P.J. Clarke's

I'm not one who loves exploring the depths of New York. There are probably rats, or something else nasty. However, when I had just finished my high school application test, I was game for anything. P.J. Clarke's is exactly what you would expect from a New York establishment that has been around for more than 125 years. Businessmen drinking at the bar, 25 year old women fawning over their 60 year old boyfriends, and overwhelmed tourists are only part of the experience at P.J. Clarke's. The other ingredient in the mixture is the food. Despite the 30 minute wait, the cold table situated next to the door, moving tables, 20 more minutes for our food to come, and frustrated tourists asking us questions, the meal was still memorable. Now, you ask, how is that possible? Two words. Creamed Spinach. For those of you who have never met my mother, she can also be described in two words; Health Fanatic. While I do not participate in her strict diet prohibiting sugar, dairy, fat, meat, and anything else that makes the life worth living, I am sometimes unwillingly drawn in. So when I came home from school a weeks before and was told to expect creamed spinach, I was salivating at the mouth. As it approached, I noticed an abnormality among the greens. "Mom," I asked, "Where's the cream? You said that it was creamed spinach." "Oh no," she replied. "This is the white house special cream-less creamed spinach." Then came the dreaded words: "It's healthy." I could have sworn that I cried myself to sleep that night. Anyway, as the "real" creamed spinach came, life stood still as I watched the cream soak down and down into itself. I demolished it in the time that it takes my dad to make a tasteless joke and moved on to the next course, the burger. The hamburger is an American classic, but the one that I ate there was not. It was bland, the fries were dried and tasted like McDonald's fries, and the bun was too fluffy. Overall, it was a pretty horrible burger. At the end of the meal, the greatness of the spinach had evened out the badness of the burger, and brought it back down to 0. The only thing that gets this restaurant a good review apart from the spinach was the ambiance which was interesting, old school, and a new experience. P.J Clarke's deserves a 6.1/10.

The Corner Shop Cafe

After a long, trying day at at school, I was in desperate need of some form of respite. Now, if I was asked what paradise would be for me, I would probably say anything that involved Corner Shop's cheeseburger. While I don't have the Corner Shop's history memorized, I do know that it was the idea of seventy four year old Carlos Green after going through a tough divorce with his wife, and needing somewhere to express himself creatively. Just kidding. All I know is that it has a really great burger made from grass-fed beef, and I always enjoy myself there. Anyway, as we entered the restaurant, I noticed that it was rather empty, unlike other times when it had been packed full. However, we were also eating abnormally early at six thirty, so that could have been the cause as well. We did not wait as we called the waitress over to order. I was very specific as I asked for a medium rare cheeseburger with provolone and mushrooms, as well as plain french fries. Despite the small number of customers, the kitchen still succeeded at failing to bring our food in a normal amount of time. However, it was worth the wait. The juicy meat flowed into a mouth followed by a cascade of cheese and mushrooms. The texture was great, and it satisfied everything I ever imagined in a perfect burger. It was one of the best burgers I've ever had. I give the Corner Shop a 9.1/10. Happy Thanksgiving to all my loyal readers!

Sorry

To all of my faithful readers,
I apologize for not posting in a while. Due to the stress of my bar mitzvah (November fourteenth), high school applications and school work, it has been extremely difficult for me to post recently. Expect posts of The Corner Shop for NYC people, and The Bear for Woodstock people.
Thanks for bearing with me,
The food vigilante, Julian

Momofuku

While art may not be my favorite class, I still like my art teachers. So, when they asked me to go with them to Momofuku, I happily obliged. Even though it took more than a year in the making to make that plan be realized, it was worth every minute of the wait. As the wind blew against my face, I finally saw my visual arts teacher, Carin, approaching me. As we hurried to the restaurant, located on first avenue and 11th street, I pictured all of the delicious food that we would be enjoying in less than an hour. After walking for an extremely extended period of time, we finally met up with my old art teacher Melissa, and her friend Ari. We entered the densely packed restaurant, the warm air compensating for the cold, the wafting smell of noodles drifted into my nose. We sat down at our crowded table, and immediately ordered our meal. Some of the items on our list included steak tataki, sliced fluke, roasted pesto cauliflower, seared scallop, chicken buns, pork buns, rice cakes, chilled spicy noodles, and ginger scallion noodles. We finished it off with angel food and strawberry lemonade soft serve. It was a lot of food. We ordered the prix fix menu, along with about twelve other courses off of the menu. My favorite course was the chilled spicy noodles. With all of the other dishes, the serving was immaculate and beautiful, but this dish was sloppy and undecorated and messy, which made it so much better. It had spinach and nuts and sausage all mixed in with it, and it was a perfect blend of spicy and cool. The other noodle dish was loaded with vegetables, which made it healthier, but less enjoyable. A few high points of the meal were the pork and chicken buns, which were both very intense, and the steak tataki, which was grilled to perfection. I really enjoyed Momofuku because I got to enjoy some time with my teachers, and also because I got to experience a new restaurant. While the service is cold, and the decor a little bland, I still feel that Momofuku deserves a 8.7/10.

Knickerbocker Bar and Grill

There are many options for a midday lunch in New York City. You could run into a cafe to grab a bagel and some chips, or you could go to a sit down restaurant and be gluttonous. Since it was raining, my friend Will and I, inadequately dressed in shorts and T-shirts, had to run to my dad's office, our stomachs incessantly reminding us of our hunger. After what was supposed to be ten minutes of work, but ended up being an hour, we departed swiftly into the swirling mist and rain that some call University Place. Forty-nine seconds later, partly drenched, we stumbled into Knickerbocker, one of my dad's favorite restaurants. My dad had already promised me a hamburger, so I didn't even have to glance at the menu, but I did, noticing there was a variety of choices: seafood, steak, pasta, burgers, you name it. Then, after ordering with our Kristen Wiig look-a-like waitress, we noticed something life changing was taking place at the very same time. The people next to us had ordered a mouth-watering chocolate souffle, and we ordered one on the spot, even though it was three o'clock, and I rarely even get dessert. Our bacon cheeseburgers arrived, beautiful, and fresh. We devoured them and the fries, but knowing that, even though the burgers were amazing, they would not be the high point of the meal. Out of the abyss the waitress arrived, every step resonating in my head, just waiting for the delicious chocolate, whipped cream and more chocolate to reach my salivating stomach. The chocolate sauce was gently poured over the souffle. The whipped cream softly spooned over it. Then all madness erupted. In less time than it had taken us to run to the restaurant from my dad's office, the souffle was gone, and still-hungry spoons were leading the rescue parties for last bits of cream and chocolate sauce. While we may have been pigs, and we may have gotten fat, this was still one of the top 10 meals of my life. Knickerbocker definitely earns a 9.2/10.

Rino Ceronte

While some people believe that everything is better with bacon or butter, I personally believe that everything is better with garlic or mayonnaise. Therefore, when I noticed that the new sandwich shop, Rino Ceronte offered garlic and mayo mixed together as a sauce, I knew that I had to try it. Rino Ceronte is located right between NYU and LREI where I attend school. There are a lot of snack shops as well as smoke shops, so large variety of people shop there. It’s a great place to open a store because there are many hungry children released from school every day. The way that Rino Ceronte works is that you first pick your bread, white or whole wheat. Then you choose your protein; steak, chicken, mushrooms, shrimp or goat cheese. Then you choose from all of the sauces, of which I obviously chose the garlic mayo. After, you choose from a number of sides. Some of the sides include onions, olives, potatoes, cheese, pickles, jalapenos, and romaine lettuce. Some of the sauces that they offer include: mustard vinaigrette, lemon and olive oil, basil pesto and chili mayo. My main complaint about Rino Ceronte, of which I do not have many, is that they do not offer enough sides. My father’s only complaint was that the stools were too hard, and that there was not enough leg room. Some people can be a little picky. My usual choice for my sandwiches is chicken on wheat bread with garlic mayo, black olives, and Swiss cheese. While the sandwich can be a little too juicy, the flavors are very intense, and robust. I really love the food at Rino Ceronte because it is fresh, and tasty. I would recommend it for people who have about five to ten minutes to get their snacks, since it takes a little while. I love Rino Ceronte, and I give it an 8.3/10. Oh, and everything does happen to taste better with garlic mayonnaise.