Goodies First

Mar 23

Mug’s Ale House

Mug's is weird because it exists with such little fanfare, kind of like nearby Teddy's. I'd almost forgotten about Mug's, myself, until I was at relatively nearby Western Beef on a weeknight and dying for a cheeseburger. Yes, there's the respectable DuMont Burger, but I wasn't feeling up to the woody, zen smallness of the whole thing. I wanted noise, beer and space. The kind of place you should be able to smoke in, but can't.

I hadn't been to Mug's in nearly eight years, which is a frightening fact. Not because the establishment is any great shakes, but because Mug's is where the near strangers I stayed with when I first moved to NYC used to hang out (which seems odd now). I associate it with the scared but eager greenhorn me, which honestly doesn't feel like eight years ago. Now I'm more scared and anxious and jaded, and strangely, the only person who's remained in the city from that crew of people. I don't know if that's because I'm resilient or dumb.

But the food…yes, it was fine. No brioche or gruyere or parsley sprinkled frites. The burger and fries are standard burger and fries, just what I'd been craving. Maybe I'll go back again in another eight years, if I'm still in NYC when I'm 41. Jesus, just typing that number makes me feel nervous. See you in 2014, Mug's.

Mug's Ale House * 125 Bedford Ave., Brooklyn, NY

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Mar 21

Bronx Cheer(less)

Bronx Apparently, the boomlet of chains popping up in the Bronx isn't making everyone happy. I can't honestly speak about the independent retailers that the newcomers might be displacing because Bronx knowledge isn't my strength. I go up to Queens, down to Staten Island and over to New Jersey, but never ever hit Westchester or the path from upper Manhattan through the Bronx. It's just not on my way to anything (well, Stew Leonard's, but only once).

I think it's odd when people worry about glut while they're still amenity starved. I've lived in neighborhoods where the only chains were uninspiring fast food hawkers like KFC, Subway and Burger King. No Laundromats, banks, drug stores or substantial grocery stores. Residents would've killed for a crappy C-Town or CVS. Or at least, I would've.

Now Brooklyn, they know how to embrace a chain store. Target number three is on Flatbush's horizon. And what's this about a Legal Seafood on site? Highbrow.

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Mar 18

Saigon Banh Mi So 1

I went a little sandwich crazy this Saturday. In less than thirty minutes I purchased a bocadillo from Despaña and two banh mi from this place. It was a bready Broome St. kind of afternoon.

Living in Sunset Park for a decent spell, Ba Xuyen has always been my go to spot. I think I've only tried So 1 once or twice, and years ago. I'd forgotten how many choices they had and how vegetarian friendly (lots of fake meat, gluten stuff) their banh mis can be. I was intrigued by a handwritten sign advertising chicken curry banh mi, but went with the classic, which is almost always a #1.

It's hard not to compare the Brooklyn and Manhattan sandwiches. Both are from the upper echelon of Saigon subs, but I'm partial to the Sunset Park style. I could be totally wrong, but Ba Xuyen's bread seems crispier, while So 1 has a softer style, more like an Italian roll. So 1 also uses more sausage, which I think is liberally laced with five-spice powder. Not a bad flavor, but it gives the sandwich an overall Chinese-y flair.

Like when I was in Hong Kong, certain stores just smelled Chinese, which I finally deduced meant five-spice powder to my senses. Much of Malaysia smelled, well, Malaysian. You'd be in a mall, walk past a store and get a whiff of Malaysia that I ultimately narrowed down to being toasted shrimp paste. I'm not sure what Vietnamese smells like–maybe lemongrass? Fish sauce, too, I guess. Nuoc cham?

Maybe it was just luck of the draw, but this banh mi had cilantro that was all stem, no leaf. I hate to admit that I have a stem phobia because it's very childish. But I've gotten much better, now I'll eat romaine no problem when ten years ago I'd nibble around the ribs. I'm a low maintenance eater, I swear, but there's something unsettling about biting into a wad of stems, not severing them neatly with your incisors, and then pulling the thin green stalks out of the sandwich with your mouth as you start to put the sandwich down.

Despite all my nitpicking, So1 still makes one of the better banh mis in Manhattan. If only the much revered banh mi would start popping up in midtown, all my problems would be solved. But you know they'd cost $7 and somehow manage to be pressed like a panini. (3/18/06)

Saigon Banh Mi So 1 * 369 Broome St., New York, NY

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Mar 18

Despaña

I totally went nuts at Despaña. For years (ok, maybe one year), I've had intentions of heading out to the Jackson Heights wholesale location. I go to Jackson Heights pretty frequently, the problem was, if I'm correct, that their open to the public hours were only 9am-1pm on Saturdays. I can never get it together that early on weekends. It's not like I ever make it to Nolita, Soho, or wherever you call Broome and Lafayette streets, either, though I did have business in the neighborhood twice this week (haircut and blue food dye)

My goal was to spend no more than $40 on a supplementary birthday present, but when all was said and done I'd blown close to $100. It happens. I bought, lomo, cabrales, Manchego, squid ink, saffron, membrillo, both hot and sweet paprika, Valencian rice, sherry vinegar, chorizo, morcilla and a bocadillo.

Most importantly (for Shovel Time's purposes), the bocadillo. It's strange because during my 9-6 Monday through Friday life I would never spend $7.50 for a sandwich because I'm cheap. But on the weekend that's more than fair for high quality ingredients. The bread comes from Sullivan Street Bakery, and the fillings are simple, no more than three ingredients per sandwich. I was mesmerized by all of the choices, but ended up choosing the el quijote: lomo embuchado i.e. dry cured pork loin, Manchego and membrillo spread. The counter guy commented "women always order that one." Well, I love pork and sweets together (don't get me started on Hawaiian pizza), I guess I'm a stereotype.

Despaña * 408 Broome St., New York, NY

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Mar 17

Thank You, Internets

Traderjoesback_2 Phew, I knew if I waited long enough someone would've gone nuts with Union Square Trader Joe's Flickr sets, and save me the trauma. (I really like how the world is evolving into a place where leaving the house is totally unnecessary. Having bit of a child star fetish I wanted to see Mac Culkin reading his literary masterpiece on Monday, but couldn't get it together. As it turns out, I didn't have to because video of the event turned up on YouTube. I still don't quite get why YouTube is the new hotness, but I'm slowly warming up to it).

I considered joining in the opening day mayhem, but you know, having a job tends to cramp one's moblogging style. And besides, I'm still reeling from the Atlantic Center Target debut from a year and a half ago.

If I'm not too bleary tomorrow, I might just check out TJ's day after carnage.

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Mar 17

Dokebi

There's nothing Irish about Korean bbq, but then there's nothing Korean about Echo and the Bunnymen, either. Why not spend St. Patrick's Day evening grilling meat, getting drunk on Sapporo and sake and listening to late '80s alternative hits?

For no reason at all, I seem to be dining in Williamsburg with alarming frequency lately. The food scene isn't the most impressive. It's like Portland in the sense that there are lots of thrifty vegetarians with low expectations who throw it off for anyone seeking exquisiteness or authenticity (fish sauce-less Thai food with brown rice is wrong beyond words). But to be honest, Korean and Japanese cuisine aren't my strengths, so I can only be open minded.

So yeah, the food was perfectly satisfying. I tried japchae (which was amusingly described on the menu as Korean pad thai. Has pad thai become shorthand for stir-fried noodles?), seafood scallion pancake, kalbi, pork and assorted mushrooms and vegetables for grilling (three single servings–choices come single or double with a slight discount) and the kim chee sampler (cabbage, radish, cucumber) but you don't really need it because you do get panchan like pickled bean sprouts and a few other little dishes.

There aren't a lot of places (if any) in Brooklyn where you can do the table top Korean barbecuing (there's an odd little shabu shabu joint in Sunset Park, though) so it's definitely filling a void. As an added bonus, you can get pitchers of beer and pretend you're at a suburban pizza parlor. Then you can head down the street to Tainted Lady Lounge and try to figure out why kids are shamelessly dressed like Tennenbaum tennis players complete with terry cloth headbands. Good times.

Dokebi * 199 Grand St., Brooklyn, NY * 125 Bedford Ave., Brooklyn, NY

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Mar 17

What a Sham

Shake

I've always been overly enamored with unnaturally colored food, particularly green things, simply because I think the shades are pretty. Spinach is tasty enough but its hue is hardly swoon-inducing. Chocolate chip mint ice cream? Now that's a nice eye-pleasing item. Don't even get me started on the beauty of grasshopper pie.

When I was wee, I'd make an annual fuss about wanting a Shamrock Shake (they also had Shamrock Sundaes, if you recall), which was indulged at least a couple of times. It's funny because I'm just now getting around to reading Fast Food Nation (that's me, ahead of the curve) and just read a bit about marketing fast food to toddlers in an effort to snare customers for life. I was trying to recall if I ever felt little kid urges for fast food, but the only advertising that definitely worked on me was the Shamrock Shake promotion. I've always been a sucker for limited editions.

But really, that had more to do with my passion for the color green (it's been my favorite color since birth, my family knows that, and I've always planned on having a green wedding dress when and if that day comes, and then this past weekend my mom mentioned that my younger sister who's getting married for the second time this summer was having a green wedding dress made. We totally have a friendly relationship despite living in different countries and rarely seeing each other, but that seriously pissed me off. In fact, it's making my blood boil this very second as I recount it in type) than necessarily wanting to eat at McDonald's.

The tragedy is that I hate mint (I've grown to love fresh mint in savory dishes–but as a sweet flavor component it just doesn't work for me) so my parents would actually order me a coveted shake and then I would get grossed out after first couple sips. I know this happened on more than one occasion, and I'm surprised now looking back, that it was even tolerated. That's why I don't have kids, finicky tots would make me lose my shit.

I?m sure it's been at least 25 years since last trying a Shamrock Shake. It's doubtful that I'd truly enjoy one as an adult, but I would like to be able to at least see one. NYC is about crushing dreams, so their big city McDonald's franchises don't sell them. I bet if you asked a Brooklyn counter person what a shamrock was, they wouldn't even know. Not that I would try that sort of buffoonery–I'm just saying.

I'm not alone in my quest:
Bring Back the Shamrock Shake
X-Entertainment

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Mar 13

MeTube

I wouldn't blame anyone for not noticing, but astute readers might've observed that this site isn't what it used to be. I'm in the process of merging together my newish Goodies First and my oldie but a goodie Project Me into one bonanza of a self-indulgent blog. It just started seeming silly to keep them separate because essentially food is me (literally, my torso’s a bratwurst and my appendages are ham hocks). Talking about myself and talking about edible topics are too intertwined. 2006 is all about streamlining and embracing change.

But using blog software as opposed to '90s hand coding is about as modern as I get. Don't expect any podcasts, moblogging, or copious links to YouTube videos (did I like miss the memo about mandatory YouTube mentions? It seems that in the past month the entire universe has gone nuts for this shit. Last year I was similarly baffled by Flickr mania) any time soon.

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Mar 10

Blogging for the Big Guns

It is things like this that make me wonder about working in corporate PR (for the record, I'm a librarian who has little-to-zero influence over campaigns). But then, I'm overly sensitive about things that barely matter.

Wal-Mart, and I'm sure plenty of other companies, have been targeting sympathetic bloggers and sending them pro-Wal-Mart tidbits, which inevitably get posted as opinion. It's one thing for a corporation to deflect poor public opinion with upbeat propaganda–that's expected–but the general public parroting spoon fed messages is almost scarier.

But I guess many would argue that this is what mainstream media has been doing for ages.

A Word to the Wise [Richard Edelman]
Wal-Mart Bloggers Exposed! [Holmes Report Blog]
Does the 'P' in 'PR' stand for 'press' or 'public'? [BuzzMachine]
4 Sides of the Story, Pt. 1 [Crazy Politico's Rantings]

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Mar 10

Trader Victory?

I didn't end up getting to go to the nearest Trader Vic's in Chicago during President's Day weekend like I had wished (though I did have a perfectly charming meal that Sunday at Blue Hill at Stone Barns). Sometimes dreams just don't come true.

Until I saw these magical words Trader Vic's to resume U.S., foreign expansion. Sweet Jesus! Ah, but still no deal. The east coast appears to be left out of this brilliant plan with locations slated for decided hotspots like, er, Bellevue, Washington and Qatar. Neither of which are on my must-visit list.

Those "European-inflected signature creations," like the elusive crab Rangoon, are just going to have to wait until I can make it to the Northwest (likely) or Middle East (not so much).

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Mug’s Ale House

Bronx Cheer(less)

Saigon Banh Mi So 1

Despaña

Thank You, Internets

Dokebi

What a Sham

MeTube

Blogging for the Big Guns

Trader Victory?

Featured

Occasional Instagramming

Yes, it’s come to this

My Other Blogs

What?

The Past Will Haunt You

Pigeonholing 101