New York Eats (Part 2 - The Other Buroughs)

Han Joo
41-06 149th Place
Queens, NY

Going to this restaurant Murray Hill in Flushing, Queens from the Bronx zoo was a major trek, but we were convinced that it would be worth it. We let Josh and Iris take control of ordering here, and they selected the pork belly and thinly sliced duck. Shortly upon ordering, a quartz crystal slab was brought over to our table and placed on top of a burner.

meat.cooking.on.quartz

Next a huge variety of appetizers, including green onion cake, steamed egg souffle, eggplant, fresh greens, kim chi, and potato salad were brought our table. Then out came the meat. The server took charge of placing it onto the heated slab and cooking it for us. After the meat was mostly cooked, the kim chi was placed at one end of the angled slab so that all the juices from the meat would be absorbed by the kim chi. The pork belly and duck pieces were meant to be wrapped up in lettuce or sesame leaves along with your choice of the other sides on the table.

pork.belly.on.sesame.leaf

I particularly liked the refreshingly cold buckwheat tea served. We went through several bottles of the stuff and I felt like they were going to cut me off each time I requested a refill!

buckwheat.tea

This was my second time eating Korean food and I thought it was decent. However, I was not left longing for the next time I would eat this cuisine. It might be the spices and the pickling in this type of cuisine, but I can't say that I'm particularly fond of it.

3/5

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The next four places we went to were all in a period of 6 hours on an incredibly gluttonous day!

Supercore
305 Bedford Avenue
Brooklyn, NY

On Sundays they have a special for $20: enjoy any brunch item on the menu and receive unlimited drinks (alcoholic and non-alcoholic included). My meal was the American classic breakfast.

american.classic.breakfast

While the food itself wasn't stellar (and the portion sizes of some menu items, such as the curry, were small), I liked the concept of all you can drink. One drink I ordered was the green tea latte. It was nothing extraordinary and it tasted like there was coffee in it, which I'm not accustomed to. However, I really liked the sangria and wish I could have drank more, but was too worried that I would have to hit the rest room every 5 minutes.

bottomless.drinks

3/5

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Fette Sau
354 Metropolitan Ave
Brooklyn, NY

If you're in New York City, you MUST head over to Williamsburg in Brooklyn and taste the wonders of Fette Sau. Situated in a former garage, this place serves barbecued smoked meat that is to die for! We were told that this place often has long line ups (it can take up to an hour to get to the counter to order food), but for some miraculous reason, there were only a handful of people in line that day. We took it as a sign that we needed to eat there even though we had just eaten brunch. All of the meat is organic, or raised on small farms, and it is all sold by weight. The selections include meats such as brisket, ribs, bacon, sausage, and pork shoulder. Prices of the meat ranged from about $16-22/lb. Sides such as baked beans, coleslaw, and pickles were other options. They also have a bar specializing in microbrews and bourbon. We ordered a small amount of beef brisket and pork ribs with pickles and buns on the side.

bbq

Seating is available inside and outside, and we chose to sit inside at the cafeteria-style picnic benches. The meat was moist, tender, and full of flavor. The bun was buttery and the pickles were crunchy and juicy. I look forward to my next trip to NYC to make a special trip back to Fette Sau.

4.5/5

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Momofuku Milk Bar
382 Metropolitan Ave
Brooklyn, NY

Highly recommended by Iris, Momofuku Milk Bar was another "must" on our fooding adventure that day. They serve baked goods in addition to soft serve, coffee, and shakes. Even though our bellies weren't empty, Andrew and I shared some Cereal Milk soft serve coated with Corn Flakes ($5) and a pork bun ($8).

cereal.milk.soft.serve

What is cereal milk, you ask. Imagine that you're eating a bowl of Honey Bunches of Oats for breakfast. After the cereal is gone, some milk remains. That milk has absorbed the sweet and oaty flavor of the cereal, and that is what they call Cereal Milk. Momofuku has their own cereal for soaking in milk, and the milk is then turned into soft serve. It was delightful, and I'm happy we chose to have the Corn Flake coating too. As stuffed as we were, we still managed to stomach the pork bun, which was also very tasty.

pork.bun

Josh and Iris also vouch for their cookies and Crack Pie, which I will gladly try another time. There are a few other locations spread throughout Brooklyn and Manhattan.

4/5

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Alligator Lounge
600 Metropolitan Ave
Brooklyn, NY

The last place we went to on this gluttonous day was Alligator Lounge. We wanted a cool place to sit down and watch the Euro Cup game. Here, the big seller is a free personal sized cheese pizza with the purchase of an alcoholic beverage! Additional toppings are $1 extra.

magners.irish.cider

Even though we were as full as heck, we couldn't say no to the value of FREE! I enjoyed a Magners cider ($6) with my brick oven pepperoni pizza, both of which I would order again in the future. This neighbourhood dive bar was definitely not an upscale place, but it was a quiet place to hang out on a Sunday afternoon. There are also a bunch of arcade games and a pool table in the back. I probably wouldn't choose to go to Alligator Lounge if I were looking for a night out clubbing, but may consider stopping here for a pizza and drink if I had the munchies at the end of the night.

free.pizza

3/5

New York Eats (Part 1 - Manhattan)

Carmine's
200 W 44th St

We came here based on a mobile search on Google places. After visiting MoMA, we were hungry and were looking for a place to eat. Using the app, we limited our search to places that cost $$ or less per person, and was rated 4 stars or higher according to the reviews. One of the suggestions was Carmine's. It was described as a family style Italian restaurant with huge portions. We got to the restaurant and took a look at the menu. Pasta dishes were about $25+, and salads were around the same. Being one of the first places we ate at in New York, we thought that if this place was 2 dollar signs out of 4, food was going to be pretty darn expensive here! We thought that "family style" meant family friendly, but we soon learned that all menu items were meant to be shared between a family of 3-4! Because there were only two of us, we kept to 2 dishes: a plate of angel hair pasta with meatballs ($26.50) and the Carmine's special salad ($25).

Tasty basket of bread

We were then brought a nice basket of a variety of breads. When our meal came, of course the salad and pasta were served on huge platters. I wish I had taken some pictures of the entire dishes or with something in comparison for scale! The salad was delicious and I really liked the grilled eggplant and grilled carrots! The sweetness of the vegetables really came out upon grilling. The pasta was also tasty and the meatballs were huge! We weren't able to finish our meal. Luckily, our hotel room had a fridge and a microwave and we ate the leftovers for breakfast. Even after breakfast, there was enough food left for one more serving. Part of me wishes we could have tried the dessert, but I was afraid an order would constitute a whole cake, which would have been too excessive!

carmine's.special.salad

Angel hair pasta with meatballs. I wish you can see how big this platter was (those were serving-sized utensils!

I would recommend making a reservation as it is in the heart of the Theatre District and we had to wait about half an hour for a table for 2.

4/5

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Ichi Umi
6 E 32nd St

We were told to visit Ichi Umi (an all-you-can-eat Japanese restaurant) by our friend Jackie, who was in New York about a month before us. They had small pieces of nigiri and maki, which was a good thing because it allowed me to sample as many different types as possible. They offered a huge selection in their buffet with some non-typical selections of maki, including some with cream cheese, bacon, or pineapple (not together!). They was no sashimi because they don't serve it at lunch. There was a large selection of salads (both Western and Japanese), hot foods (Japanese and Chinese), and desserts. Being a cake lover, I liked how they had mini 1" x 1" cakes in several fruity flavors so that I could try them all (not quite).

Ichi Umi buffet - so many choices!

A lunch at Ichi Umi is $18.95, dinner is $28.95, and if you visit on a Friday, Saturday, or holiday, there is a $3 surcharge. I would go back to Ichi Umi as the price and selection is much better than what we would get in Edmonton, but I would also be willing to try out other Japanese places in NYC.

4/5

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Mad for Chicken/Turntable
314 5th Ave

Both Josh and Daniel insisted that we try the Korean fried chicken at Mad for Chicken. Its other name is known as Turntable because it's also a bar with a DJ. We split a platter of wings between the 4 of us. I was amazed at how crispy the chicken was, as it was deep fried and then covered in spicy sauce. After a few, my mouth was dying though. The spice was a little too much for me. I tried relieving my mouth with Asahi, which we ordered a 3 L tower of. In addition to being mesmerizing, the tower kept the beer from getting too flat and warm too quickly.

korean.fried.chicken

tower.of.beer

One thing about this restaurant is that they accept cash or American Express only. That was a first for me as an Amex user, as numerous places I go to refuse Amex.

3/5

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Shake Shack
154 E 86th St

Our trip to Shake Shack was based on a recommendation by Andrew's friend Daniel. After a stroll through Central Park, we went to the Shake Shack located in the Upper East Side

shake.shack

We both ordered the SmokeShack - a cheeseburger topped with applewood smoked bacon, cherry peppers, and ShackSauce ($6.25). While the burger tasted good, I didn't like the feel of the buttered bun, as I get into a bit of a frenzy at times when my hands get greasy. We also ordered the Cheese Fries ($3.65). Our cashier gave us the option of having the blend of cheddar and American cheese sauce either on top of the fries, or on the side. When we couldn't decide, he advocated for the sauce on the side, which we agreed to. When we got our order, we saw that the fries were crinkle-cut, and we were both skeptical on how much we would like them. But as it turns out, we loved them! Normally, we don't like crinkle cut fries because they end up being too soggy, but these ones were crispy on the outside and soft on the inside. The sauce on the side was an excellent idea since we didn't have to get sauce on our fingers while reaching for the fries.

SmokeShack burgers, fries, and cheese sauce

To drink, we had a large Fresh-Brewed Ice Tea ($2.40). I wish we had more of this stuff available in Canada. Being a tea-lover and I love the fresh and pure taste of unsweetened tea (both hot and iced). Lastly, we shared a shake in the flavor of a black and white cookie ($5). It was extremely rich and I'm relieved we shared one. I'm not sure if I could handle another one of these shakes in the future!

Shake Shack was the second American burger joint I dined at this year (the other was In-N-Out Burger) based on how much friends have been raving about them. I found that Shake Shack was far superior to In-N-Out Burger.

3.5/5

Suitcase Souvenirs: New York City (Part 2 - The Other Boroughs)

New York City
June 17-26, 2012

Our first trip out of Manhattan was to Yankee Stadium in the Bronx. Having never been to a major sporting event before, we decided to get tickets for a Yankees game. Groupon actually had some deals for tickets and the seats weren't bad at all! We went on a night where they played against the Atlanta Braves. I'm not a big baseball fan, but it was fun to go for the overall experience of people watching, buying a hot dog from the vendors that walk up and down the aisles, and of course, watching the game. The final score was 4-3 Atlanta.

Yankee Stadium

During the second half of our trip, we went to stay with our friends Josh and Iris in Brooklyn. They were actually about to move to London, UK in a matter of weeks, and so they had some grand ideas of things to do/places to see before they left New York. Iris proposed the fantastic idea of visiting all 5 boroughs of NYC...in one day. We started the day off by feasting on homemade paninis made with the finest ingredients from Trader Joe's. This activity actually convinced J&I to keep their panini press and take it with them to London. Our next destination was to head over to Lower Manhattan to catch the Staten Island Ferry over to Staten Island. Little did we know, this would be the start of a disrupted journey. We got off the boat, took a couple of pictures to prove that we were there, and then lined up for the same boat to return to Manhattan. For some reason, that same ferry wasn't running and we waited in line for about 45 minutes before the next ferry arrived to take us back to Manhattan. From there, we headed north to the Bronx Zoo. However, there was construction on a couple of subway lines that interfered with our plans. Normally there are direct routes from the ferry terminal to the zoo, but certain portions of those subway lines were closed off and passengers were supposed to take a shuttle bus to travel between those sections. We somehow decided to get off the subway at Yankee Stadium and then hail a cab from there. We quickly learned that the regular yellow cabs don't usually travel outside of Manhattan. Luckily, there were a few black private cars milling around so we hired one and arrived at the zoo in style.

View from the Staten Island Ferry

Proof of us being in Staten Island

In Manhattan, on our way to the Bronx

Bronx Zoo

After the zoo, the plan was to head to Han Joo, a Korean BBQ restaurant in Flushing, Queen's. This trip was not without near-disaster. From the zoo, we got back onto the subway and took it to where it was interrupted by construction. There, passengers were supposed to leave the subway and take the shuttle bus over to the next running station. It was such crazy mess. There was only one shuttle bus to be seen when we got out of the station - one shuttle bus for hundreds of people! Many people were getting quite frantic and hysterical and I thought they were going to start rioting. Luckily the 4 of us were able to get on the second bus that came about 10 minutes later, but the anger of the mob and a random woman talking back to me was starting to make me lose my temper too. Good thing it was temporary. We then got to the appropriate train to take us to Queens. The trip from the zoo to Queens took at least an hour and a half to 2 hours, and when we were walking down Main Street in Flushing, Queens to get to the restaurant, we noticed a bus labeled as express from the Bronx Zoo to Main Street in Flushing!! Upon further research, the trip would have taken 58 minutes! I'll write more about the restaurant in Part 3. At the end of the night, we went back to Josh and Iris’ rooftop for a nightcap and to take some photos of the Manhattan skyline.

Josh and Iris on the shuttle bus in Manhattan
(they look way too happy for the crowded conditions!)

Outside of Han Joo in Queen's

Back in Brooklyn

Nighttime view of Manhattan from Josh & Iris' roof in Brooklyn

Suitcase Souvenirs: New York City (Part 1 - Manhattan Attractions)

New York City
June 17-26, 2012

For the first half of our trip, we stayed in Lower Manhattan at the World Center Hotel, located next to the 9/11 Memorial. While the memorial opened on September 11, 2011, the museum is still under construction and is scheduled to open on the same day in 2012. There is no admission fee to the memorial site, but tickets do have to be reserved in advance for a specific date and time. Currently it houses 2 waterfalls in square pits where the twin towers used to be. The names of those killed in the terrorist attacks surround each pool. Security is high at this site - we saw police officers on site at pretty much all hours, and prior to entry to the memorial there is security screening through a metal detector.

Left: South Memorial Pool with the One World Financial Center in the background;
Right: Reconstruction of the World Trade Center

South Memorial Pool with the 9/11 Museum in the background

We also visited the United Nations Headquarters. Here they also screened everyone before going in. We took an audio tour and got to see the General Assembly Hall and the Security Council Chamber.

Left: General Assembly Hall
Right: Security Council Chamber

Chagall Stained Glass with symbols of peace on display

Andrew purchasing postcards of his hero, Ban Ki-moon

New York's Grand Central Terminal is the closest subway station to the UN Headquarters and of course we had to spend some time there and take in the magnificent architecture. Andrew was most excited about the Apple store - definitely the classiest looking Apple store I've ever seen!

Grand Central Terminal

View of the Apple Store at Grand Central Terminal

The two museums we visited were the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) and the American Museum of Natural History. While I enjoyed walking through MoMA, nothing really blew my mind away. We actually enjoyed checking out the MoMA Store much more. We also used our ticket stub to visit MoMA PS1 in Long Island. It houses ultra contemporary, experimental art. I didn't find PS1 to be that interesting and there were many sections closed for installation at the time.

I wanted to go to the AMNH because I saw an ad for one of their special exhibitions called "Creatures of Light - Nature's Bioluminescence". A jellyfish was in the illustration and being a fan of watching jellyfish, I thought there would be live jellyfish on display. Unfortunately, there wasn't and I was left slightly disappointed. The exhibit focused on models, text, and ipad displays. The only live organisms we saw were fish that ingested bioluminescent food. I did have a good time walking through permanent displays though. The museum was so big that we weren't able to walk through the entire thing before needing to head to our next desination.

Bridge in Central Park

We went to two Broadway performances this trip: The Phantom of the Opera and The Columnist. We decided to purchase our tickets on the day of the performances at the TKTS booth. There, tickets for many shows are up to 50% off. We chose the Phantom because we both had never seen it before, and The Columnist because John Lithgow was the lead in this play. I didn't care too much for the play itself, as it was based on events from the Cold War era, including the assassination of John F. Kennedy, and the Vietnam war. I thought the acting was to be applauded though.

Times Square at night

We were initially planning on going to the Top of the Rock at Rockefeller Centre to take some pictures of the Manhattan skyline (including the Empire State Building), but Andrew's friend Daniel lives right by the ESB and offered to take us to his rooftop to get some pictures from there instead.

View from Daniel's roof at night

Stay tuned for Part 2, where we explore the other boroughs of New York City!

Halifax Eats

McKelvie's
1680 Lower Water Street

When I was planning my trip, McKelvie's was on my list of potential restaurants to visit for seafood. One of my conference companions, Tanya, voted on this restaurant since it was her namesake. I was also intrigued by their colorful fishy logo and their rhyming slogan "delishes fishes dishes" (even though it defies rules in the English language).

mckelvie's.delishes.fishes.dishes

It was quite busy when we arrived at 7:00 on a Saturday night, and we didn't have a reservation. We were told that the wait would be approximately an hour. Emily and I convinced Tanya to inquire if we could get seated more quickly if she shared a name with the restaurant. The host who lacked a sense of humour curtly replied that even if you were the owner, Robert McKelvie, you wouldn't be getting a table immediately. So we went for a drink across the street at the Old Triangle Irish Alehouse, which is a delightful place for a beer or two.

When we finally had a table, we decided to split two appetizers between the three of us, the first being the Roasted Bacon Wrapped Scallops ($11.95) and the second the Jump-Up Calamari ($9.95). Both were fabulous. The scallops were plump and juicy and were drizzled with maple syrup and had a very mild wasabi tartar sauce on the side. The calamari had a crispy batter and came with a unique tasting tomato sauce with honey, jalapeno and Tabasco sauce. It was quite mild so it shouldn't scare off those who fear spice.

roasted.bacon.wrapped.scallops

jump-up.calamari

One of my food goals of the trip was to have a whole lobster to myself (something I've never done before. The lobsters started at 1.25 pounds ($34.95). Being a lobster newbie, I wasn't sure how much to get, so Tanya convinced me to order 1.5 pounds. It was way too much for me! I enjoyed as much as I could, along with the side of tasty garlic mashed potatoes. But I left my broccoli pretty much untouched. I will blame my lack of appetite on the beer we had at the Old Triangle and the pitcher of raspberry ale we had with our meal. On the topic of alcohol, I was a bit disappointed that there wasn't more Nova Scotian wines on their list, which made me resort to beer. Overall, McKelvie's is a great place to go to enjoy a seafood experience in Halifax.

nova.scotia.lobster

Ready to dig in!

4.5/5

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Greco Pizza
1672 Barrington Street

greco.pizza

I didn't know there was a regional difference in the donairs served in Canada until some other fellow Edmontonians pointed it out. Apparently donairs were first introduced to Canada in Halifax. There they use a sweet sauce that consists of evaporated milk, sugar, vinegar, and garlic powder (as opposed to the tzatziki we're used to here). The meat is served with diced tomatoes and onions on a flat pita. While it was a nice change to have the sweet sauce, I think I still prefer having tzatziki on my future donairs.

1/4 lb.beef.donair

3/5

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Obladee Wine Bar
1600 Barrington Street

I walked past this establishment several times during my time in Halifax, and being a wine lover, I knew I had to check it out. They have an extensive wine list offering over 100 different types of wines, and organized according to their tasting characteristics. They also offer a small handful of beer on tap and by the bottle. Unlike the wine bars I've seen in Edmonton, actual meal items are not on their menu here. They only offer cheese, charcuterie, and baguettes with oil and vinegar to pair with the wine. I opted for the cheese and charcuterie board ($15) which includes a selection of 3 cheeses or meats, olives, pickles, and 2 condiments. On my board was the Tomme de Grosse Île, a semi-firm cheese from Quebec as recommended by my server; Duck Proscuitto and Veal & Sweetbread Pâté, both produced locally; and ginger jelly and blueberry apple jelly. I was more than pleased with my choices and it was lovely sitting on the patio while sipping wine and killing time.

cheese.and.charcuterie

The wine I chose was the Nova 7 from Benjamin Bridge. I had gotten a tasting of it at the farmer's market the day before and I fell in love with it. The Nova 7 is a blend of seven different white grapes, with a heavy emphasis on muscat. It was deliciously fragrant and had a touch of carbonation with only 6.5% alcohol. Divine! In fact, I had two glasses of it at Obladee and I may or may not have stopped at a liquor store to pick up a bottle to drink back in my hotel room ;) If there was a way for me to to ship a case from Nova Scotia, I'd jump on it!

lightly.sparkling.nova.7

nova.7

5/5

Corso 32

Corso 32
10345 Jasper Ave
(780) 421-4622

After much hype about how good this restaurant is and how it is so popular that the first available reservation is usually a month's wait, we decided that we had to give it a try.

For our appetizer, our group of 4 shared the arancini ($7), which are crispy rice balls. Tonight they were filled with a delicious mixture of radicchio and flowing taleggio. We also decided to split the rest of the meal family-style with 2 pasta dishes and one meat dish.

arancini

The first pasta dish was the Pappardelle, which had a tomato sauce base, spicy wild boar sausage, swiss chard, and parmigiano cheese ($21). This was one of my favorite dishes. I've never had pappardelle before but I loved how it was made here. The pasta tasted fresh with an amazing texture, and it had a thin and delicate feel to it. The sausage was savoury with the right amount of spice.

pappardelle

The other pasta dish was the Bucatini Al' Amatriciana ($17). This also had a light tomato base, and included a house-cured pork jowl and pecorino cheese. The bucatini was another shape of pasta I've never had before. One thing I didn't notice was that it should have had a hole running through the centre of the noodle. The pork jowl was deep in smoky flavor and made me wanting more.

bucatinin.al'amatriciana

The third entree was the Fried Short Rib ($24). It was paired with a shaved pear and arugula salad, along with a side of crostini. The short rib was oh so tasty and was flaky and tender. This dish tied with the pappardelle for being my favorite items, and writing about them is making my mouth water!

fried.short.rib

Finally for dessert, we shared two selections, the first being the Chocolate Torta ($9). It was quite a large slab for one serving, and it was topped with salty hazelnuts, which contrasted well with the truffle-like texture and richness. The second dessert was the Warm Apple Crostata ($11). This was actually my least favorite item of the evening (not that it was poorly made or tasted bad, but I much preferred the other items of the night more. The crostata was served with a scoop of fior di latte gelato, but I would have preferred a vanilla flavor in the gelato rather than just a plain creaminess to it.

warm.apple.crostata

chocolate.torta

We arrived for 6 pm and all but our table and our neighbouring table for 2 were already occupied. After leaving the restaurant, we already made a booking for their next available date which was exactly 4 weeks away. When making a reservation, they will warn you that they have a 2.5 hour dining limit. They're closed on Mondays and the occasional Tuesday. Sometimes you can get in last minute - they make occasional posts on Twitter about any cancellations and no-shows.

Even though the restaurant was in a small space and only seats 32, no more than 2 tables were closely situated and background chatter from patrons filled up the room well so it wasn't like you could hear everyone's conversations.

Overall, I had a super dining experience at Corso 32 (the only thing I didn't enjoy was the room temperature water) and am looking forward to my return visit next month. The menu changes frequently so it will be a new gastronomic experience every time. You should book your table today!

4.5/5