Yum

Mark and I talk often about how we could ever leave New York, and where we could live. San Fransisco is his ideal (cooler summers, beautiful buildings) but I'm wary of how clean it looks there (I have been brainwashed by the grunge and graffiti).

And what's keeping us here? Snobbiness? The need to be where the party is? Absolutely not. It's the food. Neither of us could move far away from our favorite Ethiopean place (Meskerem on 47th) or Afghani place (Khyber Pass on St. Mark's). It's that simple. We love our eats. (Hence my recent diet).

This weekend, to widen our circle of restaurants, Mark and I went to Fort Greene, Brooklyn. A friend had mentioned a barbeque place and we could not resist.

I hadn't been back to Fort Greene since I looked for an apartment, last summer. It's a very pretty neighborhood with brownstones, trees, the Brooklyn Academy of Music, cool shops and several great restaurants. The prices of apartments to rent and buy has skyrocketed recently. Prices have easily doubled since 2003.

Smoke Joint, on South Elliot and Flatbush Avenue, turned out to be delectable. Said Mark on several occasions, 'Oh my god.'

We had a full rack of baby back pork ribs that was slathered in bbq sauce and burnt just so, mac and cheese, and cornbread. I now realize I should have taken an 'after' picture, for a full effect.

Yes, I'm on a diet so I did not have any of the cornbread (!).