If I have a culinary soul mate it's him.

The Hierarchy of Pork.

Sooo many taquerias on my must try list.

It was close to 0 degrees outside, cold for all the babies in NYC. Needless to say it was legitimately cold and I needed to warm up. With Erin and Danielle in tow we headed down to the EV for some more tacos. There is a weird trend starting here that I will have to take care of. I'm suppose to be writing about all sorts of food but the theme as of yet has all been Latin influenced food. I'll fix that as soon as I have enough money to eat out again.

Anyways we hit up a little bodega style taqueria in between 4th and 5th on 1st Ave called Downtown Bakery II. Hmmmmm. Name aside the tacos were great.

There were two dead ringers that let me know this place was going to be great. First there were no gringos behind the counter. Second the refrigerator left of the register was packed full of Jarritos and 16oz GLASS bottles of Coke. Now in my humble opinion there is no better compliment to Latin food than an ice cold Coca-Cola straight out of a glass bottle. Something about the bubbles, sweet taste and that little bite that just works with hot peppers and tortillas.

Now I'm not the most patient person in the world and as long as I'm in a taqueria you know I have to start with an order of guac. So we settled into a small table and started digging in. The guac was great but not the best I've had. It was a little over worked and had an almost creamy texture. When it comes to guac I want it as chunky as possible. It did however, have an intense amount of heat.

Finally the tacos touch down on table. I start off with shrimp tacos. Ok, lacking flavor unless you had a bite with a ton of camarones in it. Also one of my most hated ingredients was present. Iceberg lettuce. Forget it, why ad it? Crunch and texture are great but if you're going to add something to my food bring some flavor to the table as well. Still a good taco but nothing to write home about, even though it made the blog.

Chicken Mole. What do I need to say here other than chocolate, chiles, chiles, and more chiles. Cooked low and slow for over a day? One of my favorite sauces. The chicken was juicy and well coked and the mole sauce was drizzled over the top, rather than having the chicken stew in the sauce. I appreciate that. Once again what is the deal with the iceberg lettuce, skip it.

Finally it wouldn't be me without some pig on site. Pernil, my new favorite Spanish word means really delicious pork. These tacos are exactly what I look for in a taqueria. Slow roasted pork with a little cilantro and onions. Nothing too fancy just the perfect compliments to an already delicious meat. Another plus on these guys is the size. These are respectable tacos for a respectable appetite.

All in all I was impressed with Downtown Bakery II's tacos. They were delicious, authentic and a great value. I'm going to have to say that the tacos at La Esquina were much tastier but hey these guys got value on their side.

As the three of us walked to the subway we walked by a curiously similar taqueria just a block or so down the street. I've heard inklings of some sort of connection between the two and I'll have to investigate further and report back.

La Arepa es mi favorito comida.

So I'm sure my grammar is completely off but the point is these little South American "sandwiches" are heaven.

I was first introduced to Arepas last July when a friend of a friend insisted that we try the restaurant Caracas Arepa Bar. The founders are two Venezuelan women who were seeking to satisfy their cravings for their country's favorite street food. So they open Caracas Arepa bar.

Now I have been to Caracas more times than any other restaurant in New York City. In fact I have been there three times in the last two weeks. Back in November I was surprised and pleased to discover that a new location had opened in Williamsburg.

The best part about Caracas is its a no frills establishment that focuses on good ingredients and authentic recipes. The arepas are served in a parchment lined paper boat and are accompanied by a squeeze bottle of chimichurri.

The arepa itself is a white corn based cake that is baked through and then grilled so the outside has a crispy crust. Inside the corn is lighter but still has the grit of corn meal. The filling varies from fresh avocado and chunks of chicken, salty white cheese, and chorizo. The best seller, De Pabellon is filled with black beans, fried plantains, salty cheese and spicy braised beef. Delicious.

But for me, Latin food shines best when it involves pork.

La De Pernil.


My favorite arepa and one that I order every time. The slow roasted pork, oh so simple yet oh so delicious sits on top of fresh tomato and is dressed with a fresh mango salsa. Of course every bite gets a shot of chimichurri.

Try it and don't do what my bland brit of a roommate does and order a chicken, onion and cheddar cheese arepa. There is one in the East Village on 1st Avenue and East 7th Street and another in Williamsburg on Grand Street and Roebling Street.

Word of the Week.

Vegetarian - A bad hunter. Someone who survives by consuming not food, but the stuff that food eats.

In context:

The vegetarian was forced to subsist on slower prey, such as the broccoli and carrot.

The Virgin Post

As most Saturday's start at the Loon's Nest I am awakened by the aroma of one of my roommates making breakfast for the rest of the apartment. Or something like that. Actually I stumbled down stairs to find my roommate drunkenly pouring a glass of water for himself. We quickly settle into the living room and watch a TWSS filled episode of Extreme Loggers. Seeing my roommate's pain I realize there is only one solution for this hangover, which I normally share with him.

Tacos.

Now the original idea was to head down to the Red Hook Ball Fields where I hear a large gathering of street vendors sell the cities best authentic south of the border fare. Then I realize it is 32 degrees out and the vendor season is well behind us. Not willing to give up on our taco craving we head to a small Taqueria in the Lower East Side. La Esquina sits on the tip of a tapered block on the corner of Lafayette and Kenmare. This small, and I mean Al's Breakfast small, taqueria has all the hallmarks of good food. The kitchen is fully visible. The menu, flatware and napkins are all paper. Most of all it's cheap. At approximately 3 dollars a taco this joint is proof that New York eats can be done on a budget. Miraculously the roommates and I are able to secure 3 of the 8 stools in the restaurant. Armed with Coke and El Yucateco we dig in.

I started with Carne Enchilada, a warm corn tortilla stuffed with shredded pork, onion relish, guacamole and chunks of pineapple. The tortillas were soft, yet held up to some serious eating. The guacamole was prepared fresh and in the traditional Mexican manner; blended until liquefied so it can be drizzled on top rather than spooned in. The onion relish was just sour and tart enough to contrast the sweet pineapple without over powering. And best of all the pork. THE BEST and most versatile food on the face of the planet. Slow roasted, tender and juicy. A great start.

Next in line the Pescado a la Plancha (or something like that...). Now I'm sure SoCal does this taco better than anyone else and I was a little hesitant to make my first fish taco made in a small hole in the wall taco shop in Manhattan but I was pleasantly surprised. Fresh sea bass (judging from the firmness and fattiness of the meat) grilled to perfection. Smokey and lightly crisped on the outside and tender and light on the inside. All of this perfectly complimented by razor thin red onions and a a pseudo Mexican tartar sauce. Amazing.

Finally the Carnitas Michoacan. Somewhat disappointing to say the least. Still delicious but it just wasn't what I was looking for and definitely did not stand up to the first two tacos. The crispy chunks of pork, fresh onions, cilantro and salsa macha were all freshly and artfully prepared but just didn't impress me the way the other two tacos did. But you be the judge.

The verdict: Amazing tacos. Some of the best I've had and there is definitely a return trip in the future. In fact this is my new budget friendly alternative to the highly lauded Caracas Arepa Bar (post coming your way soon). If you are in New York this is a must have. I can't wait for the hot summer months when the patio is open and I can tip back a beer, put my elbows on the table and eat.