PrintSerious Eats Gift Guide: New York Food
Oh, yes, it's that time of year, when we get to live and eat vicariously by giving food, books, gadgets, and all the other things we think our fellow food lovers would crave and covet. So over the next 28 days we're going to tell you about lots of stuff we would be thrilled to give or get. Every item we tell you about we've eaten, read, or tried, so you can be confident that if you do order something from our guide you'll be giving or getting something delicious or crazy good.
Today I'm going to focus on New York foods. Let's face it, it's not just New York expats who appreciate quintessential New York foods. We know lots of people who have never lived in Gotham who have come to appreciate the pleasures New York foods afford serious eaters everywhere.
Smoked Fish: Russ & Daughters' Mark Federman has finally passed the 100 year-old family smoked fish torch to the fourth generation, his daughter Nikki and nephew Josh. The Russ family hasn't missed a beat. The smoked fish is as good as ever.
Website: www.russanddaughters.com
Rugelach: The rolled cinammon-raisin pastry known as rugelach can often be leaden, dry, and tasteless. But Margaret Palca's rugelach is buttery, light, and oh so delicious. The recipient of your gift will not be able to eat just one. I promise. No website. Call 718-802-9771 to order.
Pastrami from Ben's: Ben's owner Jay Parker is perhaps the last of the old-fashioned deli men. He gets his pastrami from a small traditional smokehouse in Brooklyn, Empire National. Make sure whoever gets the pastrami knows to steam it for a couple of hours to get it meltingly tender. It is better to order pastrami by the piece rather than sliced.
Website: www.bensbest.com
Eileen's Cheesecake: You could just give a Junior's Cheesecake to the cheesecake lover on your list, and that would be acceptable if predictable. Eileen's Cheesecake is lighter, fluffier, and maybe a tad more satisfying.
Website: www.eileenscheesecake.com
Bialys: I know I sound like a broken record (remember records), but bialys are an awesome overlooked New York food. Kossar's is one of a handful of traditional bialy bakers left in New York (and therefore America). Its bialys are not just bagels without holes. Rather, a Kossar's bialy is light, crisp, and toasts up perfectly.
Website: www.kossarsbialys.com
Bagels: At Bagel Oasis they still boil their bagels, sweeten them with malt, and make them small enough to eat on a diet. I find Bagel Oasis bagels to be far superior to the too sweet and too big bagels sold by H & H.
Website: www.bageloasis.com
Papaya King Hot Dogs: If you know a hot dog lover who loves juicy, beefy New York kosher-style hot dogs with snap, Papaya King hot dogs are for them.
Website: www.papayaking.com
Add a comment:
Previewing your comment:
HTML Hints
Some HTML is OK: <a href="URL">link</a>, <strong>strong</strong>, <em>em</em>
Comment Guidelines
Post whatever you want, just keep it seriously about eats, seriously. We reserve the right to delete off-topic or inflammatory comments. Learn more at our Comment Policy page.
If you see something not so nice, please, report an inappropriate comment.
10 Comments:
Sorry Ed, but Papaya King has long lost it's snap. The dogs have changed and are barely cooked these days. The drinks have that watered down taste too. Go to Sparky's or Crif Dog for that fresh hot dog taste. The buns atre fresh and the shakes and fries at Sparky's are terrific too.
The deli at Ben's is OK, but nothing more. The pastrami & corned beef at Arties is superior. There is less salt & more tender of a taste. Cole Slaw & potato salds at Arties is just an added bonus.
hondo3777 at 9:31AM on 11/26/07
what about the zabars "don't be homesick" basket. i think it's the perfect gift for those who love nyc foods. http://www.zabars.com/zabars-dont-be-homesick-crate/default/C110041.prd
ceforrester at 9:37AM on 11/26/07
Yummy! My mouth is watering :-)
WickedGoodDinner at 9:53AM on 11/26/07
i have been CRAVING bialys for months now. does anyone know if they're available in the UK? i'm in scotland but would gladly go down to london if i knew i could find them there....
astarteny at 10:06AM on 11/26/07
Kossar's was excellent. Famous Fat Dave took me there on a recent food tour. Ess a Bagel has excellent smoked whitefish as well. I'd also recommend Babycakes Bakery for folks with food allergies.
hereandthe at 10:23AM on 11/26/07
Hi, hondo3777. I'm not sure I agree with you about Papaya King. The hot dogs are as good as ever, but I do agree that they often come off the grill barely warm all the way through. It's not unsafe, because hot dogs are already cooked. Also, there are a lot of pretenders out there with Papaya in their name that serve skinless hot dogs. Papaya King and Gray's Papaya hot dogs always have that natural casing-induced snap. On the Ben's and Artie's front I'm going to try to do a side by side comparison of their corned beef and their pastrami.
Ed Levine at 5:26PM on 11/26/07
Other than the hot dogs, this seems more like a "great jewish food" list than a "new york food" list, at least to me. If you're ever in Toronto or Montreal head to their older jewish neighbourhoods and enjoy!
kololo at 10:18AM on 11/27/07
That's true, kololo, but all of these foods have ceased to be ethnic foods. They have entered the mainstream.
Ed Levine at 10:54AM on 11/27/07
So how about other ethnic foods that have entered the mainstream? Italian, Chinese (dumplings, dim sum, etc.)... I'm sure other Serious Eats people can supply other NY holiday food suggestions.
And how about mail order from places other than NY?
gustoct at 12:24PM on 11/27/07
I am doing a huge mail-order edible gift guide for a post next week on Serious Eats. Chinese is an interesting idea. I'm going to investigate frozen mail-order dumplings. Italian salumi is definitely doable.
Ed Levine at 12:33PM on 11/27/07