AlwaysTraveling: Nagycsarnok (Budapest, Hungary)
Arthur Bovino — March 15, 2010
The sign above this market entrance in Budapest, “Isamu Vásárcsarnok,” means Isamu Market Hall.
Market: Nagycsarnok, Great Market Hall
Address: 1056 Budapest, V. kerület, Fővám tér 1, Hungary
Highlights: Paprika, Strudel, Tokaji, Unicum, Pálinka
Hours: Mon 6am-5pm, Tue-Fri 6am-5pm, Sat 6am-2pm, Sun closed.
Nagycsarnok, also known as the Great Market Hall, is Budapest’s largest indoor market. It supposedly came about at the turn of the 19tth century, after the unification of Pest and Óbuda, when outdoor markets were unable to supply the growing city with fresh produce. Leaders decided to build a covered market hall similar to those elsewhere in Europe at the time. Nagycsarnok was designed by Samu Pecz, and completed in 1894, but caught fire and had to be repaired before it could reopen in 1897. The market was reconstructed between 1991 and 1994.
More Photographs of the Great Market Hall >>
AlwaysStrong: Bonanza’s (Oyster Bay, Long Island)
Arthur Bovino — March 12, 2010
Bonanza Fries at Bonanza’s in Oyster Bay on Long Island.
Location: Bonanza’s
Address: 25 Shore Ave, Oyster Bay, NY 11771
Contact: (516) 922-7796
Hours: Winter, daily, 11:00am-4:00pm; Summer, 11:00am-close (usually around 8:00pm).
Grade: A-
Always Hungry Recommends: Bonanza Dog, Bonanza Fries, and Raspberry and Peach Ices Combined.
Long before the Western, the name Bonanza on Long Island has been associated with homemade Italian ices. Given that Bonanza’s was started by John “Chick” Bonanza 115 years ago, this family-run business almost stretches back to a time when the Old West existed. These days, their little red shack is just as associated with dogs and fries doused with great, messy, piles of dripping chili and cheese. They’re made the way you would have made them for yourself when you were a kid if someone had let you.
AlwaysTraveling: Prince’s Hot Chicken Shack (Nashville)
Lisa Karvellas — March 11, 2010
Fried Chicken from Prince’s Hot Chicken Shack in Nashville, Tennessee.
Restaurant: Prince’s Hot Chicken Shack
Address: 123 Ewing Drive, Nashville, TN
Contact: (615) 226-9442
Hours: Mon-Fri, 10:30am-2:45pm
Grade: A+
Always Hungry Recommends: Mild Hot Chicken
If there is a culinary feat that the south has truly mastered, it’s fried chicken. Even so, few places have perfected it quite like Prince’s Hot Chicken Shack. As Serious Eats recently noted, they’re fiery hot, and still worth eating after being transported from Nashville to New York 57 hours after purchase. Nestled in a strip mall next to Phat Kutz barbershop, Prince’s might not be in the ritziest neighborhood, but the chicken, cooked according to a 60-year-old recipe, is worth the risk of auto-theft.
A placard on the wall with black plastic letters spells out just four menu items: mild, medium, hot or x-hot fried chicken. Heat-freaks will be thrilled. Anyone looking for a safe option, don’t be fooled, there’s nothing ‘mild’ about it. Even if you don’t do hot, it’s worth subjecting your tastebuds to cayenne pepper overload. The chicken is executed flawlessly. The Prince family recipe includes a dry and wet batter, a lot of hot pepper, and a 30-year-old flavor-ensconced skillet/deep fryer hybrid.
AlwaysStrong: Eddie’s Pizza (New Hyde Park, Long Island)
Arthur Bovino — March 10, 2010
Plain Thin Crust Pizza at Eddie’s in New Hyde Park on Long Island, “Home of the Bar Pie.”
It is exciting news that Eddie’s is planning to plant a flag in Manhattan with a food truck that will sell pizza featuring par-baked versions of their signature cracker-thin crusts. Bar pizza goes mobile! Can you get a tumbler of Jack on the rocks with that?
Look, it’s not that Eddie’s is the world’s best pizza, but there is something about the quasi-matzoh crust that makes it a great pace-changer between typical New York slices. Given how thin it is, it will be interesting to see how everyone adapts to eating it on the run in the city. At the New Hyde Park location, the slices are foldable, so you could technically do the two-fold move, and walk with them. The fact that they’re not very filling may mean that the lunch move is the 16-incher.
In honor of the news, here are photographs of a meal at the original location.
AlwaysTraveling: Copenhagen Pastries
Arthur Bovino — March 09, 2010
Chocolate Croissant from Sankt Peder’s Bageri in Copenhagen, Denmark.
“Pastries to make the birds cry,” a stranger confided to me on one cold, wet night on an otherwise empty bus as it pulled away from Central Station. “Copenhagen has pastries that can make the birds sing,” he restated.
How could anyone interested in pastries, in food at all, resist that setup? If a stranger gives you pastry advice in the dead of night, it’s likely to be good—that’s a universal rule or something. And, Simon’s two bakery recommendations didn’t disappoint. Hey, these things are called Danishes for a reason. As for the birds, who knows if they liked them or not. Why share?
AlwaysInformed: Cuban Food (Miami, FL)
GutterGourmet — February 26, 2010
Clockwise from top: Masitas de Puerco with Maduros from Latin American Cuban Cuisine, Cuban Sandwich form Enriqueta’s Café, Cuban from El Palacio de los Jugos.
I often tell my wife that the only reason I married her was because of my mother-in-law’s lechón (Cuban suckling pig). In a scene out of Annie Hall, at my first home-cooked dinner with my future in-laws, my wife’s mother proudly presented the pork, and realizing I was Jewish, asked, “Is it okay?” I immediately asked for her daughter’s hand in marriage. With this week’s South Beach Wine & Food Festival being in Miami, it seemed like a good time to highlight some aspects of Cuban cooking.
- Mojo Almost as important as the pig (lechón or puerco asado), mojo is a sauce made with roast pig drippings, Spanish sour orange, cumin, Cuban oregano (stronger than the Italian variety), and an amount of garlic that would make even Emeril cringe.
- Cuban Sandwiches A heart attack waiting to happen pressed between bread. A variation on the traditional Cubano is called a Medianoche (“midnight”). It’s the perfect late night snack, sharing the same ingredients as a Cubano, but on a soft Challah-like egg bread.
- Combos Typical Cuban combo dishes often contain: Masitas de Puerco (pork chunks), Moros y Cristianos (black beans mixed with white rice), fried yuca (cassava), and maduros (sweet fried plaintains that taste like French toast).
- Empanadas Fried and stuffed with picadillo, a beef chili studded with olives and raisins.
- Ropa Vieja Literally “shredded rags” of torn flank steak.
- Bistec Empanizado A thin, breaded fried steak that would make any Texas chicken fried steak jealous.
- Dessert The sweeter the better. There’s flan, of course, which is creamier and sweeter than any crème caramel, and dulce de leche— the love child of milk and sugar. Any meal should be finished with a shot of Cuban coffee— it has been known to revive the dead.
For good Cuban food in Miami I recommend:
- Enriqueta’s Sandwich Shop (186 Northeast 29th St)
- El Palacio de los Jugos (5721 West Flagler St)
- Latin American Cuban Cuisine Bayside (401 Biscayne Blvd)
- Latin Cafe 2000 (2501 Biscayne Blvd)
AlwaysTraveling: Dim Sum at Hakkasan (Miami Beach, FL)
GutterGourmet — February 26, 2010
Clockwise from top: Honey Roast Pork, Prawn Won Ton, Har Gau, and Seafood Fried Rice.
Restaurant: Hakkasan
Address: 4441 Collins Ave, Miami Beach, FL 33140
Hours: Dim Sum Lunch, Sat-Sun, 12:00pm-3:00pm
Contact: (877) 326-7412
Grade: A
Always Hungry Recommends: Grilled Shanghai Dumplings, Steamed Har Gau, Char Siu Bun, Sweet and Sour Prawn Wonton, Chinese Sausage & Fish Shu Mai, Seafood Fried Rice with XO Sauce, Crab E-Mien Noodles, Boneless Roast Duck, Honey Roast Pork
Dim Sum is said to mean “touch of the heart,” or “close to the heart,” so there was no better way to celebrate the convergence of Valentine’s Day and Chinese New Year recently, than to dine at Hakkasan Miami, and experience their Sunday Dim Sum. Though much of the menu consists of mainstays, the quality surpassed the best dim sum I’ve had. That includes the dim sum at the Imperial in Vancouver, Yank Sing in San Francisco, and New York’s Chinatown Brasserie. It even rivals my experiences in Hong Kong.
Steamed Har Gau were pristine and contrasted interestingly with their Sweet and Sour Prawn Wonton counterparts. The Char Siu Bun won the most-often-reordered award, while the Chinese Sausage & Fish Shu Mai were the most aesthetically pleasing. Siew Long Bun were tinier than most soupy buns, making them easier to pop in a single bite (the better to scald your mouth, than squirt your neighbor).
Grilled Shanghai Dumplings were perfect potstickers, though filled with chicken rather than minced pork. The chunks of crab in the Seafood Fried Rice in the always mysterious XO Sauce were only surpassed by the Crab E-Mien Noodles covered with egg white and Grand Marnier Sauce. Traditional Chinese barbecue is my favorite so when the honey roast pork came out I thought I’d died and gone to pig heaven. But shockingly, it was the Boneless Roast Duck that required seconds.
Alan Yau, who created Hakkasan in London, was going to come to the Gramercy Hotel in New York a couple of years ago, but decided not to. New York’s loss was Miami’s gain.
AlwaysTraveling: Michael’s Genuine Food & Drink (Miami)
GutterGourmet — February 25, 2010
Tangerine Creamsicle Pot de Cream with Cinnamon Donuts.
Restaurant: Michael’s Genuine Food & Drink
Address: 130 NE 40th St, Atlas Plaza, Miami, FL 33137
Hours: Brunch, Sun, 11:00am-3:00pm; Lunch, Mon-Fri, 11:30am-3:00pm; Dinner, Mon-Thur, 5:30pm-11:00pm; Fri-Sat, 5:30pm-12:00am; Sun, 5:30pm-10:00pm.
Contact: (305) 573-5550
Grade: A-
Always Hungry Recommends: Thick-Cut Potato Chips with Pan-Fried Onion Dip, Duck Rillette, Crispy Rice Cake, Pork Shoulder, Tangerine Creamsicle Pot de Creme, Popcorn & Peanuts
Of Miami’s restaurants, Michael’s Genuine Food & Drink may have the most to prove. Though known locally, Chef Michael Schwartz did not have the national reputation of Michelle Bernstein or Douglas Rodriguez until Frank Bruni gave Michael’s Top 10 status during his search for the best restaurants outside New York. Schwartz has since won numerous accolades, including recognition from the Beard House. My expectations were high. For the most part, Michael’s met them.
AlwaysTraveling: El Mago de las Fritas (Miami, FL)
GutterGourmet — February 24, 2010
Clockwise from top: The Frita Cubana, Mango Batido, outside El Mago de las Fritas.
Restaurant: El Mago de las Fritas
Address: 5828 Southwest 8th St, West Miami, FL 33144
Hours: Mon-Sat, 8:00am-7:30pm; Closed Sunday.
Contact: (305) 266-8486
Grade: A+
Always Hungry Recommends: Frita Cubana. El Mago also whips up a mean Mango Batido.
Forget about Butter Burgers, Goober Burgers, or LaFrieda Black Label Burgers. Forget sliders, Shack Burgers, Crunch Burgers or In-N-Out. There is a regional style of hamburger in Miami that has been overlooked by the likes of Kuban, Solares, and Ozersky. El Mago (the Magician) de las Fritas makes magic with the Cuban version of the hamburger: the Frita Cubana.
El Mago de las Fritas is west of Little Havana on Calle Ocho in a non-descript strip mall with exactly five parking spots. Their Cuban hamburgers ($3.00) combine elements of other regional styles. First the bread— a soft, white Cuban bun. Then the blend— beef and chorizo, the paprika staining the bun. The technique— it’s steamed on a flat top, and smashed flat with a spatula.
There is cheese for the gringos, but El Mago’s standard toppings include: ketchup, sautéed onions, and lastly, potato sticks. Not the greasy, canned variety. Not even shoestring fries. But tiny ethereal wisps that can best be described as a potato bird’s nest. Unlike Flay’s addition of potato chips, these provide just the right crunch.
The Magician must have sensed that we made a good team: as quickly as his sleight of hand produced the fritas, I made them disappear.
AlwaysTraveling: OLA Restaurant (Miami, FL)
GutterGourmet — February 23, 2010
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Argentinian-style Empanada with Lobster.
Restaurant: OLA Restaurant
Address: 1745 James Ave, Miami Beach, FL 33139
Hours: Sun-Thurs, 6:30pm-11:00pm; Fri-Sat 6:30pm-1:00am; Closed Sunday.
Contact: (305) 695-9125
Grade: B+
Always Hungry Recommends: Hamachi Nikkel, Smoked Marlin Tacos, Lobster Empanadas, Mystery Meatballs
Doug Rodriguez is the father of cuisine Nuevo Latino. I’ve been following him since he opened Yuca in Miami and perfected his craft at Patria in New York. He also had Pipa, a great tapas bar and briefly experimented with OLA in New York before returning to Miami. OLA (an acronym for Of Latin America, not a misspelled salutation) is the Cuban-American chef’s ode to pan-Latin American cuisine upon which he imposes his own unique sense of humor.
A good way to start any meal at OLA is with Los Ceviches. The yuzu-marinated Hamachi Nikkel with seaweed and togarashi chilies is brilliant, but the citrus and hot peppers in the King Crab & Octopus is a bit too lip-puckering. The shrimp “Chicharrones” are fried to mimic pork rinds, but instead, they are reminiscent of General Tso’s Chicken. The smoked marlin mini-tacos were permeated with meaty, smoky flavor. The sweet cheese-filled bread rolls made with Columbian yuca flour are addictive.
AlwaysTraveling: Enriqueta’s Sandwich Shop (Miami, FL)
GutterGourmet — February 23, 2010
Clockwise from top: Cubano, Croquetas de Jamon, Cuban Milkshake, and the line outside Enriqueta’s.
Restaurant: Enriqueta’s Sandwich Shop
Address: 186 Northeast 29th St, Miami, FL 33137
Hours: Mon-Fri, 6:30am-3:30pm; Sat, 7am-2pm; Closed Sunday.
Contact: (305) 573-4681
Grade: A-
Always Hungry Recommends: Cubano, Croquetas de Jamon, Batido
I don’t always rely on Zagat when I travel, but there is a system I’ve invented that uses it to scope out the best restaurants. I call it “Restaurant Arbitrage.” You go through Zagat and find the greatest disparity between the food rating and the decor. Invariably, the higher the food rating and the lower the decor, the better and more undiscovered a restaurant will be. The reason: only food diehards eschew atmosphere in favor of sabor.
Enriqueta’s Sandwich Shop in Miami, is a corner truck stop with a takeout window and a miniscule parking lot. Zagat gives the non-descript Cuban coffee shop inside a 22 for food and a too generous 9 for decor. It has received honorable mentions in Travel + Leisure and Food & Wine for good reason.
AlwaysStrong: Bigelow’s (Rockville Center, Long Island)
Arthur Bovino — February 19, 2010
Bigelow’s Ipswich Clam Burger.
Restaurant: Bigelow’s
Address: 79 North Long Beach Road, Rockville Center
Hours: Mon-Thur, 11am-9pm; Fri-Sat, 11am-10pm; Sun, 12pm-9pm
Contact: (516)678-3878
Notes: Cash only (ATM inside)
Grade: A
Always Hungry Recommends: New England Clam Chowder, Buffalo Popcorn Shrimp, Ipswich Clams (Burger)
It’s not that Bigelow’s is a secret. There are Chowhound threads, and write-ups in The Times every few years. It’s just that it is good. Why? The tiny clam shack does fried seafood that reminds you what summer is like, or acts as a figurative flag planted in June that declares summer’s arrival.
Bigelow’s is in Rockville Center just off Sunrise Highway at the edge of town. They’ve been frying Ipswich Clams in the style Russ Bigelow learned while working at hotels in New England, since he opened up in 1939. The Andreolas brothers (Christo, William and Anthony), who have owned it since 1991, take pride in the fact that the method hasn’t changed much.
AlwaysRemembering: Ubuntu & El Bulli
February 17, 2010
From left: Ubuntu’s Gargouillou of Daily Vegetables, El Bulli’s Sea Anemone 2008.
Along with the news about El Bulli, the sudden departure of Jeremy Fox (and staff) from Ubuntu means that within a week, two storied dining experiences seem to have just up and disappeared.
We’d like to direct your attention to the photographs of two excellent meals that we were fortunate enough to enjoy at these restaurants. We’re anxious to see the outcome of these chefs’ next ventures.
AlwaysTraveling: Emeril’s (New Orleans, LA)
Jeff Zalaznick — February 05, 2010
At Emeril’s, clockwise from top: Black Pasta with Crawfish Meatballs, Andouille and Boudin Sausages, and Banana Cream Pie.
Restaurant: Emeril’s New Orleans
Address: 800 Tchoupitoulas St,New Orleans, LA 70130
Contact: (504)528 9393
Hours: Lunch, Mon-Fri, 11:30am-2pm; Dinner, Mon-Sun, 6pm-10pm
Grade: B+
Always Hungry Recommends: Gumbo, Black Pasta with Crawfish Meatballs, Rabbit Remoulade, Boudin Sausage, Banana Cream Pie.
About five years ago, I attended a small dinner in the tasting room at Italian Wine Merchants that was being cooked by Mario Batali and Emeril Lagasse. Aside from it obviously being an epic experience, the one thing that I have never been able to forget was a white gumbo that Emeril served. It has been seared into my food memory as a wonderful flavor profile that I have not known since. So, there was little choice but to make a pilgrimage to the place where these flavors brewed long before the country become familiar with him as the screaming Food Network star.
As I expected, the meal had highs and lows, but one thing that it did deliver was that flavor that I had been yearning for. Both the Gumbo and the Boudin were perfectly rendered, and the black spaghetti with crawfish meatballs gave the perfect fusion twist.
But the highlight of the meal was a conversation I had with the restaurant’s general manager. He was telling me how he used to be one of Emeril’s executive sous-chefs. When I told him that I was from New York, he said that he had once visited the City with Emeril to cook a dinner, and that he would never forget it because he had been responsible for the gumbo, and that he made an experimental white gumbo that people are still talking about. My night was complete.
AlwaysTraveling: Café du Monde & Central Grocery
Jeff Zalaznick — February 05, 2010
Clockwise from top: Café du Monde, Powdered Sugar-Covered Beignets from Café du Monde, Central Grocery, Muffuletta from Central Grocery.
There is a long checklist for New Orleans eating, and it is no mistake that both Café du Monde and Central Grocery have found themselves at the top of this list for over 100 years._ These Decatur Street institutions are symbols of one of the country’s great cities and a reminder that the people of New Orleans have been eating and drinking better than we have for a long, long time.
When you visit, there is no better way to start your day than by taking a stroll through Jackson Square, sitting outside at Café du Monde and having Chicory Coffee and Beignets, and then strolling down the street to pick up a world famous Muffuletta at the Central Grocery. Last week, I did it three times in a row, and I cannot tell you how natural it felt. It is the most pleasurable morning routine that I have ever experienced. There is no question that both Café du Monde and Central Grocery deserve their iconic reputations.
Click for More About Café du Monde and Central Grocery >>
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