Bionic Bites » Alphabet City

Sweet & Semi-Scary at Johnny Air Mart – NYC

bionicgrrrl — Fri, 30 Jul 2010 21:56:56 +0000

[NOTE: Semi-scary photo after the jump. Proceed with caution.]

Last weekend it was crazy hot, ninety-eight mother-f*cking degrees hot. So hot that when the power went out in my apartment and the building manager questioned why I had two air conditioners, I went berserk. It wasn’t a meltdown, it was a complete blaze-up. I don’t even know how I managed. I was weak from barely eating for three days (I was sick, not dieting god-forbid), but somehow all of a sudden I was ready to open a can of whoop-ass. Thinking back, I realize I need to take a minute or two before reacting sometimes. The poor guy was just trying to figure out what happened, but the only thing running through my head at that moment was, ‘This is America, I can have two air conditioners if I want!”

In any case, it won’t be as hot as heck this weekend, but a cool icy Halo-Halo ($4.50) from Johnny Air Mart will still hit the spot. The halo-halo at Johnny Air Mart is a milky concoction — more like a very icy frappé than shaved ice — full of soft beans (garbanzo and red mung beans), young coconut strips, caramelized diced plantains, chewy sugar palm fruit (kaong), and jelly-like nata de coco. It’s a gamut of textures. However, for me, the best part was the smooth square of flan swimming on top. I love Taiwanese and Korean shaved ice, but given the choice, why not have shaved ice with flan?! It just seems silly without it. Flan, where have you been my entire shaved icy life?

For those more adventurous, Johnny Air Mart also sells balut ($1.50), fertilized duck eggs. The eggs are sold uncooked, so you’ll have to cook it before eating it. At home, I boiled the balut for twenty minutes (as instructed at the store), and then gently cracked open the egg. I heard the liquid inside shouldn’t be wasted, so I drank that first. It was a bit like soup, a rich poultry soup without the oil. So far it wasn’t scary. Nothing too odd.. and then I saw the baby duck head and foot. The foot looked like a little clenched fist. Oh my. It was beginning to get scary, but I persevered and ate the tiny chick head first with a little salt. The body plus clenched foot I ate shortly after. It tasted pretty good. As you can expect, it tasted like egg and duck, but with a slight funky liver taste. I was expecting some crunch from the bones or beak, but everything was soft, except a hard white cartilage-like segment which I threw out. I hear it’s good for you because it’s all calcium, but it was quite tasteless, and I decided I get enough calcium from my daily multi-vitamin, thank you very much.

Would I eat it again? If served to me, why not? And if I ever find myself in the Philippines, I would definitely want to try it from a street vendor, but for now, I’m not in a mad rush to have any more. With halo-halo, that’s another story.

Johnny Air Mart
214 Avenue A (b/n 13th & 14th St; map)
NY, NY 10009
212-387-7080

Blogiversary Giveaway – NYC

bionicgrrrl — Fri, 23 Jul 2010 20:25:11 +0000

As usual, my blogiversary post is late, but by now you should expect it. It’s become tradition. In any case, Bionic Bites turned two this week, and what better way to celebrate than to have a giveaway to thank all my loyal readers. Thank you for all your wonderful comments, tweets, and likes! Honestly, if it weren’t for you guys, I wouldn’t have kept this little blog going for so long.

As a thank you, I’m giving away a bottle of Esperanto Spiced Oil from Esperanto. If you’re not familiar with Esperanto, it’s a great local spot in Alphabet City specializing in Brazilian and South American cuisine. They serve an incredibly indulgent moqueca that I adore, but the place is really known for the spiced oil that they serve with their bread. The oil is a blend of olive oil, canola oil, fennel seeds, cumin seeds, peppercorn, red pepper flakes, salt, and garlic. It has hint of heat, and a nice nutty depth from the fennel and cumin seeds. To put it simply, it’s completely addictive. The last time I was there, David and I went through two baskets of bread, and with the remaining oil, we poured it all over our fried calamari. Probably not a smart move, but certainly delicious.

I notice the spiced oil they sell is slightly more mellow than their restaurant version, but I have a feeling that’s because it’s freshly bottled. A little more time, and I’m sure the oil will fully develop.

To win the Esperanto Spiced Oil, write in the comments below how you would use the oil. Dipping is great, but I imagine it would work beautifully in a marinade or simple sauté. I’ll be picking one lucky person at random. Giveaway ends Wednesday (July 28, 2010) at noon. U.S. entrants only. Good luck and thank you again for reading!

Update (7/28/2010): Jenny is the winner! Congratulations Jenny, and thanks everyone for participating. And remember, you can buy the spiced oil at Esperanto or online.

Esperanto
145 Avenue C (at 9th St; map)
New York, NY 10009
212-505-6559

Lechón Reminder & Fried Squid at Johnny Air Mart – NYC

bionicgrrrl — Sat, 26 Jun 2010 05:44:26 +0000

Just a reminder, lechón is happening today at Johnny Air Mart. It usually starts at 11:10am, but I was told yesterday sometimes the lechón is late. So get there around 11:10am to 12pm for lip-smacking porcine goodness, they run out within a few hours.

And while you’re there, check out the Fried Dried Squid ($4.50 for a small aluminum container) they sell at the counter. (People who “like” Bionic Bites on Facebook already got a heads-up on this one.) If you like dried seafood, you’ll love this. It tastes like charcoal grilled squid in chip form. Salty, slightly bitter, and hella’ crunchy, it’s great with beer. However, one caveat: It stinks. Not a good pre-date snack. Eat it alone or with other like-minded folks. Also, if you don’t finish it, it’s a good idea to transfer it to an air-tight container. I ate half and left it out in the same container it came in and for days my boyfriend complained about a strange odor emanating from the apartment. I had my mom take it back to Jersey when she came to visit just to appease him.

Also, I’ll be in glorious sunny Hawaii next week. While there, I’ll be posting from Hawaii on past New York eats (Hawaii posts will have to wait until I return!), but for immediate news about my Hawaii fooding adventures, visit me on Facebook. (It’s like Bionic Bites Lite.) So if you haven’t liked Bionic Bites on Facebook yet, what are you waiting for?! Twitterheads can also visit me on Twitter.

Johnny Air Mart
214 Avenue A (b/n 13th & 14th St; map)
NY, NY 10009
212-387-7080

Lechón at Johnny Air Mart – NYC

bionicgrrrl — Tue, 15 Jun 2010 04:01:34 +0000

A few weeks ago, Eating in Translation tweeted that Johnny Air Mart would start having roast pig on Fridays. The following Friday I was there, immediately after work. Unfortunately, they had grilled pork skewers but roast pig was nowhere to be found. It turns out Johnny Air Mart has lechón (roast suckling pig) every other Saturday (starting at 11:10am) and I just missed it the previous Saturday. I would have to wait another week.

The next weekend, as soon as I woke up, I put on my clothes and told Alvin (David’s cousin who was visiting from out-of-town) that I was going out for roast pig. Having stayed with us before, he didn’t seem surprised.

Shortly after, I returned with half a pound of lechón ($13.99/lb.) and we dug in. The meat was insanely tender, slightly sticky, and moist. People who complain that pork is tough never had lechón. Flavor-wise, it was subtle, but far from bland. The man carving up the little piggy made a point of telling me the pigs are always cooked over charcoal, never in the oven. According to him, if a pig is roasted in the oven, only the outside ends up tasting good. Not sure if this was the reason why, but the meat was indeed porkalicious throughout. Served on the side was a tangy lechón sauce for dipping. Although made of liver, it wasn’t very heavy and cut the richness of the pork. I was told the sauce is good with anything greasy and/or fried. However, the best part about the lechón was the sweet crackly pieces of amber skin. It was like pork candy. Next time I’ll be buying a full pound just for the extra skin.

I also bought a few other goodies to try out. Puto, a squishy steamed rice cake, looked similar to my favorite Korean rice cake made with alcohol (jeung pyun, 증편), but was more bready without the sour alcoholic taste.

I wanted the chicken empanadas ($1 each) to be good, but unfortunately, the one I got was dry and crumbly, inside and out.

In contrast, the turrón ($2.50 for 3), far from disappointed. It’s a spring roll stuffed with a halved plantain (referred to as a banana at the store, but is actually made with a plantain), coated with sugar, and fried. Caramelized sugar on anything fried never hurts, especially crunchy plantain spring rolls. I’m currently quite obsessed with these little guys. So far I’ve gotten them two weeks in a row, and each time they were so good I tried feeding them to the people around me. I like to share the deliciousness. So far no success. David doesn’t like anything remotely banana-like, and Alvin seemed genuinely scared by my freakish turrón excitement.

Lechón will be available again next week. Get there early. They sell out in a few hours. But if you like to sleep in, don’t fret my fellow lazy bastards. On a recent turrón run, I found out you can reserve a pound of lechón if you let them know in advance. Sometimes it pays to be a freak.

Johnny Air Mart
214 Avenue A (b/n 13th & 14th St; map)
NY, NY 10009
212-387-7080

Moving to the East Village – NYC

bionicgrrrl — Thu, 08 Apr 2010 16:30:05 +0000

For those who were interested in my apartment hunt, I have great news. I finally found an apartment, and I’ll be calling the East Village home at least for the next two years. I’ll miss the Lower East Side and the close proximity to Chinatown (I did a late night walk through Chinatown yesterday and it was indeed very sad), but I’m consoled by my new delicious neighbors: Porchetta, Luke’s Lobster, Momofuku, Ippudo, and Veloce Pizzeria. (The pizza part I’m especially excited about. Nights when I craved pizza, it was torturous when all my favorite pizzerias refused to deliver below Houston. I will be pizza-less no more!) The next two years should be quite tasty.

Cheeseburger Brunch at Royale – NYC

bionicgrrrl — Wed, 07 Apr 2010 03:53:49 +0000

In case you haven’t noticed, Bionic Bites has been very East Village-centric the past few weeks. The reason: I’m sick of living in my cramped run-down LES apartment and have been spending a lot of time in the East Village apartment hunting. (I love the LES, but for the same price, I can get more square footage in the East Village.) Two Saturdays ago, after seeing a gorgeous but way too expensive apartment, David and I wandered into Royale looking for brunch. It was only after we were seated we noticed the place was more of a bar than a restaurant, and the menu was limited to burgers and sandwiches. No biggie, we ordered two burgers, onion rings, housemade chips, and a Bloody Mary for me. As long as a Bloody Mary’s involved, it’s brunch to me.

The Royale with Cheese ($7.50) is a broiled seventy-five percent ground Black Angus patty with a choice of cheese (American, cheddar, Swiss, or blue cheese; I opted for cheddar), Boston Bibb lettuce, tomatoes, onions, and 3/4 Sour Pickles from the Pickle Guys on a generously seeded brioche from Tom Cat Bakery. The lettuce had seen better days, and the tomatoes I’m sure will improve when the season is upon us, but the soft patty (ordered medium-rare) was incredibly juicy with a nice beefy taste. More exterior char would have been appreciated, but as-is it was a fine burger.

The Housemade Chips & Dip ($5) consisted of a basket of dense chips with a considerable crunch and a thick onion dip which could have been creamier. However, the crunchy chips — seasoned with coarse salt and pepper — were great on their own and I ate them straight sans dip.

The Onion Rings ($3.50), on the other hand, were a hot soggy mess sitting in a pool of grease. Skip the rings and enjoy the chips instead.

At five dollars, the Bloody Mary‘s strong point was its price. Taste-wise, it was average; not one to make a trip out for, but good enough for my morning weekend fix.

Not exactly a brunch destination, but for those who like moist fatty cheeseburgers, Royale more than works in a pinch. The only caveat: Royale doesn’t serve coffee. So grab one beforehand, or order two Bloody Marys. You’ll be sure to get a buzz one way or the other.

Royale
157 Avenue C (betw 9th & 10th St; map)
New York, NY 10009
212-254-6600

Ignoring the Church Bells at Zum Schneider – NYC

bionicgrrrl — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 19:18:59 +0000

My latest post, Raising the Bar: Ignoring the Church Bells at Zum Schneider, is now up on Serious Eats: New York. Read it and show me some love. Beer and sausage is involved.

Fried Chicken Brunch at Back Forty – NYC

bionicgrrrl — Thu, 08 Jan 2009 17:16:42 +0000

The first time I ever tried Chicken and Waffles was at Ressie Mae’s when they opened a midtown location last year. Never having tried the combo of chicken and waffles, I eagerly rushed over one day after reading Zach’s post on Midtown Lunch. Unfortunately, the experience was a bomb (soggy chicken and waffles), and I never went back. Ressie Mae’s closed a few months later.

Last Sunday, almost one year later, I was on the search for a new brunch spot with something other than eggs benedict, and I came upon Back Forty’s menu featuring Chicken and Waffles. I was jonesing for some fried chicken anyway (although I can’t say there is a time when I’m not), so I grabbed David and we were off.

I began the brunch, as I normally do, with a bloody mary ($9). The menu said the bloody mary came with “pickled vegetables,” but as you can see in the picture above, there was only a vegetable, one slice of pickled fennel. Not a big deal, but in my mind I had envisioned a cornucopia of pickled vegetable. Oh well. The drink overall was very good; it had a good balance of spicy mix and vodka. I finished it to the last drop, although I always do regardless. I love me a cocktail in the morning.

Then the dishes came out. I’ll save the best for last and start with David’s order. He got the Poached Eggs and Buttermilk Biscuits, with sausage gravy. The gravy was creamy and the soft biscuits melted in my mouth. The eggs were cooked a bit too long for my taste, as I like a more undercooked yolk, but David liked it. He prefers a firmer yolk with a only a slight runny center, but I have a suspicion his preference stems from a fear of salmonella. Me, I don’t get scared by eggs. In fact, when I was little I used to eat them raw, just cracked into a cup, Rocky-style. Also, according to their website, the food at Back Forty is “responsibly sourced,” so I wouldn’t be worried anyway.

As for my order, Fried Chicken and Waffles ($14), served with maple syrup and butter, it was close to perfection. The chicken was wonderfully fried in a nutty batter that easily shattered under the force of my knife to reveal fresh juicy meat. The two thigh pieces were insanely moist, while the breast piece had the smallest hint of dryness, as white meat usually does. This was easily correctly though with a nice glug of sweet maple syrup. As for the waffles, they were a bit too soft. I like my waffles really crunchy. However, dredged in syrup and eaten with crunchy chicken bits, I was in heaven. If the waffles had been crunchy, I may never have never left the restaurant.

Expect more posts about Back Forty. I’ll be going back soon, if not this weekend. Although it may be difficult to eat something other than the fried chicken and waffles, I will try readers, I will try.

Back Forty
190 Ave B (12th St)
NYC, 10009

Burger Brunch at Zaitzeff – NYC

bionicgrrrl — Tue, 21 Oct 2008 05:25:30 +0000

1/4 LB Sirloin Burger @ Zaitzeff

Do you have bizarre cravings when you’re sick? I do. As I mentioned in my BoKy post two weeks ago, while I was sick I had an unrelenting desire to eat a Burger King Whopper. Burger cravings aren’t so odd for most people, but for me it is, because in general, I’m never burger crazy. The prospect of a new UWS Shake Shack is pretty meaningless to me (Danny who?). Sure, burgers are tasty, but in terms of fast food, I rather eat a hot dog, or better yet, a slice of pizza any day. So this is why I found it surprising two weeks ago when thoughts of juicy burgers bombarded my every drug addled thought, and rather than resist, that following Saturday, I decided to give in.

Zaitzeff first opened in the Financial District, and after much success, recently opened a location in Alphabet City. I passed by the Avenue B spot pretty often, never tempted to go in, but with my burger craving go strong and a post on A Hamurger Today titled “Zaitzeff: The Best Damn Burger I’ve Had in a Long Time,” I had to go.

As soon as David and I rounded the corner to Avenue B from Houston, I could smell the fatty beefy goodness in the air. Once inside, the heavy scent of burgers surrounded us, teasing us as we eagerly awaited our burgers. I think the kitchen wasn’t quite ready when we got there because the wait was pretty long, but finally our orders came out and we dug in.

I got the 1/4 lb. Sirloin Buger ($9.50), medium-rare, and it was incredibly juicy, soft, and ultimately delicious. The sirloin at Zaitzeff is from D’Artagnan and is ground in-house. The most notable quality though, is that the beef is grass-fed. Because of this, even though my burger could have a been slightly more rare, I liked it nonetheless because the meat tasted very earthy. In addition, I loved the slightly sweet and chewy toasted Portugese muffin (a muffin more in the style of a English muffin as opposed to the cake-like bakery kind) the burgers are all served on.

David had the 1/4 lb. Kobe Burger, medium-well ($12.50). The Kobe at Zaitzeff is actually American Wagyu from Morgan Ranch in Nebraska and not Japanese Kobe, which explains why the burger wasn’t more expensive. Regardless, similar to my Sirloin Burger, the “Kobe” Burger patty was extremely soft and juicy. In fact, even though David ordered the burger medium-well, his burger was dripping beefy juice all over his plate, even more than mine. I assume this was because of the higher fat content in the wagyu beef. However, I still preferred my burger because the Kobe lacked the rich grassiness of the Sirloin. David disagreed though, claiming my burger tasted too bloody for him.

Along with the burgers, we had a side order of Mixed Fries ($5), a combination of hand-cut Idaho fries and sweet potato fries. The regular fries were nothing spectacular. Personally, I just prefer thin crunchy fries. The sweet potatoes, however, were chewy and delicious in their natural sweetness. I really love sweet potato fries. I think we don’t eat enough of them here in the states. In Korea, it’s not uncommon to find sweet potato fries at a food stall or a news stand, and in the winter, there are a ton of vendors selling sweet potatoes roasted in stovepipe-looking ovens right on the street. The skin is always scorched and the potato underneath is so delectably carmelized you always burn your fingers and the roof of your mouth as you eat them in the freezing cold. Sometimes they have sweet potato vendors outside of Hmart in Flushing. It would be pretty cool if there was a sweet potato cart in Midtown, but I have a feeling someone would burn themselves and end up suing the poor guy or girl.

Anyway, back to Zaitzeff. I also I had a bloody mary, because as you know, I don’t think a brunch is really a brunch without one. The bloody mary was OK, but it was a bit too thick and heavy on the horse radish. I like spicy bloody marys, but this one was heartburn inducing.

So has Zaitzeff made me a hamburger convert? My only complaint with the burgers at Zaitzeff are that they are cooked on a flat-top griddle as opposed to flame-broiled. The charred smokey sweetness of a burger licked by flames as it’s cooked can’t be replicated on a flat griddle. That said, in the non-broiled category, the Zaitzeff burger is really gratifying and completely satiated my burger craving. And for those Top Chef fans, you might like to know Padma Lakshmi works out at the gym next door. I saw her walking by in sweats as I was eating my burger. Great burgers and a sexy cooking show host nearby, I think Shake Shack has some competition.

Zaitzeff
18 Avenue B (2nd St)
New York, NY 10009