Sad News: Earlier this week there was a fire at the Brooklyn Star. They said they’ll re-open in a few months.
Shopping:
Reasonably Priced, Totally Satisfactory Head-On Shrimp in NYC
I finally found them! Get it in Chinatown, at this place (google street-view image above) on the NW corner of Grand and Chrystie. Not sure what the name was, but this place had a lot of different types of shrimp— and other seafood— and the staff was very helpful. Since there’s no shrimp caught around here, your best bet is to get frozen shrimp. Make sure it was frozen on the boat.
The crowd here on Saturday wasn’t too crazy (even for Chinatown) and the guys that worked here were super friendly. I bought 14lbs of head-on shrimp for $36 for Louisiana shrimp boil I had last night. Last time I had a shrimp boil, I paid $72 for 8lbs. Tastes the same.
Bakeri
on Wythe Ave near N8
There’s a new place! Bakeri is a small bakery/lunch spot, it had a lot of good looking and unique baked goods on display. Sandwich and soup menu changes daily, I tried a Black Radish sandwich ($6). It was really delicious. The secret is salt and butter. Wasn’t expecting to get it open face. Andy got a whitefish sandwich, which he said was good too.
Incase you’re wondering what a black radish is, chowhound has some information.
Check it out: Someone who sat at the bar at Vertuccio’s (the new pizza place that opened up next to Urban Rustic) says that their pizza is the best they’ve ever had.
Get This!
Today Matt, Eric and Andy ordered pick-up from Ella (I brought a sandwich and an apple). Matt got the lunch special with the asparagus side, which means you get just two pieces of asparagus needlessly packaged separately. Look at how sad this is.
Brace yourselves, Lunch Options is Back!
Ella Cafe
Bedford Ave Between N7 & N8
I’ve been feeling sick all week (it’s not H1N1 okay) and I really wanted some soup. Ella Cafe has daily soup specials and a great lunch deal. You can get a soup, half sandwich/wrap and one side for $8.95 (swap the soup for a side for $1 more). The soups, sandwiches and sides are all generally delicious. Its great if you just want to taste a sandwich and not eat a huge nap-educing thing. Their zucchini side (seen about with butternut squash soup and salmon wrap) is pretty amazing— don’t walk away without trying that. The tables in there don’t let you cross your legs.
— Renda
Lunch Options Special Edition: Vermont
Hong’s Chinese Dumpling cart
Corner of Church and Cherry, Burlington VT
Burlington, Vermont, is the smallest biggest city, by which I mean all the cities for which one can say “This is the biggest city in the state!” One can say that about Burlington, ideally to someone visiting from NY or TX or RI or SD or literally any of the 49 states in the union outside of VT, but Burlington’s city status is really just a technicality.
At one point in the recent past, Burlington planners decided to carve a walking plaza across the center of town, and called it the Church Street Marketplace. The plaza functions as an outdoor mall, for better or for worse — plenty of space to sit and watch the day go by, tip the buskers, avoid the young panhandlers, and shop.
There’s also a food court, of sorts, given that half the storefronts are restaurants and cafés, but my favorite spot to eat is an occasionally-available dumpling cart called Hong’s Chinese Dumplings. The cart’s manned by a woman I can only assume is Hong, since she’s the only person I ever see behind it. She rolls out the dough, packs in the stuffing, takes the money, counts the change, asks if I like the look of her menu (yes!), talks to me about the sauces, etc. A one-woman-operation, Hong’s.
Ohhh the dumplings themselves, they’re pretty good. Uneven quality. Sometimes a dumpling has a perfectly crisped dough and robust interiors, while the next one on my plate has too soft a texture, or the crimping isn’t complete and the stuffing leaks out, and so forth. But if you’re in the mood for greasy street food, delicious.
Dumplings served:
Chicken/pork (best)
Veggie (good)
Crab/cream cheese (I don’t like this, I regret eating it now)
Chicken/cheese (pretty good if you like a bit of Mexican in your Chinese)
Hong serves other dishes as well, including egg rolls, sesame noodles, and root beer. But I’ve never tried them.
—Andy
