Wednesday, March 31, 2010

ChainburgerChainburger(CheeburgerCheeburger)

Diva2 here, just back from early eats at the local CheeburgerCheeburger franchise. This is another of those faux 50s diners that seem to be everywhere these days - you know, the pseudo 50s jukebox tunes, the fake pressed aluminum trimming, the enforced hearty peppy atmosphere, the kitschy wall decor, etc. I arrived at 5:30 to be greeted by a sign announcing Family Night from 6 to 8. Apparently in this neighborhood that means 5 to 7, because when I went inside there were more kids than adults. I turned down the first table offered (too close to a dad burping a baby) and was shown to a better spot. After perusing the menu I settled on a Large Coffee Shake, Small Onion Rings and the Classic Burger (smallest of the several sizes on offer) with lettuce, tomato, onion and horseradish sauce.

Waiter/Diva2 conversation:

W: How would you like the burger cooked?
D2: Pink and juicy.
W: Well done.
D2: No, well done is NOT what I want.
W: OK, medium then.
D2: As close to medium rare as you can get it.
Waiter departs with perplexed look on his face.


The food arrived in a very odd manner. First came the shake, which was thick and tasty, but I was 3/4 of the way through it before the onion rings arrived. I was halfway through the onion rings before the burger came and there was a long, long wait between onion rings and burger. It really would have been nice to have everything come to the table at the same time. I had heard a lot about the onion rings, and in their defense, the ratio of batter to rings is good. You can actually taste the onion; it's not all batter, batter, batter. However, the batter itself is not good; there's something "too uniform and made somewhere else and reheated here" about it. The burger itself was not bad although it certainly was closer to well done than medium or medium rare. Condiments on the table included mustard, ketchup and pepper, but there was no salt in sight anywhere on my table or any table near me. Luckily the burger had enough taste that salt wasn't necessary. I wonder what happens when someone wants salt for their fries.

All of a sudden I heard a great commotion behind me and I turned around to discover that Family Night means the Balloon Man and the Face Paint Lady. The kids were all having a blast and the balloons were pretty awesome looking - the green spider was a particularly big hit. Face Paint Lady was also doing a roaring business.

Overall verdict: If you are doing errands in the nabe, you can duck in here for a burger, but I can't see making a special trip here, unless of course you have kiddies that need entertainment on a dull Wednesday night. This is not a place I would deliberately seek out again.

Cheeburger Cheeburger on Urbanspoon

Sunday, March 28, 2010

Lunch at Manor Oktoberfest

Diva2 actually likes to cook, but you'd never know it from the amount of dining out she's done lately. Needing some fresh air and a walk, I took off down Yellowstone Blvd. in Queens yesterday in search of a German restaurant (Manor Oktoberfest) that I heard about recently. This is their second location, and I gather they have only been here about 3 months. It's a spacious, light place with the obligatory flat screen TVs everywhere and I had to wait a bit to be seated although the place was quite empty, since I arrived at an off hour for dining - later than lunch, too early for dinner. There is a counter right as you walk in and it has a high back wall, thus obscuring for the waitstaff in the room behind that anyone might actually be out front waiting - bad design plan as far as I'm concerned.

I ordered Potato Pancakes with Applesauce to start, followed by the Schnitzel Cordon Bleu Sandwich. The Potato Pancakes turned out to be 4 oval disks about 1/4" high and perfectly uniform in size, shape and color - in other words, I strongly suspect them to be bought wholesale already made and just heated up straight out of a box. Made from scratch on the spot - no way. The applesauce was clearly straight out of a Mott's jar. That said the taste was acceptable, if not spectacular, but I certainly wouldn't order this again.

The sandwich was definitely an improvement: a fried pork cutlet with ham and melted cheese (and yes, the cheese was properly melted), lettuce and tomato and a tangy horseradish dressing served on a crusty roll. My only complaint is that the roll wasn't crusty enough and I think that's because the horseradish dressing was soaking into the roll and softening it up. The taste of this sandwich was great; that I would definitely order again. The sandwich came with a choice of sides and I chose the Cucumber Salad. Again, this item was clearly out of a jar, bought by the gallon, but I didn't object because the tangy sweet/sour dressing and the chopped onions lightly pickled the cucumber slices and the end result was tasty and a nice counterfoil to the sandwich.

Then I fell for the oldest trick in the book when I asked the waitress about desserts, which were the usual carrot cake, chocolate cake, etc. Except of course "there is the one pound slice of Red Velvet Cake, but you wouldn't want that. It's too much for one person, it's really meant to be shared." Canny waitress - she basically dared me to eat it all and I fell for it. It is an enormous piece of cake (with an enormous price tag) and I had to admit defeat. I polished off 3/4s of it, but that was all. I might actually have eaten the whole thing if it had been any good, but it was a severe disappointment. It looked great, with a great red color, but it had no discernible taste of any kind and the frosting was too tangy and overpowering for my personal taste.

I'm not a beer drinker (just doesn't agree with my wonky digestive system) so I can't report on the beer selections but they seem quite varied.

Verdict: if you live in the nabe it's a good place to stop in for a quick sandwich and a beer, but if you live out of the nabe there is no reason to seek this place out.

Manor Oktoberfest Forest Hills on Urbanspoon

Lunch at Kenn's Broome Street Bar

The Diner Divas, out in SoHo on a blustery Friday afternoon, decided to see what was cooking at an ole fave, Kenn's Broome Street Bar.

First shown to a table where one of the chairs seemed too close for comfort to some stairs, we were instead seated at another table we preferred. Tea for Diva2 and ginger ale for Diva1 showed up promptly as we contemplated the menu.

Diva2 settled on the "pigwich," a grilled ham and Swiss cheese sandwich on pumpernickel bread, with a side of chips. Diva1 raised her eyebrows a bit at the mention of grilled Swiss cheese given her recent experience with grilled cheeses at Big Daddy's, but Diva2 was unfazed, noting only that yes some cheeses grill better than others. After inquiring about the soup of the day, Diva1 ordered a soup and half-sandwich combo: ham and brie with mustard on pumpernickel with a cup of cream of tomato soup.

The soup arrived in a coffee mug on a plate, half sandwich at its side. Both were delicious, the soup not your grandmother's smooth creamy bland concoction but with something -- Diva1 knows not what -- with a bit of heat in the blend that made for an interesting soup experience. The half sandwich was just right, not overstuffed; the mustard was served on the side, which Diva1 appreciated.

Diva2's grilled cheese sandwich was also a success: the folks in the kitchen here know how to grill the Swiss to perfection. The side of chips was plentiful if a bit uninspired; they were the kind with ridges.

With sandwiches eaten and with time on our hands, we each decided to order apple pie for dessert. I was happy to note that the pie drought was apparently over as the waiter asked if we'd like the pie a la mode and would we like it warmed? Yes (for Diva2) and no (Diva1) for the a la mode, and a yes all around for the warming.

And then we sat back and waited. And waited. And waited. While we'd been munching our sandwiches, the place had filled to capacity; our waiter was busy. So we waited some more. We reminded the waiter we were still waiting. He apologized, indicating all those filled tables. We joked about piemakers going out into the forest to kill trees for their apples ...

Finally the pie arrived. It was not simply warmed, but quite hot. Nonetheless, we dug right in, Diva2 remarking that the cold ice cream helped mitigate the heat of the pie. And while Diva2 would have preferred the crumb topping to have been crisper, Diva1 noted sadly that there was no caramel drizzle, no powdered sugar. And both -- as, mind you, they each polished off their plates -- noted that the pie could certainly have been juicier.

Still it was a pleasnt, if long, lunch. We'll have to go back for more sandwiches and to try some other desserts.

Broome Street Bar on Urbanspoon

Tuesday, March 23, 2010

Lunch success at last

Today, on the spur of the moment, Diva2 had lunch at Tuscan Hills, the new upscale Italian restaurant in Forest Hills on the corner of Queens Blvd. and 77th Avenue. This place is seriously good and very definitely needed in the area . The lunch special at $9.95 is a true bargain. I had Tortellini in Brodo to start; the chicken broth was delicious, with a nice glistening layer of fat and a garden's worth of fresh chopped parsley on top, plus all those lovely tortellini. Yum! I was also served a basket of bread, which seems like overkill, since the special also came with the panini of my choice. I choose the grilled steak panini and it came with a lovely small salad. Tasty, tasty, tasty. I love this place, seriously. Thank you, Tuscan Hills, keep doing what you do.

Tuscan Hills on Urbanspoon

Little Poland - Big Disappointments #2

Diva2 here: I had occasion to be around 2nd Avenue and 12th Street on Sunday, so a stop into Little Poland, a neighborhood favorite, was in order. Oh, Little Poland, you let me down. The Red Borscht was anemic in color and tasteless; if I had closed my eyes I wouldn't have known there were beets in the soup, plus it was hot. Sorry, that's wrong; it should be cold. Next came Beef Stroganoff, which was quite tasty, but the sauce was overly pink - too much paprika I suspect. Here is the kicker though; it comes with 2 sides and the waitress had to clue me in that I should order noodles as one of the sides because "the Stroganoff doesn't come with noodles". Come on now, who serves this without noodles, seriously? I also ordered Red Cabbage; it was red all right, purple in fact, but cold and utterly tasteless - no caraway seeds, no onion or apple or raisins - nothing. Dessert was a perfectly ordinary piece of babka; not good, not bad, but totally unmemorable. Little Poland, I've loved you in the past; were you having an off day or is our romance over for good?

Little Poland Restaurant on Urbanspoon

Saturday, March 20, 2010

Big Daddy's Big Disappointments

DinerDiva1 was strolling around Union Square last Sunday when she decided to visit Big Daddy's Diner on Park Avenue South (by 19th Street) for brunch. It had been quite a while since she'd last been there, but she remembered it fondly, and hoped that it wouldn't prove to be overcrowded ...

... which it almost was. The joint was definitely jumping behind its big brightly-lit DINER sign, so much so that Diva1 worried she'd have to sit at the counter or have a long wait for one of the 50's-vibe turquoise-and-salmon-colored booths, if they'd even seat a lone diner at one of those 4-person spots. Not to worry: a lone booth was available at which they readily sat little ole lone diner me, Diva1. I ordered coffee, which was quickly brought, and I settled in to read the menu, a colorful, busy affair written in a friendly, breezy tone. I chose the 3-cheese grilled cheese sandwich, adding a $2 side of tater tots.

This sure looked good when it arrived. First I tried the cole slaw, which was drenched in mayonnaise, not my favorite style but far better than many a diner coleslaw garnish. Next the tater tots tempted: they were nicely crunchy on the outside, soft & tasty on the inside ... but ... at room temperature, barely warm. Then I bit into the sandwich ... and immediately realized my mistake in ordering it. It had sounded like such a good idea to this cheese lover; alas, cheddar, Swiss, and American cheeses melt very differently from one another. The American cheese was perfect; the cheddar was warm but not really melted, and the Swiss, the poor Swiss, had turned into a rubber sheet that only wanted to stretch when bitten into. I'm sure I made for a pretty good comedy skit as I battled the Swiss cheese while eating that concoction, but eat it I did. And the tater tots, too. It wasn't inedible, after all, just ... the wrong temperature in the case of the taters and the wrong idea in the case of the sandwich.

I was hoping dessert might save the meal, so I ordered apple pie. Did I want it a la mode? No. Did I want it heated? Oh, my, yes, please. And so it arrived, served with caramel and a dollop of whipped cream. and drizzled with powdered sugar. It tasted warm and sweet and fresh. Heavenly perfection.

So, with a disappointing entree and perfect dessert under my belt, I thought I'd give the place another try for lunch this afternoon.

This time the atmosphere was not quite so jumpy; there were plenty of booths available, and I chose one near the front. Asked by the attentive waiter what I'd like to drink, I opted for "just water, thanks" and was rewarded with a tall soda-glass of iced water served with a straw and a lemon wedge. That was such a welcome surprise, I put aside all thoughts of cold tater tots and rubbery cheese, and placed my order for a tuna melt (um, American cheese with it, please) with, yes, a $2 side of tater tots.

The sandwich was huge, easily enough for a party of two, and likely well able to feed a full table of 4. The tater tots were still crunchy, delicious, and ... well, above room temperature this time, but still barely warm. I ate as much of the tuna melt as I could, visions of pie perfection dancing in my head, then had the waiter wrap up the rest to take home ... and thought this time I'd try the cherry pie. Which was on the menu. But, alas, as it turned out, not available. They had no pie this afternoon, the waiter sadly advised, suggesting cake instead.

No, I'm afraid not. My tummy was set for pie. Cherry pie. I'd have accepted apple pie, I suppose. But not cake. I didn't want any cake, thank you, just the check please.

Oh, Big Daddy, you have such a nice place: 50's decor, 2 big screen TV's tuned to sports, cheerful attentive wait-people, even on request big glasses of iced water served with lemon. And I shall surely judge all other diner apple pies by yours, and likely find them wanting. But what a disappointment. Tater tots, paid extra for, that arrive barely warm. A 3-cheese sandwich that certainly sounded good at the time, but did you ever try to actually eat it?? And dreamy delicious pie that, alas, is -- *sob* -- "not available today, sorry."

Will I be back? Maybe. Just that, you know, there are soooo many diners out there to try ...

Big Daddy's Diner on Urbanspoon

Friday, March 19, 2010

Pub Grub (or maybe Pub Ugh)

Diva2 here. Today I had lunch in Manhattan with friends. The restaurant, Harrington's Bar and Grill, on 7th between 30th and 31st, was chosen strictly on the basis of location, to accommodate a friend who has limited mobility. It was all about location, location, location.

That said, I enjoyed my lunch - to a certain degree. I had the bangers and mash, and honestly, there was enough mash on my plate to feed a family of 10. The sausages were fine, ditto the potatoes, and the onion gravy hit the spot. I also had the vegetable of the day, which turned out to be string beans and sliced turnips. They were ok, but undercooked. Dessert was pedestrian at best; 'chocolate cream cake' turned out to be a so-so version of Boston Cream Pie.

The word from my dining companions was that the shepherd's pie was nothing special but the fish and chips earned big thumbs up. The cheesecake and carrot cake generated no comments at all.

There really is nothing distinctive about this place and it is very overpriced, the better to take advantage of the lunch crowd in this busy neighborhood or the tourist overflow from the Garden. Reduce the portion sizes (especially the mashed potatoes) and charge less, that's what I say.

A very reliable source tells me the place to go for this kind of food is The Wee Molly on 8th Avenue at 30th. (Only a block away from Harrington's but too far for my limited mobility friend to walk - alas.) It is on my list for sure.

Thus today's food adventures come to a close.

Harrington's Bar & Grill on Urbanspoon

Friday, March 12, 2010

Still basking in the afterglow....

of the spaghetti and meatballs on Wednesday night. What did you think I meant?

Needing fresh air and wanting an outing, Diva2 took the bus down Queens Blvd. to the Tower Diner in Rego Park.

First the bus ride: highly entertaining in the black comedy sense. Diva2 took the first seat she could find; there was a reason it was empty. Directly in front was a religious fanatic who spent the whole time talking to air about the joys of Jehovah's Witnesses. It was a thrill when her cell phone rang and she had to have a normal conversation for 2 minutes, but boy did Ms. Fanatic get off the phone fast, the better to be talking to air again.

At last, Tower Diner is in sight. It's a funny triangular shape - methinks it might have been a bank in a former life, but it's very light and cheery. There were some unusual lunch specials (coconut shrimp with orange dipping sauce, anyone?), but in the end I went for that rainy day comfort classic of Chicken a la King. It was a great choice. It came with a decent basket of breadsticks, melba toast and a roll plus a really nice salad; the salad had generous slices of plum tomato and cucumber as well as a big slice of red onion (and the usual iceberg lettuce, of course).

The waitress was at the top of her game, asking me if she should put in the order for the C a la K while I was eating the salad, or did I want her to wait until the salad was finished? Now,please. The C a la K was dee-lish! The chicken pieces were big and the chicken had been grilled first, so it had nice color and a great taste. The sauce was quite tasty and there was a nice timbale of rice, studded with peas and carrots, to go with the chicken. The portion was huge; Diva2 took home enough leftovers for dinner tonight.

The only mistake was dessert. They were out of coconut custard pie so I had lemon meringue. Generic at its best and not helped at all by today's rainy weather; even good meringue could not stand up to this dampness.

Boring bus ride home - no professional eccentrics on this one.

Tower Diner on Urbanspoon

Thursday, March 11, 2010

2 Times in 1 Day at 3 Guys

The Diner Divas were meeting up for an afternoon together on Manhattan's upper east side, so DinerDiva1 decided to have breakfast at 3 Guys Restaurant at 96th and Madison, knowing dinner would also be there later.

DinerDiva1 arrived at 3 Guys about 10:30 a.m. Promptly and cheerfully seated at one of the large booths by a window, she was handed the breakfast menu and immediately ordered a cup of black coffee, which arrived within seconds. She'd thought she was in the mood for a cheese-and-onion omelette, but didn't see that listed among the omelette offerings. Sure, she could have asked for it and no doubt it would not have been a problem, but she thought, since this was a late breakfast/early lunch combo, the equally filling corned beef hash with 2 eggs over easy would do just as nicely. This came with home fries and whole wheat toast. Both the hash browns and corned beef hash arrived with a bit of crunchy crust on them, which, while fine for the hash browns was not a favorite for the corned beef hash but certainly not a major turnoff. The toast was acceptable, nothing special, and the eggs were perfect. A full stomach and a refilled cup of coffee later, DinerDiva1 paid her modest $9.75 bill, plus tip, and went off to meet up with DinerDiva2.

Some hours later, DinerDivas1 and 2 were at 3 Guys together at a corner booth they'd chosen away from the windows and the door. Again, seating was prompt and cheerfully accomplished. DinerDiva2's immediate request for tea was promptly delivered and we settled in to survey the wide-ranging menu choices.

DinerDiva1's settled on the feta cheeseburger deluxe, well done. DinerDiva2's choice was spaghetti and meatballs and a mixed green salad to start with. A breadbasket of rolls arrived with the salad, which looked fresh and crisp if not particularly inspired, and DinerDiva2 allowed as how she was happy to have her veggies for the day. Then it was on to the main event:

While DinerDiva1 was munching happily away on her burger, DinerDiva2 declared her spaghetti and meatballs delicious and nicely prepared, topped with cheese freshly grated by the waiter at the table. She was also pleased that the sauce was not at all watery. DinerDiva1 rhapsodized about the cole slaw, which was not the usual tasteless diner variety, and noted that next time she'll ask for a larger portion of slaw in lieu of the fries and uninspired, though certainly fresh and crisp, lettuce and slice of tomato served with the deluxe plate. Portions were large: DinerDiva2 cleaned her plate, except for the french fries, and DinerDiva1 reluctantly couldn't finish all the spaghetti--it was just too much.

For dessert, DinerDiva1 treated herself to the so-advertised homemade rice pudding, which was cool and creamy, served with nutmeg and a small dollop of whipped cream. DinerDiva2 dove into a slice of carrot cake, nicely plated, and which she said was delicious with a slightly nutty flavor. Again, portions were large, so some got left on each plate, alas.

The waiter was attentive, no one hurried us out, the restroom, down a flight of stairs, was clean and bright, the bill for the 2 of us was $46 including tip. We've enjoyed 3 Guys at this location before; we will no doubt enjoy it again. It truly is a pleasant eating experience -- enough for one of us, at least, to happily do it twice in one day.

Three Guys Restaurant on Urbanspoon

Tuesday, March 9, 2010

Diva2's latest adventures

Diva2 had way too much time on her hands and an itch she couldn't scratch, so it was off for a long walk down Austin Street in Forest Hills. Destination: the Forest Hills Diner. Diva2 had spotted this place one day last year as she went roaring by on the Q23 bus, but today was the first opportunity to get there.

Forest Hills Diner is small and unprepossessing, but the vibe was very right. First plus: a very pleasant, but not overly obtrusive, waitress. Diva2 ordered the chicken salad triple-decker; Diva2 likes to order a diner classic the first time she visits a place, the better to see how the joint stacks up against similar spots. Second plus: the fries were really hot, obviously just out of the fryer, and while the chicken itself was not so chunky as Diva2 likes it in her chicken salad, it tasted fine and the bacon was perfectly cooked and had a great smoky taste. Even the cole slaw was decent - not too watery and with good crunch. This place will definitely get a return visit.

Diva2 then headed down to the Cinemart on Metropolitan Avenue to see An Education. Was disappointed in it and not sure why.

To help Diva2 get over her disappointment with the movie, there was Eddie's Sweet Shop beckoning on the next corner. Diva2 loves the idea of Eddie's, but she's not sure she actually likes Eddie's itself. It's an old-fashioned ice cream parlor that specializes in sundaes and milkshakes and the like. The place needs a bit of an overhaul; it's just too frowzy and down at the heels and dusty at the moment. The big problem, however, is the ice cream. Diva2 had a hot fudge sundae with coffee ice cream and if she had closed her eyes and just taken a bite of the ice cream, she wouldn't have known what the flavor was supposed to be. Hello, Eddie's, coffee ice cream should taste like coffee. This has happened there before and Diva2 is inclined not to offer Eddie's another chance for quite some time.

If you think Diva2 only eats in Queens, think again; there is a Manhattan diner in her future for tomorrow - report to follow.

Monday, March 8, 2010

What/where Diner Diva2 has been eating

Saturday night after the movies (Ajami - Oscar-nominated Israeli film about crime and its affect on a Jaffa neighborhood - highly recommended) Diner Diva2 hit the Flagship Diner in Briarwood. What can I say? I have a soft spot in my heart for this place; after all it has The Roast Turkey Platter on the menu every day. So what if the cranberry sauce is from a can, the vegetables are overcooked and I could make a better baked potato at home. The gravy is good and the chestnut stuffing mighty good and Thanksgiving is a religion for me. Alas for stupid me, I ordered Eggplant Parmigiana instead and got just what I deserved: watery pasta, listless tomato sauce and inattentive waitress service. Won't make that mistake again.

Yesterday, I went off to try Fuji, the new Japanese restaurant in Forest Hills. OK, it's not a diner, but I'm not a foodie, I was hungry, I wanted food. The restaurant is only a few weeks old and in the middle of its shakedown cruise. The Salmon Teriyaki was quite good, but the vegetables that came with it, for the most part, weren't hot and you get the same insipid salad you get at every Japanese place in NY, although the dressing had a nice spicy tang. Had Red Bean ice cream for dessert; it wasn't frozen properly and the sugar had turned gritty - give that a miss.

Went back again for lunch today and had the basic sushi platter. It came with a piping hot and very delicious miso soup and the insipid salad, but along with a California roll and 8 pieces of sushi it was quite a substantial lunch. Tried the Green Tea ice cream this time; it had a great deep green color and a nice smoky taste - Fuji definitely got the ice cream right this time.

Fuji also got the decor right, over the other Japanese places in this neighborhood. They put in windows along the front so one can actually see into the place and when you go in it is airy and spacious feeling. Plus they have 2 flatscreen TVs to keep diners amused and it didn't hurt that the kitchen radio was blaring classic rock; any place that lets me hear Norman Greenbaum's Spirit in the Sky at lunch gets my vote.

Fuji Japanese Cuisine on Urbanspoon