As you may have noticed, my posting frequency has taken a nosedive over the past few months. I won’t go into all the excuses, but I think this once-a-weekend schedule is probably going to be sticking around for a while.
Since I’m now doing a lot of quick hits on Twitter, I’m going to try to give you longer, more in-depth reads for the main site. That’s why I’m smushing together three separate meals into one amazing article (amazingness not guaranteed).
Let’s get started…
Posted in new jersey, NYC, Restaurants, Roundups
Tagged birria, dipping sauces, eggs benedict, French bistro, fries, Lucky's Burgers, Mexican, New Rochelle, NY, NYC, Piermont, Sidewalk Bistro, Tlaquepaque
While I learned about this event too late to enter, I thoroughly enjoyed being a judge.
Of course, everybody who walked through the door was technically a judge. But I think I took my responsibilities a little more seriously than others.
There were 15 chilis, six of which were vegetarian. As you can see from the picture, it was a blind tasting, with each platter marked only by a letter.
I proceeded through the chilis in alphabetical order, tasting each one and writing down a few notes. Out of the nine meat ones, there were only two I couldn’t stomach (one was extremely sweet), and only two I thought were really up to snuff. Quite a few were bland-tasting, which surprised me.
Two other things caught me off-guard:
Somehow, I managed to pick the winner of both the meat and vegetarian divisions, although I wasn’t as lucky with the runners-up.
A good time was had by all. But more importantly, nobody got indigestion! It was truly a Chili Cook-Off miracle.
An amalgam of chili samples
Posted in Events
Tagged bland, chili, cook-off, corn, hot, meat, shredded meat, vegetarian
And so it came to pass that yours truly took part in a truly unique cooking event set in the basement of art studio in Soho.
Kinda random, huh?
The event was sponsored by Electrolux, maker of fine kitchen appliances, and featured Executive Chef of Brooklyn’s River Cafe, Brad Steelman, preparing three dishes and (and several passed hors d’oeuvres) using Electrolux products.
Let’s get to it…
I’m not a big beef jerky fan. I say this not because I’ve tasted a lot of jerky in my life and can’t stand the stuff. Rather, it’s just one of those fringe foodstuffs that rarely, if ever, crosses my mind.
Until, that is, I received a sampling of Garlic Parmesan Beef Jerky from the good folks at the Green Light Jerky Company.
The first thing I noticed upon opening the package was that it looked different. Instead of a red, slightly rubberized dog treat, the pouch contained asymmetrical strips of brown meat-bark. It certainly looked as all-natural as the website promised.
The Smell
Opening the pouch yielded a smell like none other. Smokey, salty, rich and spicy – this was possibly the most evocative scent I’ve experienced in quite a while. Each time I opened it in subsequent days, the smell hit me like a locomotive. They could probably package this smell and sell it as a manly air freshener: Carnivore Potpourri.
Taste and Texture
What really surprised me about the taste was not the flavors, which I had anticipated liking based on the smell, but the texture. Dryer than dry, this really was the tree bark of the meat world. I know this reference will be lost on most, but I could only think of Hugh Jackman’s performance in the sci-fi head-scratcher, The Fountain, in which a man keeps himself alive indefinitely by partaking of the bark of the Tree of Life. Although, I’m fairly sure even the Tree of Life didn’t taste this good.
Green Light has five other flavors to choose from, and while I can’t vouch for all of them, I’d very much doubt that there’s a rotten one in the bunch.
So, what’re you waiting for? Go get some already!
Posted in Products
Tagged bark, beef jerky, carnivore, carnivore potpourri, dry, garlic parmesan, Green Light, smokey, spicy, The Fountain, tree of life
Yes, I gave in to the tsunami that is Twitter.
You can follow all the ins and outs at www.twitter.com/eatwrite or just head to the nifty new Twitter widget on my sidebar.
(thanks to New Jersey Monthly)
First, an apology. I once again have to rely on the photos of others to do the visual work for me. But this time, it’s not my fault. My wife and I were late in arriving and it was raining, which prohibited any good outside shots of the new restaurant, Nisi Estiatorio.
However, if pictures are your thing, I highly recommend a visit to Nisi’s site, which features a beautiful rolling photo gallery of interior, exterior and food shots. I refer to it often, and you should too.
While I don’t want to get too bogged down in the online world, the website does provide a good lead-in to the restaurant’s impressive design sense. Neither too stuffy, nor over-the-top gaudy (always a risk with New Jersey “fine dining”), the dining room is invitingly simple and open. It’s rare that my wife and I notice the decor, but it is to Nisi’s credit that we both complimented the physical design as sophisticated and not overly-showy.
But enough with the prologue… let’s talk about the eats!
Posted in new jersey, Restaurants
Tagged Englewood, fine dining, fish, greek, John Piliouras, kataifi, Keftedes, kibbi, lamb meatballs, lavraki, Manouri, new jersey, Nisi, orzo, pastourma, seafood
OK, I admit it… the above picture looks like vomit.
But here’s the thing: it tastes really good and it’s dirt cheap. That’s why I eat it two to three times a week.
Although I’ve written about cart food before, I haven’t sampled much of it. Sure, I’ve had the odd pretzel here and there, and even a hot dog if I’m feeling brave . But that fully prepared stuff? I tend to stay away.
After a few months at the new NYC job, however, I became bored with deli sandwiches. I craved something more substantial. And yet, my lunch budget wouldn’t allow anything new that spiked above the $5 – $10 range.
Enter: the chicken and rice plate.
For a mere $5, you get a complete meal that’s tasty, filling and not terribly bad for you. Best of all, it’s not as scary as you think.
Here’s what goes into it:
(For only $1 more, you can get a combo of chicken and doner kebab lamb.)
The two carts I frequent are only a block away from each other, but they each have a distinct take on chicken and rice.
Honestly, you can’t go wrong with either of these place, or most of the carts in the city. I’ve found this food to be the absolute best value for a New York City lunch.
Now, if they could only do something about those styrofoam containers…
Tagged best value, cart food, chicken, chicken & rice, columbus circle, lamb, lunch, midtown lunch, NYC, rice
