Featured Cocktail: Diablo Ricky at Diablo Royale Este

Maryse Chevrière — July 08, 2010

The Diablo Ricky at Diablo Royale Este.

We’ve officially reached that point in the summer where it’s almost too hot to function and the only thing you can think is: “I need a cold drink, and fast!” If you happen to be in the East Village, seek reprieve from the Heatpocalypse with a Diablo Ricky at Diablo Royale Este.

The cocktail ($8.00) should be well-familiar to fans of the original West Village outpost of this hip Mexican joint (in fact, they’re probably already inside, about to order round two). Part Dos Equis, part frozen margarita, it’s the ideal meeting of minds between the beer drinker and the cocktail lover. A little sweet, fizzy, and every bit as refreshing as you need it to be. This cocktail version of an ice cream float goes down so smooth. Good luck ordering just one.

Featured Cocktail: 8st Kitchen’s Korean Bomber

Maryse Chevrière — May 13, 2010

Dropping a shot of soju into OB Lager, the Korean Bomber at 8st Kitchen.

Irish Car Bombs, Jägerbombs, sake bombs— Korean bombs!

If you’ve never had a soju bomb, you can find one at 8st Kitchen, the Greenwich Village go-to for legit Korean food outside of K-Town. The Korean Bomber is simple: a shot of soju or whiskey dropped in 3oz of Korean OB Lager ($10.00). Flavor-wise it’s on par with a sake bomb— smoother, and easier to drink than an Irish Car Bomb or Jägerbomb.

As far as drinks that you have to pound go, this one will probably make you feel the least like a coed. Still, it’s a great primer for a night of imbibing among friends— especially since 8st Kitchen offers one of the better happy hour deals around: half-price soju and vodka cocktails (the Watermelon and Lychee Martinis are particularly good) from 5pm to 8pm, daily. For those who don’t get out of work until 7pm, a happy hour that ends that late is a real gift.

AlwaysPartying: Eat Beer for St. Paddy’s Day!

Maryse Chevrière — March 17, 2010

Litre Pints at Radegast Beer Hall & Garden.

Sure, drinking beer on St. Patrick’s Day is practically a rule, but let’s not overlook the many great foods that are actually made using beer. To celebrate, we’ve created our own menu using dishes that feature beer as a key ingredient.

Eat Your Beer! >>

Featured Desserts: Guinness Cake and Shake Pairing

The Gluttoness — October 30, 2009

Left, Guinness Chocolate Cake at Vinegar Hill House ($8.00). Right, MARK Burger’s Guinness Milkshake ($6.50).

We totally agree with Celia Cheng’s latest craving: Guinness Chocolate Cake at Vinegar Hill House (view). We too crave its dense, fudgy flavor. The cake is supremely chocolatly, but with a tempered sweetness, one supplemented by its cream cheese frosting. It almost mimics an Oreo, coating the mouth with that nostalgic combination of chocolate and cream. Milk is the obvious accompaniment, but we stumbled across an even more perfect pairing. Something with Guinness, of course.

MARK Burger’s (view) Guinness Milkshake is a rich reincarnation of a classic Irish Car Bomb. It’s Chef Erik Rubin’s favorite party drink, and he told me he couldn’t believe no one had thought of this before. Rubin first tried to make it a float, but ultimately he realized that you just can’t go wrong with that classic combination of a milkshake with a burger and fries. His secret method? Rubin reduces the Guinness with a little sugar to create a caramel syrup. Each shake blends four ounces of syrup with Ciao Bella’s Tahitian Vanilla Gelato. The first sip of this thick milkshake has crazy Guinness flavor, but eventually the hint of dark beer becomes lost amongst the shake’s creamy decadence.

Now all we have to do is get these two together.

AlwaysPartying: International Cuisine Day

Arthur Bovino — October 02, 2009

Epicurious.com Editor-in-Chief, Tanya Wenman Steel’s, Peachy Keen Chicken and Edamame Succotash.

Epicurious Entertains NYC’s International Cuisine Day featured four demonstrations, two by notable chefs, Michael Psilakis and Marcus Samuelsson. Epicurious.com’s Editor-in-Chief, Tanya Wenman Steel (right, with two audience volunteers) filled in for L.A-based chef David Myers by preparing two recipes from her cookbook. There was also a beer cocktail demonstration by Epicurious.com’s Executive Editor (and in-house drinks specialist), James Oliver Cury. A few notes and observations from the event follow.

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AlwaysPartying: Klee Brasserie’s Oktoberfest

GutterGourmet — September 30, 2009

Left to right, Frankfurter, Kase, Bockwurst, Knackwurst, Wiener, and Andalusian sausages.

Munich’s official Oktoberfest started weeks ago and ends this Sunday, but Klee Brasserie (view) kicked off its month-long celebration last night with an Oktoberfest Sausage and Beer Tasting. Chef Daniel Angerer said he’s horrified that the bacon wrapped hot dog covered with avocados and sour cream (the Chihuahua) Crif Dogs is New York City’s representative of American sausage. Making the ‘wurst’ of a bad situation, he found a sausage maker (a fellow Austrian ex-pat whose identity and upstate location he’s keeping secret) who shares his desire to bring Austrian “wurst kultur” to the city. Through the rest of the month, Angerer is rotating six wursts on Klee’s Oktoberfest menu (all available at the party) as well as several other notable dishes like a Jager Meatloaf, House-made Mangalitsa Strudel and an Oktoberfest Pizza.

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AlwaysInformed: Gluten-Free Pizza and Beer at L’asso

The Gluttoness — September 14, 2009

It’s tough living with Celiac Disease, or any degree of gluten sensitivity. While places like Risotteria, S’Mac & Babycakes NYC have make dining out easier for many sufferers, sometimes the gluten-free alternatives aren’t as satisfying. Thankfully, for gluten-averse pizza lovers, L’asso (restaurant page) has joined the ranks of accommodating restaurants with their Still Riding gluten-free crust (right, L’asso’s clam pie). You can even wash it down with Redbridge’s gluten-free beer, which is made from sorghum as opposed to wheat or barley.

AlwaysPartying: Brooklyn Cheese Experiment

Arthur Bovino — September 14, 2009

Pete Taylor, Josh Knowlton & Billy Denniston of Propeller Pale Ale, unanimous homebrew winners.

On Sunday at the Bell House (view site) in Park Slope, Brooklyn, amateur cooks and homebrewers battled to see whose cheese-based dishes and beers would take top prize at the Brooklyn Cheese Experiment. The well-attended and much-photographed event was sponsored by Murray’s Cheese Shop, the Vermont Cheese Society and Council and Sixpoint Craft Ales and presented by thefoodexperiments.com hosts, Theo Peck and Nick Suarez. It featured 17 cooks and 8 teams of homebrewers who were competing for cash prizes and gift certificates to Brooklyn Brew Shop, Brooklyn Homebrew and Whisk. A portion of the ticket sales were being donated for ovarian cancer research.

A judging panel included: Bon Appétit’s restaurant editor, Andrew Knowlton; Taylor Cocalis, the director of Education at Murray’s; the Vermont Butter and Cheese Company’s Adeline Druart; Chanterelle’s fromager, Adrian Murciathe; and the brewers of Sixpoint Craft Ales. They awarded top three categories for best food and beer. Audience members also voted on their top three favorites. Alyssa Lees’ cheese puff was given special distinction and awarded her two tickets to a show at the Bell House.

See Our Favorites & Photos >>

AlwaysInformed: Tenzan’s Sushi Sports Bar

The Gluttoness — September 11, 2009

Tenzan’s new bar with flat-screen televisions, a sushi and sports lovers’ dream.

When you’re considering where to go watch the football game, the first thing that usually comes to mind is a good ol’ fashion sports bar— maybe even a barbeque joint. But you definitely wouldn’t think of a sushi bar on the Upper West Side. But Tenzan (restaurant page) is the ideal spot if you’ve ever dreamt of dining on spicy tuna rolls as your team crushes its competition—or so you hope. Foremost, their fish is incredibly fresh, reasonably priced and they don’t skimp on their sashimi slices. In addition to a laundry list of eclectic specialty rolls there’s also a variety of teriyakis and fried tempuras to appease your non-sushi-eating friends.

Tenzan recently expanded into the adjacent storefront. It now boasts a modern bar area with a dozen stools and six two-tops (which can be combined for larger parties), soaring ceilings and three impressive 50-inch plasmas. The once quiet Japanese restaurant is now commanded by techno beats and these badass flat-screens, which broadcast picture-perfect sporting events. A recent lunch lasted much longer than it was supposed to as Serena Williams’ performance at the US Open distracted from the matter at hand, some Double Taste and Dancing Eel Rolls (right). The TV’s are only visible from the new bar area and there’s a much quieter atmosphere upstairs in the main dining room.

Tenzan already stood alone as a stellar neighborhood spot but when word gets out, their TV’s are going to draw large, sports-and-sushi loving audiences. Beat the crowd, swap your usual Sam Adams for some cold sake and let the games begin!

SEARCH: Flatscreens for Your Football

September 11, 2009

Cercle Rouge’s “Cercle Wings,” house special chicken wings.

Last night, the defending Superbowl champs, the Pittsburgh Steelers defeated the Tennessee Titans 13-10, marking the 2009 debut of NFL football. It also marked the beginning of an eating season filled with AlwaysHungryNY.com favorites like nachos, wings, and jalapeño poppers. There are plenty of places in New York City to eat great food and watch the game, including as we noted today about Tenzan, surprisingly enough, one where you can simultaneously eat good sushi. But when we think football season, we think Buffalo wings, and when we think wings, one restaurant in particular comes to mind: Cercle Rouge (restaurant page).

Hard as it may be to believe, this TriBeCa-based, classic French bistro scores a touchdown with their Cercle Wings. As we previously reported, Executive Chef Pierre Landet tweaks the traditional recipe by adding a few upscale touches, like “Frenching” the bone, but a final coating of Frank’s Red Hot harkens the original enough to satisfy purists.

While the wings at Cercle Rouge are certainly top-notch game day fare, the setting is probably not the rowdy bar space that you’re looking for. Not to worry, if a place with pitcher specials and a room with 14 HD TV’s (like at Southern Hospitality) is more your speed, we’ve got you covered.

Just go to AlwaysHungryNY.com’s Very Advanced Search Engine and select “Guys’ Night Out” from the What Occasion field and “Flat Screens Included” in the What Features field, to get a list of restaurants where you can take in the game.

AlwaysLearning: Welsh Rarebit

The Gluttoness — September 03, 2009

Welsh Rarebit from The ChipShop on Atlantic Avenue, in Brooklyn Heights.

Welsh Rarebit. If you just heard the name, you would probably expect a plate filled with some kind of rare meat. The reality couldn’t be farther from that. In honor of National Welsh Rarebit Day…

What it is: Welsh Rarebit consists of toasted bread topped with a savory sauce made with melted cheese. The sauce is typically made with Cheddar cheese, although some recipes call for the addition of dark beer, mustard, cayenne pepper and/or Worcestershire Sauce. The cheese-covered bread is then broiled and served very hot so that the cheese is bubbling and golden brown. There are many variations of the original dish. One, the Buck Rarebit, calls for topping Welsh Rarebit with a poached egg.

Where it’s from: This traditional British dish dates to the 18th century, perhaps as early as 1725. The name is thought to be a corruption of the word, ‘rabbit,’ the theory being that rabbit was the food of the poor and that the Welsh, who were notoriously poor, couldn’t even afford that. As such, instead of eating meat with bread, cheese became the ‘meat’ component of the dish. In 1785, by virtue of a misnomer in A Classical Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue, the name of the dish evolved into “Welsh Rarebit.”

Where to eat it in New York City: Where better to enjoy a classic British dish than surrounded by maps of the Tube, Beatles posters, and plates commemorating Princess Diana in one of New York’s most traditional British gastropubs, The ChipShop (Brooklyn Heights restaurant page, Park Slope restaurant page). The restaurant is best known for a lengthy list of beers-on-tap and deep-fried treatments of pizza, Twinkies and Haddock (for a phenomenal Fish & Chips). But their “English Menu” is full of other British favorites like Scotch Eggs, Haggis, and of course, Welsh Rarebit.

The ChipShop’s glossary defines Welsh Rarebit as “cheddar cheese, heavy cream and mustard on bread and baked—served with tomato.” The folks there identified the mustard as Colman’s and noted that eggs are also used in the sauce. At the restaurant, the slice of thick, crisp white bread arrives browned and bubbling, adorned with a halved slice of tomato. It’s part open-faced grilled cheese, part Croque Monsieur (minus the ham). It’s like a savory, cheesy French Toast. The exterior crust has a hearty crunch, but the heavy dressing of cheese sauce soaks the bread’s innards and oozes from the sliced center.

Welsh Rarebit is comfort food at its finest. It’s no surprise that this decadent dish was a food staple eaten by the poor as it definitely helps you to escape from your financial burdens, at least momentarily, even longer when accompanied by a cool pint.

Featured Special: Back Forty’s Crab Boil

The Gluttoness — August 25, 2009

Maryland Blue Crabs at Back Forty’s Tuesday Night Crab Boil.

It probably wasn’t fair to Back Forty (restaurant page) that I finally scored my reservation for their Tuesday night Crab Boil fresh off a trip to Ocean City, Maryland. I’d just picked crabs at my favorite place, the Old Mill Crab House. One of their specialties is “All-You-Care-To-Eat” spiced and steamed Maryland blue crabs. Each order comes with an unlimited bounty of fried chicken, corn on the cob, “clam crisps,” fried shrimp, and the greatest powdered sugar-dusted hush puppies on earth.

The Old Mill is a tough act to follow and the experience at Back Forty wasn’t quite as revelatory. In order to reserve a table you have to log into their website starting at 10 a.m. on the Wednesday preceding the Tuesday Crab Boil you hope to attend. Then you have to wait for a confirmation callback. If you’re awarded a seat, you have one option, the $40/person prix fixe, advertised as “piles of spicy, steamed blue crabs, summer sides and pitchers of icy cold craft beer.”

There are two seatings, and the waiters made it obvious they were interested in getting started. I went with three friends and as soon as our asses hit the bench the waitress went into her explanation: we were entitled to only three buckets of crab, but all the corn and potatoes we could eat. That last part of the advertised description, the icy cold draft beer costs extra (not clear unless you scroll down on the website). Once we finished our crabs, we’d each get a slice of blueberry-peach cobbler.

Left, Salt Cod Hush Puppies. Right, Grilled Corn on the Cob.

“Salt Cod Hush Puppies” came first. They were full of thick, firm chunks of yucca and soft, shredded salt cod for a subtle sea essence— definitely tasty, but totally different than the airy cornbread fritters to which I’m accustomed. An accompanying creamy citrus-saffron mayo made the croquettes even better. Only later did I realize how good some extra saffron sauce would have been on the roasted red potatoes. But before we knew it the first bucket of blue crabs was spilled onto our newspaper-lined table. We abandoned the boring potatoes amongst the sprawling shellfish in favor of the buttery, grilled corn, which was also seasoned with Old Bay.

As experienced crab pickers, we went to town efficiently. We were immediately disappointed at how small the crabs were. The best bet for the most meat were the claws, but even they didn’t offer the lump chunks we had hoped for. Over-steaming made what we did find mushy. Nonetheless, we worked quickly through all three buckets. When we finished we were covered in crab guts, juice dripping down our arms, but hot towels cleaned us up for dessert. We watched impressed by the staff’s skill at seamlessly rolling up the mess on our table into newspaper. It disappeared as if it had never been.

Excitement for the cobbler dwindled upon seeing its proportions: three parts cobbler to one part fruit. I wish they had used more sugar— after all that salt, a much sweeter sensation would have been heavenly.

Despite some critiques and the annoying habit the waitress had of referring to us as “Girls,” the Crab Boil still made for a great time thanks to the pitcher of cold Flying Dog Golden Ale (from Maryland) and a gluttonous group of good friends. It may not have tasted just like it does in Maryland, but all the picking sure made us feel we were dining near the Chesapeake, and that’s worth something in New York City, $40 to be exact.

Due to demand, Back Forty will be offering their crab dinner every night from September 1-5, including all day Saturday (9/5).

Featured Restaurant: Radegast Hall & Biergarten

Arthur Bovino — August 24, 2009

Kas Spatzle with Hunter’s Bacon and Brown Cabbage.

A beer garden in Williamsburg could easily be kitschy or precious, but Radegast Hall & Biergarten is neither. Instead, it’s a warm, welcoming space on North 3rd and Berry, that rapidly changing neighborhood between Main Street Williamsburg (Bedford Avenue) and the new waterfront condos.

Stepping inside the warehouse (a project by Slovakian-born partners, Ivan Kohut and Andy Ivanov) is like entering the idea of the beer garden you always had in your mind. The dimly-lit, open-beamed, high ceiling space is filled with wood, booths and a large bar. A second, brick-walled area is filled with picnic tables. You look around half-expecting to see people singing and smashing steins together.

There are twelve beers on draft, mostly German (two Belgian, one Czech) which you can order by pint ($7), liter ($13) or pitcher ($18), and more than 40 bottled beers (23 Belgian, 18 German, one Swedish, one Czech). You’ll find Kriek, Blonde, Pilsener and Lager, Cider, Lambec and gluten-free beer. The great thing about Radegast, besides its atmosphere, the beer, occasional live music and communal ambience is that the food here isn’t an afterthought— it’s quality pub fare prepared by Ivan’s wife, Joanna Kohut.

As at Astoria’s authentic Bohemian Hall and Beer Garden, there is rib-sticking Eastern European fare. Take for example, Goulash, Schnitzel and the crusty-delicious Halusky (known by its German name, Spatzle). Quality smaller plates include the Chicken and Rabbit Liver Pâté and the unmixed Steak Tartare. Also on the menu, is one of New York City’s better soft pretzels.

For those people who enjoy Bohemian Hall and Biergarden for the feeling it gives you of getting out of New York and entering another culture, Radegast is not a substitute. But with Williamsburg’s continued new construction and the increased inhabiting of completed projects, the scruffy, black-rimmed glasses wearing natives and the now-clichéd hipster-haters are going to find themselves in increasing interaction (especially on the L), Radegast Hall & Biergarten is a great setting for them to learn to live together. It’s the kind of place that makes you wonder how the neighborhood survived without it for so long.

See new pictures of food at Radegast Hall & Biergarten on its restaurant page here.

AlwaysLearning: Halušky

Arthur Bovino — July 06, 2009

Halušky at the Bohemian Hall & Beer Garden in Astoria, Queens

Halušky is a savory, warm, tangy, rib-sticking dish. It’s a great cool-weather comfort food, but its qualities also just make it great food to eat while drinking beer at any time during the year.

What it is: Halušky are spaetzle-like, irregularly-shaped dumplings usually made with flour, water, egg and often, finely grated potatoes. These small, lumpy dumplings can often be found served with cheese, cabbage, bacon, ham and meat or vegetable stews.

Where it’s from: Eastern Europe. Variations on Halušky can be found prepared in a variety of ways in the cuisines of Hungary, Czech Republic, Poland, Romania and Ukraine. A Slovak rendition, Bryndzové Halušky, is one of the national dishes of Slovakia; it adds sheep’s milk cheese and bacon to potato halušky. Strapačky, a similar Slovak dish, substitutes sauerkraut for sheep’s milk cheese.

Where to get it in New York: The Bohemian Hall & Beer Garden, a fantastic, authentic beer garden in Astoria, Queens run and managed by the Bohemian Citizens Benevolent Society, does a hearty rendition of Halušky with Sauerkraut and Imported Traditional Slovak Sheep’s Cheese.

AlwaysPartying: National Creative Ice Cream Flavor Day

Katie Reisert — July 01, 2009

Left: Ginger and Red Bean. Center: Peanut Butter & Jelly, Merlot and Grass. Right: Basil.

Happy National Creative Ice Cream Flavor Day! From Momofuku Milk Bar & Bakery’s Rosemary soft serve and Il Labratorio del Gelato’s Thai Chili Chocolate, to The Original Chinatown Ice Cream Factory’s Wasabi and Shake Shack’s Coffee and Donuts frozen custard, tons of creative ice cream flavors are being churned out in the city. To celebrate, we sought out some.

Click here to read about some of New York City's most creative ice cream flavors >>