Balkh Shish Kabab House

Afghan food often looks underwhelming.  Until you take a bite.  Simple kebabs over rice are deceptively complex.  It is nuanced food, never overpowered but heightened with a variety of spices.  The meat remains juicy and flavorful without being lost in spice, you can still taste the essence of the protein.  For fantastic mouthwatering comfort food at very inexpensive prices, this place is a must visit. Probably the best Afghan food I've ever.  It's a big place, with TV's blasting, which is a bit of a pet peeve of mine.  But as another reviewer has mentioned, you don't go here for 5 star service.  It's a neighborhood spot with excellent food, the environment and service is tertiary.

Our meal started with a standard salad with tasty dressing, and cold, fresh bread.  We ordered a few appetizers and they came out quite fast.  The Samosa's were good, fried well, crispy yet not greasy and plentiful for $4.  The eggplant, fried until just soft but not mushy, dressed with intersecting lines of red and white sauce, the red deep in flavor, the white a bright yogurt sauce to cut the dense rich eggplant.  Huge portion for an appetizer, enjoyed greatly with a additional dash of salt.  Soup with spaghetti and lamb meatballs was simple, tasty and not overly spiced.

Our huge entrees were certainly the main attraction.  I had the combination of tender luscious Lamb Shank over rice, sweetened with raisins and perfectly soft carrots, which was served with a side of a thin, spiced but not spicy lamb curry.  Loved the flavor to the curry and the rice itself was delicious.  The kebab combo with beef, lamb and chicken was tender and delicious, served over the same wonderful rice. 

Dessert was a warm cow's milk custard with a few spices and crushed pistachios.  Simple and delicious.  In total we ordered 3 apps, 2 entrees, 2 bottles of water, 1 dessert and our bill came to $44.  Fantastic food at inexpensive prices, highly recommended for a local bite.

Dominican Republic - November 2012

My wife is half Dominican and her father's side of the family lives on the island in the capital Santo Domingo. I always have a great time visiting, spending time with family, seeing the country and eating well.  My father-in-law, born in DR is a wealth of food knowledge about his country and I always learn so much every time I visit.  We make a point to only stay in one place for a few days and to try to visit different spots each time.  Always a food adventure, figured i'd share some of my 5th trip with you.

Boca Chica

These children were selling Johnny Cakes, a popular snack in Boca Chica for about 30 pesos, or 75 cents.  They were a bit flat on taste and certainly better out of the oil, but a tasty snack.

Boca Chica is famous for its fried fish, the locally caught Mero, an island favorite, and one of mine also.

Mero

Frying Tostones

Fantastic fried fish.  Very fresh, crispy and delicious.  Watch for the bones, and give the fish a squeeze of lime.

Santo Domingo

 

This Chicharron was a typical style you find in the Dominincan Republic.  Huge chunks of deep fried pork belly.  Its heavy and greasy and fantastic in small amounts.  They also serve Chorizo.

Plaintain Tree

Mango Tree

Home cooked meal

Half sweet baby pineapple purchased at the local farmers market.

Home Foie Gras (Rougie)
Block de Foie Gras al 100% Hecho en Casa Acompañado de una Jalea de Pork Belly y Baguette Au Se I (Block of Foie Gras to 100% Homemade Accompanied by a Jelly Belly Pork Baguette) at Pat'e Palo

Crispy Apple
Fondue de Parmesano, Confitura de Cebolla & Jengibre, Coronado con Camarones salteados. 

(Fondue Parmesan and Onion Jam Ginger, topped with Sauteed Shrimp) at Pat'e Palo

Dominican Sushi at YOKOMO

Tostones, Pollo, Guava Paste, Platanos Maduros, Tono, Mero, Tocino.

Mostly local ingredients, and quite good.

This was a ceviche sandwich on Tostones (twice fried crispy plantains).

Much of the sushi was sweet.  Combined with local fruit, plantains, guava paste and sweet sauces, it reflects the local taste.  One memorable Nigiri was a piece of crispy bacon and sweet Platanos Maduros.  No fish or anything remotely Japanese aside from the shape and the vinegar rice, yet it did not feel out of place alongside the sweet eel, or the white fish with guava paste.  Very interesting food, much of it was delicious.  

There is street food and drink being sold on many streets in Santo Domingo both on the corners and actually in the street.  Walking in between cars stopped at red lights at many intersections, people of all ages sell roasted nuts, fruit, baked goods, and drinks among other edible and non edible items.  Men circle the streets riding bikes outfitted with a cooler, and a basket that they use to string coconuts around.  It appears as if they are riding in a larger coconut themselves.  I was surprised to see them on the street riding around, trying to avoid traffic, and announcing their offering to the neighborhood and using a huge Machete to cut the top of the Coconut off.  There are also carts that dont seem to move often.  The one above was selling sliced pork sandwich topped with cheese, mayo and bbq sauce. 

On our way to Punta cana, we stopped and had lunch at a local serve yourself spot near La Romana.  They were serving typical Dominican cuisine, braised meats in thick sauces, roasted chicken, fried pork, rice, beans, a few starches, potatoes, yuka, yams and other i could not identify, along with fried fish balls and empanadas.  Very good and cheap.  

Maybe the biggest billboard I've ever seen outside of a major city, this thing was massive.

Fuego Gastro Bar, Punta Cana

By Martin Berasetagui, Bavaro | Paradisus Punta Cana Resort, Punta Cana

Having missed his food our 2 times in Spain, we were excited to find that this place on Tripadvisor, where it is rated as the number one restaurant in the area as of this writing.  We can see why.  Fantastic menu, reflecting the basque region of Spain as well as local ingredients. The 7-course tasting menu along with a few other bites, was a great value at $55.  Even for DR that is a good deal for a meal of this caliber, and in NYC it would have easily been double.

Amuse Bouche of Ham Broth, Melon Pearls & Patatas Bravas

Vegetable Minestrone Soup with Cream of White Asparagus & Lobster

Shrimp Salad with Avocado and Salmon Tartar

Egg Cooked at Low Temperature with Beet Carpaccio and a Liquid Herb Carbonara 

(after I popped the egg & beet)

 Grilled Red Fish with Cauliflower Cream and Chard

Sirloin with Gnocci in Parmesan Cream

Green Apple Ravioli with Chilled Coconut Juice and Iced Rum

I opted for the Passion Fruit Mousse instead of the usual 7th course (Tiramisu).

Fresh Cheese and Sweets in La Romana

 Fruits in syrups, fresh soft salted cheese, and dulce de leche.

 

This fantastic sweet chutney like dessert had pineapples and papaya.

 We stopped for lunch, and I had this incredible roast pork.

Extreemly juicy, this was fantastic.

Pulpo a la Griega at La Bohome Bistrot, Santo Domingo

Foie Gras Creme Brulee at La Bohome Bistrot, Santo Domingo

Octopus Carpaccio at La Bohome Bistrot, Santo Domingo

Salt & Fat (Sunnyside, NY)

Sunnyside, NY is a 5 minute drive from Astoria or worth the 20 minute walk for this fantastic restaurant.

"Shaved" Hudson Valley Foie Gras, Cinnamon, Mandarin Oranges, Bacon Brittle 

Grilled Shrimp, Tasso Ham Broth, Beans, Roasted Red Peppers

Oxtail Terrine

It has taken me way too long to find the genius that is Salt & Fat.  This is absolutely gourmet food, fine attention to detail, high end ingredients respected properly, and getting the very most out of low end or more inexpensive ingredients, this place is special.  They seem to combine new American technique and excitement with a good amount of Asian flavors, it reminded me at times of WD-50.  Absolutely delicious, fun, exciting and affordable food!  What more can be said about a place that offers Bacon Popcorn to start the meal?  The service is very laid back and relaxed, its gourmet food, with a neighborhood feel and no pretension.

My favorite bite of the night (and perhaps one of the best bites I've ever had) was the "Shaved" Hudson Valley Foie Gras, Cinnamon, Mandarin Oranges, Bacon Brittle.  A variation of the classic at Momofuko Ko, this was absolutely perfect mix of flavors and textures.  The ingredient I was expecting to dislike the most (Cinnamon) was the one that brought all the flavors together.  The Foie absolutely melts in your mouth and is just incredible.  The Oxtail Terrine was another winner.  Super rich and beefy, with a few sweet sauces and great mushrooms.  Both those items are highly recommended.

The fried chicken was amazingly tender, as if it was sous vide, then fried, which I would not put past them.  If that was not their technique, that I'm really impressed, because it as juicy and tender as the steamed chicken I order in Chinatown.  I believe they also removed the bones from the chicken before frying, not sure how but that's what it appeared to be.  It was also a very nice portion of chicken, and paired well with the picked diakon and herb ranch.

Even the dessert was true harmony.  The Lychee panna cotta was accompanied perfectly by the Yuzu and Buttermilk sorbet.  They were cleverly placed on opposite ends of the plate, beckoning me to eat one, then the other, and not combine.  Each bit was better then the one before.  The extremely bright acidic sorbet was the perfect foil to the mellow subtle panna cotta. Both brought the flavors of the other out in a way that I was quite impressed with.

Even the complementary Probiotic Yogurt Drink they give you with your check was delicious.  I loved absolutely everything about this place and cannot wait to return!