I had a little time to kill after volunteering at the Brooklyn Superhero Supply Store last Sunday and before going to the Maurice Sendak documentary Tell Them Anything You Want (which was great, I’d recommend watching it!) so I thought I’d swing by Four & Twenty Blackbirds as I’ve been meaning to for ages and ages.

I trudged along on the snowy, slippery sidewalks and inadvertently stalked some poor man in front of me (I swear I was just walking the same direction!) who kept stealing furtive glances back at me. Yes, I do look very threatening in my fur trapper hat, I know.

I digress. When I arrived, they were out of all flavors except for the Salted Honey pie (I saw Salted Caramel Apple crossed off and felt a little part of me die inside). I asked the extremely well-spoken 10 year old at the register (this is not a joke, she was 10 years old, I swear) what the Salted Honey pie was like and she described it as “almost like a creme brulee.” Well, dear reader, I wasn’t about to slip and slide along the sidewalks back to the subway without some taste of pie, even if it wasn’t the type I’d normally choose.

I ordered it and was pleasantly surprised by the first few bites of it. The consistency is gelatinous and the sweetness of the honey was nicely offset by the large salt flakes on top. After about halfway through the pie slice though, I felt that the sweetness was overly cloying and the salt on top just wasn’t enough to save it from being way too sweet.

So, it’s a first impression. I vow to go back and try the salted caramel apple, which I’ve heard is marvelous. Then I can make a more accurate assessment.

Four & Twenty Blackbirds, 439 3rd Avenue, Brooklyn

Steve had asked for the burger at The Little Owl as a Secret Santa present so last Sunday, we finally got a chance to go for brunch (which is the only time they serve it). Obviously I wasn’t about to just sit there and watch as he devoured one of the best burgers in New York (according to several sources). I went with the meatball sliders and yes ma’am, that was the right choice.

I’m not a big fan of burgers with huge patties. I personally prefer a burger with a nice thin, crispy patty over a thick juicy patty any day. Call me crazy. Many people have. So I was doubly happy when I received my dish in comparison to Steve’s (he was very happy with his dish, don’t worry). I enjoyed the smaller portion. It felt more manageable. The meatballs were so rich and seasoned to perfection, and the parmesan bun helped soak up the sauce in a delicious way.

I was also a big fan of the atmosphere. They were playing jazzy, lounge-y music from the 1950s and 1960s. My favorite.

Moderately priced–the burger was $16 (which might be way too much for some to pay for a burger).

Definitely recommended. Oh, and order the brussel sprout homefries too. You won’t be sorry, I promise.

The Little Owl, 90 Bedford St., NYC. http://www.thelittleowlnyc.com

With garlic aioli!! Need I say more?

If you haven’t been to Pies ‘n’ Thighs in Williamsburg, I don’t know what
you are waiting for. The apocalypse? Because let me tell you, my friend,
it will be too late then. I will already be there and I will have already
bought up every single chicken biscuit they have. What you see up there is
said biscuit. It’s a piece of fried chicken slathered in a Tabasco-esque
sauce and honey, sandwiched between the fluffiest biscuit of your life.
That biscuit is crisp on the outside so as you sink your teeth in, you’re
getting the crunch from the biscuit, then the crunch from the juicy fried
chicken. All in all, one of the best bites you’ll ever have.

If you couldn’t tell from the headline, I thoroughly enjoyed Fatty Crab. I had a Blackboard Eats special, so Priya, Talisa, Andres, Jon, Amy, Tim, and I headed uptown to the UWS location.

This crab was amazing. There was some mysterious flavor to it that I couldn’t quite put my finger on which made it extra amazing. We also ordered mussels, fatty duck (which everyone else said was out of this world), noodles with squid, and a rice dish. Not one weak dish in the bunch.

Super recommended.

Fatty Crab, 2170 Broadway (bw 76th & 77th Sts), http://www.fattycrab.com

Fluke from Aldea

I’ve been reading about Aldea since it opened in 2009 and I finally got a chance to eat there last night with my friend Steve (whose photos are also adorning this post, so thanks Steve).

Let me just start out by saying that from start to finish, Aldea was a perfect experience. We arrived at 6:30 and requested a seat at the chef’s table, which overlooks the kitchen. And when they say overlooks the kitchen, they mean it. You’ve got a front seat to the action. The kitchen was relatively calm when we first arrived, so chef George Mendes even had a few minutes to come over and greet us, and tell us he liked the way we ordered (after looking at the tasting menu, we decided to go hog-wild on the a la carte menu instead, ordering 8 dishes to split).

We were pleasantly surprised when not one, but three amuse bouches were placed in front of us (we’re pretty sure we got special treatment mostly because we were early and they had time to give us these lovely extras): a mussel soup, a cod croqueta, and an oyster. The first two were favorites – the oyster was good but I’ve never been a big fan of oysters. The cod croqueta was crispy on the outside and the insides melted in your mouth. Ridiculously good. And the mussel soup had flavors of lemongrass and coconut, reflecting the New American spirit of the cuisine.

Then the stuff we actually ordered started arriving. Oh man. You can see the fluke up above there – beautifully presented with subtle flavors. I’m pretty sure I ruined my palate for it because I tried the ramps dish first instead, which you can see below.

Ramps from Aldea

Dear gods of food, was this dish delicious. It came accompanied with crispy pig ear (a childhood favorite), bok choy, and coriander yogurt. Everything all together was like this melange of amazingness. Bold, bold flavors in that small dish. The ramps are a must-order if you go when ramps are in season.

We also ordered the famous sea urchin toast, but I wasn’t too into it. Again, not a big uni person, so that may be why. Everyone else has raved about it so maybe it’s just not a part of my taste profile.

Then the shrimp alhinho dish arrived, along with the slow poached egg with spring garlic broth. Phwoagh. That’s approximately the sound I made while I devoured the slow poached egg dish.

Slow Poached Egg from Aldea

Eating with Steve actually worked out pretty well, because often I would like one dish and he would like the other, so we each got to eat more of what we liked. He preferred the shrimp dish, I preferred the slow poached egg, and voila, we both are happy campers. I just felt that the shrimp were slightly overcooked and just not tender enough.

At this point, I was getting pretty stuffed but we still had three entrees to go – the scallops, the arroz de pato, and the pork belly & clams dish. Whew. Meanwhile, it was around 8pm at this point and the kitchen was getting extremely busy. But all the chefs were cool, calm, and composed, even as they started ramping up their speed.

Scallops from Aldea

Another example of the excellent service: I had told the waitress that were going to be splitting everything and they did everything they could to accommodate us. Example above – we each got our own plate of scallops like the one you see above (another very nice touch – they gave us each two scallops and we saw other tables who split the scallops each only get one).

The scallops were wonderful as well. Perfectly cooked and the farro risotto accompanying it was very good. There was a yogurt-y cucumber taste which I liked.

Then there was a break, which we both needed. The kitchen was really busy at this point, so we didn’t sweat it. Plus we needed to digest!

Our arroz de pato and pork belly dishes came at last (my eyes were feeling heavy at this point – pretty sure we’d been there for 2 and a half hours by then) and we finally got to try the sous-vide duck, which we’d been watching in a tub of hot water all night long. I could understand then why sous-vide is so popular on Top Chef. The meat is incredibly tender. It felt like I was eating a duck that had been massaged its entire life. Is that weird? Who cares.

Finally, dessert! Obviously we were stuffed to the gills and even had to take some food home so we shared one dessert – the panna cotta which came with pear caviar (yes, really, pear caviar which was super tasty), vanilla-poached pear, honey, and cinnamon ice cream. The most excellent end to a perfect evening.

To sum up, order the ramps, the slow poached egg, and arroz de pato. Highly recommended. Plus, the chef doesn’t hurt to look at either.

Aldea, 31 West 17th Street, New York, NY

This is my favorite Korean BBQ place in New York. Why? Good beef, great banchan (those little dishes that accompany Korean BBQ), and best of all, it’s never crazy crowded.

(more to come)

Burger from Carnegie John

Yay, another blurry food shot!  That’s exactly what I’m thinking.  In any case, the photo isn’t the important part.  The information is, of course.

Looking for a cheap and tasty lunch in Midtown West?  You really can’t go wrong with Carnegie John’s cart, on 56th and 7th Ave.  The burger is delicious and “tastes like a better Whopper” (in the words of Mr. Thom).  Definitely ask for everything because John will give you everything.  And I mean everything – grilled onions and peppers that taste of Italian sausage, tomatoes, mayo, ketchup, mustard, lettuce, onions, pickles – it’s one heckuva a loaded burger.  And all for the low, low price of $4.  That’s right.  You may not have a nice sit down area but who needs one when you’ve got a $4 lunch?

Carnegie John’s cart, 56th and 7th Ave.

Serves: 2-4 (depending on your appetite – I used this recipe to make myself a pot that I’ll be eating from for a few days)

1 package of BBQ pork rib tips

1 daikon (also known as Chinese radish)

Chinese cooking wine (or white wine)

Garlic and/or ginger to your taste preference

Fill a 4 qt stockpot about 3/4 full with hot water.  Add pork, then put on high heat until boiling.  Allow to boil.  Make sure to scoop off the “dirty stuff” – you’ll know it when you see it.  My mother actually dumps out the first pot of water that the pork is boiled in, but I just scoop off and I haven’t died yet!  Your choice.  Once the dirty stuff stops coming to the surface, add Chinese cooking wine.  I just did it by looking.  A nice splash of it, I’d say.  While that’s bubbling away, scrape the skin off the daikon, then chop into nice little quarter-circles.  Add to the pot, then add salt and garlic/ginger to taste.  Let the daikon boil until it’s almost clear and soft to the touch.

Ta-da!  Your soup is ready.  Nice and easy.  It’s a pretty fool-proof recipe so if you change the heat while you’re working with it, that’s fine.  I know I did and it tastes delicious.

Inopia

Well, it’s pretty obvious that I didn’t particularly like Inopia.  As you can see, though, it’s a very hopping joint.  There’s even a velvet rope separating the ones who are in and the ones who are waiting.  We waited for what seemed like forever (in reality, probably around 30-45 minutes) for two seats at this tiny, bustling tapas restaurant far from the heart of the city.

Why is it so hopping?  It’s owned by Ferran Adria’s younger brother, Alberto Adria (thanks, NY Times for the name) and according to my dad, was featured on Mario Batali’s (or, as my father likes to call him, the “fat man with orange shoes”) Spain show.  All reasons why I wanted to go.

Cod & Tomato Salad from Inopia

Looks delicious, right?  While it tasted nice and refreshing, it unfortunately lacked any flavor.  It’s never good when you are relying on the scallions on top for flavor.  It tasted as though there wasn’t any salt added and even though you can see specks of pepper, no hint of it was to be found in each bite.

Octopus from Inopia

Then take a look at that octopus.  Looks delicious, no?  Unfortunately, in this case, looks were very deceiving.  The texture of the octopus was mushy on the outside yet rubbery on the inside – somehow the result of braising the octopus.  And again, no flavor, despite the copious amounts of things sprinkled on top.

Granted, if you look below, you’ll see one of my favorite bites came from here – the “fish like tuna” on toast.  Yes, that was very good, but that doesn’t excuse the flavorlessness of the aforementioned dishes.

Peppers from Inopia

These peppers weren’t too bad.  I am, however, accustomed to the manner in which chefs in New York prepare this dish – i.e. they don’t broil the peppers until they are completely soft.  I like a little crunch, which is how Tia Pol and Boqueria in New York do it.  Matter of personal preference, obviously.

Flan from Inopia

And dessert – pretty good.  All in all, though, the entire experience was very underwhelming, especially after the long wait we endured before finally getting to sample anything.  Not recommended.

Bar Inopia, Tamarit, 104, Barcelona, 8015