Where to begin...

So.. I've been asked by Big Brother Glen to contribute to his project. Over the following week or ... month, I plan to review most if not all of the restaurants I've tried around here (and it's been quite a few places) and the movies that I've seen. If I check out anything else, like art exhibits or concerts or what have you, I'll consider tossing those up on here as well. I don't have pics for most of the stuff I've eaten but I'll try to be descriptive enough that you can imaginate the dishes in all their fantastical glory.

First up, Food. I currently work/live somewhere in the center of several areas of Brooklyn; Cobble Hill, Brooklyn Heights, Boerum Hill, DUMBO, and Downtown Brooklyn. Because of this, there's a lot going on. Lots of great restaurants of all types of food in all price ranges. I'll start with Smith st. where most of the places I've been have been on.

Things get interesting once you hop off Atlantic ave. and get onto Smith. From a fish shack, to italian ice, to Peruvian, French Bistros, Middle Eastern markets, Japanese, whatever. Smith is full of great places to eat, drink and be merry. This street, for many blocks, is filled with deliciousness until fairly late in the night.

Trout - on the corner of Smith and Pacific. It's got an indoor and outdoor area, both of with separate entrances. I believe the outdoor area used to be a different establishment but they now share the same owners (as does the restaurant next door, Pacifico). The outdoor area is very different in scenery from most anything else you will find in the city. It's like a cross between a fisherman's shack and a tin-roof shack you'd find in a Havana. It's a very welcoming space. Not pretentious like many Manhattan bars, but not exactly homey, unless of course your family had to build their own shack to live in.
The drinks are what you would expect in a place like this. Mojitos, Margaritas, LI Ice Teas ("Brooklyn Ice Tea"). Beers. Their drinks are pretty well constructed. Taste good. Perhaps a bit strong for some. I personally tried the Mojito. Very minty, a bit on the sweet side, lots of liquor. My friend told me that the Brooklyn Ice Tea was too strong, but hey, who the hell gets an LI Ice Tea for the ice tea taste?
The food leans towards the marine side, but with a name like 'Trout' would you really expect anything else? I had the catfish po'boy and Old Bay fries. The po'boy was delicious. But it must have been constructed by a retard. The individual parts were good. Well-seasoned, perfectly fried, and tender catfish. Crisp sour pickles. Fresh veggies. Good bread. But it was like eating an open-faced sandwich, and one that needed the mouth of a horse to get a good bite in. On the side were hushpuppies and slaw. The hushpuppies had bits of jalepeno pepper and cheddar in them. And let me tell you... that is fucking genius! Delicious little things, if I could, I'd order a basket of just those hush puppies. The slaw was a bit more lackluster. But it wasn't bad. Crisp, tart, and drenched with sauce. Too bad there wasn't much flavor to it compared to the rest of the basket. The Old Bay fries are exactly what they sound like, fries seasoned with Old Bay. Well-seasoned and crispy. But some of it was a bit too crispy and I think the oil might've been a bit old.
Overall, the place left a very good first impression on me. Nice atmosphere. Good drinks. Decent food. 7/10

Louie G's - on Smith b/w Atlantic and Pacfic (oh haha, I get it now). From what I hear, this is a chain Italian ice place. Whatever, first time for me. Very good to have around especially during the Summer. Very simple idea. Serve italian ice and ice cream in many many flavors and have cute girls (mostly) serve them. I've only had the ice but that's kept me busy. Flavors like kiwi, strawberry, lime, chocolate mousse, orange, blue raz, etc. etc. etc. Some flavors are awesome, like the lime, others miss the mark, like the kiwi. But it's a good place to go to cool off on a hot day. Overall - 6/10

I'll continue with the food next time. Gonna move onto movies for now. In the past month I've seen (aside from older movies) Kung Fu Panda, The Incredible Hulk, Wanted, and Wall-E. I'm not going to review all of them, mainly because I don't have much to say about the former two. Neither was spectacular, but both were fun movies, just... not worth $10.

Wanted - action. Pure action. That's all this movie is about. That's all this movie needs to be about. And goddamn, Bekmambetov did it right. If you're looking for an oscar-winning story-driven masterpiece, go watch Sex and the City. But if you're looking for THE next summer action blockbuster, Wanted does it right. What little story the director tries to present is It's bloody as hell. The hits are so visceral you can feel each punch, you cringe at each slash, and don't blink, cause you'll wanna see every bullet leave the gun and eventually leave its target. As for the "story," it was fine. It held the movie together. A lot of it was pretty inconceivable, but the main character's narration acknoweledges the ridiculosity of it all. The story wouldn't win any pulitzers and it strays from the actual comic quite a bit, but I suppose the creators of the movie felt that there needed to be SOME dialogue. As critical as I may sound, it really isn't all that bad. And Angelina. What can I say about Angelina... she's what gets the people who don't like violence to watch this movie. One word, three syllables, one hyphon... booty-shot. Don't go in expecting a masterpiece and you might just find yourself with 1 hr 40 min of pure genius. Overall - 9/10

More to come when I feel less lazy...

momos & a movie about a mongol

its been a pretty busy Friday at the ol' legal beagle office, but ive got some time before a meeting with a client at 2:30 so im gonna start this post. the SF gang had ourselves a nice evening of asian delights this past sunday (after dominating in a kickball game, YEAAAA!!!).

after washing off the sweatiness and pouring the dirt out of our sneakers, we had dinner at Yak and Yeti (2985 College Ave., right off of Ashby). its a nepalese restaurant which is sort of like indian food with chinese influences, which makes sense because of where nepal is.

my dinner companions, lillian (i am the bff's bf's bff, yes, he did win Carmen San Diego, with an asian rat tail) and amy, already reviewed this place on yelp!, so ill just add my thoughts...

si.. i did think the mahi was the best thing i had all night, but the rest of the food was really great too. i really enjoyed the lamb dish, mostly because both of my chunks were pretty tender, and i like it when my lamb tastes predominantly like lamb. makes sense to me, i usually dont put sauce on steak. i also completely agree about the desserts. their naan was exceptional.

the restaurant has a lot of 'vegetarian dishes', but theyre prolly not as good cuz its just veggies. im very glad we didnt have to sit on the floor, racle and i are too tall for that.

client meeting rescheduled, lets keep blogging.

after Yak&Yeti, we got some Ici ice cream... (ill review Ici another time, ITS AWESOME, just go!)... deep breath, stop salivating..

after ice cream, we went to see Mongol playing at the movie theater across from the restaurant. its a movie about the origins of genghis khan, who i like to say is my ancestor. odds are he is... or isnt... he did father a lot of babies, and my last name is han... we'll say he is. but its a great story about how Temudgin (his real name) became the fierce, proud, and revered leader of the mongol hordes.

the movie does a great job of depicting Temudgin as a very honorable leader who is respected by his people because of his compassion and his fair treatment of those that fight and die for him. it also is a great look at how genghis khan was also a man who loved his wife and his children, even those of which that were not fathered by him. the fight scenes are very cool, some were pretty brutal and bloody, and made me giggle a little in joy. oh, and i hate that chinese guy that didnt listen to the prophetic monk who told him that the mongol dude would wreak havoc upon the chinese in the future if he bought him as a slave, wtf man, look what u did... (thats not a spoiler, its history)

good: mango mahi, meat, great movie, ici!!!
bad: service a little slow at y&y, not enough table space

saigon sandwich shop (ca), oh, and dallas

i went to dallas for a weekend. my family there took me to the same chinese restaurant twice (Maxim)... it sucked, i got nothing else to say about it.

(the one on top is cheesy lobster...eww... the crab was better)

back in SF, there's this vietnamese sandwich shop near where i work, so i took an extended lunch with some coworkers and we went to try it out. the place is called Saigon Sandwich Shop (560 Larkin st), just google it, there's lots of foodies that blog about it. usually the bay area lacks a real sense of taste for food, but this is one exception.

the sandwiches are awesome. they cost 2.75 for a pretty big sandwich, enough for one normal sized person. i bought three, but i used my whole afternoon to consume them. i got the roast chicken (ga), roast pork (thit), and the Jambon, cha & pate sandwich, which is like... traditional viet sandwich filling. it was all very good and i spent less than 10 dollars for a huge amount of food. the breads were pre-baked, and heated up in smaller ovens before they fill them with meat... it was a little bit too crunchy perhaps... but this place was built for speed.

the place is super small as you can see in the picture. thats the space behind the counter filled with all sorts of asian snacks and buns and sweet rice/meat wrapped in banana leaves. now add about half of that space... thats the rest of the store. there's a long line that goes out the door because its close to the civic center here in SF with all the government workers and lawyers. its a pretty long wait for sandwiches, but its worth the trouble. there's not really anywhere to sit, so find some grass nearby closer to the gov't buildings, its probably better that way.

i had a little gripe about the lack of sriracha in my sandwich, but maybe it doesnt come automatically and i need to ask for it. the jalas are pretty spicy tho, one rubbed across my mouth at one point, and the right side of my lips were feelin it for an hour or so. i bought some "lobster crackers", theyre really shrimp chips, very good, a little spicy. overall this was a great lunch experience.

good: so very inexpensive, good sized sandwich, tasty
meh: me want sriracha, long wait for food

Nerd Moment at 4am EST

NYC Summer Restaurant Week 2008

NYC Restaurant Week Summer 2008 July 21-25, July 28-August 1. 10 Days. Over 230 NYC Restaurants. Lunch $24.07 Dinner $35.00

Reservations open June 26.

American Express site lists some of the restaurants:
http://www.americanexpressofferzone.com/selectsdraftweb/SearchHandler.aspx?page=B&searchtype=merchant&countrycd=us

seriously this is important. all the good places are booked on the first day.