Skip to content

Posts tagged ‘Restauranting’

Special Delivery

I’m aware of the smattering of avant-garde chefs practicing their craft in America, though I’ve only dined at WD-50. The other restaurants like Minibar in D.C., and Alinea and Moto, both in Chicago, just aren’t in cities I ever visit. I enjoyed playful tweaks at WD-50 like deep frying cubes of mayonnaise, but it’s certainly not over the top like this bit I just read in Rolling Stone (lord, I can’t stand Rolling Stone and just seeing it in my building’s lobby makes me think even less of the twentysomething subscriber upstairs with a baby and SUV. But I get it at work) about Homaro Cantu, the chef at Moto.

“We did this one dish we called ‘The World on Time’ – that’s the FedEx tag line,” Cantu recalls. “We dressed a guy up in a FedEx uniform. He’d go up to a table and be like, “’Excuse me, Ms. So and So, could you please sign for this package?’ She opens up the box, and it’s packaging material, but actually flavored like popcorn. Popcorn packaging!"

Is that gay? Like I would love to date someone who’d come up with scenarios like that (forget role playing games in the bedroom—I’d much prefer these antics in the dining room), but it’s fantastical and funny that I don’t imagine it springing from the mind of a straight guy. Yes, I love stereotyping…and food that doesn’t look like food.

Dim Sum Redux

New York City does all right in the food department, but sometimes I long for the west coast. Daly City, CA has it all: In-N-Out Burger, Filipino chain restaurants and Koi Palace, which I’ve heard has some of the best dim sum in the U.S. Koi Palace also has pretty dim sum pictures and a seriously comprehensive menu. (Now that I think about it, I have family in Daly City that I haven’t seen in over twenty years, but it’s doubtful they partake in the multitude of Asian goodies available.)

Despite loving dim sum, it’s very rare that I actually get out and eat any. It might have something to with not possessing the breakfast/brunch gene. Weekends are for sleeping in, it takes effort to transform into an early bird eater (though I more than make up for it throughout the day). My most recent foray into the realm of rolling carts and tiny treats was at World Tong, which is currently one of the better NYC choices. Don’t be scared of Bensonhurst.