So a couple of weeks ago I walked passed tiny restaurant with a line going outside the door. Of course being as nosy as I am, I decided to go and investigate. The line was to get inside of Mexicue, a new Mexican/Barbecue fusion restaurant (for lack of a better word. The place is very small. Theres really nowhere to sit aside from a thin counter across the window and 2 or 3 stools). Everyone waited outside eagerly with grins on their faces and drool on their lips waiting to try a new treat.

Their menu was pretty bare which makes sense for a new venture, but the little bit that was listed sounded delicious so i tried a few things and here is what I thought of them.

Short ribs taco ($4.00). Not good. The tortilla was grainy and the meat didnt have the best texture or taste. Honestly it tasted like beef jerky in a tortilla.

Berkshire Pulled Pork Slider ($3.50). Not good. I didnt like the flavor or texture of the bread, and the meat wasnt that good either. It tasted better than the taco, but it definitely wasnt worth 3.50. I mean HELLO!? Its a SLIDER, not a real sandwich!

Burnt ends Chili Slider ($3.50). The WORST slider I’ve ever had. It was full of meat tough slices of beef. I think they found the cheapest, lowest grade of beef they could find! It was tough, and gristly and just gross! Worst sandwich ever!

Spicy Potato Salad ($3.00): This was pretty good….the first time I tried it. But after having it a couple more times, each time tasting worse than the last, ive come to the conclusion that maybe it only tasted good in comparison to the other bad food next to it. The next time I had it, it tasted like it was mixed chipotle mayonnaise. I’m not in love with the taste of chipotle mayo, so maybe you’ll love it. I guess Im a glutton for punishment because I gave it a third try! This time they put too much paprika and the potatos werent cooked well enough! There is nothing worse than crunchy potatoes! If its not potato chips or fries, potatoes should not crunch. EW

The price of the potato salad went from 3 dollars to $2.50. I guess since they lowered the price, they had to lower the quality as well. *shrug*

I guess its safe to say that I do NOT like Mexicue….AT ALL! The food is bad. The prices are high and the portions are low! But with food that tastes like that, who needs big portions? If you decide to try this place for yourself, be prepared to spend 15 to 20 dollars if you actually want to get full. Everything is priced separately! There are no meals aside from “Rice Bowls”.

The rice bowls range in price from $8.50 to $10.50. So basically, whatever comes on a taco or in a slider can be turned into a rice bowl. Im not sure why something that costs $3.50 as a sandwich becomes 10 dollars just because you add some rice to it. And I wont find out because I definitely will not be eating from Mexicue again. I have a feeling there wont be much of a line coming out of there in the near future now that the novelty has warn off and people know what to expect. I doubt Mexicue will be around very long…especially with Chipotle right down the block.

Chipotle isnt my favorite restaurant, but at least their food is edible and they make great guacamole! I ordered chips and guac at Mexicue and they didnt have any guacamole! They were all out! How are you gonna be a mexican restaurant and not have guac! Thats like Popeyes being out of chicken (which i have also experienced but thats what I get for going to Popeyes…ew! the only thing worth eating there are the biscuits, but another story for another time.)

So I was strolling along in Chelsea today after teaching my aerobics class and I came across this food truck with a crowd around it! Of course anything with a crowd draws me to it, especially if its food related! So I got in line. THAT WAS THE BEST LINE I’VE EVER STOOD IN! Korilla BBQ is AMAZING! It was kind of odd to me at first…Korean BBQ in Tacos…Korea meets Mexico…hmmmm…but I couldnt pass up the opportunity to have Spicy Pork.

Ever since I had to my first Korean BBQ experience, I’ve been addicted to Spicy Pork! So of course i ordered the Spicy Pork Taco with Kimchi (and I didnt even have to cook it myself lol). And of course, being the greedy eater that I am, I wanted beef too! I know some people frown upon mixing meats but we fat azz Americans do that and we do it proudly! Lucky for us, the awesome (and cute) guys on the Korilla truck actually are all about substitutions! Since an order comes with 3 tacos…i got 2 spicy pork and one beef (bul go gi) taco. THEY WERE ALL DEELISH! I cant even tell you which one I liked better because I love them both.

They also have chicken and tofu, but I had to pass on the chicken because its thigh meat and I dont like dark meat. Tofu is cute but Im a meat eater, so if I was to get tofu, id mix it with meat lol! Im sure that defeats the whole tofu purpose. But in any case, Im sure all are great!

If you ever stumble upon the Korilla truck, definitely STOP BY and grab a burrito or a taco or just a chosun bowl! You wont be disappointed! Even if you’re not hungry, get something for later. Next time I see the truck (aka find it because I will be stalking them), Im gonna try their bacon and kimchi fried rice! That sounds so good! You can never go wrong with bacon! I know its hard to believe that I teach aerobics the way I eat…but hey..i have to keep my body in shape because if I didnt exercise i’d look this and THIS would be my theme song.

If you want to know where the Korilla BBQ truck is gonna be, be sure to follow them on twitter @KorillaBBQ and “like” their Facebook page. I wish I could LOVE their facebook page.

And hey, guy at the register CALL ME! Cuz you’re a cutie. Wait..i forgot to give you my number. Err…um…EMAIL ME! lol

Check out more “Food Porn” below (click to enlarge)

Maybe I’m too hasty to say an entire restaurant sucks based on two meals…but that was two chances that they screwed up! But Nooch sucks! yeah I said it!

So I was in the mood for some asian food. Since I love Thai food, I decided to try out the different Thai/Asian Fusion restaurants in the Chelsea area of NYC. They have about 4 Thai/Asian Fusion restaurants within 2 blocks. I will review the others later but I have to tell you about Nooch!

Their menu just makes everything sound so appetizing. I am a big fan of the fried egg on my asian dishes. I first discovered that delicious addition at Cafetasia. Ever since then, whenever I go to a Thai restaurant I order a fried egg with my food.

I looked over the Nooch lunch menu and the Salmon Young Ginger and Rice dish jumped out at me because it had two of my favorite things, salmon and fried egg. I ordered it with the Thai fish cakes as appetizer (Lunch special comes with a main course and a complimentary appetizer)…BIG MISTAKE!

When the fish cakes came, I was pleasantly surprised! They looked succulent and had a reddish hue to them that was remeniscent of buffalo wing sauce. I kind of expected them to have that tangy sauce taste. What I got instead was dry, rubbery grossness. It tasted microwaved left over fast food of some sort…or perhaps some kind of frozen food that they microwaved when they should have fried it. Either way it was HORRIBLE. I was so disappointed but still optimistic about my main dish.

The waiter cleared the table and took away my duck sauce (which was the only thing that tasted good on the table) and put down my main course. It looked ok….but it didnt look GOOD! Usually when food is placed in front of you at a restaurant, the presentation makes you excited. Not this, it just looked like some wet soggy mass of wackness.

The salmon was sliced into strips. The food had way too many mushrooms (which some people may like, but I’m not overly fond of mushrooms…especially since I found out how theyre made! ew). I took a bite, and it tasted worse than it looked. It was just bland and wet! I wished the waiter would have asked me before he took away my duck sauce, because I had to ask for it back to completely douse my food in it! Once I covered it with duck sauce it was good enough. Yes I ate it all because I’m greedy and when you pay $12 (9 bucks plus tax and tip) dollars for lunch, you’d better eat it all no matter HOW it tastes!

I was ready to write off this restaurant all together but I thought I’d be a nice person (aka glutton for punishment) and give it one more try. I was excited to see that they had ramen , and other soups on their lunch menu! Since I’m a big fan of Japanese soups, I decided to give them one more go. BIIIIG MISTAKE!!!! If a restaurant sucks the first time, most likely its gonna suck the next time! I learned that lesson the hard way!

This time, I knew better than to order those rubbery microwaved crab cakes! I ordered the vegetable spring roles! Spring roles are such a traditional asian dish, how could they possibly mess that up right? WRONG! While they were good for the most part, they were kind of burnt…but that was the LEAST of my worries.

My main dish came. I had ordered the Bah Mee Keow Gai (Wonton Noodle Soup). The soup was FULL OF CILANTRO!!!!!! ILLLLLL!!!! Who puts cilantro in soup? And even if you do put cilantro in soup, you dont put a LOT of it! Cilantro is a really strong vegetable..you only need a hint of it to make a big impact!

So I asked the waitor if I could have another soup without cilantro. I told him that I can’t eat cilantro. He goes “its just a garnish on top…we can take it out if you want”. Um…NO! I told him that the cilantro was strong and that I taste it all through the soup. He tells me “yeah cuz we put it in there”. What kind of answer is that? I know you put it in there! Give me new soup cuz this one sucks!

I tweeted about this experience and one of my friends joked that my new soup would probably have spit in it. I’d rather have spit in my soup than all that cilantro lol (ew). So the waiter took the soup back with an attitude! Like the cost of the soup was coming out of HIS pocket…and like it was MY fault the soup had cilantro in it! If they had stated on the menu that the soul had cilantro, I would have told them to hold the cilantro! Whos fault was THAT?! Then the bus boy (guy) saw the disgarded bowl of soup, asked the waiter what was wrong with it. The waiter whispered something and they both kinda laughed and shrugged. DONT BE LAUGHING AT ME MOFO!

So the soup comes back minus the cilantro…but also minus the scallions (which I love) and minus the bulk of the noodles! My last soup had a lot of noodles, this soup did not. At first I was kind of upset, but when I tasted the noodles, they were so gross I didnt need the ones in the bowl let alone any extra.

Needless to say I took about 2 bites of the soup and asked for the check! I couldnt wait to get out of there. I guess they think having cute furniture and a DJ booth will distract u from the fact that the food is over priced and its nasty. I hate paying for stuff I dont like. I should have just walked out without paying and left that nasty soup right there, but I have too much pride for that, plus I’m not going to jail for a bowl of soup. And if you’re wondering, yes I left a tip…even though the waiter sucked. It wasnt a big tip but it was a tip!

Its safe to say I will NEVER go back to that restaurant! I give that restaurant a big fat F!

Yesterday, I had the most AWESOME burger I’ve ever had in my life! Maybe I was just REALLY REALLY hungry! But I dont think so! The burger was just GREAT!

Soooo….I had a major craving for a burger yesterday. Which is kind of interesting for me, because I’m not overly fond of ground beef (or any ground meat for that matter). Not because I dont like the taste, but because the gristle scares me! If I get a piece of gristle in my mouth I kinda freak out! Often times I can be eating the best tasting burger or patty ever, but as soon as I get a piece of gristle or something hard in my mouth, I instantly lose my appetite and throw it away. Oddly, with the gristle phobia, I still crave burgers sometimes.

I’ve gone to plenty of burger joints with subpar burgers, like “Better Burger” who Ironically doesnt live up to the name. They should change their name to WORST BURGER! Especially their turkey burger! Its the most horrible burger i have ever had. Granted, I’ve never had a turkey burger tgat I liked (that I didnt cook myself), but I’ve at least had ones I could tolerate. Better Burger’s turkey burger is intolerable. And I let them know that on their “how are we doing” survey. But Im not here to talk about horrible burgers today, Im here to talk about an AWESOME ONE!

Flight 151 is a bar…not a restaurant. I was taking a leisurly stroll during lunch, and I saw a bunch of dudes happily and aggressively chowing down on this big, delicious looking burgers. So of course I had to get in on the action! I inquired with the waitress about which burger on the menu she liked…the veggie, the turkey or the good ole beef burger. She had no info on any of the burgers and oddly, started recommending OTHER restaurants. UMMM…..where they do DAT at? Apparently at Flight 151 lol

She starts telling me how she’s never had the burgers there, and how she’s partial to some awesome turkey burger she always eats at a restaurant called “Cafeteria” a few blocks down. Um….hunny? As much as you like Cafeteria, when you’re at work, you really should recommend your own food. Even if you’ve never had it, you can say that other people seem to love it, or something! I had a good mind to leave and go to Cafeteria! She had me scared! WTF was wrong with her food that she couldnt bring herself to recommend any of it?

Of course I didn’t want to be mean. She was a very nice waitress and I didnt want to get her in trouble so I stayed and boy am I glad I did! I went with the beef burger and curly fries! This was by far THEE best hamburger I have ever had in my life! The burger, in their “own marinate” was divine! It tasted kind of like A-1 sauce, so I think maybe they marinated it in a concoction of A-1 sauce amongst other seasonings! It was AWESOME! The burger was kind of flat and wide, which made it easy to bite into! the bun was so good that I even ate parts of the bun that had no burger on it! I dropped a morsel of my burger on the floor and wanted to cry. (Im such a fatty!) The curly fries were crisp and it was an all around enjoyable lunch (which seems hard for me to come by these days).

On top of that, the lunch was CHEAP! Well, cheap for New York City standards of course. This hefty sized burger and generous amount of curly fries (though I could have eaten more, but Im gready) only cost $7.95 (tax included) on the lunch menu! I will definitely be going back! I wish I had gone back today, but I was trying to be good and not have a burger 2 days in a row. I ended up having a horrible lunch from this Asian Fusion spot called Nooch! But thats another post!

If you’re ever in the Chelsea area of NYC and you have a mean craving for a burger, I HIGHLY recommend you try Flight 151! I liked it even better than 5 Guys!!!!

At the end of my meal, I told the waitress that the burger was great, and she proceeded to tell me that everyone tells her that they love that burger. Um…why didnt she tell me that when I asked for her recommendation? People are crazy as hell!

This video is interesting! Gotta love the kid with the lisp!

Now I want some chocolate! Maybe I’ll go over to Max Brenner! Have you ever been there? Its a chocolate themed restaurant! If hot chocolate is “the drink of the Gods” then Max Brenner must be a heaven outlet! They have this hot chocolate that tastes like a cup of melted hot chocolate! Its the best hot chocolate ive ever had! But its so rich, you really cant finish a whole cup! by the time you get 3 quarters of the way down, you start to go into a chocolate shock. But its worth every shiver! lol

I will do an in depth post about Max Brenner later. I have lots to tell!

Do you drink cows milk or a milk substitute like soy, rice, or almond milk? I ask because, Im not a big fan of milk or the idea of the origins of milk. As good as Half & Half tastes to me I decided to get away from it for a while and I started drinking soy milk. I was addicted to SILK for about a month! The vanilla flavored is awesome! Especially the extra creamy one. Then I started researching the benefits of soy milk vs. cows milk and I got some disturbing information.

Many milk substitutes (soy milk, rice milk, almond milk etc) contain an ingredient called Carageenan. Carageenan (pictured above) is a seaweed substance used in many milk and yogurt substitutes as a thickening agent. It makes things creamy and more rich. However, Carageenan is not a safe ingredient. Ive read that it has been known to cause severe stomach issues including tumors when it is consumed too much. It has also been known to cause instant stomach aches after ingesting it.

Its sad when you think youre doing the right thing for your body and you realize youre doing more harm than good. Ive also read that soy is not the best thing for women to ingest too much of.

Im writing this message to say be careful with the substitutes that you buy and do your research to make sure they have the right health benefits. Be sure to read the labels when buying milk substitutes because MOST soy milks, and milk substitutes that Ive encountered contain Carageenan in the ingredients.

The one soy milk that I know of that DOES NOT contain Carageenan is called “Eden Soy”..its a pretty good soy milk. It doesnt taste as good as silk…but it serves its purpose if you really cant deal with cow’s milk. I guess its the Carageenan making the other milk subs taste so great..and as good as it tastes, its definitely not worth the health risks.

With that said, I guess I will just stick to Bessie’s boob juice in my cereal. ugh! (hey thats a good name for a milk company Bessie’s Boob Juice………or not? *shrug*)

Sources:
Carageenan: Its use doesnt gel

Carageenan: A Wolf in Sheep’s Clothing

Nasty Food of the Month

Dangers of Carageenan

Im really gonna miss my friend Momo when she permanently moves to London. She knows the coolest places to eat! She’s like a walking Zagat survey! She has seriously eaten at every restaurant in Manhattan. Its a wonder that SHE isnt the one with the food blog.

After we had dinner with a bunch of friends the other day, we went to this really cute dessert bar called “ChikaLicious”. Everything about that place is cute and tiny (except the prices)! That place is so small you have to take baby steps when you enter. If you step too big you’ll end up behind the counter. People dont seem to mind being piled up on top of each other, sitting on eachothers laps if they have to. They’ll sacrifice their comfort just to get a little taste of one of those cupcakes. And thats all youll get if you buy one of those cupcakes, A little taste!

Theyre so small that I cant really classify them as cupcakes! Maybe they should call em DIXIE Cupcakes. It annoys me when I see people eating them with forks. THEYRE TWO BITES! Maybe 3 if you’re dainty! COME ON PEOPLE! I bet these are the same people who eat their snickers with a knife and fork.

What makes up for it is the fact that the cakes are small but the taste is BIG! Those are some the most moist, fluffy, delicious cupcakes I’ve ever had. They ALMOST give Tonnie’s Minis a run for their money! I say almost, because Tonnie’s Minis are delicious, bigger, AND cheaper! So they win by default!

One itty bitty cupcake in ChikaLicious is $1.75. That sounds cheap but when you see how small it is, you’ll think again. A “Premium” cupcake is $2.50! Premium cupcakes are the exact same size as the regular cupcake but they have a filling. Caramel has a caramel filling, Strawberry shortcake has a strawberry filling etc. I would really like to taste the Smore’s cupcake! Those look great! I will visit that store until I have tried every cupcake and when Im done trying them all, I will do it all over again! So far I’ve had the coconut (my fave), the vanilla, and the almond. Im not overly fond of the almond because the toppings are too crunchy. The almond is good but its not a favorite.

They have other desserts like Custards and “Adult Chocolate Pudding”. Cant wait to find out what the pudding is like. I was tempted to try it the other day, but I thought I’d better slow down considering I had already eaten 3 cupcakes and was eyeing a cookie! Their Chocolate Chip cookies are fantastic. I actually like their chocolate chip cookies better than Insomnia Chocolate chip! And thats saying a lot because these cookies werent even warm! But theyre so good, they still warm your insides.

I love their cute little birthday cakes. They look so yummy. When I say little I mean it. Theyre 10 bucks and theyre about the size a real cupcake should be! LOL…Im exaggerating a little but not much. One birthday cake can be eaten by one person seriously. I would love this place much more if the prices were a little more reasonable but they have a bunch of cute desserts and snacks and I am determined to try each and every one of them regardless of the cost. So expect an updated blog post.

The only thing thats missing from ChikaLicious is a staff with personality. You would think such a cute, quaint place would have cute quaint employees but what I’ve found each time Ive gone there (3 times so far) are employees who seem a bit annoyed by the customers and by the fact that they have to be there. I guess I would be annoyed too if I was selling cupcakes from a closet. If they made the place double the size, I think everyone would be happier. They dont need to make it any bigger than that though. If they make it any bigger than that, it might lose its charm!

East Village
13 Saint Marks Place
New York, NY
(212) 777-0606

Went to Pho32 the other day! That place is so much fun! If youve never had Shabu Shabu, you have to try it at least once! Even if you dont like cooking! Shabu Shabu tricks you into thinking cooking is fun!

Shabu Shabu is this whole experience! The tables have these little circles in them that are kinda like little hot plates. The waiter brings you this little pot filled with broth, and puts it on the hot plate. Then when it starts boiling, they bring you a plate full of veggies, and thinly sliced meats of your choice (chicken, pork, beef, or seafood)…then you put it all into the pot and let it boil! As the steam and aromas come up you have a good time laughing and joking with your friends!

I recommend you ask for some raw onions and garlic to season it up even more. The Shabu Shabu also comes with a variety of sauces for dipping your meats and veggies in. The sauces are good but once I season mine up with the onions and garlic, I dont even need the sauces any more. Their rice is great! I think they put sesame oil in it, which gives it extra flavor. I like to put rice, and my cooked meat and veggies into a bok choy leaf, roll it up and eat it like that! its great! If you dont like rice you can order it with noodles. But I am a rice fiend! I think I could live for years on a desert island with just rice! I’d be fat as hell but I’d be alive.

Pho32 is a great place to have a Shabu Shabu experience, but when you get there make sure you ask them if the table works! They love to sit people at tables, you get your mouth all set for some Shabu Shabu, then when you order it, they tell you the table doesnt work! How the hell are you running a Shabu Shabu joint with some broke ass tables? Thats like having a barbecue with no grill! Pho32 please get it together! I thought that the tables were broken at the 32nd street location because they were old, but the St. Marks location is new, so whats your excuse?

I went with a group and we were scattered all across a long table because some of the little stoves worked and some didnt. We almost looked like we were eating by ourselves…luckily a few more friends came to fill in the gaps and were smart enough not to order Shabu! Aside from the raggedy tables we had a great time. I love putting all the ingredients in, watching it all boil up..I love smelling the aromas! I love the control I have over my food! I can cook it for as little or as long as I want!

I liked this place so much that I went back the next day and took my mom. She had a great time. She loved the coffee they brought to the table. It was brewing in its own cup! Even the coffee cooks at the table! haha. I ordered the same thing the next day that I ordred the day before and I noticed that I didnt have any eggs. That leads me to believe that the eggs I was eating belonged to someone else’s order. SORRY FOR EATING YOUR EGGS! Especially considering there were 3 eggs and I ate two of em lol. BTW If you crack an egg in your pot, dont panick! It will start to boil so much that it looks like its about to boil over, so dont crack the egg in there if you have more than half a pot full of broth. To be safe maybe you should just boil the egg whole. Everyone might hate you for stinking up the place with a boiled egg, but at least your pot wont boil over.

These Shabu joints have a nice little hustle going on dont they? Theyre charging you 15 to 18 dollars for a bunch of raw food and making you cook it yourself! And they got the nerve to take FOREVER to bring the meat! We kept asking “wheres the meat? wheres the meet?” I felt like I was in a Wendy’s commercial! WHERES THE BEEF?! I mean seriously, why did it take so long? Its not like they had to cook it! Were they out hunting?

But seriously, they think their slick dont they? Im gonna open up a Shabu Shabu in the hood! Instead of broth Im gonna put some oil in those bad boys, and bring around slices of raw meat and flour so people can fry it up! Everyone will sit at those tables with pots of sizzling meat getting popped in the face with grease talkin about OOOOH THIS IS FUN! People are crazy as hell! I just might be onto something!

By the way, if you have your hair pressed, Shabu Shabu might not be the meal for you! With all that steam, you will go in there with a press & curl and come out with an afro!

Aside from the Shabu Shabu, I really enjoyed the appetizers, ESPECIALLY the fried shrimp balls! Those were so good, I had to order another. Dont look at me that way! I shared it with the group! We had a great time, eating and drinking! Sidebar: Pho32 does not have a liquor license so if you wanna get your drink on, you have to BYOS (Bring Your Own Sake!). And when you invite your friends to meet you at Pho32, make sure you say “Pho32″ and spell out the ” p-h-o” because someone thought I was saying “432″ like I suddenly got a country accent and started pronouncing “four” FO’.*smh* lol