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New York: Beyond The Williamsburg Stereotypes

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2 December 2011

When my fiancée and I were deciding where to stay in New York, we wanted, as most people do, somewhere that was affordable – this was especially important as we were spending 2 weeks in the city. A search revealed Condor Hotel (which ended up being an excellent hotel), which was in Williamsburg in Brooklyn to be an option that looked like it ticked all of the boxes.

We had always assumed that we would stay in Manhattan, however did some research on the area and discovered all about what had been going on in Williamsburg re gentrification, the food scene, the art scene, hipsters and the like. There were a lot of Williamsburg stereotypes, however it sounded like quite a decent area so we decided we’d give it a shot.

When we arrived, it turns out that the hotel was about a half hour walk away from the “cool” part of Williamsburg. Where we were located was a Hasidic Jewish part of the neighbourhood. I’m always interested in learning about different cultures and seeing what the lives of people are like in a city and, not being Jewish, I learned about a lot of stuff I didn’t know about and got to see a whole part of New York that I likely wouldn’t have it I was staying in Manhattan – this is what travel is about to me.

To a tourist, the famous yellow school buses are a tourist attraction in their own right.

Everyone was walking around with cloaks/gowns/capes of sorts, and these big furry hats like you expect to see people wearing in the middle of winter in Russia. All of the Jewish run shops in the area were closed and people were walking around very quietly at all hours of day carrying these particular plants that I hadn’t seen before along with palm leaves.

There were wooden boxes being constructed on balconies and on the sidewalk out the front of many of the houses/apartments. I knew that there was some sort of religious celebration going on, and a few days into my trip, I asked a Jewish guy at the shops what it was all about and he kindly told me all about “Sukkot”.

From Wikipedia:

Sukkot is a Biblical holiday celebrated on the 15th day of the month of Tishrei (late September to late October). It is one of the three biblically mandated festivals on which Hebrews were commanded to make a pilgrimage to the Temple in Jerusalem. The holiday lasts seven days. The first day is a sabbath-like yom tov when work is forbidden, followed by the intermediate Chol Hamoed and Shemini Atzeret. The Hebrew word sukkōt is the plural of sukkah, “booth or tabernacle”, which is a walled structure covered with skhakh (plant material such as leafy tree overgrowth or palm leaves). The sukkah is intended as a reminiscence of the type of fragile dwellings in which the Israelites dwelt during their 40 years of travel in the desert after the Exodus from slavery in Egypt. Throughout the holiday meals are eaten inside the sukkah and many sleep there as well. On each day of the holiday, members of the household recite a blessing over the lulav and etrog (Four species).

At the end of our holiday, when Sukkot had finished, this whole part of Williamsburg changed. All the shops were open, great smells from all the Jewish bakeries surrounded the area, and there were people and traffic everywhere. It was unrecognisable from a few days earlier.

Just west of the Jewish part of Williamsburg, things take on a Latino vibe. Advertisment, shops, the works – in this area lots of stuff was either bilingual, or not even in English. I love how New York is such a melting pot of cultures and you can experience so many of them in the same city – everyone is just free to do their own thing.

With Halloween just around the corner, there were shops selling carving pumpkins all over the city. There’s no real wasted space in New York. Everywhere you look, be it a side street, next to rail lines, there’s something going on. The streets on either side of the raised rail lines seemed to have a particularly high concentration of small businesses – especially near the stations themselves, which would be expected.

Some might say that overhead rail lines and stations are an eyesore, but I think that they give the area a real unique character.

The views from the above ground platforms are always fascinating and give you a real different perspective of the area.

Williamsburg is such a diverse, unique and interesting part of New York, and while many of the Williamsburg stereotypes hold true, negative and positive, the fact of the matter is that Williamsburg, and Brooklyn in general is a great part of New York, and well worth your time.

New York: Brooklyn Street Art (Part 4)

Paul

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28 November 2011

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In recent years, a lot of hipsters, alternative types, creatives and young professionals have moved into the area, giving it a very random and exciting vibe. As I mentioned in my New York Food Guide, there is a real push in New York towards locally sourced and produced food, and that is very evident in Brooklyn, with a lot of the stuff coming from here. Along with food, there are also lots of independent clothing stores and all kinds of other stores. There is something new and interesting to explore on almost every street including.

Heading north, you can go east into Bedford-Stuyvesant, which is another area that is gentrifying – as Williamsburg becomes too expensive, the gentrification spreads to previously untouched areas.

New York: Brooklyn Street Art (Part 3)

Paul

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28 November 2011

0

Heading north, the amount of activation increases. There are all kinds of shops and places to eat and drink to be discovered. The Brooklyn street art scene in this part of town, as would be expected, keeps on throwing up gems.

This is the part of town where you’ll find Mast Brothers Chocolate, Brooklyn Brewery, and other companies you might have heard about if you’re from overseas.

You can’t just take the street art at face value. If you come across something like what’s in the picture below, each image has its own story to tell.

It’s not all warehouses and industrial buildings. There are some really nice brick and brownstone places in this part of Brooklyn and it can go from being very gritty to being very charming quite quickly It’s a very diverse and eclectic part of New York.

I’m amazed at how many people skip Brooklyn when they visit New York, especially given just how close it really is to Manhattan.

Follow the links for my Brooklyn Street Art Tour Part 1, Part 2 and Part 4.

New York: Brooklyn Street Art (Part 2)

Paul

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28 November 2011

0

Continuing along the waterfront, moving west towards the more vibrant part of Williamsburg, the Brooklyn street art scene didn’t slow down.

It’s not just art on the buildings that features in the area. Look up, look down, and you’ll be sure to find something that wasn’t immediately apparent.

Heading into the “main” part of Williamsburg, the abandoned warehouses started to give way to occupied and converted warehouses. Shops, bars, restaurants, galleries, apartments etc – all have been popping up in Williamsburg for quite a while now, and it certainly didn’t seem to be showing any signs of abating. There was plenty more Brooklyn street art to discover in this part of town.

Follow the links for my Brooklyn Street Art Tour Part 1, Part 3 and Part 4.

New York: Brooklyn Street Art (Part 1)

Paul

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28 November 2011

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When I went to New York, I stayed at Hotel Condor in Brooklyn as there was a really good deal going at the time. It was unexpected, as I had always assumed that I’d stay in Manhattan, but I could have been happier to have stayed in the area. So many tourists never venture beyond Manhattan, however Brooklyn has so much to offer. This update just covers a part of Williamsburg and Greenpoint in Brooklyn and even then it’s just scratching the surface.

One could easily spend an entire week exploring just Brooklyn, and my advice to anyone who visits New York is to, even if just for one day, get yourself over to Brooklyn and discover another side to New York. In this post, I’ll be focusing on the amazing Brooklyn street art scene.

Part 1 focuses on the south-eastern part of Williamsburg, near the waterfront. There is not much in the way of restaurants, shops, bars of cafes in this part of Williamsburg. There are just a lot of old, abandoned warehouses and factories. Despite this, there is no shortage of amazing street art in the area.

I love finding old signage that has long since lost its relevance from a utilitarian point of view.

Brooklyn is quieter than Manhattan, and is a really cool borough. Williamsburg has been undergoing gentrification over the past few years, and is an eclectic mix of old industrial buildings, some abandoned, some operational, some apartments some retail, some offices etc. Pockets are very residential in nature – and there are large Jewish, African-American and Latino communities amongst others.

There are a lot of old factories and warehouse scattered throughout Brooklyn, and they provide a small insight into what once was.

The sheer volume of Brooklyn street art is staggering. Berlin is the only other city that I’ve been to that matches Brooklyn as regards street art.

It seems that everywhere you look in Brooklyn, there’s something to see. Often it’s hard to tell whether what you are looking at is art, decay, authentic, inauthentic or a combination of some or all of those things.

Follow the links for my Brooklyn Street Art Tour Part 2, Part 3 and Part 4.

Brooklyn Food Guide

Paul

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30 October 2011

4

People are always asking me for tips on places that they should go and eat when they travel to cities to which I have been, so for New York I decided to take a bit of extra time and catalogue some of the food highlights to create a post that I can refer people to when they ask me where to eat in Brooklyn.

I expected that New York would become one of my favourite cities in the world, and I was right – it’s a truly amazing place – and it’s deep and varied food scene is just one of its many facets. There is a real focus on fresh, seasonal, local produce and supporting independent and local businesses which is great.

Prices range from cheap $, to medium/affordable $$, to expensive $$$.

Diner

$$
85 Broadway, Williamsburg, Brooklyn
(http://dinernyc.com/)

Diner is a [really] small bar in that serves food that is anything but typical for a small bar. The ingredients are fresh and local, and the menu ever changing and very innovative. It is literally an old refurbished diner caravan on a street corner. As the menu changes daily, I can’t search back to find out exactly what it was that I ate here, needless to say it was all great.

Some kind of ravioli with a bacon broth. I don’t usually go for bacon in these sorts of dishes as I find the flavour overpowering however the balance was just right in this dish, and the bacon flavour was very subtle and balanced with the rest of the dish.

Again, I can’t remember the specifics, but it was essentially slightly salty beans with flaked razor clam and buttered toast. This was amazing.

Grilled duck heart on buckwheat salad. The heart was extremely tasty and the chewyness of the buckwheat added an amazing texture to the dish. I cannot remember what the sauce on the side was. This was my favourite dish of the night.

Blue Bottle Coffee

$
160 Berry Street, Brooklyn
(http://www.bluebottlecoffee.net/)

New York, in recent years, has really started to take its coffee seriously. Sure there are Starbucks everywhere, but more and more as the years go by, are lots of great independent cafes. One of the best is Blue Bottle, which have a handful of locations around the US, with the Williamsburg outpost being our ”local”. They roast coffee on site and have an obsession with their technique and equipment. The end result is, unsurprisingly, amazing coffee.

We went here three times, but on this occasion got a Bench Maji (Ethiopia) filter drip and a FB80/MP Blend macchiato. The pastries all looked amazing but every time we went we couldn’t go past the Brooklyn Bootleg S’mores which was just amazing. It is made from Mast brothers (a chocolate factory literally up the road) chocolate, house made Graham crackers, and Kings county distillery bootleg marshmallow. You seriously have to try this thing.

Update, Jan 2013: Blue Bottle have expanded their New York operations to include 3 Manhattan location, which is great news for those of you who can’t get out to Brooklyn. There’s one at Chelsea (450 West 15th Street), The Rockefeller Centre (1 Rockefeller Plaza, Concourse Level, Suite D) and TriBeCa (102 Franklin Street)

Five Leaves

$$
18 Bedford Avenue, Brooklyn
(http://www.fiveleavesny.com/)

This was a place we just stumbled across in the Greenpoint part of Brooklyn. It had a great vibe and the food was really tasty. Below looks like just a great burger, but the fries are actually truffle fries. I don’t know why I haven’t seen anyone do this before – French fries and truffle oil are very tasty match!

Only while eating and looking up the place did I find out a very interesting fact about this venue – it turns out that Heath Ledger (from Perth like me!) lived in this area and he, along with his close friend that taught him how to skateboard, were going to open a bar on this corner. After Heath Ledger died, Heath’s dad got involved and the bar was opened as intended. Here is a really interesting article about it (http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/10/30/a-new-restaurant-in-heath-ledgers-memory/).

DeKalb Market

$
138 Willoughby Street, Brooklyn
(http://dekalbmarket.com/)

Shoddy photos I know, but the DeKalb market is essentially bunch of shipping crates and some tables, which is home to various food stalls, shops and the occasional free performance. We went there quite late and everyone seemed to be there for the performance, with most of the shops closed down for the day (I went again a few days later during the day and it was much busier but I didn’t take any photos).

Update, Jan 2013: I’ve just been made aware that DeKalb Market closed late 2012 and will be replaced with a branch of Austin’s movie theatre/restaurant chain Drafthouse in 2015. Really sad to hear, as it was a great spot doing some great things for the local food, art and music scene. Alas, I suppose it would be naive to expect a prime piece of land in a fast changing part of Brooklyn to remain undeveloped for too long.

Southern style fried chicken with hot sauce. The sauce was actually really interesting – both spicy and sweet (and tangy) at the same time.

A local band, with the singer being from New Zealand. There’s even an independent radio station that broadcasts from one of the shipping crates here!

Roebling Tea Room

$$
138 Roebling Street, Brooklyn
(http://www.roeblingtearoom.com/)

Started by one of the original chefs from Diner, Roebling tea room is in the similar vein food wise, although in a clearly much larger space. The food and ingredients are all top notch. The menu is an interesting mix of American cooking with a definite French influence. This is another venue with an ever changing menu so again you’ll have to excuse the less than detailed descriptions!

This was probably my favourite dish here. Miniature crab and corn cakes with Chipotle tartar sauce.

Salmon and something – all I know is that it tasted great.

Mac and cheese. Simple, but excellent with the best ingredients used. Needs to be eaten while hot though as it’s not as great once the cheese starts to solidify!

Cockaleekie – Breast and Drumette / Dark Meat Chicken Meatballs / Lavender / Dates / Corned Beef / Champ

The above dish came with a side of Mashed potatoes. Really generous servings here – neither of us could finish our meals.

Cafe Peddlar

$
210 Court Street, Brooklyn
(http://cafepedlar.com/)

Another one of this city’s great little cafes. We came here for the coffee, but the pastries are really nice too. The coffee is roasted at Stumptown Roasters up the road (if you see a place in New York advertising that they sell Stumptown coffee, it means they care and most of the time you’ll be assured a decent cup of coffee) and the milk is local and organic.

Cappuccino and Macchiato to drink. Buttermilk Biscuit (like an English scone, but softer on the inside and crispier on the outside) and Olive Oil Cake.

As an aside, the owners of this place also own a place called Frankie’s Spuntino which is known for it’s seasonal, light, traditional Italian food. I didn’t get to try it out but did grab a copy of the cookbook which looks like the kind of thing that I can use on a daily basis, being full of modern, fresh, simple, healthy, easy to prepare Italian recipes.(http://www.merlinmerchant.com/product_p/manual.htm)

Fatty ‘Cue

$$
91 South 6th Street, Brooklyn
(http://www.fattycue.com/home)

I didn’t actually know what to expect from this place, which can best be described as Texas BBQ meets South East Asia. Odd yes, but boy does it work. These guys are really obsessed with their technique, and have a smoker out the back which they use to work magic when BBQing their meat. The South East Asian touches – a bit of chilli here, a touch of citrus there, are all used for a reason. For those who don’t want to go across the river to Brooklyn (your loss!) a second outpost has just opened up in the West Village in Manhattan.

Smoked Brisket Sandwich with garlic butter, fresh cheese, salted chili, mustard greens.

The Smoky Johnson – Local grass-fed beef, sheep’s milk cheese, mustard aioli, b&b pickle, bacon.

S’mores tart.

Mile End Delicatessen

$$
97a Hoyt Street, Brooklyn
(http://www.mileendbrooklyn.com/)

This place is described as “A Montreal Jewish Delicatessen In Brooklyn”, and that’s what it is. Traditional Jewish food, spruced up and done to perfection.

A few places sell sodas from the “Virgil” brand. They are really good sodas.

Pickles.

Smoked Meat Sandwich – Cured & smoked beef brisket, rye, mustard.

The Ruth Wilensky – Smoked beef salami, mustard, onion roll. This was a real highlight. It was so tasty.

Caracas Arepa Bar

$
291 Grand Street.
(http://caracasarepabar.com/index_2.php)

I’d never tried Venezuelan food before, so decided to try this place I’d heard about. They do a few different things, but the main menu item is the Arepa, which is a kind of cornflour pita which is baked and grilled as to have an ever so slightly crisp outside and a soft, fluffy inside. They are filled with a variety of flavours. It was a really good meal and quite different to what I’d expected.

Tinto de Verano – Sparkling wine based cocktail, similar to Sangria.

De Pabellon Arepa – Shredded beef, black beans, white salty cheese and sweet plantains.

Reina Pepiada Arepa – Chunky chicken and avocado mix salad.

Roberta’s

$$
261 Moore Street, Brooklyn
(http://www.robertaspizza.com/)

Roberta’s is a very interesting place. In some ways it’s two types of venue. You can go there for great beer and pizza, or you can go there for some really innovative food. We went for lunch so the beer and pizza option was what was available. Roberta’s is in a really odd location – it’s literally a shed on a side street in a super industrial part of Brooklyn behind some warehouses/factories. Definitely not a place you can just stumble across but very cool and very popular.

Beer has also been caught up in the trend we noticed in this city, and Brooklyn, and New York (and well the USA in general) is full of great micro-breweries producing a multitude of really great beers of all varieties. For example, this pumpkin ale. Pumpkin is really popular in America – in cakes, lattes and everything else you can think of, there always seems to be a pumpkin option. If you’re the kind of person who likes cinnamon (also hugely popular in the USA), carrot cake etc., then you’ll love the pumpkin based stuff.

Lamb, cucumber and mint sandwich. A tad on the greasy side, but very tasty nonetheless. The lamb was slow cooked to perfection.

Guanciale & Egg Pizza – Tomato, mozzarella, guanciale and egg. Very tasty pizza. Although not at the same level as Keste and Co., still excellent with a really great wood fired base.

The Rest:

Chinantla

$
657 Myrtle Avenue, Brooklyn

Chinantla doesn’t have a website, or much to indicate that it exists. You wouldn’t go out of your way to eat here, but if you’re in the area it’s a great option. The hotel that I was staying at wasn’t really close to anything of note, and one night I decided to walk up and down a few blocks to find something to eat for dinner. On Myrtle Avenue, was a small convenience store. I popped inside, with the intention of getting just some fruit if they had some, and noticed some noise coming from the back as well as a small menu. Odd, I thought, as wasn’t this just a convenience store? Turns out it wasn’t.

Walk to the back of the store, where the fridges are and you’ll find a door, walk through that and there is a tiny restaurant. Greeting me was Mexican TV, Mexican music playing, a table with some Mexicans and a rather large collection of empty Corona bottles, and the smells of some amazing food.

Everything at Chinantla is made on the premises, it’s very clearly aimed at locals, and you can get a very decent feed for under $10. Some of the best, most authentic Mexican food I have ever eaten.

Mast Brothers Chocolate

$$
105A North 3rd Street, Brooklyn.
(http://mastbrothers.com/)

You’ll see the chocolate that these guys make pop up at a few places around New York and for good reason. The guys are obsessed with producing excellent chocolate, and it tastes amazing.

Smorgasburg

$
East River Waterfront (between North 6th and 7th Streets)
(http://www.brooklynflea.com/2011/04/25/smorgasburg/)

This has now closed but will be reopening for the summer/autumn next year. Basically a lot of the great food places in Brooklyn set up stalls here for a huge outdoor food market. It was a great way to see a lot of great stuff in one spot, with a view of Manhattan from across the river.

For more great food tips click here to check out my Manhattan Food Guide.

Manhattan Food Guide

Paul

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30 October 2011

2

People are always asking me for tips on places that they should go and eat when they travel to cities to which I have been, so for New York I decided to take a bit of extra time and catalogue some of the food highlights to create a post that I can refer people to when they ask me where to eat in Manhattan.

I expected that New York would become one of my favourite cities in the world, and I was right – it’s a truly amazing place – and it’s deep and varied food scene is just one of its many facets. There is a real focus on fresh, seasonal, local produce and supporting independent and local businesses which is great.

Prices range from cheap $, to medium/affordable $$, to expensive $$$.

Momofuku Ssam Bar

$$
207 2nd Avenue, New York
(http://www.momofuku.com/restaurants/ssam-bar/)

If you are into your food, you have probably heard of David Chang. He does amazing things with simple ingredients and has really made a name for himself with his Asian fusion food. Fusion can so often go wrong, but he makes everything work, and the food was worth every bit of hype. He is a self-proclaimed pork nut, but at Ssam bar it is duck which is given top billing

Rotisserie duck over rice with lettuce. I love roast duck and this is by far the best I have ever had. The meat was succulent; the fat melted in my mouth, and the skin was super crispy.

David Chang is famous for his pork buns however at Ssam there is also a pulled duck bun with sauerkraut and smoked mayo. Again, worth every bit of hype it has received. Everything about this bun was amazing.

Duck dumpling soup with garlic scapes, bok choy and jicama. Also unsurprisingly brilliant.

Keste Pizza & Vino

$$
271 Bleeker Street, New York(http://kestepizzeria.com/home.html)

The question of “who makes New York’s best pizza?” is a divisive one at best, with a variety of opinions depending on who you talk to. What was not in dispute though, was that this new place was either at, or very near the top of every reputable list that I found. The pizzas are not the typical “NYC Slice”, but rather traditional Neapolitan style pizza done to absolute perfection. Roberto Capousicio, a cheese maker from Pontinia just outside Napoli really knows his pizza. I got the Regina Margherita – Tomatoes, fresh buffalo mozzarella, grape tomatoes basil, extra virgin olive oil. Up there as one of the best pizzas I have ever eaten.

My fiancée got the Pizza Insalata – Pizza sandwich filled with spring mix, prosciutto di parma, artichoke, lemon and extra virgin olive oil.

Ai Fiori

$$$
400 5th Avenue, 2nd level Setai Hotel, New York
(http://www.aifiorinyc.com/)

The dish we came here for isn’t actually on the lunch menu, but not to mind, as the two course $36 prix fixe was amazing. Ai Fiori is unashamedly fine dining and, if you look at the reviews it has received since it opened earlier this year, I wouldn’t be surprised to see a Michelin Star coming its way next year [edit: It was awarded its first Michelin Star that very month]. The food was very rich, very tasty, and all kinds of amazing.

Vellutata – Lobster velouté, périgord black truffles, chervil.

Trofie Nero – Ligurian crustacean ragoût, seppia, scallops, spiced mollic.

Spaghetti – Blue crab, lemon, bottarga, chilies.

Rice To Riches

$
37 Spring Street, New York
(http://www.ricetoriches.com/puddy.aspx)

We just stumbled upon this place randomly and decided that it looked interesting. A different take on the frozen yoghurt craze, Rice To Riches sells unapologetically full fat rice pudding in a huge variety of flavours with toppings to match.

A terrible photo, but I got the “Possessed By Espresso Choc Chip” with Espresso crumble. It was very nice and filling, but could do with a tone down of the sugar levels.

Pinkberry

$
Various Locations
(http://www.pinkberry.com/)

The Los Angeles chain that kicked off the recent frozen yoghurt craze has several stores across New York, and the US for that matter (and even one in London at the Selfridges food hall as of September 2011).

It tastes great, with a range of flavours and toppings and not overly sweet. The thing I love is that they aren’t stingy on the toppings – they will cram on as many as you like until there is literally no room left. Word of advice – the small (not mini) is the perfect size. Anything bigger is too much.

Momofuku Noodle Bar

$$
171 1st Avenue, New York
(http://www.momofuku.com/restaurants/noodle-bar/)

The original Momofuku – and everything that I said about Ssam bar applies to this place too – there’s more of a focus on pork and ramen here.

Supposedly Moxie is a real traditional American soda. Personally I thought it just tasted like carbonated cough syrup – not recommended!

Pork Bun – Hoisin, scallion, cucumber. So succulent and amazingly tasty.

Kimchi stew – Braised kimchi, pork shoulder, rice cakes. This was super tasty, and so filling that I couldn’t even finish it and barely felt like dinner that night, which ended up being quite late as a result.

Goat ramen – Piquillo, red shiso, soy egg. Also super tasty.

Burger Joint at Le Parker Meridian

$
119 West 56th Street, New York
(http://www.parkermeridien.com/eat4.php)

Another one of those divisive questions is “What’s the best burger in New York”. After a bit of research, we found a few places to try, and Burger Joint was by far the best. To find it, you have to walk through the lobby of the Le Parker Meridian hotel and then turn into the alcove to the side of the red curtain. Behind the curtain is something completely unexpected in such a fancy hotel!

The burger might not look like much, but when you bite into it you’ll see why for almost 8 years it’s been considered one of the best in this city. A succulent meat patty cooked exactly the way you want, with lettuce, tomato, mayo and mustard in between two white buns, and then a combination of the following (“the works” if you want it all): once piece of white and one piece of yellow cheddar, onions (not cooked).

About as simple as you can get from a burger but the quality of the ingredients, and how it comes together is just amazing. We ate here three times and even at 4pm on a weekday, during their “quiet” period, all the tables were full. At dinner, there was a line to get in.

Shake Shack

$
Various Locations
(http://shakeshack.com/)

Shake Shack is a place that’s become a chain in recent years due to huge popularity and expansion in this city. My thoughts about it were mixed. it was certainly cheap which I guess is part of its appeal as for the price it’s clearly better than your standard burger chain, but the burgers themselves, especially after eating at Burger Joint, just didn’t really make the grade in my opinion – primarily because they were too greasy.

I would, however, recommend going for their drinks – shakes, concretes, custard/soft serve etc. I had a pear and ginger custard (which is like soft serve and custard combined) and it was very tasty and had a good balance of flavours.

The Spotted Pig

$$
314 West 11th Street, New York
(http://thespottedpig.com/)

This place is pretty well known and widely regarded as kicking off the Gastro pub scene in New York. It’s often frequented by chefs, part owned by Iron Chef Mario Batali – you get the drift.

Does it live up to the hype? Yes.

Chicken Liver Toast. I’ve had a lot of goose and duck liver in my time, but had never actually tried chicken liver until now. It’s got its own thing going on and is very good.

Crispy Pig’s Ear Salad with Lemon Caper Dressing. I must admit I was surprised when this dish came out and literally had an entire pig’s ear on the plate. Can I please recommend that you be a bit adventurous and try this dish, as the crispiness, texture and gelatinous portions of the pig’s ear really are something amazing.

Prosciutto & Ricotta Tart with Marjoram. Not as “adventurous” as the above, but brilliant nonetheless.

Shoestring fries. Probably the best fries I had on this trip. So thin and crispy, and ultra-tasty.

Co.

$$
230 9th Avenue, New York
(http://co-pane.com/)

Another pizzeria that constantly came up around the top of my list in my research, the pizzas from Co. are less “traditional” than those at Keste, but not at the expense of being amazing. Co.’s Roman style pizzas have a beautiful crispy, wood fired base and quality ingredients – you can’t really go wrong.

Ribollita soup – Tomato, savoy cabbage, cavolo nero, cannellini beans, parmesan, mirepoix, chili.

Chicken Liver toast.

Meatball pie (Co. call their pizzas “pies”) – Tomato, mozzarella, veal meatballs, caramelized onions, olives, aged pecorino, oregano.

Doughnut Plant

$
379 Grand Street, New York
(http://www.doughnutplant.com/)

Seems like cupcakes are old news in New York, and the current emerging craze is doughnuts. Certainly something that America has always been known for but, as with most things, the new places are focusing on the quality of their ingredients and the depth of their flavours. The doughnuts from here were really great – you’ll never want to eat a Krispy Kreme again after coming here – in a completely different league.

Korilla BBQ

$
Location changes daily.
(http://korillabbq.com/)

This place won NYC food van of the year 2011 and for good reason. Korean Tacos originated on the East Coast, and kBBQ has really made them popular in NYC. It’s what you think, and then it isn’t. Essentially it’s what you eat when you go out for Korean BBQ, in taco/burrito form. It works – brilliantly. Being a van, it’s location depends on the day – you check their website or twitter to find out where it’s going to be that day.

We asked for the most popular thing on the menu and got the Ribeye burrito with bacon and kimchee fried rice, red kimchee and Korean BBQ sauce. This thing really is bastardised food done right, and unlike anything you’ve tried before, although really it isn’t!

Marea

$$$
240 Central Park South, New York
(http://www.marea-nyc.com/)

This was our splurge for the trip. Two Michelin starred, high end Italian restaurant with a focus on seafood and pasta that is considered “genius”. It completely lived up to the hype and was an amazing meal. The menu also changes slightly depending on what’s fresh and in season, so a few things that we ordered are currently not on the menu.

Not sure what the appetiser was – you drink it and it was delicious.

Scallops on something pears with something.

Sea urchin on something.

The much hyped Fusilli – Durum wheat pasta, red wine braised octopus, bone marrow. It was every bit as amazing as it’s hyped up to be.

Capesante – Roasted sea scallops, polenta crocchettes, speck, braised mustard greens.

Branzino – Wild striped bass, roasted cauliflower, charred scallions, marble potatoes.

Sorbetti – Saffon Pear, Concord Grape, Raspberry Rose.

Nocciola Pralinato – Hazelnut, dark chocolate, lemon, mint.

Petitt fours

Caracas Arepa Bar

$
93 1/2 East 7th Street.
(http://caracasarepabar.com/index_2.php)

I’d never tried Venezuelan food before, so decided to try this place I’d heard about. They do a few different things, but the main menu item is the Arepa, which is a kind of cornflour pita which is baked and grilled as to have an ever so slightly crisp outside and a soft, fluffy inside. They are filled with a variety of flavours. It was a really good meal and quite different to what I’d expected.

Tinto de Verano – Sparkling wine based cocktail, similar to Sangria.

De Pabellon Arepa – Shredded beef, black beans, white salty cheese and sweet plantains.

Reina Pepiada Arepa – Chunky chicken and avocado mix salad.

The Rest:

A few places which I actually didn’t take any photos of but are still worth a mention:

Joe, The Art Of Coffee

$
Various Locations
(http://www.joetheartofcoffee.com/)

This place has a few locations around New York, and is a good option for those of you who won’t be venturing out of Manhattan too often. We went to three different locations, and each time the coffee was very good.

Sheng Wang

$
27 Eldridge St, New York

This is a hand pulled Noodle place that had brilliant noodles and was very cheap. It’s a tiny and narrow place, probably seats 40-50 people and the guy making the noodles is in the main dining area at the back before the kitchen, and you see him making the noodles with a thud as they hit the bench a few times every minute.

Well worth a visit for a very tasty, cheap meal and a bit of a show with the noodles being made in plain view.

I hope you enjoyed this guide, and get to try some of the places on here some time. If you have any other tips, would like to discuss your experiences at any of the above places, feel free to do so below. I’d love to hear what you all have to say about food in this amazing city.

Also, if the passage of time has made any of what I’ve written redundant, please let me know so that I can update the entry.

For more great food tips click here to check out my Brooklyn Food Guide.

New York Food Guide

Paul

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30 October 2011

7

People are always asking me for tips on places that they should go and eat when they travel to cities to which I have been, so for New York I decided to take a bit of extra time and catalogue some of the food highlights to create a post that I can refer people to when they ask where to eat in this amazing city.

I expected that New York would become one of my favourite cities in the world, and I was right – it’s a truly amazing place – and it’s deep and varied food scene is just one of its many facets. There is a real focus on fresh, seasonal, local produce and supporting independent and local businesses which is great. Without further ado, let me take you on my New York Food Guide.

The City Lane Manhattan Food Guide

The City Lane Brooklyn Food Guide

Madrid: 13 – 14 August 2010 / 23 – 24 September 2011

Legacy Content

Paul

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8 October 2011

0

Madrid: 13 – 14 August 2010 / 23 – 24 September 2011

Madrid is one of my favourite European cities. When I first visited in 2009, I had no idea what to expect but enjoyed the city so much that I went back again in 2010 and once again in 2011. It has a very different vibe to Barcelona, which is a city that I also love. It’s certainly less of a tourist destination and feels like it is more catered to locals and Spaniards. The people are very friendly, it’s sunny, warm and affordable, the food and drink is great, and it’s got a very chilled out vibe about it. At night, things, as is the case all over Spain, don’t get started until quite late, and the partying and great vibe continues into the early hours of the following day. Food is valued just as much as drink and both are in plentiful supply and consumed accordingly. Similarly to when I was in Lisbon, people seem to just be out to enjoy themselves, and despite it not being uncommon to see people street drinking in the night spots, there is a complete lack of aggression and “bad” behaviour. The photos below are a combination from my 2010 and 2011 visits.

I love Jamon, and in Madrid it is everywhere. A simple snack is a few strips of jamon in a crispy bread roll. Simple and brilliant.

In August each year, the La Latina district of the city is home to the fiesta for the Virgen de la Paloma. It’s been going since the 1700s and the entire district comes alive with food stands, outdoor bars, live bands, boom boxes and everything else. The best thing about it, is that even very late at night, you have a mixture of teens, families, old people and everyone else just mingling amongst each-other, enjoying the celebrations.

El Retiro park is the largest park in Madrid and is stunning, situated in the middle of the city. Come siesta time (generally seems to be between 2-4pm), it’s one of the most popular places in the city to relax in.

The Yorkshire Weekend Travel Guide

Legacy Content

Paul

-

6 October 2011

0

For the summer bank holiday, my fiancée and I decided to do a road trip up to Yorkshire, basing ourselves in York and travelling around. After 2.5 years in the country I finally got behind the wheel in the UK for the first time. Driving in London was as scary as everyone says, with the narrow roads, intense traffic, and constant activity everywhere. It’s no wonder people who have lived in London their whole lives all say that they hate driving in London! Outside of London though, it was basically the same as driving in Perth back in Australia, except that the motorways in the UK are much better than those back home. Drivers over here are much more considerate, and there are very good services spaced very well all the way along the motorways.

Although I didn’t take any photos as it was literally a stop for lunch, I did see Nottingham. I’d love to go back and check out the city properly sometime as it seemed like a great place to spend a weekend with lots of interesting museums and galleries.

As for York itself, I honestly didn’t have too much in the way of expectations and was happy to just go with the flow and plan the trip as the weekend went on. I was very impressed by the city, and was amazed at its history. It was founded by the Romans in 71AD as “Eboracum”, and was the capital of this part of the world when it was part of the Roman Empire. As such, there is a roman wall around the old city, and lots of ruins scattered about. Emperor Constantine The Great was actually proclaimed Emperor in the city.

So many people from overseas come to the UK and only ever visit London and maybe something close to London, but these road trips that I have done reinforce time and time again that England is such an amazing and diverse place, and truly deserves more time in the traveller’s schedule than many allow. I hope you enjoy looking through my photographic Yorkshire Travel Guide.

The York Minster is a Gothic cathedral which was completed in 1472, but construction of the current cathedral actually began 200 years earlier, and there has actually always been a church on this site since 627!

In the 1920s, a Swiss immigrant, Frederick Belmont, opened Betty’s Tearooms which aimed to combine the best of Swiss chocolates and delicacies with the best of the English tea room and high tea culture. Betty’s has been a Yorkshire institution ever since and it is evident when you go there that they are proud of both the quality of their products and of their Swiss/English heritage. I got the “Fat Rascal” which is their signature scone. This thing was a beast, and I was not hungry until much later that day after eating it!

The Yorkshire Museum Gardens are beautiful, and contain the ruins of St Mary’s Abbey, which date back to 1271.

Just north of York is the North York Moors National Park. This area is stunning and it was great to have a car to be able to drive through and see it. The hills and rolling fields are covered in purple wildflowers and my pictures do not at all do it justice. It’s truly one of the most beautiful things I have ever seen in my life.

In the Moors is a town called Goathland. Those of you who have heard of the show Heartbeat probably know the town by its TV name, Aidensfield. My mum and dad are big fans of Heartbeat so I stopped by to take some photos and have a pint. The whole town is just a handful of buildings on one street. You have to go through some steep hills and winding roads to get there, and there are sheep just wandering around. It’s a bit tacky with 1960s and Heartbeat memorabilia but I suppose nobody would come here otherwise.

Finally, we arrived in Whitby. To Australians, the town is most relevant as the port where Captain James Cook sailed from, at the start of his journey to Australia. It’s also famous as being the town where Dracula spent some time in after fleeing Transylvania in Bram Stoker’s novel. Whitby is a really nice town and I could easily have spent more time there. Everyone buys these crab buckets/nets/bait, which only cost a few quid and go crabbing for these little crabs which are in the water. My fiancée and I had far too much fun crabbing and spent a few hours doing it – we even caught some big ones which impressed some of the locals!

The Magpie Cafe is an institution in these parts and is widely recognised as having some of the best fish and chips in the region, if not the whole of the UK. I usually don’t go for fried fish as I find it too sickly and greasy but I must say the Magpie Cafe deserves its accolades. First, you can choose from a huge range of fish (as well as lots of other non-fried, fresh seafood), and when the fish and chips comes out, it’s not greasy at all, just crisp and tasty. I’ve never seen fish and chips where after eating them, the dish barely has any grease or oil on it. I also tried a really nice local ale from the Captain Cook brewery.

The next day, we drove to Harrogate. This was a bit of a disaster as one wrong turn ended up taking us to Leeds, which is a nice city but I’ve already been! Anyway, back on track on the way to Harrogate, we saw a sign that read “Harewood House”. Why not? We thought and down the side road we went. Turns out there was some family fun fair in the grounds of the estate which to be honest didn’t really interest us. The estate however, did. It is owned by the Earl and Countess of Harewood, and the showpiece is Harewood House which dates back to the 18th century. There was an interesting exhibit in the house about the slaves and servants that used to work there and you walk through the quarters and see lots of things from those times. All over the UK countryside you see these estates which are open to the public, as it is the only way that the families can afford to keep them maintained and running. Most of them are now home to exhibits, events and even available to hire for weddings, parties and the like.

Finally we got to Harrogate but unfortunately it was much later than we had anticipated and we had to get all the way back to London and drop the car back so literally only a few streets and quick snaps is what I had time for. It’s a shame as Harrogate is famous for its ancient Roman spas, being home to natural sources of spring water. It is a very beautiful town, and outside of the city centre, all of the “suburbs” look quite grand and well maintained.

THE CITY LANEEAT & TRAVEL LIKE A LOCAL

THE CITY LANEEAT & TRAVEL LIKE A LOCAL

Diner

Blue Bottle Coffee

Five Leaves

DeKalb Market

Roebling Tea Room

Cafe Peddlar

Fatty ‘Cue

Mile End Delicatessen

Caracas Arepa Bar

Roberta’s

Chinantla

Mast Brothers Chocolate

Smorgasburg

Momofuku Ssam Bar

Keste Pizza & Vino

Ai Fiori

Rice To Riches

Pinkberry

Momofuku Noodle Bar

Burger Joint at Le Parker Meridian

Shake Shack

The Spotted Pig

Co.

Doughnut Plant

Korilla BBQ

Marea

Caracas Arepa Bar

Joe, The Art Of Coffee

Sheng Wang

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