Just want to send a quick post. I have been traveling a bunch, what else is new, and I was in a hotel in Texas for breakfast before heading to work. I ordered an omelet at the omelet station. Before he was finished making my western omelet I noticed he had a waffle iron. The last homemade waffle I had was on the ship. They always made perfectly round and crispy waffles. With that in mind, I ended up ordering one. When he put it on my plate I couldn’t believe the shape. Only in Texas! Oh and yes, they go big in Texas, I could only finish southern Texas.

I wish he put the waffle on my plate so Texas was facing the right way.

Primanti Brothers – Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Double stuffed, mile high sandwiches made with love for the last 79 years. Get there.

About ‘Wich Hunting: Anthony and I have travelled the world eating everything from Balut in the Philippines to blood sausage in Argentina. In every destination there has always been a sandwich shop. Some were good and some were bad but they all had their unique take on this ubiquitous meal. The origin of the sandwich is highly debated and we’ll dive into that on our journey as we discover, taste and debate the best sandwiches in the world.

I have recently been in Cincinnati and my co workers and I were headed to the Red and Giants game on a rainy Tuesday night. We decided to get some food before the game instead of eating hot dogs all night. We stopped off at Local 127 and was not sure what we were getting into but there was a giant pig in the middle of the restaurant. That is always a good sign.

We ordered a bunch of stuff for the table and based everything on the waiters recommendations and the pork dishes. We were a little disappointed at the recommendations we went with. It was not the taste of the food but a lot of the apps had the same type of sauce and taste with different dishes. I just want to highlight our favorite small plate and large plate. Here is how it went down

Our favorite of the small plates was the Roasted Beets with Prosciutto, Goat Cheese, Crispy Shallots, and Red Wine Reduction seen above. It had such a good taste to it mixing the beets and goat cheese. They nailed that dish.

Our favorite of the large plates was the Porkopolis which includes White Bean Ragout, Wilted Cabbage, Bacon-Tomato Jam, and Red Wine Reduction. With a name like Porkopolis how could it be bad. There was different pork tastes in each bite and I liked how it laid on a bed of white beans.

The one large plate that tasted good but through us for a loop was the Meat Loaf Mac & Cheese with Squash, Mushroom Gravy, and House Made Ketchup. It was more of a meat loaf dish than a mac and cheese dish. The noodles were all under the meat loaf and not that much of it. In the picture you can even see any noodles. We never got the taste of the squash in the dish. The meat loaf had some great taste but I guess our expectations were more of a mac and cheese dish than a meat loaf dish.

We were so stuffed that after dinner we went to the game and made it by the 5th inning. It was so wet and we were so full we walked in watched an inning and left. I actually have know idea who won the game. I’m a Yankee fan so it really doesn’t matter.

We all know the British love their tea. With the rise of the Starbucks era you might feel the age old tradition of tea time fading. At least visually speaking. As you scan the street landscape you’re more apt to find a coffee shop than a tea shop. Don’t get me wrong, you can still grab a wonderful cup of tea at any corner shop in London, just follow the builders. The difference is in how you enjoy that cup of tea. Sitting in a Cafe Nero or a Costa Coffee provides that quiet, comfortable and relaxed atmosphere “tea time” used to include. The problem is that these shops are strongly centered around coffee. From what’s in your cup to the same named cake available under the glass counter, it seems like tea is fitting in less and less with our go-go-go world. From a visitors perspective, one of the MUST DO’s when in Britain is to properly enjoy a proper cup of tea. (Take note of that double “proper”) I hunted for this but with no luck. Then I stumbled into the quintessential tea experience in the last place I ever thought possible.

Camden Market was high on the list of my hotspots after having been to London many times but never quite making it to this famous spot. My wife, and standard companion to all things travel and food, had been to the market before but not for a decade therefore she shared my same excitement as we raced out of the tube stop. The market consists of a number of adjoining large retail markets in Camden Town near the Hampstead Road Lock of the Regent’s Canal. The largest part of the market occupies old stables located in the former Pickfords stables and horse hospital which served the horses pulling Pickford’s distribution vans and barges along the canal. Pickford’s itself is an interesting an historical story. The company has been evolving since 1642. Each shop is set in large arches or railway viaducts. The stables create a multi-floor labyrinth of crafts, clothing, bric-a-brac, and housewares for visitors to explore and in most cases get lost.

As we turned a corner deep in the bowles of the stables I saw a perfectly primped tea oasis crammed amidst the porcelain shop and the old valise vendor. My wife went ballistic as her nostalgia, little girl, sweet tooth and tea fetish meters redlined. She b-lined it into the horse stall to order the, at long last, perfect cup of tea along with a sweet tea cake. We were served our tea and cake moments later by a young, dare I say British hipster, who was full of pleasantries and calm. We sat, sipped and snacked at a small table just outside the stall. Many of the shops wares spill outside the stalls both for advertising purposes and lack of space. The tea shop was no exception. The effect was that all the shops have a connection to each other. As we sat in our mismatched rickety chairs we felt enveloped in the scene. The boundaries between the tea shop, the adjacent stalls and us somehow seamed non-existant. The wonder of the market is that you can be totally lost yet feel safely found at the same time.

As we finished our tea my wife went up to our new friends and inquired about the lovely tea sets they used to serve their guests. A few minutes later she came back with an inked up napkin and a story. Of course the tea sets were purchased at a stall in the market. I’d imagine most of the proprietors don’t need to leave the stables to operate their business’ with so many different types of vendors all so near. Taking a closer look at the napkin I realized the tea shop owner had drawn a rudimentary map leading us from his shop to the tea set stall three floors above. Finishing up our last drops of tea we mustered up the courage to begin yet another journey into the labyrinth that is Camden Market.

For more information about the secret tea shop read this or visit their facebook page.

Il Bambino – Astoria, Queens, New York

About ‘Wich Hunting: Anthony and I have travelled the world eating everything from Balut in the Philippines to blood sausage in Argentina. In every destination there has always been a sandwich shop. Some were good and some were bad but they all had their unique take on this ubiquitous meal. The origin of the sandwich is highly debated and we’ll dive into that on our journey as we discover, taste and debate the best sandwiches in the world.

My friend and west coast supperclub counterpart have long talked about a supperclub collaboration. Until last week the closest we’ve come were a few test dinners and email exchanges over potential menu items. That all changed last Thursday night in a secret kitchen in North Beach San Francisco.

In another cross over between my food world and marketing world Ben and I served a twelve course meal for a table of sixteen marketing executives from some of the greatest companies in the world. To share the food-marketing story love I decided to post the full story over on the Manifold blog this time. Take a look.

We hope everyone had a great Easter and wonderful passover. We spared the lambs this year and went straight beef. Glorious, thick, fat laced, aged, Ottomanelli’s beef to be exact. Who needs easter egg hunts when you have this?

As a quick follow up to a post about my love of less options and simply designed generic products, Marks + Spencers of London has a nice approach. Not as clean as Canada’s Loblaw’s and certainly not hitting the Pathmark NO FRILLS circa 1978 gold standard but commendable.

A more modern design style with a bit more color and imagery used but it still has a clean and very direct communication of the product. In may cases the ingredients are treated with the same necessity to communicate quickly and strongly. Below is a show and tell on a few of my favorite products.

This morning I woke up with a craving for a burger. I have not had one in a while and it is typically a staple in my food regiment. I was by myself for the day and wanted to go to a spot in my neighborhood that I’ve always wanted to want try but never get a chance to go. We all have a place like that in our neighborhood. Today was my day to go after it. The place I am referring to is Petey’s Burgers. I am glad I finally got off my butt and made it there. Petey’s burger concept originally come from Southern California and was brought over to Astoria (and now also in Long Island City) where the owner, Petey is originally from. These burgers are made fresh and delicious. They have a small to the point menu which I like. It doesn’t give you the headache of having to decide from 15 different burgers. I went with a standard cheeseburger and had them grill the onions. It’s a great mix of softness, burger and melted cheese. The way a burger should taste. I made one mistake when I ordered. I should have went for the double cheeseburger. That is what I’ll devour next time I head to Petey’s.

I also ordered their Greek Veggie Burger. I usually don’t even think about veggie burgers but I read a write up about how great the Greek Veggie Burger was so I had to check out the hype. It was equally delicious. There is a lot of spinach, mushrooms, onions in that patty so all you vegetarians don’t think for a second you can’t go to Petey’s with your carnivorous friends. For you carnivores that like to be a little healthy and order a side salad to get a little greens with a meal, at Petey’s, you can order Veggie Burger on the side as your, in quotes, side salad. What a great way to get your greens. Oh and I would double patty that too.

You can’t go to London without having some Indian food. It’s so synonymous with British cuisine that it’s referred to as, well…British cuisine. On this trip I hit two semi-famous local spots. They were drastically different in ever way; location, ambiance, food and price. I’m going to take them one by one to breakdown the tasty and terrible but know now they are both outstanding in their own way.

Tayyabs (below picture)

A tube ride out to the East End dumped us on a street packed with fried chicken joints and threading shops. It was friday night and the block was bumping. The sidewalks were filled with street vendors, groups of Indian and Pakistani guys just hanging out, extended families in their traditional garb shuffling through the aforementioned obstacles trying to get home. After a few blocks on the main street a left and a quick right slipped me into an alley that was the oppositte of the street that I had just manipulated. Quiet and uncrowded Fieldgate Street wound around a long curve to reveal the small sign indicating Tayyabs’ entrance. Once inside the hustle and bustle kicked up again. The que (read line) wrapped through half the restaurant. People and tables were crammed in ever crevise of the space. The tables were all filled, crammed actually, with more people than you’d expect at each one. Smoking plates of food crowned the tables with large bottles of beer circling the center attraction. The patrons were loud, rambunctious and what we would later come to realize, drunk. This is a good time to mention that Tayyabs is a BYOB establishment. This makes the beverage store adjacent to the restaurant a very happy, lucrative business. My NYer radar sensed that the owners have a stake in both the restaurant and the shop. Smart.

The que moved quickly and before I new it I was seated at a two top in the upstairs dining room. A more rowdy and more crowded version of the one downstairs. To my left was a table of twenty that were in full tilt stagg party mode. In front of me a table of eight co-workers, which became twelve rather quickly, celebrated ending of another week of the daily grind. To my right were the stairs I came up which now doubled as the food delivery highway. Plates of fragrant sizzling meat on skewers running out of the kitchen below to hungry guests. The ordering was simple although you could get lost in the menu for a good thirty minutes. I settled on kahari gosh, onion pekoras and tandoori lamb and chicken. Kahari is one of the things Tayyabs is famous for. According to them kahari is associated with a deep cooking pot that is used throughout traditional cooking in Pakistan, each dish is simmered and prepared using traditional methods that have been handed down across generations. According to me it’s damn good and an absolute must if you visit.

Making quick work of the courses as they dropped one after another on my table and having forgotten to stop at the shop next door for my beer I made a quick and smooth exit. I made it out the front door just in time to witness a twenty on one street fight which had me head in the opposite direction for fear of getting tied up in the mix of some east end brawl. Plus, I was digesting. I popped back out on the main drag and headed to the tube stop. Tayyabs was physically far away but my belly as well as ever fiber of clothing I wore would remind me all night of the delicious food and crazy ambiance Tayyabs has to offer. If their is one critique it is for them to invest in a new ventilation system. You clothes will smell of tandoor for a week, I promise.

Moti Mahal (above picture)

Literally it translates to fatso palace. How can you go wrong you say? You can’t, but this place isn’t what you’d think using the english translation as your guide. Moti Mahal is just off Covent Garden, aguably one of the most posh and touristed places in all of London proper. I truely didn’t think I would wind up there but not for the reasons I just mentioned. It’s extremely expensive. With all the great Indian food available in London I thought spending a lot money on a good Indian meal was pretty stupid. As it turns out this was worth every pence. Easily in the top 5 Indian meals of my life, Moti began and ended the night with elegance. Escorting us to their downstairs dining room, the maitre D walked us passed the kitchen window and slipped through the ultra modern white walls seating us at a semi circle leather booth in the back corner of the room. Moments after settling in we were presented with a large platter of fresh uncut vegetables, a sharp knife, a small bottle of oil and two miniature clay bowls. In the bowls were raw spices that were to be crushed and sprinkled on the vegetables and our meal.  I love small, unique details like this. I feel it is these touches that make experiences memorable.

After a good, long look at the menu I ordered their signature kebab dish, some chicken tikka masala, lamb biriyani and an eggplant dish. The kebabs were up first and came with an elaborate skewered presentation. The finale was our waiter removing them from their sticks and preparing us each a taste. The chicken gave me flash backs to India. One of the most delicious and amazing tastes of my life was the first time I had chicken in India. The texture of the meat was so tender I had to ask if it was really chicken. These kebabs had that same texture. Moist, flavorful and soft each bite was more delicious than the next. The eggplant arrived in rounds of skin which was a nice reprieve from the normal baingan bartha presentation found far and wide. Neatly placed on the dish were also two chutneys that paired well with the eggplant. One sweet and one a bit more savory with a tomato base. By the time our mains arrived we were nearly stuffed but we persevered. The biriyani presentation was beautiful and the taste was really nice but the tikka masala stole the show. The chicken had that same tenderness and with the silky masala sauce over top the combination sent my taste buds into ghee heaven. The night concluded with an overstuffed stomach wandering out into the misty Covent Garden and slowly savoring the experience that had just wowwed.

Tandoori plate at Tayyabs

Between these two restaurants you can’t really go wrong. I am sure there are 100 more places that can delight just the same. If you’re in London soon and you are looking to experience the full spectrum of Indian food I suggest you follow my taste buds and see what you think for yourself. Just remember to bring your big wallet and a fist depending on which part of town you visit.

Kebabs and eggplant at Moti Mahal

Spice and vegetable platter at Moti Mahal. 

Utensil rest at Moti Mahal. Another nice touch to the experience.