What can I say about Coney Island? I love the place; born and raised and planning on having my body buried under the parachute jump, right next to Jimmy Hoffa. Although my one gripe about the neighborhood is the lack of good places to eat. In a sea of take-out Chinese restaurants, fried chicken/pizza/halal places stands-out a small sandwich shop called Classic Heros.
Classic Heros is located on Neptune Avenue, a stone’s throw away from the g-d awful tourist trap Nathan’s, and that awful pizza place Totonno’s. The owners of Classic Heros, Adam and Matt, are both from the neighborhood and, just like myself, were sick and tired of the lack of good food in the area. So, they opened Classic Heros.
As you walk into the small space, the walls are decorated with old pictures of the cyclone, old celebrities and vintage Coca-Cola signs. A large steam table that holds the days specials takes up most of the space.
Adam and Matt started me off with the special: bowtie pasta with roasted garlic and olive oil, topped with the house marinara sauce and sprinkled with parmigiano-reggiano cheese. The pasta was tender. I got a hint of the roasted garlic but the olive oil over-powered the dish.
Next, Adam and Matt served me their famous brisket. The brisket is slow cooked for 8 hours and rubbed with all kinds of spices. Adam explained that this recipe has been in his family for years and has become the house specialty. Dripping in fresh gravy and caramelized onions, the brisket was cooked to perfection and the onions were sweet, I wanted more!
Finally, Adam and Matt made me a sandwich called “The Belly Whopper” ( $9) . I have a special bond with this sandwich. Many years ago there was a shop called Amados, on Mermaid Avenue. It was a really old school Italian deli / Butcher shop, with sawdust on the floor - the whole nine yards. I remember riding my bike there in the summer with a few friends to get a sandwich called The Belly Whopper, which was exactly as the name implied. It fed 4 of us. Sadly, they closed and The Belly Whopper became a distant memory, but Adam and Matt had brought it back to life.
Genoa salami, ham, pepperoni, fresh mozzarella (which, by the way, is made in-house by an old Italian lady in the back), roasted red peppers, lettuce, tomatoes, red onions, banana peppers, olive oil, balsamic vinegar, salt, pepper and a pinch of oregano – all served on a loaf of fresh, flaky Italian bread. I took two bites and it was 1993 all over again. Adam and Matt had re-created this sandwich to perfection, as if Nick himself had made it.
Recently, Zagat’s put out a list of places to eat in Coney Island and it was awful. Not only did they not include Classic Heros, but they added places to the list like Totonno’s. I don’t give a fuck what you read, Totonno’s is garbage. I haven’t had a good pie from there since the old man passed away in the 90’s. I guess when you have junkies from the neighborhood making your pizza, it tends to suffer. Thankfully, New York Magazine made Classic Heros a critic’s pick ( new york magazine link). So if you’re in Coney Island, skip Nathan’s and Totonno’s, and head over to Classic Heros for a great sandwich.
I'm back from vegas, recouped and even unpacked, now it's back to business. I've finished up my review of Classic Hero's in coney island and I am starting my review of Del Frisco's in las vegas. Here is a sneak Peak picture into classic heros.
I decided to share my skills with the world to show a simple fact, not only do I talk the talk, but I also walk the walk. I am FAR from a...
I decided to share my skills with the world to show a simple fact, not only do I talk the talk, but I also walk the walk. I am FAR from a master sushi maker but I can say I'm pretty decent for a Russian, Jew, from Brooklyn.
I start by prepping everything so I make my life easier later. I skewer the shrimp, cook them and then run them under cold water so they don't curl up on me.
While the water boils, I prep everything else, the salmon, the eel, the kani. All while listening to n.e.r.d's album titled seeing sounds. The song " everybody nose " came on, which is kind of a bad, you try and explain why all the girls are waiting online for the bathroom to your Russian immigrant mother.
My homeboy Quan at the Asian supermarket hooked me up on the love, love this time with this salmon. Honestly, this guy hates my guts and curse me out in Cantonese every time he see's me. That's right motherfucker, I brought in a spy to translate, but it wasn't Frank Costanza.
Prep is done and It's time to roll some sushi. Notice the fake Kani? I am using it because I forgot to buy the king crab legs.
This is a spicy kani, avocado roll with eel sauce. I don't get to crazy with my rolls, but today I made a salmon, banana and sesame oil roll, It was decent but the banana over powered everything, fuck it, back to the drawing board.
The final Product. We have a spicy kani roll, a banana, salmon roll, A shrimp avocado and eel sauce roll, a spicy salmon roll, a salmon and avocado roll , and a few pieces of shrimp and eel.
I added this next picture because I was already getting shit that this was store bought. This angle shows the imperfection of my rice, I didn't add enough rice wine vinegar to make it sticky. I'm an asshole.
I had some stuff left over and seaweed which I was going to put on the side like a garnish but I decided to mix it in a bowl with everything I had left, added some sirachi, some sesame oil, and eel sauce and honestly, it was eaten faster than the sushi.
My Sushi disappeared faster than a dead hooker at the democratic convention. I'd be more than happy to make this for anyone. Okay I am lying, I'll make this for any hot girl.
Now, can I talk my shit again?
It was time for lunch and I was working in soho, this was the perfect chance for me to hit up the calexico cart, only if I could remember wh...
It was time for lunch and I was working in soho, this was the perfect chance for me to hit up the calexico cart, only if I could remember where the fuck it was. So as I walked down greene street to the corner of prince, google maps was no help to me and twitter was down, fuck this, I'm not playing retard tourist on my 30 minute lunch break. I'm getting a slice of pizza and then going to the apple store and loading the devour nyc page on all of the ipads. As I walked to get a slice towards wooster and prince I happen glanced across the street and there it was, calexico. I checked out their menu, I decided to go with the Calexico carne asada ($8), burrito, prime marinated skirt steak, rice, beans, pico de gallo, cheese and avocado crema. My order was taken and I moved off the line to wait for my burrito. As I waited I got to listen to the soundful tunes of the lost boyz song "Renee", If thier pumping the lost boyz, how bad could the food possibly be? I quickly ran back to my job site and I was thanking the g-ds I was working on a ground floor, waiting for the elevator on a construction site sucks! I was hungry and this burrito was calling my name like crack did to pookie ( new jack city )
I sat down and started to chomp away, as I took my first bite I tasted beans. I hate beans, the chalky texture doesn't do it for me. I turn down black beans faster than a condom at the playboy mansion, I thought for sure my lunch was ruined.
As I started to take a few bites the bean's texture was gone. The steak was perfectly cooked, tender and juicy. There was a little tangy which was a little over powering. I later figured it was lime juice in that can be from the pico de gallo but I could be wrong, a few chews later that tanginess turned into heat which put a smile on my face. The rice was rich and creamy, I'm guessing from the cheese?
Calexico is officially my go to spot for a burrito, good thing they have a shop in brooklyn.
www.calexicocart.com | Phone: 718-488-8226
Locations Cart : Prince and wooster, Brooklyn Bridge park Restaurant : 122 Union Street, Brooklyn.
My brother’s friend had flown in from Rochester for the weekend and after two days straight of making fun of my brother, I started to get hu...
My brother’s friend had flown in from Rochester for the weekend and after two days straight of making fun of my brother, I started to get hungry. Luckily, I was cool enough to be invited to dinner with them.
A quick ride out to Park Slope and we had arrived. To my surprise, we found parking within minutes. Anyone familiar with Park Slope knows that you have a better chance of winning the lotto than finding a parking spot. Blue Ribbon Sushi is located right next door to Blue Ribbon Brasserie, and I almost walked into the wrong place until I heard someone shout loudly, “that’s not it, dummy; next door!” Oops. Okay, Blue Ribbon Sushi, We have arrived! The exterior of the restaurant resembled an old Japanese Temple; walking through the heavy, thick curtain past the door made me feel as though I was about to go on stage and perform with a Twisted Sister cover band. It’s a dimly lit space, with a long sushi bar, dark wooden tables, benches and exposed ceilings with wood-glazed rafters.
The hostess quickly sat us at a roomy and comfortable booth, and handed us menus. I took a peek and decided I would let my brother and his girlfriend order for us, since they’ve been here before. Besides, my brother’s friend and I were busy skimming through the sake menu, as I was in the mood to get ripped.
An extremely soft-spoken waiter came over with a few glasses of water and asked if we were ready to order. I asked what kind of sake he would recommend and he said it would depend on whether we were looking for dry sake, or one with a bold or light body. My brother’s friend decided we should try something fruity and robust, so we ended up going with Arabashiri sake. As the waiter poured us a taste, he went on and on about the sake. Okay hipster, shut the fuck up and pour my glass before I set your ironic t-shirt collection on fire. In all seriousness though, I was glad to see a waiter well-versed in sake.
The food order was placed. We got toro taki (tuna belly tartare with quail egg), for $13.50; san dakio (a three radish salad), for $6.50; and another dish (which consisted of rice and oxtail), for…? I don’t remember the name, either because I was too busy drinking my sake. For sushi, we ordered the Blue Ribbon special (a variety of sashimi, sushi pieces and rolls), for $135.
First to arrive was the radish salad. It was quickly pushed away from me because, honestly, I’d rather eat dog shit than a radish.
The toro tartare was up next; a small bowl filled with toro belly and a raw quail egg and a special soy sauce. All of this mixed together was a knockout. A few hints of wasabi came through in the quail egg and the rich texture of the toro was something I’d probably kill for.
Out comes the rice dish with oxtail; a yellowish and sticky short grain rice, and scrambled egg with pieces of oxtail, somewhere. The buttery texture of the rice was great, and the soft pieces of oxtail went nicely with the firmness of the egg.I added a little hot sauce that came with the dish and it gave it a extra little kick.
Finally, a sushi boat sailed into my harbor: a long wooden plank filled with extreme sushi goodness. The usual suspects were on the line-up: tuna, toro, yellow tail, salmon, mackerel, a dragon roll and a blue ribbon roll. Each piece of sashimi melted in my mouth. The dragon roll was decent, but the show stopper was the blue ribbon roll: tender lobster with shiso leaf wrapped up like a birthday present.
After we devoured the sushi, the Mackerel carcass was deep fried and brought back to be enjoyed with some soy sauce. I’m happy I finally made it out to Blue Ribbon Sushi. The final bill came to $250, including tax & gratuity, which is pretty decent when divided between four people, and especially when considering how fresh and high grade the sushi was. Blue Ribbon has definitely made my list of heavy hitters for sushi. Nobu who?
It was 12:00pm on a Friday and I had just walked out of the gym. After a grueling workout, I decided to destroy all the progress I made and treat myself to a nice dinner. As I road my bike home, I went over the plans for the night. I was going to get a penne vodka pie from the local pizza joint and then proceed to watch every season of Californication. Of course, later that day, my plans would change. While sitting on the beach, a friend of mine asked me the dangerous question, “what’s for dinner tonight?”
Being the indecisive person that I am, I blurted out a couple of choices: Bauhaus or Joe’s Shanghai. After describing both restaurants to my friend, we decided to go to Bauhaus, a Taiwanese sandwich place on the Lower East Side. Bauhaus had recently introduced a new sandwich and I had to try it. Later that day, however, while on our way to pick-up a third accomplice, I had a change of heart. Joe’s Shanghai actually sounded really good. I had read a lot about the place and wanted to check it out.
Joe’s Shanghai is a Chinese restaurant located in Chinatown, and is famous for its soup dumplings (basic dumplings filled with some sort of soupy liquid.) Being that I love dumplings more than my right arm, I tried to convince my friend that we should go there instead. No luck. So after picking-up our friend, we informed her that she would be the tie-breaker on where to go. Luckily, before I could finish saying soup dumplings, all we heard was “mmm soup dumplings.” We were on our way to Joe’s!
A quick zip over the Manhattan bridge and we arrived in Chinatown. Joe’s is located at 9 Pell Street, which I like to call Kung Fu Alley. As we arrived at the front door, there were a few groups of people waiting: some Asians, which is a good sign; some tourists, which is a bad sign; and some hipsters, which means they serve Pabst Blue Ribbon. As we walked in, we were rudely greeted by an Asian girl listening to her iPod. “How many?” she asked, while giving us a dirty look and a carnival ticket with the number 54 on it. Either I had won a teddy bear or that was my number in line. Either way I would be happy. After handing us the ticket, we were told it would be a 30 minute wait.
As we waited in Kung Fu Alley, the pungent smell of garbage truck juice filled the air. Across the street was another Chinese Szechuan restaurant, with a 42 inch TV strategically placed in the window, displaying the various cooking methods for their dishes. Smart move. After waiting an hour, most people (when I say most people, I mean stupid tourists who visit NYC. Actually, tourists aren’t people. They’re more like mutants from the planet Ritard.) say ‘Chinese food is Chinese food, right? Fuck this, let’s go across the street.’ Which is what I hope happens, as it speeds up my waiting time! The girl who gave us the ticket came out and yelled “48, 49, 52, 54.” Yes! 54, right here! I presented her my ticket and she informed us that she just wanted to check if we were still there. Was she serious?! What the hell was going on here? I felt like I was in that episode of Seinfeld where they went for Chinese food and had a problem getting a table.
Our number was eventually called again and we were escorted to a table in the back. I hadn’t eaten in Chinatown since I was 16 years old. My friend and I use to cut school and head down to the neighborhood to buy spray caps for our street art. We both wanted to try the Chinese food in Chinatown, but were weirded out by the communal tables we kept encountering. Remembering this, I was hoping we would get our own table, but of course we did not. As we sat down, three tourists joined us, as well as three Asian girls (one of whom, I might add, had the most incredible cleavage I’ve ever seen on an Asian girl) and one Asian guy, who was eating alone. This freaked me out. I believe people who eat out alone in public are either serial killers or buy irregular underwear on purpose.
I started to scan the menu for the soup dumplings and our waiter came over and shouted something in Chinese. I just shook my head and said “Tsingtao,” which is a Chinese beer. At every other restaurant we go to, we’re asked if we’d like to start with a drink, so I figured it wouldn’t be any different here. And if I was wrong, fuck ‘em. While we waited for our beers, I took a few glances at the girl’s cleavage and hoped I didn’t get the white boy menu. Scallops and prawns caught my eye but, of course, I ended up ordering the eggplant with pork, and my friend suggested we get the chicken and shrimp in plum sauce.
Our pork dumplings finally made their way to the table. Served in a bamboo steam bowl, and on a bed of lettuce, were eight hand-rolled dumplings. I grabbed the pot closest to us, took two dumplings and went to town. I performed like a finely tuned soup dumpling eating machine. Step by step, I made my way through. I was in dumpling ecstasy. They were perfectly tender, the pork was impeccably cooked, and the skin was thin while slightly chewy. The soup was a simple, plain broth, but had a hearty texture to it.
While eating the eggplant, a pot of shrimp dumplings was placed in front of us. Without a second thought, I quickly grabbed the pot, pushed aside the eggplant and placed three dumplings on my plate. Yeah, that’s right; three out of eight. It’s not my fault they were unevenly distributed. The mixture of chives, pork and shrimp was great! The taste of shrimp stood out but didn’t overpower the pork and chives. I thought the soup would taste a little different because of the shrimp, but it was the same taste and texture as in the pork dumplings.
I was recently introduced to Taiwanese cuisine. One day, by mistake, I tried a sandwich called Bao, brought to me from the Lower East Side. It was a little fist-sized sandwich, stuffed with some sort of beef, and red spice and cilantro. As I chewed down on the steam bun, I felt something move, in a good way. I needed more, fast!
BaoHaus is located on Rivington Street, on the Lower East Side. I was already going to be in the area to watch the movie “Exit Through the Gift Shop,” so this was a perfect chance to catch the flick and check out what Baohaus has to offer. I called up my knowledgeable Taiwanese friend and asked her to join me in my expedition.
I was hungry and, once again, found myself walking in the wrong direction on Rivington. What made it even worse was my friend thought it would be funny to stop in Babeland, an adult female toy store. Now, as much as I would love to watch a cute Asian girl shop for sex toys, I was way too hungry to even be excited. Besides, I wasn’t about to go in there for two reasons: 1 - because I’d look like I was the boyfriend who was not doing his job right, so adult toys were needed and/or, 2 - I’d look like the gay friend. There is nothing wrong with being gay but I don’t want to be labeled under either category. So I lied to her and said we'll stop in on the way back.
We finally made it to BaoHaus, identified by a large sign lit in blue and white. We had to take a few steps down into the place; a positive sign. Anything underground has to be good. Inside, BaoHaus was decked out in blue and white, with some old pictures of what I’m guessing was the owner’s family (or some random pictures he bought on eBay) adorning the wall. A few bar stools and tables, which were attached to the wall, were quaintly set-up. There were separate counters for placing your order and picking up the food.
The menu was pretty entertaining, with items named after sitcom and movie icons from the 90's, like the Uncle Jesse (Full House) and the King Jaffe Joffre (Coming to America, my all-time favorite comedy.) We were pretty stumped as to what to order, but the girl at the counter was friendly and explained the menu to us like we were from Ohio. She recommended the Straight Frush, any 3 Baos and a soda. So we got a hanger steak Bao, a pork belly Bao and an Uncle Jesse Bao with a sasparilla, which is a Taiwanese root beer. I was thinking of getting the Bao fries, but for some reason, I passed them up.
While we waited for our food, Pharrell’s song, “Everybody Nose,” was blasting from an iPod dock nearby. As I started singing in my head, and before I could get past “a hundred dollar bill look at you!” our food was ready. I already tried the hanger steak so I tricked my friend into having it first, while I reached for the pork belly. A good move on my part, because it was unreal; perfectly cooked, tender and juicy. All the flavors came out, and the peanuts, red sugar and cilantro were a great mix. I’m not a fan of tofu, and I left my skinny jeans at home that night, but I figured I’d try it and I’m glad I did. Cilantro and the haus sauce were a good mix. I just couldn’t put my finger on their sauce. It tasted like a sweet chili sauce, but what do I know; I’m just a Russian Jew from Brooklyn. I took a sip of the sasparilla and it tasted more like bubble gum than root beer. Indeed, it was bubbly and refreshing, and I could probably drink about 12 glasses of it in 20 minutes.
The bill was about $20 for 4 sandwiches and a soda. After such a great experience, I added Taiwanese food to my list of things to eat. If you’re in the area, stop by this place and grab a few sandwiches. I recently read the boiled peanuts were brought back. I haven’t tried them yet but anything peanut is good!
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