Country Living: What’s Country Now

Country Living Magazine (part of the Hearst empire) recently celebrated its March issue with a press event that showcased food that epitomize What’s Country Now, courtesy of a number of establishments in Brooklyn. Yvo was gracious enough to invite me along to the Hearst Building. The space just above the lobby was decked out with a bunch of small bar tables, a bar, a photo booth, and a projector showing the pages of the magazine on a wall, high above the crowd. A stage on one end held Astroglass, a bluegrass quartet from Brooklyn, who played pretty much the entire two-plus hours of the event.

What better way to begin the evening than with an egg cream? Brooklyn Farmacy was set up with seltzer, milk and what appeared to be Fox’s U-Bet buried in the ice tank. Built to perfection! Too bad they had to use plastic cups.

A few basic, pretty settings of cheeses and olives were set up on the perimeter in case the waitered hors d’oeuvres somehow escaped attention. These were aromatic, but not why I showed up so I passed.

Then the best example of country living, specifically cooking, of the evening started arriving from the kitchen. If you’ve yet to visit Pies ‘n’ Thighs, rest assured, we’ve covered it in various forms at The Feisty Foodie. This doesn’t mean you are absolved from your duty to enjoy it for yourself.

These just-about bite-size mini chicken biscuits were high on virtually every guest’s to-eat list. Look at the little globs of pure butter oozing from the bottom half. Delight in that crispy, perfectly-salted fried white meat. Savor that fluffy biscuit. Indulge. Multiple times.

Naturally we had to drink a little alongside. This punch was created by the folks at Fort Defiance, and delivered: wine, seltzer, pineapple, a slice of lemon, and rum, a very light touch with the flavors, nothing overpowering anything else.

Not pictured was a new beer from Sixpoint, their Saison, a very good Belgian-style ale that’s quite dry and spicy, thanks to a happy yeast strain. I’m looking forward to seeing it around town on tap, and I talked with Sixpoint rep Jeff a bit about it in between stuffing my face. Yes, it’s always about beer with me.

Lots of other foods were walked around, courtesy of Brooklyn purveyors, as apparently Brooklyn is “country” to Manhattanites: Brooklyn Larder, Four and Twenty Blackbirds, Peter Pan doughnuts, Mast Brothers chocolates (who were clearly in attendance), and the aforementioned Pies ‘n’ Thighs and Fort Defiance. This muffaletta was a better version of the sandwich than I can recall ever having in New York.

Thin-sliced salmon, simply-prepared and presented. Yvo enjoyed this.

A deviled egg, which sadly suffered from a bit of overdoneness. I was impressed at the wide variety offered us, but not everything could work, right?

Of course, how can you go wrong with a Peter Pan red velvet doughnut — their most popular, I heard from the staff. I devoured this with very little decorum. Hey, their fault for (initially) passing out whole doughnuts.

Yvo countered with a section of a Boston Cream-like doughnut with chocolate instead of… well, Boston in the center. Peter Pan just doesn’t seem to know how to make a poor doughnut.

A little chunk of Mast Brothers chocolate. Very good chocolate, as you might already be aware.

How do you make a short rib sandwich more fun? Make it mini, of course! The beef in these little guys was super-juicy and well-seasoned. But then I’m a sucker for little sandwiches made of good beef.

What’s that? Pizza/flatbread, with crumbled goat cheese and caramelized onion? Yes, please!

Last, and certainly not least, a honey-laden sweet, sweet pie, called, oddly enough, Honey Pie (no Beatles reference unintended, is my guess), with a little salt on top. Such a dense, wonderful little slice of slightly-gooey, very tasty goodness.

If this was an accurate representation of What’s Country Now, then I suppose I’ve been all turned around on the subject of being “Country”. So much good food and drink, and the atmosphere added immeasurably to the experience. Astroglass was a trip, and I think they deserve special mention. Virtually the entire set was instrumentals-only, and their repertoire ranged from Madonna to the Pixies. I can’t think of a time when I’ve enjoyed being regaled by fiddle, acoustic guitar and double bass as much.

Sadly, neither Yvo nor I managed to win anything in the business card raffle, but Country Living was more than generous in giving away an absolute ton of stuff from the issue, from picture frames to dinnerware to art. I’d like to thank our hosts for giving me a look at some new destinations in Brooklyn that I’ll be visiting soon, and for creating such an interesting, delicious event.

Please note that the event was courtesy of Country Living and their PR. I received no monetary compensation for this review, nor was I obliged in any way to post about the event, positively or otherwise. This is my own opinion and I feel it was unbiased; you are free to take from this what you will.