This place is a massive German / Bavarian beer hall in midtown that serves up massive brews in massive mugs (and boots).
I came here soon after it opened with a lot of excitement in my heart, because I absolutely LOVE German beer halls. There’s just something about the fun group atmosphere that makes it unique.
Anyway, it was here that I discovered a really amazing grapefruit beer (Schoffenhofer). After drinking it, I was on the hunt, and even found some at a local distributor on Long Island. Needless to say, the fridge remained stocked with them until we moved back to the city.
Aside from the great beer selection, they have a nice fun menu too. We tried the pate, the HUGE pretzels, the wieners, and some sausage.
I sincerely hope this place becomes a bigger draw with bar folks. It has the potential for being one of the city’s best places for drinks.
This little joint looked promising as a spot to grab some Chinese style noodle soup. As we sat down, though, both my wife and I decided that we wanted dry noodles rather than a soup. I went with the same bet and picked roast pork noodles, and my wife went with roast duck. The duck was a bit greasy, and was an efforted meal, as you had to chew around small bones due to how the meat was chopped after cooking. The roast pork, however, was very nice. I went with chow fun noodles (wide ribbons) and my wife went with regular soup noodles.
While my wife wasn’t as happy with her meal as I was, I think we’d both go back at some point to try a few other dishes.
Today I officially published my ramen page, and I guess it was off to a good start, because the Mokbar Twitter account responded to my tweet about it, telling me I should give their food a try. I asked for a recommendation, and they suggested the cold brisket ramen in tomato broth. It sounded very enticing, but it was ultimately no longer available (I guess it was a seasonal item). No matter though; the rest of the menu was saliva-inducing anyway, and there were several other things I wanted to try.
The joint is tucked away in a nice little corner of Chelsea Market, a great place to explore and do some food tasting. They basically have bar seating only, but it’s not too cramped. Here’s a look at the table setting and some views of the kitchen:
My wife wanted one of the alcohol slushees, but they were out of those too. Doh! We settled on these:
I ended up ordering the classic pork broth ramen. It had great depth, a strong garlic flavor, firm wavy noodles, and yummy mushrooms. I ordered a poached egg to go with it. They forgot it at first, but the problem was quickly remedied. Take a look:
As you may know, I do not like my scallions cut in this way, but these were easy enough to brush aside, so not a big deal. I wish there was a little bit more pork in the bowl, because it was so damn good!
My wife had the chicken thigh ramen with kimchi cucumber. This was a thicker broth, but the soup itself was lighter than mine.
We also grabbed an order of the kimchi trio. I thought this was a little pricey at $12 for three small dishes of stuff that is typically free at most other Korean joints:
The first was pickled daikon, which was nice and crunchy with great spicy flavor:
Next was kimchi cucumber, also very good, and also in the chicken ramen that my wife had:
Last was a bacon cabbage kimchi, which was really nice and smoky.
The damage was a bit high for a ramen joint, but we did sample a lot of stuff. I thought it was worth it to try something different and unique. I definitely recommend this place for those of you who are looking for a new twist to ramen. Everything was really tasty!
MOKBAR
Chelsea Market
75 9th Ave
New York, NY 10011
I’ve been coming here for the great trivia games on Tuesday nights, with first place prize being a $75 bar tab, second place at $50 and third place at $35. We won the $75 tab three weeks in a row, so I’ve been able to sample a bunch of the food here. Best thing so far: the burger and fries. So fucking good. Really nicely seasoned, great flavors, good toppings. Do yourself a favor and get in here to try it out.
I also tried the tomato watermelon gazpacho, which was really nice and fresh, as well as the falafel burger with red pepper fries. Pretty good, but the regular burger wins by a long shot.
Nicky’s is a great spot for summertime food on Long Island. They do a good job with seafood, but I just had to try the burger here at long last. Blue cheese and sautéed onions. OH YEAH! Throw in some oysters and tropical drinks for good measure and you’re all set.
NICKY’S ON THE BAY
150 Clinton Ave.
Bay Shore, NY 11706
My wife and I tried the Shio and Shoyu styles. They were both good, but they contained green onion cut in such a way that it became overbearing and difficult to pluck off of the noodles. I like a standard cross cut to my scallions. This “long ways” cut sucks. The soup base was good, on the other hand, and the rye noodles were delicious.
One interesting item added recently is the 8am Breakfast Ramen. The broth is a cheese fondue. The rye noodles are topped with crispy ham, scallions and strips of cooked scrambled egg.
The fondue is thick, and the flavor profile is definitely “American breakfast,” so it has familiarity.
IVAN RAMEN SLURP SHOP
Gotham West Market
600 11th Ave
New York, NY 10036
I came here to the Union Square location for the first time with a few buddies before watching one of the US World Cup games.
I had a breakfast burger of some sort, which came with ham and egg on top of that bitch. It was really good, perfectly cooked too, as you can tell from the cut shot.
This was exactly what we needed before stuffing our bellies full of beer before the game, and hours of screaming and yelling for our team.
On a second visit I had the classic cheeseburger. The breakfast burger was better, in my opinion, and the bun is still in need of improvements. Switch to potato!
My wife had an asiago turkey burger, which was good but a little rubbery. I guess that shit happens when you eat turkey.
We did try some wings and an app that was essentially a fried pickle and pastrami fritter. Pretty good showing.
The down side is that they wouldn’t honor the wings or happy hour specials at the tables, despite the bar being filled.
Last item was the smokes shake, which was very nice. The roasted marshmallow on top really brought those flavors home.
My wife and I have seen this place in passing for many months now, and we were always curious about it. Tonight I gave it a try. I knew right away it probably wasn’t a real-deal Japanese ramen place (Kung Fu is Chinese, not Japanese), so I was sort of expecting the worst. It turned out to be pretty freaking tasty though. It’s definitely NOT ramen. The flavor of the broth/soup I had was more like a mix between Vietnamese pho and standard Chinese noodle soup.
I ordered the house special “ramen,” which was a clear-ish broth with sliced beef, shrimp, a hard boiled egg, baby bok choy, cilantro and hazelnuts. I ordered it spicy, which meant it came with a blob of the house spicy sauce (the red stuff in the middle of the pic below), which was really tasty. A little bit of that shit goes a long way. I pulled more than half out just because I didn’t want my nose running and my upper lip sweating into my bowl. It’s also more like a hybrid between standard Chinese hot pepper (like the dry chili pepper flakes you get with oil when you order noodles) and Japanese spicy paste for ramen.
I am definitely going back here to try the other items. This soup was really fantastic. The beef was packed with flavor and very tender; even those ripples of fatty tendon stuff were like butter. I’m actually curious as to what cut of beef it is. The shrimp were not boiled to shit either, like I expected. They were cooked relatively nicely. And the egg was the best tasting hard boiled egg I’ve ever eaten. Not even kidding. The seasonings penetrated deep into the center. Maybe they boil them in broth or soak them in broth after they’re cooked? Whatever they’re doing, it’s fucking working!
One thing to beware of: the not-so-sneaky service charge. They added 15% to my bill without asking.
I thought that was shitty, and, in fact, I was prepared to leave them a bigger tip! I had it in my head that I was going to just leave $15. Oh well. Their loss. I handed the waiter a $20, and when he retuned my change to me I just left the $0.92 remainder. Still a pretty good tip!
UPDATE!!! I tried the fried ramen, which is essentially just like a lo mien dish with all the same components from the soup. It was tasty and not too greasy, but I like the soup version better.
The soup dumplings were excellent – I could eat these all fuckin’ day. Give them a few minutes to cool down so you don’t burn the fuck out of your mouth. I like to plop one into a soy sauce bath before eating. It helps cool them down, and gives it some earthy flavor.
On another visit I tried the roast duck “ramen.” It was the same tasty broth but floated with some hacked up pieces of roast duck. For the most part, the duck was not really edible. Too much bone and rubbery fat, and not enough edible meat.
Stick with the beef “ramen” at this joint and you will be as happy as a pig in shit. This other item we tried was the cold ramen. Essentially this is lo mein style noodles that are cooked really nice to al dente (and probably hand made), then dressed with a peanut-flavored sauce and topped with cucumbers, tomato and shrimp. I’ve had better, but this was pretty tasty.
KUNG FU LITTLE STEAMED BUNS
811 8th Ave
New York, NY 10019
I saw posters for a new joint opening up in my hood. A GRILLED CHEESE JOINT!!! Not knowing when the doors would open, and being anxious to try out the grub, my wife and I took a slightly longer walk over to a location already in operation on 50th & 7th.
Since I have been on a massive burger kick lately, naturally, I ordered the Melt Shop Burger. It comes with pepper jack cheese, cheese sauce, burger sauce, caramelized onions, and sweet pickles (wish it was half sour), all on sour dough toast that’s grilled to perfection. It was full of cheesy, oozy meltiness.
My wife had the original grilled cheese (American on white) with some added fried chicken and bacon inside. This was great too – absolutely perfect mix of ingredients.
On the side, we had an order of loaded tots: bacon, cheese sauce, grated parmesan cheese, and sliced jalapeños. These could have been a bit more crispy, but they were good even though they turned to much under the “load.”
Best item of the day, however, goes to the fucking nutella fluff milkshake. Holy shit… If you don’t know what fluff is, it is spreadable marshmallow. When I was a kid, my mom used to make me peanut butter and fluff sandwiches. The elevation of fluff with nutella and a bit of chocolate in a shake format was fucking brilliant.
It was also nice to see that they had several bottles of sri racha sauce there like any other normal condiment. YES!
You guys should definitely check this place out some day. I see big things happening for this little franchise. The deals they offer make it even more worth your while, like $3 Abita beers and 50% off your first delivery order (Go to www.meltshop.com and use promo code SAYCHEESE).
This little joint is fantastic for lunch if you work in the area, or for super late night eats if you live or party nearby. I used to both work and live around the corner from this place, and I can suggest the right stuff to get. In fact, this place was such a staple in my life that coming here used to be part of what my roommate and I called the “Trifecta” of nightlife. I won’t mention the other two parts of that, but it did involve copious amounts of tits and ass, as well as pizza… Let your imagination run wild with that.
First, they make an amazing chicken burrito. It’s jam packed with nicely grilled chicken breast and all the works (which you can see and even select from behind the glass counter). It comes with a side of tortilla chips and a little plastic tub of salsa. Best part of the way they make these: they slap a few slices of cheddar on the tortilla as it is warming up on the flat top, and then they add shredded cheese along with the toppings as they fill it. Also – I’ve never had a rip in my tortilla when they make it. These guys are fucking pros.
All of this for just $20
Bite my tongue! I just went back for a visit and the guy ripped my burrito a little and didn’t bother to fix it. They also didn’t do the “slap on the sliced cheese and toast it on the flat top” method either this time. It was still jerk worthy though:
Next item to get: the Charly burger. These things are fucking awesome. No bullshit – 6oz patties grilled to perfection on a nice flavor-filled flat top griddle, and topped with whatever goodness you want; they have everything from a variety of cheeses to onions to mushrooms, etc. They offer single, double, and “grand slam” burger sizes (grand slam = four 6oz patties). On one of our early dates, my wife put down a grand slam burger and fries all by her lonesome. I knew then she was magical. The fries are legit too – they used to be a little greasy, but they did stay crisp and flavorful. NOW they use a battered fry (it used to be a natural type cut), which is a million times better. Crisp, flavorful, and they hold up even when enclosed in a clamshell for a 30 minute subway ride.
Another good item: the ice cream shakes. I always stuck with vanilla but you used to be able to have one made from any flavor tub they had in the bin: they have a small freezer unit like Baskin Robbins, with several interesting flavors.
What NOT to get: the pizza – “Steve’s Pizza” is part of the same building – connected – but they are NOT the same restaurant. The pizza there is not that great, so skip it. It’s soggy, floppy, and generally just not that good.
Also the tacos at Charly’s are way too greasy, so skip those too. And I never did the cold cut sandwiches either. Stick with a chicken burrito or a burger and you are good to go.
Also – don’t get your hopes up for a nice looking place when you get there. This is essentially just a counter where you order food, and one or two stools facing the street/windows. But this little spot survived 9/11, and served food up to all the great firemen and construction workers who worked that mess, and who built the new freedom tower. Eating here is patriotic.
They even added an upstairs dining area, unless it was always there and I was too drunk to realize?
