Forest Hills Food Venture January 26, 2008

Forest Hills is only one express stop away from Jackson Heights but we rarely venture over there for food.  There’s such great food all around us.  Up until tonight I’ve only eaten at Ran (Sushi), Johnny Rockets, and Nick’s Pizzeria.

Tonight we tried out Bann Thai on Austin Street. The dishes we tried were good but not outstanding. The portions were decent and the prices were average.

I really wanted fried Thai Spring rolls but my nagging conscience had me order the steamed vegetarian version of that instead. It was tasty but took a little getting used to. The mustard and sweet sauce on top of it was a little odd but we were soon scarfing it down.

The bf ordered sweet and sour tofu. That was good although skimpier than my Pad See Yew (chicken and broad noodles). The chicken, vegetables and noodles of my dish were really tasty without being oily. And plentiful. We couldn’t finish the whole thing.

After that, we picked up carrot cake and cheese cake from Martha’s Country Bakery. I really enjoyed the cheese cake – it was very light and had a hint of lemon to it. It had a similar texture to Asian cheesecakes. Airy. The carrot cake was good too but a bit heavier and sweeter. I’d go back.

I probably wouldn’t make a special trip back to Bann Thai though. I’ll stick to Sripraphai.

Crystal’s Cafe In Jackson Heights January 14, 2008

We finally made it over to Crystal’s Cafe in Jackson Heights/Woodside.  We live only a few blocks away but somehow always seem to forget about this place.

The food was good but the service sucked.  The wait staff wasn’t attentive.  In fact, they didn’t really seem to care.  We had to ask them to order several times before they even bothered to take our actual order.  We’ve bought cakes and breads from them before and  it’s always been the same kind of treatment.  I guess, they’re ultra laid back there.

We ordered sweet sausage (longanisa), chicken bbq on sticks, fried mini egg rolls (lumpia shanghai) – all of these appetizers were so yummy.  We also tried one of the noodles (egg noodle pancit), chicken coconut stew, and stewed taro leaves.  I didn’t much care for the taro leaves.  The bf liked the chicken coconut stew a lot.  I enjoyed the noodles.

So, I would definitely eat the food at Crystal’s Cafe again but I won’t eat it in.

First Cheung Fun Cart In Elmhurst! October 22, 2007

So, there’s a new cart in Elmhurst!  It serves some traditional Hong Kong street food fare.  I  had just picked up Singas special pizza for the bf and a roast pork over rice from Rice -n- Tea- when I spied the cart.  I couldn’t stop myself from ordering the cheung fan (steamed dried shrimp rice noodle).

I asked for everything on it but hot sauce.  They put hot sauce on it.  Normally, that would make me very cranky BUT it was quite good.  They used Saracha hot sauce.  Now, that’s a first.  I’ve never had it like that before.  I don’t know any other carts that use that kind of hot sauce on it.  It made the noodles very tasty.  As for the noodles itself- they were okay- just average.  Anyway, I’m already lusting for more of these noodles- finally, there’s a decent cart that serves this fare in Jackson Heights/Elmhurst.

Next on the list for us to try is Nusara Thai Restaurant which is sandwiched somewhere between Singas & Rice -n- Tea.

Engagement Party On A Budget – The List August 28, 2007

Ok, so a total of 22 people are coming to the engagement party I’m throwing for my friend.  I have to make a budget and stick to it.  I hate doing that but I think I’ve finally gotten sick of having my generosity taken advantage of – I’m tired of people treating me like their personal ATM or sugardaddy.  I am no Rockefeller.  I’m just an ordinary working stiff.

So, the challenge is going to be throwing a nice party without going over my budget.

Good thing is- the engagement party is going to be between 2-6pm on a weekend which means- don’t have to serve a full lunch or dinner.  It’s going to be during that lovely gray area of culinary time which means – finger foods and appetizers.

So far my refreshments list includes:

3 bottles of Champagne (I’m hoping ppl won’t notice it’s budget.  No Dom.)

2 bottles of white wine

2 bottles of red wine

2 bottles of soda

Crudite

Cheese & Crackers

Fruit Salad

Pasta Salad (?)

Different Fancy & Not So Fancy Sandwiches

Italian Rainbow Cookies (Bride’s Favorite)

Red Velvet Cake (Bride’s Favorite)

Other cookies or baked goods (?)

Terra Chips

Tortilla Chips

Salsa

I was also going to try to have people bring things like photos and etc. to try to put together a scrap book for them.  I don’t know if the budget will allow it but – also wonder if I can have a pic of them blown up.

I also have to clean my apartment and get some of the bf’s artwork framed up – and find frames for some photos I have lying around.

Also want to get fresh cut flowers for that day.

I am so dead.

Sammy’s Halal Cart August 23, 2007

I got lucky today. There was no line at Sammy’s Halal cart. There’s almost always a mess of people waiting at this well loved cart. The crowds have been constant since they recently made NY Mag’s Best Carts list.

Their 2006 Vendy Award Trophy is proudly displayed on the side of the cart. The workers always seem pleasant. They seem to be good at remembering who came in what order as to keep the ordering fair.

So, I ordered my usual chicken “sandwich” with white sauce. All the other sauces are HOT. I can’t handle any of them. The chopped chicken comes in a fluffy white pita. For the beau I ordered his usual lamb platter. He likes the lamb at Sammy’s b/c he says it’s never too greasy like most other carts make it.

So, the platters are $4.99 – they come with the meat (lamb or chicken), rice, and veggies (I think it’s just lettuce). For $5,99, you can get a combo meat platter. But I think the best deal is the one Sammy’s doesn’t list… order a regular platter but ask for an add on of pita & a can of soda… the total cost for that is $5.99. So you’re paying only a dollar extra for a soda and a toasted pita. Yum.

Btw, I read “Skinny Bitch” and it scared the hell out of me for a few days. I wouldn’t eat any meat. I dunno… I think about becoming a vegetarian or a vegan sometimes… there’s such a strong case for it- healthwise and etc. But damn, I do love my hotdogs and meatballs and bbqs. We’ll see I guess.

I’m reading “End of Mr. Y” right now and I love it so far.

Poor & Lazy Man’s Dinner – Garlicky Spaghetti August 20, 2007

What do you do when you haven’t gone grocery shopping in over two weeks?

You make spaghetti.

I sauteed 6 chopped clovers of garlic in olive oil until they were brown.  I dumped a jar of marinara sauce in there- liberally seasoned the sauce mixture with Spike Gourmet seasoning.

Fished out of the pot, the spaghetti (about half a box) I cooked and drained it well- stirred a pat of butter into there- coating all the strands as best I can.  I have it in my head that butter makes the sauce stick to the spaghetti better.

Combine the sauce with the spaghetti.  It’s damn good.  And it cost like $2 bucks.

Arunee Thai August 8, 2007

We’re too lazy to cook tonight. So, we’re going to go eat at one of our favorite neighborhood restaurants, Arunee Thai.

It’s a cozy restaurant with a nice waitstaff. Some of the standouts there are the pad thai, pineapple fried rice, chicken mussaman, the soft shell crab, and the satay appetizers.

Heh, the bf used to have a crush on one of the waitresses there. Eye candy.

37-68 79th St
Jackson Heights, NY 11372

(718) 205-5559

Our Take On Chinese Dinner August 7, 2007

We cooked tonight. We did our take on Chinese food that my grandmother used to cook for me. I miss her.

Groceries out here in Jackson Heights are so much cheaper than in Midtown! I went to the HK supermarket in Elmhurst. I picked up napa, yau choy, 1 lb of ground pork, 25 pieces of chicken wings, a 2 lb sea bass, three heads of garlic, one chunk of ginger, scallions, soy sauce, oyster sauce, ribs sauce, a box of tofu and an onion for twenty one bucks.

It was just the bf and I for dinner tonight so we didn’t cook everything. We made steamed sea bass, tofu & pork, bbq’d chicken wings, yau choy and brown rice. The bf and I work well together in the kitchen. I joke that he’s my sous chef but I think we both know that I’m his.

Here’s a sort of how to – to the meal we made tonight.

1. Steamed Sea Bass

We over steamed this. Online we found that it said to steam a 1 & 1/2 lb sea bass for approximately 15 mins or until the meat is firm. I think my aunts at home definitely don’t even steam it for that long. I think the general rule of thumb is to let it cook til the meat is white and flaky.

The sauce is the best part to the steamed sea bass. Unfortunately I can’t tell you exact measurements b/c I just do what my aunts do- splish and splash haphazardly.

For the sauce, you will need soy sauce, oil (we used olive but my aunts use canola), ginger, scallions. All you have to do is heat all the ingredients together. I heat the oil first then quick cook the ginger & scallions – I then, add the soy sauce. But I don’t think there’s a hard rule to how you do it. You pour this sauce over your plated steamed fish i.e. after your fish is done steaming.

2 . Tofu & Ground Pork

I guess this is my ghetto version of Mao Pao Tofu. The bf doesn’t eat spicy so- we just made this plain.

We minced a ton of garlic in one of those small psuedo Magic Bullet blenders for this. After browning the garlic in oil, we added ground pork ( I just used a handful from my 1 lb chunk) to the pan. We seasoned the pork with sesame oil and some gourmet Spike seasoning.

After the pork is cooked, we added little cubes of the regular tofu to it. (Again, we didn’t use the full box- as it’s just two of us). To the mixture we liberally added soy sauce, oyster sauce, and water. We let the combo cook until the tofu was cooked to our liking. I think I overdid it a little with the soy sauce b/c it was a teensy bit too salty.

3. Bbq’d Chicken Wings

Okay, this is a hack job of a dish. I basically marinated the chicken wings in this rib sauce I found. It came out okay but I wish I could have found my Char Siu Sauce.

The way I usually make it is to marinate the wings in a blend of Char Siu Sauce, soy sauce and water. They come out really tasty.

I bake the wings at approximately 325 degrees to begin with and then just keep my eye on them from burning. If necessary, I turn up or down the temp.

4. Yau Choy

One of the easiest Chinese vegetable dishes to make. After cleaning the veggies, all you have to do is quick boil them. Just for a couple of minutes so that they’re not raw. After draining them- you just pour a little bit of oyster sauce over it.

All of it was really simple to make. And it all came out pretty tasty.

Nike Half-Marathon August 6, 2007

The bf and a friend ran in the Nike Half Marathon today. I dragged myself out of bed at 7 am to hopefully get a glimpse of them at the last cheering point. It was a weird experience. I’m not usually a sentimental person- but seeing the marathoners pass and hearing the sideline cheerers- made me a little teary eyed. I mean, it’s a huge feat – to run 13 miles?! All these people pushing their bodies to go, go, go!

I can’t do it. Well, not yet. I was inspired by all the runners today. And esp. by the beau. He’s crazy though- he only started training in the past three weeks. But he did awesome.

After that I took the marathoners out for a breakfast for champions at Elvie’s. Elvie’s serves Filipino fare. I had longanisa (yummy sausage), fruit salad (a fruit ambrosia), pancit (rice noodles) and pork sinagog (a vinegary soup). It was all pretty good. The pancit was a little flavorless but usually it’s pretty tasty. I could have probably flavored it up a bit with hot sauce but I was super lazy today. Reaching across the table to grab the hot sauce would have expended too much energy.

I was hoping to have some of their bbq’d chicken wings and lumpia shanghai (eggrolls!) but they weren’t ready yet.

I know why the bf is exhausted but why am I so tired? I must have sympathetic marathoner’s fatigue.

Elvie’s turo-turo
214 1st Ave, New York 10009
Btwn 12th & 13th St

Daily Soup, Tossed Salads, Snicker, and Snickers August 2, 2007

Lunch today was a big salad from Daily Soup. My coworkers kept commenting on how big the bowl was. That comment later morphed into “my, what big balls you have”. And that later launched a discussion about “brown eyes”. I don’t know- sometimes my team gets too much sugar into their systems.

(If you have no idea what I’m talking about- congratulations- you’re a better person than I am.)

Anyway, Daily Soup is fantastic. They toss salads. (Not a snicker, please.) You choose your own ingredients and they toss (cough) it for you.

I had a mixed green salad with endamame, cubes of tofu, cheddar cheese, and tomatoes – all coated with a roasted garlic dressing. The dressing’s base was olive oil – not creamy.

I wanted to get a cup of Italian Wedding Soup too BUT they were out of it. That’s my favorite soup from there. They were also the first place that I ever went to that sold Lion Bars. Lion Bars are possibly the best candy bars in the world. They’re like a cross between a Snicker’s bar and a Kit Kat I think. It’s possibly the best thing out of the UK besides scones + clotted cream and shepherd’s pie. Oh and maybe TopShop.

Btw, one day I will remember to take photos of things- although I’m more literal than visual.