Matchbook Dining/Peter Luger

Is it weird that I hadn't been to a real steakhouse until I was in my late 20s? Growing up, we never went out for steak! I am pretty sure my Brother asked for steak at dinner (gotta love being a kid and having to ask f you can order a certain item if it seemed pricey), and my Mom shut it down so quickly that I knew to never ask myself. It's not that we never went out for dinner. My parents have extremely different tastes in food, and so we ventured to "the city" a lot. Dominican food in the Bronx, Greek food in Astoria, Indian food in Jackson Heights, and Dim Sum in Flushing were typical "going out to eat" destinations. Apparently I spent every weekend in Queens as a child. We just never did steak!

Until, Peter Luger.

I probably would still never had gone out for a proper steak if we hadn't received a gift certificate for an engagement present. That is, by the way, an amazing gift. While it is off registry (gasp!), I am a huge fan of giving someone a great meal, experience, and memory. So off we went!

There are 2 locations. The original one in South Williamsburg, which is close to our apartment, and the one in Long Island. I tried to get a reservation at the original location to know avail. We landed one at the Long Island location one Saturday night. We got there, and honestly it was the most touristy restaurant I had ever been to. I am pretty sure that the overflow of Brooklyn Peter Luger tourists drove out East to Long Island! Maybe I have been in NYC too long, or maybe my "special meals" are most people's "average meals," but a restaurant full of tourists kind of kills the mood for me. Is that snobby?  

Anyway, on to the food. We got Peter Luger's greatest hit, including:
-portherhouse steak for 2 
-sizzling bacon-steak for 2
-German fried potatoes
-creamed spinach
-"holy cow" hot fudge sundae with "schlag" (these are not my quotations, the Peter Luger website liberally uses them) 

While I am not obsessed with steak, it was a great meal. Apparently the steak is a porterhouse which is half New York strip, and half filet mignon (separated by a bone). I kind of hoped LK would forget about the filet side so I could hoard it. The sizzling bacon was extremely thick and almost like a crispy ham. The German fried potatoes were like hash browns to me (tasty), but I preferred the creamed spinach! Lastly, holy cow to their holy cow hot fudge sundae. It was covered in the thickest, most densely whipped cream (schlag). The sundae was piled o high that anytime you would try and get your spoon to the bottom, you would risk knocking the schlag off! Which leads me to quoting one of my favorite episodes of Seinfeld: "You know what? They got the fudge on the bottom - ya see? That enables you to control your fudge distribution as you're eating your ice cream." 

It was a wonderful and memorable meal. As I have mentioned, I am known to be the Food and Beverage Director at home, so it was nice to be able to share one of LK's favorite meals together! 

Matchbook verdict: Great representation of the restaurant - traditional and old school. This matchbook is not looking to play around with fun colors or fancy-looking font. This matchbook is sticking to what it knows and excels at. I love the crest on the back! And the fact that Peter Luger is 100 years older than me!  

-GK

 

Matchbook Dining/Sammy's Roumanian

Oh boy. Sammy's Roumanian was one for the books. We came here Halloween weekend for a friend's birthday/Halloween celebration. I had never been there before, but always heard the following things about it: you dance, you drink, you eat huge portions of meat. I was prepared for all of those things, but did not know just how much there would be of all of those things.

A group of 10 of us got escorted to our table in the basement of the restaurant. Kitschy does not even begin to describe this place. Photos of celebrity and regular people wallpapered the walls. Tables were shoved together with cheap wooden chairs and white table clothes. And on each table was a big pitcher of schmaltz (chicken fat). Think of schmaltz as the Ashkenazi Jewish version of butter.

In the corner of this crowded basement was a keyboard, and our MC for the night. Our MC played klezmer music, other random Jewish music that I learned growing up at the local synagogue, and we did the hora! He played American music as well, most notably "Sweet Caroline" towards the end of the night, which had everyone going crazy.

Now, for the drinking. You cannot go to Sammy's without indulging in some vodka. Sure, they have wine and other alcohol, but the vodka is the staple thing to get. It is crazy overpriced, but no one is there to save money. We ordered a few bottles of Stoli, and they come frozen in ice! They are served with tiny carafes of mixers - cranberry, and Seltzer.

As you are drinking and cheersing for anything and nothing, the kitchen is serving up some huge meat. I got a breaded veal chop and it was bigger than the plate!

Between the meat and vodka overload, and dancing (read: flailing), I was hurting the next day. So was each one of our friends. This was definitely a once in a New York lifetime experience, but that's not to say I wouldn't do it again.

Matchbook verdict: Much like the sparse decor, this matchbook leaves a lot to be desired. I do like the combination of fonts, from the all caps, to the hand written-looking font, and the font that looks like Hebrew at first glance. My favorite part is on the back where it says "Ample Parking," because I have no clue who would leave Sammy's sober enough to drive.

-GK 

 

Matchbook Dining/Republic

The matchbooks featured in this post are 2 of the dozens that I have collected from this place over the years. Republic is a noodle place in Union Square that is extremely reasonable, quick, and delicious. I came here all the time in high school on the weekends. I am trying to figure out when exactly Republic opened, but it is featured in New York Magazine's Best Cheap Eats 2006. This article mentions that it opened "over a decade ago," so I guess some time in the mid 90s? In New York City hospitality terms, Republic is prehistoric. I am also enjoying reading this article and the restaurants mentioned from over 10 years ago, it is like a culinary walk down memory lane! But I digress. 

Besides coming here numerous weekends throughout my Junior and Senior years of high school (#sosophisticated), I came here 2 winters ago with my Brother and Mom. I met up with them at the Union Square Holiday Market to buy not-so-secret holiday presents for each other and for my Dad. We are all crazy hard to shop for, so what better than a place with tons of crowds and items that you can't return?! I kid, it is a lovely place and I have bought and received tons of amazing things from there (#shoplocal). 

After several hours of shopping and begging my Mom for tasty food like when we were kids at the supermarket, we popped in to Republic. We sat at the window overlooking Union Square West and caught up over bowls of noodles. I can't even remember what we got, because this food memory blends with the dozens of others at Republic over the years, but we had a great time, and our very different taste buds were satisfied.

Matchbook verdict: The light aqua color is almost too light, but the star over the I gives it a much needed pop. I love the font and the capital letters. And on the back, I love that the website is listed because honestly, what is a better slogan than Think Noodles?

-GK

 

Matchbook Drinking/King Tai Bar

If you want to step back in time to old-school Miami, check out King Tai Bar. This bar is clean and sleek white with pops of tropical color and pastel. Growing up, we would visit my Grandparents in Southern Florida, and take drives to Miami. This bar looks like it belongs on Ocean Avenue.

King Tai Bar was an exciting addition to the neighborhood. Before it was a bar, it was a run down garage. Before that, it was a Chinese-American fish restaurant called King Tai Fish Kitchen.

King Tai Bar's drinks are absolutely amazing. At this point, we have had everything on the menu, plus the drink specials. When it came to choosing "his and her cocktails" for our wedding, we tried to find the drink that LK so loved when we came here last summer. No dice. LK sent the bar an email, and a very nice bartender got back to us right away with the ingredients in said drink. We recreated it for our wedding!

The food options here are limited, but they do serve empanadas, and we have definitely enjoyed them during our time here.

I am proud of the new restaurants and bars in my area that pay homage to the history of the neighborhood, and are patron friendly. Will definitely have to do a return visit soon.

Matchbook verdict: Goes with the feel of the bar. I am a little surprised that they used hot pink as the font color for the matchbook, as the bar signage is this awesome purple script neon sign. Still, I think the colors complement each other well, and the font is very art deco.

-GK

Matchbook Dining/Anejo Tequileria

Anejo Tequileria is a small plates Mexican restaurant in Hell's Kitchen, owned by Top Chef Angelo Sosa. I found out about this place through my old friend, a fellow foodie (you can read about some of our other foodie adventures here), who lived right down the street. This restaurant became one of our go-to restaurants for Girls Night Out. We enjoyed al fresco dining pretty much every time we were there, but they have a great interior space as well. It's dark and moody in there, with exposed brick walls, wooden beams, and an awesome hand painted mural in the back!

Over our numerous visits there, we enjoyed:
-guacamole trio
-ceviche
-pork belly tostada
-short rib taco

And of course, margaritas!

My friend was such a loyal customer there that she got invited to their 1st year anniversary party. She took me and it was a blast! They had free pass around food, a magician, and Chef Angelo Sosa was there thanking patrons! He is also so dreamy...! 

Matchbook verdict: I love their matchbooks. The gold on black is classic and strong looking, and I am a sucker for a good font in all caps. 

-GK

Matchbook Dining/Dirty French

Dirty French was a great meal that I was lucky enough to have through work. I work in the advertising industry at a great company, with wonderful teammates, and sometimes I get to do cool things like eat delicious food!

Google calls Dirty French, "Classic French bistro fare with flair in a cool brasserielike space with chandeliers & banquettes." I have been to several brasseries, most notably SoHo's Balthazar, and that restaurant serves as a baseline for brasserie decor for me. In my opinion, Dirty French restaurant is barnyard chic, decorated with hot pink roosters and wooden beams. You probably think that I have a habit of going to restaurants with colorful farm animals inside, as seen from my dinner at The Spotted Pig.

We ordered so much food, but here is what stood out to me:
-grilled spiced flatbread with fromage blanc
-trout meunière
-chicken and crepes
-pommes puree and peas

The flatbread was a complimentary starter, served with a whipped goat cheese-like spread. It was sprinkled with Za'atar and made me think back to one of my favorite cheap meals in Tel Aviv in 2009. The trout was wonderful. Fish is almost never my go-to at a restaurant, so this was a treat. You can't go wrong with perfectly cooked fish in brown butter and lemon sauce.

Now onto the star of the show, the chicken and crepes. The chicken is served two ways: white meat  sliced with a creamy mustard sauce, and dark meat marinated in Southeast Asian flavors, confited in chicken fat, and grilled to order. Hot crepes are served on the side, along with sauces and crunchy vegetables. To be honest I was so focused on how good the chicken tasted that I did not even acknowledge the sauces or vegetables. Chicken would be the absolute last thing I would order at a restaurant but this chicken was crazy good.

We got a few side dishes - the pommes puree (mashed potatoes), and peas. I was definitely hoarding both of these. All I can say for them is #butter.

After dinner, we headed out to the patio area for more drinks! I hung out there until I realized that I had completely lost my voice and had to go home, which was pretty embarrassing. I then wasn't able to speak for 3 days after due to laryngitis. It got more embarrassing the next day at work when I was supposed to be participating in a training session on communication. Anytime I wanted to participate, I had to quickly write my answer down on paper and my manager read it out loud between hysterically laughing. LK likes to joke that these were the 3 most relaxing days of his life. Dirty French may have taken my voice, but I took their matches!

Matchbox verdict: Complements the restaurant's décor perfectly. I love the use of two fonts - the restaurant name in a script that I will never be able to find in Word, and the bold capital font for the location. Great minimal look.

-GK

Matchbook Dining/Navy Beach

This matchbook holds so many wonderful memories for me. LK and I took our first little vacation together in August 2012. Our funds were extremely limited at the time, and we wanted to go somewhere pretty close, and with a beach. As most people know, the Hamptons and Montauk aren't exactly known to be budget destinations, so we stayed one night in a terrible motel in Riverhead, and one night in a terrible motel in Montauk. For us, this was the greatest little trip ever!

I had made a few friends through work that were randomly going to be around that area as well, so we met up with them, and then had some time to ourselves. We went to Cupsogue beach, hung out with friends whose friends were having a fish fry, and LK taught our friend MC to float on his back. We drank cocktails on the beach and tanned for a while.

We said goodbye to these friends in Westhampton, and made our way to Saganponack, where we met up with my other friend and her boyfriend at Wölffer Estate Vineyard. They were extremely new friends, and extremely fancy. They suggested we go to dinner in Sag Harbor (like one may suggest going to grab a slice at the local pizza joint). I have no clue what the restaurant was called, but it was tasty, and LK and I were secretly freaking out at how much the meal was going to cost. It wound up being fine, and it was fun living a fancy life for a day.

After a terrible night's sleep in Riverhead, we headed off to Montauk! LK had talked up this lobster roll place for a while that was on the way to Montauk, appropriately named The Lobster Roll. We made our way there for morning lobster rolls, and they were delicious. We had dinner at Duryea's Lobster Deck, where there was more secret freaking out ensured about how much we were spending on lobster. Finally, we had cocktails at Navy Beach. I will never forget that night, hanging out on the beach, watching the sun go down, and drinking this awesome watermelon and vodka cocktail. I have since tried to make something similar, but the texture was disgusting and gave me one of the worst hangovers of my life. Sometimes, vacation does not translate to real life. 

On the way home from Montauk, we decided that our wallets hadn't had enough abuse, and we went back to The Lobster Roll, where we gorged on lobster one last time for the summer. During this meal, while we each had a huge lobster roll and most likely shared a third, I will never forget the couple sitting near us that split a lobster roll and a margarita. It was random and a little hilarious. 

Four summers later, we took a day trip back to Cupsogue beach and Wölffer Estate Vineyard. This time, instead of secretly freaking out about the cost of lobster rolls, LK had secretly planned a proposal, and I was (not so) secretly freaking out that he would not propose. Our trip to the Hamptons had come full circle.

Matchbook verdict: I love the nautical feel of this matchbook, I love the flags, and the font reminds me of a sailboat name. Every time I look at this matchbook, it brings me right back to the beach!

-GK

Matchbook Dining/Sant Ambroeus

I picked up this matchbook from Sant Ambroeus during a Sunday Funday afternoon with an old friend. We met up in SoHo and went shopping, and then ventured over to Chinatown to wander around Chinese grocery stores. When I first moved into my apartment in Manhattan, I thought it would be a good idea to do my grocery shopping in Chinatown, despite having to lug groceries back to the Upper West. This did not last long.

After going to SoHo and Chinatown, we decided to grab a coffee at Sant Ambroeus. I have been meaning to come back ever since for dinner. This place was beautiful and full of attractive Europeans. On our way out to grab dinner, I noticed that they had matchbooks. This restaurant was so crowded that I had to ask another person to give me one. I wanted to ask the person for another one but felt awkward, so this is my one and only!

From there, we grabbed an appetizer at the now-defunct 'inoteca, then dinner at The Meatball Shop, where I enjoyed the classic beef meatballs, with the parmesan cream sauce. This was a while ago and back then, there was only the Lower East Side location. Now, there are 5 shops!

This was a fun day and a reminder as to why I love Manhattan: it is easy to weave in and out of neighborhoods and easily do a food crawl.

Matchbook verdict: By far the prettiest matchbook I own. I usually hate the color peach, but it really works here. I've never seen font like this before - it's bold, and the script is broken. The gold in the font and tracing around the logo helps punch it up a little bit. Last, the back of the matchbook is unexpected!

-GK

Matchbook Dining/The Spotted Pig

With a gastropub menu, investor backing from celebrities such as Jay-Z, Bono, Michael Stipe, and a pig-themed décor, The Spotted Pig has been on my bucket list for as long as I can remember.

Myself and two friends (JN and GR) are in what we call a "Matchbook League." This consists of a group text with the same name, bringing each other matchbooks when we dine at a restaurant giving them out, and trading our duplicates (think of it like the Pog of the 21st century). We decided to have a monthly dinner out at a restaurant that gives out matchbooks. As such, I suggested The Spotted Pig.

The Spotted Pig doesn't take reservations and is notorious for its waiting times, so we raced out of work once the clock struck 5. They were able to sit us around 5:30. They lead us to the upstairs floor that soon started filling up. The restaurant was adorable, full of multi-colored pig statues and other tchotkes. We got to ordering right away! Between the 3 of us, we got:
-deviled eggs
-ricotta gnudi in a brown butter sauce
-Caesar salad
-the crispy pig's ear salad
-Roquefort burger with shoestring fries
-banofee pie

We basically ordered all of The Spotted Pig's greatest hits. I would say overall everything was tasty. I wouldn't feel a need to order the deviled eggs, Caesar salad, or the crispy pig's ear salad again. The gnudi was heavenly, thin ravioli wrappers around a fresh clump of ricotta in a brown butter sauce. The burger was amazing. Blue cheese can either go really well (if it is great quality), and taste almost floral, or it can taste rank. This was the former! It came with a PILE of shoestring fries that were tossed with fried garlic and rosemary. And last, the banofee pie. Layers of shortbread pie, bananas, and caramel topped with fresh whipped cream.

During our dinner we mentioned our matchbook collection to the waitress who cheerfully told us to ask the hostess for matches on our way out. I guess people hoard them and so they have to keep them behind the desk! The cheerfulness stopped when we got to the front desk. We asked the host and he didn't seem too happy to give these precious matches away, because he made faces and slammed my matchbook down on the hostess stand.

All in all, this was a meal worth waiting for and I was happy to have come here with some foodie friends.

Matchbook verdict: The graphics are amazing, as is the font. I love anything neon so I love the combination of green and pink! As pictured below, there are 2 styles - green background with small pink pigs/pink background with green big pig, and the reverse of it, pink background with small green pigs/green background with pink big pig. It's necessary to get both!

-GK

Matchbook Fail/Hecho En Dumbo

It has become a mini holiday tradition (for the 2nd year now), that LK and I get a couples massage at the Great Jones Spa, and get dinner before. This night is a huge treat for us for several reasons. One, Great Jones Spa place is pure luxury and something that LK and I would not normally do in our everyday life. Two, I am almost never in this neighborhood anymore and it is fun being able to visit. Three, meals with LK in Manhattan are few and far between. LK has not worked in Manhattan for several years, and has never lived here. I lived in Manhattan for many years, and still work here. However, in our earlier years of dating, going out to Manhattan restaurants didn't happen too often when Manhattan rent was already burning up my bank account. Now that we live in Brooklyn, going to Manhattan on the weekends to eat seems like such a chore! So any time we have a chance to share a meal in Manhattan, it is special.

Before our couples massage last, we went to Hecho En Dumbo. It is great Mexican food, lot of smaller plates, and a solid happy hour. This was before I got into collecting matchbooks.

This year, I wanted to try something new before our massage. I knew Saxon + Parole had matchbooks, and I heard good things about the restaurant, so I booked us a reservation on OpenTable (another thing I look for in a restaurant: points!) I had some time to kill before meeting LK, so I decided to grab a drink at Hecho En Dumbo which is nearby. As I was finishing my drink, I asked the bartender for the bill. As I was texting LK that I was about to head over to meet him at Saxon + Parole, I realized that my wallet wasn't in my bag. It made for a very awkward moment with the bartender when I had to tell him that I couldn't pay for the drink I ordered, and that my husband was on his way to rescue his forgetful wife.

With my bartender looking confused and amused, I asked him if they still give out matchbooks, that I saw it on someone's Instagram and that the logo is fantastic. He said that they unfortunately don't carry them anymore, and I nodded sadly, saying that matchbooks are a dying art.

By the time LK came to rescue me, I decided that Mexican was truly what I was after. My taco craving has been strong for the past few weeks, so we cancelled our Saxon + Parole reservation, and enjoyed a delicious and very economical meal thanks to the happy hour. We ordered:
-several rounds of margaritas (makes for an even more relaxing massage)
-guacamole made to order with freshly fried chips
-queso fundido with chorizo
-tuna sashimi tostada
-shrimp tostada
-steak tacos
-chocolate and hazelnut cake (this took FOREVER to come and almost made us late for our massage)

All in all, it was a great night after I got past the bartender humiliation and matchbook fail! It's such a shame they don't carry them anymore, look how cute they were!

-GK

Image here: Matchbook Diaries

Welcome to my blog!

Hello!

My name is GK and I am the proud owner of this small corner of the Interwebs.

This blog was something my Husband (I will lovingly refer to him as LK) thought of when we would go out to eat and leave with a restaurant matchbook or two. 

I have been a foodie for as long as I can remember. Weekends in high school were spent throwing "dinner parties" for my friends and family, and vacation destinations are often chosen based on the food scene (the most recent example of this was our two week honeymoon to Thailand last month). LK has been the guinea pig for many of my food experiments, both good and bad, and he knows that I am the Food and Beverage Director for our little family.

Where does the matchbook part come in? I like to collect things and have had different collections of items over time. When I was young it was international coins and Beanie Babies, in my early 20s during my vintage and antique phase, it was tooled leather bags. Now that I have money to spend on restaurants, and less square footage in our Brooklyn apartment, it is matchbooks! Not only are they really beautiful, and useful, but it is the best way for me to remember a great meal with loved ones.

I have seen Instagram accounts where people showcase their matchbooks. I look to them for restaurant ideas, but I think I am a little too old school for Instagram. I have loved blogging for 10 years now so when LK suggested a matchbook blog, it was perfect!

This blog will be about matchbooks I get while dining, trading, and receiving from friends who know about my hobby. Enjoy!

-GK