I went to a Bat Mitzvah today. It was quite fun. The ceremony was very intersting. This was my first Bat Mitzvah so I was very excited. I have a lot more to go to this year. After the ceremony, we (my classmates, and my friend's family/family friends) had a lunch at the Russian Tea Room. Let's just say that they are not the most vegetarian-friendly people. Because it is the weekend, I can eat dairy so I had some dairy there. It was either eat dairy or look depressed and eat nothing. They had a roll, which was surprisingly good for a ball of bread. It almost melted in my mouth. Then they came with the options for the meal. There were three; a chicken dish (I believe by checking their menu that it was "Chicken Keiv",) a Sea Bass dish (which was the "Market fish" on their menu,) and cheese ravioli with marinara sauce ("Vareniki" on their menu.) I was too scared to try the vareniki because I was worried that the cheese had rennet. Surprisingly, three of the seven at our table were vegetarians and one had meat restrictions (Muslim.) I am fairly sure that all three of us were the only vegetarians in a room of about ninety people. I thought that I would not eat anything. To my surprise, they gave us an appetizer. My friend asked the waiter what was in it and he said it was a blintz with cheese and mushrooms with a salad on the side. I found out that it was called "Goat Cheese and Wild Mushroom Blinchik" and was described as "Crepe filled with mixed mushrooms, melted onions, and lingonberries." I thought,
oh no, cheese, mushrooms and salad dressing, just what I love. If you did not realize, I was being sarcastic. I cannot say how much I hate vinegar and mushrooms. The two on a plate together was disgusting. I just don't eat cheese in general. I asked the waiter whether there was any fish in the salad and he said no. I did something I had never done before; eat salad with salad dressing. Result: Never again. I knew I hated vinegar so why did I try it? On the bright side the cherry tomatoes in the salad were very fresh and sweet. I went on to the blintz/crepe. I saw other people eating it and saw chopped mushrooms. Something was wrong with my brain that day because I did the unthinkable; ate mushrooms on purpose. Maybe I should be admitted into a mental hospital. This is not like me at all. The result; amazing! I finally figured out my hatred of mushrooms; it is the texture. I hate the gross, slimy texture of mushrooms. When its chopped it can be quite nice. The mushrooms were seasoned
perfectly and the crepe was the best crepe I have ever had. It was nice and eggy. The two were the best paired foods other than Peacefood Cafe's sandwiches and paninis. I had to scrape the goat cheese off (because of the rennet issue again.) I knew when I was tasting it that there were onions. I just knew it! Ha ha ha! I am so proud of myself... Before today, I had no clue what lingonberries were. I kind of want to try them again.
Now comes the desserts. Brace yourself. My father told me that The Russian Tea Room is known for their desserts. I can understand why. First off, I was upset. While the adults attending the party got what looked to be a warm chocolate cake, the teenagers and kids were stuck with make your own ice cream. They just gave out chocolate ice cream, vanilla ice cream, and whip cream. There were toppings such as fake cherries, M&Ms, marshmallows, sprinkles... Why I ask, why? I decided that ice cream is just a little too much dairy for me so I passed. Good thing I did because then they came out with the best desserts. Though I could not find it on all of their menus, I can explain to the best of my ability. There were eight mini desserts each no bigger than two square inches. There was a sweet potato tart with a citrus fruit, a chocolate tart, two chocolate truffles, a peanut butter tart (chances of that are small but it its my best guess,) a pistachio cake with green tea frosting and a chocolate square on top, a chocolate cream puff, and something else that got grabbed so fast that I forgot what it was. They were the best desserts I have ever had except for a vegan chocolate pudding from Josie's five years ago, Chef Chloe Coscarelli's desserts, and Jack's Stir Brew Aunt Rosie's Famous Chocolate Chip Cookies. You do not understand how big that list is for me. I care so much about desserts. For me to put something on my top list is a thing that rarely happens. Take note of this important post. First, I had the chocolate cream puff. From years of Beard Papa's, I knew at first sight that that was a cream puff. The outside was perfectly puffy and the inside was the chocolate unbelievable cream. It was better than Beard Papa's. I never thought that I would hear myself say that but I did. Next I had the chocolate tart. It was more of a chocolate truffle, but better. The filling melted in my mouth. It was chocolaty goodness. The crust was a perfect chocolate crust that was soft, but not break apart-soft. Finally I had the pistachio cake with green frosting and a chocolate square. The green frosting was either pistachio or matcha. I thought it was too buttery. I guess that is the point of frosting. One thing that I don't miss about dairy. The chocolate square was a nice solid piece of chocolate. The mini cake on the other hand was amazing. It was so moist and you could taste the pistachios so well. My favorite of the three was the chocolate tart. Next came the classic birthday cake which was a chocolate cake with vanilla frosting on top and chocolate frosting inside. It was better than average but nothing to write that much about.
Note that I checked the menu
after I had eaten the food. I found the food I ate from The Russian Tea Room's Pre & Post Theatre menu, which, in some cases, does not have the same things as their normal menus.
I am so stuffed. For dinner I am having some foods from Whole Foods. I am having Aloo Mattar, Chana Masala, and Zen Palate Spinach Noodles, all in very small portions. No more desserts more me! I have had way too much sugar (I I didn't even mention the Cliff Smores bar I had in the morning.)
