First Taste: Blue Smoke at Citi Field

My second game at Citi Field, but first time hitting up the new fancy food stands. I had steak nachos at the previous game. Met up with Uncle Bethy at the Blue Smoke stand behind centerfield about half an hour before the game started. There was no wait at all! We hopped on line and before I had a chance to suss out the menu, I was up.

Kansas City spare ribs with pickles on the side. For $10 you get 4 ribs, which I found to be a really decent portion for a ballpark. The ribs weren't as tender as I had hoped, but this is miles and miles better than all the crap I've ever ingested at Shea, save for the Mama's sandwiches. Also, I loved the tangy, vinegary sauce that's available on the side. The only problem is that there is only one container of it for all of Blue Smoke's patrons at the condiments/napkin island. Also, the Wilpons need to add more tables to this area. It was an overcast, dreary evening and we still couldn't find a place to eat our food easily.

The fries! After seasons of mushy, cold, Nathan's fries, these fries are a god-send. For $4.75, I expected a larger portion, but then again, I think the Nathan's fries cost this much. Unlike those soggy potato strips, these fries were warm and crisp. And they taste even better when dipped into the barbeque sauce and washed down with the house ale, which costs a very reasonable $7 and change.

UB digs into one of her ribs. Next time I will hit the taqueria stand. I don't plan on Shake Shacking it up until next season because the lines are crazy long despite the time or weather.

Incidentally it was Fernando Martinez's first game! And Spongetech t-shirt night.

Today's Breakfast: Frittata at home

My stomach felt really empty after coming home from yesterday's debacle at Shea. I left during the 5th or 6th inning, but really I should have left in the 1st because I knew there would be no way this listless team was going to mount even a notion of a comeback. I was hungry, but nothing sounded good. So I made a frittata. I whipped up a couple eggs with milk and shredded cheddar and dumped in a handful of cooked spaghetti left over from Saturday's dinner. The mixture went into a greased pan and after letting it brown on one side, I executed a perfect flip (which is a rarity for me) to cook the other side. I love crunchy noodles and the frittata reminded me of the great toasted pasta dish they served at Mugsy's Chow Chow on 2nd Avenue (which was possibly my favorite restaurant circa 1997-2000). This morning I woke up hungry and so I reheated the frittata for breakfast. It beat anything any of the stupid generi-delis near my work could put together and overcharge me for.

A perfect Brooklyn day

The day started off at Totonno's in Coney Island. It was my second time there this summer, and in fact, ever! Oda and DMR had both been before, but Nellie and Jimbo popped their Totonno's cherry. It was also Little Henry's first visit, but he's still trying to master pureed foods so no pizza for him! Our group had to wait about 10 minutes outside as we arrived before doors even opened but that meant we got the first pie of the day! They were not quite as delicious as I recalled my first taste of Totonno's, but pretty close.

Then it was off to catch the Cyclones take on the Staten Island Yankees. But first, I took a quick side trip to Nathan's to grab a hot dog. Well, I thought it would be quick when I took my place on line and saw there were only 4 or 5 patrons in front of me. In a cruel twist of fate, the cashier turned out to be a moron. She was incredibly slow and then she disappeared for 10 minutes! She just walked way from her register and couldn't be found. We tried to flag down managers and assistant managers to find her, but nobody could (or care less, actually). Finally, she reappeared and she did a crappy job of putting together my very basic dog with sauerkraut and onions. I lost 30 minutes of my life to get hot dog in a wet bun. Sigh.

At the Cyclones game, I had tons of water and a lemonade to keep myself hydrated. By sheer coincidence, members of the Sweet Meats, our bocce rivals (well, can you call it a rivalry when you have never beat a team?) were seated next to us.

Then it was off to Avenue U in Bensonhurst to stuff our faces at and with Russian Style Ravioli! We had to split up into two tables as our crew had grown in number since Totonno's and the restaurant denied us the VIP section up front. DMR and I shared a table with Anne and Alex and we began with a pitcher of kompot, a non-carbonated, non-alchoholic drink made with cherries. Tasty, but it was not very cold and a few ice cubes in our glass would have really upped the ante.


Anne and Alex went with a couple variations on pelmeni (Siberian and chicken) and an order of fried cabbage vareniki. Dan and I ordered potato vareniki, Siberian pelmeni and a beef stroganoff (with a choice of kasha or potatoes, we picked the latter).

The vareniki and pelmeni portions at Russian Style Ravioli are huge and super cheap - less than $5 for an order. Did you know that there is a pelmeni eating record? Dale Boone ate 274 of them in just six minutes. He deserves a round of applause.

Potato vereniki served with intensely caramelized onion bits. They need to add the onions as a side dish.


Siberian pelmeni, simply prepared and served. What can I say, I love any sort of dumpling. Dump 'em into a bowl, give me a fork or spoon and get outta my way.


The stroganoff was served in a bread bowl! It was like the most delicious, rich, creamy chowder ever, with a bounty of tender beef strips and vegetables. Anne abstained, but Alex, Dan and I all put in solid efforts.

Does this mean no more Bubba Burgers?

Via Grub Street:

The greatest hamburger mystery of our time has been solved: We have it from a high-level source near the situation that the location of the long-awaited sequel to Shake Shack is Citi Field, better known as the new Shea Stadium. (Citi Field is currently under construction; it will be finished in April 2009, in time for opening day.) And that most definitely is not all: The Union Square Hospitality Group also plans a Danny Meyer sit-down restaurant there. (We’re waiting to hear back from Meyer on both of these reports.) As for the new Shake Shack, well, if you thought ball games resulted in long lines to the bathroom …

This has potential to be really, really great. What I'm worried about though is who is going to man the station? While Shea easily outperforms that other ballpark in New York when it comes to variety and quality of food served, the food service workers are slower than slow. The set up is illogical and it couldn't be more inefficient if they tried (well, actually....).

Since I don't eat the dogs that have been stewing in the steam case, I have to go to a stand and order from there. Here's how it usually plays out. Place your order with the food service worker (FSW). Oh, it's already the bottom of the first and hot dogs are not ready? Ok, find another stand. Place order with FSW. FSW then goes to put on rubber gloves. FSW walks to get the hot dog bun out of the plastic bag. FSW then struggles to split the bun. FSW comes back to you and asks, "You wanted a hot dog, right?" FSW over to the hot dog grillers and gets a dog. FSW starts talking with another FSW. FSW then put the dog in paper holder. FSW is about to ring you up, oh wait, FSW gets distracted and walks away. So close! FSW comes back and can't remember what you ordered. FSW finally rings you up. FSW takes your money. FSW eventually gives you your change. FSW has taken 5 minutes to put a fucking hot dog in a fucking bun.

Getting a burger at the Shake Shack is an ordeal (with delicious payout, however), after typing out the hot dog retrieval process, getting a burger at the Shake Shack at Citi Field might be something I have to stay away from.

Yesterday I went to the Mets vs. Braves with work and it was the first time at Shea for everyone in my department but me! I steered my meat-eating coworkers to the Mama's stand, which was a big hit. Thank god the sandwich was good because the game left me wanting to throw up.

It Crawled from the South Part III: Music City, USA Day One

After a few nights in Memphis, DMR and I headed to Nashville! After making the three hour drive, we met up with some work colleagues of mine for a lunch of meat and threes at Arnold's Country Kitchen. Once again I messed up and forgot to grab the camera from the bag but the wonderful Holly's Eats has a great entry on Arnold's with a ton of photos, including this exterior shot:


So basically Arnold's is a no frills cafeteria style eatery. Grab a tray, tell 'em what you want and don't hold up the line. The food was so tasty and the workers cheery and funny as hell. I think no matter how fast you place your order, they'll still be telling you to move faster. I loved being there. I loved having my food served to me by these sassy ladies. I loved the food. Dan and I both went a roast beef platter with potatoes, green beans and mac and cheese, along with a sweet tea to drink. The meat was accompanied by some of the most flavorful jus ever. It was peppery and rich and went well with all the sides. Along with your dish, you also get cornbread two-ways. One is a little baked muffin and the other is a flat corn cake which is apparently griddled like a pancake. For dessert, I tried some of JT's chess pie, which reminded me of derby pie minus the chocolate. A little too sweet for me.

Why do we not have meat and three joints in the East? Where are all the cafeteria style places around here? This is exactly how I like to and want to eat on a daily basis. I hope I get back there in my lifetime.

Afterwards, we hit Las Paletas for some Mexican popsicles, but they were closed!

That evening, Dan and I went to a Nashville Sounds game. As he mentions, the most exciting part of this stadium is their guitar shaped scoreboard. Second might be that they sell Chick-Fil-A sandwiches. I had a couple bites of Dan's and a soft Super Pretzel with nacho cheese dipping sauce.

The game was super snoozy boring and I even fell asleep for a bunch of pitches. It went into extra innings and we left to visit a honk-tonk downtown called Robert's. The band that was playing was pretty awful, but the Hi Life was nice and cold. We sat at the bar and ordered up some dinner. I went with a grilled cheese with onion rings and DMR a cheeseburger with fries. The onion rings were pretty good and it's tough to fuck up a grilled cheese. DMR thought the burger wasn't even mediocre. Man, it was a long day.

Want a Frito?

As DMR and I were attending this Mets game in Houston last week, we missed this classic exchange between Keith Hernandez and Gary Cohen. Thanks to Henry's mom for the replay:

(I think)? Middle of the 16th:
Keith: "Are you hungry?"
Gary: "No, I think that I'm just going to go home and go to sleep and eat breakfast after this game is over..."

(I think)? Middle of the 17th:
Keith: "Want a frito?"
Gary: "No thanks."

Then, Gary goes on to chastise Keith for munching fritos into the mic, and Keith's defense is that their producer does it all the time. Gary quite astutely points out that their producer is not on the air.

PSG Road Trip

DMR and I are headed to the Dirty Dirty tomorrow morning! We will be hitting Memphis, Nashville, Austin and Houston. In Memphis, we'll be in the trusted hands of our hosts, Team Plumley, who never steer us wrong in that city. I've been promised some tasty palettas in Nashville during the day and in the evening we'll be attending a Sounds minor league baseball game, where Chik-Fil-A sandwiches are part of the concessions.

My interests in Austin primarily concern barbeque joints I've been unable to get out to while attending SXSW, including: Smitty's and Kreuz in Lockhart and the Salt Lick in Driftwood. Maybe we'll have time to fit in Louie Mueller's in Taylor. We'll get some Mexican to sate Dan, perhaps some breakfast at Juan in a Million which my coworker Kendel has suggested, although the room service breakfast at our hotel looks really good and might be our only chance to get some fruit on this trip!

We'll only be in Houston for less than 24 hours, and really only to attend the Mets - Astros game at Enron Minute Maid Park! This will be a historic day as it will mark the completion of Dan's lifelong quest to attend a game in every current major league ballpark. Of course once the new parks are built, he won't be able to make that claim, but we'll cross that bridge once we come to it.

Hot Dog, USA

An email from Annie F. reminds me to give a shout out to one Joey Chestnut, for SHATTERING the hot dog eating mark set by the great Takeru Kobayashi. This is truly a great feat. Until Chestnut came onto the eating scene a few years ago, many thought Kobayashi's record was untouchable. In other Chestnut news, he threw out the first pitch at yesterday's Mets game. Easily the best part of the miserable affair which ended with me, DMR and Erik getting rained on making our way to the car. For those keeping score at home, the Mets are 2-3 on Sundays at Shea this season. And I can't even get a freakin' visor!

Last Night's Dinner: Gimme a SHEA!

Shea Stadium is at the absolute bottom of the list when it comes to ballpark food, well maybe only second to Yankee Stadium. In recent years, they've had a few non-traditional additions, but for the most part, everything is fried and kept warm under heating lamps. It's a shame, because it seems that all ballparks outside of New York are able to provide tasty, diverse and local options for the fans. The Mama's of Corona stands at Shea are finally a step in the right direction. Mama's is really Leo's Latticini, and old-school, family-run Italian food shop in Corona, Queens, right in the shadows of Shea. It's where the mozzerella is made in the back of the store a couple times a day and where asking for gravy on your chicken parm means red sauce.

Mama's opened up an outpost a few years ago, offering up a welcome alternative to the abundant battered and fried choices, not to mention the simply bad choices (like the pizza...ugh, bring back Pizza Hut, coal oven does not translate into an Aramark kitchen). There are two locations in Shea - a larger shop located in the field level (but not in that right field food court area, which means unless you have a field ticket you're outta luck) and a little stand in the mezzanine (near Section 9 or 11 is it?) Upstairs, your choices are but two - but they're two very good choices: italian sub or turkey. Both come with generous slices of mozzerella as well as two small containers, one filled with spicy marinated mushrooms, the other with roasted red peppers. You can also get a little bit of brown gravy with your turkey sub. Downstairs, you can even get an nice little antipasto plate with chunks of provolone and salami, slices of proscuitto, a smattering of olives, some of those marinated mushrooms flecked with chili flakes and a couple peperoncini.

Last night at Shea Stadium for game two of the division series between the Mets and Dogers, it was an italian sub night. That's a lie - I also had a hot dog and DMR also had a sausage with onions and peppers. The italian sub is perfect when shared with someone. I recommend bringing a bag of chips, preferably plain Utz, to accompany as well. The sandwich is built upon a crusty seeded roll. There are generous layers of pepper ham, salami and mozzerella whiter than Matt Damon's teeth. The mushrooms last night were the spiciest all season. The Mets win 4-1 to go up two games to none in the series. Delicious.

Last Night's Dinner: Shea Stadium

I have a weakness for subs. Last night at Shea, even though I wasn't super hungry, I couldn't resist getting a turkey and mozz sub from the Mama's of Corona stand. They serve two heros - the aforementioned turkey and mozz and also an Italian sub. I love that it comes with a small container of vinegared red peppers and marinated mushrooms. The turkey and mozz also comes with some brown gravy. One day I'll have to hit up the actual store (which is really called Leo's Latticini) before heading to Shea. One day. Hooray for Mama's!

The Park Slope Gastronome #16 - West Coast Baseball Trip Day 4

Day Four finds us in Las Vegas, NV. It is 800 degrees and surprise, surprise, we are only among another 100 or so 51s' fans to brave an early afternoon game. Mitch buys a fishing cap and Marc, a visor at the team store. I believe both their purchases are festooned with the 51s' mascot, which happens to be a bald, inverse teardrop shaped alien head with big, shiny black almond shaped eyes. At the game I ate a Johnsonville Brat at the sausage factory stand (it may have been called Brat-ville) and for dessert got me shave ice, flavored with black cherry syrup. Shave ice is a frozen treat indigenous to Hawaii. It is NOT the same as a sno-cone. And no, it is not SHAVED ice, past tense. It begins with a huge bock of ice that is finely cut into flakes, rather than chips. The process produces a light, snowy product that is way more delicate than your average state fair sno cone. Somehow Jamie peer pressured himself to drink the leftover syrup from my shave ice. Did he even win a dollar for doing that?

That evening before the boys went off to Sam's Town for a night of 5 cent bets at the craps table, we feted ourselves at the MGM Grand Buffet - a lavish feast of gluttony and mediocrity. I think Mitch ate 20 snow crab legs and Marc only slices of prime rib, washed down with Cokes. We did have a wonderful waiter, whose name I didn't write down, but he was from an exotic land (according to his name tag) and he was very prompt with the beverage refills and very generous with the wet-naps. My favorite part of the meal was a grilled "baked" potato. Basically you get a portion of mashed potatoes, and the grill master adds a variety of toppings, including bacon bits (and we're not talking bac-os!), scallions and cheese. She covers it up with a metal bowl to steam it up and then plates up the oozing gooey scrumptious tuberlicious mess.

The Park Slope Gastronome #13 - West Coast Baseball Trip Day 2

Our first full day in El Aye begins with a trip to Japantown. The area is filled with modest, well cared-for ranch style homes, but due to its low crime rate and overall pleasantry, the houses go for over a million dollars. Crazy! Of course my need to check out this area has nothing to do with real estate, but everything to do with visiting the Giant Robot stores. The store is an offshoot of an Asian American lifestyles magazine of the same name. I've been a fan for some time now. When I last visited Los Angeles around 2002, there existed but one store. It's since expanded to include another store across the street (GR2), a restaurant (GR Eats), a shop across town (GR Silverlake) and outlets in San Francisco and New York (GRSF and GRNY, respectively). It's safe to say the robots are doing all right. I must say, I was on my absolute best behavior at the stores and only purchased a couple sheets of stickers, a Relax Bear mini-diorama and a Japanese book about chewing gum wrapper graphic design. Stop laughing.

On the way back from shopping, we hit the Apple Pan in West LA, a city institution since 1947, serving quality forever! This is the kind of place that you live for. It's a u-shaped counter with stools all around. It's also free form, first come, first serve, making the seating situation a bit hectic. After a short wait, our party of six managed to secure 5 seats together. The ladies (myself and Jen) were allowed to sit first, so it was us who got to initially witness the ketchup magic. We both ordered Hickory Burgers with cheddar cheese and french fries. The fries were up first - a golden, crispy mass of half inch thick potato joy strips. Our server put out two paper plates made of recycled gray pulp and deftly poured ketchup onto both using a bottle in each hand. As we munched on the fries and made our way through the initial serving of ketchup, our guy came over, saw that our ketchup supply had dwindled and promptly refilled. Judging by the eyes I'm giving our server, the experience was magical! Then it was time for the burgers! We all opted for the Hickory with cheese, except for Balgavy who has an aversion to cheese that is not found on pizza. But come to think of it he ordered the plain burger, not even the Hickory, so I don't know what to tell you. The mounds of happiness came snuggled in their own little white paper wrapper. The burgers were juicy with a pile of crisp lettuce acting as a good counterpart to the mush created by the melting cheese and ketchup. I made a mess. The consensus was that this was a fantastic burger, except for Balgavy, but like I mentioned, all he got a regular burger, plain. Beef and bun as he likes to call it. I believe it's a decision he still rues to this day.

Unfortunately, we didn't have enough room for a slice of their famous apple pie. I could see a wall of them through a window inside the restaurant and they seemed to be about 2 feet high. No kidding.

That evening we hit Angels Stadium in the OC to watch a game between the ridiculous named Anaheim Angles of Los Angeles and the Boston Red Sox. Wow, talk about boring fans. The Red Sox fans made mince meat of the Orange County snoozers. While the boys were taking pictures of the flair outside the stadium, I had to rush in cause of course I had to use the ladies' room because I suffer from SABS (small Asian bladder syndrome). I am not sure if this is a real disease or if I am the only case of this existing. After emptying, I took a tour of the stadium to figure out where I wanted to get my dinner. I had nearly walked the full perimeter of the stadium when it appeared. The line was surprisingly short, although once I got in line, I realized there was a terrible glare off the concession window that made it nearly impossible to look at the cashier. After some debate, I decided on the hot Italian beef with jus. It came with a side of crunchy barbecue chips. The meat was dripping with drippings, but it was a nice alternative to a hot dog. This would be the first of many times I would double beef in a day on the trip.

The Park Slope Gastronome #12 - West Coast Baseball Trip Day 1

The unthinkable has happened and I have fallen in love with the city of Los Angeles. My first two trips there were relatively underwhelming, leaving me wondering what people could possibly see in this sprawling city. But this time there was an emphasis on food, not the nouveau cuisine served in dim, trendy settings for vapid club hopping dumbasses and out of touch richies, but the food made by the people and for the people that are the pulse of this city - the working class, the immigrants, the regular joes.

Our first meal in the city came past midnight. We had been hoping to pass an In-n-Out from the airport to Dave and Jen's, but instead settled for Carl's Jr. Carl's Jrs are mostly found on the West Coast. I had my first taste on a trip to Hawaii about a decade ago. It was founded by a man named Carl and the franchise began as a hot dog cart. Eventually Carl's hot dog cart turned into a drive in, which in turn begat a smaller version, the Jr. Later in the week we even passed a couple Carl's Jr. Jr's, akin to Pizza Hut Expresses, I imagine, serving a condensed version of the menu.

While waiting for our turn at the drive-in, I was able to study part of the menu. It was only part because of the angle of the car and I didn't even learn about the fried zucchini until the order was placed, which in retrospect was probably a good thing. And this is also a place where instead of chicken nuggets, you get chicken stars! I wasn't really hungry, but am I not one to pass up a meal, so I settled on the Western Bacon Cheeseburger. It would fufill my bacon quota for the day, it was relatively small and the idea of two onion rings nestled between the charbroiled patty and sesame seed bun was too ingenius to pass up. I always like having sides. I don't like just having a burger. Or just an entree. I like having a salad or vegetables - something to break up the monotony of what you're eating. How perfect was this, I thought. I just wanted a little taste of a side and it already came with the package! Brilliant! The most remarkable thing about the burger was the staying power of the pleasing crunchy texture of the onion rings. I got crunch on my last bite and couldn't have asked for more.