{"id":543,"date":"2016-09-16T17:27:49","date_gmt":"2016-09-16T17:27:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/twiceifilikeit.com\/?p=543"},"modified":"2016-09-16T17:27:49","modified_gmt":"2016-09-16T17:27:49","slug":"uptown-to-amali","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/twiceifilikeit.com\/?p=543","title":{"rendered":"Uptown to Amali"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Feeling frozen from a day locked in air-conditioning, we were thrilled to snag one of two tiny outdoor tables at Amali to savor the tolerable evening heat. Tucked steps away from Bloomingdales, on the north side of 60<sup>th<\/sup> street, Amali brings something special to the UES. A cozy atmosphere, friendly and attentive service, and killer martinis give distinctive credit to the already phenomenal Mediterranean-inspired cuisine. We had a number of delicious plates at Amali, but what stood out most were the Feta and the Kofte. Oh and the martinis \u2013 but, of course, the martinis.<\/p>\n<div id='gallery-1' class='gallery galleryid-543 gallery-columns-2 gallery-size-thumbnail'><figure class='gallery-item'>\n\t\t\t<div class='gallery-icon landscape'>\n\t\t\t\t<a href='https:\/\/twiceifilikeit.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/09\/feta.jpg'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" src=\"https:\/\/twiceifilikeit.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/09\/feta-150x150.jpg\" class=\"attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail\" alt=\"\" style=\"width:100%;height:75%;max-width:640px;\" \/><\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/div><\/figure><figure class='gallery-item'>\n\t\t\t<div class='gallery-icon landscape'>\n\t\t\t\t<a href='https:\/\/twiceifilikeit.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/09\/kofte.jpg'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" src=\"https:\/\/twiceifilikeit.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/09\/kofte-150x150.jpg\" class=\"attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail\" alt=\"\" style=\"width:100%;height:71.25%;max-width:640px;\" \/><\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/div><\/figure>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\n<p><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">Warm Feta with Caramelized Figs, Chili, Arugula, Walnuts<\/span><\/p>\n<p>This dish was unlike anything I\u2019ve ever had before. I became hooked on warm and\/or flaming cheese when traveling through Greece, but this presentation and flavor fusion was soul-warming. Served in a cast iron skillet, two flat blocks of feta were heated to perfection and topped with perfectly caramelized (and oh so sweet!) halved figs. Arugula, gently tossed in what I assume was a reduction of the fig and balsamic, was placed on top of the hot cheese and smattered with warm walnuts. Every bite lent a different balance to the sheep\u2019s milk base &#8211; the perfect sweetness from the fruit, contrasted by the pepper of the arugula and chili.<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">Lamb Kofte<\/span><\/p>\n<p>Also served in a cast iron skillet, these small lamb kofte were perfectly seasoned with cumin, onion and paprika. The sauce in which the meat balls were baked, though, was most delectable. A rather spicy tomato-based sauce sprinkled with chunks of feta and parsley, it was impossible to deny dipping every last bite of pita in the sharply but sweet braising reduction. I would have literally eaten this sauce \u201coff a Turkish towel\u201d as my grandfather might have said.<\/p>\n<p>I can\u2019t finish without noting also the Warm Marinated Olives with Fennel, Rosemary, Chili and Orange Peel. Amali clearly has their olive game down to a science, but I realized at this meal that the presentation of warm olives is a most simple and glorious introduction for the palate.<\/p>\n<p>Lest we forget the martinis\u2026<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Feeling frozen from a day locked in air-conditioning, we were thrilled to snag one of two tiny outdoor tables at Amali to savor the tolerable evening heat. Tucked steps away from Bloomingdales, on the north side of 60th street, Amali brings something special to the UES. A cozy atmosphere, friendly and attentive service, and killer&hellip; <a class=\"more-link\" href=\"https:\/\/twiceifilikeit.com\/?p=543\">Continue reading <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Uptown to Amali<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-543","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","entry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/twiceifilikeit.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/543","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/twiceifilikeit.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/twiceifilikeit.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/twiceifilikeit.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/twiceifilikeit.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=543"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/twiceifilikeit.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/543\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":549,"href":"https:\/\/twiceifilikeit.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/543\/revisions\/549"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/twiceifilikeit.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=543"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/twiceifilikeit.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=543"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/twiceifilikeit.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=543"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}