One of the many great pleasures on our trip back to New York, is the plethora of fine dining restaurants that make up the city but can also make dining in NYC a daunting and challenging task.

Chef Brad and I decided we would challenge ourselves and try and obtain a table at a particularly popular restaurant that usually requires reservations a month ahead of time. So we chose, Babbo Ristorante e Enoteca, founded by Chef Mario Batali and restauranteur Joe Bastianich,  located in a quaint residential neighborhood in the heart of Greenwich Village.

When I called to inquire about reservations at Babbo, I had already thought to myself that we were going to be out of luck, and to my demise, I was one-hundred percent correct. The closest available reservation was just over a month out in advance. But to my surprise, the hostess on the phone informed me that Chef Brad and I could try our lucky by dropping in with the off chance that we could get one of the seven tables in the bar available to patrons who do not have reservations. With an upbeat attitude, Brad and I decided we couldn’t lose out by giving it a try.

As Brad and I arrived at Babbo, we were intrigued that it was located in a beautiful building between two homes occupied by families. I later came to discover that one of the houses was once one of the city’s most beloved restaurants, the Coach House on Waverly Place. As we entered the building, we were greeted by the host who urged us to wait has he guessed that a table would certainly be available within forty-five minutes to an hour. When we heard the wait time, Brad and I smiled with delight… Turns out that forty-five minute to an hour wait, would eventually become a three hour wait! (It was worth it)

Upon being seated at our table and viewing the menu, was that Mario Batali’s menu was loaded with dishes that included ingredients most Americans would likely turn the other cheek to. Dishes such as Fresh Anchovies & Warm Testa (Head Cheese), Bucatini with Octopus, Beef Cheek filled Ravioli topped with Squab Livers, Lamb’s Tongue and Calf Brains filled the menu and had my mouth watering.

My biggest dilemma of the night came down to choosing the antipasti (appetizer). For me personally, it was showdown between the Pig Foot Milanese with Rice Beans & Arugula or the Warm Lamb’s Tongue with Brown Beech Mushrooms and a three-minute Egg. I ended up choosing the Pig Foot Milanese. This dish was soo good that I am having a hard time describing it. The best way that I can describe it is that it is a paper thin, crunchy, and gelatinous heaven. As for Chef Brad, he choose the Steamed Cockles with Red Chiles and Basil, which was prepared to perfection with a Chili and Basil scented broth, that I can still taste if I closed my eyes.

For the main entrée I indulged in the Gnocchi with Braised Oxtail, which was hands down the best gnocchi dish that I have experienced in my entire life. It was that good. Another dish that arrived at our table was the Black Spaghetti with Rock Shrimp, Sipy Salami Calabrese and Green Chiles. This dish was soo tasty and full of magnified flavors, that I would be stumped if I were asked on the spot to replicate this dish.


To conclude our already fantastic meal, we decided upon a trio of desserts that included:

• Saffron Panna Cotta with Apricots, Chamomile and Apricot Sorbetto
• Peach and Walnut Budino with ‘Gelato di Panna’
• Sweet Corn Crema with Cornmeal Bomboloni and Blackberries

Babbo Ristorante e Enoteca in my mind, redefines and reinvents the principles of Italian cuisine in America. Along with its expert, attentive and cordial service, Babbo is definitely in my books one of New York’s prized possessions.

For More Information about Babbo Ristorante e Enoteca, please visit: www.babbonyc.com

What do you get when you take 22 street vendors from New York City and New Jersey and 1700 hungry people and put them on an island?

You have the winners of the 2011 Vendy awards.

The winners are;

People’s Taste Award - Souvlaki GR

Rookie Vendor of the Year Award – Korilla BBQ

Best of New Jersey Award – Taco Truck

Best Dessert Award – Wooly’s Ice

Makers Mark Street Food Challenge Award – Cinnamon Snail

These five awards were determined by those attending. The biggest award of the day…The Vendy Cup, was determined by the panel of eight judges that I mentioned in a previous post, but I will list again.

Columnist John T. Edge, restaurateur Peter Hoffman, chef Gavin Keysen, editors Gayle King and Kat Kinsman, foodie Zeina Muna, comedian Colin Quinn, and councilwoman Melissa Mark-Viverito.

And the Vendy Awards official host, the Food Network’s Sunny Anderson.

Drum roll……………….

The Vendy cup went to Brooklyn-based Salvadorians Rafael Soler and Reina Bermudez-Soler of Solber Pupusas . Those handmade authentic El Salvadorian corn patties stuffed with meats, cheeses and veggies along with those unbelievable sweet plantains helped secure their place in New York street food history.

Congratulations to Solber Pupusas the winner of the 2011 Vendy Cup!

As 3:00pm crept closer we had to sit down and make our choices on the official ballot. Five categories that we had to make a decision on our favorite for each.

For the People’s Choice; it was a tough call between Solber Pupusas and there authentic Pupusas and Souvlaki GR and their Greek Souvlaki done four ways, beef, chicken, pork or sausage.

Next came Rookie Vendor of the Year. This one was easy; hands down it was Korilla BBQ and their Korean tacos. Marinated meat, three variations of Kimchi and K’illa sauce could not be beat.

Then it was on to the Best of New Jersey. This was another tough one. Only three in the category and all excelled at what they dished out. Taco Truck and their killer Mexican Corn and bite size fish and pork tacos, 2 Pitas in a Pod and their loaded sampler plate that included Falafel, Hummus, pulled pork, grilled chicken with cous-cous and truffled fries. And Cinnamon Snail and the Lemongrass-Seitan Tortilla Wrap and that out of this world Crème Brule Donut. As I said decisions, decisions…..

Best Dessert…my choice was La Bella Torte and their sampler plate of unique dessert treats.

Makers Mark Street Food Challenge- I didn’t really talk about this award yet. It’s just like it sounds, create a dish utilizing the sponsor’s product, bourbon whiskey. This was the largest category that included several trucks that were entered in some of the other categories. I didn’t get a chance to try all of them, but even if I did, I would have come to the same conclusion….the Crème Brule Donut from Cinnamon Snail.

My sweet tooth was hurting with the selection of desserts here today. Cupcake Crew had a selection of six mini cupcakes. I tried the Maple Bacon. From Miss Softee you had your choice of three different tastes, Sweet and Salty, Fruity or Chocolate. La Newyorkina had eight variations of their Paletas (Mexican Ice pops). Wooly’s Ice inspiration comes from Hawaiian and Taiwanese ice stands, and they had a choice of their ice with Makers Mark sauce or with Strawberries, Brownies and Leche sauce. La Bella Torte had an out of this world sample plate consisting of Rosemary Olive Cake, Blood Orange Cake, Chocolate Panna Cotta and a stuffed Cannoli. Five very different desserts, this is going to be a tough one to decide who should be on top.

If you are anti meat and live the vegi or vegan lifestyle this is without a doubt your food truck. The menu is amazing, seasonal and unique offerings too many to list, so just check out their website, www.cinnamonsnail.com. Today they offered up three very different items. A lemongrass-seitan tortilla wrap, red bean tart, and crème brûlée donut. The wrap filled with seitan (not the dude with horns), pronounced the same but spelled different. Seitan is a chewy protein-rich food made from wheat gluten and used as a meat substitute. It was grilled to perfection and had crisp arugula inside. The red bean tart was made out of puff pastry and filled with creamy bean goodness. Lastly there was the Maker’s Mark Vanilla bourbon crème brûlée donut. All I can say is oh my god!! This should have been a finalist if not the winner in the dessert competition.

The Taco Truck one of the finalists for the Best of New Jersey Award was serving up sweet goodness from the country south of the border. 

They served me up Ecotes (Mexican name for corn on the cob), with two traditional mini taco’s…Pescado (fried fish taco), and Al Pastor (spit grilled meat) . 

Escotes is a popular street food in Mexico, is boiled in the husk and then grilled.  It is customary to consume elotes on a stick, or by grasping the husk of the cob that has been pulled down to form a "handle".   This one was on a stick with mayonnaise, cotija cheese, lime and a spice mixture of two traditional spices, epazote and chili de arbol. 

There play on Pescado was fried catfish with red cabbage, pico de gallo, Mexican tarter sauce and chipotle salsa wrapped up in a mini corn tortilla. 

Lastly was their version of Al pastor, adobo marinated pork, with onions, cilantro, pineapple and a fresh green salsa served again on a mini corn tortilla.

This was a really exciting example of street food, simple but oh so delisioso!

It was really impressive to see the efforts that were being made to separate and compost all the left over foods.  There were numerous stations set up with a volunteer posted to direct and inform people what to do with their waste.

Earth Matter NY is a organization that seeks to reduce the organic waste misdirected into the garbage stream by encouraging neighbor participation and leadership in composting.

To learn more about this organization, please visit: http://www.earthmatter.org.

I have never tried a pupusa before, so I was curious to try one. A pupusa is very similar to an arepa but instead of the cake being sliced and stuffed, the meat is hidden inside. They are a Central American specialty made from corn masa patties that are hand-made and stuffed with various meats, cheeses and vegetables.

These were filled with beef and accompanied with sweet plantains, tamales, pickled onions and cabbage, jalapenos, and their own special sauce. I wasn’t really enthused about the tamale, as it had seemed a little undercooked. However, the sweet plantains were done perfectly and the pupusa with the pickled onions and the sauce was outstanding.

To Learn More About Solber Pupusas, please visit: @solberpupusas or www.solberpupusas.com

For those who favor dessert over the meal, here are the finalists..

Miss Softee
Chef/Owner(s): Chrissy, aka Miss Softee
Food: Classic soft serve with a twist.
Location: Out and about in Midtown Manhattan
Connect: @hi_im_chrissy

Cupcake Crew
Chef/Owner(s): Frankie Francollo
Food: Gourmet full size and mini cupcakes
Location: All over NYC, check out our twitter page for updates
Connect: @cupcakecrewnyc or www.cupcakecrewnyc.com

La Bella Torte
Chef/Owner(s): Joe & AnnMarie Glaser
Food: Italian Pastries & desserts
Location: The Lot at the Highline
Connect: @LaBellaTorte or www.labellatorte.com

Woolys
Chef/Owner(s): Danny Che, David Sat, Kenneth Sa
Food: Taiwanese and Hawaiian inspired shaved ice
Location: In front of 79 Elizabeth Street, Manhattan
Connect: @WoolysIce

La Newyorkina
Chef/Owner(s): Fany Gerson
Food: Handmade Gourmet Mexican Paletas (ice pops)
Location: The High Line & Hester Street Market
Connect: @LaNewyorkina or www.lanewyorkina.com

For More Information about the Best Dessert Finalists, please visit: streetvendor.org/vendys

Below are the finalists from the best street food from across the river.

The Cinnamon Snail
Chef/Owner: Adam Sobel
Food: Organic Vegan Breakfast, Lunch and Pastries
Location: Hoboken-waterfront, as close to the train station as they find parking
Connect: http://www.cinnamonsnail.com

Two Pitas in a Pod
Chefs/Owners: Athos Kyriakides, Scot Sherwood & Jaybird Manfredonia
Food: Mediterranean eats ‘n Frites & fusion specials from around the world
Location: Hoboken, Newark & Jersey City
Connect: @TwoPitasInAPod or http://twopitasinapod.com

The Taco Truck
Chefs/Owners: Jason Scott, Shachar Scott, Chris Viola, Paris Retana and Gustavo Valladares
Food: All-natural, authentic Mexican street food
Location:The Taco Truck bounces from Hoboken, Jersey City and Newark, NJ
Connect: @TheTacoTruck or http://www.thetacotruck.com

For More Information about the Best of New Jersey, please visit: streetvendor.org/vendys

This is the year’s newbies.  They are all making a name for themselves and everyone is talking about them.

Korilla BBQ
Chef/Owner(s): Eddie Song, Steve Park, David Im, Paul Lee, Andy Chang
Food: Korean Bar-b-que, specialties include: Ribeye of the Tiger, Porkinator, Wonderbird, Tofuture
Location: Check Twitter
Connect: @KorillaBBQ or http://korillabbq.com

Eddie’s Pizza Truck
Chef/Owner(s): Derek Kaye, Adam Kaye, Deborah Jones
Food: Thin Crust Pizza, specialty made to order 10″
Location: Check Twitter
Connect: @EddiesPizzaNY or www.eddiespizzany.com/

Comme Ci Comme Ça
Chef/Owner(s): Chef Samir
Food: Mediterranean/Moroccan, specialty is cous cous
Location: Check Twitter
Connect: @chefsamirtruck or http://chefsamirtruck.com/

The Taim Mobile-Falafel & Smoothie Truck
Chef/Owner(s): Chef- Einat Admony; Owners EInat Admony, Stefan Nafziger and David Shapiro
Food: Falafel and smoothies, vegetarian and middle eastern cuisine
Location: Check Twitter
Connect: @taimmobile or www.taimmobile.com

Eat Here Now Now Eat Here
Chef/Owner(s): Stan Tankursley
Food: Tacos and burritos with an asian twist, breakfast burrito served all day
Location: in Manhattan Mon-Fri at Tenth Ave and 16th St, and weekends at Hudson Street at W. 12th.
Connect: @eatherenownyc

Sunrise Grill
Chef/Owner(s): Greg White & Tara Graham
Food: Real Jamaican Cuisine
Location: St. Nicholas Avenue and 168th Street
Connect: @sunrisegrill

For More Information about the Rookie Vendors, please visit: streetvendor.org/vendys

For more information about the finalist, please visit: streetvendor.org

The Eggstravaganza Cart
Mexican & American cart on 52nd & Park that specializes in mexican wraps and egg sandwiches.
Owner: Arturo Macedo
Location: 52nd Street & Park Avenue
Connect: @ETRAVAGANZA or http://mycoffeeonparkave.blogspot.com/
Food: Mexican & American style. Specialties include Mexican wrap and egg sandwiches

Chimichury El Malecon
Inwood vendor that has been selling Dominican hamburgers known as “chimis” for 25 years
Owners: Manuel Cruz, Celia Dominguez and Monica Cruz
Location: West 207th Street and Sherman Avenue
Connect: @ChimiElMalecon or www.chimichury.com
Food: Dominican hamburgers called Chimis

Souvlaki GR
Last year’s Rookie winner, this truck serves up Greek pita sandwiches downtown
Owners: Pavlos Sierros, Abby Sierros & Kostas Plagos
Connect: @souvlakitruck or www.souvlakigr.com
Location: Old Slip & Front Streets
Food: Traditional Greek street food. Specialties include pork pita souvlaki with tyro kefteri (spicy feta & dill) and greek fries

Tamales Guadalupe
Brooklyn tamale vendor
Owner: Guadalupe Galicia
Location: Knickerbocker & DeKalb Avenues, Brooklyn
Food: Mexican tamales

Trini Paki Boys Halal Food
A Midtown lunch mainstay, this cart has been parked on 43rd and 6th serving up street meat with an island twist for over 20 years
Owner: Fatima Khan
Location: 43rd Street & 6th Avenue
Food: Trinidadian/Pakistani. Specialties include curry chicken over rice & biriyanis

Sam’s Falafel
A Financial District lunch legend, this was one of the first carts we covered on the Downtown section of Midtown Lunch
Owner: Sam Ahmed
Location: Zucotti Park- Cedar St and Broadway, Manhattan
Food: Falafel Sandwiches & Platters

Solber Pupusas
Now a 2 time Vendy Award finalists, this pupusa truck was nominated back in 2008 when it was known as Soler Dominican
Owners: Reina Bermudez-Soler & Rafael Soler
Locations: Brooklyn Flea, Smorgasburg, Red Hook ball fields, Brooklyn
Connect: @solberpupusas, www.solberpupusas.com
Food: Pupusas (traditional Salvadoran corn patties) & other Central American and Caribbean specialties.