Food adventures. You know I love to have them.
But you know I hate hype even more than I love adventure.
A year or two (or more?) ago, the food world buzzed with the news of vendors that attended to the Red Hook ballfields.
They talked about the authenticity, the low prices, and the wonderful food.
Dominican, Salvadorean, Mexican, Colombian, and more.
Everyone & their mamas flocked out to Red Hook.
The New York Times wrote an article.
The hype increased to fever pitch.
Then, incredibly, some governing agency (DoH or DoP, I’m not sure) stepped in and decided that these vendors needed to be regulated.
They could no longer serve from card tables set up on the grass.
They had to buy trucks and/or carts, adhere to the same guidelines every cart & truck in NYC does, and pass inspections.
Which were incredibly expensive. The vendors left, shut down, and the food world rallied around them.
They came back.
The hype died down, but business remained good.
HB and I had plans to check out another hyped Brooklyn spot this past weekend, but that got shut down when we realized it wasn’t open. I asked her if she wanted to check out the ballfields; they’re pretty much out of the way, in the middle of nowhere besides Ikea and Fairway, but she was game. Hell, if you’re not into a food adventure, we probably aren’t very good friends, so of course she was down.
Getting there wasn’t difficult; hop on the Ikea ferry from the Financial District (which is close to my office, actually; it was odd being there on a Sunday), walk a few blocks – which HB will want me to tell you were LONG blocks – and you find yourself at the corner of Clinton & Bay Streets, where there are about 7-8 vendors parked. The ones at the corner had the longest lines; HB and I were wondering what determined the lines – location alone? or was it the food? Perhaps the vendors jockey for the corner position. Perhaps not. I’m not sure – though my rough understanding of the way the world works tells me that some of those countries don’t quite like the inhabitants of some of those other countries, so I’m guessing there’s some sort of system in place such that it keeps the peace.
I’d spoken briefly to Allison (of Robicelli’s) before I headed out, so I was armed with her recommendations. She’d been there just the weekend earlier, and warned me that by the time we got there – around 2 pm – the lines were going to be heinous. Luckily for us, despite the awesome weather, the lines were more manageable than that; we only had to wait for our last item.
Our first plate – which HB and I shared – was a plate of fried pork over cassava, with onions on top. The fried pork was super fried – crunchy, crispy bits, delicious with the cassava and onion, but a little bland on its own. Fun to crunch down on, but watch out for the bones… and definitely say yes when she asks you if you want it with cassava and onion. $5
Our next purchases were both from the same cart, though we got them separately. Mango juice, which wasn’t very sweet, but in a way, that was the more awesome thing; it was literally just blended down fresh mango. No sugar added, no juice, just fruit. $2 each cup, which I found really cheap as the cup was pretty large – I would even guess it was more than a mango in each cup. The only thing is that as they add the ice after scooping your juice, it tends to be cold and watery at the bottom and full-flavored at the top. Next time, I’d swish it around a bit more to chill the bottom up!
Elotes – grilled corn with butter or mayo, cotija (cheese) and chili powder… this was really good. I’ve been making my own lately, but I don’t have a grill upon which to char the corn properly. Mmm. $3 each.
And finally, the only item we waited on line for, the tacos. Hindsight tells me we should have tried the huaraches, darn it. Two tacos come in an order, and we were allowed to order two different kinds – carne for her, pork for me – in the same order. $6 it only took a few minutes to get our tacos post-ordering; the line was long and we had to stand behind these idiots who didn’t know what they were doing there and just… not good. In any case, I found her carne very tender and juicy, despite looking dry (the last pic), and mine was delicious.
The tacos were good, and definitely needed the double taco to not fall apart. However… they did not blow my mind. They were yummy, and not super cheap nor expensive, but… worth the trip on a weekend? Not for me… if I’m in the area already for Ikea/Fairway, I might hit one of these stands up for some yummy ethnic eats.
Yvo says: I’m not sure when the season ends, but it’s a fun thing to do at least once… I liked everything we tried, and it was a gorgeous day. Since we weren’t interested in watching any of the futbol games, though, there isn’t much to do except eat, then leave… so if that’s your main goal, and you’re okay with traveling all the way just for that, it’s worth at least going once. If you’re less inclined, then… well, you’re missing out on some interesting and tasty food, but it’s not the end of the world.
recommended
Red Hook Ball Fields
check website for location, map, directions and more
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