Category Archives: Restaurants

Grimaldi’s Pizza, Brooklyn

Of course you’ve heard about Grimaldi’s pizza. How could you not? A pizza reputed to be NYC’s finest if not for the longest of lines. It’s typical to wait more than an hour especially on weekends and for big groups. Take note of this during hot summer days or in the blistering cold because one has to stand in line outside during this wait. Showing up early in the evening on a weekday might be a better idea if you don’t have the patience to wait. For what it’s worth the pizza really is good, but one can find close seconds at Patsy’s at University place in Manhattan or a less touristy contender at Lucali’s in Carroll Gardens.

Mangia!

Pepperoni and mushrooms

Black olives and sausage.

All about Grimaldi’s new Brooklyn location here.

Best Maryland Crabs at Obrycki’s

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The Asians were eating there so that’s enough validation for how this was the best crab place in Maryland (and we’ve had several).

How sad am I to hear that Obrycki’s closed down?

Blue Hill at Stone Barns – Dinner

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Blue Hill at Stone Barns (Tarrytown, New York) is one of those six-hour meal experiences beginning with a tour of the farm, a sighting of their free-range and grass-fed animals and organic produce, and a glorious meal of several courses. At $100-150/head (without drinks), it is a glorious and thoughtful meal to be shared with friends and family who would appreciate the chef’s effort, as well as the objective of the farm and restaurant. Don’t be fooled by the small servings as most people would do well with the five-course (as opposed to the eight-course) selection, though hearty manly eaters must be warned. There are never overwhelming quantities of food, but there is definitely a sensation overload. (Apologies for the poor lighting, this was the in the evening and flash photography was not permitted. (Update: DJ’s take on Blue Hill’s Farmer’s Lunch is here.)

Fresh garden baby carrots, radishes and lettuce standing on a log of nails.

Beet, parsnip, radish and sage-threaded carrot chips arranged in a standing log.

Lardo, farm-fresh butter, cottage cheese and carrot rock salt.

Assorted meats and flatbread standing on a bed of nails.

Liver terrine and chocolate. Heavenly.

Mini beet burgers.

Pancetta-wrapped salsify.

Caviar-topped bone marrow with special bone holder.

Pancetta-wrapped chad fish roe on brioche.

Vegetable-decorated rice paper over fresh egg and spinach soup.

Venison loin and heart with leek and date puree.

At some point the farm imported geese in an attempt to produce a “humane” foie gras from their livers, but failed due to the serene and particular surroundings geese require. They kept the geese and use their eggs for the restaurant.

Linguine with goose egg sauce, black mushrooms and grated pickled embryonated chicken egg.

Farm bees produced this picturesque honey in a jar to begin the dessert course.

Yogurt marshmallows, dark chocolate toffee, mapled sesame seeds.

Carrot cake, caramel ice cream, passion fruit froth and syrup.

The premises with very efficient valet parking. As soon as you pay your bill, your coats await you at the front desk and your car is ready when you leave the building. Why can’t everyone do that?

Happy sheep?

Happy sheep dog. :o)

The Choinkwich

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This summer the Big Gay Ice Cream Truck was launched and quickly gained popularity via a New York Times article on the phenomenon of food trucks in the city.

The BGICT is no different from your basic Mr. Softee ice cream truck in that it serves two soft-serve ice cream flavors (chocolate and vanilla) but BGICT serves its cones with the most unusual toppings: ground wasabi peas, cayenne pepper, olive oil and salt, to name a few.

I quickly subscribed to the guy’s Twitter page at http://twitter.com/biggayicecream to discover the truck’s daily location, but didn’t get to finally try it until a few days before the season ended.

I had their signature creation – The Choinkwich – chocolate ice cream sandwiched between two chocolate crackers and maple-caramelized bacon. It was an experience which made me wish I had enough time and stomach space to try the other specials but sadly the season ended, leaving its fans (usually found salivating in line outside his truck) aching for the summer when he opens his doors again.

I cannot wait.

My McSweeney’s Food Review on The Choinkwich:

Big Gay Ice Cream Choinkwich

If you’ve ever wanted to attend Mass at a Catholic Church naked and eating a hotdog on Good Friday, then the indulgent treat of your fantasies is now a slobbering reality. The Choinkwich not only pairs the delectable flavors of smoked pork fat with chocolate and cream, it is also served from a truck that colorfully advertises activities that already destroyed civilization even before you began to contemplate sacrilege during Lent.

The Choinkwich is a chocolate ice cream sandwich made with… love (of the equal kind). A crispy, caramelized strip of bacon is nestled between layers of chocolate cartwheel cookie and chocolate soft serve ice cream. If you’re lucky it is served to you by the very cute and charming innovator of everything Big Gay Ice Cream, Doug Quint, who is also happens to be professional bassoon player! Now if that isn’t all kinds of sinful and creamy, then just spit me out and dip me in Nutella, another staple Doug uses to line cones at this infamous food truck that also recently opened its first store in the East Village in Manhattan.

The popular treat craved by bacon-chocolate junkies is such a mysterious presence that it is a secret. It does not appear on any menus or specials posted each day. One searching for the mix of salt, smoke, meat, frozen milk and cocoa must learn to ask for it on the sly. And if one is so unfortunate as reach the front of the line after a thirty minute wait and end up with no Choinkwich, there is always the equally seductive mix of vanilla, dulce de leche, rock salt and chocolate dip, very aptly named for the images it conjures once it meets thy puckering gay lips: The Salty Pimp.

The Di Fara Pizza Legend: The $5 Slice

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I had read about Di Fara Pizza (1424 Avenue J, Brooklyn NY 11230) from an article in the NYT this summer that they had raised their prices to an unprecedented $5 a slice, ridiculous for many New Yorkers who believe that a pizza slice should be about the same as a one-way subway ride (currently $2.25). I paid no mind to it, previous to that article I had never heard of this place, and being that I wasn’t much of a pizza lover there was no pressing need to try it since it was a little out of the way.

However, we found ourselves nearby following a bike ride to Fort Tilden on Saturday, and there was miraculously no line! We each had a slice and watched the old man make the pies, and I’d have to admit that part of the appeal of this place is the authentic feel and effort exerted into making each pie.

Di Fara’s is an old-fashioned, family-owned establishment where this 72-year old man named Domenico DiMarco has been making the pizzas for decades. He claims that the secret to his pies’ success is the fact that he’s the only one who makes the pies from start to finish, and it’s true. If he’s ever sick or unable to get to work, the store is closed, and its hundred daily customers are heartbroken.

This is the slice I got post-bike ride and I would have to say it’s one of the best pizzas I’ve had, probably equal only to the pizzas you can find in Rome. According to several articles I’ve read on Di Fara’s, all ingredients are imported from Italy and you can taste immediately, from the flavorful olive oil that’s sprinkled on the pie along with cheese and fresh herbs Mr. DiMarco snips onto each slice with an old pair of kitchen shears. I’d have to say I haven’t had pizza that tasty in the US. The closest to DiFara’s would be a couple of pizzas I’ve had in Rome.

Three months later, our biking companions decided to brave the DiFara line to pick up two pies for World Series Sunday. It took them two hours of standing in a line which stretched around the corner of the place, where they met and made friends with people who were came over all the way from the Bronx and New Jersey. It was great to have DiFara’s watching the ballgame, but one has to admit that like most places, takeout is not as good as getting it fresh from the oven.

While this pie is definitely exceptional, I still believe its appeal comes from the entire experience of watching this pizza made from scratch by a rickety old man for an hour, each lingering step contributing to each amazing taste sensation. Couple that with the hour-long wait, the banter of New Yorkers in line, and how hungry you while reciting “Patience is a virtue,” DiFara’s definitely is something to try. For five bucks a slice it’s definitely not for everyday ($25 a pie is actually more economical), but still a New York experience for the books.