AlwaysInvestigating: Cheeky Sandwiches
GutterGourmet — August 23, 2010
A half shrimp & Half oyster Po’ boy, and “Ben-Yay’s” at Cheeky’s Sandwiches on Orchard Street,
Calvin Trillin used to joke when asked where to find the best po’ boy in New York that you have to go to Queens then take a plane from LaGuardia directly to New Orleans. I agreed until I wandered into Cheeky Sandwiches on Orchard and ordered a half shrimp, half oyster po’ boy, fully dressed, of course.
In Philly, only hoagies or cheesesteaks made with Sarcone’s Bakery bread are the real McCoy. In Miami the only bread worthy of a Cubano is Cuban lard bread. So it is with the bread for Cheeky’s po’ boy. Cheeky gets its bread from John Gendusa Bakery, which, in 1929, created the New Orleans French bread without which po’ boys would be naked rather than fully dressed.
Featured Cocktail: Xiao Ye Cocktail Trio
Arthur Bovino — July 29, 2010
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Cocktails at Xiao Ye, from left: #1 Taiwan Favorite, Sky Walker, and KTV Delight.
“You have to try the Sky Walker,” said Eddie Huang about a bubble tea cocktail at Xiao Ye, his new Lower East Side restaurant. “It’s a sniper drink. There are going to be a lot of pregnant Asian chicks.”
Red Tea, fresh soy (“I have a friend who makes fresh soy for me every day”), simple syrup, Johnnie Walker and boba. You’re tasting it, the boba are shooting up the straw, you’re navigating the ice, thinking, “this is mild,” and suddenly it’s finished. You’re buzzing. Trying to get to the boba mixed in with the ice two-thirds of the way down the glass. A few of those, and well, better judgment might not be your guiding principle.
The Sky Walker is just one of the more than 15 funky cocktails on the offer at Xiao Ye, a range that includes frozen drinks with Hennessey, infused liquors splashed over Sno Cones, and ingredients like Apple Sidra, Calpico, and Hawaiian Punch. “The mixers are whatever drinks I liked as a kid,” Eddie explained. “When I was drunk as shit in Taiwan in the karaoke bars everything was cheap as shit, so I’d just mix everything together and see what I liked.”
AlwaysInvestigating: Robicelli’s Alcohol Cupcakes
Madeline G. Muldoon — July 27, 2010
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Clockwise from top: Robicelli’s Cherries Jubilee Cupcake, Bananas Foster Cupcake, and Hot Buttered Rum Cupcake.
The crowd of post-punk kids loitering on Ludlow outside Cake Shop isn’t there for the eats. That’s understandable: the latest feature at this Lower East Side neighborhood coffee shop/venue/record store, Robicelli’s alcohol-infused cupcakes, resemble crusty, overcooked polenta topped with a flutter of hipster Cool Whip.
The Cherries Jubilee, Bananas Foster, and Hot Buttered Rum cupcakes sat in a sad cluster under clouded plastic adorned with a yellow “21+” sticker. Though the bartender couldn’t explain how, the cupcakes supposedly each contain one shot of liquor. “We’re still trying to figure that out,” he shrugged.
Though last week’s Time Out New York called Robicelli’s the answer to the “overhyped and underwhelming” cupcake phenomenon, they have yet to hit their stride as a bar-bakery sweet. In fact, the failure of these “special” desserts discourages any further sampling of the company’s other products.
The goods, no more than two ounces each and bone-dry, beg you to ask just where all that uncooked alcohol is. The cake portion barely provides a hint of vanilla. The redemption of the baked flavor wasteland is in the light frosting that tops the muffin portion. The Cherries Jubilee and Bananas Foster had edible toppings, but they were certainly not intoxicating in any way. However, the hard, Hot Buttered Rum went untouched after one bite of the cloyingly sweet butterscotch-drizzled topping.
Location: Cake Shop
Address: 152 Ludlow Street
Hours: Daily, 9:00am-2:00am
Contact: (212) 253-0036
Featured Dessert: Cake Balls at BabyCakes NYC
Arthur Bovino — June 15, 2010
Cake Balls at BabyCakes NYC at 248 Broome Street on the Lower East Side.
Three spots start doing Cake Balls within a month? First Momofuku Milk Bar’s Cake Bonbons, then they showed up at Hester Street, and now BabyCakes NYC, where yesterday the counter-person said they had been making them for about a month. As Fork in the Road recently noted, we must be witnessing a nascent trend— an insurrection of upscale Munchkins against the ruling cupcake class.
Let’s face it, as good as something may taste, a tagline like BabyCakes’, “Refined Sugar Free, Gluten Free, Wheat Free, Soy Free, Casein Free, Egg Free, Vegan, and Kosher,” is going to make you gun-shy. There’s no need to worry with this dessert— they do contain sugar, and they’re really good. Whereas the Milk Bar Cake Bonbons are fudgier, more dense, with a delicate air and the sense that they won’t travel well—more like cake truffles— the Cake Balls at BabyCakes are more chewy, more cakey too, and wet—though in a thick, large-crumb kind of way.
BabyCakes varies their flavors— they’ve made Red Velvet, Vanilla with lemon frosting, and combinations of chocolate and vanilla. Yesterday’s flavors included: Chocolate with Vanilla Glaze, Vanilla Sprinkle, and Lemon ($1.75/each). While the Chocolate ones are familiarly fudgy with a chewy edge, the non-pareils-sprinkle studded Vanilla Balls are less powerfully flavorful. That lack of punch is more than made for with the flavor in the Lemon Cake Balls. You smell the citrus as soon as you open the bag. Inside the texture resembles a light, wet fruitcake the color of golden raisins.
AlwaysInformed: Passover Meatballs
Arthur Bovino — March 30, 2010
Beef and Matzoh “Passover Meatballs” at The Meatball Shop.
No, The Meatball Shop isn’t kosher, nevertheless, they’ve gotten into the holiday spirit by creating a Passover Meatball as the daily special. It was featured last night, and a call to the restaurant confirmed they would be serving it again tonight.
The Passover Meatball is made with beef liver, chicken liver, ketchup, onion, egg, and of course, matzoh. The balls are more browned on the outside than their other renditions, and it has an almost meatloaf-like consistency. The matzoh was noticeably present— ragged, soft pieces that added texture.
Paired with The Meatball Shop’s classic tomato sauce, topped with grated cheese, and served with focaccia for scraping up the leftover sauce, the Passover Meatballs make a great rainy night dish ($7.00).
First Look: Pulino’s Bar and Pizzeria
Arthur Bovino — March 15, 2010
Sausage Egg Breakfast Pizza.
Funny how things work. Frank Pepe’s opened its first New York location in Yonkers last November. Last week, Eddie’s of New Hyde Park announced it would soon make its first inroads into Manhattan since they opened in 1941. Now both styles of pizza have met on Bowery and Houston in Pulino’s Bar and Pizzeria, Keith McNally and Nate Appleman’s much-awaited pizzeria. The kicker? As Eater has well-documented with its first looks at the decor, the place looks like it has been there on the corner forever.
Of course, Neapolitan-style was a New York staple long before Frank Pepe’s left the confines of New Haven. But Pulino’s combines the crust texture and taste of Pepe’s with an even thinner pie, one that’s just about 2½ times the thickness of what you’d expect from Eddie’s. Not to say it’s cracker-like, it’s not at all. But it is not a doughy pie. Do not think Kesté, Co., or Motorino. Nor are pizzas as charred as the ones pictured by Zagat. What we have here folks, as was the intention – is an idiosyncratic style of pizza. A standardized amoeba shape, a thin crust, and square cuts.
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 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.
AlwaysHungry: Best of Sunburnt Cow & Bondi Road
Arthur Bovino — March 02, 2010
Bondi Road’s Fried Calamri and The Sunburnt Cow’s Kangaroo Shepherd’s Pie.
Plans seem to be on target for the April 1st opening of The Sunburnt Calf (W. 79th St), Heath St. Claire’s third Australian-themed restaurant in New York. We hear the menu is going to be a combination of dishes from The Sunburnt Cow and Bondi Road. Having been invited recently to eat at both places, here are the dishes that we most enjoyed, a diverse, but representative grouping that we’re hoping to see on the new menu uptown. If you’re looking to do your own survey, the best way is to visit for the Monday night special at either place: all you can eat and drink for two hours at $20.00/per person.
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.
AlwaysInvestigating: Bunny Chow
Sampurna Satpathy — February 11, 2010
Bunny Chow from left to right: Madiba, Xai Xai, and Bunny Chow.
Pop quiz. What’s bunny chow?
A. Minced bunnies?
B. Chow mien with rabbit?
C.The stage name of your favorite Asian stripper?
D. South Africa’s national dish?
If you guessed D you’re ahead of the crowd (C, and you may be on the wrong site). Actually, South Africa’s national dish has nothing to do with rabbits or strippers— though it does have a virgin. It’s a hollowed-out quarter loaf of white bread, filled with curry that is topped by the removed bread (the ‘virgin’), and sometimes chutneys and sambals. In South Africa, it’s often just called ‘bunnies.’
The name’s origin is ambiguous even in Durban where bunnies are said to originate. Under apartheid, when Indians weren’t allowed in restaurants, bunnies were a convenient meal to carry to work in the fields. One theory is that ‘bunny’ comes from Banias, the name for the Indian business class, with ‘chow’ being slang for food. New Yorkers have three places to eat bunnies: Madiba, Xai Xai, and the four-month-old Bunny Chow. We recently set out to discover whose is best.
Featured Restaurant: The Meatball Shop
Arthur Bovino — February 10, 2010
Clockwise from top: Spicy Pork Meatballs with Spicy Meat Sauce over Rigatoni, Chicken and Salmon Meatball Sliders, Beef Meatball Hero, and White Beans.
Meatballs. Even if you didn’t grow up in an Italian-American household, just bringing the word up in conversations can kick off impassioned discussions that involve meat methodology, combination theorizing, and philosophizing about technique. But a restaurant dedicated solely to meatballs? That would have made my great-grandfather laugh. And that’s exactly what co-owners, Daniel Holzman and Michael Chernow, are going to do with The Meatball Shop, all the way to the bank.
AlwaysPartying: National Australia Day
Arthur Bovino — January 26, 2010
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Tuck Shop’s Thai Green Chook Curry Pie.
Today, January 26th, is National Australia Day. Why should that matter to Americans? Because no matter where they are in the world Aussies always seem to be having a good time. So if they’re celebrating, chances are you’re going to want to get in on the festivities. National Australia Day refers to First Landing Day in 1788, when eleven convict ships from Great Britain arrived at Sydney Cove.
Two Always Hungry approved restaurants, Bondi Road and Sunburnt Cow, will be celebrating. They will be serving steak sandwiches and burgers, including their signature Burger with the Lot (egg, bacon, beets, fried onion, pineapple, lettuce and tomato) for $3 each. You can also pony up $20 for unlimited drinks during a three-hour period. If you’re not into partying on a Tuesday night (you’re getting old), but still want to get in the spirit, it’s worth stopping for a quick meat pie at Tuck Shop, the Australian pie shop with two locations (St. Mark’s, and 1st St).
For $12 you can get what’s called a Tucker Box, any pie plus two sides for $12. There’s the traditional ground beef pie, the ‘Chook Pie’ with chicken, ham and leeks in white gravy; a Guinness Steak and Mushroom Pie; and even a Mac ‘N Cheese Pie. Our favorite is the Thai Green Chook Curry Pie ($5.00). It’s made with Kaffir lime leaves, galangal, coconut milk, Thai basil and chilis. The buttery pastry is thin and delicate, tearing easily to let the curry fall out.
Address: 115 St Mark’s Place (b/n 1st Ave & Ave A)
Hours: Mon-Thurs, 11:30am-2am; Fri-Sat, 11:30am-5am; Sun 11:30am-10pm
Address: 68 East 1st Street (b/n 1st & 2nd Aves)
Hours: Mon-Thur, 8am-2am; Fri-Sat, 8am-5am; Sun 12pm-10pm
AlwaysInformed: Yonah Schimmel’s Cheese Bagel
GutterGourmet — January 13, 2010
The Cheese Bagel from Yonah Schimmel’s.
There’s a Howard Johnson Express to the right of Yonah Schimmel’s Knishes, and Landmark Sunshine Cinema to the left, but the knishery seems to have made few concessions to the 20th, much less the 21st centuries. One, their use of the microwave, hasn’t been particularly kind to the classic potato knish (though their Kasha Knish is still best in class), it effects the delicate knish skin, makes the mound of potato filling mealy, and scorches the roof of your mouth. But there is an item at Yonah Schimmel’s that may be its redemption: the Cheese Bagel.
The Cheese Bagel ($4.00), which does not appear on the menu board above the counter, is a unique animal. There’s that old parable from India about the three blind men who examine different parts of an elephant without knowing what they’re touching, you know, the one where they violently disagree about what the animal is. Similarly, if three blind(folded) people were to order Yonah Schimmel’s Cheese Bagel and examine it, here is what they’d say:
“It’s not a bagel. It’s twisted like a pretzel”
“It’s soft and breaks easily. It’s a knish”
“It’s too thin to be a bagel or a knish, and the skin is blistered like a bialy.”
Upon tasting the soft sweet farmer’s cheese filling, any of them would have to declare, “you’re wrong, it’s a blintz.” In the end, they’d all have to come to the same conclusion: “Delicious.”
Featured Restaurant: Georgia’s Eastside BBQ
GutterGourmet — January 11, 2010
Fried Chicken Sandwich at Georgia’s Eastside BBQ.
Now that the craze over new fried chicken joints has died down a little, we’re taking a moment to feature a rendition at an old favorite: Georgia’s Eastside BBQ. Located on the rapidly changing Orchard Street, Georgia’s is not named for the state but for the owner’s dog whose photo adorns the wall in a place of honor between his mother and father. The spot is a wonderful dive with half a dozen tables and an old rifle hanging on the wall.
The style of BBQ ranges from North Carolina pulled pork, to St. Louis ribs, and fall-off-the-bone, beer-steamed Memphis dry-rubbed babybacks. But the highlight is— you guessed it— the fried chicken, which Time Out New York just rated as one of the top 100 things to put in your mouth in 2009. The huge serving of perfectly fried not-too-greasy, heavily-battered chicken is for lack of a more perfect description, well, perfect. If you’re in the mood for something a little different, you can get the Fried Chicken Sandwich ($7). Sides include corn bread, beans, kale, collard greens, and corn on the cob.
If you’re looking for us, this is where we’ll be eating fried chicken until the projected Spring opening of Hill Country Chicken. Pies ‘n’ Thighs news anyone?
Check out the new food pictures on Georgia’s Eastside BBQ’s restaurant page.
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