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So I live in an area where the most diverse food around is your Americanized Mexican restaurant (yuck)....and I LOVE food that is not American....Indian, Thai, and Vietnamese are my favorites. Each of these has what you may call kindof a signature dish that most people should at least try - you know, Tandoori Chicken and Naan for Indian, Pad Thai and Panang Curry for Thai, Pho Ga for Vietnamese.
So when I am visiting NYC next month, I am so excited to be able to try out foods of other ethnicities that I've never had before.....like Ethiopian and Morrocan just to name two - and any other I come across, but I am also afraid of being just lost in the menu and having no clue where to start with all the unfamiliar foods. Can anyone lay out the signature beginner dishes for me for me?
Also, some other food questions:
What is dim sum? How do you order it?
What is gelato?
Is food in NYC pretty safe to eat across the board or do you kindof have to watch what restaurants you eat at if you don't want to get sick?
What is dim sum? How do you order it?
What is gelato?
Is food in NYC pretty safe to eat across the board or do you kindof have to watch what restaurants you eat at if you don't want to get sick?
Not a New Yorker, but I can awesome some of these questions.
Dim sum is a Chinese dumpling that can be stuffed with meat, shimp, or sometimes vegetables. It can be steamed or fried, I prefer steamed. The dumplings kind of look like heads of garlic in their shape and color. Actually, dim sum translates into what is effectively the Chinese version of brunch, but in most places in the West it refers to yum cha the dumpling I described.
Gelato is a kind of Italian ice cream. It's a lot thicker than the ice cream you are used to (the difference can be as great as how soft serve is to hard ice cream, that is how think gelato can be compared to hard ice cream) and it is usually fruit flavored. It's certainly much more flavorful than typical ice cream, there is usually chunks of fruit and a really strong flavoring as well. I have only had fruit gelato and never any other flavor, so I cannot comment how well it works as chocolate or anything other than strawberry, passionfruit, mango, etc.
Is it safe to eat in New York restaurants? I'd assume so. It's not like New York is famous for food poisoning and it's not like New York doesn't have a health code. Just one word of advice that works in every city: Avoid touristy places. The reason is because most of those places don't really serve good food and a lot of them are laxer with hygene for the main reason that most of their clientle will never eat there again regardless.
PS: Turkish, Lebanese, and Cypriot Greek cuisines are great too. If you go to a Cypriot Greek place (since most Greeks in North America are Cypriot, it's not as specific as it sounds) order Halloumi (one of several spellings) it is this kind of cheese that can be grilled or fried. It has a taste that is sorta like a mix between goat feta and real mozzarella cheese (the soft white cheese in brine, not the yellow stuff to put on pizzas) and it "squeaks" against your teeth. It's really hard to explain, but it is something I suggest you try.
Last edited by Frank_Carbonni; 08-30-2008 at 10:54 AM..
For Ethiopian, get a combo plate. They'll bring each item out over the spongy bread. You can usually get a couple meat items and a couple veggie items. I always need more bread. If you're confused, just ask the waitress for a recommendation. They're always friendly when I ask what's good.
So I live in an area where the most diverse food around is your Americanized Mexican restaurant (yuck)....and I LOVE food that is not American....Indian, Thai, and Vietnamese are my favorites. Each of these has what you may call kindof a signature dish that most people should at least try - you know, Tandoori Chicken and Naan for Indian, Pad Thai and Panang Curry for Thai, Pho Ga for Vietnamese.
So when I am visiting NYC next month, I am so excited to be able to try out foods of other ethnicities that I've never had before.....like Ethiopian and Morrocan just to name two - and any other I come across, but I am also afraid of being just lost in the menu and having no clue where to start with all the unfamiliar foods. Can anyone lay out the signature beginner dishes for me for me?
Also, some other food questions:
What is dim sum? How do you order it?
What is gelato?
Is food in NYC pretty safe to eat across the board or do you kindof have to watch what restaurants you eat at if you don't want to get sick?
I love Ethiopian. You could try Meskerem. There is one downtown which I have been to, and I believe there is one on the UPE side. Very good. You don't use utensils. They bring it on this big bread, looks like pita, but tastes different. I forget what it is called. You pick different options to go on this and then you dip with the bread. I like the hummus, and different veggies. Some can be spicy which I like. You could also get a meat with it. They like crush up the meat. It all goes in different sections on the bread. Ask the people there what they recommend. it depends on your taste. Do you like chickpeas? Do you like meat? Do you like spice? It's all good!!! It's basically dipping the bread into the various things you order..Very yummy.
I know great Thai and Indian places in Queens. So i'm going to throw them out there.
Thai- Sripraphai in Woodside.
Indian-Delhi Palace in Jackson Heights
Gelato is Italian ice cream.
NY has amazing food overall IMO, but of course you can get sick at different places. It depends. Still, I love exploring and trying new restaurants here, and I rarely get sick or have the food not agree with me. Enjoy. :-)
Try one of the Indonesian places in Queens! The beef rendang is great, also get the gado-gado (a vegetable dish). And don't forget to try the avocado or chocolate avocado shakes. There is a place called Minangasli in Elmhurst Queens that's very easy to get to on the subway. Here's a review The New York Times > Minangasli Restaurant Review > New York City Restaurant Reviews
When we went we basically ordered what was suggested in the article and the same dishes were suggested by the waiter when we asked for a recommendation.
Also, if you don't know about the site chowhound you should definitely check it out - but it might be too overwhelming as it's a bunch of serious foodies posting tons of stuff all the time and less of the kind of summary you seem to be looking for.
Here's the outer boroughs (Queens, Brooklyn, Bronx, Staten Island) board Outer Boroughs - CHOW
And last but not least, there are a bunch of NYC food blogs that you might check out. One local one is Eating In Translation
Actually, "dim sum" refers to any small, appetizer-like dish traditionally (in Chinese culture) consumed for breakfast or lunch. Many dim sum are dumplings, but not all. Although some, less traditional, restaurants refer only to dumplings as "dim sum", this is not correct. Steamed spare ribs, stuffed lotus leaves and wide noodles (the ones that look like crepes) are also "dim sum", to name a few. At least that's my understanding of it. Most restaurants that serve dim sum do so only until 2 PM or so; after that, it's a more traditional dinner menu. Usually, a server wheels about a cart with tiny steamers and you point to what you want. When you are done, the server will count the empty steamers and plates and give you a check. My favorite place for dim sum, however, is "Dim Sum Go-go" at 5 East Broadway (right off of Confucius Plaza). It does not have the traditional cart, but makes all dim sum to order -- you just fill out a menu with how many you want of each. A good bet is probably to order about 4 dim sum per person.
The dumplings that Frank mentioned -- the ones that look like garlic heads -- are definitely something to try. Be careful picking them up, though, they are filled with hot, savory soup. My favorite place for them is Joe's Shanghai at 9 Pell Street (be prepared to wait on line). These dumplings are served all day. Try the ones with a mixture of pork and crab meat -- they are the best. By the way, on the menu, they are referred to as "buns".
About "signature dishes" -- really, there is no such thing. Great cuisines are very varied, and no single dish defines a tradition. I know dumplings have been mentioned, but I wouldn't characterize them as a "signature dish" of the Chinese cuisine. If you mention Iberian food (Spanish or Portuguese) "paella" comes to mind -- but then, if you've had paella and never tried any of the salt cod dishes, you haven't really experienced those cuisines. So I'd say choose a restaurant wisely and go with your gut (no pun intended).
I don't know how remote your home town really is, but there are places in this country where, when talking about food, people use the words "Spanish", "Mexican", and "Latin-American" interchangeably. I don't mean to sound patronizing, but it's important to understand that those words describe very different things. The cuisine of Spain is very, very different from that of Mexico, and there is no such thing as "Latin-American". Cuban, Colombian, Brazilian and Peruvian cuisines are distinct, with minor overlap.
By the way, Peruvian is one ethnic cuisine you have got to try. I suggest "Lima's Taste" at the intersection of Christopher and Bedford Streets. Order one of the ceviches (a ceviche is a dish of mixed, usually raw, fish marinated in lime juice and garnished with a variety of Peruvian potatoes, corns, and peppers), also try a causa (a ball of mashed potatoes stuffed with a chicken, shrimp or vegetable puree).
For Ethiopian, Meskerem on MacDougal Street is a good choice.
Try some Spanish tapas. My favorite place is Pintxos, on Greenwich Street, though technically it's Basque. Pintxos' tapas menu is not as extensive as some other restaurants, but the execution is superb. Definitely try croquettes (both codfish and ham), stuffed peppers, mussels and olives.
I've mentioned Portuguese, and it's one of those cuisines that's just to die for. My favorite Portuguese restaurant in New York is Alfama, at the intersection of Hudson and Bleecker -- it even has fado singing on Wednesdays. For appetizers, order grilled octopus (hands down best in New York) and grilled linguiça (a type of sausage). For main course, definitely order something made with salt cod.
If you are concerned about food safety at restaurants, the NYC Department of Health posts the results of all restaurant inspections online, search-able by name, zip code and neighborhood. It's an eye opener!
As a general recommendation, I'd just like to throw out there that if you're interested in getting good, authentic ethnic food, you should go into your trip willing to spend some time traveling to the outer boroughs. If you check the chowhound site that Henna suggested, you'll notice that most of the recommendations for genuine ethnic food are in the boroughs. It makes sense; it's where most immigrants actually live, and the rents are actually cheap enough in many neighborhoods that family-run restaurants are the norm.
That said, I'm not the most adventurous eater, unfortunately, so I don't have that much to offer in the way of specific recommendations. However, I've heard that there are a couple of really good authentic Mexican taquerias in Sunset Park, Brooklyn, along 5th Ave -- take the D, N or R to 36th Street, Brooklyn -- and good dim sum along the other side of Sunset Park on 8th Avenue, Brooklyn. And these places tend to be a lot cheaper than Manhattan restaurants.
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