Featured Brunch: DBGB
Arthur Bovino — August 27, 2010
Mussels “Poulette” and Pommes Mousseline at DBGB Kitchen & Bar.
When you think DBGB, seafood isn’t the first thing that comes to mind. But, if it’s still not cool enough for Jim’s Matzoh Ball Soup, and you need something lighter than the brunch menu’s burgers, brats, or more traditional French toast and waffle fare, there’s a do-it-yourself seafood brunch combination that’s satisfying. (And filling if you supplement it with the restaurant’s great potatoes.)
First Look: Dinner at Vandaag
Maryse Chevrière — August 12, 2010
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Top, Popped Barley, a fantastic snack being served at Vandaag in the East Village.
Before officially debuting their dinner menu today, East Village newbie, Vandaag, opened their doors to friends and family last night. Through the next-day aquavit and genever-induced haze, there are several things that stand out about the Dutch and Scandinavian-inspired restaurant.
First, clearly, the cocktail program rocks. Their beer cocktails have already gotten good play but equally interesting are those starring spirits in step with the restaurant’s style of cuisine. The B-Side Sling, made with Bols Genever, Roobis-infused vermouth, lemon, maraschino, and bitters, is more powerful than its feminine coloring suggests. This take on a Manhattan is great for sipping, but smooth enough to drink as a two-part shot for those who are inclined.
Featured Brunch: 6th Street Kitchen
Maryse Chevrière — August 06, 2010
“Bacon and Eggs” at 6th Street Kitchen in the East Village. Pork Belly, Radicchio, Coddled Egg.
Among restaurants in the East Village, brunch competition is stiff. There’s the fried chicken with pancake-soft waffles at Back Forty. A spicy, hangover-perfect mix of scrambled eggs, chorizo, and French fries at Hecho en Dumbo. Bagels galore. How do you choose? More importantly, how does a newcomer to the neighborhood vie for your attention?
Pork belly with coddled eggs are a good way to start. At relative neighborhood newbie, 6th Street Kitchen, the “Bacon and Eggs” are near impossible to overlook. The dish arrives appearing as if ready to meet expectations— it’s very pretty. At the base are slabs of pork belly, perfectly uniform little rectangles, well-peppered and salty with a seared-on crunch. They’re buried underneath a confetti of tangy radicchio, on top of which is a coddled egg that offers a little yolk for sauce.
AlwaysInformed: BBQ Soft Serve Now at Milk Bar
Maryse Chevrière — July 28, 2010
BBQ Soft Serve with Potato Chip Crunch at Momofuku Milk Bar.
When it comes to soft serve flavors, there really is nothing out of realm of possibility for the Milk Bar team. Their latest WTF creation, just out today: BBQ.
Whatever reason compels you to try it—curiosity, daring, a genuine love for savory desserts—if you’re going to go there, then you just kind of have to do it: go all the way, embrace the concept. “Can I get the Potato Chip Crunch on that too, please?”
The result ($4.90) is predictably weird. Not sour, like most Milk Bar flavors, instead it’s tangy, gradually sweet. It evokes cocktail sauce, or maybe Tabasco— you can’t put your finger on it. It’s not as offensive as you’d expect. With a sharp fragment of salt speckled potato chip, the equation gets even more complicated. You just have know when to stop. The whole serving would just be too much.
Always Informed: A-Pou’s Taste
GutterGourmet — July 28, 2010
Taiwanese “Special” Pork Dumplings with Hot Chili Sauce from A-Pou’s Taste in Astor Place.
I admit, I’m prone to addiction. So, I’m an easy mark for a dealer, particularly one who sets up around the corner from my home on Astor and Lafayette. I smell the smoke and gotta get me some pot…stickers. A-Pou’s Taste (A-Pou meaning “Grandma’s”) is a new Taiwanese street cart that offers a choice of four different pot stickers.
There are vegetarian, kimchi beef, and Hong Kong chicken dumplings, but I was sold on their signature offering: Taiwanese “Special” Pork. Five long, pan-seared, crêpes-like dumpling beauties for $3.50. The lady squirts soy sauce over the dumplings, but it’s quickly overtaken by a deceptively sweet (at first) hot chili sauce packed with pepper seeds.
I’m hopelessly hooked. God damn, God damn the pot-stickerman.
Restaurant: A-Pou’s Taste
Location: South side of Astor Place, b/n Fourth Avenue and Lafayette.
Hours: Mon-Sat, 10:00am-10:00pm.
Featured Restaurant: Mama’s Food Shop
GutterGourmet — July 26, 2010
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Clockwise from top: Fried Chicken, Honey Roasted Carrots and Mac n’ Cheese, exterior.
I always wondered why Roger and JJ in the 70’s sitcoms, “What’s Happening!!” and “Good Times,” were so skinny when their mamas were so pleasantly plump. Clearly, they were missing out on some good cooking. (Maybe that’s why Rerun spent so much time at Roger’s house.) While no one behind the counter at Mama’s Food Shop on East 3rd off of Avenue B fits the description of those sitcom mamas, I always imagine that’s who is doing all the cooking there. The place literally drips with soul.
Featured Dessert: Terroir Trio
Arthur Bovino — July 20, 2010
Olive Oil Cake with Riesling-Soaked Peaches.
You’ve no doubt by now heard about Terroir’s Olive Oil Cake— the one sitting on the cake stand under a glass cover by the front window. It’s citrusy, moist and delicious without being too sweet. And the cake is accompanied by Riesling-soaked peaches that still have some texture. But the cake is just one of three simple, great desserts at Terroir that deserve some attention.
There are a few notable qualities to these three desserts. First, they’re fairly small portions, not cheap small, but just-right small. Second, all three desserts have both two textural components, and two flavor components. Three, the central component of each has fantastic mouthfeel.
Featured Restaurant: South Brooklyn Pizza
GutterGourmet — July 19, 2010
A Margherita slice at South Brooklyn Pizza in the East Village.
I’ve devoted a large part of my life in search of great pizza. I don’t go around joking, or lightly declaring a “new greatest” pizza. But, I recently had a private tour with Jack, the pizzaiolo at the new South Brooklyn Pizzeria on First Avenue near 7th street, and folks, there’s a new greatest pizza in town.
Featured Brunch: Hecho en Dumbo
Maryse Chevrière — July 09, 2010
Huevos Estrellados “Lucio” at Hecho en Dumbo.
It is possible to do a seven-day-a-week brunch, and a quality one at that. Those who scoff should pay a visit to Hecho en Dumbo, the fresh-faced, East Village, Mexican joint on the Bowery.
Replacing the typical Bloody Mary is a Michelada Cubana: Valentina salsa, Worcestershire sauce, Maggi seasoning, and fresh lime juice, cut with Bohemia lager. It’s spicy, but more refreshing than you’d expect. If that’s not quite your calling, the Margarita de Jamaica is highly recommended.
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 Restaurant: Khyber Pass
GutterGourmet — June 30, 2010
Lamb Shish Kebab with Tomatoes, Onions, and Brown Basmati Rice at Khyber Pass on St Mark’s Place.
If you’re like me, you organize your take-out menus by cuisine. If you’re a little more obsessive-compulsive, you might even alphabetize them. It helps with the following, nightly conversation about where to eat.
“Hey, honey, what kind of take-out do you want?” American? No. Japanese? Nope. Korean? Doesn’t cut it anymore. Mexican? Moroccan? Nah. Wait, I’ve got it. Pizza! Kidding. Just kidding. Recently, just as I was about to start over again, I noticed that I had missed something I had filed in the A’s: Afghani food.
Featured Dessert: Dark and Stormy Float at The Redhead
Maryse Chevrière — June 29, 2010
Dark and Stormy Float: Cherry Ice Cream, Ginger Beer, and Gosling’s Rum.
If old-school soda shops were to become the next trend in New York cocktail culture, The Redhead’s Dark and Stormy Float would belong there. It’s the dessert Archie and the gang would order in college.
Rich cherry ice cream with pieces of whole, crushed cherries makes the strongest statement. Sure, it’s Häagen-Dazs, and it’s delicious. Gosling’s Rum and ginger beer complete the equation, but most of the ginger flavor comes from the cookie garnish. Dunk the cookie in whole and let it soften in the liquid if that’s your thing, or better yet, crumble it up and sprinkle the pieces over the on top.
In the heat of a summer evening this float ($9.00) is cool enough to count as refreshing, a delightful, drinkable dessert that can stand in as cocktail once you’ve past that point in the meal when it’s acceptable to order another round.
Featured Brunch: Egg in a Nest at Penny Farthing
Maryse Chevrière — June 18, 2010
Egg in a Nest: Two Eggs served any style over Breaded Parmesan Toast with Home Fries.
For all the positive buzz about the antique-industrial design of the East Village newcomer, Penny Farthing, its menu has not garnered the same respect. But sometimes you have to test the baseline, and at brunch, that means the greatest hits— Eggs Benedict (of course), French Toast, Steak and Eggs, and a childhood favorite, Egg in a Nest.
Penny Farthing’s Egg in a Nest is a dish known by many aliases: Egg-in-a-Basket, Moon Egg, Bull’s Eye, and Egg-in-the-Hole. That’s just to name a few. Two eggs are served in a breaded Parmesan toast “nest.” You can appreciate the thinness of the buttery toast as a better vessel for soaking up that extra-runny yolk. Sure, the loose sprinkling of Parmesan could be slightly more heavy-handed, and more melted, but it adds a nice touch of salt when you do get those gooey, cheesy bites. This is by no means on the same playing field as ‘inoteca’s luscious, signature Truffled Egg Toast. Still, with a side of fruit and home fries, it can strike a homey, comfort dish chord.
Of course, with Ssäm Bar and Milk Bar literally up 13th Street, it may not be the most interesting brunch option in a neighborhood known for culinary diversity. But, if you’re in the mood for something classic and familiar, Penny Farthing fits the bill quite nicely.
Featured Cocktail: Angel’s Share
Arthur Bovino — June 10, 2010
From left: Tennessee Waltz and Surf Ride Cocktails at Angel’s Share.
There should be more second-floor bars with picture windows and seating by them. It should be a law. As the ‘speakeasy’ craze runs its course, it’s time to revisit one of the City’s quiet gems, Angel’s Share. The Japanese cocktail bar on Stuyvesant overlooking Third Avenue isn’t a secret, the filled stools indicate as much. And it’s not hard to find (the door to the left of the stairs inside Village Yokocho). Nor has its paragon experience been left unsaid— staring out the window preferably during a snowstorm.
The envelopment of comfort that its quiet provides, the night through the window, snowflakes falling, you there with someone you can go to these kinds of places with— they fill some New York quotient for beauty, belonging, and eating the apple. But there’s an enjoyable experience there that’s similarly contemplative and much easier to pull-off: early evening summer cocktails.
First Look: Whitmans’ Juicy Lucy Burger
GutterGourmet — June 09, 2010
Whitmans’ Juicy Lucy in the East Village with French fries.
“I find no sweeter fat than sticks to my own bones,” from Song of Myself, Walt Whitman.
Walt’s new namesake restaurant on 9th Street just east of 1st Avenue is still getting its bearings before the dining room opens downstairs where they will be sourcing fresh, local foods. Grass-fed beef, pickles cured in Brooklyn, pork, etc. Until then, the draw is the upstairs burger counter, which Whitmans’ chef, Chris Edwards, and owners have given some immediate cache with a Juicy Lucy.
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