Eatin' Out - Simply Fondue

71-19 80th Street, Glendale NY

A new branch of this Texas-based chain fondue restaurant has opened in the Atlas Park Mall in Queens (80th/Metropolitan). It's fancy, in that shiny surface /tall black leather banquette / we-have-80-kinds-of-horrible-"martinis" way. I love fondue in all forms, so no complaints on my end. You are looking at $18 per person for your basic and decent swiss fondue served with bread, fruit and weird things like cocktail onions. We had a very nice young man providing extremely accommodating table service while whipping up our bowl o' cheese on site.

Gotta think it would be a good place to take your baby mama out for date night, but make a reservation if it's prime time. Our server said they served over 200 people in the place last Saturday night.

Horses and Easter

(Does my attempt at tying this post together by using two Patti Smith albums as the title work?)

Spent a cold day at Aqueduct yesterday for the Wood Memorial, running into my Forest Hills-raised friend Denis, who is a theology teacher at St John's and also often a solo track-goer. While we sat right at the finish line in racing queen Marylou Whitney's box -- great seats we could thieve only because Mrs. Whitney probably hasn't been to Aqueduct in a really long time -- we discussed all matters of racing and religion.

Growing up as a Catholic, Easter was a big deal holiday when I was a child. We always went to my grandparents' house in Louisville, when the flowers, dogwood and redbud trees were starting to bloom, had an Easter basket hunt and a big ol' ham for dinner. To this day, I don't think there is any place more beautiful than Kentucky in the spring. Nowadays, I barely know when Easter is, often becoming aware only because of street cleaning regulations and the closure of most everything in Catholic Greenpoint. I went to Easter mass a couple years back up at St. Anthony-St. Alphonsus up on Manhattan Ave., mainly because one of my brothers + his family was in town. I still enjoy the spectacle of a Catholic holiday with all the singing and joyous celebration, much better than the more regular guilt-inducing homilies from priests. My other brother is in town and staying with me tonight, so my family does still (randomly) see my heathen ass on Easter.

I can't get into all my problems with the church, although I realized on Friday as I explained what Easter is to a Jewish co-worker that my 11-yrs of Catholic school is completely ingrained in me. I don't mind having this knowledge. It helps me understand a lot of what goes on in the world today, how far reaching the influence of the church is, makes me appreciate a lot of Italy, as well as giving me a huge frame of literary reference. Alas, my bi-yearly forays back to mass only drive me further away from the flock, much to the dismay of my mom who continually has a card next to her bed entitled "A Prayer for Lapsed Catholics."

Denis is a practicing Catholic, so it was interesting to talk to him about the Pope, Rome, and all matters of the Church while we lost on the Wood. We both put the majority of our cash on Any Given Saturday, who ended up a weak third, while much-hyped Nobiz Like Shobiz looked every bit the horse he is claimed to be. He's gotta be one of the faves in 4 weeks for the Derby. I hate when I get emotionally attached to horses based on something stupid like "he looked at me in the paddock" or a "feeling" instead of placing the smart bet, but no matter. I hit a $105 tri on one race which paid for the day, and Denis walked away claiming mass today was going to absolve him of all the gambling he did on Holy Saturday.

Eatin' Out - Bliss

45-20 Skillman Avenue @ 46th Avenue, Sunnyside
When you walk in a place, tell them you want to order bottle of wine and they say "We don't have a wine list but I can tell you what we have." Then when a list is given of Shiraz, Merlot, Pinot Noir and Cabernet as options but with no specs, you have to know that the meal is probably not going to be great.

Enough said about fine dining in Queens.

Turkey Flees for Life a Week Before Holiday

A wild turkey was captured today running across the Triborough Bridge.

I don't know why, but that makes me laugh and laugh.

Eatin' Out - Mama's Empanadas

42-18 Greenpoint Avenue
Sunnyside, Queens
7 train to 42nd Street

Although empanadas are really The Haas' area of expertise, I feel I can adequately fill in for her. I mean - who doesn't love a deep fried filled pie?

I zipped up to Sunnyside to pick up a few hot pockets of deliciousness from Mama's Empanadas prior to seeing "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" at the ghetto Center Cinema on Queens Blvd (PROS: only $7 for first run moves, close to my house CONS: its like sitting in someone's basement; people bring their babies to 'nap' during the movies...Although I guess I fit right in since I was rustling around and munching down on a big ol' bag of empanadas before the movie even started...)

They've got abot 30 different kinds of empanadas, including stuff like a pizza empanada (mozzarella & tomato sauce), a rice and bean patty, and a cheese, ham and pineapple patty. I went more traditional, sampling a plain cheese (fabulous), a beef (dry and flavorless), and the piece de resistance - a fig, caramel and cheese pie. The thing was like molten lava in the theater but holy crap -- was it good. Next time, I'm going for pork, and guava and cheese. They also have loads of batidos naturales, but the service was so slow, I was going to miss my movie if I waited another 25 minutes for my drink.

At no more than $1.50 per patty, I'm seeing many trips up Greenpoint Avenue in my future.

The Best Belmont Ever

Or at least, the best Belmont I ever attended. As it was the first time in 4 years without the possibility of a Triple Crown winner (War Emblem, Funny Cide and Smarty Jones being the losers), the attendance was down and we found Belmont Day to be completely and gorgeously civilized. Sunny day, no lines at the windows, no lines for the LIRR trains, less yahoos, and the much trumpeted "no outside alcohol" policy new for 2005 was easily transgressed.

Seeing Afleet Alex dominate the rest of the admittedly weak 3-year-old field was a treat, too. After that travesty of a Derby, where Giacomo staggered to a win on what now seems to be sheer chance, I loved seeing a tough, deserving horse take the next two races of the Triple Crown. He's definitely the real deal, a powerhouse who will be exciting to watch into his four year old campaign next year. With the retirement of super horse Ghostzapper, Afleet Alex is the horse to watch as "the best" over the next few months.

As much as I want to see a Triple Crown winner in my lifetime, if it means crowds of 63,000 vs. crowds of 120,000, I am all for no horse ever doing it again. And ending our night in Irish bars in Woodside after sloshing out of the LIRR was an amusing finish to the day.

Thumbs up to the 2005 Belmont.