NYC Tastes

Sunday of 4th of July weekend felt like a magical snow day of sorts to me.  We had zero obligations, the city was completely empty and there was no work the following day. It seemed like the perfect opportunity to take Mr. T to lunch at one of my favorite Korean spots Danji.   I'll admit maybe somewhere in our area may have been a better choice. Both of us had a few too many beers the night before and traveling up to the westside didn't exactly seem like fun but I was determined.  I really, really wanted to eat at Danji.  So I dragged Mr. T off the couch and onto the excruciating hot train up to Hell's Kitchen; through all of the tourists and sailors in Times Square finally to Danji where we found the grate pulled shut and lights off.  CLOSED! I couldn't' believe it! I had even checked the website to make sure they were open however in my holiday weekend excitement I kept thinking it was Saturday not Sunday and yeah...we wer...

We all know how great the ramen at Ippudo is, but their seasonal specialties are just as wonderful.  Last visit it was the Chilean Sea Bass Umani that caught my eye.  This dish was absolutely gorgeous with a nice moist piece of Sea Bass along side a square of silken tofu.  I loved the play on textures between the two.  The entire dish was covered in a sweet dashi sauce laced with slivers of jalapeno and daikon.  I know the ramen always takes center stage at Ippudo, but dishes like this should really get a mention.  The sweet and spicy flavors alone were stunning. The cocktails at Ippudo are never quite up to the food standards but at least they keep it interesting.  Where else can you order a grapefruit shochu and it arrive as a "Do It Yourself" drink?   Ippudo

Of course we all know the Ramen at Ippudo is almost life changing.  The lines stretch around the block at all hours of the day for those hungry and eagerly awaiting their bowl of noodles.  But what about the other menu items.  You really shouldn't leave without trying the Hirata Buns. The squishy steamed buns are chock full of pork and covered in a delectable spicy sauce.  The Hamachi Gom-Shoyu is no joke either Incredibly fresh Yellowtail Shashimi tossed in a light sesame soy sauce and garnished with a little diced jalapeno.  It's a great light dish for a hot summer day that still has a little bit of kick . Only order a cocktail if you like it strong.  My Bloody Mary had so much liquor inside my throat was on fire.   I'll be sticking with a cold refreshing beer next visit for sure. Ippudo

It’s been almost a year since we’ve stopped into Mr. T’s favorite joint. It seems like every time we walk by Ippudo the line is out the door and we’re too hungry to wait. When we showed up last Thursday the line was no different but we decided to wait it out. We got a beer at the bar and the exact second we finished it our name was called. Perfect Timing! We decided to begin with an order of Stuffed Chicken Wings. Watch out if you order these because they are so hot the roof of my mouth was burned for a week. The skin was nice and crispy but there was almost a little too much ground pork inside. It was a tasty start but nothing compared to the deliciousness that was to follow. I ordered one of the daily specials a Washugyu Tataki with Potato Salad. Flash Seared Strips of Beef with wasabi on top, ginger in the middle and ponzu sauce on the Bottom. This dish was like picnic on a plate! I loved everything about it!! The Potato Salad could have been called Egg Salad beca...

It's starting to get chilly once again on Tuesday so we decided to go out and get a big bowl of some RAMEN!!! Ippudo is a new place that opened this summer near St. Marks place. It's always very crowded whenever I walk by so I was a little nervous we would have a long wait. We decided to go early and at about 5:30 we walked inside and got a seat right away. Ippudo has a nice airy but sleek interior. It was a lot more spacious from the inside than I had imagined. We looked at the menu and realized we both wanted to order the same exact things we had at Momofuku the week before! We like what we like! Because of that, we ended up comparing each thing with Momofuku. It's kind of impossible not to when something is so fresh in your mind. Anyway, we decided to start with some steamed pork buns. The two buns came out looking a little bigger than Momofuku's but quite similar in style. The pork inside was thinly sliced and came topped with lettuce and mayonnaise. I thought the m...