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Momofuku Bakery and Milk Bar

Momofuku Bakery and Milk Bar
East Village, Manhattan NYC

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Heading north towards 13th Street on 2nd Avenue, our merry band of merry foodies head towards another dessert place after Veneiro’s pastry shop: the Momofuku Bakery and Milk Bar (which we later found out is attached to the Momofuku Ssam bar restaurant).

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Inside, there are a few bar tables set up in the center of the room and display cases with pies and goodies framing the sides. On one of the walls is a photo of a man, who we found out is a pastry chef and a performance artist, fighting a mechanical fire breathing dragon machine. Nice.

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Also, our good friend and a kind of mystical guide on our gastronomical journey reappeared here at Momofuku Bakery and Milk Bar: Mr Sriracha sauce. He’s all over this place, no doubt a dose for their famed pork buns ($9).

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Lemon Verbana soft serve ice cream

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There are also soft serve ice cream here but not your typical flavors like vanilla, but rather, home made rosemary, apricot, lemon verbana (a tart, smooth soft-serve), and blackberry. They give out one free sample for each guest and of course, since they insist, we must oblige. 😀

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Crack Pie: it’s addicting.

There are various original pies at Momofuku Bakery and Milk bar such as the candy bar pie, made with chocolate crust, caramel, peanut butter nougat, and pretzels. We order the crack pie ($5), described as a toasted oat crust with gooey butter filling

The pastry pie is savory and buttery rich, deep in the sweet-o-meter yet not overly sweet. Its like your taste buds were jolted with a high intensity dose of brown sugary pastry goodness.

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Milk to wash it all down!

We also found that attached by a hallway to Momofuku Bakery and milk bar is the momofuku ssam bar, but they were closed at that time around 3:30pm because they had to get ready to re-open again for dinner at 5PM.

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Momofuku Ssam Bar

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We walked out and I took this shot of the concrete jungle of New York City, a juxtaposition of abandoned lot overgrown with greens against the backdrop of concrete East Village apartment buildings. Here, life grows.

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We walked down further and turned a corner to stumble upon Ippudo, the Japanese Ramen Shop that was on my list but it too was closed for the afternoon to reopen again later for dinner. =

Tasty Chomps rating!!!!
4 out 5 TASTY CHOMPS !!!!

Momofuku Bakery and Milk Bar
207 Second Avenue, New York NY 10003
(on 13th Street; map)
212-254-3500

Momofuku Bakery & Milk Bar on Urbanspoon

Veneiro’s Pastry Shop – Desserts – New York City

Veniero’s Pasticcceria & Caffe

Veneiro’s Pastry Shop – Desserts – New York City
East Village, Manhattan, NYC
Friday July 18 2009
2:55PM

We left Katz Deli full and satisfied and began to walk back to 1st Avenue, turning north towards East Village. There we would meet one of Andrew’s old friends from Stuyvesant High School who recently graduated from Fordham University and lived in the area.

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Bras strewn across Coyote Ugly’s doorway, lost or left here?

We walked and passed by Coyote Ugly on the way, the original Coyote Ugly, the one the movie was based on, filled with its tales of drunken late night mischief. We passed by and wondered what went on there at night (Andrew himself had been with a friend or two before and reminsced about an awkward moment there).

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We met up with Andrew’s friend and quickly saw Veneiro’s Pastry Shop nearby and we couldn’t pass up the prospect of savoring a dessert after 6 meals already. Sweet surrender.

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Veneiro’s Display case of pastry goodies

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Veneiro’s Pastry Shop, a relic of Italian cafe’s past, founded in 1894 over 115 years ago here in East Village, would become our 7th food item on our hitlist today. It was approximately 2:55pm and 3 hours into our food binging New York experiment.

Inside, the dimly lit pastry shop showcased its pastry goodies from homemade cannoli to cheesecakes to pignoli cookies, tiramisus, specialty cakes and carrot cakes, this place is dessert paradise.

The girl behind the counter was courteous and kind, giving us suggestions and various tips on what to get. I was cautious but my friends must have been under a spell.

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We had a delicious cannoli topped with green colored pistachios, a perfect creamy cheesecake topped with strawberries, and a heavenly raspberry mousse tart /cake. All were scrumptious and savory morsels of Italian pastries.

Tasty Chomps rating!!!!
4.5 out of 5 TASTY CHOMPS!!!!

Veniero’s Pastry Shop
www.venierospastry.com
342 E 11th St
New York, NY 10003-7417
(212) 674-7070

Veniero's Pasticceria & Caffe' on Urbanspoon

Katz’s Delicatessen – Pastrami Sandwich – New York City

New York Foodie Adventure
Part 6 of ….

Katz’s Delicatessen
Lower East Side
Manhattan, New York City
205 E Houston St
New York, NY 10002-1098
(212) 254-2246
www.katzdeli.com

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1888

Friday July 18 2009
2:01 PM

When I asked what was the one thing that I should eat when I came to New York, the almost unequivocable answer to quintessential New York food was the “best pastrami sandwich ever”, the pastrami sandwich at Katz Deli on the Lower East Side.

Many delicatessens have come and gone, but Katz Deli is one of the only left standing after more than a hundred years of existence and still has that old-world feel in its dining halls. This Jewish kosher deli, started in 1888, grew famous for its salami during World War II and its slogan “senda salami to your boy in the army.”

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Chaos at Katz Deli

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Lunch time clusterf***

Stepping inside Katz Deli is overwhelming at first: noisy crowds of people are lined up throughout the fluorescent-lit cafeteria-like room along the long deli counter, waiting to order, the boys behind the counter shouting about in the typical street-wise New York fashion. A chaotic world of deli mayhem and delights.

Passing through a turnstile, we receive a ticket at the entrance, which we are reminded not to lose as they were used for marking our orders on and would cost us $50.00 if we lose them. The staff obsessed about these tickets. The tickets are turned in at the register when you leave and used to calculate your bill.

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Noticing the mayhem at the deli counter service, we decided to sit down by the wall where there was waiter service. I know its not the authentic way to eat at Katz, where you go up to the cutter (meat man) at the counter and place a dollar and tell him what you want and he trims it right there for you, but I really didn’t feel like waiting in that long line today. Service here however, is not the fine dining type but rather the curt, somewhat gritty “what do you want?” type attitude of the city. That was fine as we simply ordered our pastrami sandwich ($14.95) and it was quickly delivered to our table along with a side of pickles.

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In addition to old photographs throughout the 120 year history of Katz and celebrities who have visited the deli, there is a sign dangling above the seat where you can sit where Meg Ryan infamously demonstrated her “acting” skills in the film “When Harry Met Sally.” Still today, thousands of tourists to New York City drop by every week to Katz Deli to “have what she’s having.”

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In addition to their pastrami and corned beef sandwiches, Katz is also known for having some of the best hot dogs in the city, including the knoblewurst, having won several awards from New York magazines for the grilled, cheap delights. Each week, Katz’s serves 5,000 pounds of corned beef, 2,000 pounds of salami and 12,000 hot dogs in addition to chopped liver and tongue servings.

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Pastrami Sandwich at Katz Deli – divine.

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A mountainous heaping of juicy brined briskets of black pepper coated pastrami, hand sliced, gently smoked with a smear of mustard and placed between two slices of rye bread . The sandwich was luscious and generous: I understand why it is ranked among the best in the world. Stick with this and that’s all that you’ll need at Katz.

I was also happy to mark Katz off as the 2nd place I have visited on Anthony Bourdain’s List of “13 places to eat before you die.”

Tasty Chomps rating!!!!
4.5 out of 5 TASTY CHOMPS

Katz's Deli on Urbanspoon

The scene in When Harry Met Sally at Katz Deli on youtube:


[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F-bsf2x-aeE]

Russ and Daughters – Lox, Cream Cheese, and Bagel – New York City

New York Foodie Adventure Part 5 of …

Russ and Daughters
Lower East Side, Manhattan, New York City
Friday July 18th 2009
1:26pm

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I had first heard of Russ and Daughters from a recent episode on Anthony Bourdain’s No Reservations “Disappearing Manhattan” on the Travel Channel. I knew I had to check it out when I hit New York City this last weekend after seeing and reading about their bagel, cream cheese, and lox. Little did I know the epiphanies and delights that were really in store at this “appetizing store”, one of the best things I have eaten in my life.

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Dried Fruits at Russ and Daughters

Russ and Daughters is a New York City institution (it’s even featured as a part of New York’s cultural heritage by the Smithsonian Institution and in the national registry of historic places). It has been on the block in the Lower East Side for almost a hundred years (1914) beginning from its humble beginnings out of a push cart and has since then began to faithfully and dutifully serve and specialize in excellent caviar, smoked and cured fish, dried fruit, and other items. Their storefront is situated just a few doors away from Katz’ Delicatessen on the south side of Houston Street. The feeling of pure peace and tranquility when we entered the store offered a stark contrast to the loud carnival atmosphere of Katz Deli later on.

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Assorted Cheese Display at Russ and Daughters

Stepping into the Russ and Daughters store is like stepping back decades into an old-world class establishment. The walls feature their caviar in tin cans, dried fruits in glass jars, and their glass deli cases display vast varieties of smoked and cured salmon, fish, and cream cheeses.

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Assorted Bagels at Russ and Daughters
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Wasabi infused Flying Fish Roe? Got to try that next time.
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The men working behind the counter are dressed in white lab coats, like surgeons meticulously and skillfully slicing and examining the highest quality of smoked fish cuts.

We picked up a number (it can get busy at times here in the small storefront) and luckily didn’t have to wait too long for our turn. My brother Andrew and I were relatively new at this ordering lox and bagel thing and so we asked the gentleman at the counter what he would recommend: the scallion cream cheese, everything bagel, and the nova lox. The total came to about $9.45.

When we stepped outside to enjoy our bagel on the bench overlooking the park, we noticed that the door had a recently laminated Anthony Bourdain article on the “13 Places to Eat at in the world before you die” from Men’s Health magazine. Russ and Daughters was featured at number 8 and I was glad to have enjoyed this place at least once in my life before I died.

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The everything bagel is a soft bagel with poppy seeds, sesame seeds, onion, etc and is good, maybe not the best but still a good bagel. The scallion cream cheese was rich and creamy, tasty. The traditional gaspe nova lox is a rich, oily, slightly salted yet smooth tasting, smoked salmon that just melted in our mouths. Together the bagel, cream cheese, and nova lox were completely divine and absolutely delicious.

The rich yet mild taste lingered on my tongue, tantalizing my senses and enlightening my tastebuds to the point of a taste-nirvana. Mind-blowing.

The face of Manhattan may have changed over the last hundred years or so but the traditions and commitment of Russ and Daughters remains strong still today. We sit on the bench outside a little longer, savoring the flavors that we had just experienced in our mouths and watching the New York City streetscape pass by and enjoying life.

Next time, I will also try their herring fillets in cream sauce as I have heard that those are a specialty here at Russ and Daughters as well.

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Russ and Daughters: Nova Lox and scallion cream cheese and everything bagel
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Russ and Daughters: Nova Lox and scallion cream cheese and everything bagel
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Russ and Daughters: Nova Lox and scallion cream cheese and everything bagel

Tasty Chomps RATING!!!!!
5 out of 5 Tasty Chomps!!!!!

Next up: Katz’ Delicatessan (just a few doors down!).

Russ & Daughters on Urbanspoon

Tuck Shop – Australian Meat Pies – NYC

New York City Foodie Adventure Day 2 Part 4 of …. –

Tuck Shop near Houston St in East Village

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After our experience with the first pizzeria in America at Lombardi’s, we were noticeably slower in our pace as we continued our way up Mott Street to Houston St (pronounced How-ston). I think the dumplings, banh mi, and the coal-oven pizza were starting to take its toll on us, but we continued our gastronomical expedition and reached Tuck Shop, a small hole-in-the-wall dive near the NW corner Houston St and 1st Ave in Manhattan’s East Village.

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Inside, the Tuck Shop looks like a perfect place to go for a late-night snack after a night of heavy drinking: darkly lit and cluttered, a single glass display case of the delicious Australian meat pies along the wall. The owner at the shop is Australian who appears as though he may had just waken up, still sleepy no doubt from a busy debaucherous night before.

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After looking over the menu of beef pies, curry chicken pies, sausage rolls and more, we decide on the lamb and veg meat pie ($5).

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Not Mrs Lovett’s Meat Pies: But The Lamb and Veg Meat Pie at Tuck Shop

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Lamb and Veg Pie: Up Close and Personal

The homemade puffy, buttery pastry is filled with creamy lamb meat chunks, potatoes, and other good veggies. I thought the crust was excellent as well as the creamy texture of the fillings. However I did notice a bit of a lack of flavor but what’s this?…….

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Our trusty friend Mr Sriracha has made a appearance again, this time at Tuck Shop, returning to our aide with his good friend Mr Mae Ploy sweet chili sauce.

A dose of both of these bad boys helped the meat pies out alot and the result was just delicious.

The Tuck Shop was also featured in New York Magazine’s Best of Cheap Eats 2006.

Tuck Shop
68 E 1st St, New York, NY? – (212) 979-5200?
http://www.tuckshopnyc.com/home.php

Tasty Chomps Rating!!!
3 out of 5 TASTY CHOMPS!!!

As soon as we finished our tasty meat pie morsels, we were off and onward toward our next destination: Russ and Daughter’s for their famous and divine nova lox and bagel.

Tuck Shop on Urbanspoon

New York Adventure Day 2 Part 3 of … Lombardi’s Pizza

Lombardi’s Pizza in New York City’s Little Italy

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Luckily after finishing up our banh mi from Banh Mi Saigon, we didn’t have too far to go as our next destination was only a few blocks away past the fruit vendors and gucci prada bags of Chinatown and into Little Italy for Lombardi’s, the “first” official pizzeria to open in America.

Lombardi’s Pizza in New York City is widely known and recognized for popularizing pizza the way we know it today. Recently, the New York Magazine did a time line special of the pizza through time in 104 years of Pizza in New York in their Cheap Eats of 2009 issue.

1890s: With the influx of Neapolitan immigrants comes pizza sold on the streets. Unlike those from the old country, these are super-size specimens baked in coal-fired (not wood-fired) ovens

1905: Gennaro Lombardi’s grocery store at 53 1/2 Spring St. becomes first licensed pizzeria in America. Eventually recruits pizzaioli Anthony “Totonno” Pero, John Sasso, and Pasquale “Patsy” Lancieri. Cost of pie: a nickel.

Though the current Lombardi’s is down the street from the original, there is still a continuum of sorts dating back to the original Lombardi’s. Over a hundred years of pizza history? I’ve got to check it out.

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As we walked up on Mott Street approaching Spring Street, I noticed on the corner a huge mural of Leonardo Da Vinci’s Mona Lisa greeting us with a pizza pie and smiling, letting us know that we are “here at Lombardi’s”.

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The reason why Mona Lisa smiles? Lombardi’s Pizza in her hands duh
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There is a plaque: it must be true ?

There was a line of people waiting for the dining room area, but that was okay since we were on a mission and had to keep moving. We told the hostess that we wanted to get take out and she told us to head towards the back and make a right and then a left to order, right where the pizza oven was! What a surprise that our adventure led us into the Lombardi’s coal oven room, where pizza makers were hard at work putting their classic pizza creations together.

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The Dining Room at Lombardi’s Pizza

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Lombardi’s Coal Ovens for Pizza making

We were recommended by the man at the register to get the pepperoni as it is delicious here, and so we ordered a small personal pizza half pepperoni and half plain margarita (cheese and tomatoes) (about$18). It is important to note that they do not sell pizza by the slice here only by the pie made fresh to order.

We wait for our pizzas at the bar and enjoy a nice cold glass of Yeungling beer (it’s actually German American not Chinese) straight from the tap. The beer was cool and refreshing, as the sun had been steadily getting warmer outside and we needed a drink from the trek. Bad Idea, since it filled us up quite a bit and probably slowed us down a bit (but it was a good beer nevertheless).

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Hello Mr Yeungling

Soon, the dining room’s waiting area filled up to the brim. I was glad that we were in the bar area and had placed our orders already to go. The pizza arrived and we downed our drinks before stepping outside to sit on another stoop to behold the famous pizza in our hands.

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Pizza Box
The pizza came in six slices with a flat crust, slighty charred and smoky from the coal oven pizza. The pizza had fresh mozzarella, a red tomato sauce, fresh basil and on half the pizza were the little circular quarter pieces of pepperoni. It is important to note that the pizza, like all the pizza made here in New York is said to have a distinct light tasty goodness because they use the New York City tap water.

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Lombardi’s The First Pizza in America!!

The pizza I thought was good, not the worst ever by far but not the best I ever had. The cheese was fresh but tasted a bit bland and the tomato sauce was a bit watery causing the crust to moisten and soggify. The pepperoni pieces on the pizza however was excellent, crunchy and spiced to a savory crisp satisfying the tastebuds.

Overall, it was okay but definitely a bit too hyped up. It is a good pizza, and it may be the first pizza, but it wasn’t the greatest.

With a pizza box carton half full, we proceed onward to our next stop: The Tuck Shop, a Australian Meat Pie shop.

Tasty Chomps Rating!!!!
3.5 out of 5 Tasty Chomps!!!

Lombardi's on Urbanspoon

New York Adventure – Day 2 – Part 2 of … Banh Mi Saigon Bakery

Friday July 18th 2009
12:01 pm

We leave Prosperity Dumpling and head north towards Banh Mi Saigon Bakery on Mott Street. We are conducting a drive-by eating of sorts.

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You may have to do a double take when arriving at Banh Mi Saigon Bakery, because I did. I saw the sign awning above that showed its name but at first glance inside I thought it was a jewelry store!(?) Looking deeper into the store I find the Banh Mi Saigon stall all the way in the back, with a line of customers in waiting for their order of delicious sandwiches. Ah, the banh mi sandwich, quintessential street food of Vietnam, popular here in New York City as ever especially ever since the New York Times article on them and their recent “evolution”.

On the front door, there is a sticker stating that Banh Mi Saigon is on the list for comedian “Bill Murray’s Last Meal”. I know I am in for a treat at this point and there is no turning back.

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The Jewelry Store / Banh Mi Sandwich Shop – a interesting symbiotic relationship similar to the idea of the mullet: “business in the front, and party in the back.”

While in line, we were advised by a gentleman that they are renown for their #1 Banh Mi Saigon with pork (it seems the number 1 is almost always a good choice). I take his advice and order it for me and brother Andrew. They ask you if you like it spicy and I often reply no and ask for it on the side. If you tell them that you will eat it tomorrow, they will put the picked veggies in a separate bag for you so it won’t soak the sandwich overnight. At only $3.75, this banh mi is a steal here in Manhattan and also a great value as the sandwich comes in about 10 inches long on a baguette.

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Inside, the small store is filled with people waiting for their orders. I am guessing they take meticulous care of their sandwiches, like sushi chefs do, sort of?. While we wait, I notice the other items for sale here including gio cuon -Vietnamese spring rolls – and salads, che pudding desserts, as well as other small to go items.

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This lady wonders, how long is it going to take for a banh mi here? sheesh…

After about 10 minutes in line, we finally receive our sandwich wrapped in wax paper inside a brown paper bag and cut in half. If you order this for yourself you can eat the first half and save the other half for a late afternoon snack if you’d like.

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“How cute, jalapeno peppers in a little baggie”

We decided to go outside and sit out in front of the store on a stoop, watching people walk by as we enjoyed our sandwiches.

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a group of school children on their way somewhere

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The banh mi saigon sandwiches are beckoning us to eat them

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A Di-section of Banh Mi

I immediately notice that the banh mi saigon has sweet reddish crumbled pieces of dried marinated pork (nem nuong) on the bottom layer, with hints of fish sauce, something that is not found in any of the banh mi shops in Orlando. Usually there is the banh mi dac biet in Orlando which is a special combo of all the cold cuts, but the banh mi saigon is served with cha lua and also this pork

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Andrew is the hand model for our photo shoot today with this banh mi.

Andrew notes that he loves how fresh everything is and how distinct each of the tastes in the sandwich is. This is his first time eating banh mi, I think I just popped his banh mi cherry, and he likes it. Andrew notices also that the way they keep the pickled daikon and carrots from soaking through the sandwich is that they wrapped it inside of the cha lua pork meat cold cut to block the juices from seeping through.

This scintillating sandwich is one of the top five banh mi I have had in my life, beating all the banh mi in Orlando for sure and rivaling a few out west in Texas and California (as about close to Vietnam that you can get). The crisp outer layer and soft inner bread of the baguette, the fresh slivers of cucumber and pickled vegetables and meat cuts with a hint of fish sauce, all come together in perfect harmony. All is well in the universe.

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It was well worth the wait. Alas, we can’t sit around for too long as we have miles to go before we let our stomachs sleep. Onward to Lombardi’s, the famous pizzeria!

Tasty Chomps Rating!!!!
4.5 out of 5 TASTY CHOMPS!!!!!

Banh Mi Saigon Bakery on Urbanspoon

New York City Food Adventure – Day 2 Part I of … – Prosperity Dumplings

Friday July 17 2009
St Johns House – Flushing, Queens – 10:30 AM
I wake up and realize that it literally feels like sweaty balls in the room, looking around at my friends and remembering that most houses in New York have no central cooling, only central heating for air conditioning. It’s okay as I am used to the feeling of sweaty balls in Florida.

Today I will embark on a grand gastronomical journey into the inner intestine of Manhattan. I am dropped off at Main Street and Roosevelt in Flushing by my brother Victor Yin of Stonybrook University (who joins the crew at East Palace for dim sum). There on the corner I meet up with brother Andrew Kayserian of Rensellaer Polytechnic Institute, who is of Armenian descent and lives a few blocks away on Northern Boulevard. On our trip a few years ago, Andrew was the one who opened his basement for us to live in for a few days, all 8 of us on a fold up futon, and a place where I will forever remember his mother’s home made sausages. A graduate of Stuyvesant High School, Andrew is familiar with Manhattan but himself has never had a lot of the items on the list today and decided to join me on this epic journey. Good food always calls for good company. Besides, it’s no fun to eat alone!

The Plan
After making a mega list and google map of the places that I wanted to try out, mostly of cheap eats, we decide to start in the Chinatown area after getting off the Chinatown Van ($2.50) from Flushing to Catherine Street in Chinatown. From there we will walk up Eldridge St, up Mott St, Across Houston St, Up 1st Ave, and then all around East village. Its a plan partially planned and partially left up to the fates and the capacity of our tummies.

Tips
Don’t wear sandals like I did because you will get blisters from all the walking. Maybe it is better to wear sneakers. Dress light as it is hot and humid (think sweaty balls) in New York during the summer. Also, bring lots of cash: all the cheap places take cash only, even some of the not so cheap places take cash only, so bring cash! Also it is a plus to have an I-phone and the yelp app to search and detect where you are along the journey. Make sure you go with a friend or two, preferably two but no more than 4 as it can get cumbersome with too many people. Remember you are on a mission.

First Stop:
Prosperity Dumplings
, 46 Eldridge St # 1
11:45AM

After taking the quick Chinatown van from Flushing, we hop off at Eldridge St and head north. Around us, Chinatown, after over 100 years of existence, is alive and kicking with fresh fruit markets and bakeries and all the fake chanel and louis vuitton bags hidden in back alleys you could ask for.

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If you walk too fast, you just might miss Prosperity Dumplings where you can find the delectable items listed on the “Best of Cheap Eats 2009” list by the New York magazine.

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There is not much to this store front operation: the decor is minimal and there are only 3 seats by the window and plastic utensils for wares. A hole within a hole in the wall, where sometimes the best foods in the world can be found.

For here they serve 5 pork filled dumplings for $1.00 ! What the heosauce?

We order one and it serves as an appetizer for the beginning of our trip.

The gentleman behind the counter quickly opens a wok and plops 5 out for us on a styrofoam plate.

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stupid bloggers

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the chef at work: whisk off a top and voila!

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The dumplings are fried and crispy on the bottom yet soft from the top. The skin is slightly chewy and tasty, the pork and chived fillings are savory and delectable. Not bad for $1.00, I would say even better than some dumplings I’ve had for five times that amount.

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Here as many places around Manhattan, I observe the reach of the California based spicy red sauce known as Sriracha aka the spicy Rooster sauce. This is the first of many times we will meet the Rooster along our trip. We add a dab to spice up our dumplings.

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Tasty Chomps rating!!!!
4 out of 5 Tasty chomps !!!!

Prosperity Dumpling on Urbanspoon

After our last bite of the dumplings, we get up and continue our journey up through Chinatown to get our next New York fix: the Vietnamese sub sandwich aka Banh Mi at Banh Mi Saigon on Mott St and Grand.

Carrabba’s Italian Grill “Mix it up for MDA” Event – July 30th Thurs

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Carrabba’s Italian Grill “Mix it up for MDA” Charity Event

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What: “Mix it Up for MDA” Event, a fundraiser for the Muscular Dystrophy Association
When: Thursday, July 30thfrom 5 p.m. to close
Cost: $15 a person

Admission includes a sampling of four food items from the new Mr. C’s Bar Menu and, for guests 21 years and older, one of three signature cocktails (Blackberry Lemonade, the Italian Lemon Drop or Blackberry Fields Martini) or another drink on the Mr. C’s list. In addition to monies raised from event admission, Carrabba’s also will donate $1 to MDA for each of the three signature drinks sold from July 30 – August 6. Check it out!!

Where:

(407) 888-2727 1001 Sandlake Rd., Orlando, FL 32809
(407) 355-7277 5701 Vineland Road, Orlando, FL 32819
(407) 938-0015 8702 Vineland Ave., Orlando, FL 32821

To find other Carrabba’s locations near you, visit http://carrabbas.com/locator.aspx

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Recipes

Blackberry Fields

1 ½ oz Stolichnaya
1 ¾ oz Sweet and Sour
½ oz Monin Blackberry Sangria
4 mint leaves
Combine ingredients and shake well.
Serve in a martini glass.
Garnish with a blackberry and mint leaf on a cocktail pick.

Blackberry Lemonade

1 oz Stolichnaya
1 oz Sweet and Sour
¾ oz Monin Blackberry Sangria
Splash of soda.
Build in a highball glass.
Stir and garnish with a blackberry and lemon wedge on a cocktail pick.

Italian Lemon Drop

1 oz Stolichnaya
1 oz Limoncello
¾ oz Cointreau
1 ¼ oz Sweet and Sour
Combine ingredients and shake well.
Serve in a martini glass.
Garnish with a lemon wedge.

New York City Food Adventure – Night 1

New York City, the city that never sleeps, the city that keeps moving, a gritty city full of millionaires and beggars, of street meat vendors and world-class dining, a beautiful “movable feast”. This isn’t my first time in New York, but it would be the first time for me there on a mission: to enjoy and taste the tastes of New York within the days that I am in NYC for business.

During my first trip to New York in 2006, my senses were immediately overwhelmed upon entering the city: the lingering pungent smell of hundreds of years of American civilization, the cacophonous sounds of car horns and the clatter of the subway on the train tracks, the push of millions of people shuffling through the streets, all came together to sucker punch me in the eyes, ears, nose and skin. After the 9th trip in three years however, I got used to it all and began to move like crowds did: quickly, stubbornly, on a mission.

The only sense left was my taste: all these trips had been a rush, a quick jot into the city and out again after a day or two unable to fully enjoy its culinary offerings. After days pouring over advice on message boards like chowhound, yelp, and emails and messages left on this very blog, this was my chance to get a taste of New York.

Thursday July 16th 2009
9:00 PM – Flushing, Queens

Touchdown at the Laguardia Airport in Flushing, Queens NY. Flushing…what a name for a city huh? We hop on a taxi cab to meet my partner’s family off of Main Street. The taxi driver doesn’t know how to get to Main Street. But luckily, we arrive safe and sound at the hotel.

The city is hot and humid, maybe I brought a piece of Florida with me here.

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10:08PM – Prince Street, Flushing, Queens
A walk around the Best Western lands us in Canton Gourmet, a Cantonese style restaurant that luckily for us is open till midnight. Ah, the comforts and perks of living in a predominantly Chinese city in America: restaurants open late nights.

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Upon entering the restaurant, we observe the offerings displayed in large brightly colored poster board photos along the wall. The images are crispy and make you salivate.

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After a moment, the tables are ready for our party of 10. We begin with a traditional start to a Chinese meal: soup. We order the crab meat and fish maw soup ($10.95) which is a huge bowl enough for our whole group of 10 and divided into individual soup bowls by our friendly and often comedic waiters. Fish maw, if you haven’t had it before, has a foamy, springy texture with little taste.

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Crab meat and fish maw soup!

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Next to arrive is a plate of house style clam ($14.95), a heaping of clams and also fried garlic that they apparently love to use on every dish here at Canton Gourmet. Alot of garlic, not a lot of clam.

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Famous silver golden egg fried rice ($10.95) – my favorite fried rice, made with golden raisins a la biryani style and topped with goodie chinese toppings.

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Stir fried string beans ($10.95) – crispy and fresh string beans

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Pi Pa To fu ($7.95) stuffed with chinese sausage and turnip.

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Peking Porkchops ($8.95) – my favorite style, sweet and sour but so good

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Rack of Lamb ($17.95) – a rack of tender, slightly gamey lamb topped with that fried garlic stuff

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Crispy Squab ($14.95) – a dish with squab (aka pigeon) roasted.

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Garlic Crispy Chicken ($10.95) – Garlic Crispy chicken was my favorite dish out of all, made peking duck style with a extra crispy skin and succulent flavorful chicken topped with that fried garlic that they use on everything here.

There is something homey about the place, as if the dishes could have been cooked by my grandfather if he were still alive today.

Overall I enjoyed Canton Gourmet, and although it may not have been the greatest thing I ever had, it was pretty good, a little bit above the offerings we have in Orlando and definitely with a lot more authentic dishes.

Tasty Chomps rating!!!!
4 out of 5 Tasty chomps!!!!

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After dinner, we head back to the hotel and I say farewell to my partner who will join her family on a tour of Niagara Falls and upstate New York for the next few days.

Friday July 17 2009
1:08 am I am picked up by one of my brothers, Andy Meng of St Johns University. I will be graciously staying at the St John’s house during this trip with 20 or so other brothers from Florida headed up this weekend for the National Pi Delta Psi Fraternity Inc. Summer Meeting.

Andy picks me up and we quickly zoom off to the city to hit up Club Touch in Manhattan. A party was going on and Andy was a promoter. Following Andy, we literally skip the line and walk through the doors into the clubs like big shot callers. Whoa.

Hip hop dance music bumped as the bodies of young men and women rhythmically grinded in the darkly lit night club.

At the club, I enjoyed a delectable corona and lime as well as a few generous shots of jaegerbombs. At the end of our night we rode away back to the house and I crashed on the third floor.

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Good night Times Square, NYC

Canton Gourmet on Urbanspoon

Chipotle Opening in Winter Springs!

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One of my favorite fast casual dining places!!! i like to get the steak burrito with little rice, no cheese and no sour cream for a healthier offering

Chipotle Mexican Grill will open its Winters Springs restaurant this week and to celebrate, the restaurant will give away its critically acclaimed gourmet burritos before officially opening to the public. The new location at 5637 Red Bug Lake Rd., in the Willa Springs shopping center in Winter Springs will offer free lunch and dinner on Wed., July 22 and free dinner on Thurs., July 23:

* Wednesday, July 22: Free lunch from 11 a.m. – 2 p.m. for all medical personnel dressed in scrubs or with a medical ID badge
* Wednesday, July 22: Free dinner from 5 – 8 p.m. for all YMCA Center Health and Wellness staff and members with membership cards
* Thursday, July 23: Free dinner from 5 – 9 p.m., open to public

The official grand opening on Friday, July 24 will include a drawing for free burritos for a year and the first 100 people to purchase a burrito at 3 p.m. receive a free T-shirt and burrito buck good for a free burrito.

Chipotle Mexican Grill on Urbanspoon

Mama Nem’s Soul Food

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Mama Nem’s Soul Food

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Classic Southern cuisine, with its Native American roots and African and European influences, is renown for home-cooked soulfulness and lip-smacking delicious yet may be bad for you goodness. Owned by the church located just next door, Mama Nem’s is a place that serves truly comfort food for the soul and deservedly earns the Best Soul Food of Orlando title. It is definitely not a place to go for a healthy meal, but rather a place to go to enjoy some good southern style comfort food like fried chicken, mashed potatoes, and green beans. They have heaping servings of the best southern home-style cooking in the area. Everything from their sides to main course are heaping.

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Mama Nems, located on Kirkman Road just south of the SR 408 exit and just past Old Winter Garden Rd, is not a newcomer to accolades (its won best soul food from the Orlando Sentinel’s Foodie awards in the past and even was a finalist in Tom Harvey’s “Hoodie” awards for best soul food, attracting mega stars like Shaq to visit)

The place is pretty nice, definitely not a hole-in-the-wall place, clean and brightly lit by flourescent tubes, large booths for seating as well as smaller tables. There is often a wait here, always a sign of good food within, but usually not more than 10 minutes.

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Mama Nems is a Orlando Magic fan!
The staff are accomodating and cheerful, if not a little unsure at times as the place does get a little busy, but always friendly and welcoming. The prices are also more than reasonable for what you get, most dishes under $10.00.

With each entree, you get three sides to choose from as well, all enough to feed two people or one very very hungry hippo. They range from fried okra to corn to mashed potatoes, collard greens to fried sweet potato fries.

They bring you a side of cornbread and fruit to begin. The cornbread is baked fresh and you can even see pieces of corn in it as you bite. The fruit changes with the seasons, in the past it was melons, and today it was watermelons.

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CORNBREAD!!!!
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WATERMELON!!!!

My sister had Mama Nem’s fried catfish ($10.95), 2 huge, freshly country fried pieces of cat fish.

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Gabe, our friend, had the meat loaf ($7.95), two generous cuts of delicious meat loaf topped with that drool inducing brown gravy.

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I had originally wanted to try the ox tail for this visit but I was told that the chef was still cooking it for a while and it would not be ready in time. Instead, I ordered the seasoned roasted pork shoulder ($8.95), a tender pork dish slowly roasted and topped with their delectable brown gravy sauce that makes your mouth drool.

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I also tried (for the first time) fried green tomatoes for one of my sides, fried in a country-fried chicken type batter and still tart and fresh from the zest of the green tomatoes.

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FRIED GREEN TOMATOES!!
For dessert, we enjoyed Miss Celia’s Red Velvet Cake ($3.50), a luscious cut of moist, layered, sweet chocolate cake topped with cream-cheese icing.

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RED VELVET CAKE!!!

On a past visit, I had the chitterlings and hog maws dish over rice, which was tasty and fun to eat though a bit salty for me. Other recommended dishes include the fried chicken and the lip smacking pot roast, a tender braised roast of meat.

Not fine dining and probably not the greatest of all time, but I love Mama Nem’s offerings and that is fine by me.

Tasty Chomps rating!!!!
4.5 out of 5 TASTY CHOMPS!!!!

Mama Nem’s Soul Food
(407) 253-7744
805 S Kirkman Rd
Orlando, FL 32811
www.mamanemssoulfood.com

Mama Nems' Soul Food on Urbanspoon

Google Map of NYC Eating Tour

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I have created a googlemap from recommendations! Thanks for all the recs!


View Tasty Chomps’ NYC Eating Foodie Tour in a larger map

Longhorn Steakhouse – Waterford Lakes

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Longhorn Steakhouse, situated in our favorite mega outdoor mall/weekend babysitter for juveniles – Waterford Lakes Town Center – is stylized after the often-romanticized Wild West, adorned with photos, saddles, signs to the corral, the whole roundup of cowboy paraphenalia in a recreation of a dark wood-framed and dimly-lit Western saloon.

America has long had wet dreams about its ambitions to “Go Westward, young man” and beyond via the sometimes harsh expansionist doctrine of manifest destiny (basically that everything west of the Appalachians is ours, so scram Native Americans, Frenchies, Spaniards, Chinamen, et. al). Yearning for a time of gun slingers, and saloons, dust and tumbleweed when America was in its age of prepubescence, no longer a colony and not yet a global empire, only beginning to take its first steps into the unknown vis a vis the Oregon Trail (and its damned, perilous fording, river-crossing oxen).

The images of adventure, cowboys, and great steaks are forever intertwined in the American psyche.

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Yes, Longhorn is a chain but it is a locally owned chain? and the steaks here are pretty good comparably. This Longhorn Steakhouse, one of many owned by the Darden Restaurant group, has pretty good consistent service and the owner/manager often walks around to check up on you as you dine.

On this occasion, we are celebrating a family member’s birthday. (Shout out: If you need a birthday gift, I recommend the Unique Image stall at the Florida Mall where they do engravings and dogtags etc. for pretty cheap, email uniqueimage.fl@gmail.com).

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Caeser Salad at Longhorn Steakhouse
The birthday girl orders the 7oz. Flo’s Filet and Lobster Tail. The filet was good but the lobster tail, as things are sometimes at chains, overseasoned and way too salty. You would hope for the price that you pay it would be perfect.

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My cousin Helen orders the healthy Longhorn Salmon on a bed of seasoned rice.

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For my entree, I opt to share a outlaw ribeye steak with my cousin Kevin. It is a considerably large and savory 18 oz. cut of USDA prime ribeye, seasoned and cooked to order medium rare. The steak is tender and moist, with a dab of melted butter on top, flavorful from the grill and seasonings and fattiness of the cut.

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Overall, Longhorn Steakhouse is a pretty good, though sometimes inconsistent, better-than-Outback, steakhouse for dinner. Leaving Longhorn’s, this cowboy is content to ride out into the sunset, with a head towards the western skies and a satisfied tummy full with food.

Tasty Chomps rating

4.5 out of 5 TASTY CHOMPS!!!!

Longhorn Steakhouse on Urbanspoon

Orlando Weekly releases Best of 2009!

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Orlando Weekly releases Best of 2009!

In my hands lay the guide to the greatest places in Orlando including info about the weird, wooded island in the middle of Lake Holden, a place for secrets….

I got my copy today on the way to dinner at Shin Jung Korean restaurant! You can pick up yours …at any store or establishment with the little box with Orlando Weekly on it!

Here is the link to the online edition of
Best of Orlando Food & Drink 2009 http://snipurl.com/n91z6
Best of Orlando Goods & Services 2009 http://snipurl.com/n91ue

Congrats to Reign who won an astounding 5 awards!!! including Best Men’s clothing store!

Aashirwad Indian Cuisine – International Drive

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Aashirwad Indian Cuisine – International Drive

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Aashirwad Indian Cuisine is located in a small strip plaza on the corner of International Drive and Kirkman road just down the street from Wet N Wild. Yes it is a bit hard to pronounce, but no denying it is a great place to eat at especially if you want to go for their lunch buffet which is a great deal.

This time, we are headed to Aashirwad, recommended by our guest Donatello N., for dinner. Although it was delicious we all agreed that lunch is a much better deal as dinner is a bit pricey for what you get.

Service here is fine, attentative with the servers dropping by once in a while to refill our drinks. Our party of 8 is seated quickly and comfortably in the middle of the dimly lit dining room, accented by dark wood touches. We begin by ordering our appetizers:

First, we had the traditional samosas, the vegetables and potato-stuffed and fried puffs. From egg rolls to empanadas to samosas, it seems every culture has their own versions of vegetable or meat filled patties wrapped and lightly fried.
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The samosas ($4.45) are good, not bad but not the greatest ever.
The potatoe and veggie fillings are fresh.

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Aashirwad Mixed Platter ($10.95) : assortment of vegetable pakora, samosa, chicken tikka and seekh kabab not worth the price tag though.

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Delightful toasty, fluffy naan ($1.75) bread.

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The garlic naan ($2.95), it had a strong garlic kick.

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Chicken Tikka Masala ($13.95) – delicious chicken in a thick, rich masala tomato-based sauce

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Chicken curry ($11.95) – Boneless pieces of chicken breast cooked with onion, ginger, tomatoes and spices

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Tandoori Chicken ($13.95) – Spring chicken marinated in yogurt, spices and roasted in the clay oven

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The tandoori chicken was the best I ever had, fresh and succulent, juicy and tender, flavored with spices and still sizzling from the oven bake.

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Vegetable biryani ($10.95) – fried rice with vegetables, a bit bland

The food at Aashirwad was excellent and cooked with tender care. However the portions are a bit disappointing from what we paid compared to what we had on the table. We actually had to order a 2nd round of everything just to satiate our palates. The buffet is a much better option, under $10.00 and unlimited naan, chicken, everything. NOM NOM NOM

Tasty Chomps rating!!!
3.5 out of 5 Tasty Chomps!!!

Aashirwad on Urbanspoon

Chipotle sponsoring free screening of Food Inc !

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Chipotle is going to be sponsoring a number of free screenings of the new documentary FOOD, Inc. The filmmakers behind the documentary share the belief that people deserve to eat better food from better sources. The showing in Central Florida is on Thursday July 16th at the Regal Winter Park Stadium at 7:30pm. Seating is first come first served.

http://www.chipotle.com/#/flash/fwi_food-inc

Beard Papa’s – International Drive – Prime Outlet Mall

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Beard Papa’s Fresh N’ Natural Creme Puffs
International Drive – Prime Outlet Mall

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The story of Beard Papa’s begins across the world in Osaka, Japan where in 1999 baker Yuji Hirota began pumping out these unique custard creme pastry puffs. It has since expanded all over the globe from China to Australia to Singapore to now, the United States. Right here in our own backyard at the newly renovated Prime Outlet Mall at the northern end of International Drive lays Beard Papa’s, waiting to offer you their much touted fresh n’ natural creme puffs.

Click here for the funny, Animated Story of the Origin of Bearded Papa, the man in the beard and pipe.

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Once inside, you will notice that you are able to order the pastries by first picking the shell: either original, chocolate eclair, or cookie crusts. Then order the filling which can either be vanilla custard, dark chocolate, or a original flavor that changes from time to time. In the past these flavors have been strawberry, mango, coconut, green tea, etc. Call ahead to find out.

The pastry puff shells are two-layered: a crispy outer layer and a soft pastry layer inside.
They also use whipped creme to blend with vanilla bean to make their vanilla custard.

The creme puffs do not contain any preservatives so its best to eat right there or refrigerate immediately at home.

The crispy shell pairs well with the creme-y texture of the vanilla custard.

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The Pastry Puff Shells!

The also sell mochi ice cream here at Beard Papa’s, little chewy golf-ball sized treats from Japan made with sticky rice on the outside and ice cream on the inside. The flavors range from blueberry to green tea to strawberry to lychee, passionfruit, and more!

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Mochi in the Display!

After you order your pastry, they sprinkle the puffs with your choice of powdered sugar, which also come in chocolate or green tea flavors.

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sprinkle sprinkle

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Bon Apetit! – The Cookie Shell Vanilla Custard Pastry puff!!

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The Vanilla Custard can’t be contained!

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Eclair shell with vanilla custard!

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The delightful creamy custard overflows from the pastry with every bite,
a chilly oozing gooeyness on your tongue.

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A dark chocolate strawberry mochi!

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Chomp chomp chomp!!!!!!

Overall, I really enjoyed Beard Papa’s fresh n cremey pastry puffs and assorted mochis. There is a lot of custard inside these puffs and that is fine with me. Maybe wash it down with some tea or milk!

Tasty Chomps Rating!!!!
4 out of 5 tasty chomps!!!

Beard Papa’s
(407) 352-2008
4971 International Drive
Orlando, FL 32819
www.muginohousa.com

Beard Papa's on Urbanspoon

Travelling to NYC next week!

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Any recommendations for places to go and eat? nom nom nom…

How to Make your own Gourmet Ramen

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How to Make your own Gourmet Ramen
with…Nong Shim Neoguri Spicy Seafood Noodle Ramyun
– Ramen noodles at home with a twist

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Last week, the Orlando Weekly ran a cover feature article by Henry Hong from Baltimore on ramen Noodled: Instant ramen isn’t just for broke college students. It’s a great article about the versatility of the supercheapo dish when paired with leftovers and random scraps.

Usually I tend to avoid ramen because I get a headache from all the sodium/msg/etc. but some times you get in the mood for the stuff and you gotta have it :D. Some ways of reducing the amount of sodium is to use only half the amount of the soup base package that they give you.

As you can see below in the nutritional facts, this one bag of ramen has 2080 mg of sodium, 86% of your daily recommended value. @_@

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Nutritional Facts of Ramen: what nutrition?

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Two packages that come with the noodles: vegetable mix and soup base

The vegetables in this soup are mostly dried seaweed that expand when you add water, and theres a lot of it. Other items included dried carrot, onion, mushroom, and fish-cake, but the majority of the dried vegetable packet was seaweed.

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Bam! spices and veggies unwrapped

Bring your water to a boil and add the ramen noodles in. These noodles are actually udon style, thicker and chewier than other noodles, but also a bit bland from what I noticed. The explosively spicy soup base helps the taste a lot tho.

Some people out of necessity use the microwave to cook ramen, but boiling over the stove top give the ramen a much superior taste. Also this gives you a chance to boil the ramen once, rinse the ramen from its original fried oils,and boil it again with the added soup base and veggies, allowing it to be a much healthier dish sans frying oil.

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The broth in this ramen is a bit bland tasting even though it is really spicy it is more of a one dimensional flavor, so I like to add a tiny drop of sesame oil (too much and it will overpower the soup) to add more flavor.

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On this occasion, I add chopped up pieces of hot dog and a fried egg to the ramen before serving. Some people like to add a egg in while its boiling to create a egg drop soup like texture. I’ll try that next time maybe.

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Ramen with egg and hot dog

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Nong Shim Neoguri Spicy Seafood Noodle Ramyun

You can buy Nong Shim Neoguri Spicy Seafood Noodle Ramyun and many other ramen at various Asian markets through out Orlando. This package came from the huge jumbo 1st Oriental Market in the Pine Hills / Colonial Dr area. Try it out!

1st Oriental Supermarket on Urbanspoon

Pho 88 Vietnamese Noodle Shop – Mills 50 District

Pho 88 Vietnamese Noodle Shop – Mills 50 District
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[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PsSiA-JHm0U]
Anthony Bourdain: Search for Pho in Vietnam – Food Porn

It is an age-old remedy passed down from generation to generation: a nice large steaming bowl of pho after a night out to cure a cursed condition: “the hangover”. Its common wisdom that the soup – simmered over hours with ox tail, Saigon cinnamon, star anise, charred ginger, charred onions and garlic cloves – is a elixir to make those alcohol-induced headaches go away with each slurp of the rice noodles. Its a tender dish, it sooths and washes out all the bad demons of the previous night with every spoonful.

I don’t know why we keep coming back to Pho 88, located on the left side of Mills Ave just north of Colonial Drive; there are plenty of other Vietnamese restaurants to pick and choose from out there in the Mills 50 District to satisfy our pho fix.

Maybe its the big open spaces in their dining room that gives us room to breathe and slurp freely as we scour our bowls (offered in regular, large, or xe lua – super sized- size).

It isn’t the service, as most Vietnamese places aren’t known for the greatest friendliest service and the waiters at Pho 88 are no different, each of them no-nonsense, straight to the point types.

What we enjoy at Pho 88 is the low prices (seriously where else can you get such a huge meal for $7.50? ) the quality (Pho is the namesake of the place, and you better make it good) and the lightning speed of the food delivery to the table (literally less than 5 minutes from order time).

Pho at Pho 88 is a cut above the rest. Their noodles are slender and tasty, their broth is layered with flavors from the spices and beef that have been simmering for hours, and the meats are pretty good. In Vietnam, you take a small sauce tray and put hoisin and chili sauce in it and then dip your meats in the sauces to taste. Their pho, although still no match for my mother’s, is a close contender.

For appetizers, on this occasion, we chose the cha gio or vietnamese fried spring rolls. I like to wrap my spring rolls in lettuce before dipping it into the fish sauce, providing it a soft texture to contrast with the crunchy crisp of the egg roll shells.

In addition to Pho at Pho 88, they serve delicious Vietnamese subs known as banh mi. It tastes really good and I recommend it here if you are extra hungry. In the phillipines, they are known to dip the french breads into pho to soften it before chowing down on the delectable banh mi. They have a wide range of offerings too from meat balls to eggs to the traditional dac biet with all the special deli meats.

If you’re not in the mood for pho or banh mi, try some of their delicious rice plates with pork chops and egg, or other noodle soup specialties.

Tasty Chomps Rating
4.5 out of 5 Tasty Chomps!!!!

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Graffiti art on the southern wall, always different and beautiful.
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A glass of iced Vietnamese lime-ade (nuoc da chanh), sweet and crisp
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Garnishes for the soup, basils, bean sprouts, mint, slices of lime, jalapenos
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Various meat cuts in the soup including flank steak, beef tripe, tendon, etc.
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dip sauces : sirarcha chili sauce and hoisin bbq sauce
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Pho – must be eaten hot immediately or the flavors will disappear!
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Crispy Spring Rolls aka cha gio
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Inside the cha gio is vermicelli noodles, wood eared mushroom, pork, carrots
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Wrap it up.
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Banh mi is found here at Pho 88
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Take a bite.
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Phó 88 on Urbanspoon

Paddy Murphy’s – Irish Pub – Baldwin Park

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Paddy Murphy’s – Irish Pub – Baldwin Park

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Located at the end of New Broad Street in Baldwin Park, Paddy Murphy’s Irish Pub sits overlooking Lake Baldwin. The view is amazing here and many diners this evening preferred to sit outside to enjoy their beers and food. Sad to say that the food here wasn’t as amazing as the view.

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Inside, the restaurant reminds me of a giant warehouse made of aluminum sheets. Random stained glass chandeliers hang in the ceiling and Irish riverdancing music plays in the background.

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We begin with appetizers: Blarney Cakes ($4.99) – Three Irish potato pancakes fried golden brown and served with sour cream, chives and applesauce. I did not particularly enjoy these cakes as they were rather small, mushy and tepid, slightly lukewarm and had the consistency of mashed potatoes rather than a fried potato pancake that I expected. It had a slight sour taste to it that did not go well together with the potato base.

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Blarney Cakes ($4.99)

We also ordered the Pound O’ Wings ($7.99) which were good but I preferred Fiddler’s Green’s wings much more.

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Pound O’ Wings ($7.99)

My friend, Gabe, got the Shepherd’s Pie ($8.99) which he ranked as 4 out of 5 Tasty Chomps!!! He finished the whole plate and was the only one to do so at our table this glorious evening. The shepherd’s pie was made of beef and vegetables combined in a rich brown gravy and covered with their homemade creamy mashed potatoes

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Shepherd’s Pie ($8.99)

Myself and my partner’s sister ordered the Irish Stew ($8.99), a huge bowl of beef with onions, carrots, celery and potatoes slowly cooked with Irish Whiskey. I found the beef to be lacking flavor and a bit stringy for my tastes. It was definitely not the best beef stew ever in my book and I got tired of it after a while of gnawing on the beef cubes.

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Irish Stew ($8.99)

My partner and her brother Andy ordered Corned Beef & Colcannon ($$8.99) – a humungo plate of corned beef with traditional colcannon (cabbage). It was actually quite delectable and delicious!

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Corned Beef & Colcannon ($$8.99)

All in all, Paddy Murphy’s was a mixed bag and I am not sure if I will return. They need to fix a few of their dishes before that happens.

Paddy Murphys Irish Pub on Urbanspoon

Oh Que Bueno – Colombian restaurant on Semoran Blvd

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Oh Que Bueno! – Colombian restaurant on Semoran Blvd. Photobucket

Oh Que Bueno! (literally meaning, Oh! How Good!)is located in a predominantly Latin American part of Orlando along Semoran Boulevard just north of Curry Ford Road and south of SR 408. Oh! How Good, definitely lived up to its name on our visit.
Inside Oh Que Bueno, posters of the old city of Medellin, still lifes of guitars, and other Colombian scenes play out on the walls. There are two sections: one for regular dining and another closed off section that includes the bar and is meant for late evening diners. We sit in regular dining.

On this evening, my guests are especially hungry but we undoubtedly picked the best place to quell the beasts of hunger at Oh Que Bueno. We begin with our appetizer: the beef empanadas ($5.00) which are fried meat patties made with shredded beef and potatoes. The golden crispy empanadas were good, though a bit starchy and plain served with the spicy habenero sauce for dipping.

 

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Empanadas – they were okay.

The main event for me however was the zomg legendary bandeja paisa ($12.50), who some regard as the national dish of Columbia. Originating from the Antioquia Department in northwestern Colombia, the dish’s name derives from the region’s inhabitants, referred to as “paisas”.

Typically, bandeja paisa includes grilled steak (either ground or whole), chicharrón (fried pork rind), red beans, rice, chorizo, morcilla, a fried egg, and an arepa (flat corn cake). It is usually accompanied by sweet fried plantains and a slice of avocado.

The Bandeja Paisa is nutritious, and particularly rich in protein from the beans and meat, but is not particularly heart-healthy due to its large amount of saturated fat (chiefly from chorizo and chicharrón).

The bandeja paisa at Oh Que Bueno! is a magnificent, opulent glory of meats, beans, and rice. The pork rind is delectable and tasty, the morcilla (black blood sausage) is luscious and spicy as is the chorizo sausage. The steak is a bit bland but tender and nothing a dose of the habenero sauce won’t cure. I also liked the rice in this dish as it had a fragrant aroma and moist, buttery texture to it that made my tastebuds dance. This is a huge meal so make sure you come hungry.

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The Bandeja Paisa: Destroyer of worlds.
My guests order other various dishes from the menu at Oh Que Bueno and one thing is for sure: there is a reoccurring theme of giant-sized proportions at this place.

My sister orders the churrasco with papas (grilled flank steak with fries) ($14.95). It is succulent, juicy and flavorful.

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Churrasco! my favorite cut.

My partner’s sister and brother Andy share a punta de anca (sirloin steak) ($14.00) : it is huge and tender, though a bit on the bland side as well, accompanied by the sweet fried plantains.

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Punta De Anca: Spanish for…Sirloin Steak twice as big as my head
My partner orders the Entrana (grilled skirt steak)($13.95) that was a more flavorful version of the churrasco described earlier.
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Extrana – the strange one, skirt steak
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A seafood soup? forgot what it was…
Lastly, our family friend Gabriel, also known as Gabe, orders the pechuga de pollo (grilled chicken breast) ($10.95). The grilled chicken was similarly huge and Gabe says that he would give it a 4.5 out of 5 tasty chomps!!
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Pechuga de pollo – grilled chicken breast

All in all Oh ! Que Bueno definitely serves up the meats here in Orlando. In addition to their meat induced comas, they all serve mofongo (mashed fried plaintain dishes), mariscos (seafood), and desserts. Come here hungry and leave satisfied 😀

Tasty Chomps Rating!!!!
4 out of 5 TASTY CHOMPS!!!!

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Cold Stone Creamery – Ice cream dessert summer fun!

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Cold Stone Creamery – Ice Cream Dessert Summer fun!

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The summer Florida heat this July 4th can be daunting at times so what better way to cool off than enjoy a nice smooth ice cream from Cold Stone Creamery. Out of all the Ice Cream chains out there Cold Stone is my favorite because of their high quality ingredients and sweet and creamy ice cream textures mixed in with their great toppings.

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Signature Creations at Cold Stone Creamery

They have a lot of choices to choose from including unique signature creations such as “Cheesecake fantasy”, made with cheesecake ice cream, graham cracker pie crust, blueberries and strawberries. I chose Founder’s Favorite on this occasion which is a sweet cream ice cream with pecans, brownie chunks, fudge and caramel.

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Ice Cream Choices at Cold Stone Creamery

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Toppings including kit kats, Reese’s peanut butter cups, butterfingers…

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Traditional toppings such as roasted almonds, peanuts, pecans…

All ice cream creations are offered in three sizes: “Like It” (5 oz), “Love It” (8 oz), and “Gotta Have It” (12 oz).

By mixing nuts, fruits and candy into the smooth and creamy ice cream on a frozen granite stone (Marble Slab and other places do it too but not as good!), they create these ice creams that explode with tastes and sweet ice cream goodness.

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Ice Cream on the frozen granite slab, the Cold Stone

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My ice cream: The Founder’s Favorite, really good.

Tasty Chomps Rating!!!!
4.5 out of 5 Tasty Chomps!!!!

I noticed that there were quite a few Cold stone’s in other areas that have closed recently, no doubt a sign of the economic downturn. Hopefully Cold Stone’s can stick it through and stay around !

Cold Stone Creamery
(407) 599-9800
4954 New Broad St
Orlando, FL 32814
www.coldstonecreamery.com

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Fun Food Facts To Share At Your BBQ this July 4th!

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[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xYB0ibuF7Fg]

Via: Lindsay Mannering

here is a condensed version !

1. There’s a 25% chance that the hotdog you’re eating today came from somewhere in Iowa, where 17.6 million market hogs and pigs call home. And over 150 million hot dogs will be eaten today.

2. If you’re eating salad today, more than three-fourths of the nation’s supply of head lettuce comes from the Golden State. Your tomatoes probably came from Florida, your potatoes from Idaho or Washington, and your watermelon from Georgia, which produces over 1 billion pounds of the fruit a year.

3. Beer is the 2nd most popular drink in the world behind tea.

Finally, at the end,

4. Humans up-chuck on average 1.28 times a year, the oldest hurl ever found is 160 million years old

Sangria’s in Oviedo

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Sangria’s in Oviedo

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Sangria’s is hidden in a plaza on the corner of Red Bug Lake Road and Aloma Ave in Oviedo next to the Home Depot. It is a strictly tapas restaurant with a great selection of wines and of course, sangrias which is a wine punch made with red wine and fruits.

Tapas are small appetizer dishes served cold or warm and are meant to encourage conversation among diners rather than focusing on a large meal in front of them.

The tapa tradition began when Castile’s king, Alfonso X of Castile or Alfonso the Wise, recovered from an illness by drinking wine mixed with small dishes between meals. After regaining his health, the king ordered that taverns were not allowed to serve wine to customers unless the beverage was accompanied by a small snack or tapas.

Tapas derives from the word tapar or to cover, because original tapas were slices of bread or meat and they were used to cover the glasses of wine to prevent fruit flies from entering the sherry wine. Also the meats tend to be saltier to enduce more drinking and thus more profits for the owners.

At Sangria’s I am greeted by a kind and smiling Spanish woman with dark hair, possibly one of the owners. Sangria’s is small inside, decorated with iconic posters of Spanish flamenco dancers and Spanish bull fighters with a small bar in the back of the room. The rapid beats of the guitar of the flamenco music plays in the soundtrack to Sangria’s.

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First, a dish of sliced bread is presented. The bread is fresh and fluffy with a slight taste of sourdough and served with some olive oil and pepper. It was really good bread.

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I ordered two dishes. The first is the Pulpo a la Vinagreta ($7.95) which is octopus in vinagrette sauce served cold. The octopus is served on a bed of sweet tomatoes and crisp onion pieces and with a dash of cilantro. Although the octopus was a bit chewy, as is most octopus, the dish was well put together and tasted great.

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I also ordered a side of yellow rice ($1.00), and found it to be one of the most flavorful rice I’ve had. It was aromatic and light yet at the same time had a special type of saffron seasoning that made my taste buds salivate.

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I also chose the Pinchos de carne y chorizo ($7.95), three skewers of beef and chorizo sausage baked over wine. Pinchos get their name from the toothpick like skewers that they use for it. My pinchos were amazing: the beef chunks were bursting with flavor and were tender to the tongue. The chorizos, though very salty, went well with my drink and were savory to the bite.

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In addition to tapas and wine, Sangria’s also serves salads, sandwiches, paella, and desserts on their menu. Overall, I would definitely recommend Sangria’s especially if you go for their happy hour on Monday and Tuesdays after work with a group of friends. Good company, good food, what more can you ask for? 😀

Tasty Chomps rating!!!!
4 out of 5 tasty chomps!!!!

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