Photo by Maria Helena Carey, who would love it if you got her one of those.
We all know someone who is a little obsessed by food. High-brow, low-brow: this person will eat his or her way out of a paper bag. This person may, in fact, eat the paper bag, if he or she comes across a good paper bag recipe.
Sometimes, we may turn to this person for a good recipe or a restaurant recommendation.
Sometimes, we may deride them by calling them “foodies”, with a certain nasal sneer.
And sometimes, we have to buy these freaks a present.
The Hill is awash in tiny little niche places which have at least one or two food or food related items sure to please any discerning taste; but by far, if you’re going to be shopping for the food snob in your life, you need to plan a trip to P&C Market. As a matter of fact, I kind of feel that this epicure-themed suggestion post could very well begin and end at this tiny powerhouse of distinction: from an entire shelf with spices by Albert Menes, the most precious and beautiful spices you’ve ever seen (The nutmeg comes with a tiny grater! The saffron comes in tiny vials within the spice jar! What the heck is Colombo and why does it look just like curry??); to another shelf displaying the mind- and tastebud-blowing array of Mariage Freres teas; to all manner of imports to prepare the kind of authentic dish which you don’t have at the restaurant aimed at the stereotypical American tourist, but at the tiny and unassuming family restaurant you found in a tiny side road in, say, Northern Spain, where they’ve been preparing those very beans for centuries; to the most fragrant and lychee-licious gummies like they sell at Asian markets; P&C has food dreams made reality. And guess what? P&C would most likely carry the wine that accompanied the aforementioned beans, or one that is a damn good approximation! How they manage to pack so much delightful snootiness in such a reduced area is truly beyond me, but if anyone has a recipe in which you can use White Truffle Peelings (which you can obtain at P&C for $57 per can), you can pass it along with a can or two as a Christmas present to me.
If P&C doesn’t have what you’re looking for (you weirdo), how about Hill’s Kitchen then? You may say I have a weird spice fixation, but they also have the most darling little Tsp-brand teaspoonful pouches, which makes them practical as well as really, really cute. If spices are not your thing (I’m not judging), then how about a local taste of awesome? I’m talking about giving the epicure in your life some Uncle Brutha’s hot sauce! Pretty much everything in life tastes better with a little hot sauce on it (especially those dishes you’re supposed to eat because someone lovingly burned them to perfection).
Foodies by definition are a bit of a snooty lot, and probably a population subset which would only like to receive the most organic and handgrown of things. Maybe a french press and a coffee grinder from Hill’s Kitchen paired with an exquisitely roasted fair-trade, fair-everything pound of coffee from Peregrine Espresso would satisfy your little guzzler both ethically and caffeinically. A cheaper version of the breakfast theme could come in the guise of one of those awesome spreads from Le Pain Quotidien (the berry one is especially nice), paired with a challah braid or a baguette from either there or from Marvelous Market (where you can also stock up on fine chocolate bars and all manner of snooty stocking-stuffers– children need to know that not all milk chocolate was created with extra sugar).
My last suggestion –and I realize this brings my advice session to a tacky, brutal end, but you’re just going to have to live with this– would be to inquire around the Hill and see which restaurants offer gift certificates (hint: probably most). Someone who is willing to roast a paper bag would probably appreciate a gift certificate to one of the many fun restaurants we have around the neighborhood. Giving what’s right for someone is not tacky, so save to protests, Miss Manners.
But surely, it’s not all food out there: you need booze to give, receive, and to survive the holidays. Stay tuned for Nichole’s post next week on what to get the Hill Drinker in you life!