Microplane Graters
You have to get these! They are the greatest cooks tools for your kitchen. I would recommend buying both sizes shown in the picture. I use the long narrow size for zesting citrus, grating ginger and garlic. The paddle shaped style is perfect for grating hard cheeses and chocolate.
One of our favorite restaurants is in Lambertville, NJ (across the river). It’s called Hamilton’s Grill Room. They have this quaint courtyard that they share with a bar called The Boat House. Truly a little house (very little) but so lovely. With a bar and some tables as you enter, up the narrow stairs there’s a small sitting area where you can gather and have a drink before heading across the courtyard for dinner at Hamilton’s. The Boat House gives off the feeling that we should all be drinking brandy in an oversized snifter, and somewhere in the place there should be a guy in a plaid blazer with those patches on his elbows smoking a pipe. It’s a place you could envision the great writers, like Hemingway, would hangout. One night we forgot to bring wine for dinner and Hamilton’s is BYOB. We ended up purchasing a bottle from The Boat House. We just loved it. Only about $35 from the bar, imagine my elation when I went to find it at the wine store and it was only $15 a bottle. Light and easy to drink and only $15! It’s worth a try if you like Pinot Noir. Ours was a 2008. Here’s the label:
4plates2table 