Aliseo Osteria del Borgo

Tom had been wanting to go to, what he kept calling "Aiello", which is actually Aliseo Osteria del Borgo in Prospect Heights for awhile now, and I am glad we finally got to get dinner there last night.

It is a cute albeit rustic brick-walled restaurant with empty wine bottles lining the wall. A charming old black & white photo of what I assumed was a family of 100 and pig figurines adorned the mantle of the (faux?) fire place next to our table.
It was a modest menu, but the items were listed in Italian with English descriptions beneath, and actually to my disappointment- a few items were not available, but there were still several left for us to choose from.

To start, we were served a bowl of Ricotta and olive oil with warm and soft foccacia and very thin melba toast-like pieces of bread that were addicting speckled with coarse salt around the edges.

We ended up sharing an appetizer (mini sesame seed-crusted meatballs served over a line of very basil-y pesto sauce and an orange-colored sauce that has yet to be determined (apricot-based? peach? I couldn't tell as the sesame seeds overpowered most of the flavors, but the meatballs tasted like meat.)

Then we shared a pasta and meat dish. I started with the homemade fettucini with beef ragu. and he started with the pork loin in a red cherry reduction with apples. The meat was cooked perfectly and tender and the fruit was a great addition to the saltiness of the pork- which can be attributed to what Tom calls, "An Italian Pinch of Salt". The pasta definitely had that pinch, but luckily we like salt.

For dessert, he ordered a chocolate tart that was very reminiscent of the chocolate ganache i've made that went wrong (but this was made right). I really liked the crust.

Plus he enjoyed his glasses of wine so overall rating? A+

The Vanderbilt

Tom and I have walked up and down the streets of his neighborhood of Prospect Heights many times. On one of our walks, we saw a restaurant that was being built called The Vanderbilt. Aptly named, it is on Vanderbilt Ave and Bergen, and it has been written up with rave reviews from nearly every local New York City publication.

After passing by several times, seeing if it had opened yet, we finally got dinner there in the beginning of December. Armed with a Michelin-starred chef, all of the dishes on the menu are small, and moderately priced. Like a tapas bar, a table is meant to order many dishes to share. Tom and I decided on Blistered Shishito peppers for an appetizer. I think these could have been really good had we not gotten insanely spicy peppers. We are known to handle our spicy foods rather well, but these were burning for some reason. Sprinkled with pimenton salt and lemon juice, the peppers were conquered not without a fight. This was about the time I wished my water glass was just a tad bit larger. Incidentally, these peppers were also served at Phil's New Years Party but we were more careful with those.

I also got Crispy Pork Belly with lentils du puy and Tom ordered the butternut squash soup. The pork belly was so tender, perfectly-seasoned, and super fatty with some parts super crispy. I could've eaten 3 portions of this. The soup was velvety, creamy and can certainly warm you up on a cold winter's evening.

For the main course, I ordered the Hangar Steak, again cooked perfectly with a side of pont neuf potatoes and romaine. I think Tom got the Grilled Pork Loin or perhaps one of the specials.

For dessert, we shared Warm Spiced Doughnuts pistachio ice cream, brandied cherries, apricot orange blossom coulis.

A perfect dinner.

I apologize for the poor quality of photos. The lighting was dim and until I actually get a nice DSLR, this point and shoot will have to do.




1. Shishito peppers, afire
2. Crispy Pork Belly, melt in your mouth
3. Hangar Steak, medium rare
4. Doughnuts.