Remember when I quit my job to go back to school and get my degree?  Well, after a lot of red tape, obstacles thrown in my way, and just BS, I graduated!  With a general associates’ degree, because that was the way to go so that more of my credits would transfer in order for me to then go to a four year school.  Unfortunately, due to basically life happening, I am putting my plans to continue school and get a bachelor’s degree on hold.  But what is a graduation – or any major happening in my life – without a celebratory meal?! 

(If you care to know the longer version: the bottom line is, why settle?  I want to go to NYU for a degree in food studies, if not for the connections, the people, the name, then for the simple fact that I’d like to learn about the topics studied.  But at this time in my life, it isn’t prudent to get $50-80k in debt just to do so.  I work in the field I want to, and I just need to keep working hard and making it happen.  Going to a local college where I was accepted already to get a bachelor’s in English would be much cheaper, but that would be settling.  I don’t want a degree in English; I want a degree in food studies or nothing.  Sound bratty?  Sure, but that’s me.  Also, continuing with school pushes back some other goals I have that are currently more important to me than the degree.  C’est ca.) 

For my celebratory lunch post-graduation, I chose Uncle Jack’s Steakhouse, the closest and nicest restaurant near school that I knew.  Long ago, BF and I went to one of the locations in Manhattan and found it inconsistent – this was before the blog existed, so no pictures – so it fell off our radar.  I knew this location existed, and friends of mine had told me different things about it over the years (one friend raved about how good it was here, much better than the Manhattan locations; another friend told me how she HATED this location, though she’d not tried the others).  But… well, I’ll write about why I’d never visited at the end. 

We started off with the baked clams.  BF doesn’t eat all seafood, but he definitely eats clams!  (Funny story: when we first met and I discovered he doesn’t really eat seafood, I was disappointed.  One time, while dining at a seafood-focused restaurant, he mentioned that he’d eaten baked clams and enjoyed them in the past, so I began ordering baked clams everywhere we went that had it on the menu.  After a month or two, he commented that “You know, before you, I’d eaten baked clams maybe twice in my life, and now that number is in the double digits.”  I was like, oops, when you said you liked baked clams, I thought that meant you’d eaten it a fair amount in the past!  Haha.  I’m a silly person.) 

A lot of times, baked clams are good just because they’re baked clams and not fishy.  These were not good just because.  These were really good.  Fresh-tasting clams, with a very flavorful bread crumb topping, well seasoned, cooked properly, not fishy at all, and a squirt of lemon juice raised these to new heights.  YUM.  We were all very pleased with the starter.

Note: our server was extremely friendly and nice; when they saw I was taking pictures, they offered me the platters to photograph before plating/serving us.  Unfortunately, with the clams, I would have liked to have the platter in front of us so we could dip our bread into the yummy ‘sauce’ that’s on the plate!  I know BF felt the same way.  (Apparently, it’s 8 clams to an order, as we received 16 clams, or 4 a person, and the bill listed us as having ordered two orders.  Just something to know if you go.) 

One of the appetizer specials our server mentioned was bufala mozzarella, flown in from Italy “this morning via FedEx” he said.  I thought that was adorable.  In any case, the mozzarella was really good – tender, creamy, and fabulous with the balsamic vinegar that was drizzled liberally on top.  The tomato wasn’t bad (not quite season yet!), either.  FeistySis and I agreed that the balsamic vinegar was of great quality, it was thick and syrupy, almost sweet… reminds me of Cherry Gold, my favorite balsamic vinegar ever.  Yum.  FeistyMom suggested that this dish was better at Lattanzi, but I disagreed politely. 

FeistySis and FeistyMom split the porterhouse for two.  This was enough for all three of us to split, really, and each piece had an amazing crust on it, was seasoned perfectly, and so, so tender.  Am I raving enough yet?  I mean this was really damn good.  Both women were raving about it for a while.   

BF ordered from the lunch special menu; 10 ounce filet mignon for $35, with two sides.  Funny enough, there was also a surf&turf lunch special, 5 ounce filet mignon, 5 ounce lobster tail, and two sides – for $30.  He let me try some of his steak; it was almost too much for him to finish, actually.  This was also perfectly tender, cooked to perfectly medium rare, and seasoned absolutely right.  Tender, as the cut tends to be, but not bland or dry (as this is a lean cut of meat) at all.  So good. 

As for the sides that came with his special – garlic mashed potatoes were also yummy, and the creamed spinach… well, I liked it, but he wanted it to be chopped finer.  This was almost whole leaf, just a minor chop to it, and the texture put him off.  I thought it was good though. 

FeistySis chose mashed sweet potatoes for her side, which I thought was only OK, but she seemed to really like them.  I don’t really like sweet potatoes in general though, so this was no surprise to me. 

For my main course, since I’d heard so much about how fabulous the seafood was at Uncle Jack’s, but didn’t want to order a seafood tower (for $98… lots of raw seafood… and eating it by myself? no, not so much).  So I asked our server what the freshest fish that day was, and he offered me snapper.  I chose the lunch portion, and this is what arrived.  Not a small portion – for $15, I thought that was a decent size – but it was basically spa food.  What someone might order who is on a diet, or not really interested in eating.  Sadface.  I mean, it tasted fine, but this is clearly not the seafood that people meant when they said “seafood is fabulous at Uncle Jack’s.”  This is entirely my fault for ordering poorly though. 

I will definitely be ordering the lunch special surf&turf when I make it back here…

Though we were super stuffed, the dessert menu called to us, especially when I noticed that all the desserts were made in-house.  BF was eying the apple strudel, so that, a la mode, was his choice.  This is a terrible photo, and I apologize, but we were eager to dig into this, not strudel the way you might think, heavy layers.  No no.  These were flaky layers of light pastry dough – phyllo? – layered with thin slices of apples, topped with a streusel that was out of this world.  We were all shocked by how good it was – I mean, maybe shocked isn’t the right word, but we couldn’t stop raving about it at the table.  I wasn’t expecting the strudel to be so airy and light. 

Also, the server brought the desserts, waited for me to take photos, then cut each one into four pieces.  Nice!

And of course, my choice: tiramisu.  I love homemade tiramisu.  Sometimes it’s more cake-like, sometimes it’s more… just a bowl of mascarpone that’s been lightly flavored.  Well, this definitely fell in the latter camp; airy, fluffy mascarpone with espresso mixed in and just so, so good.  I pretty much inhaled my quarter, loving how lightly sweet it was – not overwhelmingly sweet, not too much coffee taste, not too much chocolate (I actually dislike when tiramisu tastes like chocolate; it’s supposed to be an accent, not a focus).  SO good. 

Full disclosure: a while back, the PR for Uncle Jack’s in Bayside emailed me, asking that I come in for a tasting and write about them.  I didn’t like the tone of the emails, which put this place at the bottom of any list I might have kept, and I ceased contact with the PR person.  What I don’t understand, though, is why that was even necessary.  After this visit, I can’t imagine why he felt the need to phrase things the way he did!  In any case, this meal was courtesy of the BF, not the restaurant.  I believe the final bill came to $280 with a generous tip for our excellent server.  Is that expensive for lunch with no alcohol?  Um, yes.  Was it worth it for the special occasion?  Oh heck yeah. 

Yvo says: It’s been a while since I went to a place where I had absolutely nothing negative to say (okay, my one negative was in the beginning when the server was explaining specials to us, it took a good 10 minutes; I really dislike when this happens because by the end, I don’t remember anything that was said in the beginning; I think they also wouldn’t seat my mother, who went into the restaurant alone while we all parked our cars, until my BF showed up, but she didn’t seem bothered by this later).  The food was, without exception, extremely tasty, and I’m hard pressed to find a single flaw with it.  I would definitely go back for another special occasion (I can’t personally justify the cost at this point in my life, with my current income, without a special occasion to celebrate).  Yum!
highly recommended

© Feisty Foodie for The Feisty Foodie, 2011. | Permalink | 6 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: Steak

Dear readers, I have a food nemesis.  His name is Chris, and I mentioned him briefly here.  He and I have such opposing views on food, food prep, everything… well, almost everything… that it’s amusing to talk to him about food.  We don’t argue (not quite) because it’s all personal opinion.  But it makes taking his recommendations for food very, very interesting sometimes… 

On that note, he’d strongly recommended Guh Song for jjajjungmyun a few times to me, but I’d kind of ignored him because it’s in Bayside.  Then one day it dawned on me: I go to school in Bayside.  A quick Google search showed me that I’m an idiot; Guh Song is literally a few blocks from the western part of my campus.  Duh!!!  So between classes one day, I took a quick stroll (ok, I drove) over… The above was placed in front of me after I sat down; kimchi, sweet sauce, pickled daikon and onion slices that turn magically sweet like candy if you drizzle white vinegar over them (and I do). 

But here is the main event: jjajjungmyun!  Black bean paste over noodles, there’s meat and onions in there… Whatever.  The point here, for me, is the noodles.  Honestly, when he said this place had good jjajjungmyun, I thought, well, it’s jjajjungmyun.  I’ve had it a small number of places over the years, and of course have had Chapaghetti (the instant kind you make at home).  But I never really thought one place was better than another… until I came here.  The noodles were – excuse my use of this word – toothsome, with such a nice heft to the chew, making each bite just delightfully awesome, in such a… delicious way.  The sauce was yummy too, with plenty of beef, not so much veggie matter as at Assi Plaza, and just right in terms of taste: savory, but not overly salty, hitting that just right note of umami…

So good I ate it all, leaving only the onions.  I even ate the kimchi (this is for those of us who know how sensitive I can be to spicy foods… I forced myself to eat it all; it tasted good, though I was a bit uncomfortable for a bit while eating it… really good mixing bites of kimchi with bites of jjajjungmyun though!). 

And a week later, so enthralled with the food, I dragged BlindBaker with me… the above, our munchies. 

The kimchi which I forgot to eat this time

BlindBaker encourages my overeating. 

She suggested getting mandoo, and I quickly agreed. 

Unfortunately, these were not that good – too much vegetable matter, which normally I wouldn’t mind, but it was bland in taste; not enough salt.  Dipping liberally in soy sauce mixed with white vinegar made it taste much better, but I would have liked if these were juicy and flavorful on their own.  I’ll pass on these next time. 

I decided to go with the lunch special, which came with soup – a strange, sort of Chinese-borscht-like-concoction (Chinese borscht has no beets; it’s more of a tomato-vegetable soup.  This was fine, not particular interesting nor offensive. 

The huge bowl of rice that came with my lunch special.  Again, nothing amazing, but it’s meant as a vehicle for the main course, right? 

In the meantime, BlindBaker ordered the jjajjungmyun, and marveled at how awesome it was.  I was pretty jealous of her big bowl of awesome, actually, even as my main course arrived… 

Sweet and sour pork!  I’d looked for sweet and sour shrimp on the menu, but to no avail – after I’d eaten Korean sweet/sour/spicy at Hyo Dong Gak, I was curious to try it at other places… this one looked very different. 

Crisply fried pieces of pork tossed with a sweetish glaze.  The pork was good, and the sauce was alright, but I don’t think I’d order this again.  Not really my style or taste… though for a lunch special, about $6, the overall cost is ridiculously cheap.  Come on – soup, rice, main, plus the kimchi/pickled daikon/onions on the table?  Not bad at all… 

Yvo says: I will definitely be back for more jjajjungmyun, it was awesome – the best I’ve ever had in my life, easily – and will probably (hopefully) get around to trying other dishes and lunch specials there, it’s so cheap.  You can’t really regret trying something new when it’s only $5-6 … Perfect for those of us on student budgets (yeah, both BlindBaker and I!).  NOM.
recommended

© Feisty Foodie for The Feisty Foodie, 2010. | Permalink | 13 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: jjajjungmyun, korean-chinese

On one of the last days of classes and finals before I left for Peru, I was chatting with the BlindBaker and discovered she was about to have lunch nearby our school.  Hey, I like lunch! so I hopped on over to grab a bite with her. 

She’d already ordered summer rolls by the time I got there – I’d told her I’d be a few minutes and feel free to start eating before I got there – so I happily found food waiting for me when I sat down.  The peanut sauce was overly thick, and we both commented on the summer rolls.  They were alright… but I doubt I’d go back and order these. 

She’d ordered an iced coffee on one of the first really hot days of the summer (ugh and now all I can think about are hot days… no end in sight!), and it looked so good, I ordered one for myself as well.  We were both a bit disappointed that they do all the work for you – in the back! – so you don’t get to watch the little individal filter drip everything down and then mix it together.  (If you don’t know what I’m talking about, click here – really cool step-by-step photos, I didn’t even know all the steps that go into it, just the end ones!  Interesting!)  This hit the spot on the hot day, slightly bitter, slightly sweet, and ice cold.  Mmm. 

I’m not sure what the name of this was, but I know BlindBaker wasn’t that impressed with her cold noodles.  I can see it had spring rolls on top, maybe shredded pork… I’m sure she will chime in and help me out here – and also share her opinion? 

I also ordered cold noodles topped with some sort of beef.  I don’t want to be gross, but when the bowl arrived, well, I wasn’t too happy with what the beef on top looks like.  A bit unappetizing to say the least.  And while it tasted fine, it was on the dry side and not that interesting.  I’m pretty picky when it comes to Vietnamese food, because I’ve had amazing AND homemade Vietnamese (not always the same thing)… and while this would do in a really tight pinch if I’m near school and need Vietnamese food, I wouldn’t choose to come here again if I was craving Vietnamese.  If anything, I’d run over to Flushing … or really just wait until I can go to my favorite place.  This place was also significantly more expensive than the places I usually go to – around $2 more, which is kind of a lot considering usually this dish is $5ish. 

Yvo says: I want to find a good Vietnamese place this close to school, but alas, this is not it.  As I said, it would do in a very tight pinch, but it would never be my first choice for Vietnamese food.  The place is pretty clean, has a parking lot, and the service was pretty friendly… but it doesn’t make up for the less-than-mediocre food and the high prices.  Sorry. 
not really recommended

© Feisty Foodie for The Feisty Foodie, 2010. | Permalink | 5 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: bun, coffee, summer rolls

A while back, HB told me about a really good Japanese place near my school, and I’d tried to go to the restaurant… except it wound up not opening till 4pm every day!  Happily, this led to the discovery of Press 195, and as I <3 that place now, I can’t say I was that mad that Mickey’s was closed that fateful day in January.  However, I made it a point to try to get to Mickey’s sooner than later, so one day, when one of my evening classes was cancelled, I headed over to check out the wares…

My eyes lit up when I saw croquettes on the menu; deep fried mashed potatoes mixed with veggies (since the only choice was veggie; my favorite is the kind filled with creamed corn, nommm!).  These were fried perfectly; crisp on the outside, piping hot mashed potatoes on the inside, served alongside katsu sauce.  Yum. 

Next up was takoyaki, or fried balls of pancake-like dough stuffed with octopus bits.  If you’re new to octopus, this is the perfect gateway octopus food, since they are small nuggets hiding in each ball of slightly sweet dough/battery goodness (topped with a bit of sweet, a bit of savory sauces).  Chewy deliciousness; while these weren’t amazing (could be more crisp on the outside), they were still a solid entry. 

Grilled white tuna basted with miso!  So good… perfectly cooked, slightly salty, and elevated to new levels with a touch of lemon juice.  The acidity really brightened the dish and, though I’d never have thought to add lemon juice to miso, this was absolutely perfect.  Succulent. 

Because I was very hungry, I doubled up on some of my favorite sushi… from the lefthand side (orange with stripes) clockwise: salmon, octopus, eel, salmon roe, uni (sea urchin), and tuna.  The fish was all very fresh, though I might skip on the uni next time; I always forget that I prefer that mixed with rice or soba more than I do as a sushi   Otherwise, very yummy and fresh – I was happy. 

After I’d finished all that, I realized I was um, still a little bit hungry.  (They must’ve thought I was a monster!)  I ordered one of their special rolls, I believe the Christmas roll. 

Again, very fresh fish, prepared very deftly.  Very yummy, though the roll itself wasn’t particularly mind bogglingly innovative, it was still delicious.  Nommers! 

Yvo says: I’m thrilled to have a really good Japanese/sushi place so close to school, if a bit unhappy that it isn’t open for lunch!  I’ve a feeling I’ll be back sooner than later… the prices were pretty reasonable, too!  (Also, I discovered that this is the same place that, when I first moved back to Forest Hills, I read a ton of recommendations to go check out… unfortunately it had closed/moved from Forest Hills by the time I moved back… happy coincidence, though I do wish they were still in Forest Hills!!!) 
recommended

© Feisty Foodie for The Feisty Foodie, 2010. | Permalink | 2 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: fish, Sushi

My BFF is one of the bestest people in the world with whom to eat.  Not only will she never watch you disapprovingly as you order the large frites despite having put on a few pounds, she will also tell you without fail: “There’s always room for dessert!”  Though it’s true I of the savory tooth would rather there always be room for nachos or satay or roti or … well, you get the picture – some days, you just want a sweet treat. 

And so it was on this unseasonably warm day, after BFF and I had just eaten a lovely BBQ meal, that I wanted Maggie Moo’s.  HB has mentioned Maggie Moo’s quite a number of times over the years to me; the locations have been few in NYC (one on the UES closed down a while back), but she’d talked about it being really good, so I’d been meaning to try it.  When it finally dawned on me that it was a mere block or two from Press 195 where I frequently lunch, I was all, “Duh, let me try that!” – and off we went. 

Initially I had no idea what to get but then spotted this sign.  I’m a mint chocolate girl at heart – from when I was a child! – so of course I had to get this.  Funny (to us) moment: the YOUNG but attractive Asian male manning the counter couldn’t remember what was in mine (all fairness, it’s a special) – and there was a sign directly next to this one that listed another special which was the same thing except +marshmallows, so he confusedly asked “That has marshmallows, right?” and I vehemently blurted out, “No! No marshmallows!” 

Thankfully, instead of taking offense to my vehemence, he laughed and said “I wouldn’t have just put it in, I ask first,” and BFF and I, being all of 12 years old, giggled and whispered “That’s what he said” before turning back to pay. 

BFF opted to get the birthday cake ‘flavor’.  Did I mention that this place is very similar to Cold Stone Creamery?  That basically means every ‘flavor’ of ice cream is some formula combining a flavor (or flavors) of ice cream, then a combination of mix-ins, which all gets smooshed together on the specially-made marble topped counters designed to prevent the ice cream from turning into an entirely goopy, melted mess while they mix it appropriately or as requested.  (There’s a ‘menu’ of flavors, but I’m sure if you wanted to get your own combination, they’d allow it – or at least they do it that way at Cold Stone! 

Why the two different sizes?  Well, I’ve learned that some places allow me to order child-size items without requiring me to be a child; mostly if the size is just smaller but not necessarily cheaper/a good deal… and I really only wanted a little bit of ice cream.  So I got the child-sized one, while BFF got a regluar/small sized one.  Mine was overflowing with ice cream anyway… I don’t play volleyball a few times a week like BFF does, so I’m good with the smaller size

 BFF really liked her flavor.  Since I didn’t try it, I couldn’t really speak to that…

 As for mine, perfectly sized for me, and quite tasty (if you like mint coupled with chocolate – and I do!) – I did like this flavor quite a bit.  It was creamy, not overwhelmingly sweet but still very tasty… just right on this warm day.

Yvo says: Though I can’t say I “need” to go to Maggie Moo’s every week or every other day, I will say I was happy with the ice cream, the flavor selections, the tastiness of the overall flavor, and everything.  It’s great to know that this is so close to my school such that if I really do want good ice cream while I’m at school, it is definitely available to be had…  Yum!
recommended

© Feisty Foodie for The Feisty Foodie, 2010. | Permalink | 3 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: Ice cream