birthday dinners

While my birthday fell on a Sunday I managed to celebrate with various friends and family for over a week. My mom and I brunched at Cafe D'Alsace, a wonderful French Bistro on 88 and 2nd Ave, where I enjoyed a delicious Croque Monsiour and a cappuccino with foam in the shape of a heart. Mom had the omelet with mushrooms and comte, my usual--yum! My dad and I enjoyed a wonderful dinner at the Atlantic Grill, a restaurant I have wanted to try for some time. He had the Mahi Mahi, which was amazing, and I had the Halibut which was quite good. Naturally I enjoyed a glass of Riesling (favorite wine...go figure) for the occasion. Two great friends took me to Josie's West, a fantastic organic restaurant where I had the vegetarian meatloaf which was surprisingly spicy and absolutely delicious! We finished by sharing a piece of cake at Cafe Lalo (where You've Got Mail was filmed). Finally, another wonderful friend and mentor treated me to an amazing dinner at Il Buco. This restaurant uses only local ingredients for their menu, which for this reason changes according to what's in season in this area of the country. We shared various appetizers and a soup, each very different and flavorful. I then had the black kale salad (so so good!) and she ordered the rabbit. I tried a bite of the latter and Oh wow was it unbelievable. I haven't had something with such a beautiful flavor in a while. Yes, you guessed it, I enjoyed a glass of Riesling (not too sweet or too dry) with this meal as well.
Another friend baked me a delicious vanilla cake with chocolate frosting, which wasn't too sweet, making me love it even more. I also must add that a friend introduced me to a wonderful Mexican restaurant, Agave, which has rather unique additions and spins to traditional Mexican dishes. We shared fish tacos which were light and summery and the blue corn enchiladas with chicken, which had an amazing sauce. Fabulous.
Thank you everyone for a wonderful culinary birthday experience!