost every soup is a puree or a broth.  There is nothing like a bowl of chicken noodle soup with chunky pieces of chicken, large vegetables and egg noodles when you are not feeling well and it is IMPOSSIBLE to find here.  You actually have to look for Cock-a-leekie, a Scottish noodle soup to get something similar.  I went out for Pho, a Vietnamese noodle soup which is amazing in Seattle due to the large Vietnamese population.  It is not nearly as good or authentic here, but, at least it was broth, chicken, noodles and vegetables. 

Mexican food – The first restaurant that I will go to when I go back to Detroit is my friend, Jeanette’s restaurant – El Rancho.  I would give my left arm right now for Enchiladas Suizas, with that that spicy sweet tomatillo sauce, sour cream and seasoned chicken.  Mexican food is few and far between here.  Wachaca is the best that there is in town so far, but, they do mostly tacos and street food. 

Macaroni and Cheese – Yes, I know I can make it myself.  Yes, I also know that some recipes that I have will blow Kraft or Stouffer’s out of the water.  But, macaroni cheese here does not even approach the same level of creamy cheddar cheese sauce (even if it’s the bright orange Kraft Dinner kind).  I will definitely make some of this when I finally have all of my kitchen accoutrements. 

Sourdough bread – This is ubiquitous on the West Coast of the US, and great sourdough bread is almost everywhere in Seattle.  It happens to be my second favorite bread (right after Zingerman’s Jewish Rye from Ann Arbor), but, it is the bread I would eat most consistently.

Sirius Satellite Radio – I never thought I would write this five years ago, but I absolutely miss Howard Stern, the Broadway channel, Sirius First Wave and the Spectrum.  Sirius has revolutionized radio entertainment in the US, and while I do not think it would be successful here in the UK, the quality of programming on Sirius is quite enjoyable. 

Country music – I am actually a hillbilly in my core – my Memaw would be proud.  But, while classic country music – Dolly Parton, Johnny Cash, Loretta Lynn, Tammy Wynette – is very in and hip here, you will hardly ever hear Garth Brooks, Martina McBride, Carrie Underwood and Lady Antebellum.  There is more to Country Music than Jolene.

Target – I am absolutely amazed that Target has not tried to enter the UK market.  With their focus on affordable luxury and the convenience that they have, it would be a good fit for the suburban or even city center buyers.  Maybe in a few years.  Best Buy is here, even though I think they probably shouldn’t be.

Multipack Chicken Breasts from Costco – Let me be clear – I do not miss Costco as a whole.  The large sized orgy of people searching for a bargain by buying a gallon of ketchup in a three pack is more than overwhelming.  Being caught in a Costco line is one of my worst nightmares.  However, the one thing that they have that I love is the 12 pack of chicken breasts, which, is bliss when I eat in a healthy manner.  I eat a lot of chicken when I cook at home, it is relatively cheap and versatile.  I prefer to only have red meat as a special occasion and those packs of chicken were very handy. 

Now, the two things I absolutely do not miss –

American news coverage – The overall hype of American news focusing on non-issues as opposed to issues that the country is actually facing is abysmal.  If I never heard anything about Sarah Palin, Glenn Beck, Rush Limbaugh, Ann Coulter, Barack Obama, Joe Biden, Katie Couric, et. al. it would be too soon.  Even if it is less dramatic, the coverage from Sky and the BBC is a bit more balanced and more focused on the overall world picture as opposed to what Palin said about Obama today. I occasionally go look at my former local paper to get updates on the state and local picture, but, not the National stuff.  They’re all assholes. 

And last but not least – Free refills of soda – I think free refills of soda at restaurants is one of the main reasons that the United States is the fattest country in the world.  Portion sizes and a never ending stream of carbonated, high fructose corn syrup is what is killing the nation that I love.  I was guilty of drinking them myself – once, I drank eight large Cokes in one sitting.  I am surprised I did not enter a diabetic coma. But, that is one of the things that helped me get fat.  It is a good thing for everyone here that free refills do not exist. 

Back to the grind….

This is an example of something that would only happen here in the UK.

http://news.uk.msn.com/uk/articles.aspx?cp-documentid=156394227

Defendant ‘rugby-tackled by judge’

Dan is one of the smartest people I know – undergrad at Columbia, with a year at Cambridge, followed by law school at Columbia.  He, like me, has an almost obsessive knowledge of popular culture; however, he’s one of the only people that I think could actually put me to shame in an entertainment showdown of trivia.  He’s the biggest Ke$ha fan that I know, and knows the whole Rihanna catalogue.  He comes here to London to visit friends quite a bit, and I was happy to spend the day with him when he was here this past weekend. We met that morning at Kings Cross station to take the non-stop train to Cambridge for the day.

The day was gorgeous, completely clear and relatively warm for this time of year.  We rode 45 minutes through the English countryside and walked around most of the day, heading back to London around 5pm for a few pints and dinner.  Cambridge is really a magical place, almost an academic Disneyland, with significant Gothic architecture, in a town center that is managable in a day.  The University of Cambridge is a collection of colleges.  Names like Bacon, Darwin, Newton, Crick and Watson, and Cavendish are all alumni and are responsible for many of the major scientific discoveries of all time. Being around this sense of history of pedagogy and learning gives me an overwhelming and humbling sense of greatness.

The architecture is purely brilliant, and untouched by any of the WWII bombing that occured in other cities throughouhere are many bridges over the river Cam, many of which are historically significant and date from prior to the 15th century.  The town center reminds me of a medevial Ann Arbor or Palo Alto, college buildings sharing the same space with old buildings holding a McDonald’s or a mobile phone store.  However, unlike the South University corridor in Ann Arbor, there is almost always a building that is architecturally significant, and the senses of history and religion are at every step.  I had forgotten how much the Church of England and the Catholic Church before the early 16th century have had on the physical and spiritual influence of Great Britain.  That being said, my tour of the university with Dan was very special.  Being an alumni, Dan has access to parts of the campus that visitors do not.  And, getting to see the inner Tudor buildings of Queen’s College along with the the Mathematical Bridge, and the bucolic gardens absolutely made my day.

We had lunch at the Cambridge Chop House, a gastropub with homemade ales -(I know, again with the beer) – and roast of the day.  This place is fantastic, with all local and organic foods, in a very light filled room on the corner of the King’s Parade, followed by coffee at a nice little café nearby.  I do not feel like I had nearly enough time in the town and could easily spend a weekend there.  Or a month, or enough time for a Doctorate.

Ok, in honor of the David Letterman show (which I do not miss – but I do miss Craig Ferguson), I have a top ten list of things that I have discovered and loved since I moved here to London.

1. Effective and efficient home delivery – while I may bitch and moan about customer service inside specific businesses like banks or utilities, the one thing that has been consistent has been delivery of goods to one’s home.  Specifically, I have waxed poetic about John Lewis in a previous post, however, the grocery companies have been great as well – specifically Sainsbury’s and Waitrose.  With Sainsbury’s, it costs 5.95GBP to have whatever groceries you want delivered to your home either same day or next day based on when you order them online.  In the three times that I have used them, they have been on time, friendly and practically put my groceries away for me.  Waitrose delivers for free if you spend more than 50GBP, or you can even shop for yourself and have them deliver same day by telling them at checkout for less than a pint of beer at your local pub.

2. Train Station Grab and Go food – As part of my weight loss program that I was going through last year, the biggest thing that my dietitian said was to eat a solid breakfast as well as eat up to five or six meals a day.  While I have not totally been as healthy as I probably should have, I now eat breakfast everyday.  As I walk the half mile from my flat to Paddington Station in the morning, I have a plethora of choices.  Eat – with their Simply Ham and Cheese on foccacia, Upper Crust with their wonderful Wiltshire Ham and Mature Cheddar on freshly baked baguette, the Bagel Factory where I can roll my own bagel or the two American standards: Burger King and McDonalds, with traditional English breakfast sandwiches as opposed to a Bacon Egg and Cheese biscuit.  No reason not to eat a healthy, or not so healthy breakfast.

3. Same day, discounted tickets for West End first rate shows.  I have only done this once – for the Children’s Hour with Keira Knightley, Ellen Burstyn and Elisabeth Moss.  However, if you go any day during the week after 3pm, any of the first run shows will have tickets that have just opened up.  And, they will still be even 50% cheaper than the TKTS booths in Leicester Square and Piccadilly Circus.

4. Secret squares and parks in unexpected places – Yep, they’re everywhere, including 120 feet from my flat.  The boulevard Sussex Gardens is actually named after a small Victorian park called Sussex Gardens close to my house.  Granted, it is in the middle of some busy streets, but, still.  It’s a floral wonderland in the middle of some major chaos.  And, these squares, terraces, closes and circuses are everywhere.  Most of them have public spaces in the middle of them.  Check them out.

5. Aesop skin products – Yes, I know they are Australian. And yes, I know they are relatively expensive.  For the past five years, I was a diehard Kiehl’s user.  As any gay will tell you, moisturiser is the key to eternal youth.  And the last year, Kiehl’s just wasn’t working for me anymore.  Enter Liberty’s men’s department.  Liberty is a 150 year old department store, close to Carnaby Street, but, on the cutting edge of service and fashion since the 1960’s – Twiggy came from here.  Yeah, I know. Anyway, John from the Aesop counter helped me in finding product that will help my psychosomatic skin in cleanliness and moisture.  He was patient, kind and instructive in multiple ways.  And, in the process saved me about 50% compared to if I would have bought everything on it’s own. Men, the Neroli Shave Oil is heavenly.  Women, the Fabulous skin cleanser is perfect for combination skin.  Get some trials if you can, which they will give generously at Liberty.

6. Wagamama – Alright, I know it’s a chain.  But, and I will stick by this, it is a traditional Japanese ramen house.  Sit down at a communal table, order noodles to your specification from the twenty different options on the menu, add some pork gyoza (because they are amazing, and yes, pork is God’s food) and a small sake, and you will have a beautiful dinner.  Yes, it’s a little sanitized compared to the Pho places of Seattle, or the noodle joints of Singapore, but if you’re craving a relatively traditional Asian fix, hit here before they get busy.  Multiple locations around London.

7. London Transport Museum – No, this isn’t just the transit geek in me talking.  London (and NYC and Budapest, of all places) were on the cutting edge of mass transit in the 1830’s.  This museum takes you from Hackney Carriages to Buses to steam trains to the tube and National Rail in a former Tube depot in Covent Garden.  The history is immense, the impact of what these engineers dreamed is absolutely staggering, given the time that they developed most of the lines and capacity.  I will go back again and again.

8. Beer of all shapes and sizes – Alright, I will say it out loud.  Beer is cheaper than water here in London.  Yes. It’s true – comparitively a litre of water is 1.99GBP, a litre of Stella Artois is 1.80GBP.  Right.  So, the national drink is beer.  And you have choices of hand pumped ale at almost every local pub, commercial pints, like Stella or Carling and bottled beers.  All of these taps include some sort of cider, and most bottles include an alcoholic ginger beer – which if made into a Moscow Mule would kill me, as I love anything ginger, and spiked with vodka, I would be a two drink date. Try all of them.  Starting with the warm, handpumped ales.

9. Repeated first run TV – You can almost always find a rerun of first run television shows – not the least of which is Secret Life of a Call Girl.  Yes, a guilty pleasure with Billie Piper and lots of boobs. I loved it on Showtime in the US and here it runs on ITV, where it’s practically Freeview.  Even though I have Sky, I can watch SLOACG 4 times a week without DVR.  Also, Glee or Grey’s Anatomy or Modern Family come on three times a week, even though it’s four weeks behind the US.

10. Free museums in London – there are ten free museums in London, unless you want to see a special exhibition.  Anytime you want, you can go to see exhibitions from the British Museum and the Museum of London and others with out any cost.  Check out this link for more.

I was raised on Italian-American food.  For as long as I can remember, Peppina’s, Frankie’s and Clemente’s were all part of the “out-to-eat”oeuvre of my parents and grandparents.  Frankie’s in Ecorse, MI was for pizza after hockey games or when my grandfather wanted pizza.  Clemente’s was for spaghetti with meat sauce or ravioli.  And, my favorite of them all and the closest to my house was Peppina’s – for chicken soup with home made egg noodles, veal parmigiana, and pizza with a cornmeal crust, real mozzarella and spicy little pepperoni.  Rome was my first international trip that I ever took and I fell in love with the idea of expatriate life when my sister lived in Rome for a year.  So, it is a bit ironic, or serendipitous that my first friend that I made here in London is Italian.

My friend Mario knows how to eat, which is strange because he’s 5’7″of pure unadulterated muscle.  He’s my age and from Southern Italy and made me homemade penne carbonara the first time I came to visit him.  It was pure unadulterated food bliss.  Toothy pasta, the combination of bacon, egg, cheese and a little olive oil is one of God’s chosen foods.  He writes a blog, of which I follow religiously and has a wicked sense of humor, which I share and find myself laughing out loud at inopportune and inappropriate times.  I’m so glad to know him.

Not the least of which is because he took me to two places that were fantastic – and both Italian.  We met for pizza one night at Pulcinella in Soho.  Soho is not really known for culinary genius, but there are a few places that you can find that will knock your socks off.  Pulcinella is one of those.  Homemade buffalo mozzarella, and hand tossed pizzas that are inexpensive, tasty and totally authentic.  Mario’s first words to me in the restaurant were “Don’t order pasta in places like this, they cook it ahead of time and reheat. If you’re going to eat pasta, eat it at home.” He’s absolutely right, most kitchens in London do not have the space to cook pasta to order, even if it is homemade.

The pizza was absolutely perfect, crisp 10″crust, just brown enough around the edges to get some tooth, melted creamy cheese and spicy peppered salami, all together on my plate.  I took my first bite using knife and fork, and was quickly admonished and shown how to eat a personal pizza (note to self and others – cut a triangular piece, like a pie. fold, eat).  This was after Mario’s shock at a person from another table ordered the Hawaiian pizza, he said, “Fruit on pizza, my grandmother would pass out.”

We eavesdropped on the conversation at the next table, which was an awkward double date.  The members of each of the couples were making general conversation about nothing of importance, while seeming completely uncomfortable with the whole evening.  It made us really uncomfortable, because it seemed like each of them were talking and no one was listening to each other.  It was more of a list of non-sequitirs than a conversation. We left and then Mario took me to nirvana: Princi, an Italian bakery/delicatessen/hot table restaurant.

Princi is ALWAYS packed, there are a bunch of tables, and a bar area around the restaurant.  It’s huge, given Soho restaurant size standards with fresh baked breads, pastries, flat bread pizzas, salads and hot items.  What absolutely sent me over the edge were the cannoli.  Now, I have loved cannoli since I was a child.  The old Italian ladies would make them from scratch at Peppina’s.  And, what’s not to like?  A baked pastry tube filled with marscapone cheese, chocolate shavings, a little flavoring and sugar with coatings on the ends to make them even better.  Peppina’s used to have pistachios on the ends (which I hated and would scrape off), but Princi has something blissful: candied orange peel.

It was like heaven on a plate.  If I lived closer, I would have one every day.  The crisp pastry melts in your mouth, and then the creamy marscapone with the dark chocolate coats your mouth as you bite into the bracingly  tart orange peel which counteracts the richness and sweetness of the filling.  As Mario says, “you should definitely get one to go, but it probably won’t make it home.” He’s right.  I would devour it on the sidewalk without even a blink.

Visit both of these places if you make it to Soho.