Sugar Freak
26-18 30th Ave, Astoria

I am sure some form of popcorn pudding has been in existence in Native American or Nebraskan culture for centuries, but this dessert was brand new to me when I ordered it at Sugar Freak recently. After one bite, I was convinced that it should be offered all over this country. It was very sweet, but the popcorn texture kept it from being cloying and provided for a full dessert and not an insubstantial pudding cup. Corn pudding isn’t new, but using popped corn is the stroke of genius here. Popcorn seems like such an obvious combination that should be included in the pudding cannon with chocolate, rice, bread and tapioca. After all, everything in our culture is basically made from corn.

Do not be mistaken by its name, while Sugar Freak offers a few quality desserts, it is actually a real deal restaurant cooking up Louisiana cuisine in the heart of Astoria. The Cajun/Creole offerings are some some of the best NYC has to offer, with favorites like crawfish etouffee and oyster po’ boys. The muffulettas are excellent, with quality ingredients on an authentic huge round roll. For a great $10 lunch, split the veggie muffuletta ($15) and a side of red beans & rice ($5). You won’t be sorry. If you are feeling saucy, try the spicy creole bloody mary, and don’t forget the popcorn pudding.

John Brown Smokehouse
25-08 37th Ave Long Island City

…John Brown Smokehouse in Long Island City. Their tagline is “serious barbecue” and it shows in many ways. This hole-in-the-wall is really in the middle of nowhere in an industrial area of northern LIC between an auto body shop and a fenced in parking lot. But, believe me, it is well worth the trek for some of the best barbecue in all of New York City. Their $8 pulled pork sandwich was pilled high with succulent chunks of smoked pork to which I added the housemade ghost pepper sauce for a perfect kick. The round roll wasn’t soggy and held up very well. Spud and I also shared a $12 platter of their signature burnt ends with excellent vinegar-based cole slaw and 2 slices of thick white bread to sopp it all up. We could barely finish our lunch and only spent $10 each. There is no other place in NYC with this exceptional quality and extremely low prices. This place is authentic, which means it’s not the slick decor and fancy flavored BBQ that you might find in Williamsburg. When they run out of meat for the day, that’s when they close. John Brown Smokehouse is my first exciting find of 2012. It is exceptional and I can’t wait to return for more. If you don’t trust me,  the New York Times review is excellent, and it’s even included in their top 10 list of their best inexpensive restaurants of 2011.

Want to piss off a Philly sports fan this weekend? Yeah, you do. Eat a quality version of their beloved cheesesteaks at Shorty’s while you watch the New York Giants in the playoffs!

Shorty’s
66 Madison Ave (27/28)
576 9th Ave (41/42)

Even though Shorty’s is a pro-Philly sports bar, it’s still a fun place to watch a game, have some drinks, and eat some of the best cheesesteaks in NYC. The Gramercy location is a big step up from your typical sports bar, with a classier atmosphere, more professional patrons, and quality food and drinks. The cheesesteaks are a big step up too, mostly due to the bread, which is shipped as dough from Philly and baked on the premises . It definitely makes a difference in the authentic taste and flavor of the sandwiches (hoagies). We tried the veggie with hot peppers, broccoli rabe, and fried onions ($9) and the chicken cheesesteak with cheese wiz ($9). They were both much better than typical sports bar grub and the veggie had really bold flavor. So, if you are looking for a place to watch the games this weekend, Shorty’s is a satisfying choice for a real cheesesteak without leaving town.

Ben’s Best Kosher Deli
9620 Queens Blvd, Rego Park

Everyone celebrates the holidays in their own ways, so this year, Spud and I decided to celebrate Hanukkah at a local institution, Ben’s Best in Rego Park. While every tourist visits Carnegie and 2nd Avenue Delis, Ben’s has been supplying Queens locals with amazing deli fare  since 1945. If you want an authentic old school Queens experience, this is it. Inspired by this episode of Diners, Drive-ins and Dives, we decided to feast on some kreplach and stuffed cabbage, the way my ancestors probably had done for centuries. The kreplach (fried meat dumplings) with onions is a signature dish at Ben’s and it is outstanding. The meat is high quality and the onions are really crispy, but what puts it over the edge is that it is served with duck sauce! Since it tastes like an egg roll and most Jews love their Chinese food, it’s a brilliant twist. The stuffed cabbage was also excellent, with tender leaves and a filling that is mostly meat, not rice. I am usually not a fan of the sweet sauce, but their raisin sauce is excellent. If you share the kreplach appetizer ($5.75) and stuffed cabbage lunch special ($14.95), which includes soup, potatoes, vegetables, coffee/tea, and the pickles and great cole slaw, you will only spend about $10 per person and enjoy plenty of food. You may even have a few dollars to spend on some rugelach. Happy Hanukkah!

The Stumble Inn
1454 2nd Ave (76th St), Upper East Side

Since Spud and I are definitely more into eating than drinking, we tend to forget that bar food can sometimes make for really satisfying cheap eats. The Stumble Inn, an Upper East Side sports bar is not a culinary destination, but it does serve a very good signature stuffed burger. This sloppy burger comes with several variations: The Cheese Monster, The Spicy Stumbler, and the The Second Avenue Stumbler, with swiss and sauteed mushrooms, which we ordered, topped with sauteed onions. The stuffed ingredients kept the sirloin burger really moist and packed with flavor. It was $10.95 with tots, but probably under $10 without. And if you want a deal, on weekdays from 11:30 am until 4 pm, get a free draft beer or soda with any stuffed burger. With its wooden booths and tin ceiling, Stumble offers a warm, winter setting, plus it’s a sports bar, so you can let loose and be as rowdy as you want!

Spud first reviewed Il Bambino in 2008, and in the past few years our love for this local favorite has only grown. Their soup is our favorite in the entire city! The bold flavors and quality ingredients make for extremely satisfying lunch of soup and crostini. They are known for their panninis, with ingredients like speck, fontina and savory jams. These are real Italian panninis, not the dry, limp Midtown version. We recently tried the peanut butter hot chocolate, which was, of course. amazing. Besides the food, it is really the vibe that draws us in here. The music they play is great and the service is some of the friendliest we have encountered in NYC. The staff believes in the restaurant and it really shows. They are open until midnight on the weekends, to satisfy those late ante dessert cravings.

Check out Spud’s 2008 review – it’s still true!

Il Bambino
34-08 31st Avenue (34/35), Astoria

Go to Il Bambino if you live in Astoria. Even if you don’t live in Astoria, you should go to Il Bambino. Why? Because it’s exactly what a local eatery should be. The menu is small…..only a few crostini, salads and paninis. The establishment is small, it only seats 24. The man who runs it is behind the counter and there is a large pig painted on the wall to illustrate where every cut of delicious pig meat is from. Really, it’s quite educational. As you dive into your crusty panini with a small layer of salty prosciutto, arugula and lemon oil you can stare at the pig and learn that that cured delicacy you are eating is found in the flank of the beast. The vibe here is cool, as are the wait staff who are attentive, yet laid-back. We dined on a salad of chickpeas and spicy arugula with croutons and shared the egg salad crostini sprinkled with white truffle oil and crunched into a perfect panini. It reminded us exactly of how wonderfully simplistic and fresh real Italian cuisine is. In fact, I believe that Il Bambino is as close as you will get to the real thing……those of you that have been to Italy understand the simplicity and beauty of the food, and Il Bambino respects that.
Best and certainly not least, you must have one, (or more) or the delicious cupcakes that Il Bambino makes. We eat a lot of cupcakes, but Il Bambino’s are some of the best we’ve had! We have tried all different kinds (thanks to Litza for bringing so many to our SuperBowl gathering)…..there are cherry cheesecake, PB&J, Brownie, lemon, strawberry, chocolate, snowball…..ect. So tasty and super-worth it! The coffee is rich and lovely as well.
Go there and live la dolce vita!!!

Astor Bake Shop
12-23 Astoria Blvd, Astoria

I wrote a detailed review of our love for Astoria Bake Shop in January 2011, but I have found a new favorite item there that I have to share. Their cupcakes and more elaborate pastries are very good, but what the bakery really excels at are the more basic breads, both savory and sweet. The herb scones are delicious, but my new obsession are their *almond croissants*. I don’t usually crave danish or croissants, but this hybrid is making my mouth water just thinking about it. It is not puffy like a croissant, but is very flakey, yet not too airy. It is more substantial like a danish, yet with a light almond flavor. It is quite remarkable. The rest of Astor Bake Shop’s menu is very good as well. If you live nearby, you’d be a damn fool not to come here. That’s right.

Waldy’s Wood-Fired Pizza and Penne
800 6th Avenue (27/28)

It’s easy to walk by Waldy’s small storefront and regard it is as just another place to consume pizza in Manhattan. With much of the cheap eats landscape focused on trucks, burgers and sandwiches, it is easy to forget that pizza is still this city’s most ubiquitous fast food. And while there are a zillion Ray’s and $1 slices, there are not many options for pizza with quality topping that is still affordable. Waldy’s fills that niche between the low end and the top notch places like Keste and Company. Founder Waldy Malouf, the chef at Beacon, a high-end restaurant on West 56th street, opened Waldy’s 5 years ago. You order at the counter and the super-thin crust wood fired pies are brought to your table just a few minutes later. The high-concept toppings and low-priced pizzas enable Waldy’s to stand out in the competitive market. We recently enjoyed two pizzas here: peperoni, broccoli rabe and tomatoes ($8) and daily special butternut squash, sun dried tomatoes and onions ($7.25). Other exciting combos includes: braised lamb, roasted lemon and oregano, and clams with garlic, crumbs, and ricotta white pizza. Of course you could always find a $1 slice of cardboard with plastic-like cheese…

Pies -n- Thighs
166 S. 4th Street (Driggs), Williamsburg, Brooklyn

With one of the best names for an eatery, a smart, reasonably-priced menu, a desirable Williamsburg corner, and a menu of comfort foods, Pies -n- Thighs is a definite winner. The lunch and dinner menu is loaded with barbecue and fried chicken dishes, but Spud and I thought it would be fun to try a decadent brunch here. The wait was only a few minutes and we were seated in the more spacious back room. We passed on the pie and started with a very good fresh vanilla donut ($2) and then moved on to two dishes showcasing the chicken and barbecue. The chicken & waffles ($10) was really good. I usually think of it as a novelty dish, but the proportions of salty and sweet (and optionally spicy) were just right. The smoked pork hash and eggs ($10) was also exceptionally comforting. While the old location with an outdoor grill under the Bridge was one-of-a-kind, with this location you will get a seat and a much more extensive menu.

rice pudding - possibly the worst food to photograph

*** I originally posted this review in 2008, but we recently revisited Rice to Riches and it still holds up. While it’s easy to forget about this unique dessert spot, it may be worth a repeat visit. ***

I am usually not a big fan those small storefronts that only sell one item in many varieties. They are good in theory: “Wow, a place that only sells peanuts (or hot dogs or cheesesteaks)!” I am calling them One Trick Ponies until I can think of a better name. Usually the item they make is good, but not good enough to make me a frequent customer. But of course a OTP that makes a sweet treat is something special. Even after you have already had a meal, there is always room for dessert. That’s the main reason for why Rice to Riches has been so successful. The other is that they have not franchised, there is only one location. Whenever I am around Spring Street, no matter what I am doing or whom I am with, rice pudding is always on the menu.

Rice to Riches
37 Spring Street (Mott/Mulberry), NYC

The decor has a definite metallic space-age feel. As you enter you see the sprawling counter of 20 or so pudding varieties. This could be a glimpse of a distant future where all foods come in sweet pudding form. Most of the fun is deciding what flavors and size vat of pudding to consume (Best deal: 2 flavors for $8.50). Category 5 Caramel? Stubborn Banana? Don Cappaccino? Sex Drugs and Rocky Road? It’s difficult. The pudding is delicious, although not cheap. I think most of the inflated prices are due to the non-recyclable thick plastic containers and dishes. It is unconscionable that they use such wasteful packaging. I took mine home and use it as a sugar bowl, but most people won’t. I do love the thick gooey pudding. I believe it is a perfect anytime food. You have to love NYC, a place where a rice pudding only eatery can be a gold mine.