Brunch at Yuca Bar
Posted on | February 11, 2010 | No Comments
Yuca Bar & Restaurant (111 Avenue A @ 11th street) is quickly becoming one of my go to spots in the neighborhood. A few Saturdays ago, I went there with some friends for Brunch. It being the weekend & all, I had called ahead to ask if it was busy. What we were hoping was going to be a really nice meal started off horribly, when the maître d’ was really rude when we asked about the wait. Luckily when we were finally seated, our waitress was awesome (I wish I could remember her name because she totally saved the day). The brunch is moderately priced & comes with a free drink (I opted for my personal favorite; a caipirinha).
We decided to share the empanadas which were presented beautifully. The colorful trio consisted of 1 seafood, 1 chicken & 1 spinach & Cheese. Trus me when I say that they tasted even better than they look!
Most of us opted for eggs (except my brother who got the steak & eggs (I ate his eggs!)). I had the Arepas Benedictos which had smoked salmon & came with rice & beans. One of our group opted for potatoes which I think was a real mistake since the beans really made the dish (no accounting for taste I guess!)
I really enjoyed the brunch there & will be going back. On a side note, they have half price Tapas on Tuesday nights & the same maître d’ that nearly ruined our brunch was completely charming…
Desnuda
Posted on | February 2, 2010 | 4 Comments
I recently went to Desnuda (122 East 7th Street btwn A & 1st Avenue) yesterday with a bunch of friends. We had seen the gigantic $1 Oysters sign outside so were very excited (obviously). The place is pretty nice, it used to be the old Bourgeois Pig & you can tell that they put a lot of work into the renovation. A long wooden bar with plenty of seats & the delicious aroma of truffles & popcorn in the air (we were initially bewildered by this). We took up seats at the end of the bar & prepared for some serious bivalve decimation. We received complimentary truffle butter popcorn, which was totally amazing & totally explained what we had been smelling since our entrance.
Once we got the menu, we saw that Blue Points were $1, then there were 2 other varieties that were $2 & $3 respectively. BUT at the top of the menu, in larger than life text was $1 OYSTERS on Sundays & Mondays, so we assumed that they were all $1 (since it was a Monday, you can probably see where this is going). They have a pretty awesome bottled beer selection, so this added even more to our excitement. I ended up with the Tona Lager from Nicaragua which was excellent. The Royal Extra Stout was popular with the rest of the group.
We ended up ordering 20 of each with various sauces & having a few beers, really good oysters & a great time. BUT when the bill came, we were charged $120 for the oysters in stead of $60. The guy that was shucking our oysters (he seems to be the head honcho there) was totally aware of the fact that we thought all 3 varieties were $1 a piece & was extremely rude when we questioned the bill.
We ended up licking our wounds & leaving a modest tip. To make things worse, the same guy ran down the street after us & claimed that we had shortchanged him! WTF! Is this just a case of the old ‘bait & switch’? Has anyone else had that problem? The menu is very obviously confusing & the dude’s attitude totally sucked. Which is kinda sad because we had a great time up till then. Obviously, none of us will be going back there again.
Fast Food Mascots
Posted on | January 29, 2010 | No Comments
A pretty funny video of several Fast Food Mascots gone wild. Ronald McDonald, the Burger King, KFC’s Colonel & the Jack in the Box dude get up to no good in a music video for band Rad Omen. Look for a cameo from the chick from Wendy’s in a titty bar! Just so you know, this is most likely NSFW!
Big Up to So Good Blog for digging this one up!
Dim Sum Go Go
Posted on | January 29, 2010 | 1 Comment
I used to go to Golden Unicorn down the street a lot, but after a really mediocre dining experience, I decided to give Dim Sum Go Go (5 East Broadway) a shot. Boy, I wish I hadn’t. I don’t have that much knowledge of Dim Sum or restaurants in Chinatown & I’m really not sure what I expected, but my meal here surely was not it. It sucks though because it came recommended by a few of my friends (maybe I’m running in the wrong crowds?) & I dragged an out of town guest & my brother’s girlfriend to lunch. I think what I was looking for was the full Dim Sum Cart experience like at Golden Unicorn, but I didn’t get it. I also found the menu/checklist to be very confusing.
The food was completely average (the pork & sticky rice wrapped in leaves could have been better used as mortar), the service sucked (my pescatarian (ugh, I hate that word) friend ended up being served pork dumplings) & the place looked like a food court in an airport or mall. Let’s just say that I was not happy. The only redeeming feature were the shrimp dumplings with sauce.
Basically, I won’t be going back there again… No reason for you to bother either with such broad choices in Chinatown.
Thai at 85 Avenue A
Posted on | January 22, 2010 | No Comments
Cafetasia has slid right in at the old Kim’s Video location at 85 Avenue A recently. Following in the footsteps of another Asian-themed restaurant that failed miserably & possibly ignoring the closing of Kion down the street on 6th between A & B. Maybe they just haven’t got the point (or expect more NYU traffic this far east). This is Cafetasia’s 2nd location (the other being at 38 East 8th St.) Expect them to compete with Mini Thai Cafe down the street on A & plenty of other Thai restaurants on 1st & 2nd Avenues. We’ll see how this one fares…
Update: Here’s my review.
Update: Further Coverage
Carrot Ginger Soup
Posted on | January 22, 2010 | No Comments
With the weather being kinda fickle, I find myself craving soups more & more, so expect a lot of soup recipes on the blog in the near future. I’ve never made this soup, so here goes…
2 tablespoons butter
2 onions, peeled and chopped
Half a head of garlic, peeled & chopped
8 cups chicken broth
3 pounds carrots, peeled and sliced
3 tablespoons grated fresh ginger
3 bay leaves
Salt and white pepper(to taste)
Red pepper flakes (optional)
1 cup heavy cream (optional)
Melt butter in a large stock or soup pot. Add onions, garlic & ginger & reduce heat to low. Stirring often, saute the vegetables over low for about 10 minutes or until the onions are translucent.
Add carrots, stock, bay leaves & salt, pepper & red pepper flakes. Bring the liquid to a rolling boil, then reduce to low & cover. Let simmer for 45-60 minutes or until the carrots are soft.
Using an immersion blender or blender, whip the mixture until smooth, adding in the heavy cream slowly (if desired). If using a blender, let the soup cool slightly beforehand.
Serve in a bowl topped with whipping cream & chives.
This soup also freezes very well, so you can always have some around if you need it.
Singas Pizza To Open On Avenue C
Posted on | January 22, 2010 | No Comments
Singas Famous Pizza (formerly of 176 2nd Avenue) is setting up shop on Avenue C @6th Street. The signage has been up for quite some time, but this location has yet to be open. I had been to the other location before & if that is any indication, they’re going to have a tough time competing with Moon Pie on Avenue C @ 3rd street. This might be end up like the Avenue A ‘Taco Battle’ heating up between San Loco & La Lucha. Watch this space!
Update: It’s Open & pretty darn good!
Doma Cafe & Gallery (Closed)
Posted on | January 22, 2010 | No Comments
This is way out of my normal stomping grounds, but I stopped by Doma (17 Perry St @7th Avenue) to meet up with some friends. It bills itself as a ‘Cafe & Gallery’ & although there was art on the walls, I really couldn’t have cared less. The place was pretty packed for a Monday at 3pm, but we managed to snag a small table by the front door. Not very comfortable at all & I was being bumped by customers as they entered, but it was our only option.
I started with a plain coffee with milk which was good, but nothing to write home about. There was a rather large selection of cakes & other pastries at the bar/register in the back. A friend ordered a salad with grilled endives, Gorgonzola, beets, string beans & walnuts. It looked very good, but I didn’t get a chance to try it. She seemed to enjoy it very much (if her empty plate was anything to go by).
I decided to check out the menu, & the Bluefish Pate caught my eye. It was really more of a mousse, but still very tasty. It was served with a baguette which I found to be way too crunchy, but I ended up eating (& enjoying) all of my fish. It also came with carrots & cucumbers.
I found the place to be a bit on the busy side (as I mentioned before), but I did like the cell phone ban & the staff were friendly enough. It was generally pretty quiet & seems like a good place to read a book or get some typing/writing done.
Mini Bar (Closed)
Posted on | January 13, 2010 | 2 Comments
Looking for a cup of Joe & wanting to try somewhere new, I headed to Mini Bar with a friend. There have been quite a few stores in that particular spot, but I had really never noticed Mini Bar. First off, the interior is awesome! Lots of exposed wood, etc. you can tell that they took care in designing the place.
Balade
Posted on | January 12, 2010 | No Comments
I’m not the biggest fan of Middle Eastern food & I’ve never had Lebanese food & know very little about it, so I was not sure what to expect when I went to Balade (208 1st Avenue @11th Street) tonight. Being the day after the initial opening, it was empty when we arrived so we had the choice of any seat in the joint. We were greeted pretty quickly by complimentary wine (we chose the 2008 Norton Malbec, they also had a white wine), warm, delicious flatbread & olive oil with sesame seeds. Currently, they do not have a liquor lisence, so I’m not sure when they will begin to sell alcohol. We all know that Community Board 3 can be a bit fickle! Read more