As we get older, mental lists get less and less effective. We start to forget things, and sometimes get in trouble as a result, especially with the spouse. The saving grace is an equally forgetful spouse, but not when she has different habits and writes everything down. Consider my agenda on my day off today: Write a post, check the tire in my car, call cable, watch Almodovar’s Pain and Glory, take the dishes out (still not allowed to put them in but in the midst of a mandatory online course), and… I know I had more, including something important that she asked me to do. But at the moment I dont have the slightest idea what it is. I suppose I can ask her, but that’s risky in itself.
Successful people write shit down. The great Jerry Seinfend said that as you get older you lose your creativity, and the way to combat that is to sit down and write. He writes for two hours every day. It’s sort of what I’m doing right now. I should be writing something about The Usual but instead I’m writing about, well, nothing really. Like Seinfend, its a blog about nothing. I wasnt planning to write about nothing when I started writing a few minutes ago. I definitely planned to write about something.
So as a result of accelerated fading mental lists, about a year ago, I started making a list of new restaurants I’d like to try. And pretty much ever since then I’ve been staring at The Usual on top of that list. It wasnt that I ever put it on top. Its just the oldest name on the list that I kept bumping down in favor of others. Burger joints still gets your attention, but with so many good ones out there, its hard to get overly enthusiastic.
I first heard of Alvin Cailan when he opened Eggslut, a popup at the Chef Club Counter, offering his famous (in LA at least) egg sandwich. Eggslut now has locations in LA and the Cosmopolitan hotel in Vegas. The Cosmo shaping up to be a foodie paradise, attracting the crème de la Crème seems like. The Filipino-American Cailan is also famous for hosting The Burger Show on Youtube. And burgers and fried chicken are the focus in NYC, instead of egg sandwiches and Filipino food. Although rumors are that Cailan will open a Filipino restaurant here soon enough.
I think Cailan and team figured at some point that at a place called “The Usual”, an online menu is almost useless. Its not there as of this writing. People generally come for one or two items, the burger or fried chicken. We ordered the former as the main, and the latter as the first course. When we come back, that and only that would be my order. Among the other dishes we tried were Kung Pao Brussel Sprouts that were cooked well but needed a bit more flair. And a baked cookie and ice cream that was too sweet and uninspiring.
But the burger was inspiring alright. Not a designer, fancy one that you’ll find in say NoMad Bar. Just a solid, well crafted burger. Two quality smashed patties with American Cheese, garlic aioli, and just enough onions. Its beefy, well balanced, and just the right size. And for $20 as you’d expect, served with excellent fries that came with ketchup and a curry aioli. Combine the two for maximum oomphness.
I’ve heard much about Cailan’s fried chicken. But oddly, a Korean fried chicken instead on the menu these days. Not so odd once you try it. It got all the elements of perfect fried chicken. Its clean tasting, supremely moist, with just the right amount of crunch and flavor from the thinner than it looks skin. Perhaps the best KFC (Korean) I’ve ever had. Looking forward to trying the rest of the menu. Not really. I’ll just have the usual.
The Usual
30 Kenmare St (Mott/Elizabeth)
Rating: 2 Z’s (out of 4)
Stars range from Good to Exceptional. Simple as that
Recommended Dishes: Burger, Fried Chicken
A much needed update to the “Bread and Butter” of this blog. Seven year old Hell’s Kitchen Survival Guide still outperforming all other posts year after year. The Z-List and the Turks & Caicos page complete the top three. There are many sources for Hell’s Kitchen out there today but I truly believe this is still the most comprehensive and up to date of the bunch. Most HK guides written by people who dont spend much time there and/or dont really understand the area well. But enough about me…
Added to the list:
It’s becoming increasingly difficult to write posts like this considering everything that’s going on in the world today. Fires in Australia, mayhem in Iran, Hong Kong, impeachment, and this dude is writing about some beach in Anguilla. But this is a place worth writing about. And as I get older and wiser its becoming more and more clear that in this fragile world, a beach and even looking at pictures of a beach (which I dont do enough) has crazy healing powers. Numerous recent studies 
Rendezvous Bay (special shutout to the person who invented copy and paste) simply put is the perfect beach. Just like most such beaches, you may not find it at its best behavior when you first see it. The winds can get too strong, and sometimes it may feel deserted for a reason. When we first saw it four years ago we werent impressed. But after spending a week at what looks like its best side, we understood. It’s one of the most walkable, most swimmable, and most perfect size beaches we’ve seen. But most of all, its almost empty! From my vantage point, best seat in the theater, one person walking by every 20 minutes. It’s one of the best sheer beauty to people ratio in the Caribbean.
One of the cool things about this bay is the lack of hotels. You got CuisinArt in the west as the lone major resort, and a few boutique hotels. One of which is the reason for the post. 
Spaghetti alle Vongole at Trattoria Tramonto
Tuna Tartare at Jacala
This is not your father’s Coney Island Ave. When I lived in that part of Brooklyn in the 80-90s, Turkish places like Sahara dominated. Turkish, car washes, ice cream, and affordable divorce lawyers to be exact. Nowadays, the business hub, that doesnt quite lead to Coney Island, features even better Turkish (Taci’s Beyti), respectable Moldovan (Moldova), Uzbek royalty (Nargis), swanky Russian nightclubs like Chinar, and a plethora of Pakistani joints between Foster and H. And when I want to kick it up a notch, there’s always 
Meats in a form of kebabs and lamb chops dominate the menu. Lulya kebab (minced meat) here is thick and juicy. But what sets them apart here is they are wrapped with thin dough. Get the lamb over chicken. Guru Hingal is a thin pappardelle like noodles topped with a “ragu” of onions, and lamb cooked in its own fat. You wont find better tasting pasta in south Brooklyn.
Sometimes I cringe when I read my old posts. Ever so often it starts with the title. Why did 
I’ve come to realize that I’m not much of a beach reader these days. The heat, the glare, the turquoise water, way too many distractions out there. But what’s my excuse at home? Dont know. But at the beach I prefer long walks, listening to music, and sometimes just aimless staring while getting lost in random thoughts. Albert Einstein got much of his ideas from aimless wandering. I’m getting there. The best I came up with in 6 days is “What the heck is a Post Malone”, and “How do you spell Rendezvous, anyway”. Silent Zs just seem so annoyingly wasteful, especially these days for some New Yorkers (Verrazzano is missing a Z in all 96 road signs and business names).
Eating With Ziggy 