NY Eats – Page 8 – Food & Pixels

EGG “Y’All” SHoP

Breakfast, the most important meal of the day, to be honest, I rarely ever have breakfast. I don’t have them doesn’t mean I don’t like them. I do enjoy a good full breakfast. Eggs, sunny-side, Canadian bacon, country fries, burnt, that’s my all American diner breakfast. I also love a full English breakfast. Those blood sausages, when they are good, they are awesome. I once had a poach lobster eggs benedict with smoke salmon and lobster. Oh man, that’s absolutely glorious. To me, I don’t think eggs should be limited to just breakfast, it should extended to lunch, dinner, even midnight snacks. There is obviously a reason why McDonald would expend to all day breakfast right? Those marketing research has to mean something. But these days, all day breakfast diners are hard to find. That’s what Egg Shop in Nolita is getting at. All day eggs menu!

Opened early Summer last year, on a quiet block of Elizabeth street, Egg Shop turns a small storefront into a sunny California hideaway. Driving by or walking by, you can’t miss the place. White oversize sign printed EGG SHoP, with while little sea foam green industrial lamp shade, the whole place is flooded with white. Big white french doors open up the whole front, on a sunny warm day, that would extended to sidewalk cafe. Floor to ceiling subway tiles, light wood furniture with sea-foam green painted legs and oxidized mirrors with the same color trim brighten up the place and makes it look bigger than it is. Above the open kitchen, a chalk board displaying the hand written day’s special; and behind the stacks of plates on the kitchen counter, we can see the full actions of the chefs. There are about 30 seats in this cute little place, I imagine when the summer comes, we would want to occupy those window seats, but today we were seated right next to the kitchen bar watching every move in the kitchen.

We arrived at lunch time and the place is packed. 2 main sections on the menu: sandwiches or cruisers, with a small sections of sides and another column of customized. Sandwiches vs bowls = carbs vs no carbs, that’s how I dissect this one page menu. The item on menu do seem interesting, though the waitress was not help in recommendation. The only thing she seems to keep pushing was the oversize biscuit, but we didn’t ordered that. Out of 9 different sandwiches and 7 cruisers, we ordered the Egg Shop ESC and the El Camino with poached bowl with a side of hash-browns.
As we wait for our breakfast/ lunch to arrive, we peeked at the kitchen and what other people were having. It was busy and a little crowed. We couldn’t help but noticed that there seems to be a difference in quality. Eggs, poached egg on the bowl and broke yolk on the sandwiches, their not all running… in my friends words, some were just “walking”, which is what a broke yolk didn’t come rushing out. Unfortunately, those noon-running yolks happened to us as well. The broke yolk on the BEC barely move when we poke it, we kind of have to squeeze it to create the “running” effect. And the poached egg… would be “standing still”, it was clearly a little over done. But Egg should be this place’s speciality, right? Shouldn’t all the eggs has the same consistency? On the other hand, The combination of el camino was great other than the egg not “movable”. Stacks of big slides of avocado, mixed together with tomato and pull pork was quite hearty.
There were plenty of carnitas in the El Camino, almost too much. We couldn’t finish al the meat. We ended up bagged and make a great sandwich at home.
The hash browns was the best out of the three things we sampled. Crunchy crispy on the outside, and mushy on the inside. We were really glad that we ordered it, and very happy with it.

EL CAMINO $13 – POACHED EGG, AVOCADO, PULLED PORK CARNITAS, TOMATO, FRIED TORTILLA, CILANTRO

HASHBROWNS $4

EGGSHOP B.E.C. $10 – BROKE YOLK, MCADAM WHITE CHEDDAR, BLACK FOREST BACON, TOMATO JAM, FRESH PICKLED JALAPENO, PANINI ROLL

Back to the BEC, I found it no that special than a simple egg and bacon sandwiches from my usual roadside breakfast cart. The difference would be, the breakfast cart guy would cater to your egg preference if he has the time and he knows you. And those breakfast sandwiches on hard roll toasted, only cost $4.

Egg Shop | 151 Elizabeth St | March 2016

Salvation burger- fast food #worthwaitingfor

From the creator of The Spotted Pig, The Breslin, Salvation Tacos, and the John Dory, the Michelin starred chef April Bloomfield and gang present their latest project — Salvation Burger. Just opened its door in February at the Pod 51 hotel. In-house butchered grass-fed burger, house-made buns, house-smoked hot dogs, boozy shakes make up high-end fast food/ pub food.

Salvation Burger currently only takes walk-ins, #noreservations
Because of its raved review and April Bloomfield’s fame, I was worried. We arrived on the warmest evening this spring yet, and the place is packed. There was a crowd outside the door. Different parties scattered over the block. Our original estimated wait time was 1.45 hours. We were suggested to wait by the bar or the hotel bar next door. Be patient. I thought. At least they have yummy cocktails. But there were no space to stand or sit around the bar. Do we move to the hotel bar next door? They do serve the same cocktails, but the different is, the hotel bar next door doesn’t have cocktails on tap, which means your Moscow mule will be less bubbly than mine.

The deco is fun and playful at Salvation Burger. As we look around, we discovered lots of cows surrounding us. There were different framed illustrations of cow hanging on the wall next to the open kitchen; above the bar, there are ceramic cows hidden in between the bottles; lamp shades above the booth are stamped with cows; all the coat hanger are ceramic cow head!!! And how often you look under the bar? There is a line of colorful cow heads waiting for the ladies for hang their purses. Well, If cows creep you out. Just stare at the wall of burger. You can’t miss it. Right when you walk through the front door, that’s the first wall you will see. It a wall of squeaky burgers sticking together. Please, squeeze them, I beg you. Asides from burgers and cows, chopped wood blocks are also used as decoration. Above the open kitchen, and above the front wall, they are stacked up to create a playful texture, clever. As we are looking around waiting, we noticed that there were plenty of people gave up waiting and just eat at the bar. So that area is very crowded. Waiting patrons holding their 2nd or 3rd drinks, while diners waiting for their food to arrive.
Table turn-around rate is slow, kitchen is playing catch up, therefore even a table is open, and they are not sitting people. Based on our observation, from the moment people sit down, to the minute they get their burgers were about 45 to an hour. I watched a gentlemen sitting at the booth finished his whole ice cold creamy heavy milkshake long before his burger arrived. Well, the restaurant is still very new, given time, the pace should pick up. For now, we enjoy our drinks and practice our patient.

An hour in, couple cocktails later, we were starving. That’s when we saw an opening on the side bar area under the wall of burgers. We hinted at the maître d that we can sit anywhere, not necessary a table. And she sits us there moments later. So if you don’t mind not sitting face to face with your dinning partners, voice up!!
Since there is a decent wait time for the kitchen, we also deployed a different strategy. We let our waitress know immediately that we are ready to order the second she sat us. And yes, we studied the menu while we were waiting. Also, I would like to take a moment to thanks the PR/ social media person who handled Salvation Burger’s Instagram account that night. Here is what happened: soon after we sat down under the burger wall, I posted a picture and sort of whined about how long we waited. Literally seconds later, someone from their camp responded and left a comment(see below). About 5 minutes later, our marrow and oysters arrived. And burgers followed about 10 minutes later. I really don’t know if it is anyhow related to me posting and whining, but it sure seems that we are getting our food a whole lot faster than most parties we observed. Based on the time stamp of my pictures from the “burger wall” to burger arrival was no more than 20 minutes. If it is the power of Instagram, PR/ Social Media handler, I applaud you! Thank you!!

Ok, back to the food. There is no menu on the website yet, my guess is, they are still expanding. On the night we went, there were wood roast oysters ($13) and bone marrow ($12), and they were both great! We usually prefer our oysters raw, but this one was awesome. Although roasted, it was perfectly done, just the right temperature, and the condiments on it make it really appetizing. A little spice, a little sweetish, just perfect.

The roasted marrow had us drooling. We dipped/ soaked the nice crunchy toast into the marrow, sprinkle a little dash of that green rock salt and top with the greens that came with. We are loving it.
Now the main star—burgers. As advertised, the buns, condiments, and pickles are all made in-house. The 2 choices: the namesake salvation burger and the classic, we ordered both, medium rare.

The classic burger comes with 2 patties, special sauce in between, and pickles, no cheese. It reminds me a little bit of Big Mac, no!!!! how dare I compare it with Big Mac. I found the burger patties a little more done than medium rare. I was hoping for a little more red. But it is still juicy and savory. And there’s really something special about the special sauce. A little tart, absolutely fantastic.
The salvation burger comes with a much more meaty patty. Double the size of the classic, if not triple. It topped with a layer of caramelized onion, and taleggio cheese. Caramelized onion was supposed to be sweet and balance out the grease and the heaviness of cheese, but the taleggio cheese was way too strong for the onion. For a moment, we mistaken taleggio as blue cheese, because that’s how strong it is. We felt … overwhelmed. The patty was gorgeously medium rare though. Compare the two, we both like the Classic more, but we kind of wish we can combine the two and create a third. Take the hefty patty from the Salvation, pair it with the special sauce and pickles, cheese or no cheese we shall see. We felt that the Classic by itself is great, but the Salvation was a little too heavy, it needs that tang, sharpness to balance out. I only have half of each, but I doubt I could finish a whole Salvation by myself.
As we were on our way out, we managed to take a peek in the kitchen behind the curtain. April Bloomfield of course was not in sight, but versions of burger sketches were displayed on the wall, more to come? Or inspiration? We can’t wait to see.

Salvation Burger | 230 E 51st St | March 2016

Poke! Haiwaiian wind finally blew through NYC

I love raw fish, sushi, sashimi, crudo, carpaccio, tartare, ceviche, hoedeopbap… I love them all. These are all easily found in New York. However, there is one that we have been lacking for years, the american one– Poke!!!! I can call it American right? I mean, Hawaiian is American. For years, New YorkCity, our great culinary palace of the east coast is missing this raw american dish. Yes, Noreetuh serve up great Hawaiian dishes, but we need a poke joint, like those in Hawaii. Relax, no frills and cheap. Our wish was granted. Late last year, the pacific cool breeze finally blew through New York City. Now, there are about 5 of them scattered on Manhattan Island. Last week, we found ourselves on the benches of Sons of Thunder, the first poke joint in decades that open in new york. We are hoping this is the first of many.
Very much reassembling a Japanese Tekka Don or Chirash or a Korean Hoedeopbap, Poke is a raw fish salad, mix with shoyu, green onion, sesame seeds, seaweeds and etc. At Sons of Thunder, we can get it over a bowl of white or brown rice, or warm tortilla chips. There is also a choice between shoyu or spicy sauce.
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The place is like a chill surf shop, or a seaside shake. Distress floor, exposed brick wall painted in white with a surf board hanging with picture of Hawaii shores, its causal, relax, like it is suppose to, in Hawaii.
Sons of Thunder operates like a chipotle. Menu is on a black board hanging over the cash register. Order in the front, and the crew assemble the order down the line. There are other items on the menu, like burgers, hot dogs and shakes. But we are here for poke. We order 2 half and half bowls: one with ahi and tako with shoyu; the other with ahi and salmon with spicy. We were handed one of those buzzer device and proceed to the back of the restaurant.

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It is very affordable. For 10.75 a bowl, there is plenty of poke. It is not premium quality, but it is decent enough. Tako was surprisingly good too. We both like the one with tuna and tako, preferably with shoyu. Spicy marinade is actually spicy mayo. Could use a little more kicks in it. The seaweed salad and and pickled cucumber were great. The only thing is … the warm tortilla chips was … awkward. While it is perfectly crispy, poke and salad isn’t things that we can exactly dip in. We ended up breaking it in pieces and try to stack poke and salad on it skillfully. Which fail all the time. Perhaps we should investigate to use the scope style tortilla chips. We ended up ate it as chips. And one more thing…. We would really much like to use chopsticks, please!
Cheap, healthy eats that we can keep coming back and not break the bank. If I live in manhattan, I’ll never have to cook again…

Sons of Thunder | 204 E 38th Street | Feb, 2016

Chef Ishikawa’s Jewel Bako

Last year we learned that chef Yoshihiko Kousaka has left Jewel Bako, and opened Sushi Kosaka, and since, it has been on our “to eat list”. While we have yet found the time to find out what Kosaka offers, we revisited Jewel Bako to learn what has changed.
On a quiet block near St. Marks, Jewel Bako is warm and intimate. On a cold winter night, the light spilled out from little square window feels welcoming and cozy. Curved ceiling dinning room is branched with bamboo, and the mirrored glass makes it looks like a jewelry box, hence, Jewel Bako. The clever design making the place bright and light.
We are no strangers at Jewel Bako. During Chef Kousaka 10 years tenure there, we have visited the place numerous time. And it has been very consistent, Jewel Bako holds a michelin star for 11 consecutive years. Until last year, along with 15 East, Jewel Bako is one of our more trusted “go-to” place for sushi in that price range. Coincidentally, both Chef Masato Shimizu and Kousaka has found themselves a new venture.
We love Jewel Bako because of it’s reliable standard, impeccable quality and reasonable pricing. Of all the times we have visited, Chef Kousaka always served up the freshest ingredient, with outstanding technique. Even with the utmost quality, the pricing is still fair in comparison to others with similar standard. The last time we went, the sushi omakase was at $85/pp with 17 pieces. This time, with new Chef Shimao Ishikawa, Omakase comes in 2 different pricing, 85 for 15 pieces and 120 for 18 pieces. We settled at the sushi bar (sit 8), Chef Ishikawa greeted us with a warm smile. He is an older gentleman. According to Jewel Bako’s website, he has over 40 years experience in traditional sushi. And here is his Jewel Bako, piece by piece…

Grilled giant clam with pepper. Complementary from chef. This is great. We love giant clam, sweet and crunchy!!!

Miso soup- what’s wrong with miso soup lately, everywhere is very light, or is it just me…

Marinated kinmedai with yuzu pepper- I love Kinmedai, and I admit that I might even like kinmediai more than toro. I would like this kinmedai as much,, if the skin had been torched a bit more.

Akami- chu toro was a little cold…

Kamarsu (Japanese barracuda)

shiroebi- still a little cold, actually it was too cold to taste

Sayori with shiso leaf and lemon juice. Excellent texture. The zest of lemon is awesome. Shiso is still strong but yet still balanced

Trio- toro chopped, Maine uni, ikura

Akamutsu (Torched sea perch)

Hokkigai with lemon- this was surprisingly good. Totally changed my mind on hokkigai.

O toroooooo so metly. This is heaven. Yes, hallelujah. There were light beams coming out my mouth.

Santa Barbara uni

Geoduck

King salmon with sea salt and lemon

Mackerel

Aji with ginger

Otoro with Santa Barbara uni – uni was torched, but honestly kinda unnecessary because toro is so great and got all the attention. When Toro is shining like a bright star, let it shine, don’t overcrowd it.

Unagi baked first then torched in banyan leaf

So the $85 omakase stopped at 15 pieces; the $120 has 3 more pieces, which were, Mackerel, Aji, and Otoro with uni. While, i’m glad I had the experience, I would gladly stay at 15 pieces next time and order some more on the side. The mackerel and aji was a little disappointing. After the course was over, we asked Chef Ishikawa what else we should try. While chef was struggling with translation, the very friendly staff came to rescue. He patiently explained and translate the chef’s recommendation, and we ended our meal with 2 more pieces, sea bass and cherry blossom snapper (sorry, forgot to take picture…)

Sea bass with yuzu pepper. Yuzu pepper was a little strong, and the sea bass didn’t have the crispiness I was looking for.

At the end of the night, a large bottle of plum wine was brought in front of us. And the staff skillfully filled a tiny glass for each of us as dessert wine.
Overall, I think with Chef Ishikawa, Jewel Bako has kept it’s fish quality, but I felt the presentation and attention to detail is not up their previous standard. Pay close attention to the plate, often it was smeared with a little too much sauce. And when there were left over “juice” from the previous piece, but no one care to clean up. I know, I know, i’m nitpicking. But it is important! Our eyes eat first! It looks messy, and the left over sauce could potentially ruin the following one. Also, there were a few pieces that the temperature could have been control better. And take a look at the “uni cup”, it’s hard not to compare. The presentation speaks for itself.

Uni cup, left by Chef Ishikawa; right by Chef Kousaka

On a side note, although we didn’t order any maki roll, we watched those huge rolls being constructed in front of us at the sushi bar. Chef Ishikawa doesn’t make maki, his focus is on sushi omakase. His apprentices, 3 other chefs cater to the table services. But it was painful to watch. We watched the makis being prepared, cut and served by a younger chef directly in front of us. We watch the nori being broken, rolls cut in various sizes, and lousily plated. I’m almost certain, no 2 pieces were the same size. This young apprentice obviously have years ahead of him, but we wonder if he has any respect for the trade. Sushi/ maki making is an art form, to serve up such lousy looking pieces, is a disgrace. But he didn’t seems to bother to try. Roll after roll, we watched in horror. It is a waste of such premium ingredient.
On the bright side, the “oh so melty” o-toro blows our mind. The word “buttery” can’t even describe it. It’s easily the star of our night. However, I found myself thinking about the Sayori more. The shiso and lemon created the perfect balance and that mild crunch when I bite into the Sayori, and that sweetness mixed in with the zest was just fantastic.

Jewel Bako | 239 E. 5th Street | Feb 2016