Dining Out

Dear New York City,

We need to talk.  No, I’m not breaking-up with you.  But you have some problems you need to work on. Well, one BIG problem.

You have a huge pizza ego that’s writing checks your pizza ovens just can’t cash.  Sure, you can do thin crust like no other.  If I want to fold a slice in half on a paper plate while I’m on my way from one way to place to another, I know I can rely on you.  If I want a neapolitan style pizza, with a crust cooked to crispy perfection in a wood burning oven, either classic or with innovative topping, I know you’re there for me.  If I want to climb towards the sky with the crispy sponge of a Sicilian style pie I need not worry.

But if I want a Chicago style deep dish pizza… well…. where are you?  And don’t give me that Pizzeria Uno line.  You know I deserve better than that.  And I swear, if you try and pull a fast one on me again, like you did last week, by promising a Chicago style deep dish and giving me a Sicilian, you’re spending the next week sleeping on the couch.

I know you think you know it all, but here is the deal on a deep dish pizza.  Lets start at the top.  It’s chunky sauce or diced tomatoes .  Under the sauce is the cheese.  A deep dish pizza is a beast.  It needs to be in the oven for a good long time and we want that cheese to stay nice  and soft.  (In fairness there is a reasonable controversy about whether toppings go above or below that sauce, but you’re about 20 steps behind that.)  Under the cheese is 1.5 or 2 inches of doughy bread with a nice crisp bottom sprinkled with cornmeal.  Towering above it all is a pinched rim of crisp crust.

You tell me if I can make it here, I can make it everywhere.  Well deep dish is made everywhere but here.  Slow down, take your time, and make things right.

Now you know how I feel.

All The Best,

Arthur Latz-Hall

I know what you’re thinking: how can I trust a place run by Australians?  Aren’t they are a bunch of untrustworthy criminals?  Well, don’t worry, DUB’s has the mellowing influence of New Zealanders to help you feel safe walking through their doors.  Try this Park Slope gem.

A few months ago, while sitting at the Double Windsor, I looked across the street and saw DUB Pies.  A little internet research revealed that DUB’s puts out the savory, rather than sweet variety, of baked treats.  As a Minnesota boy, I’ve never really had a savory pie–at least aside from the chicken pot variety.

After several visits, I can now safely say that those folks down under know what’s going on when it comes to making a pie that’s a meal rather than a desert and DUB’s has found its way into my weekend breakfast/brunch rotation.

The prices at DUB’s seem a bit steep at first at around $6 or $7 for personal sized pie (or $3 for a mini pie).  But a pie and coffee hits the wallet more lightly than a more traditional sit-down brunch and it leaves you plenty full for the day.

I’m a particular fan of the Steak Pie–filled with chucks of meat and a fantastic onion gravy–or the Mince Pie (ground beef).  Like bacon, gravy is always a winner.  These guys are filling, but small enough to avoid the food coma.

By weekend midday, the selection of pies can be touch and go.  As a result, I’ve tried some far less traditional fillings, such as chili or Thai chicken.  (I loved the chili. The Thai chicken was good, but not great, with a bit of hot sauce.)  I was only somewhat underwhelmed by the egg and cheese pie, though it was less a failing by DUB’s and more a personal unease with so much egg.  As a warning, the seating is limited, about six chairs, so go prepared to take your pies home when necessary.

If only DUB’s served-up great beer, as well as great coffee, it might win a place in the dinner rotation.

I was first introduced to hot pot a few years back by my roommate Nick.  For the uninitiated, hot pot, does, as the name suggests, involve a hot pot.  On the table, you have a pot of broth or oil (or both) simmering away into which you dip all manner of raw veggies, meats, and seafood.  As the dipped food cooks, it absorbs the flavor of the broth.  Personally, I can’t get enough of anything cooked in the spicy broth that imparts a slow satisfying burn.  Not only is hot pot delicious, but it’s fun–a great time for everyone seated around the table.  True interactive eating.  So when a group of co-workers decided to  it was time to head down to Chinatown for some of this stuff I had to say yes.

Our dining location was XO Taste.  What I first noticed about the place was it’s size.  The dining room is spacious and well lit, the tables far enough apart that you don’t feel on top of your neighbor.   The hot pot was in an all-you-can style, including non-alcoholic beverages, appetizers, the hot pot (of course), and desert for just $27.

We were fortunate to have Sarina, and her impeccable Chinese language skills, to guide us through the ordering and describe items as they came out.   The first wave of food, served as the pots worked their way up to a simmer, were fried dumplings and a scallop dish.   The dumpling were good, better than the standard affair–more crispy with big pieces of ingredients inside.  The scallop came in a way I’ve never encountered before: on the half-shell with a layer of mayo and covering of melted cheese.  XO tasty, I would say, and incredibly rich.

The food rolled out in waves of beef, pork, veggies, and fish.  One of my favorite items were what Sarina called omega balls.  Similar to dumplings, the casing is made from fish skin, these balls pack a strong fishy flavor. We ate and ate until we could eat no more.  We were, tragically, beyond satiated before we got into the real seafood portion of the buffet.  And then came desert.  Bowls of ice cream (green tea, red bean, and vanilla were passed around), a Chinese custard (picture a gelatinous falan), a hot red bean dish, and a peanut sesame past dumpling (a fantastically savory dessert).

I have to admit that Little Lamb Hot Pot in the Flushings Chinatown still leads as my belly’s number one love for hot pot.  In fairness to XO Taste, I didn’t get really try their seafood.  Even with seafood aside, Little Lamb seemed to have a wider array of vegetables and proteins, in addition to having a sauce bar where you came invent concoctions in which to dunk your freshly cooked treats.   But, all-in-all, XO is good, cheap, fun, and conveniently located.  I see return trips to XO in my future.

There is something about me that my close friends know.  Some days they are understanding–other days they openly judge me.  This revelation might surprise a casual reader of this blog.  (To my great surprise I’ve learned that it’s not just my mom who reads this thing.)  But I think it’s time for me to stand and announce my self to world.

My name is Arthur, and I like Taco Bell.

There it is.  I’ve said it out loud… in print or electrons.  It feels  good to admit openly.  And you know what?  I’m not ashamed.  My name is Arthur, and I like Taco Bell.  Though maybe I need to explain my self.

First, I don’t think that it’s great food; it’s the culinary equivalent to Katy Perry.   But, confession number two, I like Katy Perry.

Taco Bell is just a mix of carbs, salt, fat, with some onions and, whenever in my hands, a generous coating of hot sauce.  All the things humans are biologically programmed to crave.  I just can’t understand those who refuse to eat there with me.

Some whine about the health of fast food.  But if you don’t order the mega-lunch box and keep the number of items ordered under control it’s actually not that bad for you.  Take my standard lunch order of one five layer burrito.  It clocks in with 540 calories.  Less than most half a sandwich and soup combos at Hale and Hearty or approximately the same as Pret a Manger‘s ham and cheese sandwich.  The sodium in this fake Mexican treat is on the high end at 1280 mg, just over 50 percent of what you should have in a day.  So I skip the afternoon can of V8 that packs 25 percent of you daily sodium.  Sure, maybe I shouldn’t eat at the Bell every day, and I don’t, not any more, but even if I did I could do it right. (Confession number three: in my younger years I would regularly order and eat over $10 worth of Taco Bell for lunch.)

And have I mentioned that Taco Bell is cheap?  That five layer burrito is only $1.89 in New York, a steal compared to any other lunch around.  Great for the poor law student.

So you can call Taco Bell cheap, uneatable, fake food.  I’ll proudly call it lunch.

Early in 2011 I made my second trip to Daniel in as many years.  As in 2010, this year’s dinner was an experience and that experience was total perfection.  Exactly what you expect from a restaurant with three Michelin stars.

Of all culinary experiences this year that I’ve failed to document, Daniels also takes the number one spot. The interior is elegant but simultaneously comforting.  The visit was an epicurean adventure through a six course tasting menu with the wine pairing where we were guide by a dedicated team that cared to our every need and answered every question.  Though, the details of this journey are lost and all that remains is a warm memory of the experience, it remains the highlight not only of 2011 but also a top culinary experiences of my life.

This year I had my first bite of a Filet Oscar over dinner at the Post House which inspired a return lunch trip to the same establishment. If you are a meat eater, the Filet Oscar needs to be on your culinary bucket list.  This dish is pure unadulterated decadence: filet minion, crab meat, Bearnaise sauce, and asparagus.  I can just feel my arteries clogging with deliciousness.

In 2012 my plan is to make this bad boy myself.

It’s rare, very rare, that a restaurant can change my whole understanding about a class of food.  Fonda is one of those rare restaurants.  Fonda has made me believe that Mexican food can be sophisticated.  I’ve always loved Mexican food; both the massive Americanized platters of corn tortillas flooded with sauce, cheese, sour cream, and guacamole and the more authentic corn tortillas or rice and bean dishes.  But I’ve never thought of Mexican food as fancy or high end.  Both of the usual varieties are satisfying but can hardly be called elegant.  Even the nicer Mexican spots seem to put out food that still approximates Don Pablo’s, just with better ambiance and a long tequila list.  So my elevation of Fonda deservers a thorough justification.

However, a thorough justification is going to have to wait. I want to return a few more times before making my full report.  For now I’ll keep it short.  I’ve dined at Fonda a few times and sampled their happy hour menu and, while I did have one major service failure here, the food has always impressed.  Good enough that I don’t feel cheated for paying $16 for the enchiladas.

It’s now officially a new year’s resolution to get back to Fonda a few more times and pound out a proper post.

Blue Ribbon Sushi's Bar

Unlike most of the rest of the 2011 top ten, I didn’t get around to posting on these bad boys. Because I neglected to make a post (my way to remember delicious things) the details of my meals at these fine establishment are lost to my faded memory.  But both are amazing sushi spots that deserve a place in the top ten.

When dining on high end sushi, I usually pass-up the rolls for the nigiri or sashimi.  It just seems that the great flavor of fresh high quality fish gets lost in whatever else is in the roll.  But Kiku Sushi manages to use their high quality ingredients to throw out rolls that offer up amazing flavor and texture combinations.  Good enough that I’d advise treading lightly on the usual usual soy sauce wasabi mixture.

Whereas at Kiku I was impressed with the sushi rolls, Blue Ribbon threw down fantastic nigiri and sashimi.   (I’m sure they make great rolls as well, I just haven’t had the chance to sample them.)  What stands out in my memory is that sea scallop.  The thin cuts were artfully served in the scallop shell with a sauce I made from the liver.  Both the servers and sushi chefs at the sushi bar were friendly, talkative, and informative.  The only draw back of Blue Ribbon is that I can’t afford to be a regular.

It’s Christmas Day so I’m going to keep this short.

Toby’s takes its spot at number 6 because it’s my favorite pizza spot in New York.  Great pizza supported by a good staff and a good beer selection.  Just thinking about it is making my stomach rumble in anticipation.

I thought about giving the number eight spot to Sake Bar Hagi.  But, while the post describing this amazingly fun dining spot appeared 2011, my actual first trip was in 2010.

I’m shocked myself to see a brunch spot in the top 10, but after mulling it over for a few days I couldn’t pull Perch Cafe out.  The brunch fills me with all the joy and comfort I would expect from this early afternoon meal.  On several  trips since my first visit, I’ve sampled more and more of the menu and have yet to be disappointed (except maybe by the wrap, which is just too healthy for me). But more than the food, the great servers have me developing an irrational attachment.  The servers are the prefect blend of surly and friendly–willing to stop and chat (or give me shit for not taking down the last bit of cheesy grits).  I always leave satiated and with a brightened day.  As long as I’m in Park Slope, Perch Cafe has a solid spot in my brunch rotation.

Perch also offers up a dinner menu that I’m excited to sample in the New Year courtesy of a living social deal.