It's a fusion tradition that ain't on swanky menus but is very rooted in America's melting pot culture. Just think of cream cheese wontons (right), Soy Vay products, and how many Peking Dragons are open on Christmas. This dude [video] knows what I'm talking about. It's a curious overlap, but this post on the New York Times City Room blog went where few other Jewish-Chinese fusions have gone before. Pastrami egg rolls and Chinese hot dogs, available at Eden Wok on 34th Street in Manhattan.... More

Now that the weather's cold, the Serious Eats staff has been eating a lot of soup from The Soup Spot. And it's not just us. During lunchtime and well beyond, there's routinely a line for this tiny takeout place nestled within a parking garage on West 31st Street. The scene is somewhat reminiscent of the "Soup Nazi" on Seinfeld except that the people here are actually nice—with no discernible sacrifice in efficiency or quality. The wide range of soups, stews, and chowders are made with good-quality vegetables and from chicken, pork, and beef that the joint advertises as free-range and antibiotic-free. As I type this, I'm eating a deliciously creamy chicken and dumpling soup, and our web developer, Raphael,... More

I know it's all sliders all the time in the food media these days, and I don't mean to jump on the bunwagon, but I feel compelled to post about the scary good, extremely serious meatball sliders I had at the Little Owl last night. Chef Joey Campanaro combines ground veal, pork, and beef; fennel; panko (Japanese breadcrumbs); and pecorino Romano cheese to impossibly delicious effect. The house-made cheese garlic roll doesn't hurt, either. They come three to an order, perfect for sharing, though after your first bite, you won't want to. The recipe for these bad boys, minus the house-made buns, is in this month's Bon Appétit. I pondered making some at home, but it turns out these suckers... More

Porter House New York: A steakhouse with a chef back where he belongs. Photograph courtesy of Jason Perlow Steakhouses don't usually have chefs in charge. For example, who's the chef at Peter Luger? Or Gene and Georgetti in Chicago? Or the Pacific Dining Car in Los Angeles? I don't know, and I am willing to wager a steak dinner at Luger that nobody else does either. That's because steakhouses are traditionally not chef-driven; they're prime, preferably dry-aged meat and perfectly golden hash-brown-potato driven. Although celebrity chefs have gotten into the steakhouse game (because they love red meat and love developing concepts that can be cloned and yield profits with minimal oversight), I can think of only one serious chef... More