NY Food Finds- Cafeteria

You know that feeling you get at 4 a.m. as you drunkenly stumble out of a NYC club? Yeah, I'm taking about your tummy rumbling. Cafeteria (119 7th Ave. (between 17th and 18th) New York, NY) is the only place to be to satisfy your late nightlife hunger. Cafeteria, or "Caf" as it is commonly called, is a 24 hour modern diner-style restaurant in Chelsea serving their take on classic American comfort food. If you're there during a normal time (before 12 a.m.), you may run into one of the Housewives (NeNe Leakes was just spotted here last week) or maybe even Mariah Carey, who was known to frequent Cafeteria with hubby Nick Cannon. If you're there for "fourthmeal", you'll most likely run into a NYC gay nightlife personality, drag queen, or club promoter. Now, down to the food.

The inside dining room of Cafeteria. You'll never see it this empty. Ever.

The menu changes at different times during the day. They have an "all day" menu, "dinner", and "overnight". More times than not, I've been there for the overnight menu, although I was there last week for dinner. I tried the Braised Short Rib Tacos ($18) which are served with sweet potato puree, blistered corn relish, apple salsa, and crispy tortilla salad. They were stuffed full of great short ribs, which taste similar to brisket with a fuller flavor and heavier sauce. The sweet potato puree, which lined the bottom of the soft tortilla, added a nice contrasting flavor to the meat. These were good, but if its your first time at Cafeteria, you have to try the best thing on the menu: 

Mac and Cheese.

There are three ways to try the Mac and Cheese at Cafeteria. The first is the classic Cafeteria Macaroni and Cheese ($9), you can choose from Cheddar and Fontina (yum), Smoked Gouda and Bacon (+$1, yummy), or with Truffle Oil (+$3, yumtastic). They are all very good, but the Truffle Oil Mac & Cheese is by far my favorite. If you go in time for the overnight menu, you can try the "Mac Attack" ($15) which is a tasting of all three types, and it truly is one of the best foods for the drunken 4 a.m. munchies. But it's not my favorite item at Cafeteria. That title belongs to the Mac and Cheese Spring Rolls ($11), which is the Cheddar and Fontina Mac and Cheese, wrapped and fried inside of a spring roll, served with a Smoked Gouda dipping sauce. These alone are the reason I go to Caf so often. If it is your first time there, these are a MUST.

Basically, if it's late and you're in Manhattan, go to Cafeteria. It's one of my favorite places to eat.

NY Food Finds- Ember Room

Last night I truly ate one of the best meals I've ever had. Celebrity chef Todd English teamed up with Ian Chalermkittichai (formerly head chef of Kittichai, in SoHo) to open the Hells Kitchen masterpiece Ember Room (647 9th Ave. (between 45th and 46th St.), NY, NY 10036). As our server said to us upon seating, Ember Room blends classic American Barbeque with Asian techniques and ingredients. I must say before I start that I was not able to take any photos of the plates we enjoyed, but trust me, they were plated beautifully. You can check out photos of the dishes on the Ember Room website here. The ambiance is unique, wooden walls cover all sides of you (we were seated upstairs) and a ceiling filled with gilded leaves makes it seem like you're dining within a tree (to me). 

Initially, I waited at the bar and enjoyed one of their signature cocktails, a cucumber and lime concoction made with cucumber vodka and actual cucumbers! After my date arrived, the friendly host showed us to our table.

Ember Room places an emphasis on sharing their plates. I personally love this because it just allows you to try more of the menu. We started off with three "small plates" which were:

Big Slab BBQ Pork Belly ($10)- Maple soy glaze & served with fuji apple celeriac slaw

Thai Pastrami Meat Balls ($11)- Tamarind glaze & served with chinese mustard

Chocolate Baby Back Ribs ($11)- Chocolate glaze. They say "spicy hot", I beg to differ.

I believe the consensus was that EVERYTHING was fantastic, but we must say the Pork Belly was phenomenal. I was unfamiliar with Pork Belly (aside from seeing it cooked on TV) so this dish as an introduction was probably the best it could have been. The Meat Balls were served first (Ember Room serves dishes as they become ready, even entrees) which was a nice start to the meal. The Baby Back Ribs fell right off the bone. They were soft and succulent, with a savory cocoa flavor and fantastic after effect.

For our Entree plates, we chose:

Red Chili Glazed Sea Bass ($24)- celeriac puree, gailan, and red chili paste.

BBQ Short Ribs ($24)- sweet potato puree, ginger, and a citrus crumb.

The sea bass was easily among the best I've ever had. I was unfamiliar with the vegetable "gailan" before my meal as well, the best way to describe it to me is asian asparagus (although it is commonly known as chinese broccoli). The short ribs were soft and delicious, initially very "brisket" but then you realize the dish has a life of its own.

And of course, dessert. Although left stuffed from our meals and appetizers, we heard the desserts from Ember Room were NOT to be missed. I don't have the exact names of the desserts, but one was a "crepe cake" which was basically layer upon layer (probably 12 total) of crepes, lined with whipped filling, cut and served like a pie with lemon sorbet on the side. The other was a bread pudding made with apple and toffee caramel sauce served with a scoop of toffee ice cream. Now, the crepe dessert was very good, BUT the toffee caramel apple bread pudding was, to put it frankly, orgasm inducing. Fantastic.

Another aspect of this restaurant that's great to mention is that it really is a great place to take a first date. A shout-out goes to Eric for choosing to go to Ember Room and turning me on to such great food!!

Recommended!