The Ivy Noodle

When I got home this week, my Dad and I were feeling adventurous and decided to try a new restaurant: The Ivy Noodle in downtown New Haven (home of the best restaurants around, as it happens!).

There wasn't a lot of seating inside - it was a narrow place and the tables were up against the wall, opposite a bar which my Dad and I sat at. Still, the place was busy, and the staff was quick and efficient as I could hope for. I ordered chicken lo mein and my Dad ordered wonton soup, and we watched them prepare the food behind the bar while we waited.

I wish I had thought to take pictures when the food came, because they first thing I noticed was that it was aesthetically pleasing. My lo mein was piled high on a plate, long noodles and strips of chicken and large pieces of bok choy glistening and steaming and promising the best of flavors. My dad's soup was even better: in a deep bowl with a large, ladle-like spoon, the wontons floated in a relatively clear broth, surrounded by strikingly green vegetables and green onions. I had to try his even before digging into mine. 

Speaking of mine, it was the best lo mein I've ever tasted. While most Chinese food places produce food that simply tastes fried, with noodles that are overcooked and mediocre flavors, this food simply seemed more "real." The noodles were perfectly cooked, for one. Whatever sauce covered it was delicious and tasted smoky, but what I really remember was the bok choy - I'm usually digging for the chicken in these kinds of dishes, but the bok choy was crisp and they had somehow brought out an indescribable and delicious flavor from it. I felt like I could have scarfed this dish down for hours, but the portion was so generous that I regrettably couldn't even finish - oh well, more for me later! My only regret is that I didn't take pictures, because looking at the food was almost as good as eating it. If you're ever in New Haven, do stop by the Ivy Noodle - after Pepe's, that is!

Christmas Lights

This week while I was at home, I took a drive around unfamiliar parts of my neighborhood to see some Christmas light displays at night. I live in the suburbs and am relatively close to the town center, so there are lots of directions I can choose. While I am generally familiar enough with the entire neighborhood not to get lost, there are tons of streets that I've never been down, and that's what I targeted tonight.

As I recall, the first Christmas lights I saw in my neighborhood appeared the day after Thanksgiving - meanwhile, we don't even have our tree up yet. As I slowly navigated my neighborhood's back roads at night, I marveled at just how many houses were lit up with Christmas spirit even in less populated areas. One of my favorite parts of Christmas is simply seeing the decorations everywhere - although I could do without being bombarded by holiday tunes.

Some houses were the basic white lights, which I appreciate, as I find too many rainbow-colored Christmas lights to be garish unless they're artfully arranged. I am a fan of the fake moving light-lined reindeer, which a few yards had. And still some had designs on the side of the house or the garage door, like a giant lit up Jewish star in one case. I spent a lot more time than I intended traveling around these unfamiliar streets and wondering about the people who lived in them. It reminded me of the love I have for taking walks in unfamiliar places - there are endless small, beautiful things you might see, even though it was night now and I could only really make out the lights. There was a sense of community and celebration I got from seeing so many decorated houses - not religious celebration (in my case) but a generally united feeling. This, more than anything else, truly got me into the "Christmas spirit" this year.