Featured Restaurant: Chalet Alpina
GutterGourmet — March 12, 2010
Clockwise from top: Potato Pancake with Sour Cream and Apple Sauce, the Bavarian Platter, Pints of Spaten, and the Chalet Alpina coat of arms.
Metropolitan Avenue near Woodhaven Blvd and Forest Hills Gardens was once home to a large German immigrant population in the mid-50’s and 60’s. Chalet Alpina caters to the original, now elderly, residents, and those pining for a taste of Bavaria. As you walk in, an older German woman plays the accordion, flashing you back to those sixth grade auditions for “The Sound of Music.”
More Photographs of Food at Chalet Alpina >>
AlwaysJoking: GutterGourmet-Style
Arthur Bovino — March 12, 2010
The inimitable GutterGourmet. An indefatigable eater and a seeker of New York’s best eats. But his love for food overflows into another realm, that of aspiring comedian. So we’re sharing the most recent yuks he’s come up with. Waka-Waka, folks, he’ll be here all week.
What do you get when you cross a jazz club with a Korean restaurant? Be bim bop be bop.
A woman served the chef’s complimentary lobster bisque noticed a fly with its wings pulled off swimming in the bowl, “Garçon, there’s an abused mouche in my amuse bouche!”
If Bobby Flay challenged Veselka to a blintz throwdown they’d call it a “Blintzkrieg.”
If someone says they don’t like uni, especially because they don’t know what it is, just tell them, “Uni is your friend, not your anemone.”
Why did the carrot seek a restraining order against the celery? The celery was a “stalker.”
Not enough? Eater’s Ten Best Headlines About Booby Cheese inspired one last joke: “Forget About Tetilla Cheese, This is the Real McCoy.” He swears, they just come to him.
Have any good food jokes? We want to hear them. Send them to .
Featured Restaurant: Baohaus
GutterGourmet — March 10, 2010
The Royal Frush at Baohaus, and a can of Hey Song Sarsparilla Taiwanese Root Beer.
Eddie Huang’s Baohaus on Rivington is attracting Taiwanese (and everyone else) looking for Gua Bao buns—authentic Taiwanese street food.
Huang, a third generation Baozi-maker opened it partially as a tribute to his F.O.B. (“fresh off the boat”) mother, and partially to improve on the City’s Taiwanese steamed bun game. Mostly he wanted to serve New Yorkers, like his buddies at Artichoke (for whom he designed the T-Shirts, and the Led Zeppole logo), something fucking good to eat. With raves from the New York Times, and nods from the Food Network, people are lining up out the door for his real deal Taiwanese street vendor fare.
Featured Restaurant: Carteles at Cienfuegos
GutterGourmet — March 08, 2010
The Cubano Cristo at Carteles.
Carteles at Cienfuegos just opened, but it’s already serving one of New York’s best new sandwiches.
That’s right, there is a new authentic Cubano for New Yorkers to celebrate. Carteles (E. 6th St, just west of Ave. A) is named for a Cuban magazine whose covers are the Havana equivalent of The New Yorker. It is a serious Cuban coffee shop that sells Café Cubanos, Cortaditos, Espumitas, and Chino Latinos (a Café Cubano with salt) made with Café Bustelo, the unrivaled king of Cuban coffee. There are five sandwiches including a Sloppy Joe, and the Pechuga (grilled chicken). But the stars are the Cubanos.
Featured Dish: Bereket’s Doner Kebab
GutterGourmet — March 04, 2010
Bereket’s Doner Kebab with the works.
It is late at night. You’re on East Houston. You stroll past Yonah Schimmel’s Knishes, then by Russ & Daughters. You stagger in the door, and tip the counter man who slices the perfectly spiced meat and overstuffs a sandwich for you. The bread disintegrates, unable to contain the mountain of meat inside. No, not Katz’s Romanian influenced pastrami on rye, I’m talking about the Doner Kebab on pita at Bereket Turkish Kebab House.
The lamb-beef fusion is covered with hot sauce and cacik, a Turkish yogurt sauce, which is runnier than its thicker Greek cousin, tzatziki. The meat, which is only a little bit thicker than prosciutto, absorbs their flavor the way pastrami soaks up Jewish deli mustard. The countermen expertly alternate the meat with tomatoes and onions inside the grilled pita before applying the red and white sauces.
The Turkish Doner is distinct though similar to the Greek gyro and the Middle Eastern shawarma. Basically they all involve lamb and/or beef rotated on a spit with the roasted meat sliced by hand and stuffed into pita bread with various vegetables and condiments. Perhaps if we set a long enough table and served all three (and threw in some Jewish pastrami for good measure) we could bring peace to the Middle East, or at least a helluva party to the Lower East Side.
Featured Dish: Sushi Zen’s Omakase in a Bowl
GutterGourmet — March 02, 2010
Bara Chirashi “Sushi Zen Style.”
Sushi Zen is on my list of Top 10 sushi bars in the City, and Chef Toshio Suzuki is a master. The omakase is always unique, amazing, and…expensive. For a somewhat more reasonable alternative without sacrificing the variety of the omakase, order the Bara (literally “little things”) Chirashi.
For $55 you get a large bowl of some of the finest sushi rice you’ll ever taste, delicious fresh wasabi that is cleverly tucked into the underside of the bowl’s lid (placed next to you), and special shoyu sauce to season with. On top of that there is, now take a deep breath: Fatty Blue Fin Tuna, Giant Clam, Salmon, Octopus, Silver Shad, Salmon Roe, Cooked Tuna, Squid, Tomago, Shrimp, assorted pickled vegetables, with Uni placed delicately in the center.
As fresh, sweet, and zesty as the wasabi is, you don’t really need any. There is already so much natural flavor from the high quality fish, and the seasoned rice with sesame seeds at the bottom of the bowl. Each flat wooden spoonful of the Bara Chirashi is wonderfully different in texture and taste. It’s a veritable omakase in a bowl. On a recent occasion the lady next to me asked, “Is all of that for you, or are you planning to share that with the entire restaurant?” As if that weren’t enough, the Bara Chirashi comes with an intensely flavored light or dark (your choice) Miso Namako Mushroom Soup or Miso Asari Clam Soup, the latter filled with delectable clams floating, still in their shells, in the soup.
There is perhaps no better time to enjoy Bara Chirashi. In Japan, March 3rd marks Hinamatsuri, an annual festival celebrated with ornamental dolls. Meals prepared for the festival often consist of chirashi and clam broth (though the chirashi can vary by region). Of course, you don’t need an excuse.
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.
AlwaysHungryOlympics: 17th Street
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 >>
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.
AlwaysSoBe: South Beach Wine & Food Festival
February 23, 2010
The South Beach Wine & Food Festival is finally upon us, and before we descend upon Miami for a fun-filled weekend of gluttony, we thought that we would get things started off the right way by publishing not one, but two never-before-seen videos from the New York festival’s signature events: Burger Bash and Meatball Madness.
Also, in anticipation of time spent down south, we sent the GutterGourmet down there to do some advance recon on what restaurants you should spend your time at between gorging at the events. We will be bringing you some of his Miami restaurant reviews during the week.
So, whether you are traveling down to SoBe or not, here are two videos from NYCWFF that will most certainly whet your appetite:
BURGER BASH
Spike had cheerleaders, Bobby Flay lead his own cheer, and Josh Capon made the greatest acceptance speech of all time. This is just some of what went down at the Blue Moon Burger Bash at the 2009 New York City Wine & Food Festival. The event, which featured 21 participating restaurants and chefs battling it out in the Tobacco Warehouse under the Brooklyn Bridge, was nothing short of epic.
MEATBALL MADNESS
Meatball Madness. The grand finale of the 2009 New York City Wine & Food Festival featured meatballs made of everything from tuna to wild boar. Ultimately though, it was a meatball master who held strong and took the top prize.
Featured Restaurant: T-Poutine
GutterGourmet — February 23, 2010
Clockwise from top: Classic Poutine, Cochonnet Sandwich, Exterior.
New York’s poutine scene. Always Hungry has done a poutine tasting in Brooklyn, covered the fabulous smoky meat version at Mile End, and sampled Hotel Griffou’s duck confit-covered gourmet rendition. Of course, the ultimate is the foie gras-covered poutine at Au Pied de Cochon in Montreal. But French fries covered with cheese curds, all smothered with brown gravy, “Classic” poutine, that’s the best bet at T-Poutine on Ludlow.
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