I woke up at 6am and since I couldn't sleep anymore, spent about 4 hours in bed surfing the web. I didn't think I would sleep anymore so I made plans to have a solo brunch in the city then catching a movie. I ended up dozing off around 10am and woke up a little before 2pm. I got up, showered and headed out. I had originally planned either to have brunch at Flatbush Farm (for the english biscuits and sausage gravy) or in Grill 21 (for the tapsilog) but I was too late for Flatbush Farm (brunch only until 3pm) and Grill 21 was a long walk from the closest subway stop and it was about 17 degrees Fahrenheit outside. I ended up taking advantage of the restaurant week menu at Brasserie Les Halles on Park Avenue. Fans of Anthony Bourdain know that was the restaurant he used to work at as Executive Chef before making it big as a writer/food travel show host. I've read two of his books repeatedly and I felt such an odd feeling as if I was remembering memories that were not my own. He wrote of his days in Les Halles in a manner that gives readers a very good picture of what a typical day in the restaurant is like.

So the food, I ordered

Vol au vent de Champignons Sauvages et Salsifis (wild mushrooms in puff pastry)
Beouf Bourguignon (classic french beef stew)
Creme Brulee au Cafe (coffee creme brulee)

What do you want me to say?

OF COURSE IT WAS GOOD. The beef in the stew was so tender, it didn't need teeth to chew it. An old lady can take her dentures out and still be able to chew that sucker without suffering indigestion. The creme brulee was wonderful too with a light coffee flavor (although I like the texture of Louiie's creme brulee better). The big surprise was the mushroom pastry which I honestly had very low expectations of. It was described so simply that I didn't know such flavor could come from a bunch of fungi. The pastry was more of like a croissant ring, light, flaky and with a slight buttery taste that complemented the flavor of mushrooms. It was absolutely divine. I think, despite their prices, I may put this place on my list of go-to restaurants when I don't know where else to go. I shall be back...and I will have some that steak frites.

Skipped down to Union Square to catch Daybreakers. It was a toss up between that or Legion but after reading reviews on Rotten Tomatoes for both movies, I ended up choosing the former. It was alright, with the expected display of blood and gore (hello, vampire movie, what do you expect? don't let the stupid twilight series sway you into thinking vampires are meant to be emo). Daybreakers was predictable in most parts but despite all the blah moments, I know it was still probably better than Legion.

I dropped by Strands Bookstore and picked up a copy of the Mirrormask book as well as books-2-4 of the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series. I finished the first one in about two days and loved it so much, I went ahead and got the other paperbacks. My nose shall be buried in the adventures of Percy and his conquests with characters in Greek Mythology.

*****

In a completely off topic. I just found out that Neil Gaiman is engaged to his girlfriend Amanda Palmer who is 15 years younger than him. Hell, I didn't even know he was divorced from the mother of his children! I quickly googled Amanda Palmer and found that she's a musician, artist, and really really really loves to get naked in public. I mean seriously. She took off her dress to change into another slipless see-through dress on the red carpet during the Golden Globes in front of all the press!!! Neil, by the way, was present and was assisting her through this entire scene. She's eccentric in a way that's both hilariously funny and borderline annoying. Read her blog post on her first red carpet experience and tell me if she doesn't make you laugh. I can sort of see why Neil likes her and can see where the dynamic is. It's just funny to me how both my male heroes have ended up with second wives who are significantly younger than them. Anthony Bourdain's guesting on Miami Ink accompanied by Ottavia Bourdain sporting a very tight black midriff instantly made me hate her. But after reading about her, I found out that through Tony's relationship with her, he has quit smoking, drug-free, been less vile, and has become a father. So we can say what we want about her but we can't deny that she's been very good for him. I guess despite Amanda Palmer's eccentricities, she may be good for Neil too. I suppose these men reach an age where they need partners who still find the need to care for them in a way that they need to be cared for. Their previous wives might have reached their breaking point where they've had it up to their necks with their husband's rockstar bullshit or whatever reason that's got them so jaded. The point is, I get it, and I offer no prejudice to either parties. I love Neil and Tony for their work no matter what their marital situation may be. As long as their personal lives continue to inspire them to produce more work that I can appreciate, then that's fine by me. Moral of the story is that men, it seems, as they get older, need more personal attention from their spouses. Ironically, this is the same kind of attention we women demand of our men at the beginning of every relationship so we can't blame them for asking of the same in return.

Amazing what we realize when we've been single for so long...ahem...

I'm ranting too much. I have to go to bed. 'nyt...

NYC Restaurant Week (winter edition) is here!!! I shall find my way back into Daniel Boulud's dining table once again! Although I tried making reservations at Cafe Boulud for next week but it looks like they're already fully booked. I'll try calling tomorrow but if I can't get reservations, it looks like I can get a table at Bar Boulud (the other franchise on the other side of town) instead. I just checked out both menus and if I can manage to get tables for both, I am SO going!!! Also, I shall make Louiie drool with envy because I just saw that Susur Lee's restaurant, Shang, is also participating until the end of February! It's 2am and I'm surfing through restaurant week menus that are making my stomach growl.

Enough about glorious food. So I finally got to see Tim Burton's exhibition at the MOMA and it was bloody amazing!

no photography was allowed so I only have two images from the entrance and the exit of his section of the museum

He really is truly an artist! It featured a lot of his drawings, painting, sketches from way back 1979 (maybe even earlier, I can't remember). Including all the character sketches from all his movies! It goes to show that his characters really are a product of his twistedly genius imagination. I didn't even bother seeing any of the other exhibits in the museum today. I paid my $20 just to see his and it did not disappoint! They even had some of the props used in some of his movies: Beetlejuice's sleeves, Michelle Pfeiffer's Catwoman costume from Batman Returns, the headless horseman's cape from Sleepy Hollow, Batman's rubber masks, the Edward Scissorhands costume, the barber's tools from Sweeney Todd and lots more! There was even a section of the exhibit where it felt like you walked into a small room from the circus in Big Fish. The exhibit runs until April so LOUIIE, I AM TAKING YOU THERE!!! I went home with a 3-pc figurine set from his Stainboy series. They're so cute!!! I also just framed some of the postcards sketches I bought from the museum store. I LOVE IT!

I walked from Moma all the way to Times Square trying to decide where to eat dinner. It was morbidly freezing out and I didn't have enough layers on plus I forgot my warm, fuzzy hat. I gave up on the whole enjoying-nyc-by-walking plan as my ears and fingers were dangerously close to getting frost bite and I hopped on the subway to eat at Monster Sushi down at Chelsea. This place is quickly becoming my go-to joint for a good and affordable sushi dinner. Of course, Ushiwakamaru still is hands down the best damn sushi place I've ever been to. But I wasn't prepared to drop a C-note (and then some) for a single meal. That one time happened to be a birthday treat from my friend Rie. That visit may as well be my last. I can't afford that place unless I was celebrating a very, very, very, VERY special occasion
.
I was hoping to watch Legion after my Moma trip but the next showtime almost two hours after I had finished my dinner. I decided to go home and watch The Men Who Stare at Goats instead.

Currently halfway through Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Lightning Thief. Very fun book! I highly recommend it. I just started reading it yesterday and I find it difficult to put down, even when my stop is here and I need to get off or I'll be late for work.

Woke up this morning and I grabbed my iPod touch, checked Facebook (like I do every morning)

and read status updates saying it was snowing. I stood up, pulled back my curtains and smiled. It was so pretty outside.

viewed better when seen larger. *click*

This season is a lot different from last year. We didn't get as much snowfall as we did last December-February. I remember sludging through a lot of ice before and now I feel there was no point in buying my new snow boots since I hadn't needed to use them as much as I thought I would.

Today, I will have a date with myself. I plan on (finally) heading over to the MOMA to see the Tim Burton exhibit, which I've been wanting to see for months now. I've been postponing the trip for so long and I don't want to miss it like I did with the Kandinsky exhibit at the Guggenheim. I may catch a movie afterwards, maybe see Legion then walk around looking for a good place to eat depending on where my feet take me. I love walking around in New York. Getting lost is not always a bad thing in this city.

Now who wants to visit me next?

At long last! I've finally finished!

Since I was already down fixing up photos I took yesterday for the restaurant, I finally got to finish post processing Ifang's prenatal photos. I'm so embarrassed it's taken me so long to do this. She gave birth to Koyuki a little over a week ago and she is absolutely precious! Now if I can only get Ifang to let me take monthly photos of the cutesy bb and I'll be a happy camper.

The rest of the album can be viewed here.

New Year! New Living Room! New Casa Cuadro!

Our "other" roommate has finally moved out, taking all his stuff away with him so we were free to reign over our shared spaces. Tita Chon donated two of her armchairs (striped ones in the photo) and I bought a funky Billy limited edition billy bookcase from Ikea last January 1st. I bought a couple of other stuff too to spruce the place up a bit. I got home from brunch with Ana, Chen and Poy one day and all "his" stuff was gone and I started jumping up and down with excitement and grabbed the vacuum and broom and swept and cleaned and re-arranged everything to my liking. I sent the above photo via MMS to Mica and Benny and they were uber excited to come home to see it for real!

The couch is gone though so guests will have to make do with sleeping on our spare futon. You're fine with that Louiie right? Hehehe. As if you had a choice. I have yet to purchase a nice little L-corner sofa bed from Ikea. I found one I really liked but I have other things to spend for so that will simply have to wait.

I need to start sleeping earlier so I'm not too crummy in the morning. I actually enjoy taking my time before heading out to work, brewing my coffee, making myself a proper breakfast and still have time to wash dishes. But lately I've been waking up with just enough time to shower and skip out before I miss the train to work. Maybe I should stop typing and go to bed.

You think?