2009 April « WeCouldEat @ the GrubHub

Best Late Night Greasy Food

April 27, 2009 — wecouldeat

Merit Farms
3767 74th St, Jackson Heights

Merit Farms is a Bangladeshi, Pakistani, Indian, Tibetan hole-in-the-wall. It definitely has an identity crisis, as the name connotes a pleasant farm-to-table cafe. Nothing could be further from the truth as this dive is about all things fried. We were there after an evening of karaoke at 3:30 am, and it was the perfect end to the night. The chicken samosas are the best thing on the menu and worthy of your time and attention. The perfectly fried and crispy exterior is filled with soft chicken and vegetables and a complex array of Indian spices. We had some sausage and various other fried shapes, but really, you just want the chicken samosas. A big shout-out to Bogia for discovering this greasy treasure!

Posted in indian/bangladeshi/pakistani, queens (not astoria/lic). Leave a Comment »

Gourmet Spring Pizza

April 27, 2009 — wecouldeat

We usually limit our blog posts to food we’ve consumed outside our home, but we’ve made an exception to thank the generous people at Ile de France Cheese. They recently sent us a beautiful hunk of their versatile Camembert cheese. We decided that we’d make a gourmet pizza using the rich and creamy Camembert instead of mozzarella. We sauteed a pile of onions in some olive oil and balsamic dressing, portioned it over 6 large pitas, added cooked chicken breast, sliced fresh pears, and the Camembert. We baked them at 350 degrees until browned and melty. Then we topped with some diced green onions. It was a delicious springtime dinner. Thanks Ile de France!

Check out our previous Camembert recipe!

Posted in Uncategorized. Leave a Comment »

Damon: Frugal Friday

April 7, 2009 — wecouldeat

Damon: Frugal Friday
47 East 19th Street, NYC

There are some definite benefits to this struggling economy and one of favorites is all the cheap eats deals that are popping in the city. When I heard about the Damon: Frugal Friday deal, I was stunned. I definitely thought it was too good to be true. I figured it is most likely tiny portions, a bait-and-switch, or lines around the corner. But it was actually an excellent experience – and fun too. Too many restaurants take themselves too seriously in this city. Tom Colicchio, Craft owner and Top Chef head judge, seems like a serious guy. Maybe that’s why his executive chef, Damon Wise, is cooking Friday nights in the Craft party room with an ultra fun menu? Whoever came up with the idea, I hope it is here to stay.

Everything on the menu is under $10. Let that sink in for a moment… There are food in jars, in bundles, and on sticks. They have $4 bourbon drinks and other tasty beverages. We had some rather unusual food offerings. We had escargot and bacon on skewers, beef carpaccio, and crispy pig ears – which is the only plate I can’t recommend. We had a generous portion of fresh tuna in a jar and an excellent tamale. There is something for everyone on the $5-$8 offerings and it is really exciting to get all of these wonderful small plates. We sat right next to the open kitchen and saw the three cooks preparing plate after plate after plate.

The vibe was fun too. While it is dark and sleek because of Craft, the table are lined with brown paper and the staff wears bright blue “D:FF” t-shirts to add to the recession theme. I highly recommend this Frugal Friday experience. Just go early or late (it serves 5:30-12) because it can get packed. I apologize for the grainy, flashless pics, a “serious” Tom Colicchio was walking around and we were intimidated.
Definite GOLDEN BONZONE. goldenbonzone

Posted in GOLDEN BONZONE, american, union sq/flatiron. Leave a Comment »

Oh Captain, My Greek Seafood Captain

April 7, 2009 — wecouldeat

Greek Captain
32-10 36th Avenue, LIC

I’ve been passing the Greek Captain for years and it seemed more like the punchline to a joke, than a decent seafood restaurant. With the wooden hull jutting out of the facade and a captain, a la The Simpsons, I was more than a little skeptical until my buddy Chris starting raving about it. So finally we had to check this place out. The decor is really the best part about it. It is cheesy-nautical at its best and right out of Ocean City or somewhere else very far from Long Island City. The wait staff is no-frills Greek, the standard for the neighborhood. The food was pretty good, not amazing, but not bad either. Most of us got large orders of broiled pieces of fish or shrimp or fried fish and chips. It was tasty and cooked well, but somehow not exciting. Now Chris ordered the $30 Sea Captain Special with king crabs, jumbo shrimp, scallops, etc. Maybe that was the way to go. Either way, we had a great time and I’d go back for the cheesiness, and the decent lunch deals, but there are better Greek seafood options in the neighborhood.

Posted in greek, long island city, seafood. Leave a Comment »

Pudding & Frank’s

April 1, 2009 — spud

We normally don’t opt to eat out for Italian that frequently because I tend to cook quite a bit of it at home, but every once and a while we hear about really great, solid homemade pasta and we decide to go for it.

Noodle Pudding
38 Henry Street, Brooklyn Heights

Noodle Pudding is a wonderful Italian eatery in Brooklyn Heights. We were heading off to a play right around the corner and we were with Ari, a former Brooklyn Heights resident for 18 years who swears by the Puddin’s eats. We were genuinely pleased. Fresh foccacia bread is served with aromatic olive oil, loaded with chopped fresh garlic and basil…..a delicious starter. I had a lovely bowl of escarole and bean soup and the hubs enjoyed a delicious squid appetizer with marinara sauce.
Our mains delighted us: fresh homemade orrechiette pasta with broccoli rabe and sausage and homemade papparadelle with veal sauce. Litza’s beef cheeks looked delicious, the same with Ari’s lamb. Overall, it was a solid meal that we washed down with a lovely bottle of red wine.

Frank
88 Second Ave (5/6), NYC

The following weekend we found ourselves in the City, hungry, and with no specific destination in mind. This can be a very pressured, difficult state for us. We tend to get a bit cranky if we cannot find the perfect dinner location….and sometimes the pressure in Manhattan gets to us. Either way, we were saved by one of the best Italian meals I have had since living in this great city. We stumbled upon unassuming Frank. This little restaurant that could is in a very casual space. Scott and I were seated at the tiniest table ever…..along the wall across from the bar. There was loud rock music playing….basically, this is not my Mama’s Italian Eatery…..but the food….my goodness…the food. It was, really, really, delectable. The starter was this incredibly crusty Italian bread served with loads of rich, wonderful olive oil and olives. My salad was filled with arugula and shaved fresh Parmesan cheese and tons of that delicious aforementioned olive oil. Our mains were spectacular. The homemade ravioli was stuffed with mushrooms and drizzled with truffle oil and the homemade papparadelle with lamb ragu was like nothing I have ever had before. Really, this was incredible Italian food…..the closest facsimile to what we were eating in Italy. Run to Frank’s!!
(No pics for Frank – it is not that type of place)