AlwaysInformed: August’s Best RUB Burger

Arthur Bovino — September 01, 2010

The Donut Burger, a special Monday night burger at RUB BBQ (August 2nd).

Those who know, eat RUB BBQ’s special Monday night burger. Those who don’t, rhapsodize about Five Guys. Seriously, don’t take our word for it, as weekly Monday night burger regulars, Jonathan Burr and Andrew “Goose” Gussman will tell you, Scott Smith and Andrew Fischel’s weekly special is more than a shtick. The afternoon announcement is a great what’s-the-special-gonna-be-today moment almost powerful enough to make you think Monday’s closer to Friday than it is. Rather than a weekly update, here’s a month’s roundup of the Monday burgers, including our pick for August’s blue ribbon winner.

More Monday night burgers at RUB BBQ >>

Featured Brunch: Bao Noodles

Maryse Chevrière — February 19, 2010

Clockwise from top: Exterior, Pork Banh Mi with Fried Egg, Interior, and Seafood Congee.

We’ve recently enjoyed Mexican and Italian spins on breakfast sandwiches, but how about a Vietnamese rendition? Well, the Pork Banh Mi with Fried Egg is the star of Bao Noodles’ new brunch menu.

The chewy baguette is loaded with long strips of breaded, fried pork that resemble ham steak. There’s tomato, slightly sour, pickled vegetables, and two fried eggs that put this sandwich in the morning meal category. Break the yolks first and let it act a sauce. The massive portion makes it great for sharing.

The other thing to get is the Congee. It’s a warm, satisfying, stick-to-your-ribs, winter porridge. Bao Noodles serves two— one with meat (duck, pork and chicken), and the other with seafood (shrimp, crab and squid). Both are very good, but if pressed to choose between them, opt for the meat. Soy sauce and fried garlic chips are served on the side for mixing in— and you should. The salt and crunch enhance the flavor and texture.

Of the other options, the braised Pork Belly, though visually unappealing, is savory and tender. The accompanying fat-laced sticky rice is reason enough to order it. During brunch, you can also order from the regular menu. If you’re in the mood for noodles, the Beef on Rice Vermicelli is the move. Regardless, at $9.99 per person for an entrée and cocktail, brunch at Bao Noodles is a great value.

Featured Restaurant: Ma Pêche

Jeff Zalaznick — January 27, 2010

Clockwise from top: Bánh Mì Maison, Bánh Mì au Poulet, Rice Noodles and Sausage, Pork Ribs.

Momomaniacs have had some time to regain composure since November’s news that Má Pêche was serving a limited menu in the mezzanine lounge of the Chambers Hotel in Midtown. Still anticipating the full restaurant’s official debut, we recently checked in for a quick lunch.

You sit in the mezzanine lobby of the hotel, at tables that were not meant for eating. If the goal is for the seating to be more uncomfortable than at the downtown restaurants, than they have succeeded. Comfort is not the point though, and as is no surprise, the food is consistent with the high quality you’ve come to expect from the Momofuku brand. The three terrine Bánh Mì Maison is thoroughly on-point and a welcome addition to the Bahn Mi debate. It definitely outshines the other still very good sandwich option: a chicken rendition featuring the classic Momofuku-reconstituted-chicken-squares that we have learned to love and appreciate. As always, you’ll want to add Sriracha to both.

The Calamari Salad is refreshing, but overall it is a little flat. Instead, opt for an excellent dish of soft rice noodles interspersed with fatty, salty pork sausage that screams: Asian Bolognese. A special of fall-off-the-bone tender Pork Ribs covered in a sticky, sweet glaze also provided enjoyment. For dessert, a rich Peanut Butter cookie from Milk Bar that is most certainly worth eating. I will go back when I am in Midtown during lunch time, and I cannot wait for the main restaurant to open.

Best of 2009: A Few Dishes

December 22, 2009

A few of AlwaysHungry’s favorite dishes of 2009.

There is no question that a lot of eating has gone down this year. Rookies have introduced new favorites and standbys have reminded us that oldies can still be goodies. To celebrate the conclusion of the ninth year of the aughts, we’ve compiled a little photo tour of a few of our favorite dishes and organized them into nine of our favorite food groups.

Click Here for a few of AlwaysHungry's Favorite Dishes of 2009 >>

AlwaysInvestigating: Sick of Tuna? Try Nicky’s Sardines

The Gluttoness — October 29, 2009

Nicky’s Sardine Banh Mi, $5.

The “Classic Vietnamese Sandwich” is the obvious order on any visit to Nicky’s Vietnamese Restaurant (view). It features pâté, Vietnamese ham and roasted ground pork beneath the customary banh mi garniture of slightly pickled carrot, cucumbers and cilantro. But recently, I was tempted by a Sardine Banh Mi, which I was surprised to see as one of the menu’s few alternatives. The proliferation of Asian fish sandwiches is evident at even the simplest establishments.

When I was young, my Grandfather made sardine sandwiches for me all the time. Considering my earlier days were marred by pain-in-the-ass eating habits (including three years of vegetarianism), I’m surprised now that I always accepted these canned fish sandwiches. Nicky’s rendition doesn’t include the tomato, onion and vinegar accoutrements of my childhood, but it still made for a nostalgic lunch.

Both sandwiches begin with toasted bread. But Nicky’s warm baguettes are far superior to my Grandfather’s sliced rye. They’re a worthy base for any great sandwich. The slathering of mayo instantly melts into the toasted roll’s soft underbelly. The oven-roasted sardines lose some of their natural oil, but the creamy bed of spicy mayonnaise moistens them. The combined flavors taste much like your typical, albeit spiced, tuna sandwich, although the hefty handful of cilantro and hearty vegetable crunch creates a distinctly Vietnamese profile. With a squirt of sriracha, the sardines’ mild fishiness disappears.

The Sardine Banh Mi is definitely different, and satisfying on its own, but ultimately, if you’re into heat and not averse to swine, then when it comes to grabbing banh mi at Nicky’s, nothing beats the classic.

AlwaysPartying: Oyster Odyssey

Arthur Bovino — August 05, 2009

The John Dory’s Hangtown Fry ($17) is served during brunch.

New York City is a great place for raw bar and fried oysters (see AHNY’s National Oyster Day post). As delicious as these oyster preparations are, other classic and interesting preparations shouldn’t be missed. Take the Hangtown Fry, an oyster and bacon omelette made famous in California during the Gold Rush. Its origin is one of those epic food myths.

It starts in a place forty miles east of Sacramento that was called Dry Diggins until three desperadoes were hanged from the town’s giant oak tree, after which it became Hangtown. Supposedly, in 1849 a miner who had found gold walked into the El Dorado Hotel across the street from the tree and asked the bartender for the most expensive meal possible. The result was a combination of bacon from the East, eggs from the coast and oysters that had been packed on ice and brought in from the San Francisco Bay.

The dish outlasted the town’s name and the hotel. Today, Hangtown is known as Placerville, and the El Dorado was replaced in 1857 after burning down a year before, by the The Cary House Hotel, which still stands. Allegedly one of the only places in town to regularly serves the Hangtown Fry is Chuck’s Restaurant. But that’s okay because you don’t have to go to California to strike culinary gold.

The John Dory’s rendition has to rank up there with the city’s best egg dishes. Eggs are creamy. Bacon is substituted with a thick prosciutto that has the texture of tender corned beef. Slices of pickled jalapeño add bursts of a light vinegary flavor and heat also spread throughout the dish. The oysters are only slightly cooked. The pooled flavors lining the plate’s bottom when you finish are worth wiping up with the delicious Parker House rolls.

The Hangtown Fry is just one of New York City’s many notable oyster dishes on the following Oyster Odyssey that a true bivalve-lover should try to check off their list.

Click to see AHNY's checklist of New York City's notable oyster dishes. >>

FirstLook: Aamchi Pao

Arthur Bovino — June 17, 2009

“There’s always a right time to reinvent yourself,” Chef Surbhi Sahni, told us recently at Aamchi Pao.

No, Chef Sahni isn’t leaving her post as Devi’s pastry chef. But she has joined Nandini Mukherjee as co-owner at the reincarnation of Mukherjee’s West Village restaurant of almost six years, the Indian Bread Co. As previously reported, the Stuffed Parathas and Naanwhichs (grilled Indian “panini”) are gone. There are still Kathi Rolls, but the Naan sandwiches have been replaced by “Pao,” renditions of Pav Bhaji, a Mumbai street food that is essentially an Indian Slider. The word “Pav,” in Marathi (the language of southwestern India), is said to come from Pão, the Portuguese word for bread.

Click here to read more about Aamchi Pao's Mumbai Sliders >>

AlwaysQuestioning: Terrance Brennan & Bradford Thompson of Bar Artisanal

The Gluttoness — May 26, 2009

Together, Executive Chef, Terrance Brennan (of Artisanal and Picholine) and Consulting Chef, Bradford Thompson (formerly of Lever House) are delighting diners with their ““French”:http://www.alwayshungryny.com/thought-for-food/tag/French/ inspired” interpretation of Mediterranean small plates in an extension of the Artisanal brand, Bar Artisanal. AlwaysHungryNY recently sat down with these two chefs who have turned the failed Trigo space into a grand bistro in TriBeCa. When the kitchen at Bar Artisanal has settled into a routine, Brad hopes to open a restaurant with French and West Indian themes. In the meantime, the two are perfecting dishes, and eating plenty along the way.

AHNY: Are you Always Hungry?
BT: I’d say so, yeah…for adventure.
TB: No, because I nosh all day, especially with the new restaurant.

AHNY: So, what did you eat today?
BT: Two espressos and a cappuccino. We had a photo shoot all day. Oh, and granola.
TB: We had the photo shoot, so I tasted the Pizza, Chutney, Steak Tartare}thought-for-food/tag/Steak-Tartare/, Roquefort Parfait, Chickpea Frites, Oysters and Hangar Steak.

Brennan & Thompson on trends, snack foods and 'must-have' ingredients >>

AlwaysInvestigating: Ippudo’s Buns

The Hungry Goat — April 17, 2009

Whoever said that steamed buns are the new banh mi was definitely on to something. Now that the wildly popular Vietnamese sandwich has had its glamorous New York Times Dining cover story, the New York City gastrosphere is hungry for its next Asian snack obsession.

Of course, David Chang’s Momofuku team deserves credit for getting the ball rolling on this Asian open-faced bun craze, with Fatty Crab later adding fuel to the fire. And now, it seems that imitations of this signature open style are popping up on menus all over town. As we reported earlier this week, Rickshaw Dumpling Bar has hopped on the bandwagon with their new Braised Pork Belly and Bulgogi Beef Buns, and Macao Trading Co. started featuring a version on their Late Night Menu last week.

Ippudo’s buns are another example of this trend. Buns are sold two per order ($8), either pork belly (above left) or chicken (above right). Both are served on thick, doughy steamed buns (larger than Rickshaw or Momofuku), and are dressed with fresh lettuce and a squirt of mayo. While not as interesting as Momofuku’s crunchy pickled cucumbers, the crisp iceberg lettuce provides a welcome textural contrast, particularly to the pork. The pork belly, while tender, could benefit from a thicker slice, but the nutty, savory sauce adds depth and a generous dose of heat.

The lettuce/mayo favor combination is reminiscent of the flavor of a McDonald’s McChicken sandwich in the best way possible. As expected, the pork bun is far superior to the chicken. This pork bun is without a doubt a Top 5 contender, and a fine accompaniment to a bowl of the city’s best ramen. As a side note, though the chicken bun is lackluster, if you are in the mood for chicken, the peppery sesame seed-coated crispy Chicken Wings (shown right) are absolutely outstanding.

AlwaysHungryNY: Num Pang In The Ass

The Gluttoness — April 06, 2009

A while back, the Council of Eaters convened over a dinner at Kampuchea Noodle Bar. We loved our starters, namely the Pork Belly, Ribs and Pickles, but we were underwhelmed by the sandwiches. Having recently tasted our first Baoguette, the bar was set mighty high at the time, and “The Kampuchea” frankly couldn’t compete. While the Stewed Oxtail was a standout, the experience made us skeptical of the forthcoming Num Pang, the restaurant’s Cambodian “Banh Mi“ offshoot.

Upon closer investigation, the fact of the matter is that Num Pang’s sandwiches are actually delicious, and a significant improvement to their predecessors at Kampuchea. The soft yet sturdy Parisi Bakery rolls, are slathered in a spicy chili mayo, and pair beautifully with the bouquet of fresh ingredients—cucumber, pickled carrots and cilantro. As usual, some hit the spot more than others, here’s the rundown:

Our favorite was the Pulled Duroc Pork with Spiced Honey. The substantial roll soaked up the flowing pork juice. The spiced honey and vinegar-soaked veggies combined for an awesome sweet-and-sour profile that worked famously in collaboration with the salty swine. Runner-up went to the Peppercorn Catfish. Large fillets mingled with sweet soy sauce, that enhanced and that did not overwhelm. The perfectly cooked Skirt Steak, seasoned with crushed coriander and peppercorn, was challenging to keep together, but the excellent cooking temperature, and the essence of charcoal grill, made for some robust and enjoyable bites.

Coconut Tiger Shrimp was as enjoyable as Kampuchea’s, where we liked it. Hoisin Veal Meatball had no sign of hoisin, but rather, the tomato and basil accompaniments made it resemble and taste like an Italian meatball sub topped with traditional banh mi trimmings. The odd yet intriguing combination would have received more attention had they not skimped so much on the meatballs. As can be expected, the Vegetarian Num Pang was the least exciting.

Like our dinner at Kampuchea, Num Pang left us with a good impression—the former earned itself a solid B, and the sandwiches warranted an even more favorable B+/A- rating. While our experience at Kampuchea ended with a very friendly chat with Chef Ratha Chau, my encounter with Ratha at Num Pang was quite the contrary.

Click Here to Read About Our Encounter... >>

Baosers! Chef Michael Bao Does It All

Jeff Zalaznick — February 08, 2009

Michael Bao’s latest venture, Baoguette, recently opened in Gramercy, a few blocks from AlwaysHungry headquarters. In a neighborhood lacking in viable banh mi options, it was obvious that Baoguette would be the lunch of choice. We called up, ordered everything on the menu (doubling up on the Baoguette & Barbecue Chicken options), and waited patiently for our Vietnamese feast.

An hour and a half later, patience turned to annoyance with our food still nowhere in sight. We turned to the Baoguette website, where you are instructed to “call or text your order to the number below”. Each of the three times we called (ignoring the odd text message option) to check the status of our delivery, we were told by the man on the other end of the line that he was downstairs. The whole episode was confusing, as substantial time continued to pass with no sign of the delivery, and more importantly, we were supposedly calling the restaurant’s direct number, so how could they be downstairs? Suddenly, the text message option started to make sense, but who would have a restaurant line connected to the delivery guy’s cell phone?

Nearly two hours after ordering, the delivery man rushed in carrying three bags stuffed with food, he handed us the receipt, and muttered under his breath:

I looked at the AHNY Squad with a look of utter confusion. Was Michael Bao, owner of four respected Manhattan restaurants, really hand-delivering our banh mi? A quick look at Google images left us speechless. The only thing I can say, is RESPECT, Mr. Bao. That is true dedication. Things aren’t moving fast enough, do them yourself. Sometimes everyone has to get their hands dirty. Michael Bao is the Charles Oakley of Vietnamese food. Grinding to get it done.

Even without eating the sandwiches, it was worth the wait just to see Chef Bao’s dedication. It was truly an act of heroism that should be applauded by the whole industry. He should potentially get a key to the City.

After recovering from the act of courage that we had just witnessed, we tasted. The sandwiches were consistent across the board. They use good ingredients, but the secret is the spectacular bread, which not only tastes great, but also rips in an incredible way. I mean, literally you can rip a sandwich in half with no fall out. You don’t see that very often…

The signature banh mi, aka the “Baoguette,” combined the classic pate, terrine and pulled pork with pickled julienne carrots, cucumber and a hefty bunch of cilantro, which amounted to a traditional banh mi that just tasted much cleaner. It made me feel like they had achieved what Nicky’s Vietnamese had tried to achieve. Cleaning up the banh mi’s act. Like an egg roll at Chinatown Brasserie, a cleaned up and better version of what you get for 50 cents at the hole in the wall around the corner.

Now, the Sloppy Bao, the Slop Sloppy Bao, was an ode to Vietnamese lunch ladies around the world. Bridging the very large gap between Vietnamese flavor and traditional cafeteria food. Instead of the normal tomato base, the meat was flavored with curry and topped with green mango, basil & lemongrass. Flavor was good, concept made me happy, but the major problem was that it was under stuffed and thus, incredibly not sloppy. Should be an easy fix for them though. The B.B.Q. Chicken Sandwich, was lackluster and not worth discussing, but a delicious surprise came in the form of a Catfish Sandwich, which is worth a try if you are in to that sort of thing.

Green Papaya Salad was standard and refreshing. Classic Summer Rolls had too much vermicelli, and not enough shrimp. The Spicy Beef & Pork Noodle Soup packed a meaty punch, but was by no means spicy.

All in all, the sandwiches were very good, but the cameo from Chef Bao was EPIC. And, now you know that if you need to send him a SMS, his number is on the site…