July 5, 2008
From Slice
Posted by Daniel Zemans, July 5, 2008 at 5:00 PM
Daniel Zemans, our man in Chicago, checks in with another piece of intel on the Windy City pizza scene. Daniel also blogs about Chicagoland pizza with his friends on the Chicago Pizza Club blog. —The Mgmt.
Do you remember when the Chicago Bulls had a 1.7 percent chance of getting the first pick in the NBA Lottery and won? Sure you do—it was only a little over a month ago. And surely you remember when the Bulls drafted Derrick Rose last week while the Knicks took some dude from Italy. I don't know what Danilo Gallinari knows about pizza or whether he is the next Frederic Weis, but I do know that Derrick Rose is going to be a star and that he is a pizza connoisseur. The point guard of the future's favorite pizza is Home Run Inn, an institution on the southwest side of Chicago.
Home Run Inn opened as a bar in 1923. According to restaurant lore, the place got its name after a ball from a neighborhood baseball game flew through the front window (which was not open). For the next 24 years, the family-owned bar established itself as a neighborhood fixture, with Vincent Grittani serving the drinks and his wife Mary cooking up midday meals. In 1942, Nick Perrino married Loretta, the Grittani's daughter. In 1945, he returned from World War II and Vincent Grittani died. Two years later, Perrino and his mother-in-law decided to start giving away Mary's pizza for free in an effort to boost business. Needless to say, the idea worked. Today, the business, which is still family owned and run by Nick's son Joe, has eight locations and a booming frozen pizza business, all of which serve up pizzas made according to the family recipe introduced to the world in 1947.
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From A Hamburger Today
Posted by Nick Solares, July 5, 2008 at 3:00 PM
Editor's note: Happy 4th of July weekend! How 'bout a burger from the ever-widening seat of American government? If you're in the nation's capital for the holiday, use this as a guide for checking out Ben's Chili Bowl —The Mgmt.
It is 10:30 a.m. on a Saturday morning and the jukebox at Ben's Chili Bowl is cranking out "Super Freak" on 11. The long counter that flanks the entire side of the main room is jam-packed with diners tucking in to stacks of fluffy pancakes, heaping bowls of chili, Ben's famous half smoke sausages and of course chiliburgers. They are all in tune with the music, rocking or bobbing or swiveling on their stools in time to the beat as they feast on the generous portions before them. The open kitchen on the other side of the counter also seems to be in time with the beat as an enormous cadre of cooks and waitresses turn out a dizzying number of plates to a packed dining room to the funky verbal gyrations of Rick James.
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From Eating Out
Posted by Ed Levine, July 5, 2008 at 9:00 AM
Louis' Lunch and Pepe's Pizza, two of the stops on any serious eater's road trip from New York up I-95 to Cape Cod.
I am currently wrapping up a week of vacation on Cape Cod—Martha's Vineyard, to be exact. We drove up earlier this week. This post is about all the good food I have discovered en route from New York City to Cape Cod. From burgers to pizza, hot dogs to fried clams, there are plenty of serious eats to be had on the road from New York to Woods Hole, Massachusetts.
Consider the following:
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From Eating Out
Posted by Michael Nagrant, July 3, 2008 at 11:00 AM
Nothing says 4th of July like a smoky cookout. Unfortunately for city dwellers here in Chicago, outdoor space for monster barbecue gatherings comes at a premium. Likewise, because the Fourth is a major national holiday, hopping over to your local barbecue shack isn’t really a viable alternative, as most of them would be closed.
Thankfully, we’ve got no shortage of restaurant-owning Chinese immigrants here in Chicago who happen to be fond of ignoring major American holidays and keeping their places open. There are a lot of options to check out, but after lighting a few hundred sparklers and popping off a brick or two of Black Cat fireworks, my personal 4th of July Chinese barbecue spot of choice in Chicago is Sun Wah BBQ.
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From A Hamburger Today
Posted by Nick Solares, July 3, 2008 at 10:00 AM
Editor's note: We couldn't think of a better burger to report on this Thursday, a day before the 4th of July, than the one at All American Drive-In in Massapequa, New York. Hum a Sousa march to yourself while you read. —The Mgmt.
All American Drive-In
4286 Merrick Road, Massapequa NY 11758 (map); allamericanhamburger.us
The Short Order: All American's flavor will be familiar to anyone who has eaten under the Golden Arches, but it's the freshness of the product that sets it apart. Though the Double Double (two patties, two slices of cheese) provides the perfect beef-to-bun ratio, the cheeseburger is a study in simplicity, with a soft, fresh pillowy bun that leaves a dusting of flour on fingers. If getting a quarter-pounder, be sure to get cheese on it
Want Fries with That? Yes. They're crisp and golden and actually taste of potatoes ($1.15). The onion ringsare skippable
Price: Hamburger, $1.05; cheeseburger, $1.25; QP, $2.15; QPC, $2.55; Double Header, $2; Double Double, $2.40
Despite the fact that All American Drive-In has but one location, the burgers they serve will be instantly familiar to millions, perhaps even billions of people.
You see the three burgers on offer at this timeless little drive-in in exotic Massapequa, New York, are virtually identical to McDonald's early menu. Before Big Macs and breakfast burritos, before other chains started offering to do things your way, All American was churning out burgers "their way"—pickles, ketchup, finely diced onions—at a dizzying rate to the swarms of hungry suburbanites that flock here.
You want choice? OK, you can order your burgers with or without cheese.
I often wonder if one can be nostalgic for an era that one never lived in. Is there such a word in the English language? I certainly get the feeling of nostalgia when I dine at All American. The diminutive portion sizes, the immediacy of service, the taste of the food itself all evoke in me a bygone era, unfettered by the notions of super-sizing and conversely by any need to pay lip service to a balanced diet. There is nothing remotely green on any of the burgers here, the closest vegetable aside from the onion would be, using the Ronald Reagan nutritional standard, the ketchup that is de riguer.
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From Eating Out
Posted by Leah Greenstein, July 2, 2008 at 7:30 PM
Clockwise from top left: Blue Velvet; the patio at Wilshire Restaurant, photograph from Peter Pak, MD; BREADBAR
The 4th of July can sneak up on you if you're not paying attention. One minute you're cruising through June, reveling in the cornucopia of early summer produce at your local farmers' market and fiddling around with new barbecue ideas, and then bam!—4th of July weekend explodes like a Roman candle and a fistful of sparklers.
If you live in Los Angeles and didn't plan your escape from the sweltering city, dread the beach-bound parking lot that will be the 10 Freeway going west, and don't want to fork over the dough to see the fireworks at the Hollywood Bowl, don't despair. Here are some tasty alternatives to celebrate your independence from the same ol' same ol'.
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From Eating Out
Posted by Jenn Sit, July 2, 2008 at 5:00 PM
As we head into the 4th of July weekend, hot dogs are everywhere. They're on our grill and on our plates. They're on our TVs (the annual hot dog eating contest on ESPN). And this being Serious Eats, they're on our mind. Let's discuss. We bring you Serious Eats' definitive guide to America's regional hot dog styles.
Sonorans (Tuscon and Phoenix, Arizona)
Photograph from Mr Frosted on Flickr
Bacon-wrapped hot dogs are grilled, then nestled in steamed bolillo rolls and topped with pinto beans, chopped tomatoes, onions, mustard, mayo, and jalapeños. Other variations could include any of the following: shredded cheddar, queso fresco, cotija cheese, salsa verde, and guacamole.
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From Serious Eats: New York
Posted by Ed Levine, July 1, 2008 at 11:00 PM
Photographs by Robyn Lee
Matsugen
241 Church Street New York, NY 10013 (at Leonard Street; map); 212-925-0202
Service: Knowledgeable (which isn't easy given the intricacies of the menu) and attentive, with a refreshing lack of downtown attitude and cool
Setting: They have warmed up the all-white, Sleeper-like design of Richard Maier considerably
Compare It To: Nobu, Soto, Bar Masa
Must-Haves: Inaku soba with goma-dare (sesame sauce), sea urchin with yuzu jelly, Kurobuta pork loin shabu shabu, grilled Kurobuta pork belly, grapefruit jelly
Cost: This will vary wildly depending on what you order. It could be anywhere from $60 to $125 for three courses, including a glass of wine, tax, and tip
Grade: B+ overall. (Meals can range from an A to a B, depending on what you order)
There are so many misconceptions floating around about Matsugen that I feel compelled to debunk all of them before proceeding any further.
Misconception No. 1: Jean-Georges Vongerichten is the chef at Matsugen.
Fact: He didn't even consult on the menu, although because he was asked, he contributed his now-legendary molten chocolate cake recipe (albeit this time accompanied by green tea ice cream). Matsugen is the first mainland U.S. restaurant opened by the Matsushita brothers, high-end Japanese restaurateurs (three of whom are currently working here) who own restaurants in Japan and Hawaii. Vongerichten absolutely adores Japanese food, thinks very highly of the brothers and their restaurants, needed a concept to install at the old 66 space, and made a deal as a restaurateur to bring in Matsugen. If Matsugen were a movie, Vongerichten would be an executive producer or maybe the producer, not the director. The first title card of the Matsugen movie might read Jean-Georges Vongerichten Presents.
Misconception No. 2: Matsugen is a noodle bar.
Fact: Wrong, wrong, wrong, as my son used to say when he was seven. There are some truly amazing rough-grained soba noodles made in-house served at Matsugen, but most of the menu is not noodle-based. In fact, most of the menu at the restaurant looks surprisingly like your neighborhood Japanese restaurant. There's sushi, sashimi, tempura, and shabu-shabu. No ice cream tempura, thank God.
Misconception No. 3: Matsugen is ridiculously expensive and overpriced.
Fact: There are a few very expensive items at Matusgen (Japanese Wagyu beef, seared fatty bluefin tuna), but that's because the ingredients themselves are very expensive. If you order carefully, you can eat very well here for less than $60 a head. It may not be the most exciting meal of your life, but it may be the most authentic contemporary Japanese meal you can get in this country.
Now that we've gotten all of this out of the way, let's get to the food.
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From A Hamburger Today
Posted by Nick Solares, July 1, 2008 at 10:00 AM
Editor's note: As we rocket toward the Fourth of July, what better way to celebrate what's essentially America's national dish than with a visit to where it all supposedly began—Louis' Lunch in New Haven, Connecticut. Leave it to Nick "Beef Aficionado" Solares to cover the joint the way it needs to be covered. —The Mgmt.
Louis' Lunch
261-263 Crown Street, New Haven CT 06510 (map); 203-562-5507; louislunch.com
Short Order: One of the nation's most important hamburger institutions, Louis' Lunch lays claim to having invented the dish we love so much. Cooked in a unique vertical broiler, the lean mix of beef is flavorful if not particularly juicy. In fact, the burger here is known more for its isn'ts than anything else. It isn't served on a bun but on slices of Pepperidge Farm white bread. It isn't served with condiments. It isn't going to bend to newfangled burgerworld whims. It is, however, a unique contribution to America's national cuisine
Want Fries with That? Fries? There are no fries here, fool. You can get chips, though. Other items on offer are homemade pies, potato salad, and soup. Drink a Foxon Park soda with it; the root beer is amazing
Price: $4.50
Louis' Lunch in New Haven, Connecticut, has been making its hamburger sandwich since 1900, making it the longest continuously operating hamburger restaurant in America and claimant to be the creator of the venerable sandwich.
And while the world has largely adopted the plain white bun as the bread of choice for a burger, Louis' Lunch continues to serve them in its own distinct manner, vertically broiled, served on white bread, and sliced in half with the only permissible additions being onion, tomato and a cheese spread. The spread is necessary because the unique vertical broilers that Louis' Lunch uses would not be able to accommodate regular cheese.
Don't even think about putting ketchup on a burger at Louis'; there is a sign admonishing against even asking for it, because as Jeff Lassen, fourth-generation owner, says, "We want you to taste the meat."
Let's examine the recipe and its origins. The claim regarding the creation of the first burger is that one day in 1900, founder Louis Lassen had some leftover meat that he had ground up when a customer in a hurry rushed up to what was then a tiny lunch wagon and demanded something quick and delicious. According to legend, Louis formed the ground beef into a patty, cooked it, sandwiched it between two slices of bread, and sent the customer on his way.
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From Serious Eats: New York
Posted by Erin Zimmer, June 30, 2008 at 6:00 PM
Photographs by Raphael
Planning ahead is important at Toby's Public House. While the brick-oven pizzas are tasty, don't you dare fill up prematurely. And don't go alone. Sweet tooths should plan around the $13 calzone dessert, stuffed with Nutella and fresh ricotta. Adam purposely left this monster out of his Toby's review on Slice today, sending me on special assignment.
Dusted with powdered sugar, the smile-shaped pocket "serves two," but that's two stomachs deliberately saving room. So massive, the calzone needs a metallic pizza round instead of a normal plate, and doesn't even merit the normal fork-and-knife routine; it's a hands-only food. Stumped, our own Ed Levine didn't even recognize the curious combo, but instantly wanted one.
What other cheese is soft enough to handle the brick oven heat without melting? And calm enough to let the Nutella do its rich, hazlenutty thing?
A chef at Toby's Public House birthed the combo, but according to a Frank Bruni review, a similar one exists at Gemma. Toby's waitstaff recommends washing it down with Frangelico, the Northern Italian hazlenut liqueur. Serious Eats New York editor Zach Brooks said it best: "this is a gross abomination in the best possible way." Another seductive photo after the jump.
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