New York State of Mind

snowstorm and jetblue be damned, nuthin was gonna get in the way of my trip to new yawk.

yeah, i spent last weekend back in the land of dirty subways, freezing temps and slushy streets but it was all good as i got to see some ole friends, have my dad quiz me on my poetry comprehension and gather some new stories along the way. i could go into more details but what fun would that be? instead, i will let my stomach tell the true tales as i break it down to you thru my food diary. now, dont get it twisted– this aint no countin carbs deal. oh, hell no. this is some damn fine guilt-less chowin here.

SATURDAY

Munch Time on 170th Street by Jerome Ave (The Bronx, NY)
— some good diner $3.50 breakfast with my pops not two hours after i land.

Golden Krust on White Plains Rd by Gun Hill Rd (The Bronx, NY)
— west indies bananna porridge all nice and loaded up with cinnamon to help shake that jet lag.

Wonton Garden on Mott Street (Chinatown, NYC)
— i get downtown mad early and savor the best vegetarian dumpling with homemade macaroni soup on the planet. the dumplings are packed with fresh diced cabbage, micro diced carrot, dark caraway & light seasame seeds for the most earthy soup experience you can get.

Vegetarian Dim Sum House on Pell Street (Chinatown, NYC)
— ate just about everything on the menu with the help of many nyc peeps. this spot is the joint for anyone who loves good food with mad variety and low prices. werd.

Ferrara’s Bakery on Grand Street (Little Italy, NYC)
— the true hardcore joined me for some fine italian desserts afterwards. luckily we got there before the weekend rush cuz this place is a landmark and gets hella packed. i had me a trio of miniatures with a double espresso.

NY Pizza (Mt Vernon, NY)
— my best friend picks me up and asks “ok, fuck this gourmet shit. what food are you seriously craving?”
pizza!
“thats what i thought”
white castle came in second place and chinese food was knocked completely out the runnin (hello! i work in oakland chinatown!) but let me tell ya that a half decent pizzeria in new york (even when its technically out of the city limits) is still da bomb. i ate a nice mushroom slice PLUS a half plain slice after that.

SUNDAY

The Projects (Da Boogie Down, NYC)
— fruit loops for b’fast at the family dinner table. memories, misty watercolored memories…

El Malecon on Broadway by W 175th St (Washington Heights, NYC)
— mangu, fried salami, fried cheese, fried eggs, fried coffee. ok, maybe not the coffee. typical domini brunch up in the heights. its as latino down as you can get.

Cheesecake Factory at the Westchester Mall (White Plains, NY)
— the big family get together. everyone over ordered except me. yes, they laughed when i ordered the fried mac & cheese balls with creamy marinara but i got the last laugh when i got to eat all of my food PLUS everyone’s extras. still had room for some crazy carrot-cheesecake concoction that proves that papa dios still loves us all.

— food coma —

Paul’s Burgers on 2nd Ave by St Mark’s Place (The East Village, NYC)
— caught up with my favorite irish-slash-other.european.extractions.that.aint.as.cool.as.being.irish brothers downtown and introduced them to the finest boygahs in downtown. i had a texas turkeyburger (texas = fried egg on top) and fries with some black cherry soda. note to self– cholesterol is a bad thing. note to note to self– if its so bad why is it so yummy? uhm, good point.

MONDAY

The Projects (The BX, NYC)
— mom’s leftovers for b’fast. if i didnt eat it then she would have killed me. plus, it was some damn good leftovers.

Local Cuchifrito Spot (The Birthplace of Hip-Hop)
— if you know where kool herc threw the first ever rap party, then you are damn close to where i had me a fine example of rice & beans. cant mess with a classic.

Padaminas Brazilian Bakery (Money Earnin’, NYC)
— thanks to some fucked up traffic jam on every highway you could think of, i actually couldnt go visit the home of the perfect sandwich. well, maybe not perfect. after all, the thing is almost dagwood huge and it has every bad fried thing in the world in it (ham, cheese, mayo, bacon) BUT it does have some good stuff (grilled chicken, lettuce, tomato and fresh corn) and it all gets pressed on a grill which i am sure has some kind of good HDL oil on it. or not. either way, this place rocks in 12 directions. palavra.

Reservior on University Place (Union Square, NYC)
— quick stop to say “whats up” to some homies and share some chicken wings, the ultimate (greasy) finger food.

L’Annan on 13th Street (Union Square, NYC)
— time for some good soup with even better company. the soup in question was the curry coconut shrimp soup with some coconut sticky rice.

— while chillin in bar13, i get to eat my brazilian sandwich. did ja think i would write about it and not actually find a way to get one delivered to me? —

Hot & Crusty on Broadway by 90th Street (Upper West Side, NYC)
— home of the best 24 hr challah bread, black & white cookies & mug-o-haterade around. ok, the haterade isnt on the menu, we bring it ourselves. i have had some of my best talks regarding poetics at this spot (and its sister locale on the east side).

TUESDAY

The Projects (Home of the Yankees, NYC)
— mom’s leftovers, again. same reason as above.

Thru Way Diner on Main Street (New Rochelle, NY)
— now just about the only person i didnt get to see on this trip was my lil sister. we made it up for lost time by hitting one of our favorite diners. “the one that is always mad packed on mother’s day???” yep, dat one.

Emilio’s Pizza on Morris Park Avenue (The Bronx, NYC)
— i couldnt leave new york without another good slice. this time around i got fancy and order the penne vodka sauce chicken slice which was as good as can be.

love ya like extra cheese on a slice,
oscar

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