Sra of When My Soup Came Alive is in town and we got to hang out with each other.  Lots of fun.

For lunch, we stopped at Cuban restaurant, Havana Central at The West End.  There are three locations for this restaurant — Times Square, Union Square and The West End (on the Upper West Side).  We went to the one on the West Side and chose  appetizer samplers.  However, the restaurant serves a wide range of foods on its menu and on certain days there’s free live Latin music.  Too bad we missed the live music.  Next time.  Right, Sra?

Havana Central at The West End

2911 Broadway (between 113th & 114th Street)

212-662-8830

www.havanacentral.com

Corn-on-the-cob (rubbed in cheese and Cuban spices) and a shrimp empanada

Tostones con Salsa Chimichurri sauce (Fried green plantains with Chimichurri sauce) and Chorizo (Smoked Latin sausage).

Maduros and Chicharrones (Fried sweet plantain and chicken pieces)

For dessert, we shared Flan, a caramel custard.  I’ve been planning on making flan for a very long time.

I have a very nice recipe from Simply Recipes.  One of these days, I’ll find some time to make it.  One of these days.

Brick oven behind bar of  Sezz Medi´restaurant.

A few months ago, when I met with Dan of Salt Shaker, on his visit to New York, we walked by a restaurant, which I’d passed a million times but never paid attention.   Years ago, it used to be the site of an Ethiopian restaurant.  When that establishment closed, the Italian restaurant, Sezz Medi´ sprang up in its place.   I never looked at the restaurant, although I noticed that it always seemed busy.

Dan told me about how they had really good pizza there.  Made in a wood-fired brick oven.  He told me a story about how the owners,  brought the bricks from Italy, piece by piece, in their luggage when they were unable to bring the oven as a whole into the country.

Intrigued, I tried Sezz Medi´‘s pizza a few weeks later.   I was pleasantly surprised with my pizza.  I’d ordered a Margherita pizza, made from tomato, mozzarella and basil and it was good.  Another time I went with a friend and ordered the Ortolana pizza, made with eggplant, peppers, zucchini, tomato and mozzarella.  This was also good.  They serve about 15 different types of pizzas and other Italian dishes.

Trying their pizza and dishes should keep me busy for a while.

Paz

Sezz Medi´

1260 Amsterdam Avenue (West 122nd Street)

www.sezzmedi.com

Brick oven behind bar at Sezz Medi´

 Diners enjoying their diner at Sezz Medi´