reinventing "dinner and a show": SMOKE jazz & supper club-lounge

recently, i surprised boyfriend with a trip to into new york city to dine at SMOKE jazz & supper club-lounge located on the upper west side on the edge of Harlem. and what a surprise it was!

first, after half-heartedly deciding to drive, we ended up stuck in bumper to bumper traffic on NY-100S/N Central Ave ... forcing us - out of nervousness -  to call and push back our 9:15pm reservation to 9:30pm. when we finally broke through the traffic jam, the minutes ticked closer and closer to our reservation. we parked in a garage a few blocks away and ran up to SMOKE's door located at 2751 Broadway at 9:40pm. i held my breath, nervous we were too late, luckily there was one table left, just for us. we entered into an intimate space holding no more than twenty tables + a bar and most importantly, a stage. we took our seats, just one table away from the stage, snugly between two other couples.

photo credit: robyn lee. via: serious eats

as we sat i was taken back when i realized two things:

1. 30dollar cover charge (per person) on friday nights
2. menu is a la carte ... no 29.95 two-course prix fixe available 

i had decided on SMOKE for a number of reasons, first and foremost, because i knew it would be a really awesome experience for my boyfriend who loves jazz AND food. it was a mere bonus to see on their website that there was a prix fixe option. however, because i made the reservation online through opentable, rather than doing more research on SMOKE's website, i was unaware of the extra charges. regardless. this was his birthday present and it was going to be fun ... and delicious! and sure enough it was. 

our food: 

• appetizer - wild mushroom ravioli: honshemiji mushroom sauce, red baby mustard greens, reggiano parmesan 
• my dinner - black truffle coq au vin: braised chicken in red wine, black truffle oil, pancetta, mushrooms, diced carrots, pearl onions and yukon gold mashed potatoes
• his dinner - braised baby back ribs: chipotle barbecue sauce, bacon braised collard greens and apple cider baked beans
• dessert - apple tarte with brown butter ice cream 
• + drinks: wine and dessert wine

(... i'll let you calculate how much that cost!)

everything. was. delicious. the wild mushroom ravioli was absolutely incredible. the pasta was definitely homemade which made it even better. the ingredients were fresh and earthy. and i couldn't believe how delicate my chicken was, it practically melted off the bone. i had just a taste of boyfriend's collard greens, which i've never had before and will certainly have to try again! 

our food far surpassed any expectation but what really made the night was the show. we were able to see two of the three sets played by one for all, featuring trumpet player jeremy pelt. and amongst the crowd rose legendary jazz pianist harold mabern! having never really experience a live jazz performance i was pleasantly surprised. the songs were full of life and completely changed my perspective on the idea of "dinner and a show." the performances made the night worth every penny ... that and seeing my boyfriend so happy! 

all-in-all though, would not suggest this place if you're on a budget, unless you come during the week. the menu is delicious and all items are featured options on the prix fixe menu instead of paying a la carte.  and most weekday nights do not have a cover charge. 

upscale bleu cheese juicy lucy recipe

not your run-of-the-mill kind of burger.

after first seeing a juicy lucy on an episode of man v. food awhile ago, we knew it was something we wanted to try. vegetarians, this one is NOT for you. 

ingredients: for the patty 

• ground beef (we usually use 85/15 but for this burger we used 87/13 sirloin - it was on sale)
• worcestershire sauce
• soy sauce
• finely crushed garlic
• black pepper

for the stuffing 

• crumbled bleu cheese
• onions
• salt + black pepper

et cetera 

• sweet rolls
• mixed greens
• onion
• tomato

this recipe was created and executed by boyfriend. originally posted here. 

to make the patties: mix the beef, garlic, soy sauce, worcestershire sauce and black pepper together in a bowl making sure all the ingredients are thoroughly incorporated. cover the mixture with plastic wrap and let sit in the refrigerator for at least thirty-minutes. 

while you wait ... make the filling: slowly caramelize the onions, making sure they are dark brown in color. while the onion are still hot, combine with crumbled bleu cheese in a bowl. this will form an onion infused bleu cheese paste. 

to make the burgers: form two patties and place a good amount of filling in the center of one. sandwich the filling between the patties ... fold and pinch the edges to ensure the filling will not leak out while cooking. 

we cook everything either stovetop or in the oven. the joys of apartment living. anyways, to cook the burgers in a pan, first sear the exterior at a relatively high temperature, then turn the heat down to medium low. cover the pan with a lid to steam the burger. let the patties rest for five minutes. while the burgers rest, toast the sweet rolls in the residual burger fat. 

we topped the rolls with the burger, mixed greens, tomato, raw onion and ketchup. 

the flavors were delicious! ... the original juicy lucy features a patty stuffed with american cheese. by substituting in bleu cheese and using a sweet roll there was a balance between sharp and sweet.  

an introduction

i am passionate about a number of things; one of which is food. i am a self-proclaimed foodie* ... on a budget. having officially left the nest over a year ago now, it was a goal of ours (meaning my boyfriend and i) to not revert to the typical collegiate diet of cereal, ramen noodles and easy mac. this blog is a way to keep record of some of our (almost always) easy-to-make culinary creations in addition to reviewing restaurants and other food-related topics.

*foodie: \ˈfüd + ē\ n. slang. persons having avid interest in the latest food trends.