A Valentine from Gregory Mowery
Gregory Mowery is a book publicist with a specialty in cookbooks. He has worked with some of the legendary cookbook writers and cookbook brands in the business including Jacques Pepin, Maida Heatter, Paul Prudhomme, Martin Yan, Pierre Franey, Deborah Madison, etc. On his nicely illustrated and well-written blog, Leaving New York he writes, “I entertain and cook for friends, family and colleagues often. I’m opinionated and passionate about cookbooks, food memoirs, wine and spirit guides and read them like novels.”
Given all of the above, we’re especially pleased to find that Greg dined with us on Valentines Day and had a fantastic time of it. Here’s an excerpt from his post on his experience at Nel Centro. A link to the full article follows.
“We had a cocktail at the bar and I loved my vodka Gimlet with its fresh zing of limejuice. The large space with its hard surfaces is surprisingly un-noisy. We scored a large and comfortable booth that could easily sit six, and finished our cocktails while we studied the menu. Jean-Francois asked me to find a red wine. I settled on several choices, and our waitress helped me zero in on a Mocali Rosso di Montalcino. This 2007 vintage was a delicious medium-bodied red and would prove to be an excellent accompaniment to our entrees. It was surprising how fast we made our choices. I wanted the salad of winter chicories, Gorgonzola, applies and candied walnuts to start. Jean-Francois settled on the country pate/chicken liver mousse and duck rillettes plate with mustard and cornichons, while Jay opted for the excellent and tender fried calamari with red pepper rouille and sauce Gribiche.”
“These calamari just melt on the tongue and the fine red pepper rouille was enhanced by an aromatic dash of smoked paprika picante. I generally prefer to start a meal with a salad, and the chicories married well with the Gorgonzola and a creamy dressing. The apples and candied walnuts added more structure to the salad. I had a smear of the chicken liver mousse and the duck rillettes, and both were excellent.”
“Never intrusive, our waitress checked on us periodically, asking our opinions and what aspects we liked about our plates. I enjoyed her culinary knowledge, which was delivered with a light touch and without a trace of foodie superiority. This lady clearly enjoys her work.”
Greg closes his post with this. “Nel Centro proved to be the right restaurant. I’ll be back!” Thank you Greg! We’re looking forward to your next visit. Read the whole post here>>.
