Full story on the still work in progress hottest, most talked about tour site in town. As in “Hey, did you hear about Ziggy’s new web site?” “Yes I did, I heard its still a work in progress”, “Yeah, but it looks so clean and neat”, “Yah?”, “Yah!!”
New York City
The Case for Private
Categories: New York City
Tags: Food Tours, NYC Food Tours, NYC Private Guide, Private Guide, Travel, walking tours
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Mission Chinese 2.0: Possible
December 20th Update:
Mission Chinese Food continues to tickle and tackle my taste buds. But at the same time its becoming more and more apparent that not all dishes work for everyone, and my ability to properly select from this menu is shaky at best. It almost seems like its strength and claim to fame, the ultra fiery stuff, is also its weakness. People either love the numbing heat or hate it, while the hate is strong enough to keep its Yelp score shockingly low for a place with such profile. But even much of the love.. “The wings were KILLA, but I couldnt finish more than 3” is questionable. In a normal world, you dont recommend a dish you personally gave up after eating laboring a quarter of it.
To me the strength lies in the more subdued plates. Like the Green Tea Noodles, and the simple but proper fried chicken. A less subdued solid discovery…
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Categories: New York City
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American Cut Burger Bar – NYC’s Best Kept Lunch Secret?
Bloggers who lunch. Doesnt quite have the same ring to it, but holds much truth. Bloggers love to eat, and unlike many others respect and value each lunch like their life dependent on it. There’s nothing more disappointing than a lunch fail, or checking the hours of a hot tip only to discover they open at 6 pm. Well, I guess I can think of a few things more disappointing (current Walking Dead season feels like the writers got replaced with real zombies) but you understand what I mean. Talking to some restaurant owners lately, like Bruno Pizza, you get a sense that they would really love to open for lunch but just dont have the talent to do so. Not to mention the slower lunch demand in residential neighborhoods like East Village and Hell’s Kitchen.
Even Yelp is confused on how to handle the current hours of Z-List noob American Cut, as its listing the restaurant, not the bar. But the “Burger Bar” is open in Tribeca and it might be NYC’s biggest lunch secret. You see for a while fellow Anguilla lover Marc Forgione and American Cut offered limited burgers at the bar. They would send a tweet each day at 4:20 to announce how many burgers were available. As a result, people started missing parole interviews and would forget to pick up their kids from daycare, in order to get a crack at the burger. After day care owners complained, and local senior citizens petitioned that they cant get there fast enough, American Cut decided to convert its bar into a Burger Bar with its own dedicated menu a la a less fancy NoMad Bar.
And as you can imagine, burgers dominate much of the menu. There’s a burger of the day, a “competition” shake shack like sounding burger (perhaps thats why its called competition), and a full 8 oz American Cut Burger. Gotta start this new relationship with the namesake, which is a proper steakhouse burger. A perfectly cooked medium rare patty of brisket, short rib and dry aged rib eye, with bourbon onions and beer cheese. Beer cheese! A common thing if you are from Wisconsin, but not so much in NYC. Some will scold at the idea, but if the option is there to add egg, I do it even on premium beef. This burger ranks high up there with the best of them.
And then there’s the MFC, Marc Forgione’s Chicken which I had on another day. Possibly the most outrageous fried chicken sandwich in a city suddenly filled with outrageous fried chickens. Buttermilk/Tobasco marinaded, sprinkled with a special spice blend from the spice master Lior Lev Sercarz, and coated with Chili peppercorn honey which you get more on the side. The chicken lies between two house made everything Biscuits lightly smothered with their own ranch, and pickles. It all somehow works nicely, with the juicy tender crispy chicken leading the way. Only caveat is that the sandwich is a little large and to eat it can be a little laborious. But the way I see it, to fully enjoy a Marc Forgione’s Chicken, you need to work it my friend! Ok ok, sounded funnier in my head
Another little issue with both the chicken and the burger is that the slaw you get on the side is a little too oniony (and i love oniony). And the fries the second time around were overcooked, otherwise they can be solid. Go!
American Cut Burger Bar
363 Greenwich St (Franklin/Harrison), Tribeca
Rating: Two Z’s (out of 4)
Stars range from Good to Exceptional. Simple as that
Categories: New York City, TriBeCa
Tags: American Cut, American Cut Burger Bar, Best Burgers in Tribeca, Burgers, food, restaurants, Travel
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FOB – You Had Me at Halo Halo
July 4, 2017 Update:
How is this place not packed every night. Yet another great feast at FOB, this time with the family. The chicken wings, overnight Chicken Adobo (with coconut milk this time), Fish Inihaw are absolute musts. But there are a few other potential gems on the menu we didnt get to sample yet. The type of neighborhood place every neighborhood should have. But dont take it too literally chef Armando. I like you in just that one place
December 9, 2016 Post:
If you close one eye and both ears, Brooklyn’s Smith Street during the holidays feels like a small town Main Street. Xmas tree vendors hugging corners. Colorful shops, bars, restaurants getting dressed for the holidays. You can almost hear George Michael’s Last Christmas before the moment interrupted by a commuter. A commuter who believes if he beeps long enough, Santa will come down to part the sea, before heading for some Sisig and a beer.
Homey Filipino F.O.B. is the latest to join the happy Smith Street Mishpucha. And by the look of the Xmas tree dominated glassy front, it’s playing the part. When you sit down, you immediately get the sense that if you drop your napkin, you may just have to pick it up yourself. And that any service mishaps will be treated just like you would at a diner (Though some Yelpers clearly had other expectations from a two week old establishment). The room is simply decorated, and the lighting is an Instagrammer wet dream. In other words, my type of place.
But I didnt come here for the tree, nor the home away from home family atmosphere. I came for what looked and sounded like a promising menu by a Daniel alum, a menu that is lacking in that part of Brooklyn. My extent of the cuisine stretches from visits to Lumpia Shack in West Village and recent visits to Maharlika in East Village where the Sisig became my go to dish. The Sisig at FOB (which of course means Fresh off the {Ikea} Boat. Thats the closest boat to the establishment I can think of) didnt sound too promising to my dining partner so we left it for another day. Oh and did I mention that this meal was one of the best meals I’ve had in 2016? Perhaps it would have been fair to start with that comment before losing 65% of my audience.
Corn Bibingka – A Fine semi-sweet Starter. Rice cake with a nice layer of coconut butter that tastes like cornbread. Reminded me of some Sweet Thai desserts like in Pure Thai Cookhouse, also cooked in Banana leaf.
Spicy Chicken Langkawas – These were quite good. The wings are grilled, so not much of a crunch in the skin. But the flavor is there thanks to the wonderful thick salsa of chilies, lime, and coconut milk. The waiter learned the hard way that any sauce left on the plate is as if any chicken left.
Peel & Eat 7-up Shrimp – The most enticing app was the most disappointing. Some of the shrimp were limp and the sauce just didnt offer much. I was hoping based on pictures for something closer to New Orleans style buttery BBQ shrimp
Fish Inihaw – A strong candidate for dish of the night. Delicately cooked Flounder (fish varies based on market freshness) topped with an extremely complimentary salsa. Better than a similar fish nearby at one Michelin La Vara.
Overnight Chicken Adobo – This was surprisingly excellent (explanation to follow). Two perfectly sized moist and deeply flavorful pieces (half a bird). There’s another chicken on the menu that is “moms” chicken while this Abobo is “pops”. The difference if I understand correctly is that pop doesnt like coconut, so its essentially the same thing without the coconut. Instincts suggest going with mom, but the Adobo is getting a little buzz, coupled with the fact that Mrs Z face turns into Robert de Niro when she tastes coconut (Its quite a funny sight) means we are getting the Adobo.
Sides of Garlic rice and green beans & Longanisa were fine. Especially the Longanisa sausage which was like a delicious tease they can easily make an app from. Better than the Longanisa at Maharlika which is a little too sweet for my buds.
Dessert – The traditional Filipino Halo Halo is bucket list worthy. Not because its so amazing, but because its so different than anything out there. After many attempts at Lumpia Shack where it takes the winter off, this was actually my very first. While it didnt exactly knock my sucks off, I can see myself ordering it again. The flan with caramel sauce on the other hand became boring after a few spoons. Still, a solid 3 Z’s meal in Brooklyn.
FOB
271 Smith St (Degraw/Sackett), Brooklyn
Rating: Three Z’s (out of 4)
Stars range from Good to Exceptional. Simple as that
Recommended Dishes: Corn Bibingka, Chicken Langkawas, Fish Inihaw, Overnight Chicken Adobo, Halo Halo, beans & Longanisa
Categories: Brooklyn, New York City
Tags: Carrol Gardens Restaurants, Filipino Food NYC, FOB, FOB Brooklyn, food, restaurant, Travel
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Introducing EWZ Tours
Some tours developments for ya…
We have a name, a website, and the least attractive attractions on TripAdvisor (meaning the guide, not the experience)
The three tours are shaping up quite nicely. I’ve made some changes to all three already and quite satisfied with all the routes. I’m fairly booked for the holiday season, but not so much after January 3rd. Yes, I’m doing the walking tours throughout the winter
I think the most painful part of this whole process was coming up with the name. Eating With Ziggy Tours ultimately beat Angry Panda, Touring With Ziggy, and Hungry Penguin. I was all set on the last one, but no one liked it. Touring With Ziggy was the natural progression, but then the expectations of Drinking With Ziggy, and Sleeping with Ziggy would follow. I would have already gotten a review on the last one, and I’m afraid it’s not good
It took about 6 weeks but we are finally on Trip Advisor, and Facebook. On Instagram which I finally joined in the summer, I’m “EatingWithZiggy”, and on Twitter I’m still good ol’ Ziggy601
In order to get on TA, I had to quickly create a dedicated site which I’m still working on https://eatingwithziggytours.com/
Categories: Brooklyn, East Village, Midtown West, New York City
Tags: Food Tours, NYC Food Tours, NYC Walking Tours, Tours, Travel
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Introducing the Z-List Map
Since so many of you are paying attention to this Z-List for some reason, I figured I might as well help you out with a little map. The same map appears at the bottom of the Z-List page.
Happy Thanksgiving!
https://drive.google.com/open?id=1D349Rvw-nDSZ2D13p0c_7gkL9rA&usp=sharing
Categories: New York City
Tags: best food in NYC, food, NYC dining, NYC Top 50, Travel, Z-List
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Meet the New Mexican Sheriff of Hell’s Kitchen – Tacuba
An update on Tacuba after an all out bash last night.
Tacuba
November 20, 2016 Update: Three months later, Tacuba of Hell’s Kitchen is clicking on all Chimichangas! A big birthday bash for a close friend last night started with a sound concern, but ended with another fun meal. If you go however, try to avoid Friday and Saturday nights if you can. The word is apparently out (ahem!). There were quite a few large groups there besides the usual turnout, and they can get busy. Tacuba has all the red flags of places I usually avoid. Younger crowd, loud, overzealous vibe sometimes. But the touch of Julian Medina (who I finally met last night) of Toloache fame, gives it this nice balance of food and energy you cant get out of Mexican in Hell’s Kitchen. Nothing new to report food wise. Stick to the Carnitas, Pulpo and the rest of the appetizers. And the drinks here are quite good.
August 7, 2016 Post:…
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Categories: New York City
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Mister Dips – A Burger With a View
A famous person once said, “I didn’t know that I was starving till I tasted you. Don’t need no butterflies when you give me the whole damn zoo. By the way, by the way, you do things to my body. I didn’t know that I was starving till I tasted you”. Always a joy listening to this one in the car with the kids around (rolling eyes smiley goes here). I knew that I was starving before I tasted this burger. Well, I wasnt literally starving, but it was a solid notch above first world hunger kind of starving. And while I didnt quite get the zoo when I visited William Vale’s second floor terrace (or is it third), I did envision butterflies roaming around there in the spring. And yes, it did things to my body. Wonderful things! Followed by guilt, despair, and total loss of hope in humanity (especially after the elections).
Maybe I should have just stopped with a single patty. Did I really need a double? And instead of plain waffle fries, did I really need the porn name sounding “Dirty Dipper”, covered with spicy, gooey, wonderful cheddar and scallions? Yes, I needed all those things. Raise your hand if you are tired of your partner’s “Do you really need that?” every time you reach for a dark chocolate? Do you REALLY need that diamond ring?
The Mister Dips burger, sold from a parked Airstream trailer, is as solid as a Shake Shack burger can get (yes Shake Shack is is now officially the “Bounty” of burgers). The flavor profile is spot on, and the price is right. Coupled with the dirty Waffle Fries, and.. watch out Shake Shack, there’s a new bounty in town. You know things are going well when you forget to drink your beverage while eating. But that’s not all. The park, terrace, Low Line, or whatever they want to call it, is a stunner. A “chuppah” of colorful patio furniture, overlooking lower midtown Manhattan, with grassy hills to boot. Gorgeous views, especially once you ignore the construction in between. Did I mention the speakers blasting gangsta rap and 80’s in the background? So check it out, along with a well earned bathroom break at the new William Vale, before the mister shuts its Dips for the season.
Mister Dips
111 N 12th St (Williamsburg. William Vale Promenade)
Categories: Brooklyn, New York City
Tags: Best Burger in NYC, food, Mister Dips, Mister Dips NYC, Travel, Williamsburg Burgers
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Atoboy – Helping Make NoMad Great Again
The Schnied is over. I finally made it to Atoboy, and I finally ate something worthy of more than one Z (stars). Friends parties, family events, the dog ate my schedule, are just some of the reasons I had to cancel Atoboy about 5 times. At some point it became a joke, and at another point a curse I thought perhaps I should not be tempered with. I tempered! The constant barrage of food porn by an army of Instagrammers kept the plans intact, but it took me a few good months to finally make it.
Atoboy is the newest Korean bad boy in the NoMad, an area that started to feel somewhat stale as of late (New Mercato sibling Ulivo will be next to check out). A Jungsik alum introduced a whimsical menu of Korean Banchan, small tapas like dishes. A set price of $36 allows you to choose one dish from three sections. One can add more a la carte ($9, $12, $15 respectfully) and dessert which I recommend here. Decor as you can see is Industrial Bushwick Chic. I totally made that up, but you bought it admit it. Not something you normally see in the increasingly elegant purse-bench filled NoMad hotel zone
A friendly waitress guided us well throughout. Only issue is something that haunts us in just about every tapas like joint, but got elevated here. A constant flow of arriving dishes. You eat non stop here, and within an hour you are pretty much done. For $160 for two that included tip/tax, two Gruners, two desserts, an extra small plate, and $2 upgrade to seasoned rice (yes!), I was expecting to linger a little longer with my date. I will break the food by rounds, and list my favorites at the end as well
First round – We ordered an extra dish here, the Cobia, served raw, finely diced and mixed with Korean pear, hockey puck tartare style. Nice combination of textures and flavors. The least exciting of the early three was surprisingly the heavily Instagrammed beef tartare, a Korean style tartare, thinly sliced strips instead of finely chopped which is my preference. The “Eggplant “on first glance looked like a babaganoush gone horribly wrong, but resulted in the best dish early on by far. A spoonful of the layers of eggplant, Dungeness crab and tomato jelly led by that smoky eggplant was pure ecstasy
Second round – I was a little bored with the “Egg” with Sea urchin, Watercress, Quinoa. The egg white was in charge throughout and needed something more. Far cry from a similar egg dish at the NoMad (not fair I know) nearby. The meaty Jerusalem Sunchoke was more like it, with Oyster mushroom, Black truffles, and Orange. One of the better dishes of the night
Third round – Fried chicken tempura style with peanut sauce featured a good amount of tender, juicy, delicious meat. Looks greasier than it actually is. Mrs Z wasnt as much of a fan though to be fair. The Brisket with Foie gras infused gravy and more Oyster mushroom looked and tasted like a sick meat stew. A solid dish, but one of those where the main ingredient (unevenly tender meat cubes) is the least exciting thing there. Love the garlic chips, the sauce, the mushrooms, and once I started dipping the mushrooms from the Sunchoke dish, I almost wet myself. From the sauce that is.
Dessert. A tale of two desserts. Panna Cotta with frozen pomegranate was outstanding. Its all about the cookie crumble in the middle tying everything nicely together. Black Raspberry Cake was just like a fine pretty cake you get at your corner pastry shop. Should have tried the Granita with walnuts and burrata. Go!
Atoboy
43 E 28th St (Madison/Park)
Rating: Two Z’s (out of 4)
Stars range from Good to Exceptional. Simple as that
Recommended Dishes: Cobia, Eggplant, Sunchoke, Chicken, Brisket, Panna Cota
Categories: Gramercy, Flatiron, New York City
Tags: Atoboy, Atoboy NYC, food, Korean food NYC, restaurants, Travel
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Foodpourri
Random EWZ food discoveries, announcements, and other nonsense…
Danji, the long time EWZ fave in the kitchen of hell is now doing brunch. In addition to the best tofu dish in town, you can now enjoy delicacies like the Big Korean Breakfast (top picture), Kimchi bacon fried rice, and their version of the Filipino Sisig. This medium size Jew did the big Korean Breakfast and (of course) the tofu last week, and as much as I enjoyed them, I would love to try the other offerings next time
Talking about Sisigs, I accidentally had it twice last month. My favorite was in Maharlika in East Village. Gorgeously fried pig ears, snout, belly with garlic, chilies on top of garlicky rice. Just a solid combination of flavors and textures. And while you at it, try their Lumpia rolls
Having trouble sleeping? Problems in the bedroom, ever since Prosperity Dumplings closed by the health dep’t. Before you reach for the red pill, blue pill or any pill for that matter, check out Lam Zhou Handmade Noodle in Chinatown. Even at room temperature, you get some of the tastiest fried pork dumplings in NYC today. 8 for $3 is still quite cheaper than what all the new places charging today
In Pizza news, while I dont normally get excited about Sullivan Street Bakery‘s thin, often room temp Roman pies (I do get excited about everything else), the day I walked into a fresh Pizza Capicola changed all that. Coppa ham, green olives, chili, fennel, Mascarpone. A masterful combo with plenty of nice heat to keep your taste buds happy for a while.
Discoering Los Mariscos in Chelsea Market is like discovering a secret Speakeasy, or Tom Hanks discovering a secret garden full of typewriters. The Los Tacos #1 team leased the space that leads from the tacos hallway to 15th st where there’s a separate entrance. The place meant to resemble a Mexican seafood shack, and the Baja style fish and shrimp tacos are as solid as they get in NYC. And at $3 to $4, quite affordable for Chelsea Market
I’ve been eating quite a bit in Brooklyn as of late. Some ups, some downs, with the highlight coming from the most unexpected, Olivier Bistro in Park Slope. Homey, basic French Bistro fare done well. Escargot, Hanger, Daurade special particular standouts.
Stop me when I start sounding like Crazy Eddy, but the new East Village Food Tour is beginning to look like a smashing success food and sightseeing wise. I assembled a pretty nice route that includes a stop at the always fun Caracas Arepa Bar where we’ll sample some Venezuelan mini Arepas they do especially for the tour. Not all tours will be the same, but this one is shaping to be one the most popular stops.
In my constant pursuit of great Soup Dumplings (Xiaolongbao) in NYC that included the much hyped Drunken Dumplings, and others, The Bao in, you guessed it, East Village, makes possibly the best I’ve had in NYC. Thin skin that holds it on, and a very fine filling of pork and crab which is what I recommend. Love the dumplings, not so much the stuffier than it should be, $10 per person minimum, space.
Right below Bao on St Marks place is another place we’ve been obsessing with as of late, Spot Dessert Bar. Playful, imaginary desserts like the Harvest, a plant of berries and soft cheesecake that you water with black rose milk tea. Dont overlook however the more normal looking and sounding Green tea lava cake 
In Bakery news, I cant get enough of Breads Bakery (Jerusalem baguettes, babka, multiple locations), and Arcade Bakery in Tribeca. Arcade is located in a lobby of an office building and the hours are office kind hours (m-f 8-4). Go early for the sensational buttery Laminated Baguette, Whiskey-pecan Babka and call me in the morning.
Miso Cherry! Say it with me, c’mon. Slower. Say it like you mean it. Meeesooo Cherry! Another wacky Oddfellows Ice Cream flavor that is perhaps the best ice cream/Gelato I’ve had this year.
Stay Hungry My Friends 
Categories: Brooklyn, Chelsea, Chinatown, East Village, Midtown West, New York City
Tags: Arcade Bakery, Caracas Arepa bar, danji, food, Lam Zhou Handmade Noodle, Los Mariscos, Maharlika, Oddfellows Ice Cream, Olivier Bistro, restaurants, Spot Dessert Bar, Sullivan Street Bakery, The Bao, Travel
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Eating With Ziggy 