Resolutions, Restaurant Week, and Rugged Maniac

I’m afraid I’ve neglected this guy for a little too long, but with the New Year comes New Year’s resolutions, and one of mine is to follow through with everything I start. That includes my new workout regimen, cleaning my room, and of course, updating this blog.

Not that I totally meant to ignore this. Let’s just use my job as a scapegoat and say I’ve been too busy working on stuff like this. In any case, I’ve obviously still been eating, and have a Foodspotting profile to show for it. So to make up for my lack of posts, here’s a bit of food porn:

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Now on another note, if anyone knows me, they know I love Restaurant Week. I even wrote a guide to it when I first started this blog. Thankfully, it’s that time of year again when we New Yorkers have a shot at trying out some great restaurants at pre-fixe prices. I’ve already made reservations at Ai Fiori for lunch (thank you, MLK day) and SHO Shaun Hergatt for dinner, and plan to go to at least one more place so I can get that $20 statement credit. So you can expect some reviews on those places in the coming month.

Rugged Maniacs with our post-race beers

Aside from the eating, there’s the “No Gut” portion of this blog, which I promise to also write about. I actually did another mud run in Brooklyn in November called Rugged Maniac, and while it was kind of a smaller, ghetto version of Warrior Dash, it was still incredibly fun thanks to some sick obstacles (like dumpster pools and a dead man drop onto a giant cushion) and unlimited beer post-race thanks to Thrillist Rewards. And since it was in Brooklyn = no mountain, so I was actually able to run the entire race despite basically not having worked out for over a month prior to the race (aka the opposite of my Warrior Dash training). In any case, 2 mud runs under our belts has us hooked, so we plan to do Warrior Dash in North Carolina in May (road trip, woooo) and some other races in the summer until we’re eventually fit enough to do Tough Mudder?! Maybe?! Regardless, can’t wait to see what 2012 has in store. Maybe I’ll finally get rid of my gut for good! Stay tuned~

This Year’s San Gennaro Has More Than Just Fried Everything

The booths at Prince and Mulberry Streets feature standout chefs

I’ve been going to the San Gennaro Festival pretty much every year I’ve been in the city. Maybe it’s because I grew up in a town that had a sizable Italian population and an annual Italian festival, but there’s something about the always-crowded, often annoying street fair that still manages to get me to go (it may have also been the strange appeal of getting strawberry daiquiris in ridiculous plastic cups). Despite everything being overpriced, I’ve always enjoyed the typical fare of sausages with peppers and onions, calamari, zeppoles, and fried ____. This year’s festival, however, got a pretty nice gourmet upgrade that I felt was worth mentioning, especially since the festival ends on Sunday (aka check it out before it’s over, obviously).

Byggyz Beef Sandwich (via NYTimes)

Now as a disclaimer, I’m actually exhausted from work and the NYTimes just wrote up a review that pretty much encompasses everything I was planning on saying, so I’m going to let them do most of the talking. All I have to say is that Byggyz beef sandwich is bomb (check out Wylie Dufresne of wd-50 and his Dad manning the stand in my pictures) and for some really yummy Turkish food and one of the best pieces of baklava I’ve ever had, find the Mmm… Enfes stand (there’s a big “Homemade Turkish Food” banner). In the meantime, check out more food porn and other photos below, read the NYTimes article, go to San Gennaro, and stuff your face. Salute.

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Brooklyn Ikea: Particle Board Furniture with a Side of Cheap Eats

In life news, after growing accustomed to the Union Square/St. Marks area of the city the past 4 years, I’ve relocated to be closer to work and moved into a new apartment in the Financial District last week. Luckily this new location also makes the always necessary, post-move-in journey to Ikea that much easier, as the free* water taxi to the Brooklyn Ikea is just a few blocks away. (*weekdays it costs $5 each way, but just give your water taxi receipt at checkout and get $5 merchandise credit on a minimum $10 purchase, so it’s basically free)

Olmos enjoying his $5 Swedish meatball combo

Our trip to Ikea ended up being a bit last minute, so having caught the 8PM ferry to Ikea and knowing the last ferry departed at 9PM (which we still ended up missing), we went with a gameplan: Swedish meatballs and shower curtain rings (among other small purchases). Anyone who has ever been to Ikea knows that you can get stuff for CHEAP (our TV stand was $20!). This, of course, includes food. From 99 cent breakfast to 50 cent hot dogs to their ubiquitous Swedish meatball platter (which was $5 for 10 meatballs, mashed potatoes, garden side salad, and a drink), food at Ikea comes at some of the lowest prices you can find (and it’s actually good).

Kid's Combo with Garlic Bread

I was actually not starving, so to get my fix while saving a couple bucks, I opted for the Kid’s Combo of 5 Swedish meatballs that comes with either mashed potatoes, fries, or mac and cheese, as well as a drink. Add a side of garlic toast, and you have dinner for a ridiculously cheap $3.

Overall, with non-Swedish food options like salads, pasta, and chicken, all at super low prices, the Brooklyn Ikea is a great dinner option even for non-furniture shoppers, especially for those living near Pier 11 where the free water taxi departs. A boat ride with views of the Manhattan skyline and dinner for $5? Not a bad idea at all.

Alfred nomming 40¢ garlic toast

$2 Chocolate Cake

So Much for No Gut – Frozen Artichoke Pizza will now be sold at Supermarkets

Anyone living in New York City probably has a love/hate relationship with the absolutely orgasmic pizza from Artichoke Basille’s Pizza & Brewery. Love because, let’s face it, it’s probably the most delicious thing to have after a night of partying and is always worth the line that may even stretch to Nowhere (you know what I’m talking about). Hate because the next morning, when you’re hungover and trying to remember the night before, you come to find that all too familiar pain of having burnt the roof of your mouth from not waiting for your pizza to cool down, and thus realize that your diet has basically gone to complete sh*t.

Well folks, looks like the guys behind Artichoke Pizza have made it even easier to ensure that you will be spending the next day at the gym enjoying their delicious pies all at the convenience of your home, as it was announced on Eater that they have a deal to sell frozen versions of their pizza at your local supermarket. Which means no more waiting in long lines or taking a cab all the way to the West Village or 14th street when you’re in the Lower East Side. Bye self control, it was nice knowing you.

Las Vegas is the Ultimate Glutton’s Paradise, Obviously

After 3 days and 3 nights in Vegas this past weekend, it’s pretty safe to say that my body hates me. I’ve also lost my voice and instead of it sounding sexy I sound like a man. But holy crap, was it fun.

Needless to say, Sin City has plenty for the hedonist, but for the purposes of this blog, I’m going to focus on the food and not the clubs, parties, gambling, and general debauchery that a weekend in Vegas typically entails (but to encapsulate that side of Vegas in one sentence, all I have to say is an 1100 sq. ft. suite at the Venetian + 3 blackjacks in a row + pool parties + light batons at Marquee + free champagne and getting out of our minds at Surrender + shady deals to XS + 10-10 on the craps table + MR. BIG = best weekend ever LEGGO). And now, a few words on the food:

BUFFETS GALORE

Vegas is undeniably an all-you-can-eat goldmine. When I went to Vegas with my family when I was still underage, we tried out a bunch at the older Vegas hotel/casinos and I didn’t see them as all that different from the ones in Atlantic City. Having dined at the buffets at the Bellagio and Aria in my 21-year-old days, however, I can safely say that Vegas buffets are basically the best thing ever for 4 reasons:

1. Every kind of food you ever wanted (and good food too)
2. 1/2 a lobster included in your dinner (which was the case at Aria)
3. Unlimited champagne by day and wine by night
4. Keno (just kidding, but they do have Keno while you eat at the Bellagio)

In-N-Out Burger

As a true East Coast girl who has only ventured to California once in her life for half-a-day, I had never experienced the always-hyped goodness of a Double-Double from In-N-Out until I went to Vegas. While I am still a Shake Shack girl (the Shack Stack is still the best thing ever in my opinion), I must say that In-N-Out is pretty freaking amazing. Add animal fries and it’s definitely a calorie-loaded cholesterol spike waiting to happen, but at least it’s a drool-inducing, possibly even orgasmic calorie-loaded cholesterol spike waiting to happen.

Somehow, despite a weekend of eating everything pictured above and then some, I actually lost weight. Regardless, excuse me while I attempt to detox all the crap I ingested over the weekend. Here’s to grilled chicken, salmon, whole grains, veggies, and lots of running until Labor Day Weekend wooooo! #sarcasm

I Survived Warrior Dash and had a Damn Good Time Doing So

Post-race, Warrior faces on, free beers and turkey leg in hand

Let me tell you, Warrior Dash was not easy. Even the journey to Windham Mountain in upstate NY was riddled with difficulty, like our car breaking down 15 minutes from the race site (luckily we were saved by a friendly fellow Warrior Dash participant – thank you “Utica”).

In the end, we made it to the race (an hour later than the wave we registered for, but they didn’t care since, well, there were like 10,000 people there and all). Arriving at the site is kind of overwhelming and awesome, from the racers who chose to go in ridiculous costumes (personal favorite was a group of Ninja Turtles), to the mountain of mud-soaked sneakers that had been donated post-race, to the mountain itself, where “3.2 hellish miles” were about to be run.

Panoramic of the Warrior Dash race site

And that was without a doubt the worst part about Warrior Dash: that steep mountain that became our worst enemy the moment we realized we had a 1.5 mile uphill run right from the get-go. To say it simply, the first half of the race was a complete and total bitch. Even those who thought they were trained enough (read: me) had to face the fact that you just had to walk up parts of this tortuous hill if you ever wanted to conquer it. To put it in perspective, think of when you go skiing or snowboarding down a green or blue trail. Now imagine running up it. Yep. It sucked. This is (kind of) what most of us looked like mid-mountain.

The medal and t-shirt we receive for completing the race

Then came the obstacles, which were surprisingly not so much physically difficult as kind of scary but simultaneously fun. Case in point: hurdle jumps over walls (surprisingly really easy – thank you plyo), balance beams (kind of scary), and even a slip n slide (fun, obviously). What I didn’t expect was to have so much difficulty jumping over cars, which was actually my downfall as one wrong slip off of a truck’s tire caused me to cramp up in my right calf, limp up the hill as a result, and finally stop for a minute or so just to stretch it out.

In the end I finished the entire race in about 50 minutes, with the fastest of my friends finishing in 40, so I think I fared pretty well (283 out of ~800 women in my age group to be exact – top 35%? I’ll take it). Goal for next year is obviously a) to avoid getting a leg cramp and b) beat the boys!

Refueling post-race

After we rinsed off as much mud as we could, it was time for our free beer, and of course, being the glutton that I am, I had to get a smoked turkey leg (and it was just like the ones at Disney World!) Pretty much exactly what you want after wanting to die 40 minutes prior from physical exertion.

Now that I’ve survived Warrior Dash 2011, I’m ready for 2012 (with more training, of course), and probably Spartan Race 2012 too (8 miles? Bring it). Maybe even Tough Mudder?! Jk… I’ll save that one for if/when I can run up a mountain without wanting to die. More pictures (including shameless turkey leg eating pictures) below:

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Filipino Food is Starting to Take Over Manhattan, and It’s About Damn Time

Pork adobo buns from Kuma Inn, because we Filipinos basically worship pork

As someone who grew up on my parent’s Filipino cooking, coming to Manhattan as a freshman at NYU and finding that I had limited choices for fulfilling my Filipino food craving was kind of disheartening. Cendrillon closed in my first year in the city, leaving places like Elvie’s Turo Turo and Pistahan, but those eventually closed a year or so later as well. While the option of visiting Little Manila in Woodside was always available, with the area even boasting a Jollibee, the most popular fast food chain in the Philippines, I really wasn’t about to make a 40 minute commute just to get my fix of lumpia shanghai. I mean really, that’s just kind of nuts.

Longga dog featuring longganisa sausage and atchara from Maharlika (photo via Grub Street)

Luckily, it seems that Filipino cuisine is finally starting to garner some real attention and staying power. Just yesterday, NYMag’s food blog Grub Street had a feature on Maharlika in the East Village and a new bakery called Pan de Sal in Gramercy, and the blog has actually been giving Filipino food pretty good publicity since the initial opening of Maharlika as a pop-up brunch spot. I was actually able to sample some of Maharlika’s offerings at this super bougie Filipino benefit party I was lucky enough to attend in May with my Filipino organization at NYU, and let me tell you, the food was damn good.

So now that it seems Filipino food is getting the press it deserves, I hope more people, especially non-Filipinos, are able to experience just how freaking good our food can be. Hell, even Anthony Bourdain said we have the best pork in the world. In any case, to help the cause, I’ve highlighted some of my favorites and other notable places in NYC where you can get your Filipino food fix. Mind you, it totally isn’t the healthiest cuisine (note that this is tagged as “glutton” and not “no gut”), and if you’re vegetarian, good luck finding something without meat in it, but some things are worth the splurge every now and then.

The Glutton’s Guide to Filipino Food in Manhattan

• Kuma Inn - Although Kuma Inn (a play on the Filipino “kumain,” which means “to eat”) is actually Filipino-Thai fusion, that just makes it an even better starting ground for anyone unfamiliar with Filipino cuisine. The 2nd floor restaurant in the Lower East Side is really cozy, every tapas-style dish we tried was delicious, and best of all, IT’S BYOB! Notable dishes: pork buns (pictured above – note that they are a special so they may not be on the menu but if they are available, you MUST get them!), adobong PAL chicken wings, arroz valenciana, garlic rice. Oh and reservations are highly recommended.
• Krystal’s Cafe 81 - Ok so this East Village outpost of the notable Krystal’s in Queens may have mixed reviews on Yelp, but I’ve never been disappointed in the times I’ve visited the restaurant/bar. And as a restaurant/bar, they have a great happy hour (including Red Horse!) that goes great with their solid offering of all the classic Filipino fare, like adobo, lumpia shanghai, lechon kawali, and crispy pata, as well as all-day Filipino “silog” brunch items.
• Johnny Air Mart - Finally, Manhattanites don’t have to venture to Queens for their Filipino groceries! Right off of Stuy-Town, the Filipino bodega not only features a good selection of all the Filipino snacks, spices, and ingredients you need, but they also have a counter of prepared foods featuring staples like kare-kare, bistek, and Filipino BBQ that you can take to-go.
• Grill 21 - I’ve never actually been to this place (trust me, it’s on my checklist), but for those looking for some fantastic Filipino food, I’ve been told that this Gramercy restaurant is the place to go, though it is on the pricier side. Since I can’t vouch for it personally, just check out Yelp for tips.
• Sa Aming Nayon - Again, another place I have not yet been to (luckily I have a kgbdeal that will soon change that), but this newly opened East Village spot has already garnered attention from the likes of Serious Eats and the Village Voice, so I’d say it’s prettyy safe to give the place a try. The space also has a back patio for some nice outdoor garden dining.
• Maharlika - Already mentioned, but just so it’s officially in this mini-guide, this newly-opened-originally-just-brunch pop-up restaurant has been garnering buzz for good reason with their notable brunch and other unique specialties (such as the longga dog pictured above). I’ve only sampled their hors d’oeuvres at a benefit party, but if their small-bites are telling of their full-sized offerings, then Maharlika is sure to satisfy.
• Purple Yam - While this Filipino-Korean fusion spot is actually in Brooklyn, it’s worth noting, especially since they sometimes offer their dishes at street fairs (Purple Yam had some of the longest lines at last year’s Grub Street Food Festival) and possibly even in the Upper West Side. Regardless, this brainchild of the former owners of Cendrillon has garnered much praise that may make it worth a trip to Ditmas Park (again, also on my checklist).

A snapshot of some classics from a recent trip to the Philippines (including sizzling sisig, grilled squid inihaw, and pork BBQ), now available at a Manhattan restaurant near you

So whether you’re a total Filipino food newbie just looking to try something new or you’re a full pinoy/pinay looking to get a taste of home in the concrete jungle, I hope this guide helps. Feel free to leave your own recommendations in the comments. Now, kain na tayo! (Let’s eat!)