Posts for March 2, 2009

Cub Room Is Taking This Recession-Menu Thing a Bit Far

By Daniel Maurer

If you thought JoeDoe’s “Madoff menu” or Shang’s “starving artist” menu were as cutesy as the names of recession specials were bound to get, you were so totally wrong. The Cub Room’s new $29 “stimulus package” prix fixe is jam-packed with items like Hard Balls in the Soft Economy, Low Credit High Spirit, and Strong Stomach for Stock Market Rollercoaster. Just, wow. The rest of the light-hearted, heavy-handed romp through our national crisis follows. Because when you’re out to eat, you really want to be reminded you’re not getting a bonus this year.

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Are Scratch Cards the New Coupons?

Here’s one of the stranger recession specials we’ve seen: Café du Monde — a new gourmet store and café serving sushi and teriyaki, at 20 West 37th Street — is giving out scratch cards that put you in the running for a free laptop or sandwich (“get many stuffs for free,” reads a sign). Offer good through March 31.

OMG ENOUGH WITH THE BACON ALREADY!

By Daniel Maurer
Watch Video

It was over a year and a half ago that we pointed out that bacon had jumped the shark, but a Slate video somehow feels the need to remind everyone, yet again, that bacon has jumped the shark (and yet, no mention of the bacon takedown). Obviously these “bacon backlash” pieces have also jumped the shark. Will someone please, please suggest another foodstuff we can fawn over every day until bacon goes away? Can we start a revolution right here, right now? Heck, at this point we’d even embrace tofu—just not cupcakes, cheese or Spam, which have already been covered. Looking beyond the dozens of bacon dishes that have agglomerated on This is Why You’re Fat, maybe... “pork brains”?

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Tables Available at Abboccato, Alto, Convivio, Del Posto, and Insieme

It's 4 p.m., and that means it's time to play Two for Eight. We just asked ten restaurants the best time they can squeeze a couple in for dinner; you need only make your chosen reservation. (As always, we make the calls but don't guarantee the results.) Today: High Italian.

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Keith McNally’s and Ken Friedman’s New Ones Are Christened

By Daniel Maurer

Yes, we’ve pretty much shown you the full monty where Minetta Tavern is concerned (see our interior slideshow here), but here’s a detail we have yet to see, and indeed it's currently visible (ever so enticingly) only through the plastic sheeting that’s still up — the windows have now been stenciled! Yay! And while we’re reveling in slow reveals, Ken Friedman and April Bloomfield’s restaurant in the ACE Hotel will open in June (the original plan was February) — it’ll be called the Breslin (after its building) and will serve “pan-European cuisine with an emphasis on meat dishes.” (Indeed, Bloomfield had earlier promised “rib roasts, racks of veal, lots of potted meat, and some terrines.”)

March Newsletter [Flatiron BID via Eater]

New Biker Café Sells Pastries, Harleys

By Daniel Maurer

Motorcycles and croissants were made for each other — just ask the Beaujolais Biker Brigade! Now, four local enthusiasts have opened the New York City Motorcycle Federation, a shop that appeals to riders and non-riders alike by selling modified gear as well as Illy espresso drinks and Ceci-Cela croissants. “I don’t want to look like a Teenage Ninja Turtle when I ride,” partner Leila Barratt-Denyer told us of the gear. “I want to look like James Dean.” Further to that, The Wild One, Mad Max, and other biking movies play on a projection screen over the café’s one communal table — accompanied by Pink Floyd, the Doors, and other classic rock. In the spring, the self-described “refueling station” will add more seats via an outdoor café serving salumi, beer, and wine, and it’ll close at midnight instead of at 7 p.m. Doubtful you’ll get loaded enough to buy that $65,000 custom Harley, but who knows — maybe the helmet with the horns on it?

New York City Motorcycle Federation; 259 Sixth Ave.; nr. Downing St.; 212-255-1234

Also, a Word With MarieBelle About Those Rose Petals ...

By Daniel Maurer

While we’re on the subject of twee tea parlors, we have to have a word with MarieBelle. Love your mocha, but that practice you have of sprinkling fake rose petals (like they’re fairy dust) over sealed boxes of bonbons when you put them in the bag? It’s gotta stop. Yes, we love rose-petal doughnuts, and we’re reassured to see that someone can afford to burn through so many fake flowers (even if they probs came from a Greenpoint 99-cent store), but not even Franck, the wedding planner in Father of the Bride, could have dreamed up something this precious. Just stop it right now!

What to Eat at Trigo Kitchen

By Alexandra Vallis

Trigo's takeout annex, Trigo Kitchen, soft-opened last week, and the menu's finally set. The pit stop is open daily from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. so there's coffee and muffins in addition to house-baked flatbreads with toppings like spiced lamb or Caprese salad. See the full menu after the jump.

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Aloha, Roy’s

The Hawaiian fusion restaurant Roy’s, which mostly serviced hotel guests of the Marriott Financial Center, recently closed.

The Fabio Show

Stefan might have a dubiously titled book coming out, but his Euro bro Fabio is getting his own TV show (obviously). No word yet on whether it’ll be on Bravo or what, but we’d love to see some Real Housewives synergy — the Italian stallion cooking for cougars? [Gossip Sauce]

Top Chef Casting Director Tells All

By Molly Finkelstein

At the Top Chef tryouts yesterday at Craftsteak, more than 100 hopefuls turned out to pack their knives and go to the next season. The fifth season of the show was the highest rated ever and cheftestants are now getting book deals and maybe even TV shows in addition to all that Gladware. Molly Finkelstein spoke to casting producer Hunter Braun on bikini chefs, caribou, and repeat auditions.

What’s happening here today?
This part is really sort of a basic meet-and-greet. They can give us a first impression of who they are and how well they fare when it comes to speaking about food. We test their chops a little bit, just in conversation and sort of get an idea of their culinary skill and experience, titles they’ve held at different restaurants before, whether they’re self-taught or went to culinary school, which culinary school. Sometimes you can judge things like that and sometimes you can’t.

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Breakfast Mania Continues

First there was New York’s Breakfast Manifesto. Then, Esquire’s breakfast bonanza. And now, in the same month, a breakfast package in GQ, complete with Waffle House adoration just like in Esquire! It’s apparently not online except for one feature (declaring L.A. the best breakfast town), but who cares: Other than an obligatory shout-out for the eggs Rothko at Egg, New York gets relatively short shrift anyway.

Birdbath Introduces Pizza; Get Eggstreme at Maoz

By Alexandra Vallis

Last week, Birdbath bakery began using pretzel-croissant dough to make handheld pizzas ($5 to $7) with house-made tomato sauce and fresh mozzarella from Joe’s Dairy. And Serious Eats finds a reverse lunch-specialist-does-breakfast move at Maoz falafel. The Eggstreme is “a re-imagined shakshuka: tangy stewed tomatoes, peppers and onions atop two fried eggs, stuffed into a still-warm pita.”

Breakfast Sandwiches at Maoz: Love The Pitas, Hate The Name [Serious Eats]

Crack the Stork Club Code

The eclectic blog A Continuous Lean dug up a series of Life magazine photos illustrating the hand signals used by Stork Club owner Sherman Billingsley to communicate with his staff. See how to say “Bring a round of drinks” or “Not important people” in old-timey nightclub speak. [A Continuous Lean]

Souen Gives the East Village Another (Organic! Vegan!) Ramen Shop

By Daniel Maurer

Pending a final inspection today, macrobiotic mini-chain Souen will open its latest outpost tomorrow, a 26-seater, with a design similar to Jewel Bako’s (same architect) that will focus on all-natural, organic ramen. The menu will be small — in addition to several appetizers including seitan dumplings and yuba (tofu skin), there will be a variety of soups prepared by one Chef Yoda, whose parents owned ramen shops back in Japan. You’ll be able to chose your type of noodle (wheat or rice), broth (organic chicken or vegan/vegetarian), and base (kale; dried seaweed; seitan; or wok-fried and shredded burdock, carrots, and lotus roots in soy sauce). If you love the porky goodness of Ramen Setagaya, you’ll have to expand your horizons here — the chicken broth is the only sign of meat on the menu. Bowls will range from $10.50 to $13.50 (cash only), and the hours will likely be from 5:30 p.m. till 11 p.m. on weekdays and noon till 1 a.m. on weekends. No booze at the moment. We’ll have photos for you soon.

Souen Organic Ramen, 326 E. 6th St.; 212-388-1155

Dom DeMarco Named to Pizza Hall of Fame

By Aileen Gallagher

Di Fara’s owner and pie godfather, Dom DeMarco, will be inducted into the Pizza Hall of Fame tomorrow. He will be introduced by a representative of the next generation of Brooklyn pizza chefs, Nino Coniglio, who recently opened Pizzeria Del Corso in Marine Park. Trade publication PMQ Pizza Magazine calls DeMarco “the Cal Ripken of the pizza business.” Our question: whether the dismissive DeMarco will hang the plaque in his store, or just leave it at the ceremony, accidentally on purpose.

U.S. Pizza Team Puts on Show at the Javits Center [NYDN]

Naked Cowboy Is Latest to Be Burger Battered

By Daniel Maurer

Notorious food-phobe Naked Cowboy, obviously aware of how much press the burger beating couple got, is milking (milkshaking?) a supposed food fight with his girlfriend for publicity. Sigh. Cue the release.

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Umberto’s Takes Back Half-Off Deal

Though it was supposed to go through April, Umberto’s has retracted the buy-one-get-one-for-half-off special that it trumpeted on its windows for just a few days. “It wasn’t working out for us,” an employee said. Okay, fine, but you know who is still doing this deal? Charley O’s in Times Square, baby! They’ve got a guy giving out coupons at the door and an annoying loudspeaker trumpeting their “Unbelieveable Happy Hour” and $19.95 “price fix” menu. Finally, you can afford to slum it!

Siberia Bar Doc Looking for a Film Festival; Recession Hits Food Mags

By Leila Cohan-Miccio

• Filmmaker Jack Bryan is shopping a documentary about late, lamented dive Siberia Bar to film festivals. [NYP]
Related: Siberia Documentary Premieres, Westmoreland Still Searching

• Upscale food magazines are going budget by writing about home cooking instead of haute cuisine. [NYT]

• A British tabloid alleges that Gordon Ramsay is lying about having once been signed with Scottish soccer team the Glasgow Rangers. [NYP]

• Serenbe, a planned community outside of Atlanta, is largely dedicated to sustainable food. [NYT]

• Even the world's best restaurants aren't immune to food-poisoning scares: The Fat Duck in England has temporarily closed following reports of customers being sickened by their meals. [Telegraph UK via Diner's Journal/NYT]

Falafel Shop Still Can’t Make Up Its Friggin’ Mind

By Daniel Maurer

Remember the East Village falafel joint, formerly Chickpea, that ticked everyone off by holding a contest to determine its name? It operated anonymously for a while, then was briefly known as Kosher Village, and then decided to go with Tahini. Now it seems to have changed its name yet again (to Edna’s Falafel Shop), but it hasn’t bothered changing the Tahini signage. Guys — it’s been a year! Get it together.

Best of New York: Food

By Aileen Gallagher

In the magazine this week, we bring you the Best of New York. In terms of food, that means our editors have ferreted out the finest bites, ingredients, and sweets the city has to offer. Some, like pasta, soup, and pie, are familiar categories. Others, such as porchetta, cutting-edge Chinese, and octopus, are the reasons we live to eat here. Be sure to consult this handy chart to get bargains on pizza, burgers, and sandwiches, and save the money to eat at our critics’ favorite new restaurants.

Celebrity Apprentice Imagines the Inevitable: Cupcake Trucks

By Daniel Maurer

To tide you over between Top Chef and the March 11 premiere of Chopping Block, there was last night’s Celebrity Apprentice: The male and female teams competed in a cupcake-truck competition, and Andrew Dice Clay did not dig his cupcake lessons at the Institute of Culinary Education: “I’m from Brooklyn. I can’t have my friends from Brooklyn looking at me with this stupid hat … It’s like a rule: Don’t look like a jerk-off.” Later, he told Dennis Rodman: “All right, you want me to admit it? I don’t wanna make cupcakes! I hate making cupcakes!” It was up to the owners of Crumbs to determine whose cupcakes were better, and the men’s were “disgusting.” Winner: women. Fired: Diceman.

Full Episode: The Celebrity Apprentice [NBC]

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