October 2007
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Day October 16, 2007

Daisy May’s BBQ USA

623 Eleventh Avenue corner of 46th Street
212/977.1500
$70 each for a whole pig for 12 people, with two sides, BYOB
♥ ♥

There are a few annoying things about reserving a group table at Daisy May’s:
1. You can only reserve half a pig or a whole pork butt to feed up to six people
2. Your other choice is a whole pig for up to twelve people
3. It’s BYOB–that’s annoying because
4. you only have two hours to eat and drink, from 8pm to 10pm, and
5. you also have to bring your own ice and your own drinking glasses

If you have more than five friends, then you’re forced to do the whole pig, but your group needs to have twelve or else each person pays more to contribute to the bill. You know half a pig is enough for you and your big group of friends, but alas, rules are rules.

When you arrive at Daisy May’s for your Big Pig Gig, however, you forget every annoying thing about the restaurant. Even though I’ve done so many pig roasts in my life, the whole pig is still a sight to behold when served on a large wooden block, halved and then chopped in smaller pieces. The meat is juicy and soft and even better with the accompanying brown sauce. But the skin is disappointingly chewy and inedible. There is no crunchy tail to be found, but our chosen sides, creamed corn and the sweet potato, more than compensated. We barely touched the Texas toast and the coleslaw that come with any of the Big Pig Gig, but the watermelon, although bland, was a good finish.

The staff gave us covered plastic containers when we paid our bill. Most of us were able to take the leftovers home. I took home the head and it was made into Filipino lechon paksiw the next day. Daisy May’s serves the pigs that keep on giving.

Related post/s:
I also like Dinosaur Bar-B-Que
For no reservations but a longer wait, go to The Spotted Pig

Roasted Neck of Lamb with Vegetables

Ah, fall. There were those weird couple of days when the weather turned muggy and humid, but it now feels like Mother Nature is catching up. The leaves are starting to turn and I’m beginning to feel too lazy to get up from my warm and cozy bed. All I want is to drink a full-bodied red wine and eat some lamb. After I start my day, that is.

This was an easy recipe from Nigel Slater’s The Kitchen Diaries. I’m not at all familiar with him, but the book design was so tempting that I couldn’t leave Strand bookstore without it. I initially wanted to use lamb chops instead of the suggested neck, but when I went to the halal store next door, they only had the neck left. I also picked up three chungus, the African eggplants they always have in stock.

Ingredients:
2 pounds neck of lamb, chopped
3 plum tomatoes, halved
2 baking potatoes, peeled, chopped
1 large eggplant, chopped
1 large red onion, quartered
6 cloves of garlic, peeled
5 sprigs of rosemary
olive oil, salt, pepper

1. Preheat oven to 400º. Season lamb with salt and pepper. Set aside.
2. In a shallow roasting pan, toss all the ingredients together, except the lamb, with some oil, salt and pepper. Bake, uncovered, for thirty minutes.
3. Remove roasting vegetable from the oven, toss gently and add the lamb. Turn the oven heat up to 425º and roast for another twenty minutes, or until the lamb is golden brown and slightly pink inside.

Related post/s:
Mke this recipe more interesting by using a different type of eggplant