AlwaysHungryOlympics: 17th Street
Arthur Bovino — February 24, 2010
We don’t profess to be athletes, not even of the competitive eating genre. But, we have engaged in our own brand of gastronomic sport. From a restaurant crawl along Clinton Street to food questing in Queens, the Always Hungry Olympics have prompted some awe-inspiring eating. With inspiration running high from watching the nightly feats of the Winter Games, we sought out a significant challenge, and we found it not far from Always Hungry HQ.
On the menu this time, an underrated restaurant corridor: 17th Street. We even amended the Olympic motto: Citius Muneris, Altius Balbutio, Fortius Orexis (swifter service, higher stamina, stronger appetite). Now, the rules:
- We would try to eat at every significant restaurant on 17th Street in one night, necessitating fast eating and a brisk pace.
- Only restaurants that actually opened onto 17th Street were counted. That eliminated places like Cafeteria and Casa Mono.
- There were three Always Hungry eaters, so at each restaurant there were a minimum of three dishes, three alcoholic beverages, and three glasses of water ordered.
- In true Olympics style, we timed it all: orders, food, checks, etc.
Check Out this Epic Eating Adventure >>
Featured Dish: Mexican Radio’s Nachos
The Gluttoness — May 19, 2009
The CORE loves nachos, but there’s a fundamental issue of uneven topping distribution in most presentations we’ve come across. Most often, you’ll get a giant stack of tortilla chips with a healthy top layer of ingredients. But each ingredient rarely ends up together on every “chip, and after the first few bites clear away some of the toppings, you end up with a pile of naked tortilla chips underneath. You are lucky if a few straggling black beans manage to slip through the cracks.
Mexican Radio has figured out a solution, and the result is not only aesthetically impressive but profoundly flavorful. Individual tortilla chips are laid out much like slices of a pie, one next to the other in a circular composition around a pile of chopped lettuce and sliced, pickled jalapeños. Each chip is evenly coated with an adequate layer of melted cheese and warm black beans and the jalapeño slices in the center allow you to control the spiciness of each nacho. Decorative swirls of crèma and hot sauce create a bulls-eye presentation, which guarantees that each bite is perfect.
It’s difficult to imagine ever eating nachos any other way again.
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