Beautiful back courtyard at Baoburg’s new home in Greenpoint
Get excited, Greenpointers— your walk to some seriously delicious Asian fusion just got shorter. Baoburg has moved to our very own stretch of Manhattan Avenue (between Nassau and Driggs). Chef Suchanan Aksornnan (aka Chef Bao Bao) had been delighting patrons in Williamsburg since 2013, but was forced to move her restaurant as a result of Thor Equities’ new mixed-use building. The menu is inspired by a variety of Asian cuisines with some nods to Spanish and French cooking as well. The interior of the new location at is still quite small, but Baoburg gained a beautiful back courtyard in its new home. I recommend walking straight to this oasis to enjoy the peaceful atmosphere and brick facades of the outdoor space you wish was your own. Continue reading →
BREAKING NEWS! Our own Yana’s Salo Series was featured on CNN! So proud of you and keep up the great work. You give us so much more than cooking – like laughs, inspiration and fun!
I know that I do a lot of salad shit tawking, but that is only when it is insultingly offered as a side to a burger. As if in my self-destructive eating mindset I want to be reminded of my downward spiraling food choices. Shut up and give me fries!
That being said, I do specifically seek out certain perfect salads in Greenpoint. Salads that discreetly champion the getting old and dripping with pork guts offerings that cater to our bacon crazed foodie culture.
Selamat Pagi’s Bali Urap AKA Papaya Salad is utterly perfect and I make the walk all the way to the “other side” of McGuinness just to eat this salad. Continue reading →
My Dad Rocco was an Italian immigrant who grew up in Bushwick in the 50s. Other Italian immigrants settled in South Brooklyn, like Bensonhurst or Bayridge. Both areas regarded eachother as “The Other Brooklyn.”
It was just a matter of where you live, like it is here in Greenpoint, where it depends on which side of McGuinness Blvd you live on. This side, where we use McGolrick Park as a reference point, is beginning to sprout some new and unexpected restaurants.
Open for a few weeks now, if you walk by Selamat Pagi (152 Driggs Ave), the new Balinese restaurant over here, you will notice it’s always hopping from morning until evening.
Aside from introducing far out flavors from the other side of the world to Greenpoint, Selamat Pagi, which means Good-Morning in Balinese, is certainly filling a void for all of us who live near McGolrick Park, who complain about limited food options and sometimes don’t want to venture to the other side.
We had dinner on a Friday night, the second night after the Grand Opening. My friends joked, “So we are going to wait three hours.” We didn’t wait long, but there were a few hiccups that were to be expected, but the friendly service, the new flavors and the short walk home certainly made up for it. I am sure by now they have all the kinks worked out.
Don’t be afraid to order appetizers as the portions for the main courses are not huge, which being a member of the clean plate club is much appreciated.
The waitress recommended we start with the prawn crackers that come with three sambals, or sauces in order to introduce our palates to all the flavors of Balinese cuisine. The Sambal Matah is raw with lemongrass, the Sambal Tomat is made with spicy tomato and last is the Ginger Sambal. Don’t try to pick a favorite, they are all delicious and save some to dip your entrees in.
For a drink I enjoyed a not too sweet Shirley Temple!
We also ordered the tasty Balinese Deviled Eggs, which are sweet with pickled vegetables on top. There are three halves, so it will be hard to be that person who urges your dining partner to take the last one.
My main was the Palm Caramelized Blue Fish with black pepper, turmeric, coriander, sambal tomat, sambal mateh and roti, which is like an Indian soft taco. The fish was sweet and tender and loved to share a plate with the sambals. The roti was on the drier side, but made good dipping in the sambals, too.
We enjoyed not one, not two, not three, but four desserts! Coconut Creme Brulee, a trio of Van Leeuwen Ice Cream, Spicy Bali Chocolate Pot De Creme and a Traditional Balinese Thousand Layer Cake. All perfect.
It wasn’t an inexpensive meal with moderately sized dinner entrees averaging around $16 a plate for authentic home style Balinese cooking, but it was a great dining experience, the interiors are lovely, the staff is great and it’s so conveniently close to home.
Let’s welcome Selamat Pagi to the the other Greenpoint. Aside from dinner, they are open for brunch Tuesday thru Sunday and have delicious coffee and pastries every day.
When friends want to go out for Thai I usually go, “Meh.” Not because it isn’t a delicious cuisine, it’s just that ever since it became a food trend and every neighborhood got a thai place, most were just that, meh.
At a recent Yummy Eats Dim Sum dinner with wine pairings by Wine By Design NYC, the food was the real super star. The food paparazzi were in full force and when Chef Joseph Yoon brought out each gorgeously plated dish, anxious hands held back until every iphone in the room recorded the food glory. That is what you get when you have an underground supper club filled with foodies and food bloggers. Food photo frenzy!
The food didn’t only look great but it tasted exquisite. And Lauren Johnson, our genius sommelier perfectly paired wine with each dish.
Don’t tell, but we drank 25 gallons of wine! And I actually learned a few thing. Normally I just gulp gulp gulp, but Lauren is a not-preachy-so-I-actually-listen teacher and gives great insight. She loves wine and it shows.
Like the first pouring, a Cava, which is comparable to Champagne, but has bigger bubbles (interesting!) has been drunk by the Spanish Royal family for generations. And “drunk” is a non-standard usage, but correct past participle of the verb to drink.
The cava was perfect with the first dish, the dish why I was there, my favorite dish ever: Tuna Tartare on Wonton Crisps. The fish was so fresh, so flavorful, with great texture and it wasn’t overly seasoned with ginger or soy sauce. The soft raw tuna on the crispy wonton was the perfect texture mix-up for my mouth. And it kept coming and I kept eating it!
Why did Joseph Yoon, Dim Sum Super Star, get into cooking? For the ladies of course. He had me at Tuna Tartare.
Next we had deep “double” fried Crispy Scallion Pancakes, executed perfectly with a ginger oil that Joseph prepares a few hours in advance with fresh grated ginger in canola oil.
The next pouring was a naturally effervescent Portuguese Vino Verde, which to me tasted earthy and fresh like a wine salad, and when you hold it up to a piece of white paper it has a gorgeous green hue. The dishes we paired them with were really fun, too.
Someone kept asking, “Does this have fish in it?” More for me, but did you read the menu?
Time for the most spectacular looking dish: Tempura Anchovy w/Wasabi-Sriracha Sauce. If you are scared of eating entire little fish bodies, fry them (or let Joseph do it) because anything fried is delicious. They were so flakey, not oily and not too salty.
Next was Lobster & Pancetta Wontons. I know your brain can’t handle this, but just hold on. They were everything you could ask from a wonton, crunchy on the outside, warm and soft on the inside, but oozing with creamy lobster and bacon!
The third pairing was a Pinot Noir. Such a great go-to wine, silky and smooth.
In my family, the only time there is complete silence is when we have a stunningly delicious dish in front of us and our mouths are too full to actually speak. I had a similar moment with Skirt Steak-Steamed Spinach & Quail Egg Wonton. Ooey gooey mini egg goodness and falling off the bone meat in a crunchy shell, but not for long because these were one biters for me. For once I couldn’t speak.
Braised Beef Short Rib Steam Buns time! The buns are so interesting to me, because they are so light, and combined with fresh greens it’s paradoxically like eating a salad sandwich with a lot of moist perfectly seasoned juicy beef. Best buns I have ever had.
Get this: Korean Pear w/Five-Spice Pork. I have to say this is my first dessert-time meat and I was really into it.
It went with the last pairing was with a “Grand Terroir” which when compared to the Pinot Noir in terms of colors was so light and bright. The wine was in a screwtop and Lauren explained: “This wine is meant to be drunk young!” which was followed by a heated discussion on screwtops vs. corks. With a wine not meant to be aged screwtops are the way to go.
For the kicker, we ended the evening with Maple Ice Cream w/Chocolate Bacon followed by a Late Bottle Vintage Port, which is made from grapes literally rotting (with fungus) off the vine, so you get a deep and rich almost raisin taste.
Thanks Yummy Eats and Wine By Design for a truly memorable (despite the gallons of wine in my brain) meal.
Try Yummy Eats’ Chocolate 5 Spice Bacon, which is on the menu for the Greenpointers Gallery Tour After Party 3/10/12 at 9pm at TBD (224 Franklin St.)
Walking to all those galleries and seeing amazing artwork is going to leave you hungry. When you see what Yummy Eats is serving at the after party you will be drooling. Be sure to stop by 3/10/12 at 9pm to TBD (224 Franklin St) and pick up some of this delicious grub. Music by DJ Ning Nong and Brooklyn Soul Club.
