Queens meat truck

Occasion: Snack before the US Open (Roddick v. Sock)
Location: food truck at 39th and Prince in Flushing, Queens
Edibles: chicken skewers; chicken hearts; lamb ribs; quail; squid

Musings: This hardworking truck is open from 5 a.m. to 5 p.m. All the meats are cooked over a little trench of charcoal. While chicken and beef skewers ($1 each) are undoubtedly this truck's bread and butter, I think what makes it great are exotic items.

Lamb ribs - I've never had these before but I loved them. I'm guessing the guy has a source where he gets them for free because there's not much meat on them, basically just the ribs after the tenderloin's been removed. They're not filling but the spice rub is delicious and the little shreds of meat are really flavorful (as meat near the bone tends to be). For $5 you get an entire rack. Good to share.

The whole quail was also excellent, if a bit cumbersome to eat with your hands while sitting on a park bench. The squid was good, though the sauce was a tad spicy for me.

I'd pass on the chicken hearts - they were fairly rubbery and I've definitely had better.

I recommend that you pick up a roll and a beverage on the way, as the salt tends to add up. There's a little bakery across the street that sells single man tou for the former, and numerous bubble tea places on Main Street for the latter. A cheap, fast and tasty meal.

Bæjarins Beztu Pylsur

Occasion: More snacking after, really, a very modest pub crawl
Location: Bæjarins Beztu Pylsur ("the best hot dogs in town") - as for location, I can only tell you that it's down by the harbor, but it's not hard to find because downtown Reykjavik is that small (bbp.is)
Edibles: hog dogs with the works

Musings: Quelle tragédie!!! The crazy hot dog with shrimp salad and mashed potatoes that I thought was an Icelandic thing is in fact.... a Swedish thing. Blerg. Hot dog fail. (FYI, it's called tunnbrödsrulle* and Bourdain had it at a stand called Maxi Grillen.)

But back to the hot dog at hand.... Apparently Bæjarins Beztu was once named the best hot dog stand in Europe? That food reviewer must have been on drugs. The hot dog they serve here is basically just a New York dirty water dog. It's about $2, and comes with standard condiments like ketchup, mustard, fried onions.

My crushing disappointment was slightly mitigated by our very amusing company. A little Korean man plopped down beside us on the picnic bench and started a lament on how difficult it was to find his son a nice Korean girl in Iceland. "We're not Korean," we tell him. "Close enough," was his reply. A little later, the man's Russian business partner joined us. They have a fish export business. Local color - gotta love it.

[*Note: Okay, now I'm kind of obsessed with the idea of tunnbrödsrulle. I will attempt to make some at Oktoberfest IV.]

Sægreifinn

Occasion: Afternoon snack
Location: Sægreifinn ("Sea Baron"), a seafood shack on Geirsgata down by the water, in Reykjavik, Iceland (saegreifinn.is)
Edibles: humarsupa (lobster soup)

Musings: I wasn't as impressed by this place as Mark Bittman. On the plus side, the soup was extremely flavorful and full of lobster chunks. On the minus side, I thought the broth was too thin, and both the broth and the lobster tasted to me like they'd been frozen. Iceland's tourist season is short - just a few months in the summer - and I guess it makes sense to make huge batches in the off-season and freeze them. But you can taste it. The vegetables flavors aren't as bright and the lobster meat gets a little bit mealy.

A giant mug with some bread on the side will run you about 750 Icelandic kronor, or just over $10. It's good for a snack, being both filling and warming. (Even in August, you need a medium-weight jacket during the day and more at night. You can also tell the locals from the tourists on the street because the locals are in t-shirts and the tourists are wearing winter coats, hats and scarves.)

Östermalms Korvspecialist

Occasion: Post-Millesgården lunch with Yining
Location: Östermalms Korvspecialist on Nybrogatan in the Gamla Stan neighborhood of Stockholm, Sweden - nearest T-bana stop is Östermalmstorg [Please note that it's NOT on Nybergsgatan, which is confusingly similar-sounding and nearby street. The stand is just two blocks north of the famous Östermalms Saluhall, and you can actually see the Saluhall from the hot dog stand. It sits in front of a little parking lot, next to a post office.]
Edibles: bratwurst, alpenwurst and curry lamb sausage

Musings: I got a tip about this place from a nice half-Swedish lady who happened to be sitting next to me on the flight out. Korvspecialist, by the way, means sausage specialist. Awesome. Awesome. I want a business card that says that.

We split a bratwurst and an alpenwurst; they turned out to be pretty indistinguishable. Let me tell you, these hot dogs are pure genius. The sausages are obviously high quality, and they're served in a hollowed-out baguette. There's some kind of heavily herbed dressing that's first sloshed into the bread, followed by some kind of spicy tomato sauce (not ketchup - it's much thinner) and a few shreds of sauerkraut. The bread is simply fantastic - fresh and chewy and it does a great job of soaking in the sauces without getting soggy and falling apart. 50 kronor each, or about $7. One is definitely very filling.

But meat-tooth that I am, I also found some room to try the lamb sausage that the lady in front of us ordered. It's a curry lamb sausage, with strong mustard, served with a tiny little hot dog bun that basically just serves as a grip. Great size for a snack - I'd try another kind of sausage, though. I found the lamb a bit chewy and greasy.

But a big thumbs up for the wurst. I definitely encourage you to check out this stand if you're ever in Stockholm.

Big Apple BBQ

Location: On the streets bordering Madison Square Park

Met up with Winnie, Erin and Hsinpei for another meat-a-palooza. I swear I eat vegetables too. (I do! Sometimes.)

Stop #1: Ubon's - $8 for pulled pork shoulder sandwich with a side of coleslaw

Nice enough. Very tender and moist. Most of the flavor I got was from the sauce, though.

Stop #2: Pappy's - $8 for ribs and a side of beans

The ribs were, once again, undercooked for my taste. The meat was hard to chew and I was not impressed with their flavor (which was basically just bbq sauce slathered on at the end and brûléed). It was also unfortunate that we happened to get the stubby little ribs that come at the tip of the rack. The ends always get a little burned and dried out, compared to the bigger ribs further up. And the beans were sort of watery and sad. Thumbs down, Pappy's.

Stop #3: Blue Smoke Bake Shop - $6 for blueberry crisp à la mode

Now, I'm normally hating on Blue Smoke for their crappy food. And I stand by that. But I will say that they serve a nice dessert. (We weren't quite done with the meat yet, but passed right in front of Blue Smoke Bakery while waiting in line for Ed Mitchell. So we dispatched Erin to pick up... let's call it an unusual palate cleanser.)

This was the first dish of the day that made me go, "WOW!" Really good crisp topping and not too much of it, a light hand with the sugar in the berries, and a scoop of perfectly textured vanilla ice-cream. Yum.

Stop #4: Ed Mitchell - $8 for a chopped whole hog sandwich, with a side of coleslaw

While waiting in the long-ass line (after the blueberry crisp), I saw someone making pork rind crackling. At this point, my head pretty much exploded with joy. I had to get me some. When it was ready, they passed out a few shards to the people in line. It was amazing.... and so I had to get some more.

I went up to the lady and shamlessly played up my bacon-themed t-shirt and love of all pork products. Happily, she found me at least moderately amusing and rewarded my antics with a *massive* piece of crackling almost as big as my head!! Oh, happy, happy day!!!!

Yeah, we also got some of their whole hog, but nothing could really compare to that crackling. Here they are chopping it up:

And here's the sandwich:

I liked the more varied texture of the whole hog, but it was also sort of bland. Coleslaw was pretty generic, not as good as Ubon's.

But the crackling..... oh, the crackling.......

Sunday Gravy

Location: Brooklyn Flea in Williamsburg

Bread boat with meat sauce, chock full of shreds of pork shoulder, slices of sausage and mini meatballs. Hearty doesn't even begin to describe it.

Perhaps a bit heavy for the weather, but it was the most interesting (to me, at least) of the remaining food stalls. The $7 price tag was a mite high but I absolutely fell in love with that sauce. I bought a quart jar of it to take home. It ran me $23, which is expensive but still less than what something comparable would cost you at a restaurant.

A note on the jar: It's not commercially vacuum-sealed, so I wouldn't keep it for more than a week in the fridge.

[One quibble: If you're going to feature a red Le Creuset pot in the company logo, you should really be cooking in it. I could clearly see the stainless steel insert that they were really cooking in. Perhaps they have issues with the sauce sticking to the bottom?]

Asia Dog

Location: Brooklyn Flea in Williamsburg (asiadognyc.com)

The Vietnamese-style Vinh dog (on the left) was disappointing. The carrots and the daikon weren't pickled long enough and tasted pretty bland.

The Thai-style Sidney dog (on the right) was better. The mango relish is a lovely condiment for a hot dog (though it'd be even better with a homemade chicken sausage). I think the ingredients minus the fish sauce would make a great lobster salad too. Yining immediately agreed that we have to try it.

Regular dogs (beef, chicken or veg) are $4 each or two for $7. Organic dogs are $5 or two for $9.

All told, Asia Dog was not particularly memorable and, by itself, is not enough to drag me off my island. The flavor combinations are thoughtful and interesting but the hot dog is dragged down by the grocery-store quality meat and bun. They should definitely consider making their own sausages. Or, at the very least, sourcing some fresh local stuff.

Souvlaki GR

Location: Foodtruck on the corner of 21st and 6th (souvlakigr.com)

It's hard to see in my crappy bb picture, but the guy taking orders had a handlebar mustache, with the waxed curly ends and everything. Made me smile.

I ordered the chicken pita souvlaki, which is a chicken kebab (de-skewered) wrapped in a pita with some sliced tomato, onion, french fries (oddly enough), and tzatziki. It was okay, but not much food for $4. Really just a little snack. Even for lunch, you'd have to get two.

Alternatively, you can get 5 skewers for $7 (or one for $1.75). For a meat-tooth like me, that seems like the better bet.

Part II, 4/28 - I came back and got the mixed skewers. (The truck's really close to the Tribeca Film Festival Volunteer's Lounge.) MUCH better deal. They threw in an extra skewer, so I had six - three each of the pork and the chicken. Comes with little pita triangles and two containers of tzatziki. I was stuffed when I finished!

The pork is a wee bit dry. If you're getting the pita wrap, I'd definitely get the chicken. With the mixed skewers, one or two pork one at most.

Mercado de San Miguel

Occasion: The inaugural meal of the trip!
Location: Mercado de San Miguel, in the Plaza San Miguel, Madrid, Spain
Edibles: we hit several different stalls - more details below

Musings: Foodie heaven!! Winnie and I absolutely gorged ourselves on all kinds of fantastic seafood, snacks and pastries, washed down with wonderfully crisp local white wine. Divine!!

After a quick pass-through to look at the options, we settled on a seafood stall for the first course. We got a plate of octopus with olive oil and paprika, nuked for a minute, then spritzed with lemon juice. Cooked perfectly - really tender, but with just enough chew to it.

We also had oysters on the half shell. These were bigger than I usually like them, but tasty nonetheless.

The real standouts of the day were the langoustines. They were simply prepared - boiled, with a sprinkling of coarse salt and some lemon wedges. But! They had roe! Something new for me. I've had shrimp with roe a few times, but never langoustines. As with the shrimp (or even fish with roe), the meat is a little mealy and not the best. But it's a worthy tradeoff because the roe is wonderful. Be patient - take the time to glean every little bit. And of course, you have the head to slurp! Langoustines are spinier and more heavily armored than shrimp, so it's a bit hazardous, but HOLY MOLEY does it taste amazing. I think my eyes rolled back in my head.

Finally, I had some fresh surf clams. Fantastic.

The stall also served wine in little plastic Dixie cups. Despite the humble presentation, the wine was awesomely delicious: crisp and bracing and the perfect accompaniment to the seafood.

Onward! We hit a little bakery cart for some empanadas. I got one each of the bacalao and the chorizo, and both were excellent.

Next! A cone of olive oil potato chips from this cart. Yummy. (The other half of the case is deep-fried jamón. I tried one, but it was sort of underwhelming. I know.... what a letdown.)

Finally, dessert. Europe is pretty much the only place I can order apple pastries, because they don't always pair apples with cinnamon. This tart was exactly what I was looking for. (Hey, I'm running out of adjectives here!)

So there it is - a truly epic meal. And not a single bobble by any of the vendors we tried. Mercado de San Miguel.... I'm beyond impressed. Bravo!

Xi'an Famous Foods, part II

Occasion: More food court explorations with Mom
Location: Xi'an Famous Foods, also in the Flushing Mall food court - 39th Ave off Main St in Flushing, Queens
Edibles: lamb (or possibly goat - it's the same word in Chinese) offal soup; noodles with braised pork and cabbage

Musings: If you're wondering why I'd order such a crazy-sounding soup, let me state for the record that I've had it in Asia and, when done right, it can be awesomely tasty. The key qualifier, however, is "when done right." As it certainly was not, here.

I had one spoonful and that was plenty. All the unpleasant tastes that offal can impart were all there in that one soup - the bitter chemical taste of digestive organs, the iron-blood taste of liver, the general gaminess of lamb. Ugh. My mom had a little more than I did, but eventually even she had to concede that it was just awful. After a few minutes, I actually had to get up and throw it out - even the smell was making me a bit queasy. Epic fail.

The hand-cut noodles with braised pork were better, but also a bit lacking in technique. Some of the noodles were really thin while others were really thick and doughy, and almost all of them were too long to eat in a single bite. The braised pork was yummy, though.

[Note: As unlikely a dish as it is to order in a food court, the steak may be the way to go. A couple sitting nearby had one and it looked great.]

Ay Chung

Occasion: Lunch with my mom
Location: Ay Chung, in the Flushing Mall food court - 39th Ave off Main St in Flushing, Queens
Edibles: cuttlefish soup

Musings: Too hungry to wait patiently for a table at the always-crowded Asian Jewels, we popped across the street to the Flushing Mall food court.

We started with Ay Chung's cuttlefish soup. It's actually pretty good - a cornstarch-thickened bonito broth, lots of cuttlefish dumplings and lots of fresh cilantro. A nice little snack for around $3.

Endless Summer

Location: Bedford and N 6th St in Williamsburg (endlesssummertacos.com)

Winnie and I passed this truck on our way to The Yarn Tree for craft supplies. I noticed: 1) a delicious meaty scent in the air; 2) lots of people waiting in line. Both promising signs of good eats. On the way back, I campaigned hard for a snack break.

I tried a beef taco and a pork taco, and both were lovely. They're garnished with a white sauce and a green sauce (thinned-out sour cream and tomatillo, respectively, I think), a few slices of radish and a wedge of lime. Winnie thought the beef was a smidge dry, but I hardly noticed it under all the sauce and lime juice. The corn tortillas were wonderfully fragrant and pliable. You get two per taco, and you could conceivably refashion two smaller tacos for daintier eating if you were not standing at a streetcorner, as we were. Or you can just stuff them in your face as-is - I can say from personal experience that it works just fine.

$2.50 for the pork, $3.00 for the beef. Another reason to venture out into the hinterlands...

Ninh's Vietnamese Sandwich

Occasion: Lazy take-out dinner
Location: Ninh's Vietnamese Sandwich & Bubble Tea on 2nd between 31st and 32nd
Edibles: I had the chicken sandwich; Edward had the beef sandwich and a bubble tea

Musings: The bubble tea was terrible. Tapioca doesn't keep well and a place needs to either have enough business that they go through their batches quickly, or be committed enough to quality to throw them out when they begin to harden, and start over fresh. This place is neither.

The chicken sandwich was okay but they were a bit stingy with the chicken - Baoguette gives you a lot more per sandwich. And there was too much mayo. The beef was pretty tasty.

Because it's so insidiously close to my apartment, Ninh's will probably get some repeat business from me.

Otafuku

Occasion: Post-dinner snack with Winnie
Location: Otafuku on 9th between 2nd and 3rd
Edibles: Combo C - six pieces of takoyaki (described by on the menu as "hot savory wheat flour balls with a chopped piece of boiled octopus inside") and a half order of yakisoba (fried noodles)

Musings: A popular and busy food stall across the street from Robataya. (Methinks they get a fair bit of business from the restaurant's still-hungry diners.) They serve basically three things - the two things in our combo, and okonomiyaki, a sort of Japanese pancake.

Combo C was a wallet-friendly $9, and big enough to share. The takoyaki was topped with teriyaki sauce, some other creamy sauce, and bonito flakes. I wasn't crazy about the takoyaki - too soft and gluey for my taste. The yakisoba, however, was excellent. Studded with bits of shrimp and octopus, accompanied by a little pile of julienned pickled ginger, it was piping hot and flavorful. Yum.

The yakisoba is definitely worth a replay, and I will probably try the okonomiyaki next time as well. A good addition to the cheap eats repertoire.

Luke's Lobster

Occasion: Post-movie (Despicable Me - awesome!) brunch with Robert and Yining
Location: Luke's Lobster on 7th St between 1st and A (lukeslobster.com) [Note: There's another location on the UES.]
Edibles: Yining and I had the lobster roll combo (with a drink and chips); Robert ordered one each of the lobster and crab rolls and was nice enough to let me have a nibble of the crab

Musings: Didn't match up to Pearl or Mary's in my book. First, the lobster meat in the roll is mostly lesser quality claw meat. Second, while there was a nice dill dressing on the lobster, there was no mayo - which is essential for me. Robert and Yining both liked it well enough and didn't miss the mayo at all, so it definitely depends on your personal tastes.

I liked the crab roll a lot - VERY generous with the crabmeat - and would definitely come back for that. (Ditto the shrimp roll, which nobody got but it looks great in the photo.)

Just so you know, the tiny shop has a couple of stools and some counter space for you to eat in but it's really more of a takeout place.

Taste of Times Square

Occasion: Taste of Times Square - neighborhood restaurants offer up some small plates, get some publicity
Location: Times Square, natch. Tents were set up on Broadway between 45th and 47th, and on 46th between Broadway and 9th Ave
Edibles: tickets were $1 and plates cost between 1 and 5 tickets; my choices described in further detail below

Musings: Thanks to my co-worker Charles, who threw the brochure on my desk just as I was getting ready to head out. Never one to say no to a food event - especially one right outside my doorstep - I immediately agreed to join him.

It was bright and sunny, the perfect weather to wander around and nibble. I lost Charles almost immediately, so I did a first pass by myself. Eventually, Amy was able to escape work and I did a second lap with her. The eats:

Bond 45 - Italian meatballs with olive focaccia (2 tickets). Decent but didn't blow me away.

Encore - Pulled BBQ chicken on a brioche bun with corn relish (2 tickets). Yummy. Really good flavor on the chicken.

Brasserie 1605 - Crabcakes with chipotle aioli (3 tickets). Great crabcake. Almost solid crab. Thumbs up to the chef for resisting the urge to cheap out by adding a lot of bread as filler. That napa cabbage slaw was horrible, though.

Carmine - Shrimp fra diavolo (3 tickets). Disappointing. Not very spicy and the shrimp were rubbery.

The Library - Seafood ceviche (2 tickets) and strawberry shortcake (1 ticket). The ceviche was EXCELLENT - one of the two dishes I went back for seconds on. I loved the watermelon, and the chill and acidity of the ceviche were wonderfully refreshing on a warm summer's night. The shortcake was meh.

Shula's Steak House - Blackened tenderloin tips with bbq and béarnaise sauce (3 tickets). The other dish I had seconds of. Surprisingly tender and juicy for meat cooked in advance and served out of a chafing dish.




And a special mention goes out to the Times Square Visitor's Center, which apparently sells hand-made fudge. I bought a chunk of peanut butter chocolate fudge for $3 that lasted me as many days in the office, one little bite of heaven at a time...