HUNGRY GERALD

And, what are T-Ravs, you may ask? Well. they are Toasted Ravioli. Though described as “toasted,” these ravioli are, in fact, fried. They are a St. Louis treat, available in many of that city’s Italian restaurants and many other eateries. Yogi Berra, reared in St. Louis’ Hill neighborhood, said he missed the ravioli treat when his career brought him to New York, a big town with lots of ravioli but no T-Ravs. All of this was recalled by HG as HG read the obituary of the most illustrious of St. Louis citizens, baseball great Stan “The Man” Musial. HG once dined at his restaurant, Stan and Biggie’s, and had HG’s first and only experience with T-Ravs. They were okay but the real hit of the meal was an exemplary broiled calf’s liver with bacon and fried potatoes. Charred on the outside. Pink on the inside. Perfect. HG’s Mom made an Eastern European/Jewish version of ravioli — kreplach. Kreplach had thicker skins than ravioli and were filled with chopped beef and onions. Mom boiled them in her golden chicken soup with additions of noodles, kasha, boiled onions and carrots and mondels, airy little croutons. (In the absence of kreplach, the soup got matzo balls). As a special treat for little HG, Mom would retrieve some kreplach from the soup and fry them in chicken fat for lunch. The dish got a big hit of sour cream and lots of coarse salt and ground pepper. With apologies to the the memory of “The Man,” these beat the hell out of T-Ravs.

Its true: Santa Fe doesn’t immediately pop up when thinking about Japanese food. While you do find a lot of New Mexico chili peppers, there’s also very good Japanese (and Italian) food available. HG’s favorite for sushi, sashimi and tempura is the very good Shohko Cafe. But, for delightful creativity and outstanding ramen and izakaya-style food, Shibumi Ramenya is the place. Here’s the lunch HG and Gifted AR, HG’s granddaughter, had recently. Started with a delightful burdock and carrot salad — slivers of burdock root and carrot sprinkled with sesame seeds and spiked with some fiery sesame oil. Healthy and delicious. Then, spicy pork gyoza, which, for some reason, reminded HG of the beef stuffed kreplach that HG’s Mom used to craft. Be assured, Shibumi’s very unkosher gyoza are better. Followed by big bowls of Tonkotsu ramen soup with springy noodles and melt-in-your-mouth slices of korubata pork. And, then the perfect dessert of strawberries and blackberries with custard and jam. Heaven. Will soon be back to sip superb sake and browse through the array of small plates utilizing the grill (yakitori) and the fryer (tempura). Must try the barbeque pork belly with eggplant; the cod and potato croquettes; the chicken yakitori and many other mouth watering plates. It’s all a tribute to chef/owner Eric Stapelman, a man totally dedicated to freshness and flavor. Before lunch, Eric gave HG and AR a tour of his back yard garden where he’s growing his own tomatoes, greens and herbs. From the garden to the plate with a touch of magic. That’s what Stapelman and Shibumi are all about.