Before I start talking about what happened last week, I want to say that I haven’t been able to write anything for the past couple of days because of finals. Yes. The torment that all students of any age especially from high school on, feel the crush of stress and pressure to do well. I’m technically done, except I need to write a philosophy paper but I should be fine…I hope. Moving on.
The most furthest I have ever been from the city happened on the week before my finals. I don’t think that statement made any sense or relation to anything, but I went to Coney Island in Brooklyn.
Hey, this ain’t Manhattan…
My friend Dave, took me to Coney Island since I told him I never went there before. Probably I have but it was when I was waaay to young to remember anything significant. Since this is Coney Island, we have to eat at Nathan’s.
Prices and signage
Employees working and chatting
Local dudes waiting to order and get their grub
Dave and I ordered their #1, which is their cheeseburger that comes with fries, and we had a hot dog. By the time we got the food, we chose to sit outside since the weather’s pretty darn nice.
The tables outside
And here’s the food…(Note: I forgot to take a photo of the hot dog…it’s consumed beforehand but it was awesomely good!).
The burger
Innards
The fries
Fry in ketchup
The burger was okay. It wasn’t as good (or remotely good) as Shake Shack’s burger. It’s fully cooked (it’s overcooked to me; it must be at most medium rare) and the vegetables were fresh but the burger lacked that salty crust that screams FLAVOR to my tongue. The fries were shaped differently than any other fry I ever come across in my life. It tasted fine; some were crisp and some were a bit soggy but it’s passable.
On Thursday, I went to Lassi in West Village.
Why? Well, for the past week NY Magazine published the Sandwich of the Week from Lassi. So I thought to myself, “Why not try it?” I haven’t been there before nor have I ever had an Indian sandwich before. Hence my presence there.
Here’s their menu board:
The other half that was glared out…
I ordered the aforementioned sandwich, called a paratha ($10.95) and a small mango lassi ($3.50).
My mango lassi
The food
Curried/spiced pineapples served with paratha
I know the paratha does not look like the one you see in NY Magazine. What Chef Heather Carlucci-Rodriguez told me that they thought of putting everything in a bowl to show all the elements that went into that paratha. So here’s how it really looks like unraveled…don’t worry, it’s not gruesome or anything remotely like that.
Paratha unwrapped
Paratha, in half
Innards, close up
The paratha was delicious. The dense, buttery, griddled bread enrobed the spicy, slow roasted Berkshire pork shoulder, with masala-spiced tomato, spicy mint chutney, and boondi raita. It was a mess to eat but it was pretty darn tasty. The mango lassi was a good, smooth, fruity beverage to cool down the heat of that paratha. In a very vague way, this paratha reminds me of Momofuku Ssäm’s Original Ssäm but not as intensely pork flavored and filled, a heck of a lot more spicier (in a good way), and obviously it’s a different cuisine.
Addresses:
Nathan’s Famous
1310 Surf Avenue
Brooklyn, NY 11224
