Queens

Last Saturday there was a queue 200 people long at the Shake Shack in Madison Square Park. Like the queue on their website, Saturday’s line snaked out of the park and down 23rd street on the park’s south end. Notorious for brutal lines, Shake Shack did add a “Shack Cam” to their website so you can view the horrendous line. The tag line reads “Save Time, Check the Line,” but I’m not really sure if that saves time or just deters people from going at all. Lucky for line haters, the wonderful Shake Shack expanded to Upper West Side.
Note: For those of you living underneath a rock, Shake Shack is Danny Meyer’s pet project, fast food stand that opened in Madison Square Park (right near his beloved Tabla and 11 Madison) in the steamy summer of 2003. Shake Shack salutes Meyer’s St. Louis heritage by using frozen custard rather than ice cream for their sundaes and shakes and grilling thin burgers that mimic places in St. Louis like Steak ‘n Shake and Carl’s Drive In. They also have portobello and chicken burgers, hotdogs and Pooch-Inis for you for your four legged friend.

For loyal Shackers, here’s some new news that you might already know. It might be quicker to take the subway to the Upper West Side and wait in their, always shorter, queue. In fact, it is. On Saturday afternoon when my brother and I saw the 200 person line, I hopped on the subway UWS bound to see if I could beat him. I ordered to take away and had a nice little chat with fellow patron Blake DiMarco about the whole Shake Shack expansion experience. She said, and I quote “With their pillow like potato bun and fresh ingredients, ShackBurgers do not disappoint.” Then she went on to say that the UWS staff are friendlier – probably because they don’t have to deal with sweaty, tired line-waiters. Upon her suggestion, I ended up also getting a caramel frozen custard concrete with almonds, brownie bites and other health food accessories. It was well worth the belly ache.

Then I hopped back on the subway to meet my brother, hoping our perfect timing would allow us to eat together. Um, not the case. He was still at least seven people from ordering. Moral of the food reviewer’s story: Shake Shack is so delicious that I took two subway rides to get my fix. So go on…shack up.
Note: Met’s fans can shack up at the new Shake Shack Citifield!

America sure looks good for being 232 years old- think she’s had some work done?

If you waited for the last possible second (like moi) to plan how you’ll be celebrating the home of the brave this year, fear not. Here are some fool-proof ways to get your fourth on.

Food. . .

. . .Because the Nathan’s hot dog champ can’t be the only one indulging. Celebrate the U.S. and the N.Y. with a good old fashioned chow down. The Great July Fourth Festival is a down-home American birthday party with a global twist. The street fair showcases 600 international food vendors, as well as arts, crafts and merchandise exhibitors like Indonesian Jewelry and Chinese Pottery. The fun ends at 8, just in time watch. . .

Fireworks!

Because what would today be without a little pie in the sky? There are breathtaking views of the Macy’s Fireworks Extravaganza*, which start at 9pm, from all points of the vogue city. The very best are:

Manhattan: Southbound lanes of the FDR drive from 14th to 42nd Street will be open for the public from 7:30pm to 10:00pm.The FDR Drive will actually be closed to vehicular traffic between Houston St. and 63rd St. from 7:00pm until 1:00am. Dancin’ in the street!

Brooklyn/Queens: Great views from Hunter’s Point, Queens, Greenpoint, Brooklyn, and anywhere with an unobstructed view of the East River between 23rd & 42nd Sts.

***Be sure to tune in to 1010 WINS AM to hear the muscial accompaniment

Happy Independance Day New York!!!

The Himalaya Teahouse is known to Astoria residents as a great place to read and write: it’s calm, quiet, and the waitstaff won’t rush you out. Himalaya has a huge selection of black, green and herbal teas, as well as imported beers, soft drinks and coffee. You can, if you like, sit in the cafe (which is painted a deep blue with yellow table clothes) or in the garden and sip tea all day, however, when you smell what’s cooking in the kitchen you’re going to want to order food. The menu isn’t extensive: it offers four varieties of Tibetan momos (dumplings), soups, noodles, and salads. What’s great about the food at Himalaya Teahouse is that everything is fresh. The noodles are homemade, the vegetables are crisp and everything tastes like home cooking. Not only that, the prices are reasonable: a hearty bowl of Thukpa soup will run you $6.95, and teas run about $3.50. (If that sounds like a lot, check your pockets for your Starbucks reciepts and see how much you spent on that over processed fattening Venti chai). Himalaya also sells loose tea (anything you find on the menu, you can buy in loose leaf form) for about $8, Tibetan prayer rugs and Tibetan singing bowls.

Himalaya Teahouse

31st Avenue and 34th Street, Astoria

It sure seems like it’s getting harder to eat for cheap these days: even a slice of pizza costs more! (Side note: remember to be tactful when you’re on line at a pizzeria. Don’t grumble about the new price. It’s not the fault of the people who work in the pizzeria that the price of milk–and thus cheese, and thus pizza–went up). You can still eat for pretty darn cheap in this town if you know where to go, and that’s nothing to grumble about. One of the best ways to eat cheap is to go ethnic. Ethnic eateries have the best ratio of cheap and well prepared (well, most of the time). Here are a few you shouldn’t miss.
Pho Sho’

Vietnamese cuisine is among the best there is. It’s flavorful, healthy, satisfying, and usually quite cheap. At Pho Bang in Chinatown, you can get a scrumptious bowl of pho–rice noodle soup–$4.95. There are 13 different versions of the soup to be had here, so bring friends so you can try them all. 157 Mott Street between Broome and Grand.

Cheap Chicken

No one serves chicken like Pollos a la Brasa Mario (or Pollos Mario, as locals call it). This Colombian joint serves up delicious rotisserie chicken at an unbeatable price–$4.25 for half a chicken. That’s enough for two, maybe three meals, but at that price you don’t have to ration. They also serve Colombian specialties like camarones a la plancha, avocado salad, oxtail soup and more. The seafood soup is believed to have curative powers, so if you have a bad sore throat, order up a bowl. There are several locations in Queens, all conveniently located and easily accessible by subway: 81-01 Roosevelt Avenue, Jackson Heights; 82-03 37th Avenue, Jackson Heights; 40-19 Broadway, Astoria.

Uzbek? U bet!

Uzbek cuisine might not inspire much in your imagination, if anything, but Uzbekistan’s national cuisine can hold its own in a fight. Head to Vostok (wich means “east” in Russian) and try lamb pilaf for $6.50 or delicious beef kebabs for only $2.� 5507 13th Avenue at 55th Street, Borough Park, Brooklyn.

Curry Me

They love baseball at Go!Go! Curry, so it should come as no surprise that the food is a homerun. Fill up on shrimp, chicken, pork or sausage curry with white rice while you watch the game. 273 W 38th Street.�

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