Halal & Sea Food (?!?!) Cart
A few months ago I got an email tip about a Halal cart that also served fried shrimp. It didn’t occur to me how weird that was until I finally got around to checking out the cart and saw their sign for “Halal & Seafood”, which if you believe some interpretations of the Koran, would essentially be the same as a cart putting up a sign that says “Kosher & Pork”.
While some might think Halal means “Chicken & Rice from a cart”, the actual translation just means permissible under Islamic law. While it is usually used to describe food, the word can actually be applied to anything. Haraam is the term used to describe things that are forbidden under Islamic law. Certifying meat Halal has to do with how the animal is slaughtered, with blood and pork being 100% forbidden. The rules dictating what is halal are very similar to the Kosher laws, although the two terms are definitely not interchangeable. Seafood is up for debate as different sects interpret the Koran differently. While most agree that fish is halal, some Muslims feel that shellfish is haraam, because they are bottom feeders, and the Koran strictly forbids eating predatory animals.
That being said, I am not Muslim, and if a cart wants to throw some fried shrimp on top of that plate of chicken and rice, I’m all for it! What I got, a +/- and cart porn after the jump… Read more »
Posted by Zach Brooks at 8:02 am, August 1st, 2007 under 39th btw. 5+6th, Cart, Middle Eastern, Street Meat.
One of the things I can’t stand is the person who eats lunch at the same place every single day. Everybody has a go-to, “I don’t have time to venture far”, or “I’m feeling lazy today” lunch spot around the corner from their office- but that’s not what I’m talking about. I’m talking about the co-worker that eats at the same exact place, every single day- and usually the same dish. That deli, or fast food place, where they get the same salad, or the same combo every single day. And you try to convince them “Dude… there’s this place you’ve got to check out, that’s so much better.” And they say, “Sure, let’s go tomorrow.” And then tomorrow rolls around, and it’s “Naw, i’m just going to go to that same deli I go to every single day, and eat the same sandwich I’ve been eating for 200 days straight.” Where’s the fun in that.
There’s alot of people in my office that fall into that trap, but the one that stands out to me is this guy named Stanley T. I pay attention to what everybody eats in my office (big surprise… I clearly have a problem), and it didn’t take me long to realize that every time I saw Stanley T. eating lunch at his desk, it was the same exact thing, from the same exact place. But here’s the crazy thing- I didn’t look down on him for it. I actually thought it was awesome. Even started joking around with him about it. Why? Because his every day lunch, was the Teriyaki Chicken Bowl from Teriyaki Boy. And then it dawned on me. I’m prejudiced against delis and fast food chains. Get a salad from Variety Cafe every single day, and I’m going to think you’re lunch challenged. Eat at Teriyaki Boy every single day, and you are my new hero.
Well, the line at Carnegie John’s has finally died down enough for me to try it. NY Mag 
You still have five more days to enjoy 
Restaurant week is not without its flaws (it’s not really that great a deal, and you often get what you pay for), but when your wife offers to pay for it- you’d be crazy to say no. Right? See, my wife is one of those lucky people who gets to eat out on her company’s dime every once in awhile- and her guilt over getting to go to these great lunches and dinners (without me) often results in her treating me to meals that we would probably never go to otherwise. (I’m still waiting for my dinner at Del Frisco’s- a place that I’m pretty sure you can only enjoy if you are not paying.)
Burritos are the perfect food. That’s it, perfectly constructed, with a brilliant balance of ingredients. You start with a soft, and very large tortilla to hold it all together, steam it with cheese, and add your starch (rice and beans). Top it with your choice of meat, which adds a salty and fatty flavor, and add pico de gallo for your tomato, onion, lime and cilantro, all covered in sour cream or guacamole for creaminess. If you like it spicy or smoky you have plenty of salsa choices, whether it be green tomatillo, or fiery hot red salsa. It all comes together to form a nugget of goodness, that you can pick up with two hands and eat (none of this fork and knife crap you get at most Mexican places in NYC).
That’s it. Simple, easy and anybody can do it? Right? Well, apparently not. Chipotle does everything you see above, and yet for some reason their burrito doesn’t quite make the grade. Well, here’s why. They flavor every ingredient unnecessarily, so you end up with a big overspiced mess. You don’t need to add cilantro and lime to your rice, it’s already in the salsa. They add their special “adobo” to many of the meats, and then add alot of the same spices to the black beans. Totally unnecessary. And then of course they add too much salt to everything.
I have a love hate relationship with the burritos at Chipotle. It works like this. I love burritos. I hate Chipotle. It’s been a full year since I stepped foot in a Chipotle, and it was a year ago this week that I vowed not to return for complete year. I’m addicted to burritos, and I knew that unless I forced myself into some kind of challenge, I would end up giving in to my burrito craving, and going back to Chipotle- knowing full well that it just sucks. Or I should say, it always disappoints.
If you look at my 
Now, let me clarify a little bit before the commentors go crazy. I like a good chicken parm sub. I’m a fat man. I obviously don’t think there is anything wrong with taking a piece of chicken, covering it in bread crumbs, deep frying it and serving it on a gigantic roll covered in cheese and sauce. It’s good. I’m just saying, if given the choice for lunch, unlike most people, I would rather have any kind of Asian food (or Latin food, or street meat), before Italian.