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Win Tickets To the "Asian Feastival" in Queens This Labor Day

Filipino ... but is that considered Asian?

mepm231 at 2:10PM on 09/02/10

Lunch for One: Despaña

I wish their Jackson Heights outpost did sandwiches and such. The one plus about the JH location is on Saturdays they have free samples of chorizo and cheese and sometimes they pour a little wine for you to taste with it.

mepm231 at 4:07PM on 07/28/10

New to Astoria, Queens Suggestions Please!

Second Il Bambino and Fatty's Cafe. Also check out Brick Cafe on 31st Avenue and 33rd Street.

mepm231 at 5:19PM on 06/15/10

What's Your Favorite Carrot Cake in New York?

I second cheeseburglar ... two little red hens carrot cake is awesome.

mepm231 at 5:50PM on 03/03/10

From A Hamburger Today

Dear AHT: You Have to Check Out Bare Burger in Astoria

I was excited when I saw that someone was building a new burger joint and went to Bare Burger a few months after it opened. The result? It bombed. I ordered a beef burger with jack cheese cooked medium. The burger was done beyond well done and was hockey puck-esque. The texture of the meat was off, but that may have been due to the fact that the burger was overcooked. The redeeming part of the meal were the fries and onion rings were very good and I also had a black & white shake which was excellent. Maybe I just need to try it again, but that visit did not leave a good first impression.

mepm231 at 12:11PM on 01/18/10

Seriously Delicious Holiday Giveaway: Two Peter Luger Steaks

Filet mignon!

mepm231 at 6:19PM on 12/29/09

What's Your Favorite Cupcake In New York?

I've tried all of them and the really good cupcakes are from Sugar Sweet Sunshine, Two Lil' Red Hens, How Sweet it Is (their retail operation shut down but may be opening soon). But the best cupcake in NYC, by far, is the Malted Flavored cupcake from Baked in Red Hook, Brooklyn.

mepm231 at 3:49PM on 12/16/09

Best of New York Empanadas

I second Empanadas Del Parque Cafe in Corona, best empanadas by far. Great flavor, variety and all freshly made to order. For Uruguayan style empanadas go to Chivito D'Oro in Jackson Heights.

mepm231 at 10:48AM on 12/19/08

Cook the Book: 'Barefoot Contessa Back to Basics'

Roasted chicken breast - skin on / bone in - quickly pan fried to crisp the skin, then flipped and roasted on the pan in a hot oven (450F) until done. White wine to deglaze the pan and create a pan sauce optional. Only ingredients used are chicken, olive oil, salt/pepper and white wine.

mepm231 at 4:45PM on 11/11/08

My Girlfriend wants Balthazar but I can't afford it!

Tournesol in LIC ... only one stop on the 7 train outside Manhattan

mepm231 at 3:47PM on 11/10/08

Despaña: A Superb Secret Sandwich Spot

There's an outpost in Jackson Heights, but they don't do sandwiches!!!!! They do offer samples of chorizo, lomo and other wonderful delights and sometimes pour you a glass of wine if you go in on a Saturday.

mepm231 at 1:42PM on 10/15/08

Cook the Book: 'Giada's Kitchen'

A simple marinara made with San Marzano tomatoes and plenty of garlic.

mepm231 at 5:23PM on 10/07/08

Sweet Ticket Giveaway, Week 3: Pichet Ong's Guilty Pleasure Sweet

Ben & Jerry's Chocolate Fudge Brownie ... mmmm.

mepm231 at 3:34PM on 10/03/08

Kashkaval Is All About Dipping Things Into Other Things

"Kashkaval Is All About Dipping Things Into Other Things" ... that's what she said. In all seriousness, I agree that Hell's Kitchen, along with Union Square, are my two favorite neighborhoods for NYC eats.

mepm231 at 1:38PM on 09/30/08

Good Brunch in NYC with not too long of a wait!

Outside Manhattan: Tournesol in LIC or Bistro 33, Fatty's Cafe or Brick Cafe in Astoria.

mepm231 at 4:25PM on 09/19/08

From Slice

Why Pepperoni Pizza Sucks

Skirt steak and spanish chorizo ... tried it at an Argentinian steak house once. The best pizza toppings I've ever had.

mepm231 at 3:49PM on 09/18/08

Zagat vs. Yelp: A Restaurant Review 2.0 Showdown?

If you want to get your free Zagat, just register and vote.

mepm231 at 5:08PM on 09/08/08

Zagat vs. Yelp: A Restaurant Review 2.0 Showdown?

I usually use a combination of Yelp, Chowhound, menupages.com and Zagat. Yelp and Zagat gives you good ideas to start with, their search by neighborhood feature is pretty good. I agree that most of the descriptions are written by people who don't take the time to write a good review. Yelp is especially good around non-metropolitan areas where Zagat/Chow/menupages have no coverage. I then do a Chowhound search with my findings from yelp to see if anything intelligent has been written on the restaurant. Lastly I use menupages to look up the menu and the price range of the restaurant. The only downside to menupages (at least in new york) is that they don't have a vast selection of outerborough menus.

mepm231 at 5:06PM on 09/08/08

Food Network... Let's give them a hand!

FN needs more real ethnic cooking shows, i.e. Daisy Cooks feat. Daisy Martinez or Ming Tsai's East meets West, and not the fusion cuisine they try to cook up like Ingrid Hoffman. Also, what happened to Dave Lieberman, who had a niche of making affordable food at home (and really knew how to cook too). I think they should make a new all french cooking show staring Boulud, Bouley, Ripert, and Ducaisse cooking in their restaurants.

Talent to keep: Alton Brown, Ina Garten, Mario B, Bobby Flay, Morimoto, Symon,

Talent to get rid of: Rachel Ray, Sandra Lee, Paula Deen, all of the next FN stars (except Guy on diners, drive thrus and dives), Elie Krieger, Ingrid Hoffman (too many others to name).

mepm231 at 11:44AM on 09/03/08

Zuni Cafe's $8 Nectarine Dessert Is Just a Nectarine; Diners Left Confused

Had a meal @ Zuni not to long ago, $48 for a "roast chicken for two" was definitely overpriced. Sure it may have been the best roast chicken I've ever had, but you can also get a $6 roast chicken in Jackson Heights. Sure they put it in a wood-burning oven, but c'mon IT's a FRIGGIN CHICKEN!!!!! $8 for a nectarine is even more ridiculous.

mepm231 at 4:11PM on 08/19/08

Olympic-sized Diets

Sorry ladies, not to be a hater, but I always thought he looked like a miniature Gheorghe Muresan (http://www.ultimatenba.com/galerias/GheorgheMuresan/GheorgheMuresan006.jpg), former 7' 7'' basketball player for the Washington Wizards - and star of box office smash hit "My Giant" (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0120765/).

mepm231 at 3:42PM on 08/13/08

From A Hamburger Today

Rachael Ray's Burger Bash Competitors Revealed

How do I sign up to be a judge?

mepm231 at 3:10PM on 08/13/08