Over the past couple of months, I've been walking around NYC and eating at various places that I really enjoy or finding new places by accident and trying out some new ones I had read about or friends hadput me on to. Here are some of my favorites:
1.) TREATS TRUCK-There have been 4 dessert-type trucks to show up inthe city in the past year or so and this is one of my favorites!
Various locations throughout NYC
Phone# 212-691-52226 (for locations)
Website:
http://www.treatstruck.com/ A mobile truck that sets up at various locations throughout the city.On this Monday, it was in the Financial District, not far fromStone Street and the Fraunces Tavern.
Kim Ima, owner and proprietor of the Treats Truck. We had a nice
conversation while I was choosing my treats and it turns out she is
an actress who loves to bake. I'm always happy to meet like-minded
people and she was a delight!
I picked up an Oatmeal cookie with raspberry jam on top. I make
oatmeal cookies at home a lot, but not nearly as good as this one.
Chewy, with a nice brown sugar sweetness to it and the jam just
sealed the deal.
My favorite, the Butterscotch Bar. Moist, chewy, buttery and studded
with pecans.
A brownie with chocolate and peanut butter frosting on top. I bake
brownies a lot, so I'm not usually a big fan of buying them, but this
one was really good. Dense, moist and lots of peanut butter flavor
on top.
Peanut butter sandwich cookies with chocolate cream inside.
Rice krispy treats.
More oatmeal cookies.
I'm a huge fan of this truck and Kim donates 10% of the profits each
month to a different charity in addition to making some most tasty
home-spun treats.
WATERFALL AND STREET CARTS ON 50TH AND 6TH AVENUE-I was making my way
to one of my most favorite street carts in Midtown Manhattan when I
came across this waterfall and tunnel. I work in this area
frequently, but have never seen this before. Like a child, I just
stood there for about 5 minutes oohing and ahhing at it!
This shot was taken on 50th Street between 6th and 7th Avenues. This
area is filled with street carts during the lunch hour on weekdays.
From 53rd Street to about 46th Street and down 6th Avenue in
between, there are so many carts: smoothie carts, juice carts,
Sabrett's hot dog carts, Mexican/taco carts, Halal food, BBQ,
pretzels and roasted nuts, Jamaican, German wursts, burgers, gyros,
etc... Here are just a few:
2.) DAISY MAY'S BBQ CART-My reason for the trip to 50th Street on
this day. A cold day indeed and perfect for a spicy bowl of chili!
50th Street (between 6th & 7th Avenues-closer to 6th Ave.)
Phone # 212-977-1500 (CALL AHEAD!!-they aren't out every day!)
Website:
http://www.daisymaysbbq.com/news.html The guy working the cart on this day was really nice and let me take
his picture.
I've been here many times and have tried the BBQ sandwiches, but I'm
not a huge fan as the the meat is already sauced and I'm not a huge
fan of that style.
This is a reason for me to get up in the morning. Some of the best
chili I have ever tasted! Thick, rich, spicy, luscious and lots of
fall apart chunks of beef in there! No beans or ground beef in this
one. I am so utterly happy every time I eat this!
It comes with shredded cheese, red onion and sour cream on the side.
I usually eat the first few spoonfuls without the condiments, then as
the creeping heat starts getting to me, I add them in. They are a
welcome addition and don't take away from the flavor at all.
The flour tortilla for dunking. I didn't like this the first time I
tried it as I grew up with oyster crackers/saltines with my chili,
but this is a perfect vehicle for dunking and for spooning a hunk of
beef onto like a mini chili sandwich.
3.) PINCHE TAQUERIA-a fairly new taco stand in the Nolita ((North of
Little Italy section of Greenwich Village)
333 Lafayette Street (between Bleecker & Houston Streets)
Phone # 212-343-9977
Website:
http://www.pinchetaqueria.us/about/about.html 
As you might be able to tell from this picture, this is a VERY small
place. It's located in the same strip of land as BITE sandwich shop
that I reviewed a while back. I like the atmosphere in here.
Spanish language TV on in the background and the seating is at what
looks to be hastily made chairs and small tables.
The menus...
Abuelita is Spanish for "little grandmother". I thought it was cute.
Ahh, the humor of the Pinche Taco Girl!
My horchata, a rice milk drink. The flavor was good, like a
drinkable rice pudding, but not the best I've ever had. This one was
a bit watered down.
Dayna's combo taco platter with rice, beans and tortilla chips. She
had a chicken taco (on the left) and a shrimp taco. I only tried the
shrimp taco and I thought they had overcooked them as they were too
chewy for my liking. The rice and beans were very good though. Well
seasoned rice and creamy refried beans.
My carnitas taco. This was ok. The meat was a bit cool and not as
tender as I like. Still looking for a place that matches Anna's
Taqueria carnitas. Not yet. I thought this was somewhat small for
the $2.95 price.
My Elote, grilled corn covered in Mexican mayonnaise, spices and
cotija cheese. This was absolutely amazing!! I wasn't sure about
the whole mayo thing on hot corn, but it really works. Creamy,
spicy, nice saltiness from the cheese and a spritz of lime perks it
up quite well. I could have eaten a couple more of these.
My Chicken (Mole?) tamale. I think this was a special that night.
Somewhat disappointing as I thought it was sort of bland. I don't
have much experience with tamales so I'm not sure how it stands up,
but I was hoping for a balance of cornmeal and spicy meat that just
didn't materialize. Again, the beans and chips were great. I had
also tried the nachos here a few nights before and loved them. Fresh
chips with grated cheese, beans, guacamole, sour cream and jalapenos.
Great flavor and finger licking good, but I would have done two
things differently. 1.-Layered the ingredients in a fashion similar to lasagna so that
the chips on the bottom aren't bare and they all get that soft/crispy
dance going on and 2.-Dice the jalapenos! These were in longs strips
and it would have been nice to have them more evenly dispersed over
the mix.
They carry my favorite Mexican soda, Jarrritos and I went for the
Mandarin orange. very refreshing. A hit and miss place, but I'd
make the trip back as It's not out of the way by itself and I think
there are some other items on the menu worth investigating.
4.) DINOSAUR BARBEQUE-not even gonna bother with the contact info on
this one. Just click on the barbeque restaurants here on Roadfood
for all the lowdown.
Dayna and I hit the Dinosaur in Harlem, NY with our friends Doug and
Marisa recently for lunch. We started out with some Wango Tango
wings, which I could just eat all day...
Then some Drunken Spicy Shrimp Boil. Tasty.
Dayna grabbed the Barbeque chicken with greens and the vegetable of
the day, whipped sweet potatoes. I really do love their greens and
the sweet potatoes were creamy and excellent. Not sure how they
flavored them, but all of us thoroughly enjoyed them.
Doug had the two meat combo with ribs and pulled pork, beans and
sweet potatoes.
Marisa's two meat ribs and barbeque chicken with barbeque fried rice
and sweet potatoes.
My two meat combo of ribs and pulled pork with beans and
carrot-raisin slaw. I thought the ribs were a bit fatty today and
not up to the usual standards. The pulled pork was just great as
were the beans and the creamy, refreshing slaw.
I was dying for these and usually they only come three to a side, but
today, someone hooked me up with 6 salt potatoes when I ordered this
extra side. Wicked good.
5.) ARTICHOKE-I've been reading about this place for some time, so I
thought I should finally see what the fuss is about.
328 East 14th Street (between 1st & 2nd Avenue)
Phone # 212-228-2004
Website:
http://www.artichokepizza.com/node A small storefront in the East Village. They had a pretty good sized
line when we first arrived.
Their entire menu. They keep it pretty simple. I asked the guy
behind the counter if it would be okay for me to take pictures, He
was busy, but cool with it and thanked me for asking as he gets a lot
of people snapping away. For me, it really depends on where I'm
eating and 1.-how big the place is and 2.-my proximity to other
diners in said place.
I haven't tried one yet, but there Sicilian pies look pretty good!
A crab pie. Not sure what kind of crab they use.
Dayna and I split this Artichoke slice. The first thing to note is
that this is one slice in a small pizza box and it takes up a
substantial portion of the box. Yes, it's a $4.00 slice, but it is
one huge, mondo slice! I thought the thick crust might be too
doughy, but there is a nice balance of crispy and chewy. And the
topping is just swoon-worthy. I forgot to ask what kind of cheese
they use, but that, with the spinach and artichokes is like putting
the best spinach-artichoke dip you ever had at a party on a pizza!
One slice and I'm good for a while.
CARTIER AND SAKS LIT UP AT NIGHT
A few nights later, Dayna and I walked through Midtown on our way to
meet her parents at the theatre to see "The 39 Steps". We passed by
the Cartier store dressed up as a Christmas present...
and Saks 5th Avenue lit up with dancing snowflakes and set to music.
Got me into the holiday spirit.
6.) CITY BAKERY-a perennial favorite of mine, they have some of the
best hot chocolate I have ever tasted!
3 West 18th Street
Phone # 212-366-1414
Website:
http://thecitybakery.com/ Dayna had an appointment in the Chelsea neighborhood of Manhattan and
I thought I'd do some holiday shopping and a bit of Roadfooding
before we met up again. The chocolate room is nice, but sizewise,
it's more like the chocolate phone booth.
The Pretzel Croissant is one of their signature items.
Warm, flaky, buttery, salty and a wonderful nuttiness from the
toasted sesame seeds, it makes for a great breakfast! I can only
imagine what an egg and cheese would taste like on this!!
Their hot chocolate. I grew up on boiling water for my Nestle's or
Swiss Miss and this is light years ahead of that. Imagine someone
took the very best chocolate bar you have ever had and melted in down
with just a bit of milk. This is really thick and it coats the
inside of your mouth. Definitely meant to be sipped and savored
slowly! The topper though is the homemade marshmallow on top. I've
tried many hot chocolates in NYC and so far nothing comes close to
this for me.
The last time we were here, Dayna and I picked up one of these
Baker's Muffins and couldn't believe how good it was. The top is
like crunchy pull-apart bread and the muffin bottom is sweet from
raisins and apples, but not sticky sweet as many commercially made
muffins tend to be. There are walnuts inside too that lend a welcome
nutty crunch. A real treat! (Sorry this isn't a good shot!)
7.) BREAKFAST CART ON WATER STREET
Weekdays only between Maiden Lane and Wall Street on the east
side of the street (closest to the South Street Seaport) Open from 7
am til 10:30 am
On a recent thread, a few people asked what an "egg on a roll" is. A
classic NYC weekday morning breakfast found at many street carts and
in many delis (not to be confused with delicatessens). This one of
the better carts that I have found in the city.
A pictorial of the "egg on a roll" selections.
And the price menu.
Most of them are wrapped in foil and/or paper. I got this one to go
home. If the weather is nice, sometimes I'll just find a bench and
eat while people-watching and take in the city as it wakes up for the
day.
It can be a bit messy when cheese is involved, but oh so good! This
particular cart uses a thicker cut of ham that I like much better
than most other places. I'll have to find out what kind they use
next time I hit them up.
8.) BEARD PAPA'S CREAM PUFFS-an occasional indulgence in Greenwich Village.
Astor Place
740 Broadway
Phone # 212-353-8888
Website:
http://www.muginohousa.com/index.php Beard Papa, the mascot. While it is an international franchise, it
is relatively new to the U.S. (a few years old now) and they do make
some really awesome cream puffs).
The menu. I've brought these to parties and they've always been a
huge hit. The Green Tea and Pumpkin are especially good.
My cream puff.
The cream is laced with bits of vanilla bean and the puff tastes like
a cross between pie crust and an eclair "choux" (pronounced "shoe")
pastry. Something that makes me close my eyes every time I eat it!
The first time really should be a vanilla and be careful to bend over
when eating so as not to end up with powdered sugar on your clothes.
9.) THE ORIGINAL SOUP MAN (aka Seinfeld's THE SOUP NAZI)-I never
made it to the original soup kitchen, so I thought I'd try the next
best thing.
Astor Place & Broadway
NYC
Phone # 212-228-4600
Website:
http://www.originalsoupman.com/l_location.asp?lid=7 I was really in the mood for soup on this cold day and was searching
for a soup cart I had eaten from once in Midtown, loved it, and have
not seen in in over 2 years. It haunts me to this day.
The specials board. I love the quote below. Priceless!
I had a small New England Clam Chowder that came with bread and a
choice of fruit (apple, banana or orange). The chowder was good, not
the best I have ever had though. The wheat bread I chose was nice
with a good chew to it and a slight sourdough tang to it. The orange
was slightly bitter and utterly unappealing, but it did look like the
best of the three choices. I might go back, but won't be in a big
hurry. I wish I had stopped into the Soup Kitchen International
before he sold it and franchised it out.
A close-up of the chowder.
A few nights ago, I was walking down on East Houston Street in the
East Village on my way to another Roadfood stop and I came across
this Keith Haring mural. I really love his work. Here is some more
info about Keith and his work:
http://www.haring.com/about_haring/bio/index.html 
I had also been meaning to stop by this antique/junk shop to find an
old subway sign as a Christmas gift. A great little sidewalk shop
with tons of oddities inside, but not the sign I was looking for.
Santa is here!!
10.) TUCK SHOP-NYC Food Guy had piqued my curiosity about this
place, so off I went.
68 East 1st Street (bet. 1st & 2nd Aves.)
Ph# 212-979-5200
Website:
http://www.tuckshopnyc.com/home.php I finally made it here after months of saying, "Yeah, I'll get there some day".
All of the vegemite you can handle (and then some).
I have yet to try it, but some reports I've heard liken its texture to culinary "spackle".
A pretty small place with an open kitchen. They were chopping vegetables and prepping pies for baking when I came in. I love the corrugated tin ceiling.
The specials board.
I didn't try any of my namesake tea on this evening.
My Shrimp Pie and Scalloped Potatoes. these were some seriously wicked good homemade potatoes; cheesy and just a bit crusty on the edges.
the pie was really good too. Shrimp, mushrooms, carrots, scallions, garlic and other ingredients came together nicely. The crust was good, but not the best I have ever had. If every savory pie had flaky crust like Dottie's in CT, I just be thrilled about it!
My Lamington...
...which is sponge cake with a layer of strawberry jam in between, covered in dark chocolate and rolled in coconut. It was okay, but not really my thing. The cake was moist enough and the jam was good, but I thought it might have worked better with milk chocolate and I'm not a huge fan of coconut, unless it's toasted. Oh well, nothing ventured, nothing gained.
11.) SASSY'S SLIDERS-I've walked by here a few times, but only just
stopped in a for a few bites!
1530 3rd Avenue (corner of 86th St. & 3rd Ave.)
Ph# 212-828-6900
Website:
http://www.sassyssliders.com/home.html 
These signs really remind me of the old "dancing concession food" during intermission at the West Rome Drive-In movie theater.
I like the spin they put on No Smoking.
The menu. Not sure if I'd ever try any of the variations on the slider, but no matter, I was here for the classic.
A plate of four with nice, pillowy soft buns.
I ordered two with cheese...
...and two without. These were pretty good. They had a nice balanced ratio of meat, onions and pickles. I do wish the meat had been a bit more seasoned (more salt perhaps) as the beef was lacking somewhat in flavor. Still, I'd go back for more.
12.) ALICE'S TEA CUP (Chapter III)
220 East 81st Street
Ph # 212-734-4832
Website:
http://alicesteacup.com/ I has found this place by accident while on my way to another food stop and as it happens, I was planning on going to one of the Alice's locations as part of my NYC Cupcake Tour anyway. So I popped in, had a lovely chat with the girl behind the counter, but I didn't get any cupcakes as they were selling Gingerbread cupcakes and were out for the night.
I "settled" for this Pumpkin scone (with Caramel glaze) instead.
I brought it home and thoroughly enjoyed its caramelly sweetness and moist spiciness with an ice cold glass of milk!
13.) WOGIE'S BAR & GRILL-I had a cheesesteak here a few years ago and just haven't made it back, but a stroll by there a few weeks back had me with a menu in my hand, just itching to try their "Garbage Bread".
39 Greenwich Ave.
Ph # 212-229-2171
Website:
http://www.wogies.com/ 
The Garbage Bread.
Some of these sandwiches sound like they'd fit right in at any sandwich shop in Philly. I am simutaneously drawn to and frightened by Adrian's Atomic Avalanche.
My 1/2 loaf of Garbage Bread.
Ughh, the guy told me what was in this and I should have written it down! I think it was salami, pepperoni, and (ham, proscuitto?) with mozzarella and provolone and some herbs (oregano and others). Pretty tasty and buttery too. It really reminded my of the sausage bread my family and I used to eat from the local bakeries in Central NY and also of the pepperoni roll (aka roni roll) I had on a recent trip to Oneonta, NY. I could taste all of the meats and cheeses at different points and it makes for one wicked appetizer, but it was my meal as I had one more stop this evening, to the Corner Bistro for a burger.
Inside Wogie's. There is a nice laid back feel to this place. They had some local sports on the tube, Stevie Ray Vaughan playing and I just eased back into my bread.
14.) CORNER BISTRO-A West Village institution since 1964.
331 West 4th Street (corner of West 4th & Jane Street)
Ph # 212-242-9502
No website
This sign may seem pretty bright, but I got lost twice and had to ask 3 people for directions. The West Village isn't laid out on a grid, so a few right turns won't land you back where you started.
My cheeseburger.
This was truly one of the best cheeseburgers I have had in the past year. I wasn't quite sure what to expect as I had heard mixed reviews from RF, chow.com and many of my friends. Maybe they had a bad experience, but not me on this night. It was definitely bustling, but not overly crowded and I didn't have to wait for a seat at 5:30 pm on a Friday night. There was a seat at the bar, but I opted for a lone table away from the crowd, yet one that allowed me to watch the goings on and take pictures without being intrusive. I felt comfortable here and it had a really well-worn, lived in feel about it. Add to that my waiter/server looked like he has been there for some years and I was feeling good about this place. My cheeseburger came out and looked rather ordinary. Not so, my friends! Not so! This was a thick fist of a burger and when I first bit into it, the juices dripped out on to my paper plate. There was a nice crust on it and a real good beefy flavor to it. I usually like my burgers naked, but the lettuce, tomato and onion were all fresh and really added something special to this burger. I barely let it out of my grip and was amazed at how much I liked it. It brought back memories of excellent burgers I'd had over the campfire on trips with my family in the past. Maybe they have an off night here, but just knowing that a burger this good exists makes the world a bit better for me.
The fries looked like the McDonalds/burger joint cut, but these were fairly lack luster in flavor and a bit greasy.
All of the necessary condiments on my table (which also came with a dose of grafitti from patrons past).
The menu.
Outside, at night. Sorry, still working at night photos.
15.) EISENBERG'S SANDWICH SHOP-I first heard about this place from the Stern's review here on RF.
174 5th Ave. #1
Ph # 212-675-5096
Website:
http://www.eisenbergsnyc.com/ (Under construction)
Roadfood review:
http://roadfood.com/Reviews/Overview.aspx?RefID=1856 A bit of holiday shopping brought me over to the almost 80 year old Eisenberg's Sandwich Shop. The sigh said closed and I almost walked by, but I peeked in and they were open for business.
The specials.
I love this old sandwich sign.
The prices have gone up a bit since the last review.
I arived a little after 10 am, so I was in a breakfast state of mind and went for the salami and eggs with home fries...
...and rye toast. This was a really good, filling breakfast. I've never had salami and eggs before and I throughly enjoyed this. The home fires weren't really crispy, but nice and dark and well seasoned.
What helped make this breakfast special was Kenny, the guy in the red cap behind the counter in this shot. He is a NYC police officer who works here on the weekends only and held court with most of the diners there about variety of subjects. He was quite a talker (a good thing) and always had something interesting to say. We shot back on forth the entire time I was there. This was only my second trip there, so I don't know how much it may or may not have declined since days gone by, but based on this visit, I'll definitely be back soon.
16.) VESELKA UKRANIAN RESTAURANT-an east Village institution.
144 2nd Avenue
Ph # 212-228-9682
Website:
http://www.veselka.com/ Outside
Specials and menu items.
Love the Pie sign!
My cousin Janet makes some amazing stuffed cabbage (we used to call them galumpkis) and I was eager to try Veselka's version.
A cross section shot.
My whole meal was two stuffed cabbages (I asked for the sauces to be tomato on one and mushroom gravy on the other), some kind of beet salad/relish (I don't like beets, so I couldn't tell you anything about this), poppy seed challah bread, and two sides. I went for the carrots and mashed potatoes. these were some tender, flavorful cabbages, stuffed with ground beef and rice. Both the tomato sauce and mushroom gravy complemented them nicely. The carrots were cooked until very tender and the challah was slightly sweet and perfect for mopping up the sauce. The only misfire of this meal were the mashed potatoes. I love mashed potatoes the way Ralphie's Old Man loved turkey in "A Christmas Story". I'm a certified junkie! These fell way short, were dry and actually crumbled into chunks when I forked into them. Veselka has a lot of Eastern European fare like borscht, pierogis, bigos (a stew made with kielbasa, roast pork, sauerkraut and onions), stroganoff and goulash, just to name a few. Worth a return trip.
17.) PEANUT BUTTER & CO.-an old favorite of mine!
240 Sullivan Street
Ph # 212-677-3995
Website:
http://www.ilovepeanutbutter.com/ Roadfood review:
http://roadfood.com/Reviews/Overview.aspx?RefID=5123 I figured that an appropriate way to end this report would be how I like to end many meals, with dessert! As many of you know I have a penchant for the sweets and I couldn't think of a better place to get my fix than my beloved Peanut Butter & Co. and no more fitting treat than the "Death By Peanut Butter" sundae!!
Never one to leave well enough alone, I ordered a peanut butter cookie on top! Sadly, the cookie wasn't too good. More sweet than peanut buttery, I'll skip it next time and make 'em at home. Happily, the sundae rocked! I sat at a table next to a family who was eating there for the first time and a little girl at the table couldn't take her eyes off of my sundae when they brought it out and her mother kept telling her to "stop staring and let the man eat his ice cream!". This was a peanut butter lover's dream and a huge undertaking, but I was up to the task. The combination of the peanut butter, peanut butter sauce, Reeses Pieces, peanut butter chips and peanut butter Cap'n Crunch was like a naughty version of my favorite cereal I had only fantasized about being allowed to eat for breakfast in my childhood dreams (maybe a dozen or so times!).
The menu description of my sundae.
That's all for this year! I hope everyone has a safe and wonderful holiday season and I look forward to reading about all of your adventures and hopefully sitting across the table sharing some good times with many of you in the coming year!
"Eating is an adventure, enjoy the ride!"
