The waiters are very friendly here, and they have great food and all kinds of specials. One of my favorites is the brunch special, great dishes for $8 or $9 and you get a free drink (get the lychee mimosa, it's really fucking good). The happy hour stretches from 12:30 until 8pm, which'll get you cheaper delicious starters ($2) and mains ($6), plus $3 drafts and $1 Thai coffee or soda. Mmm thai coffee.. Then there's the $13 prix fixe menu, which gets you coconut galangal soup, crispy spring rolls, chicken and shrimp shumai, an entree, and an ice cream. Recommendations: -the spicy ginger-avocado sauce that comes with the calamari fritters -the pineapple vinaigrette dipping sauce that comes with the crispy spring rolls -lychee mimosa Oh, and it looks great in there, it's comfortable, and the bathroom is clean and well stocked.
Foodie Asshole.. on a bu...
I'm a total asshole foodie, always ordering the weirdest or most interesting shit on the menu, just to see and learn. I can tell you about the best and most interesting food that is actually affordable and doesn't require a reservation or dressing up. Some places are affordable if you know what you're doing. I go all over Manhattan and Brooklyn.
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2 il laboratorio del gelato $
95 Orchard St., Manhattan, NYThe thai chile chocolate gelato is really interesting, with the chile really sneaking up on the back of your throat right at the end of each taste. But in terms of yumminess, the honey chestnut I tried was amazing. It was like tasting the street I grew up on through creamy ice cream. Thank god for lactaid.
3 Veselka $$ Diner, Eastern European, Russian
144 Second Ave., Manhattan, NYListed by
I haven't tried enough of the food here, but the pierogies are good (and, more importantly really, come with 3 things to dip them in), the prices are right, and there's a ton of good stuff on the menu. Also, the space is large and comfortable, satisfying any nostalgia you carry for the diners back home. AND, the service is actually friendly.
4 Yaffa Cafe $$ American Traditional, Vegetarian/Vegan
97 St. Marks Pl., Manhattan, NYIt's open 24 hours every single day, guys. Can that be said for anywhere else where they'll cook you a green tea chicken caesar wrap or chicken dijon with mushrooms and artichoke hearts in a mustard cream sauce on quinoa or mashed potatoes? I think not.
5 Calexico Carne Asada $ Mexican
122 Union St., Brooklyn, NYEverything here is delicious, and if you go to their Carrol Gardens location instead of their Soho truck, you won't have any wait for it. The crack sauce is awesome as is the spicy arbol sauce on the sauce bar. Get any of their food, especially the daily special tacos (though I think the pulled chicken is the least good of all the meat options) and the pork grits. And they have tapatio sauce on the table for you :]
6 The Chocolate Room $$
86 Fifth Ave., Brooklyn, NYLactose intolerant? You must try their Valrhona Chocolate Sorbet! Actually, you have to try it whether you can naturally digest lactose or not.
7 Hanco's $ Soup & Sandwich, Vietnamese, Juice/Smoothie
85 Bergen St., Brooklyn, NY$5.50 (cash only!) for a delicious, well-filled banh mi with perfect bread. Tell them you want it "medium spicy," and get the classic (unless you're a veggie muncher, in which case, they have tofu or soy ch'cken options for ya, but I tried to soy one, and it's a little meh). I had their taro soy milk bubble tea with lychee balls: eh, couldn't taste much from the taro, and I'm just not a big fan of balls, unsurprisingly enough.
8 Umi Nom $ Spanish/Tapas, Asian: Southeast
433 Dekalb Ave., Brooklyn, NYYes, that's right, there's amazing food in Bedstuy. Get the pork belly sandwich and fries during lunch time, but order it to go. The juices from that pork will coalesce with the sweet chili aioli and suffuse themselves into the bread and, oh my, I need to be alone for a few minutes while I reminisce about this. 9 bucks. And yeah, that includes a huge portion of fries. Thanks, King Phojanakong!
9 No. 7 Sub $ New American, Soup & Sandwich
20 W. 29th St., Manhattan, NYListed by
Creative, creative, creative subs for $9 a piece. The menu is always changing up, the current one I have my eye on being the "ZUCCHINI CUBANO Smoked Gouda, Peaches, Pickled Daikon, Chinese Mustard". Dear god. They also now have smaller breakfast sandwiches for 5 bucks a pop (still creative shit, don't worry!)
10 The Commodore $ American Traditional, Southern/Soul
366 Metropolitan Ave., Brooklyn, NYListed by
All food and drinks are terrific. Yup.