Tag Archives: west village

Big Gay Ice Cream Shop

5 May

I had heard only great things about the treats at the Big Gay Ice Cream Truck and I heard they swapped out the truck to build the brand with some brick and mortar stores in NYC and beyond. They are currently in the East Village, West Village, and Downtown LA.  So when searching for a place to grab a quick treat on Memorial Day, Big Gay Ice Cream Shop came up on the map and decided to finally try it.

The line was pretty long and it took us a solid 20 minutes to get to the front, but boy was it worth it.

They changed over to soft serve in conjunction with Ronnybrook Farms, but in my opinion, the ice cream plays second fiddle to the toppings (and the combination and presentation of them).  You can roll over all the flavors on this website to get the full menu.

I was excited about The Salty Pimp: Vanilla ice cream, dulce de leche, sea salt, and a chocolate dip.  But I also saw that there was a Nutella lined waffle cone on the menu, so I couldn’t resist. The woman behind the counter informed me that what I was asking for was more of a Monday Sundae, but that came with a chocolate vanilla twist ice cream and whipped cream, but no dip.  So I asked for that dipped and she obliged.

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And it was amazing.  Too amazing.

Not only do they put Nutella into the cone before the ice cream, but they also add some ice cream to the bottom, then layer in more Nutella the more ice cream on top and then toppings.  The Nutella in the middle hardens just a bit to create a delicious bite in the texture.  It was heaven.  And the sea salt put it over the top.

This place is dangerous.

 

 

Umami Burger: Welcome to NYC

19 Sep

All of my California friends have been singing the praises of Umami Burger for quite some time.  When we were in San Francisco at the end of our honeymoon in June, we stopped by and really enjoyed our meal.  It was just weeks from opening in NYC, and this summer, we got our first Umami Burger in Greenwich Village.

We stopped by just a few weeks after opening (and after the 3 hour waits were supposed to be less and they had reportedly fixed their reservation system).  We checked in and they took our name and number down on an iPad, saying it would be about 45 minutes.  They said they would text me when the table was coming ready, so we went out to find a happy hour drink.  I was immediately texted with a link to see my place online (digitally) and saw we were about #15 in the list.  About 35 minutes later, I got a text that our table was coming up.  We wrapped up our drinks and walked back over, sliding into our high stools on the top floor almost exactly 45 minutes after first arriving.

A lot of reviews are panning the decoration, but I saw nothing wrong with it.  (Though I can’t say it was very memorable)

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The Umami Burger menu is similar in all locations, however, there are (“secret”) specials for each location.  The specials in New York are a 5 spice duck burger (which they were sadly out of when we were there), a French dip burger (which I didn’t hear anything about and forgot to ask about when we were there), and cheese tots.

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We were greeted by a (very enthusiastic) waitress who proceeded to tell us what “umami” means in a speech she must have rehearsed in the mirror a few times.  I was sitting at a table with fellow food fiends, one of which went to culinary school.  So it felt a little like being a tourist in my own food city, but we went with it.

They immediately came out with 3 umami sauces.  I don’t remember anything notable about them.

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We decided to split a whole lot of sides so we could try as many as possible.  First up were the fried pickles. (They came with a jalapeno dipping sauce that I couldn’t eat).  I enjoyed them but nothing too special.

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Truffle cheese fries.  I wanted these to be crispier.  The taste was good but the texture couldn’t stand up to the cheese sauce.

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Tempura onion rings.  Yummy and not too greasy.

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And then the secret tots.  I was somehow expecting tater tots with a cheese sauce, but instead these actually had the potatoes mixed with the aged parm and cheddar in the tot itself.  Quite delicious.

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And then onto the burgers (stamped with the trademark “U” on the bun).  I went with the Original (parmesan crisp, shiitake mushrooms, roasted tomato, caramelized onions, and house ketchup).

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This burger was awesome.  Everything I want a burger to be.  A good, substantially fluffy bun that is toasted and has good flavor with a burger that tastes meaty.  Then the toppings all blended together for a great texture and flavor that was, yes, umami.  It just fills your mouth with greatness.

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Mike and the other man at the table went with the Manly burger. Beer cheddar-cheese, bacon lardons, smoked-salt onion strings, ketchup and mustard spread.

He says it was delicious and that it’s better than shake shack.

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A manly burger that lived up to its name.

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And if you think we would leave after all that indulgence without trying the special desserts, you have another thing coming.

The ice cream sandwiches are made with Brooklyn’s The Good Batch cookies and artisan ice cream from Blue Marble (also from Brooklyn).

We split 2 flavors.

The first was a double chocolate peanut butter cookie.  Chocolate waffle cookie with chocolate peanut butter ice cream (very good in flavor but could have used some chocolate sauce or added texture).

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And a peach vanilla brown butter.  Yes!  I loved this.  The brown butter sugar cookie was fluffy with a crispy edge and a nicely balanced sweetness.  The ice cream inside reminded me of being a kid and going to the local homemade ice cream store.  The chunks of peaches were delicious.

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I can’t imagine not liking this place. What could possibly be bad about a well cooked burger with delicious ingredients, merged together with the express purpose of bringing out the savory flavors?  Sure, there is the novelty of “umami” that people like to hate on. But hell, if it tastes that good, be as cheesy as you want to be.  I’ll eat it up.  (And those ice cream cookie sandwiches are a great finale to the meal).

I’m a big fan. I’ll be back and looking forward to trying that duck burger.

Total Nom Points: 8 out of 10

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Garage

2 Aug

 

I went to meet up with Chef Bill and some of his friends to catch up at Garage Restaurant and Cafe in Greenwich Village. I know they have a Jazz Brunch, but for the life of me I don’t recall if I heard any music while we were there. I have to admit, however, we were quite rowdy, so I blame us entirely if we missed it.

 

Their weekend brunch menu is from 11am-4pm and includes an entree and Bloody Mary, Screwdriver, Mimosa, or OJ for $17.75.  Or you can make the alcohol unlimited for just an additional $6. Not a bad deal.  I’m pretty sure we all went for the bottomless option.

One person in our group tried the tuna burger. They had no complaints.

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The rest of us all got eggs of some kind.  

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Most of us got the Farmer’s Market Omelet with zucchini, tomatoes, asparagus, eggplant, and yellow squash with farm fresh eggs. They came with potatoes, but I went with salad (trying to be good).  This was surprisingly good. All those vegetables really made for a delicious omelet! 

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I didn’t have high expectations of this place. I don’t know what it was, but the moment we walked in there I figured it was probably a run-of-the-mill, busy brunch place. I was pleasantly surprised by how much I liked my veggie-filled omelet.  The deal is quite good, however, most of the benedict options require a good amount of extra money ($5-$10).  I’m not sure if I’d run to go back, but seems like a solid choice if you’re looking for a bite in the neighborhood.  And who doesn’t love a bottomless brunch drink?

Total Nom Points: 6.5 out of 10