Rey "Dorkier Than Thou" P.'s Profile

Sure, they're a bit pricey, but given the lack of options in the area between and surrounding Port Authority and Penn Station, Schnipper's has become my go-to spot for quick and easy meals.

Their veggie burger is a standard veggie patty served up on some REALLY good bread with an okay special sauce. The chopped salad, cheese fries, and homemade chips are perfect sides (the cheese fries are topped with a tasty cheddar white sauce -- not that fakey neon crap). But the mac 'n' cheese needs to be completely scrapped or re-conceived (it's wet and over cooked -- blech!).

The real vegetarian find at Schnipper's, though? Order a Green Chile Cheeseburger, asking them to replace the beef burger with the veggie patty. Mmmmm... roasted poblanos, cheddar, and that special sauce. Let me repeat that: mmmmm...

They've also got a great (huge) dining area, which makes it a great place to meet people before or after a movie on 42nd Street, and plenty of drink options of the beer, soda, and milkshake varieties (I usually take a Boylan's soda, myself).

If you're in the area, it's definitely worth a stop.

Hey 4- or 5-star folks, what is wrong with you people?

THIS PLACE IS DISGUSTING.

I work in the EV and mourn the fact that there's really no good Chinese in the area (Grand Sichuan is good, but sometimes I don't want Sichuan). I was on my way to Viva Herbal Pizza last week, and spied Plump Dumpling out of the corner of me eye. Made a mental note. Stopped in this afternoon.

I started simple, because the insides of the restaurant really didn't look so good (it's really dirty in there, and I witnessed the owner go from prepping raw meat to handling plastic bags and paper take out containers after only a 2-second handwash). So, bean curd and broccoli with white rice and a veg spring roll. Can't screw that up, right?

Apparently, you can.

You can leave out the spring roll and give me brown rice to start off with. Good thing I opened up the takeout bag and noticed, so they could fix the problem on the spot. Or maybe that's a bad thing, because when I finally sank my teeth into the spring roll it tasted off, either freezer burned off or old fry oil off. Either way, took two bites and chucked it.

Broccoli? Not all cooked. Bean curd? Cut up into huge, inconsistently shaped chunks that were barely fried. It was like when hippies were preparing tofu in the '70's and '80's and really didn't know how. Altogether it just tasted gross. I ate as much as I could stand and then chucked it.

I guess it's a good thing I only spent $6 on this disgusting lunch, except it wasn't even worth that. I only spent $6, and I still feel like I've been robbed.

Not too bad. Service was weirdly... weird. I don't know. I couldn't tell if the guy was hostile or cranky or just generally curmudgeonly, but he didn't seem all that into waiting tables.

My friend and I ordered the cheese fondue for two -- pretty much the entire reason we came to the place -- Swiss, Gruyere, and Raclette with white wine and kirsch. It definitely hit the spot! I mean, when will a big pot of cheese NOT hit the spot? The fondue was served with a garden salad, which was okay, but not well thought out. It was strange to me to have baby corn, kalamata olives, and chopped fennel in the same salad, and there were even other chopped veggies in it. My mouth didn't know if we were in China, Greece, Norway, or who knows where else with all the non-complimentary flavors going on.

Still, BIG POT OF CHEESE. Weird waiters and melting pot salads just aren't that bad when serving up and being served up with a big pot of ooey, gooey cheese. Mmmmm...

It's mostly a little cafe/bubble tea joint, but I was hungry after a 5 hour bus ride into town and wanted a quick bite of something Asian-esque. There actually didn't seem to be anything that remarkable nearby in that regard, but this place had bibimbap, so...

It was surprising, because it was kind of a "health food" version of the dish. They had this multigrain brown rice mixture with beans and such in it, and the dish itself was heavy on the greens. Banchan were kept simple (shiitake, bean sprouts, and the like) and there was no egg. Still it was actually pretty decent and the chili paste was great.

The dining area could be maintained a little better -- the tables and chairs were pretty haphazardly placed and it looked like they hadn't been wiped down in awhile. But service was efficient, and I enjoyed my food despite the liberties taken with it.

Dang, this place is cute.

It's a little theatre, but that makes it okay to sit in the front row and stretch your legs. They tend toward artier, indier, and geekier fare. I popped in to catch an afternoon showing of EVANGELION 1.0, a film remake of the Japanese anime series from the '90's. They also have all sorts of special programs; this month's included a classic films series, several anniversary showings, an even a viewing of a new print of The Ghostbusters. I was also intrigued to see that they have Doctor Who viewings where they show classic and current episodes of the show -- I wish some little theatre would do that here in NYC!

Anyway, the seats are the usual, the lobby was cluttered but clean, and the concessions were affordable and well thought out -- I had a great cup of mint tea. If I'm ever in the area again, I'll definitely drop in to see what they have playing.

Pinche makes me want to barf.

No, I'm serious. I've been here three times and about 5 minutes after finishing my food, I feel nauseous. Actually, this last time (just a half hour ago), I still had about three bites of burrito left and I felt like barfing right then.

I don't know what it is. I mean, I eat Mexican food in some form probably once a week. I live in Jackson Heights and I find the taco trucks and Taqueria Coatzingo hard to resist. Plus, I cook Mexican at home (as in, I make my own tortillas and then on the weekend I take the leftovers and make chilaquiles for brunch, cook Mexican at home). So it's not the dishes themselves.

So while the food is at about 2.5 - 3 for me, the fact that it is always immediately followed by nausea takes them down to 2. Throw in a kind of annoying staff, and your down to 1.

Third times a charm. I won't be going back. Pinche, indeed.

After an iffy start, this farmer's market seems to have hit it's stride!

Now in it's 3rd year (maybe fourth?) there still aren't a huge amount of vendors, but they definitely cover all the bases now, including all your veggies, fruit, some baked goods, a mushroom stand(!), eggs, preserves, fish, and poultry.

I was especially pleased to see a couple of Latino (specifically Mexican) grocers. I was able to pick up a half pound of squash blossoms for $6.00 and the squat round calabacitas whose flesh is firmer and less watery than Italian zucchini. It was great to get "specialty" ingredients at non-Union Square Greenmarket prices. It also helped that I only had to walk four blocks there and back.

If you're a Queens resident, definitely check this place out. It's relatively calm in the morning, but by noon it's bustling with activity.

Ommmmm...

Funda's cool. She can talk yoga. She has an awesome sense of humor.

Shanti.

Well, surprise, surprise! Keste really is all it's cracked up to be.

The bf and I stopped in after a little afternoon tea party and ordered up a couple of pies. I went with the Pizza del Papa, he ordered the Pomodorino e Provola, and then we traded slices so we could have a little of both.

The del Papa was amazing -- a sweet butternut squash cream replaced tomato sauce, which upped the richness of the pie and contrasted beautifully with gooey slices of smoked mozzarella. Artichokes and roasted peppers finished it off. The Pomodorino was a variation on a margherita, which had smoked mozzarella as well, grape tomatoes, and basil. It. Was. Awesome.

What struck us the most was how different the two pizzas tasted. The ingredients for each worked so well together that despite the similarity of smoked mozzarella and crust holding it together, the two pies were vastly different experiences. One was rich and hearty, the other bright and fresh. These people really know what they're doing.

And the crust! Mmmmm... thin and chewy in the middle and fluffy on the edges with burnt black pock marks of flavor so you can be sure to taste the oven with each bite. Just thinking about it makes me want to go back.

On top of that, despite being extremely busy last night, the guys running it and the staff were so friendly and kept everything moving along. The A+ service definitely made us feel better about being crammed in next to a bickering couple.

I'm sure they're going to be swamped for awhile, but we went at around 7:30-ish and managed to get right in without waiting. When we left at 8:30, though, there were about 15 people hanging out on the sidewalk waiting for tables. They didn't seem too upset, though, when one of the restaurateurs came out with a pie for them, so they could whet their appetite while they waited.

We're definitely going back to try some of the simpler pies and a few appetizers. And I can't wait till we do!

Oh, god, just don't. EVER. This place is AWFUL.