NYC Restaurant Reviews | donuts4dinner.com » 2011 » November
Sapori D’Ischia is so out in the middle of nowhere that when my boyfriend and I approached–after getting lost no less than twice–and I said, “I’m not sure this is the right place,” the owner, who happened to be standing outside, said, “Trust me; it’s the right place. There’s nothing else around here.”
You always hear about people who haven’t been to one of the outer boroughs in ten years because they think everything worth seeing is in Manhattan. Well, I actually live in Brooklyn and get annoyed at the prospect of having to leave Manhattan, so if I’m telling you that it’s worth it to trek out to Sapori D’Ischia’s truffle festival, you know it’s something special.
The four-course, $60 prix-fixe menu seems to change weekly, but here’s an idea of what you’ll be served:
ricottina di bufala, Speck Alto Adige D.O.P. smoked prosciutto, peasant bread, white Alba truffles
I know that everyone’s all, “Truffle oil?! For shame!” (Especially if you’re watching an episode of “Chopped“, where the judges famously chop almost any contestant who dares insult them with truffle oil.) The idea is that truffles are real and expensive and delicate, while truffle oil is synthetic and cheap and kind of knocks you out with how odorous it is. But I like my food to smell like food, so I don’t have a problem with it. I also loved the additional texture of it in this dish, which otherwise would have been much less creamy. All of the flavors were so rich, smoky, and earthy, perfectly-suited for complimenting the truffle shavings.
Vialone Nano slow-cooked risotto, white Alba truffles
My good friends over at Wikipedia tell me that Vialone Nano is one of the two best and most expensive varieties of risotto rice. I’m not sure I’m versed enough in risotto to know the difference, but I thought this dish was about as good as it could have been for what it was, which was risotto and truffles. Again, this was heavy on the truffle oil, but I didn’t find it overpowering, and the dish probably would have been bland without it. I wouldn’t have complained about the addition of some sort of meat, but the plain risotto was the perfect vehicle for highlighting the truffle.
grilled filet mignon, rustic potato fontina tortina, Barbaresco red wine reduction, white Alba truffles
When I think of a juicy steak, I picture a piece three inches high and squishy in the center, so I was a little skeptical about this thinly-sliced version, but all of our filets were nice and red in the center. The creamy sauce only made it that much more melt-in-your-mouth, while the red wine sauce cut some of the richness. The potato cake actually tasted very vegetal to me–like it was made of something actually healthy–so I was surprised to re-read the menu and see it was just potato. It was a hearty cross of crunchy and creamy that added to the rustic feel of the dish.
The people at the table next to us were celebrating a birthday, and I loved the sparkler the birthday girl was given. I’m trying to figure out if the guy across from her is whistling or licking ice cream off his fingers.
Brachetto-poached Bosc pear, mascarpone white chocolate gelato, white truffle honey
This dish looks deceptively simple but managed to leave us satisfied, likely due to the richness of the truffle honey drizzled over the gelato. The pear was spicy and tender and not overly sweet, which was perfect for the savoriness of the truffle and mascarpone. This seemed to be everyone’s favourite dish of the night, if the utter silence of our group of six (including newcomer Lucy!) after we dug in is any indication.
I have to rate this meal purely by the quality of the food, because the restaurant is not only way, way out there but also partly a grocery store, so the decor mostly consists of jumbo cans of peeled tomatoes. Considering, though, that my meal was not only delicious but also cost less in its entirety than a single truffle course at any Manhattan restaurant I can think of, I’d say it’s well worth the train ride and having to stare at the canned goods. The truffle festival ends when the truffle supply does, and the menu changes often, so go quickly and frequently.
Queens, NY 11377 (map)
What I Ate at the OC Fair
My boyfriend’s family has lived in places like Iran and Idaho and Ohio but thankfully settled in California, giving me an excuse to visit once a year for sunning, beaching, and stuffing my face with his mom’s fine Persian cuisine. This year, we happened to pass some signs advertising the Orange County Fair on one of our many drives between his parents’ house and In-N-Out and decided to go one night.
We rode the skyride, just like my sister and I used to with our mom as kids at the Ohio State Fair, until the year she happened to accidentally kick off her flip-flop while we were still up in the air halfway across the park:
We watched the giant ferris wheel light up bright white in beautiful patterns:
and met up with one of Kamran’s old friends:
but most importantly, we ate.
The stands we tried were out of fried butter, so we just ate fried everything-else:
deep-fried Baby Ruth wrapped in a jalapeno on a bed of churros
This one seemed like a bit of a stretch, but Kamran’s friends promised we’d like it, and it ended up being my favourite treat of the night. Not only do I now understand why people like churros so much–these were crispy on the outside, soft on the inside, and coated with sugar–but I also gained new appreciation for sweet and spicy combinations. It wasn’t just sweet and spicy for sweet and spicy’s sake, though; the flavors of the jalapeno and the Baby Ruth actually complimented each other.
deep-fried Oreos
The thing about coating foods you already like in batter and frying them is that you always gain the flavor of batter but lose some of the flavor of the original food. So while I liked the warmth of the Oreo and the addition of the batter texture and flavor, I missed being able to pick out the delicate flavor of the cream.
deep-fried chicken on a Krispy Kreme jelly donut
We somehow missed that this was a jelly donut, so biting into it and having the raspberry filling ooze out the sides was a pleasant surprise. The donut’s sweetness was entirely balanced by the savory flavors of the chicken, though of course the donut didn’t have quite the structural integrity of a normal roll. This is the closest I’ve gotten to a Luther Burger and only further fuels my desire to have one.
jalapeno popper wrapped in bacon
I love a jalapeno popper, and this didn’t disappoint. With the addition of the bacon, I didn’t even miss the usual batter.
deep-fried Kool-Aid
I’m not sure how I expected it to be made, but I imagine the deep-fried Kool-Aid having a cold, slushy center. Instead, these were like donut holes sprinkled with a packet of cherry Kool-Aid mix. They were enjoyably packed with sour flavor, but I missed the refreshing aspect I was expecting from Kool-Aid.
And now I can’t wait to go back next year to try even more!
BACON EXPLOSION!!
WARNING: If you don’t like appalling displays of meatiness, you’ll want to stop here. Otherwise, strap on your drooling bib and get ready to catch the drips.
Profiled by The New York Times and reviled by lovers of heart health everywhere, the Bacon Explosion is one part bacon, one part sausage, and all parts belly-busting. My co-worker Adam has been talking about it basically since the day he started at our company years ago; in fact, he probably mentioned his desire to concoct one and bring it into the office to share in order to get hired.
In the throngs of grilling season, he finally made good on his word and brought us two ludicrous four-pound logs of meat, all covered in Sweet Baby Ray’s best BBQ sauce. It was crumbled bacon wrapped in sausage latticed in bacon, and the sound of our “mmm”-ing and “ohmygod”-ing in the lunchroom was deafening.
The myth. The legend. The meat.
The man of the hour. He’s a low-carb dieter, so this was actually not too off-plan for him. Well, except for the 5000 calories and 500 grams of fat the Times accords it.
It was sausagey and
bacony at the same time
and can really only be described with one word, used with its true meaning in mind:
It was awash in sweetness and spiciness, chewiness and crispiness, meatiness and meatiness. It wasn’t what you’d call a balanced dish; there was nothing to cut the fat, as they say, nothing bright nor fresh about it. It was pure richness, and when combined with Popeye’s biscuits, it was like a holy trinity.
We all took the biggest slice we felt comfortable keeping our other co-workers from, thinking we’d come back later for seconds and thirds, but most of us pooped out even before the first round was over. This thing was filling. For mind, body, and soul.
Skip the Sandwiches at Bouchon Bakery – Sweets – Midtown West
Bouchon Bakery is part of the Thomas Keller empire of restaurants you can’t afford. You think you can, because from the outside, it appears to be an innocuous bakery, twenty times more casual than Per Se and without the need to make reservations a month in advance. But as soon as you walk in the door of the Rockefeller Center location, you notice the display of peanut butter cups for $3 each. (And those are mini ones; the regular-sized cups are $5+.) The sandwiches are $9, the French macarons $3.25.
What my boyfriend and I ordered was a little hit or miss depending on which one of us you ask. I wish we’d been hungrier so we could’ve sampled more than a sandwich and a cookie apiece (which still set us back a healthy $31), but it gave me a good idea of what I’ll come back for.
ham and cheese
The sandwich selections were paltry on a Sunday night, so I went with a classic belly-warmer to see how Keller’s team could transform it. On paper, it sounds pretty incredible: this sandwich, inspired by the traditional French charcuterie, is prepared with Madrange ham, a slow-cooked, delicately flavored ham. The combination of sweet butter and Dijon mustard complements the subtle nutty flavors of Emmenthaler cheese.
In my mouth, it tasted like a pretty standard ham and white cheese. The one thing this sandwich has going for it is that the bread couldn’t be better-suited to it. It was crunchy on the outside but didn’t flake into a million crumbs with every bite. The buttered interior was chewy and light in contrast. I wish the filling had done it justice.
roast beef
This was quality beef, cooked tender and sliced thin, but there was unfortunately very little of it on the bread. My boyfriend liked the roasted tomato garnish, but I needed more of the acidity to be cooked out of the tomatoes before they could be sweet enough for me. This tasted like a more complete thought than the ham and cheese because of its bright vegetable filling, but I couldn’t help but think of the $7 sandwich we buy on weekends from Tudor Gourmet, piled high with spicy pastrami and crisp arugula and served with a friendly joke instead of a haughty scowl.
nutter butter
After the disappointing sandwiches, I was prepared to roll my eyes at this $7 peanut butter cookie sandwich, but I walked away from it feeling like a little whipped cream and bittersweet chocolate shavings would make it into a plated dessert I’d willingly pay $12 for. I was expecting–and desiring–a soft, gooey cookie, but what I got was this crispy thing that snapped and crumbled apart. And I loved it.
The pastry chefs must be using a stick of butter per cookie, god bless them, because this thing was greasy as a pig in a wrestling contest and twice as delicious. The peanut butter filling, leaden with sugar but then whipped into a fluffy frosting, spilled out the sides of the cookie with each bite. My last mouthful was nothing but the peanut butter left on my hands, and it was perfection.
New York, NY 10020 (map)
(other locations here)
Go to Big D’s Grub Truck for the Bulgogi, but Stay for the Dumplings
From the Vault:
I went to Big D’s Grub Truck so long ago that it’s not really fair for me to rate it, but I also don’t want my meal to go unnoticed and forgotten. Here’s why Big D’s is great:
1) They actually come to the lower bowels of Manhattan, the Financial District, unlike so many of the trucks that hang out in Midtown or only come as far as Fulton Street.
2) Their truck is bright yellow, so I can spot it in the morning even while half-passed-out on the bus so I don’t go out in the cold later for no reason.
3) They serve tacos and dumplings and are always parked right across from the Cupcake Crew truck, so I can have a carbfest and then go back to my desk to half-pass-out again in bliss.
bulgogi taco ($2.50)
This was my first time trying bulgogi, or marinated beef cooked over open flames; Big D marinates his in soy sauce, garlic, and sesame seed oil and then tops it with kimchi puree, scallions, and crema to give this taco sweet, spicy, cool, zinging flavors. I loved the tenderness of the beef with the crunch of the cucumber, and found the kimchi to be exactly the right amount as to not overpower the rest of the dish (unlike, say, a bowl from the Korilla truck, which I also love but have to be in the mood to get kimchi-punched-in-the-face for).
spicy pork taco ($2.50)
Of course I thought the bulgogi spicy enough, so I was a little afraid of being knocked out by this, but I was pleasantly surprised by its balance. The lime wedge that comes with every taco helps quite a bit, as you can imagine. I don’t remember this being terribly different than the beef, but I appreciated the texture differences.
spicy chicken ($2.50)
I loooooove cilantro and loooooove spicy mayo, so this was the taco for me. If the menu offered this in pork and beef, I’d get all three every time.
pork & chive dumplings ($3)
My co-workers and I have been longtime fans of the Bian Dang (formerly Cravings) truck’s steamed dumplings, but the glutton in me likes these better because they’re both fried and have a much thicker skin (more carbs!). Eating these gives me the same sort of feeling as eating gnocchi, except with the added benefit of filling.
Check @bigdsgrub
on Twitter for locations