Restaurant Forte Baden Baden
28 West 32nd Street, 2nd floor, between Broadway and 5th Avenue
New York, NY 10001
(212) 744-2266
Subway: B/D/F/N/Q/R/V to 34th Street
Bus: M2/3/4/5/6/7 to 34th Street


I’ve walked down the busiest block of Koreatown many many times, and I’ve never noticed Restaurant Forte Baden Baden, even when I was looking for it! I’d read an article about “Korean fried chicken” in the New York Times a while back, and although I’m not the biggest fan of chicken, I love Korean and I love fried. A friend and I had made plans to check it out, and before we found a free day for both of us, New York magazine recognized it as 2007’s best fried chicken.

We climbed up a slightly dingy set of stairs to a bustling bar filled with tables as close together as possible borderline being a fire hazard. A host catered to all of the different patrons walking in, including us, surveying the room to see where he could squeeze each new party. Waitstaff buzzed quickly around the room serving drinks and food. It was exactly how you’d find it in Seoul.

We were told there would be a 20-minute wait for a group of 6, but we were ushered to a cozy corner table with a great view of the flat screen TVs within minutes. Although the crowd was majority Korean, I’m sure the recent publicity has brought in its fair-share of foreigners, and on that night, there were a few scattered throughout, including our table. We ordered drinks and anju (Korean word for dishes consumed with alcohol) and got settled and excited.

Everything was served incredibly quickly. The touted fried chicken really was quite delicious. Exactly as described, deep-fried rotisserie chicken is imbued with garlic and is incredibly moist yet crisp on the outside and plated with a huge portion of super crispy French fries.

If you’re looking for a more Southern-style fried chicken, go with the hot wings. Super spicy, but dry, these wings are battered to a golden crisp and are spiced HOT and paired with a blue cheese sauce, celery and a yummy salad. These will be my go-to wings from this point forward.

We also included a very typical anju to round out our meal: dubu kimchi (tofu with kimchi and pork). The tofu was very fresh and tasted delicious with the stewed kimchi and pork. This is not for the faint-of-heart; the kimchi stew is very strong, and I advise eating it with the tofu to balance out the flavors.

We didn’t drink as much as we should’ve (since I’d been drinking for 4 hours prior), but these 3 dishes were plenty for the 5 of us. With drinks, tip and tax, the total per person was only $30 – much cheaper than flying to Seoul for this very Korean experience.

Street Cart
Madison Avenue at 28th Street (SE corner)
New York, NY 10016
Subway: 6 to 28th Street
Bus: M1/2/3 to 28th Street


My Saturday night was very meticulously planned with practically each minute accounted for, since I had a number of events to attend, and only one evening to enjoy them. But sometimes, things don’t work out as planned, and this was one of those nights.

I began my night at an engagement party at the Penthouse at the Time Warner Center, and although food was served, I was being picky since I knew I’d be attending a 30th birthday dinner at Craftbar, so I nibbled on a few shrimp and pigs-in-a-blanket, but soon enough, the drinks took over, and I lost track of time. By the time I reached the dinner, dessert had been cleared.

I made the rounds to see where my farewell party had ended up, but I found voicemails on all ends. To top it all off, the weather wasn’t cooperating! With not a single available taxi in sight, I realized I would just have to hoof it home.

Starving, probably aggravated by the endless supply of drinks, I started walking up Broadway to Madison Avenue. I saw a crowd huddled around a large street cart parked on the southeast corner of 28th Street. I also began to smell that familiar odor of street food, the one that makes your stomach growl when you’re walking down the street and you’re not even hungry. It was almost 2AM and lightly raining, yet there were at least 8 people (mostly cabbies) just standing around and more people coming over. I began to think it was a mirage. I had to stop.

I asked the loiterers what they recommended, and that is what I ordered: mixed meat (lamb and chicken) with spicy rice (I clearly stated that I like it spicy). And then I just watched with joy as the gentleman behind the grill furiously chopped chicken and vegetables with what looked like a bench scraper, carved lamb off the loaf on the vertical rotisserie and squirted white sauce and hot sauce with abandon over the entire masterpiece.

I opened the Styrofoam rectangular box, and a waft of heat almost knocked me out. As I digged in, I found strips of pita sautéed in, chunks of eggplant, a few random French fries (that taste best if you mix them in to soak up all of the flavors) and even a mini-salad. Each bite was more delicious than the next. And all for just $5.

I live pretty close to 28th & Madison, and I’m surprised I never noticed the cart before. I asked if he was there all the time, and according to the chef, his hours are 5pm – 4am, every night. But the next evening I walked by, hoping for another bite, but to my distress, no cart. Perhaps it was a mirage?

El Herradero
2224 Mission Street between 18th/19th Streets
San Francisco, CA 94110
(415) 626-7366


The last time I was in San Francisco, a friend showed me and my husband some of the fun spots in the Mission District. After drinks, the 2 AM rush seemed to gravitate to this Mexican hole-in-the-wall on 24th and Mission for burritos and other late-night grub. Maybe it was the booze or maybe it really was the burrito, but I haven’t been able to replicate that delicious experience at any other taqueria, especially in New York.

While visiting my husband and family for the weekend, the only thing I remembered was that burrito. Fortunately, Sister#1 was up for Mexican as well, so we packed up the kids, my mom and the husbands and headed to El Herradero. Sister#1 recommended the burrito, and in a city with a major parking drought, it has a dedicated parking lot to boot.

El Herradero isn’t much to look at… two TVs playing Spanish-language media, some interesting posters, maps and artwork on the walls, a few Formica tables and a semi-open kitchen area. That said, it had more atmosphere than the dives that we'd tasted prior.

The host/server greeted us and sat us at a long center table. He immediately brought us tortilla chips and a spicy thin salsa; both were amazing. The chips were very fresh – still warm, in fact – paper-thin, light and not greasy at all. We immediately gobbled up the small bowl of chips; fortunately, upon ordering, we were brought more in a somewhat larger bowl.

We started with some guacamole which was an unnatural shade of green (maybe I'm unfamiliar with the hue of super-fresh avocados), but it was still pretty good – a little heat, slightly oniony and with a hint of diced tomatoes. Queso fundido is one of my favorite starters – melted cheese with chorizo sausage (the cheese oil melding with the delicious chorizo grease) served with thin soft flour tortillas – and this one didn’t disappoint.

The combination plate was a huge plate with a chile relleno, enchilada and chicken tamal, all covered with red sauce and served with rice and beans. I didn’t taste the enchilada since my husband ate it before I had a chance, but I stole the chile relleno from him and shared it with my mom, who loved it. I thought it was a little heavy due to a thick breadcrumb coating that had fallen off. But you can’t really go wrong with a pepper stuffed with cheese and baked.

The chicken tamales were the best tamales I’ve ever had. Something about the cornmeal made the difference. It was very soft and tender and tasted just like corn. I always loved the idea of tamales and try them wherever I can, but I'd yet to find a successful one. I finally found one worthy.

The carne asada soft tacos were stuffed with small cubed sautéed steak with onions and peppers, but they looked dry; I opted instead for a soft taco stuffed with chorizo. With a squeeze of lime for brightness and a sprinkle of fresh chopped onion and cilantro, it was a nice little package. With a little of the salsa on top for heat, it was perfect.

I’m not really sure what the difference is between the Zapata burrito and the super burrito, but the Zapata burrito was not the burrito of my memory. I chose pork but found a lot of rice and not enough of anything else. On the other hand, the sopes with carnitas was a cornmeal patty (similar to an arepa/tortilla hybrid) topped with a generous helping of perfectly-cooked carnitas, beans, lettuce and cheese. I really enjoyed this dish.

For my nephew, we also ordered some sopa de pollo (chicken soup), the broth of which was very good, but I was surprised to find zucchini in the soup (cut into chunks too big for soup, but at least were not mushy and were easy to pick out so I could eat them). Also, the meat on the whole skinless chicken thigh cooked in the soup was too stringy to eat. He spent more time eating the crispy carnitas off of the sopes.

For all of this food which more-than-fed me, Sister #1, the husbands and my mom, plus my nephew and niece, the bill only came to $76 with tax and tip. Despite the burrito not measuring up to my burrito burned into memory, everything else, from service to food, really was quite good, and unlike most of the other taquerias in the area, El Herradero gives the option to sit down and enjoy the delicious food and mediocre atmosphere. Besides my husband, what I long for most from San Francisco is amazing authentic Mexican food like El Herradero.

Madras Mahal
104 Lexington Avenue between 27/28th Streets
New York, NY 10016
(212) 684-4010
Subway: 6 to 28th Street
Bus: M1/102/103 to 28th Street


One Friday evening, a friend and I were Google chatting as to where to eat. We were focused on Asian food, but more importantly, we had restaurant parameters guiding us: inexpensive, BYO wine and not too far in any one direction. Our search landed us at Madras Mahal, a (practically) indistinguishable, vegetarian/Kosher joint on the Curry Hill stretch.

We entered a dimly-lit, comfortably-small and almost-empty room and were seated immediately in a booth. While we examined the menu, the waiters hovered and paced between the back and front of the room, stopping to pour water, open wine bottles and give us glasses.

Our first dish, samosa chaat, which is two samosas split in half and covered in a spicy yogurt sauce, was served cold and came out quickly. To our surprise, Madras Mahal began on a great note... the chaat was absolutely delicious with the perfect level of spice.

We took a bread recommendation from our waiter who suggested alu paratha, a flaky bread stuffed with a thin layer of potato, which came with raita and chutney. We couldn’t stop taking triangles of this wonderful suggestion, which I would’ve liked to eat with our curries, but came out beforehand.

I love palak paneer (also called saag paneer), which is a spinach curry with cheese, and this one, heavy on the paneer and spinach, was quite good. The vegetable korma was less successful. Korma is my favorite curry, and I’ve yet to figure out the exact ingredients, as it seems everyone has a different recipe (I’ve asked friends, parents of friends and many a cab driver), but the general consensus is that it includes cream, tomato and ground nuts. I think Madras Mahal’s korma was too tomatoey which took over the entire dish.

We also chose the Madras thali (combination dinners) to get a sampling of the restaurant’s other offerings; iddly (a lentil/rice cake), vadai (a lentil donut), a mini utthappam (a pancake of rice/lentil with mixed vegetables) and the mini masala dosai (a crepe stuffed with potato and onion) were all served on a round silver tray. I’m not that thrilled by utthappam in general, and this was no different. The dosai (also spelled dosa) was large considering it was supposed to be “mini”; otherwise it was unremarkable.

As we were finishing our meal, a couple Indian friends met up and joined us. Although not really hungry, we raved about the samosa chaat, so they ordered one for themselves, and it was quickly devoured. They also chose the dahi vada, lentil balls served cold in a spicy-sweet yogurt sauce. I had a bite, and the combination of flavors was amazing. I think this may be my new favorite snack food.

The service was friendly enough (although after our friends arrived, they made it abundantly clear that they wanted us to leave), the food was pretty good and the bill came to $24 per person with tax and tip. Is it the best vegetarian Indian food I've ever had? Maybe not (Dimple on 30th and Saravanaas on the next block are both excellent). But considering I’ve already thought of an instance where I can return to Madras Mahal, I think it's worth keeping in the rotation.

Relish

225 Wythe Avenue at N. 3rd Street (Williamsburg)
Brooklyn, NY 11211
(718) 963-4546
Subway: L to Bedford Street; J/M/Z to Marcy Avenue

Living in Manhattan, I rarely cross the river in general, but I will travel for good food. While perusing New York magazine’s "Where to Eat 2007", I was intrigued by this place Egg in Williamsburg that serves delicious breakfast (housed in Sparky’s All-American during morning hours) so one Sunday morning, I got up early, picked up some friends and crossed the Williamsburg Bridge. Much to our dismay, by the time we arrived at Egg, they were no longer accepting people. Egg closes at 12pm (so they can reopen as Sparky's), and unfortunately, we missed our window.

Since we were already in Brooklyn, we decided to stay, and one of my friends suggested Relish, which was just down the road. We pulled up to this adorable, vintagey railcar diner, and I hoped it was as cute inside as out. We were greeted by a tall, lanky hipster who seated us in a cozy booth in the corner of the front room.

Inside, it did not disappoint, and I loved the counter that spanned the entire front room although no one was seated there when we arrived. As we lingered, the restaurant filled up rapidly, and the counter and empty back room were completely full by the time we left.

We were really hungry when we arrived, and no one could decide, since each menu item sounded appealing. We basically ordered as much food as we could without looking ridiculous.

Grilled hanger steak served with two eggs over easy and homefries was exactly what I needed. Hanger steak is generally chewy, but this one was served in nugget-size chunks and was perfectly cooked and tender. I requested egg whites rather than eggs over easy, but I was told that the restaurant was unable to accommodate me. I subbed French fries for homefries, and the former tasted great with the tangy red pepper sauce served with the corned beef hash. Unfortunately, the sauce did not complement the corned beef hash as well. The actual corned beef hash was fine, but I prefer mine in a smaller dice with less peppers and onions, more meat and potato.

The baked Spanish eggs were delightful and light with its spicy tomato sauce, tender potatoes and gooey cheese. Classic eggs Benedict were unremarkable, and although I enjoyed the brightness of the hollandaise sauce, a fluffier English muffin and a bit more Hollandaise sauce would have benefited the dish. The crab cake version which we also ordered had the same issues; continuing the dish’s mediocrity, the crab cake itself was just ok. Although well-seasoned, it lacked an outer crust and tasted more like its spices than crab.

The side order of cheddar grits were quite good, creamy, but eat them fast as the consistency changes quickly to congealed. Chicken sausage was tasty, slightly rubbery, not memorable. Biscuits and gravy, which I was really looking forward to, were a mess – two large biscuits covered with a layer of scrambled eggs and then doused in a white chicken-sausage gravy. After taking apart the pieces, the biscuits turned out to be decent, not crumbly, a bit fluffy, but they were good enough with the modest amount of average gravy served atop. Scrambled eggs should be light and airy. These, on the other hand, were an overcooked, dense mass.

Bloody Mary’s had an amazing kick with the addition of red chili puree, but the virgin Bloody Mary was noticeably better than the one with vodka which was so diluted that the kick was gone (yet lacked the alcohol kick as well).

Service was inconsistent, ordering was fine, coffee and water were only refilled upon request. Dishes came out in waves, but I think we may have confused the waitress by ordering so many dishes for so few people.

I still want to go to Egg.

Momofuku Ssäm Bar
(Korean?)
207 Second Avenue at 13th Street (East Village)
New York, NY 10003
(212) 254-3500
Subway: 4/5/6/N/Q/R/W to 14th Street (Union Square); L to 3rd Avenue or 1st Avenue
Bus: M15/101/102/103 to 14th Street; M14A/14D to 2nd Avenue


I’ve been wanting to try David Chang’s Momofuku Noodle Bar for what feels like ages, but since my husband is has an aversion to Asian food, I’ve limited my consumption since we’ve been married (coincidentally, his aversion began AFTER we were married; prior to saying “I do”, my husband would eagerly accompany me on my Asian food forays). Now that he and I are bicoastal, my goal is to eat everything that he wouldn’t eat whenever I possibly can.

That said, a girlfriend and I made plans to meet at Momofuku Noodle Bar one blustery Saturday evening; on my arrival, a crowd had already formed around the narrow front, and I was told the wait would be anywhere from 40 minutes to an hour. She and I were both famished, so when the hostess suggested the newly opened Momofuku Ssäm Bar around the corner (and also told us there would be no wait), we started walking.

Momofuku Ssäm Bar sits on a great corner, with a much more contemporary Asian feel than the rest of the block. The restaurant opens up to the street with no doors or windows, and was refreshing, perhaps slightly chilly. A long bar runs the length of the room, but it seemed no one was serving at the bar that night. It looked deserted besides a few lone diners. I looked around, hoping to be seated, but then I realized the place was entirely cafeteria-style. We walked to the steam bar kitchen, and I perused the limited menu of ssäm, which is Korean for “wrap”. The options include a flour wrap (which I’ve never seen before on a Korean menu), lettuce wrap, nori (seaweed) wrap or just a plain old rice bowl or chap chae (Korean glass noodles) bowl. A list of addable items are both written out and shown to you; as you walk down the line, you choose which items you’d like to include in your ssäm (options include a form of protein (pork, chicken, beef brisket and/or braised tofu) and a number of veggies (bacon black beans, red azuki beans, edamame, roasted onions, pickled shiitakes, marinated cucumbers, slaw, bean sprouts, red kimchee puree, white kimchee puree and whipped tofu)). Basically, it felt like a choose-your-own-adventure bibimbap (Korean rice mixed with vegetables and beef). There is one pre-planned “original” Momofuku Ssäm that is rice wrapped in a flour pancake with the pork, onions, edamame, shiitake and red kimchi puree. Also, an item from the Noodle Bar menu, the steamed buns, were also included on this menu.

I went simple with the Bibb lettuce Ssäm with beef, red kimchee puree, shiitakes, cucumbers, bean sprouts and whipped tofu. The other additions just didn’t seem to sound as though they’d mix well together. We also chose an order of the steamed pork buns, since they were carryover from Momofuku Noodle Bar.

I find it curious when a chef leaves the diners’ fate in their own hands. A wrong combination and a meal can go completely awry. In my case, it was fine, but I felt that the beef could’ve been shredded or cut smaller to be easier to wrap in the lettuce. I loved the whipped tofu, but it required a healthy dose squirt of Sriracha. The pork buns were delicious and perfectly balanced, and I know now why people rave about them. But everything else was just fine, and unfortunately, nothing was memorable.

I’ll definitely try to get into Momofuku Noodle Bar again sometime, and perhaps even stop at the Ssäm Bar again, as they have grand plans to extend their hours, and I hope change or add to their menu. But for now, I’ll stick with good ol’ Koreatown for my ssäm cravings.

Sonny Bryan’s Smokehouse
(BBQ)
2202 Inwood Road at Redfield Street (near Harry Hines Boulevard)
Dallas, TX 75235
(214) 357-7120
http://www.sonnybryans.com/


When I think of Dallas, I think of BBQ. Since my husband is a Dallas native, I deferred to him to choose the spot, and we ended up at the original Sonny Bryan's Smokehouse. After having tried multiple spots in NYC (I think I’ve already said that my NYC favorite is Blue Smoke), I thought it was time for me to try true Texas-style BBQ... IN TEXAS.

Sonny Bryan’s has been around since 1910, and the Inwood branch is the ORIGINAL. The restaurant didn't look like much when we pulled up: a rundown wooden shack with screened windows and picnic tables outside. In fact, I felt like the Big Bad Wolf could huff, puff and blow the place down. Inside looked pretty much the same... it isn’t exactly white fabric tablecloths and sterling silverware. Plus there's no air conditioning.

The above and beyond friendly staff welcomes/accosts you as you walk in the door, requesting your order. Somehow it's not offensive since they're so cheerful about it. My husband ordered a beer on tap to enjoy while we waited, and it was so cold, steam rose from the glass in the hot air.

In order to maximize the amount of food I could taste, I ordered the two meat dinner (pork and ribs) which came with two sides (I chose French fries and cole slaw), while my husband had the beef sandwich (which came with nothing; he needed his own fries though, since I had no intention of sharing).

We couldn't resist ordering onion rings when I saw an order coming out for another patron. Thick and golden, they looked delicious. Unfortunately, they didn't deliver. The crust fell off too easily, and the delicate balance between onion and outer crust was too uneven. If you like an onion ring that's much more onion than crispy crust, then this may be for you.

But on to the good stuff: the MEAT! All of the meats were quite obviously smoked and cooked for long periods of time, since it was falling apart and tender. The pulled pork actually may have been too tender, since it was almost mushy. The flavors weren't as robust as I'd expect from TEXAS BBQ. What I did surprisingly enjoy immensely was the sauce that accompanies the meats. I'm not one for BBQ sauce, but this one was served warm, with a balanced sweet/tart/spicy taste that gave the meat the flavor it lacked. I still would've preferred a more seasoned pork.
Although there are no actual tables at this Sonny Bryan's location, you are able to eat-in (if you can stand the lack of air conditioning in the Dallas heat); the front of the restaurant holds about 14 (give or take) individual tables (similar to elementary school desks). Outside are picnic tables where you can also enjoy these grubs.

I may not try Sonny Bryan's again, but I'm glad I finally experienced true Texas BBQ. It was cheap, tasty enough and hit the spot.

Mama’s Daughters’ Diner
(American, Comfort Food)
2014 Irving Boulevard between Manufacturing Street and Turtle Creek Boulevard
Dallas, TX 75207
(214) 742-8646
http://www.mamasdaughtersdiner.com/


On my quest for the ultimate comfort food in Dallas, I found Mama’s Daughters’ Diner. Although there are a few other branches, the Irving Blvd one is the original. On a Saturday morning, we found Mama’s Daughters’ Diner in a strange, desolate area. The restaurant was already crowded, and I was so happy that we motivated early enough to get a table.

Adorned on the walls are tons of photos, particularly of Norma, the original Mama. Something about the photo felt welcoming, and then I began to take in the aromas wafting throughout the restaurant. Dishes moved quickly out of the kitchen to the tables, and maybe I was just hungry, but I couldn’t help but stare at EVERYTHING because it all looked so good.

I ordered Mama’s breakfast special (my choices in parentheses): 2 eggs (egg whites well-done), grits or hash browns (grits), biscuits or toast (biscuits) and gravy, and chicken-fried steak, breakfast steak or 2 pork chops (chicken-fried steak). My husband had a breakfast special as well: 2 eggs (sunny-side up), 2 pancakes, biscuits and bacon. My eyes were big so I also ordered a side of hash browns (crispy) and a cinnamon roll.

The cinnamon roll was served first, and it was the most delicious cinnamon roll I have ever, ever had. It was homemade, warm, not too sweet, not too cinnamony, doughy. It was perfect. I wish I had ordered another one. As we were demolishing the cinnamon roll, our food came out.

I quickly sliced into the chicken-fried steak, and it wasn’t as knife-tender as I’d hoped… nor was it as seasoned and spicy – it was just OK. It wasn’t bad, but it wasn’t memorable. The gravy was pretty good; I especially enjoyed the flecks of pork in the gravy. I couldn’t eat the eggs, because, despite the “well-done” request, there were wet, almost-raw areas, which I couldn’t eat.

When I asked the waitress for butter for the grits and the biscuits, she pointed to the table – more specifically, a red plastic basket filled with individual tubs of Land O’ Lakes fresh buttery taste spread. Butter… SUBSTITUTE. When I explained to the waitress that I would prefer real butter, she said there was none in the restaurant. No butter in the restaurant??? Who doesn’t use butter??? After getting over the initial shock, I added the Land O’ Lakes fresh buttery spread to my grits, but they were inedible, regardless of the fake butter. Too gritty, not cooked long enough, and I must’ve gotten the bottom of the pot… I think I got the entire stale layer that gets stuck to the bottom.

I enjoyed the biscuits; they were more flaky, less crumbly and although they weren’t perfect, they were pretty darn good… especially smothered in the pork gravy. The hash browns were the shredded potato-kind, and cooked crispy, they were a delicious addition to the meal. My husband’s pancakes were great, fluffy, almost melt-in-your-mouth. The bacon was really meaty and chewy; it tasted good, but I prefer my bacon crisp. Since bacon didn’t come with my order, I’ll have to request crispy bacon next time.

Next time, and there will DEFINITELY be a next time since I’m still wishing that I had gotten pie (we were sitting in plain view of the pies, and they looked amazing)… and another cinnamon roll… next time, we’ll have to try lunch, since Mama’s closes at 3pm on the days they’re open. Before this ends, I have to comment on the prices. Mama’s is the definition of cheap eats. I was in opposite sticker shock! A side of hash browns was 89 cents; I think that may be cheaper than McDonald’s.