nan xiang dumpling house

 It wasn't until I watched a low-quality Youtube clip of BaoHaus's Eddie Huang "getting high off Asian food" at Nan Xiang Dumpling House that I felt compelled to go out of my way for soup dumplings. I had never understood the soup dumpling craze, most likely because the Chinese restaurants I frequent specialize in numbingly spicy, greasy Sichuan cuisine; the milder Shanghainese soup dumplings offered there possess too-thick skins and too-dense fillings and seem like afterthoughts. My healthy dose of respect for Mr.Huang, plus a serious breakfast craving led me to Flushing's Prince Street on the last Saturday of summer with high expectations. 

The start of the meal was rough. The wait outside on the 30-person line at the off hour of 3 pm was tedious, almost tortuous. And when we were finally let in my friend and I were jammed into the corner, practically touching elbows with the women sitting at the table over. We started with an order of Crispy Dough, which is essentially a doughy, salty, breakfast "churro". Their version was dry and bland, and came with no dipping sauce. The Beef / Chili Pepper Noodle Soup arrived next, and despite having an enormous appetite I couldn't stomach this so-called "noodle soup", which came with clump of soggy noodles soaking in a lukewarm "broth" of what tasted like diluted dark soy sauce.  I was getting skeptical, when the dumplings arrived.

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Most people are taught to nibble a hole in the dumpling and let the soup inside seep onto the soup spoon. But this leads to much of the coveted juice dribbling onto the plate and thereby disrespecting the dumpling and defeating its purpose.



Mr. Huang in the aforementioned video introduced the proper way to eat soup dumplings. The right way, he says, is to allow the "Xiao Long Bao" to slightly cool in the Chiangking vinegar and ginger dipping sauce, let the tartness permeate the skin, then place the entire dumpling in your mouth and wait for the explosion of broth and flavor. It's precisely what I did - not as suavely as it's meant to be done -but it turned out to be one of the best pieces of advice I've ever received.



It was indescribably good; that bite is the very definition of "harmonious". The cascade of meaty, umami goodness sliding down my throat and into my empty stomach was incredibly therapeutic and comforting. Savoring the translucent, pliant skin, fatty crab and pork filling, and the tart, smokey vinegar sauce was an experience, one that was both enlightening and reflective. (What other great foods out there have I not discovered?)  The process of consuming this expertly-constructed pouch is fast, sloppy, but magical. It's five months later, two in the morning, and yet I can still clearly recall the taste of that insanely good soup.

I'm no expert, but I really can't imagine another Xiao Long Bao rivaling this one.

Nan Xiang Dumpling House

38-12 Prince St

Flushing, NY 11354

pure thai cookhouse

Intern lunch at Pure Thai Cookhouse:

Thai Iced Teas - we were convinced these drinks that sat on nearly every table were homemade. To our dismay we later witnessed a server pouring out the orange creamy stuff from one of those mass-produced jugs. Recommendable, but not extraordinary.

The tart lime-y green papaya slivers garnished with pungent dried shrimp and minced thai chili was vibrant and bold - the inherent tough green papaya texture was easy to overcome after two forkfuls.

These marinated baby back ribs were just before fall-off-the-bone tender and smothered with a delicious sticky, fragrant tamarind sauce. This must-order contains enough substance for an entree if consumed by one. 

I thoroughly enjoyed the salad of crispy romaine lettuce, watercress, and pleasantly chewy, charred grilled beef.  Packed with tons of lime juice, fish sauce, all the other good stuff my inexperienced palate was unable to discern, this dish had all the makings of an excellent Asian salad.

The pork and crab egg noodles dish, ordered by four people, wasn't particularly appreciated. The smooth, curly egg noodles were comparable to blanched instant ramen noodles. The picked crab meat possessed a faint sour taste. 

Other dishes we sampled included Chicken Pad Ee Sew (on the sweeter side), the Wok Calamari with Ginger Curry (with surprisingly tender calamari logs), the very overrated Curry Puffs (which dried out the mouth like saltine crackers have their way of doing). The Shrimp Pad Thai and Spring Rolls were ordinary. 

Pure Thai Cookhouse
766 9th Ave (Between 51st and 52nd)
New York, NY 10019

prime and beyond

I'm indulging in a quart of commercial mint chocolate chip ice cream and limited cable, mindlessly flipping through channels, when a clip of Rahm Fama effortlessly cutting into perfectly seared lamb at some Korean steakhouse pops up. The "Meat and Potatoes" host, with his insatiable appetite for meat of all sorts, goes on to proclaim it the best lamb he's ever had. He proceeds to drop his utensils, pick up the chop with his fingers, and tear the meat from its bone with his teeth. My paper container of ice cream doesn't seem so appealing anymore.

That was two years ago. I had slowly forgotten about those chops although they had initially clung to my memory like no other dish featured on my beloved Food Network. I craved them desperately during the days that ensued, but had forgotten where the place was or what it was called.

Fast forward to Sunday, and I'm sitting at Prime and Beyond, coincidentally the restaurant that houses the very lamb chops Rahm had barbarically gnawed on as I watched in jealousy, all thanks to a voucher...and fate?

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Our ticket offered us two starters, two entrees, and a shared dessert.

The panko bread crumbs provided jumbo scallops (slightly rubbery) with a good crunch. The soy-yuzu sauce was savory and light but lacked the balance more acid would have given it.

The chilled duck, texturally dull, came with more-savory-than-sweet terriyaki sauce, pink peppercorns, and orange zest for a fruity finish. An interesting take on a terriyaki that I enjoyed.  

The main event finally arrived. These lamb chops were everything I had expected and more with its gorgeously magenta center and concentrated lamby-ness.  Rahm had not been sweet-talking in front of the camera that afternoon.

A micro mound of a potent medley of chili peppers, yuzu peel and salt, sat quietly in the corner of the plate and went almost unnoticed. One cook appeared from behind the open kitchen and approached our table to courteously explain the components of the yuzu pepper, or yuzugoshō. It paired perfectly with the fatty meat with its hot, citrusy and salty layers and uniquely tingly aftertaste.

Our 14 oz. wet-aged ribeye was copiously fatty and butter-tender. I wasn't much of a steak person before but I realized it's because I'd been eating terribly mediocre diner steak my entire life. And maybe it was this sharp transition that intensified my appreciation for this slab of goodness, but regardless I enjoyed it thoroughly. It wasn't heavy on the spices yet yielded tremendous flavor, proving good quality beef stands on its own. Like the lamb dish, it came with smoky flash-charred vegetables. 

We both surrendered to serious meat comas after our entrees, but there was still dessert! The caramel cheesecake, sprinkled with crunchy flakes of sea salt, came with unneeded artificial-tasting chocolate sauce. It's hard to follow two nearly perfect entrees with a worthy dessert, but it was a solid effort. 

The meal wasn't perfect (although the service was pretty much near so), but far exceeded my expectations of the place given all the mixed reviews. I left semi-seriously considering converting half my future apartment into a butcher shop with aging compartments so I can savor comparable meat uncivilly within the confines of my own home.

Prime and Beyond
90 E 10th Street
New York, NY 10013

chikalicious dessert bar

And because it was a short one-block walk away...

Amuse bouche of poached cherry and cherry brandy ice cream, which had pretty much melted into ice cream soup by the time this shot was taken. 

Droplets of earthy buckwheat honey encircled slightly tart, firm cape gooseberries, creamy sweet corn ice cream, and delicate sponge cake. One top sat the real treat: the whole, sugar-coated, beautifully ripened fruit.

Our petit four trio - ordinary dark chocolate cake, ordinary toasted coconut marshmallow, and addicting  shortbread cookie that deserves more focus than its fellow components in the photo below.

Our enjoyment of our delicate and memorable "entree" that almost justified the twenty-dollar price tag trumped our disappointment with our lackluster first and third courses. Chika herself was adorable and certainly adds to the appeal of this cozy dessert bar.

Chikalicious Dessert Bar

204 E. 10th St

nai

Boquerones De Zumaia - minced garlic topped fleshy, vinegar-soaked anchovy that rested on crusty slices of bread. Clean, confident flavors left a lasting impression. 

Chorizo A La Plancha - grilled spicy Spanish sausages, which we used to make impromptu sandwiches with the bread in our basket. 

Pulpo A La Gallega - tender octopus marinated in olive oil and sweet paprika was proclaimed Nai's best dish by our server. I had never tasted warm octopus before, but I enjoyed the buttery texture. 

Patatas Bravas- fried potato cubes coated with a spicy, bright tomato sauce

Espárragos Navarro - butter-tender poached white asparagus with onion and pepper vinaigrette was mellow and light.

Churrasco Arriero - seared skirt steak with a red onion salsa. The strips were slightly tough but the zesty, piquant mixture made the dish fun to eat.

Solomillo a la Naranja - pork tenderloin glazed with an orange and prune sauce - I'm not a fan of prunes but the pork was cooked well.

Salteado de Gambas - the small bowl of overcooked shrimp and over-salted oyster mushroom was disappointing. 

Pintxo de Morcilla -  seared blood sausages topped with a scant squeeze of garlic mayo was dry and hard to chew, but was worth the effort for the nuttiness that I had not expected from a startlingly dark log of protein. 

Our server, fearlessly shooting suave Spanish phrases here and there, offered an incredibly warm and attentive service along with the rest of the waitstaff. Small bites (for the most part well prepared) gradually amounted to a satisfying meal full of firsts. 

Nai
174 1st Ave
New York, NY 10009

spot dessert bar

We stuck with the tapa theme and continued onto dessert at Spot Dessert Bar, an Asian inspired bakery and cafe of sorts... 

...starting the trio of desserts with Spot's best seller, the chocolate green tea lava cake.

The lava cake wasn't so much cake as it was a crispy shell guarding a smooth, warm chocolate and green tea ganache for the green tea ice cream that sat alongside it. A deconstructed sundae -if you will - complete with a rice flour wafer, Chips Ahoy cookie crumbs, and chocolate-coated crispies. 

The Thai tea creme brulee, subtly sweetened, was the most timid dessert of the three, and was accompanied by a shot of warm Thai tea.

The "Yuzu Eskimo" finished off our night of tapas nicely with its tart and rich components. Yuzu cheesecake logs are accessorized with varying textures of bittersweet chocolate and raspberry foam. This cheesecake was distinctly dense (like ice cream cake at room temperature?) but we would have preferred this consistency to a fluffy one anyway.

I'd gladly return to Spot for its Omakase sampler package, a parade of tapa, frozen dessert, and baked goods tastings. 

Spot Dessert Bar
13 St.Marks Place
New York, NY 10003

social eatz

I was a big fan of Top Chef Season 7 runner-up Angelo Sosa. He was one of the few chefs I tuned in for during a season I wasn't to crazy about. So I risked the inappropriately long lunch break to sample some of his food at his Asian influenced gastropub, with a biased leniency and a near-empty stomach. 

A dollop of curry foam enriched a tomato soup already so creamy and strongly flavored it was almost like consuming a silky dipping sauce rather than a balanced soup. It was overwhelming even attempting to split the bowl between the two of us. The disproportionately small grilled cheese triangle was nicely charred but disappeared quickly.

The Togarashi fries, served with a gloppy sesame paste, were unevenly salted and seasoned with the japanese chili powder mixture, leading certain sticks to be unbearably salty and others to be bland. Some were potato-chip crispy, the rest soggy, and the entire bowl of already disappointing fries came cold.  

The bulgogi burger lacked an unctuous dressing that would have alleviated the unexpected dryness of the patty. The underseasoned cucumber kimchee on the side was identical to the one sandwiched between the buns, which seemed a little redundant.

The bibambap burger, in contrast, was an explosion of flavor and texture. 

A mound of shredded, pickled vegetables, a buttery 60-minute egg, and that all-too-familiar pungent bibambap sauce made this burger memorably flavorful.

I appreciated that this strawberry shortcake, with basil sprigs, was just barely sweet - that's how I like my desserts. I did not however, find the dense, stale cake,  deflated black pepper whipped cream nor the softened strawberries to be too enticing. 

A underwhelming showing from a Top Chef finalist from whom I had higher expectations. I tried really hard to like my lunch, I really did. 

Serious Eatz

232 E 53rd Street

New York, NY 10022

cathcart & reddy

A few springs ago I attended a panel session entitled "Food In Motion" at NYU, during which some of Asian Americans restauranteurs weighed in on the changing struggles and goals of Asian Americans in the business. Sitting among these panelists was a hot-headed and tense Jeremy Chang, who had instigated a heated argument with Baohaus's Emery Huang over something local suppliers, something something Berkshire pork. Anyway, Chang proceeded to share his philosophy on food, and the appeal of simplicity, quality, and affordability. He ended with boasting about his widely-popular bread pudding that earned him a personal visit from Bobby Flay and a bread-pudding throwdown.

Three years later, after a very salty Schezuan lunch, I'm desperately craving something chocolatey. I browse through several dessert articles and the mention of his bread pudding catch my eye. I was an hour bus ride through the relentless humidity away, but that didn't matter much.

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The molten chocolate cake was undeserving of its brutally plain paper cup (staying true to street food presentation). This unassuming dessert was incredibly balanced, with the most velvety center encapsulated by moist cake, a cool scoop of creamy vanilla, and candied hazelnuts for crunch. 

The retired truck's famous bread pudding that I had put off tasting for over three years was drenched in vanilla cream sauce and topped with a dollop of unneeded whipped cream. Bread pudding, which can easily turn out soggy, was rich, dense, and satisfyingly sticky in this version. These portions, though seemingly small, are splittable; I didn't have room for the honey-rosemary ice cream nor the brioche donuts I had eagerly wanted to sample.

I managed to spot  Jerome Chang in the back of house. He seemed much calmer this time, casually conversing with a co-worker.

Cathcart & Reddy
6 Clinton Street

spicy and tasty

A Schezuan lunch at Spicy and Tasty with my mother, just because it had been so long since we'd eaten together in Flushing:

A meager serving of Dan Dan noodles with small spoonful of minced pork lurking somewhere underneath. The noodles were boring, for lack of a better term. And the heat was so subtle...almost non-existent.

Below is a chilled seaweed salad, with a hint of sesame and liberal usage of minced garlic, so much so that the salad is almost spicy, with bitter undertones.This pungent seaweed might not appeal to everyone, but I gladly consumed each strand in small nibbles.

The rabbit in the chilled diced rabbit appetizer clearly had not been poached properly, resulting in tough, chewy, and watery meat.

The shredded beef was fried and dry, possessing a crispy exterior and a texture similar to jerky. Fragrant chinese celery added a nice crunch, but the bamboo shoots were under-salted.

The fatty basil duck tongues had not been rendered properly and were piled on top of a bland, sweet, sticky sauce without presence (taste nor sight) of the herb. Not spicy, nor tasty.

These dumplings were an afterthought, only because we didn't end up having enough food. The dumplings themselves could have been bought at any supermarket, but the garlicky, sweet, and appropriately spicy sauce I would have bought by the jar.

While we did go for less traditional Schezuan dishes, this place managed to churn out shameful renditions of even the classics, like the chilled diced rabbit. I had better Schezuan food later that night at The Land of Plenty on the Upper East Side. 

Spicy and Tasty
39-07 Prince Street, 1H
Flushing, NY 11354