Picnic Garden.

Not too long after he consumed 5 pounds of curry rice, Roomie was craving a new food challenge. The food had to be good and it had to be worth the money. I forgot who it was that originally proposed to go to Picnic Garden, but whoever that was, I thank them so much for mentioning the place!

There is a wide range of selections that this buffet offers. Not only do they have trays of raw goodies waiting to be grilled, but they also have various Korean banchan specialties, such as kimchi and gimbap (seen above), as well as hot soups and steamed dumplings. On the plate above is kimchi, gimbag, korean potato salad, sauteed spinach, cucumber kimchi, and lettuce kimchi. All of the kimchi varieties were very fresh and well-spiced.

On the grill here is some bulgogi, or thinly sliced and marinated beef. it cooked pretty quickly and was excellent when wrapped in fresh romaine lettuce leaves with a grilled clove of garlic and some spicy sauce.

Here, we have some chicken cooking. The chicken, as with all of the other meat, was marinated. After cooked, it was very tender and with a sweet, yet slightly spicy taste to it.

Basket of freshly-washed romaine lettuce leaves. The staff diligently paid attention to our bowls and replenished them, as well as coming around with shears to cut our meat on the grill and place new meat on if the grill was empty.

This the bowl of dipping sauce that I was using. It was spicy and garlicky and I added some chilies to try to make it more spicy, but it didn't really have an affect in the end.

Lastly, here is a plate of raw meat, waiting for an open spot on the grill.

Overall, this place is great. The marinades that they use are very fresh and the service is attentive. The staff is helpful and watches your grill like a hawk. The only thing I can complain about is that you will come out smelling like barbeque after this experience. There are vents above the grills, but the amount of grilling that you are doing cannot be handled by the fans. Wear clothes you don't mind getting smelly on these days and bring a date that would want you to smell of meat.

Price: <3<3<3<

Taste: <3<3<3<3

Atmosphere: <3<3<3<

Opinion: Recommended

Go! Go! CURRY!.

Japanese curry rice is something I find so delicious when it is done right. It is so warming and comforting and I feel that it really is one of the earthy foods that you can find originating from Asia. So, during one of our breaks between classes, Roomie, M, Mic, and I headed across town from our school in Gramercy to West Midtown to a small curry shop named Go! Go! CURRY!. At this shop, one can pay homage to both great Japanese Yankees players and great Japanese curry.

There is not that much to choose from on the menu. The joint even seems like a fast food place, since you go to the register, place your order, and take your tray of food back to a table. The choices range from cutlets to sausages. Mic and I opted for the classic Katsu Curry, a breaded pork cutlet placed on top a generous scoop of rice drowning in their homemade curry sauce and a side salad of julienned cabbage. The pork-based curry was so fresh. It was warm, not overly spicy, and had a great smokiness that lingered with you for a few seconds with every bite. The cutlet was perfect crisp and moist, matching perfectly with the soft rice below. To top it off, you then mix in some freshly cut cabbage for a little bit of fresh cool crunch. Simply delicious!

M opted for a chicken cutlet instead of a pork cutlet. He said that it was pretty good, too, but also said that the cutlet was a little dry. That's why I usually opt out of chicken choices at restaurants!

Roomie, being the recreational competitive eater, accepted the challenging Grand Slam curry, which came with everything on top of 5 pounds of rice. It came with the works: pork cutlet, chicken cutlet, shrimp, sausage, and two hard-boiled eggs. This plate was epic. It truly was an uphill battle for Roomie, who unfortunately saved the cutlets for last. He was praising the curry at the beginning, but was in pain in the end. He said that the grease of the cutlets made it hard to finish in the end, but he somehow did it. I will just say, however, that afterwards, it was not pretty.

Here is a picture of a very pasty Roomie. My Roomie is a star from the iPod commercials! Actually, he's whited out because I know I would've been yelled at for putting a picture up of him. But look at that dish. It's epically huge!

Overall, it was a great place and the food was awesome. They give out coupons often and have lots of different specials on different days. Definitely worth it to check out if you're in the area!

Price: <3<3<3<3

Taste: <3<3<3<3<3

Atmosphere: <3<3<3<

Opinion: Highly Recommended

Crumbs Bake Shop.

After a great lunch with Roomie and H at Dallas BBQ, we sauntered up 3rd Ave. and decided to stop at Crumbs Bake Shop to pick up some of the enormous cupcakes that were sitting in their displays.

We each got one cupcake for ourselves. From top left is Fluffernutter, the "Elvis," and Lemon.

These cupcakes were huge. This here is H's Elvis, a vanilla cupcake with banana-flavored frosting and peanut butter chips on top. The amount of frosting on the top of these babies, however, wasn't the only special thing about these cupcakes.

These things even had frosting on the inside! This is my Fluffernutter cupcake, a vanilla cupcake with marshmallow-flavored frosting and white sprinkles on the top. The cupcake itself is very moist and soft, with great vanilla flavor. The frosting itself, however, was a tad too sweet for me and I will probably opt for more tart or less sweet choices in the future.

Overall, the cupcakes were fresh and the variety is vast. It truly is a sweet treat that is so good that only crumbs will be left on your plate after you start eating their cupcakes.

Price: <3<3<3

Taste: <3<3<3<3<

Atmosphere: N/A

Opinion: Recommended

Dallas BBQ.

Early in Spring of 2009, right when the weather began to warm up and my allergies began to kill me, H, Roomie, and I went down to Dallas BBQ on another lazy Sunday afternoon to grab lunch. I found out that it would not only be the allergy medicine that would place me into a hazy state, but the sheer amount of food, particularly carbs, that I would consume would also place me into food coma.

As seen above on the paper menus/place mats, Dallas BBQ boasted "Texas Specials" and Texas-sized drinks. Being that it was early afternoon, however, H did not want to consume alcohol and instead ordered a Shirley Temple. The sweet and fizzy drink came in this huge glass goblet and the three of us admired it in all of its red and shiny glory. It came with enough maraschino cherries to please any little kid. The drink was fizzy and sweet, ice cold and refreshing. Some would consider it to be overly sweet, but I am a firm believer that Shirley Temples should be very sweet, so I would give this one my stamp of approval.

Both mine and Roomie's meals came with a small bowl of soup, with pieces of chicken, some carrot, and potato. Warm, but overall bland and a little oily, I wouldn't have missed this soup if it did not come with the meal. The chicken was very tender, though.

I got the famous Bar-B-Q Baby Back Ribs with fries and cornbread. The ribs came out drowning in sweet barbeque sauce and the meat falling right off of the bones. I attacked to plate and my hands were soon so sloppy that I did not want to touch anything else. The ribs were pretty good, with the meat just sliding right off the bone. It was not overly salty and was done very well. The fries were nice and crispy on top, but were unfortunately soggy on the bottom because they were sitting in the sauce from the ribs. The cornbread had great taste, but it was terribly dry and I had to use the butter to attempt to add moisture to the bread.

Roomie, in all of his pig out might, ordered the Family Special, which is basically two orders of half chickens. He got one with fries and the other with rice. Both came with cornbread. He first told the waiter to pack the second half to go, and it was brought to our table mid-meal in a paper bag, sitting next to his platter with the other half chicken. He plowed through the first half of the chicken and cleaned the plate. Despite the huge amount of food he just consumed, however, he declared that he was still not satisfied and proceeded to open up the paper bag and eat the other half chicken! He even ate the cornbread from the second meal. He save the rice because he would not consume all of the carbs. He liked it very much, and did not criticize anything, and we can now joke about how Roomie ate a whole bird one day when we went to lunch!

H got the Full Order of the "Hot" Wings. They came out early, clearly freshly made and piping hot in temperature. The smell of hot sauce made me cough, even, as it was placed on the table. I tried one and the hot sauce immediately made me cough. It was totally unexpected, but as I went on to finish the rest of the wing, I was prepared for the heat and prevented myself from coughing anymore. It was fresh, crispy, and such a guilty pleasure.

Overall, my first experience at Dallas BBQ was a good one. I had always heard of the place, but never really thought of going there. I am not usually a big barbeque eater, because it is a little bit on the unhealthy side, so I was glad to try this place out. It was a treat for all of us and I would definitely go back if I want to have some good barbeque food.

Price: <3<3<3

Taste: <3<3<3<3

Atmosphere: <3<3<3

Opinion: Recommended

Bagel Express.

On a lazy Sunday morning after I left the angelic realm which is that of St. Francis De Salles Catholic Church on 96th and Lexington, I wandered through my new temporary home of the Upper East Side in search of a late post-Mass breakfast. I heard from my new neighbors at the 1760 3rd Ave. Residence that there was a pretty good bagel place out on 2nd Ave. in the 90s. A fresh bagel sounded like the perfect answer to not wanting to go up to my room and cooking breakfast (with all of the post-cooking clean up that is also involved), so I walked on over to Bagel Express.

This place was pretty hard to find because there was heavy construction on 2nd Ave. in February of 2009. Much of this construction has now moved on down the Upper East Side and is now plaguing the 80s. Back then, however, I had to walk over metal street plating and through a construction site to basically get to Bagel Express. It was also cold and extremely windy, so I was very satisfied to finally get into the warm store. Upon entering, your nose encounters the wonderful smell of freshly baked bagels, along with the sour smells of various antipasti and salads. The variety of bagels is vast and there were kinds of bagels they were selling that I've never even seen before. In addition to the bagels, they also sold common breakfast fare, such as the New York-famous Bacon, Egg, and Cheese and other breakfast treats.

I saw that the lox was reasonably priced, so I settled for lox and cream cheese with a little bit of red onion on a toasted everything bagel. After happily ordering, I asked for it to go and brought it back to my warm dorm room to enjoy. The bagel itself was very fresh and soft, with the warmth of the toasted bread helping to melt the cream cheese a little bit, making it smoother. The outside of the bagel was covered all kinds of little goodies: onion, garlic, a little bit of salt, poppy seeds, and a little bit of sesame seeds. After being toasted, the outside of the bagel had a great crunch that pleasantly contrasted with the gooeyness of the filling inside the bagel. A great New York comfort food and a pleasant late breakfast for a quiet and lazy Sunday in the city that would ultimately be spent bumming around the dorm, spending time with Roomie, and studying before turning in. There's nothing like a lazy Sunday in the city.

Overall, Bagel Express is in a great location due to its proximity to the dormitories and its location in a highly residential area. The extremely wide range of bagels that can be purchased here is more than adequate and they are all of very fresh quality. There is a sitting area inside this bagel place if you wish to stay here to eat your bagel, too. The only thing that I can complain about is that they bump their prices up on breakfast items after 11 A.M. Most places don't bump their prices up that early, but I guess that's what you get with a bagel place that located in the Upper East Side. I would still definitely return there again if I am in the area to get breakfast.

Price: <3<3<3<

Taste: <3<3<3<3

Atmosphere: <3<3<3<

Opinion: Recommended

Midnite Express.

Shortly before I left to attend the week-long National Model United Nations Conference, Roomie's younger brother MS and his girlfriend C came to visit and stay over for a week while I was going to be away. After they arrived, Roomie, Mic, and I took them out to a late dinner after they got settled. We decided to go to a local diner called Midnite Express for some hearty and quick food. Quick was needed because I was busy packing to leave early the next morning.

First, with our dishes, came a small cup of cole slaw, typical of any diner in the city and elsewhere. This cold slaw was only mediocre; the mayonnaise was way to heavy and liberal and that was the only thing you can taste. It was left unfinished, as seen here.

Fresh pickles also came with our dishes. These were kosher dill and had a fresh snap to them, with the sour, but also garlicky taste permeating your mouth. A great, refreshing New York taste.

C, because she was not that hungry, got a whole wheat bagel, toasted, with butter. She wanted to taste a New York bagel and had nothing to complain about as she ate the crispy bagels.

MS, who can probably eat more than Roomie, got a Beef Burger Deluxe, a regular burger with lettuce and tomato and a side of fries, cooked medium-well. The burger was made to his satisfaction and the whole plate was consumed within minutes. I never saw someone eat so fast before.

Mic got the Turkey Burger Deluxe, a turkey burger with comes with lettuce and tomato and a side of shoestring fries. She complained that the turkey patty was too charred, but overall, the burger wasn't bad.

I got the Texas Burger Deluxe, a hamburger that comes with a fried egg, lettuce and tomato, and shoestring fries, cooked medium. The burger was fine, with a nice and moist pink center, with the egg adding an interesting flavor to the burger. This was the first time that I've ever eating a burger with an egg as a topping and I was pleasantly surprised at how powerfully the taste of the egg came through, complementing the beefiness of the burger. I would venture again to have an egg on my burger someday in the future. The roll that was used to sandwich the burger was also fresh and soft, slightly toasted so that the edges had a tiny bit of crispness. The fries were also very good. They crispy and fresh, without any strong oil flavoring, and it came in great quantity.

Roomie, dieting for future eating competitions, got the Grilled Chicken Salad, a bed of mainly romaine lettuce with some sliced tomato and sliced grilled chicken placed on top. Roomie asked for oil and balsamic vinegar dressing to finish it up. Though the chicken looked dry, Roomie seemed satisfied and scarfed down his plate almost as fast as his brother did.

Overall, the service was pretty fast and the food was what it was. It was simple and decent for one of the only 24-hour joints in the neighborhood. The prices weren't too bad, but I was quite surprised at how expensive Roomie's salad was. It was nothing oversized and was just a typical salad, although the piece of chicken that they used was pretty big. They also placed us in the very back of the restaurant and it was kind of chilly. It was on the side where they have this semi-outdoor covered extension to the restaurant. There was a hole in the window there and we were kind of cold. If you want a diner, then this one is authentic, I guess.

Price: <3<3<3<

Taste: <3<3<3

Atmosphere: <3<3<3<

Opinion: OK to try

El Paso Taqueira.

El Paso Taqueira is a hidden away on a small Upper East Side street under building scaffolding and behind many bushes on the sidewalk, but once discovered, there are many feasts for the eyes and reasons for your tummy to celebrate on the inside.

I went to El Paso Taqueira with Kitty, Squishy, Volatile, Twitchy, Roomie, and Mic on a cool winter evening after class. We were hungry and craving some very good Mexican food. Boy, were we satisfied.

First we got appetizers. One of the appetizers we got was the guacamole with fresh tortilla chips. The guacamole was fresh and creamy with the butteriness of the avocado coming through. You can tell that there was lime in there, but it was perfectly balanced, without the lime killing the avocado taste. Paired with freshly made tortilla chips, it was a nice start to the meal.

Our second appetizer was the nachos. The nachos looked extremely messy when it arrived at our table, but the appearance of the dish was not representative of its great taste. The flavors were blended very well, with the fresh vegetables adding to the lightness of what would seemingly be a greasy appetizer. With the crisp tortilla chips paired with more of the fresh guacamole, covered in cheese and sour cream, you can say that you enjoyed this guilty pleasure.

From the appetizers, we moved on the explore the world of El Paso's entrees. I apologize for the blurriness of some of the photos. When these photos were taken, I still had not learned how to take masterful pictures of food without flash. The reason could be that the camera was new and had many new functions I still had to learn. This is what you get for not reading the instruction manual, I guess!

After failed attempts at getting good enchiladas, I figured that this authentic Mexican restaurant would have good ones. I would be greatly satisfied. I got the enchiladas filled with beef and the green tomatillo salsa. The dish came with rice and black beans on the side. The enchiladas were warm and moist with the beef on the inside satisfyingly tender and complemented with just the right amount of spice. The green tomatillo salsa was not overly spicy, as I feared the red sauce would be too spicy (And it did turn out to be too spicy, as we'll see from Mic, Twitchy, and Volatile's dishes.). The rice was flavorful and when mixed with the beans, it was very hearty and warming a cold evening. The only thing I could complain about were the raw onions that were used as garnish. They were large and unnecessary to the dish and eating them would lead to killing all other flavors in the dish and bad breath for me.

Twitchy and Mic got the same dish as I did, but instead of the green tomatillo salsa, they chose to sample the red guajillo salsa. Mic's dish also varied in that she had chicken instead of beef. The sauce was tasty, but it was also overly spicy. As a result, you could not taste the rest of your food after eating this. If you like spicy food, however, you should always get the "red sauce." Mic also made the unfortunate mistake of declaring the dish not spicy enough and adding hot sauce to it. After a few more mouthfuls she died. Copious amounts of water were consumed on that side of the table.

But on our side of the table, copious amounts of water were also consumed. Volatile also made the terrible mistake of adding hot sauce to her enchiladas. She got the cheese enchiladas with the red guajillo salsa. Her face was very red after she consumed such a hot plate.

Kitty and Squishy, because they were as famished as we were, shared a chicken quesadilla and an side order of rice and beans. The quesadilla came with the great guacamole again and the quesadilla was warm and fresh. They enjoyed the heartiness of the rice and beans and were easily satisfied.

Strangely enough, the dessert was very limited, so three of us got the flan. For some reason, one dish came with a chocolate sauce, while the other two came with a strawberry sauce. Both were equally delicious and complemented the flan, which was smooth and light. The caramel sauce was strong, but not overbearing and it was a nice way to end such an enjoyable meal.

Mic and Roomie shared the fried bananas with vanilla ice cream. The crispy wrapping gave way to warm and gooey banana contents that, when paired with cold vanilla ice cream, brought us to heaven. The pairing of hot and cold inside your mouth is always a pleasing feeling when eating and is best achieved in the wonders of dessert.

Overall, El Paso Taqueira has great food with a pleasing atmosphere and festive decorations. Though small (we had to wait a short while for a table), the fact that it was still crowded when we were leaving is a testament that this is a little Mexican gem tucked away near the exposed tracks of the subway in a small abode in the Upper East Side. I would return there again when I crave authentic and spectacular Mexican food.

Price: <3<3<3

Taste: <3<3<3<3<3

Atmosphere: <3<3<3<3<

Opinion: Highly Recommended

Apologies.

Hello All,

I have finally returned to this page. I have been absent from this page in the past four months because Blogspot is one of the domains that China has placed a ban on for users in the country. Because I was studying abroad there for the Fall 2009 Semester, I was unable to update this blog. I will continue to write from my last entry and will go through all of the restaurants I have not written about yet.

I also committed the sin of not taking many pictures of food while in China. Though I know this is an unforgivable sin as a food blogger, I hope that you, my readers, will forgive me as I continue my writing.

My deepest apologies to you all!

~Kev

Food Porn Blogger