Second Helpings from Union Square Cafe: 140 New Recipes from New York's Acclaimed Restaurant [Hardcover]

Danny Meyer (Author), Michael Romano (Author), Duane Michals (Photographer)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 2, 2001

Ask New Yorkers to name their favorite restaurant and they are likely to reply: "Union Square Cafe." Indeed, Union Square Cafe has been ranked the city's most popular restaurant by the Zagat Survey for five consecutive years and has earned many of the food world's top honors, including a James Beard Award for Outstanding Restaurant of the Year, two three-star rankings from the New York Times, seven Awards of Excellence from Wine Spectator magazine, and the James Beard Foundation's Best Chef in New York Award for Michael Romano. What makes USC stand out in a sea of other great New York City restaurants? A simple but rare combination of extraordinary food, excellent wine, and the sort of warm, genuine hospitality one typically finds only in a neighborhood spot. In this new cookbook, proprietor Danny Meyer and executive chef and co-owner Michael Romano share the delicious dishes that have kept their customers coming back for more, year after year. Following the high standards for taste and accessibility set by their award-winning Union Square Cafe Cookbook, Second Helpings from Union Square Cafe offers more than 140 inspired recipes for everything from appetizers, soups, and salads to pastas, main courses, vegetables, side dishes, and desserts. These are the dishes that USC customers have come to know and love, including such favorites as a new version of their renowned Fried Calamari, Salt-Baked Chicken, Bollito di Vitello, Roasted Root Vegetables, and Blueberry-Lemon Meringue Pie.

But, more than simply a recipe collection, Second Helpings is a valuable kitchen resource for anyone interested in elevating his or her cooking to a new level. Michael teaches home cooks how to make their own pasta, create the juiciest chicken imaginable, correctly clean morels, and add new depth of flavor to all kinds of dishes, while Danny offers lively commentary and wine accompaniments for nearly every recipe. With their able guidance, even the most inexperienced cooks can turn out spectacular food with ease and joy.

Second Helpings captures the unique spirit of Union Square Cafe not just with recipes and animated text, but also with original black-and-white images by internationally acclaimed photographer Duane Michals. A longtime friend of USC, Duane has contributed his witty visual stories and restaurant vignettes in an innovative departure from standard food photography.

On every level Second Helpings from Union Square Cafe is a cookbook you'll treasure using again and again. Like the restaurant, it will become a familiar favorite and a trusted source of great food.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

The Union Square Cafe is consistently ranked New York City's favorite restaurant by the Zagat survey. Why? Superb yet relaxed food served in a setting both deluxe and friendly. Second Helpings from Union Square Cafe, the follow-up to the restaurant's proprietor Danny Meyer and chef-co-owner Michael Romano's Union Square Cafe Cookbook, offers readers 140 recipes for Union Square's popular fare--Italian-inflected "everyday" cooking taken to a higher, yummier, but completely cook-friendly power. Dishes like Butternut Squash and Bean Soup, Roasted Halibut Pugliese-Style, and Zucchini Purée with Marjoram exemplify the book's unique approach; simple in conception and easy to execute, they nonetheless pack flavor and style to burn.

Chapters cover appetizers to desserts, with sections devoted to pasta and risotto and to side dishes and condiments, such as the restaurant's much-loved Olive Mashed Potatoes and Apple-Pear Chutney. Sweets like Butterscotch Pudding with Brown Sugar Sauce and Chocolate Pudding Flan should also keep diners happy. A word must be said about the photographs of Duane Michals, whose signature storytelling style (depicting, for example, a seated couple's response to a cell-phone-using table neighbor) wonderfully echoes the sweetly knowing tone of the restaurant itself. With a section on basic preparations, the book should become a trusted kitchen friend. --Arthur Boehm

From Publishers Weekly

In the follow-up to the original Union Square Cafe Cookbook (which won a Julia Child Award for first book), Meyer and Romano offer more pleasant fare from the landmark New York restaurant where they are owner and chef, respectively. Many of these dishes are new interpretations that use classic Italian ingredients: Cornmeal-Crusted Ricotta Fritters are served with an anchovy dressing, and Fris‚e Salad with Bottarga and Grapefruit makes piquant use of Italy's pressed fish roe. Some non-Italian flavors infiltrate here and there as well: Chili and Sage-Rubbed Salmon is Southwestern in style, while Saut‚ed Shrimp Goan Style relies on cinnamon, cumin and other spices from India. Recipes which are divided into traditional chapters such as Appetizers and Main Courses are split approximately down the middle between complex projects that require a good deal of time in the kitchen (e.g., Zucchini Fazzoletti, homemade pasta with a pureed zucchini sauce) and relatively simple preparations (like Roasted Cauliflower with Tomato and Green Olives). Desserts like Fig and Walnut Crostata and Blueberry-Lemon Meringue Pie are appropriately rustic-modern, and wine suggestions for each dish are a nice touch. These recipes aren't filled with hard-to-find, exotic ingredients (aside from bottarga, which has cameos in a few), nor do offerings such as Michael's Garlic-Lemon Steak or Striped Bass with Tomato-Caper Sauce jolt the palate with surprising new sensations. The phenomenal, ongoing success of the Union Square Cafe itself proves just how appealing even simple and familiar foods can be when prepared with high-quality ingredients and adapted to American sensibilities. Duane Michaels provides b&w photos that narrate peculiar stories of hypothetical dining experiences in the restaurant.

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 352 pages
• Publisher: HarperCollins; 1st edition (October 2, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0060196475
• ISBN-13: 978-0060196479
• Product Dimensions: 9.4 x 7.7 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.8 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #962,663 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

42 of 43 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Sophisticated Recipes for Serious Foodies, October 5, 2001

By 

Michela (Seattle, WA, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Second Helpings from Union Square Cafe: 140 New Recipes from New York's Acclaimed Restaurant (Hardcover)

Since one of my favorite recipes (Grilled Marinated Filet of Tuna) comes from Danny Meyer's and Michael Romano's first cookbook, the award-winning Union Square Café Cookbook, I was eager to get their Second Helpings from Union Square Café cookbook. Adorned by the amusing, original b & w photos by Duane Michaels, Second Helpings is chock full of sophisticated recipes that have been specially adapted and thoroughly tested for the home chef from the Union Square Café repertoire of palate-pleasing seasonal offerings. While I would not suggest that a novice cook try most of these recipes, I do recommend Second Helpings for those of us who have been cooking at home for years, who are not able to be regulars at this fabulous three-star restaurant, and who want to make some exciting new variations on classic dishes, especially for entertaining at home.

Some of the recipes are summer and spring seasonal, such as Lemongrass Vichyssoise, Chilled Melon and Vodka Soup, Soft Shell Crabs with Tomato Nage, and Spring Risotto - I'll look forward to trying them in warmer weather. Others are perfect for harvest-time, fall, winter, and holiday cooking and baking - the first recipe I tried was Green Tomato Chutney, which used up my late-season bounty of unripe fresh tomatoes. I served it with my newest favorite dish - Chili and Sage-Rubbed Salmon, accompanied by buttered rice, with Plum Clafoutis for dessert, all accompanied by Champagne. (Almost every recipe is paired with excellent wine recommendations.)

Other recipes I can't wait to try are: Eggplant 'Meatballs' (meatless polpettine); Spaghettini con Bottarga (bottarga is sun-dried tuna or mullet roe, popular in Sardinia); Grilled Salmon with Lentil and Beet Vinaigrette, (which is also good on grilled shrimp or lobster); Sicilian-Style Salmon (salmon with tomatoes, raisins, olives, and almonds); Red Snapper with Cognac Sauce; Indian 'Bouillabaisse'; Michael's Garlic-Lemon Steak; and Bollito di Vitello, (which is served at USC every Wednesday). For the holidays, I am looking forward to making Roast Turkey with Apple-Cider Gravy and Maple-Roasted Sweet Potatoes.

For mashed-potato lovers, Second Helpings has four new variations! Also included is the recipe for USC's famous Italian Fries. For condiment lovers, there are four chutney recipes: green tomato, apple-pear, plum, and quince. For dessert lovers, there are many temptations - my favorites are the cookie recipes (chocolate chip-oatmeal and peanut butter).

The only drawback to this excellent new cookbook is that no timing is given for prep work or cooking of the recipes, and that there are almost no pictures of the finished dishes. Several recipes require that you start preparation the night before you plan to serve the dishes. I haven't found these things to be a problem though, but I do have to read through the recipes several times and try to figure out the time I'll need. For most recipes, but certainly not all, I recommend making them on free days or weekends, when you're not feeling rushed. Some of the recipes call for Indian spices or other ingredients that are easily available through mail order if you can't find them locally. What I love most about these new recipes is that when reading them I feel like Chef Romano (and Mr. Meyer) are chatting with me, advising me what pan or dish to use, and relaying anecdotes from their restaurant and from their travels.

Second Helpings is an excellent and exciting new cookbook. I plan to give it to my foodie friends for the holidays!

25 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Missed First Helping--But 2nd Was Great-Desiring 3rd, 4th, October 9, 2001

By 

rodboomboom (Dearborn, Michigan United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Second Helpings from Union Square Cafe: 140 New Recipes from New York's Acclaimed Restaurant (Hardcover)

This is wonderful stuff! Begins with unique photos, which are series of culinary shots that tell a story. They are delightful and so fun.

The recipes are powerful in their intense flavor, minimalist approach and creativity, both in new recipes and adaptations of famous, such as the Chicken Saltimbocca, which switches away from the veal, and adds cheese-egg-flour batter.

Also, knocked out by such as Grilled Lobster with Bruschetta Sauce and Indian "Bouillabaisse." For openers sure to hit the mark as favorites, try Suppli al Telefono, cheese filled rice balls or the Eggplant Meatballs. Dessert which combines two of my fettishes so exquisitely, Blueberry-Lemon Meringue Pie.

This is what I would rate a medium complexity cookbook in terms of skill level, and the ingredients are not too exotic to find. The book is supplemented with great instructions. Would have enjoyed photos of serving suggestions, but this in no way detracts from this work of the highest class! This one will continue to bless cooks who put its charm and class to use in their kitchens!

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Unusual but excessible recipes, September 26, 2002

By 

Stefanie N (Schuyler, VA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Second Helpings from Union Square Cafe: 140 New Recipes from New York's Acclaimed Restaurant (Hardcover)

Sometimes the ingredient lists are a bit daunting,especially if one lives outside of a major metropolitan area, but it's worth the effort. The impressive thing about the recipes included in Union Square Cafe's second cookbook is that the various flavors are distinct while working together. For example, a pasta dish with gorgonzola and fresh corn requires that you simmer the husks in a broth--what an odd notion and what a great result !
I would say that the procedures are straightforward, but time-consuming. These are recipes that you have to plan for; they are not last-minute, just home-from-work desperation dinners. With that in mind, these are tasty, perhaps even mind -(not to say waist-) expanding recipes.