March 28, 2018 Update:
Pinch Chinese is clicking on all cylinders. There’s something about sitting there at dinner time looking through the glass at that kitchen. Like watching a team of physicians conducting a well orchestrated surgery. If they would be making cupcakes I would be probably standing on a line for cupcakes, hoping they come with a side of soup dumplings.
Boy those bite size seafood/pork soup dumplings are explosive. And the flavors on the room temperature cumin ribs really come through nicely. Hard to try new dishes here when its just the two of us, and you want to eat the same things again. But the Steak fried rice featuring a tender ultra beefy Wagyu sirloin, is the one big addition to the list.
“Snow Crab in a Chinese Restaurant” is still fantastic, and a good source of vitamin Crab, with those silky glass noodles. The Peking Duck here is becoming very popular, and looks rather scrumptious. In previous visits for lunch I enjoyed the Taiwanese Beef Noodle soup, a current NYC trend it seems. This is a major go!
May 16, 2017 Post:
As the wise Yogi once said… “Its so crowded, nobody goes there anymore”. Have you been to Soho lately? Spring and Price are giving Times Square a run for its money. I wonder whats the rent like these days. On the flip side, I was picking up visitors from Sixty Soho on back to back mornings for a Brooklyn Tour, and I couldnt believe how charming and quiet that area can be in the morning. I heard cab drivers singing and birds making mating calls (or is it the other way around). Even Dominique Ansel had no queue! It was as shocking as your spouse telling you out of the blue, “I didnt know the Bee Gees were all male”.
Pinch Chinese is sticking out of Prince Street like a zebra in a nudist colony. There’s nothing like it in the area, serving solid elevated Chinese in a comfortable setting. One of the partners is a veteran of the famed Taiwanese chain Din Tai Fung, known for their soup dumplings (Xiaolongbao). Inside, once you look passed the seriously focused crew behind the glass, its quirkiness galore. From the menu, quoting Yelp reviewers, to the bathroom, warning employees about the consequences of not washing hands. A lot of effort into the decor. We ate…
Seafood/Pork Dumplings – Smaller than your average soup dumplings, but more concentrated and potent. Wife was wishing for bigger (what else is new) but I thought they carried enough spark. Something I would definitely order again
House Special Shrimp – Fine! No issues with the perfectly cooked tiger shrimp and sauce, just nothing new and exciting flavor wise.
Niman Ranch Cumin Ribs – “tender, fall-off-the-bone – jocelyn on yelp” menu description is spot on. But to me its all about the dressing of these babies that made us eat the leftovers with a spoon. One of those rare awkward “Are you done with that” moments. And it just goes to show you how flavorful Chinese Cumin lamb or pork can be without the numbing heat
Dan Dan Noodles – Yet more pinches of brilliance. And more Niman Ranch pork, with heat this time, and hints of star anise. Its a peanuty sauce a la Han Dynasty.
Snow Crab in Chinese Restaurant – A dish of the year nominee. Something Jocelyn and all her Yelp colleagues missed out on (I didnt see any mentions of it when I ate there). Glass noodles with heaps of crab, dressed with an outrageously delicious fermented bean sauce with chilies and scallions. The crab was plentiful and delicious, but it almost plays second fiddle to the noodles with sauce. I would even order this without the crab
Eggplant in Garlic Sauce – Exactly what it says. A regular, but solid, Chinese style eggplant in garlic sauce
Pinch Chinese
177 Prince St (Sullivan/Thompson), Soho
Rating: Three Z’s (out of 4)
Stars range from Good to Exceptional. Simple as that.
Recommended Dishes: Seafood/Pork Dumplings, Cumin Ribs, Dan Dan Noodles, Wind Sand Chicken, Spicy Wontons, String Beans, Snow Crab in Chinese Restaurant, Steak Fried Rice, Taiwanese Beef Noodle Soup (Lunch)
They recycle their own sluts! I’m not quite sure what it means, but that is according to a sign inside. Either they employ people with extremely low standards or they are referring to their Eggslut sandwich, which is excellent. Either way, to my knowledge they are the first slut recyclers in the industry.
Unlike big brother Chef’s Club where you got a fuller assortment of famous chef’s recipes including guest appearances, the counter is all about a few rotating recipes available for lunch and breakfast. Every three months or so they will change entirely. So anything you eat now, say goodbye to it immediately, or take a few more months to enjoy. While they are preparing your slut, the rest of the team is hard at work trying to figure out its replacement. All enjoyed in a very comfortable, cafeteria like fast food setting. Order at the cashier, and wait for it.
We are well into Falafel season in New York City (April – March). I will make this one nice and painless, almost W42st pick-5 style. When I want a good Falafel these are the only places I consider. They are fairly spread out, so helps with your sightseeing, quick bite needs. I cant think of a better, more affordable snack in town other than a well crafted Falafel. For most of you EWZ old timers, other than one place perhaps (Ba’al) this wont offer anything new.
Its fun to watch the hype machine in play in NYC, and see how things develop. While I read all the Hot and Buzz lists out there as everyone else, I learned over time sometimes the hard way, that things are not always what they seem. A name and/or a little bit of money, at minimum $3000 is needed to market yourself as such. An alum of something good in the world… Noma, EMP, Contra, tickles your interest, with a picture of something beautiful that is cooked for two weeks straight, seals the deal. “Brian is a recent graduate of Betty’s school of Hospitality and Accounting” is not gonna be nearly as sexy.
A slight variation to my usual best soups of Hell’s Kitchen post. This month its part of the food issue on W42st. Mooncake Foods and their sick Wonton soup is sadly no more, so needed to replace it with Pam which made the list twice in a row. The only news here to veteran readers is the inclusion of Chong Quing Xiao Mian Noodles. Try saying it just once. As usual you will find Ziggy’s EatList at the small Zine inside the magazine distributed all over the neighborhood. This month’s issue matched my couch perfectly so we may keep it as furniture for a little longer this time.
Bagel at the Delta Terminal JFK before departure. Ok, it wasnt the bagel, nor it was even in Denver. But while standing in line for the bagels, and then waiting for the bagels to come out, the entire time (around 30-40 minutes or so) I was talking to Jeremy Roenick who stood on line behind me. Only the very few of you know about my other obsessions, one of which is Hockey (Or Ice Hockey for some of you foreigners). Turns out he is a big foodie and we actually discussed very little Hockey. We talked about food tours, his food adventures in NYC, Turks and Caicos, my food tours, and a bunch of other stuff. I didnt even mind one bit that they forgot about my order the entire time. Well until he got his at least and left, then I got furious
Its a tale of two Thais. Pure Thai Cookhouse, a jam packed frat party at pretty much any time of the day, sometimes even just outside. Pam Real Thai, eerily quiet even at peak times sometimes. Pure has a limited, concentrated menu for Thai standards, while Pam has a megillah that includes all the color of the rainbow curries and other American Thai. Pure is where I bring visitors to experience the vibe and some regional specialties you wont find anywhere else, while Pam is terribly unattractive and uninviting. So why do I keep going to Pam Real Thai.
I once asked a chef in Piedmont where he likes to eat when he goes to NYC. Maialino, he said. But dont you want to eat some Sushi, Thai, or Uzbek, something perhaps hard to get back at home, I asked. Good Roman food is hard to get here too, he said. Perhaps for the same reason you see Italians flock to Eataly here. It took me a few trips to Italy to understand what Italians have been telling me all along. There’s really no such thing as Italian food.
Eating With Ziggy 