Katz's Deli

We are down to our last few days in NYC, and have walked past this famous NYC institution dozens of times as it's only 4 blocks from our apartment. We're always a bit wary of the high profile landmarks, as they attract lots of tourists which tends to result in poor service and overpriced food. We finally decided to check it out.

It has been going since 1888, back when the LES was a Jewish enclave. While most have since left to other parts of the city, a few remnants of the Jewish culture remain.

First of all, the place is massive, you walk in and the counter runs along one entire side of the room. The back wall is covered with hanging salamis, and the other wall is covered with pictures of famous people who have visited over the years. 

Katz is best known for their meat sandwiches, especially their pastrami. The sandwiches are huge, probably 100mm high and stacked full of juicy, tender meat. Other than bread, mustard, pastrami and the obligatory whole pickle, that's all it is. But man is it good. It's probably the best pastrami I've had (although the bulk of my previous pastrami experience originates in Coles/Woolies deli). The pastrami juices partially soak the bread, and with a side of creamy coleslaw it makes for a mean traditional Jewish-American meal.

We were bracing ourselves for a long wait, but we got straight in at 7pm on a Sunday night, and were eating 10 minutes later. It's also featured in some movie that I'm too young to have seen, supposedly had Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan in it or something. Definitely worth the visit. 

Rockaway Tacos

We visited Rockaway beach a few days ago, it's on the Atlantic coast near JFK airport, about an hour's subway ride from Manhattan.We had heard about an awesome taco place there, so I thought a quick follow up to Ottos was in order.

While the neighborhood itself is somewhat rogue, the beach is nice, and an added bonus for planespotters is that jets fly low overhead every few minutes. 

This area was heavily affected by Hurricane Sandy a few years ago, and the remnants of the destruction can still be seen. Large stretches of the boardwalk on the beach its still yet to be replaced, and many buildings on the beachfront sit vacant and boarded up. 



There is however this little taco place called Rockaway taco, a few streets back from the beach. Like much of Rockaway beach, the place is pretty rustic, in fact it wouldn't look out of place on a beach in Mexico. The decor is 'klepto-ecletic' with surf boards, driftwood and other beach detritus featuring prominently. 

We were informed that you had to try the fish tacos, so we got 2 fish and 2 chorizo, along with some elote and pineapple juice. 

Elote is this epic Mexican grilled corn smothered in sour cream, cheese and paprika. It is really good, but also really hard to eat without making a mess. Inevitably you end up with sour cream covering your mouth and hands, and your teeth full of corn.

The fish is deep fried and served with cabbage and radish, with a sour cream sauce. The chorizo is in a chipotle sauce and packs a punch. The fish is the pick of the tacos - light and fresh with the raw veggies balancing the creamy sauce and perfectly fried fish.

Its definitely worth the trip from Manhattan, if only for the tacos. Everyone knows about Coney Island, but I didn't realise there was another nice beach so easily accessible from the city. And at $5 for the return trip, its about the best value you can get on the subway as it right at the end of the line.

Ottos Tacos

Like many parts of the US, NYC has strong Central American cultural influences. In the Lower East Side where we are staying, there are more Puerto Rican flags than US flags, and you're more likely to hear Spanish than English spoken. There are also heaps of great Mexican restaurants and taquerias.

Ottos Tacos is a little taqueria in East Village that only serves little corn tacos. Otto is not the first name that springs to mind when I think of Mexican food, but at least he knows how to make a good taco. These tacos are much smaller than a burrito meaning that you typically have 3-4 for a meal. This is great because you get to try a number of different tacos in the one sitting. 

I love their house made corn tortillas - they are a bit thicker than a typical flour tortilla but only the size of a small saucer. I also love the freshness of the tacos - raw onion, fresh coriander and lime juice with the shrimp and chicken tacos, add avocado for the pork and beef, with chipotle mayo on the side. 

The chicken and prawn are the pick of the tacos - both are barbecued and go well with the light, fragrant toppings. 

Action shot mid-taco.  

Ottos evokes the baja-style Mexican food of southern California. Rather than sitting on a busy Manhattan street, you could be relaxing on Venice beach watching the crazy people and the waves roll in.

Mighty Quinn's Barbecue

What I love about eating in NYC is the variety of dining options available. What ever you feel like, chuck it into google, and you'll be directed to the nearest restaurant or take out place serving the subject of your hankering. There are perhaps hundreds of different cuisines and food ethnicities represented amongst the 30,000 restaurants in NYC. Well today I had a hankering for slow cooked meat.



Barbecue is another quintessentially American food, involving the slow smoking and roasting of meat (typically beef and pork) over wood or charcoal at a low temperature. This allows fatty and tough cuts of meat to become amazingly moist and tender while the wood imparts smoky flavour through the meat.

Definitely different to what we call a barbie - uncle Fred burning the snags on his trusty 4 burner on Boxing Day. Yes, I know it has gourmet-ed up since I was a kid but the point still stands.
 
The Americans take their barbecue very seriously, especially in the south. There are  numerous barbecue places in the city, but many cater for the tourists and don't follow the traditional techniques that are so integral to the outcome.

Mighty Quinn's Barbecue is a great unpretentious barbeque place in east village. You line up to be served canteen style as your plate gets piled high with a choice of brisket, pulled pork, burned ends or ribs. Slaw is a staple pairing with barbecue, as is some form of picked veggie (onions or cucumbers) but the best side is the epically rich pecan and maple sweet potato mash. It's so sweet and fudgy it could be a dessert.


Now the meat. The ribs are glazed in sweet barbeque sauce and are so deliciously tender that they fall of the bone. The brisket is also juicy and tender, but my favourite are the smoked pork cheeks. The smoky flavour is prominent but not overpowering, and the shape of the cheek is conserved during the cooking so that you can imagine the jowly face of the pig whence they came.  

How about a closeup of the ribs




 You can see the smoky pork cheek peeking out of Nic's bun
There is just so much right about American barbecue. And its relatively cheap too, considering time and effort involved in preparing the meat this way.

Burgers

Time to knock off another of the big ones. Like pizza, burgers are ubiquitous in NYC. Every bar (pub), deli/bodega (corner store) and take away shop does a burger, and then there are the fast food joints, and the multitude of specialty burger places that offer more upmarket burgers.

To be honest, we haven't frequented too many fast food joints purely because there are so many other food options that it seems a waste of a meal to buy a $1.99 burger of dubious quality.

We have had some ripper burgers so far, from an epic salmon fillet burger in Montreal to juicy, towering beefy beasts that take a whole pint to wash down.

However, you can't beat a classic bacon cheeseburger - glossy brioche bun, juicy beef patty cooked medium, melted cheese, fried onion, crispy bacon and tangy pickles - served with a side of red cabbage slaw and fries. The key to a good burger is the fat content of the patty. It has to be relatively fatty to ensure that the burger stays juicy, and we all know that fat makes stuff taste good. 

This one is from Bareburger in East Village - probably the finest burger purveyor we have found so far. 

Shake shack is a fast-foody place that operates out of Madison Square Park in the Flatiron district. They do classic american food - burgers, hot dogs, shakes and fries - but be prepared for the wait. On weekends, the line can stretch out the park and the wait can be over an hour. Its worthwhile checking out shackcam (http://www.shakeshack.com/location/madison-square-park/#shack-cam) beforehand to check the line.

The burgers are simple small affairs with squishy buns. Yes they are great, but no, I wouldn't wait an hour in line for one. However it's a great location where you can eat outside and people watch as the line slowly moves past. 

Mmmm... Burger...

One day when I was feeling particularly adventurous I even tried a veggie burger. This wasn't a stodgy, cooked from frozen slopfest like some veggie burgers inevitably are. It was made from beetroot, and looked and tasted surprisingly like a normal meat burger.

Coffee in the Big Apple

Coffee is an important part of many people's lives, including mine. Ahh, the satisfaction every morning of caffeine hitting your bloodstream, crossing the blood-brain-barrier and stimulating your central nervous system - banishing lingering drowsiness and increasing your alertness and mood. Of all the drugs to be addicted to, coffee's not to bad, right?

We are lucky in Australia to have a plethora of good coffee shops/cafes serving excellent espresso based beverages as well as pour overs. Its not just the big cities either - acceptable coffees, and, with some research great coffees, can now be had in many regional areas.

Historically, the US drank its coffee from drip filters or percolators in big mugs, and espresso based coffee was confined to specialist cafes and Italian places. Then the espresso revolution swept through, and big chains like Starbucks and The Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf took hold. Unfortunately, while they are capable of doing a passable espresso, as soon as the milk gets involved, things start to unravel. Firstly the servings are massive - the smallest latte at Starbucks, the 'tall' is 12 fl oz, while the largest (venti) is 20 fl oz, nearly 600 mL!! Secondly, the milk is not correctly textured - it is foamy and bubbly and looks like the Cataract Gorge after a heavy rain. Finally, the coffees are so weak, mainly because of the volume of milk involved. 

So, New York. Its somewhat of a latecomer to the espresso based coffee culture that is such a feature of Australia and New Zealand's big cities. However, it is catching up fast, and new cafes/coffee shops are opening up all the time that serve excellent coffee.

(from top, clockwise: Laughing Man Espresso in Tribeca (part owned by Hugh Jackman!), small latte, cuppuccino, cortado)

Here's a handy guide for navigating the coffee in NYC:

Lattes are typically bigger than in Aus/NZ - make sure you ask for a small (8-12 fl oz), or else you'll end up with something resembling a soup bowl. They are not always served in a glass, sometimes in a cuppuccino cup. 

Cuppuccinos are really just smaller lattes (6-8 fl oz), but with the same espresso content, so typically a bit stronger. No chocolate sprinkles to be seen.

If you like your coffee a bit stronger like me, you can either order a latte with an extra shot, or get a Cortado (4-6 fl oz), which is similar to our piccolo latte. They also go by Gibraltar. 

The good coffee shops tend to pull double ristrettos, so if you want a double shot as we know it, you will end up with essentially 4 ristrettos, which is the same volume as a double espresso. They gave me some funny looks when I confirmed that yes, I want 4 shots in my small latte, but it really isn't any stronger than a double latte back home. 

Here are some photos of a few of the dozens of cafes we have sampled in the last month and on previous visits. Rather than list them all, I've created a Coffee Map with all of the places that has received my tick of approval.

(Aussie-run Bluebird coffee in Lower East Side). 

(Little Collins in Midtown East - complete with a stolen street sign and cool bench-integrated espresso machine - another Aussie run cafe killing it over here)

(Gasoline Alley in Nolita. Bike hanging up - check, hipster looking barista - check, epic La Marzocco machine - check!)

Flushing Chinatown

Flushing is at the end of the 7 subway line, a half hour ride from Manhattan. It is home to NYC's largest Chinese population and a vibrant Chinatown. 

When you get off the subway and exit the station, you would be forgiven for thinking that you have been somehow ended up in Shanghai or Guangzhou. Every shop sign is in Mandarin, and here are street vendors, markets, and dinky holes-in-the-wall serving incredibly cheap and good food. 

It's a sensory overload - the humidity, smells, noise, and constant crowding and jostling transporting me back to my visit a China a few years ago. It was then, at a street vendor in Guangzhou that I fell in love with Portuguese custard tarts.

Portuguese custard tarts are incredible, flaky, gooey morsels of yumminess. Reflecting the colonial history Macau, these are a staple of any Cantonese bakery. They are served warm, with a flaky pastry shell contrasting with the eggy, creme brulee-esque filling which is not overly sweet, but enough to allow caremelisation on the top of the tart.

There are so many other cheap snacks to try within a short distance of Main St. Another winner is the $1 Peking duck bun from the aptly named Peking Duck Sandwich Stall. It is a small steamed pancake with crispy-skin roasted duck, spring onions and hoisin sauce. Really simple, but delicious.

Its definitely worth the trip out to Queens to experience the Flushing Chinatown. It's probably not on many tourists' agendas, but its easily accessible from the subway and not far from  Flushing Meadows-Corona Park, home to the US Open, the Mets and the New York Hall of Science.

Pizza!

We've been here for over 2 weeks now, so its time to talk about pizza.

Pizza is both ubiquitous and homogenous in NYC, you can get it everywhere, and its always the same. First of all, it is massive - a typical pizza is the size of car tyre, and single slice covers a dinner plate. The base is always very thin, and the toppings are simple. 

Given its sheer size, the best way to devour a slice is to fold it longways which increases the rigidity of the slice, and thus prevents bending and potential loss of toppings. 

One of the best known pizzerias in the city is Grimaldi's in dumbo (it featured on Aus Masterchef a few seasons ago). It is so well known that there usually is a huge line of tourists waiting to get, which doesn't appeal to me. Luckily, Nic did some research, and next door is Juliana's Pizza. It turns out that the original Grimaldi family sold the business and the name a while back, then got itchy feet and decided to get back into the pizza business and opened up next door!

We ordered a large special no. 1 - mozzarella, scamorza, pancetta, spring onions and while truffle. Very simple flavours, with the thin base not dominating the toppings. We had a side salad which balanced the richness and saltiness of the pizza. The pizzas are made in a huge coal fired brick oven, set at the back of the restaurant in view of all the tables. 

While this place was a bit more expensive, pizza is typically very cheap - a slice is only a few bucks - and given the size you would struggle to eat more than 2 at a sitting. However I have a theory that the price of pizza increases, and quality of the pizza deteriorates the closer you get to Times Square, due to the naivety of tourists and the unscrupulousness of the food vendors in the touristy areas. The best bet is to steer clear of the tourist hotspots, and you can't go wrong.  

Nic risking a shirt full of pizza by not using my folding technique. 

Little Muenster - Lower East Side

I didn't understand the name of this place until we entered, and figured out that muenster is a type of American cheese often used in grilled cheese sandwiches, or as us Aussies call them, Toasties. So now it makes more sense. 

They pretty much just sell toasties - and if that's their strategy then they'd better be good. Luckily they are. There's something refreshing about a place that only does one thing, but does it well.

Really simple - white bread, cheese, a smattering of other fillings, and served with 2 little gherkins. I ordered the 'classic' which contained just muenster and white american cheese, while Nic got the arugula with picked onions. 

There is lots of cheese involved, but the gherkins' sourness balanced the richness of all this cheese nicely. The bread is not too thick, so as not to detract from the fillings, and I think they had been toasted with some butter, which lifts the flavour nicely. 

I might go a bit more adventurous next time as they have some great sounding combinations, like the Poached Pear: pear/stilton blue/walnuts, and the Leek: leek confit/pancetta/gruyere/chèvre. Yep, we'll definitely be back. 

Waffles and Dinges

Waffles and Dinges started out as a food truck serving Belgian waffles the streets of NYC. Its popularity soon grew and more trucks were added. It now has a cafe located in East Village (just a few streets north of our apartment), as well as the distinctive yellow trucks that pop up all around the city.

We were frequent visitors to the trucks on previous visits, and were very excited to discover their bricks and mortar location only a few streets away. Essentially, you get a freshly made waffle with your choice of condiments (dinges, which is Dutch/Flemish for thing) including icecream, cream, specaloos spread, dulce de leche, chocolate, nuts, strawberries - you get the picture. 

The Liege waffles are the go, they are more chewy and probably contain more butter, but that's how they make them taste good I suppose. Being of Dutch heritage, we grew up with specaloos, a shortcrust spiced bickie. The Belgians have taken it one step further and have specaloos specaloos spread, essentially the rich caremelly and lightly spiced flavour that you can spread on your waffle. They also have specaloos icecream which is delicious. 

All in all, it is a pretty epic dessert, and hits the spot after a day on your feet exploring the city. They also do savoury waffles with things like pulled pork and eggs and bacon. We haven't tried these yet, but they would be pretty good brunch options, in a city where it's ok to eat fried chicken and maple glazed bacon at 10am in the morning. 

(This was taken in the toilet, but shows the food trucks in action...)

Ivan Ramen Japanese

A new restaurant just opened up just 2 streets from the apartment. We thought we'd check it out and I'm glad we did!

It's called Ivan Ramen, and surprise surprise - its run by a guy called Ivan, and specialises in Ramen, the Japanese noodle soup dish. I haven't had much Japanese before, so I was looking forward to trying this.

The signage and decor is very eye-catching, with bright colours and a Japanese Manga-esque theme. They also hand make all the noodles on site, which is good to know. 

We ordered the 1000 year old devilled egg and Chinese broccoli for entree. The devilled egg is made with preserved duck egg served inside a hen's egg. I was expecting a pungent, rotten flavour, but it was surprisingly palatable and actually very nice.

For mains, Nic had Lancaster Okonomiyaki, which was on a waffle made of pork scrapple (offally meatloaf), while I had the Tokyo Shio Ramen. The ramen broth was intensely flavoured, and had strips of pork belly poached in the broth, as well as a soft boiled egg. Using chopsticks and the little slurpy spoon forces you to eat slowly, but allows you to enjoy the food more.

The prices were quite reasonable, and the service was excellent. All in all a great dinner, washed down with a couple of Asahis.

Introduction

Nic and I are spending 2 months holidaying/working/studying in New York City. We both love this place, and especially the variety and quality of eating and drinking opportunities. We also both love food and coffee, and this is our attempt to capture our gastronomic experiences during this time.

From the high-end Michelin starred restaurants in midtown, to the cheap and amazing ethnic food in Queens, NYC has an incredibly diverse food culture, reflecting the waves of immigration during the 19th and 20th centuries. It is also reasonably cheap to eat out here, with competition keeping the prices honest, and a good USD/AUD exchange rate assisting our Aussie dollar buying power.  

We are based in the lower east side in Manhattan, which is a predominantly residential neighborhood full of bars, restaurants and cafes, and fairly central to all the NYC landmarks and tourist attractions. 

This is our apartment, located on the 6th floor of a new apartment building. It's actually quite roomy by NYC standards.

Our local cafe is Rosella, located about 100m away on Clinton St.

It's a brand new Aussie-run cafe (hence the name I suppose) and does great coffees in the mould of the best Melbourne cafes. And it even has a vertical garden!

Aussies are starting to influence the coffee scene in NYC, with a number of new Aussie-run cafes opening up and offering high quality coffee and a laid back atmosphere.

One of the biggest changes we have noticed in the 5 years since we first visited is the advancement of the coffee culture in the city. Back then, there were only a handful of places in the whole city to get a good coffee, but now it's so much easier to find one.

Although you still need to steer clear of the big chains like Starbucks and The Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf, unless you want a massive, weak and foamy latte...