Food and Things » New York City

Move Over Junior Mints. Upper West Side Theater is Serving Truffle Popcorn

Laura Weiss — Tue, 22 Nov 2011 19:15:13 +0000

Heads up, movie junk food fans: the new Munro Theater at Lincoln Center is pushing aside Milk Duds and Twizzlers in favor of vegan hotdogs and truffle popcorn.

Click here to read more.

Cupcakes: Baked by Melissa Lands on the Upper West Side

Laura Weiss — Mon, 31 Oct 2011 20:23:10 +0000

Cupcakes by Baked by Melissa.

I’m all for mini-sweets. I like the fact that you’re ingesting fewer calories. I like the way you can pop one in your mouth on the run.

Baked by Melissa, a mini-sweets pioneer with her one-bite cupcakes, opened last week on the Upper West Side at 2325 Broadway between 84th and 85th. The place is all sleekness—floor-to-ceiling glass windows adorn the storefront, and inside, a long modish counter displays cupcakes like precious works of art.

Behind the counter are ranged chirpy teens who volunteer their favorite flavors. “Peanut butter,” said one. The other pushed the flavor of the day, Chocolate Caramel Cone.

I chose Red Velvet. The cake was moist and tender, just about perfect. The icing, however, was super sweet. Magnolia Bakery, housed just a few blocks away on Columbus Avenue, is tops on the sugar scale when it comes to overly-sweet cupcakes. Still, Melissa’s weren’t far behind.

Baked by Melissa

Various branches citywide

Ice Cream: Coolhaus vs Shake Shack

Laura Weiss — Tue, 20 Sep 2011 13:20:28 +0000

Guinness Chip Ice Cream + Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookie

In an ice cream face-off, how do Coolhaus ice cream sandwiches and Shake Shack Concretes fare?

OK, the two ice cream products differ in several key ways. For one, Coolhaus sandwiches are filled with ice cream; Shake Shack’s products are made from frozen custard. Yet they’re both vying for the New York artisanal ice cream dollar. (I happened to gorge on both Coolhaus and Shake Shack frozen goodies in the same day so that pig-out begged for comparison.)

Coolhaus

Sandwiching ice cream between cookies is not new. But Coolhaus, which operates a band of food trucks, takes the process one step further. The hugely popular ice cream purveyor serves up a rotating menu of flavors, like Blueberry Ginger and Red Velvet Cake. And they sandwich the frozen filling between flavor-filled cookies–from chocolate chip to gluten-free peanut butter.

Plus, you’re encouraged to mix and match. Feel like a maple waffle white chocolate cookie on one side and a chocolate one on the other? Coolhaus is happy to oblige.

It’s very fun, and the cookies, at least the double chocolate fudge ones I chose, are dense and intensely chocolaty.

But there’s a problem. And it’s the ice cream.

If you like yours with a thinnish consistency, you’ll enjoy the Coolhaus variety. I happen to prefer my ice cream dense and heavy. What’s more the chocolate cookies overwhelmed the salted caramel ice cream I chose as the filling. Next time I’ll order a less fully-flavored cookie and maybe the combo will work better.

Shake Shack

A few hours after my Coolhaus sandwich, I sauntered over to the Upper West Side Shake Shack, the one across the street from the Museum of Natural History. My hubby and I shared a Concrete with the awful name of Natural History Crunch-stellation. Monstrously studded with chocolate bits and chunks of chocolate covered toffee, it was way over the top on the mix-in scale. Maybe it’s a guy’s ice cream treat. My hubby loved it.

But the frozen custard, as Shake Shack faithful will agree, is delicious. Our concrete was made with vanilla which boasted a striking vanilla bean taste. Plus the texture was silky and the custard boasted a substantial yet delicate mouth feel.

Coolhaus

The trucks are at various locations. Check @coolhausny.

Shake Shack

New York, Miami, Washington DC, Westport CT, Saratoga Springs NY.

Cascabel UWS: Tacos Disappoint But Other Dishes Shine

Laura Weiss — Wed, 07 Sep 2011 20:28:31 +0000

Cascabel to open soon on the Upper West Side. Photo: Laura B. Weiss

Before Hurricane Irene, Cascabel on Broadway at 108th Street was one of the few restaurants in the area that was open. That was also true immediately after the storm had sped north to New England. So I wound up eating there twice in two days.

The tiny place was a mob scene, filled to overflowing with Columbia students as well as with locals chowing down before le deluge.

What do you order at Cascabel? Well tacos, of course!

Day 1 (pre-Irene), I ordered carnitas. Sorry to say the shredded pork was dry as dust.

Day 2 (post-Irene), I went back to Cascabel with my hubby. He tucked into hanger steak tacos and declared them, “great.” I took a bite, and found them dry, as, you guessed it, dust.

But there were winners. We fought over the queso fondido, a molten pool of chihuahua cheese, studded with house made chorizo and roasted poblano. The guacamole was satisfying, nicely hot, but not chunky enough for my taste.

On Day 2, Cascabel was packed with college kids. The service is amiable and the food comes out quickly. Plus, it’s cheap.The taqueria has located itself in just the right place, near starving hoards of Columbia students.

Cascabel (UWS)
2799 Broadway (Broadway at 108th Street)
NY NY 10025
212 665 1500

Upper West Side: Super Tacos Truck is Back on 96th Street

Laura Weiss — Thu, 26 Aug 2010 18:37:03 +0000

Super Tacos is Back.

Super Tacos, the truck with the to-die-for mole poblamo, is back on its home turf at 96th Street just west of Broadway. While the new subway station was being built, the truck was banished to Amsterdam Ave., but now it’s been restored to its rightful home.

Bueno!

Upper West Side: Wine Tasting Offers a Taste of France’s Loire Valley

Laura Weiss — Sun, 18 Oct 2009 12:56:58 +0000

Photo: Loire Valley, France. Courtesty of Bacchus Wines.

Even though it’s only October, the damp, chilly weather makes it seem more like the middle of February. So isn’t it time for a trip to France? You don’t even have to purchase a plane ticket. Instead, walk down to 71st and Broadway and taste some of the wines from France’s Loire Valley that will be offered up at Bacchus Wines’ Loving Loire wine class Oct. 22. Here are the details:

What: From Muscadet in the west to Sancerre in the east, the Loire Valley boasts a diverse selection of wines—from sparkling to still, red to white. At this tasting, you’ll learn the sub-regions and grape varietals of the various wines that grow in France’s Loire Valley.

When: Thursday October 22, 7:30 pm – 8:30 pm.

Where: Bacchus Wines, 2056 Broadway, between 70th and 71st; 212 875 1200.

How Much: $15 (plus tax). Payments cover the cost of Riedel glassware to take home and printed materials.

Upper West Side: It’s Arrived–Whole Foods Previews Its Store for the Neighbors

Laura Weiss — Tue, 25 Aug 2009 13:51:00 +0000

For the food market deprived—that would be anyone living in the area around 96th Street on the Upper West Side—yesterday was a big day as Whole Foods welcomed the neighborhood to an open house to preview the new store. While the food market won’t officially open until August 27—the liquor store is already operating—the market flung open its doors to introduce area residents to its layout and products.

Billed as a fundraiser for the Riverside Park Fund, the event was packed with young and old. Baby strollers were in abundance. So were lines for the copious free samples that were being dished out. There were crab cakes, chocolate, cookies, soup, and soda. Two cold soups, melon and carrot/ginger , by kosher maker Foremost Fresh, a New Jersey concern, were standouts.

Throughout the bi-level store, which is smaller than many others in the city, shelves were almost fully stocked with what we’ve come to expect from the organic and healthy foods purveyor. Lots of varieties of yogurt. A still-empty salad bar. Meat counters and fish counters. It was a bit strange, however, to be walking around a supermarket in which no one was pushing a shopping cart.

Many items were affixed with bright yellow sale stickers. Several people noted that despite its reputation for pricey fare, Whole Foods appeared to be competitive with other local food sellers.

In any event, happiness was in the air. Even among this famously liberal Upper West Side bunch, no one seemed too concerned about Whole Foods CEO John Mackey’s stand against the Obama Administrations push for health care reform.

“I’m thrilled” with the new market, said one middle aged man, who added that he was disgusted with existing neighborhood shopping options.

In a final gesture of welcome to the neighborhood, store personnel offered potted mums, which had adorned the two levels of the store, to anyone willing to cart the pots home.

NY Announces New Culinary Incubator in Harlem

Laura Weiss — Tue, 04 Aug 2009 21:02:45 +0000

According to a report in Crain’s, the city is setting up a culinary incubator in Harlem to nurture food entrepreneurs who want to set up bakeries, catering companies and other food producing enterprises. For more information, click here. Related posts: Harlem Restaurants Offer Free Ride to Upper West Siders, Other Manhattan Diners Upper West Side: Artie’s Deli [...] Related posts:

New Deli on Broadway Between 97th and 98th

Laura Weiss — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 15:31:24 +0000

There’s going to be a new deli or coffee shop on Broadway between 97th and 98th. I’ll report on what’s going on as the new subway station at 96th remakes some of the adjacent blocks. Related posts: Upper West Side: New Deli Opens on Broadway and 97th Street Whole Foods: Will Open Late Summer/Fall at 98th and [...] Related posts:

Upper West Side: Docks to Become Wine Bar?

Laura Weiss — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 12:33:20 +0000

Heard on the street:the space that once held Docks’ Oyster Bar at 2427 Broadway (between 89th and 90th streets), will become a wine bar. Has anyone heard this?

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