Wings Addiction

I’m sitting in the café car on the Amtrak back to NYC. The fella next to me is eating a package of the Buffalo chicken wings, which were nuked in the microwave and are unsurprisingly gross. The skin is flabby and slimy. It’s probably Perdue chicken. I know this because I am a former wing addict. I was born upstate and Buffalo wings were a part of my childhood. My mom actually makes really great wings. She roasts them in the oven with some Lawry’s seasoned salt then dips them in a mixture of margarine and hot sauce then back in the oven to bake in the flavor. Now, I know a thing or two about the delicacy, and the wing addiction was seriously unhealthy in many ways so I will share the therapy that worked for me.

Go to Croxley Ales Bar on B and 3rd for 10 cent wing night and OD. Croxley’s is a fratty but goth themed bar near Mama’s (this reminds me of my fried chicken fixation) and while it seems like you will only need a buck to fill up, there are stipulations. You must by a beer and you have to buy a plate with a multiple of 20. I ate 15 of their wings and I haven’t had a craving since. Not because I got sick of them, but because they are really good. They are fried without batter which I like, so the skin is crispy and the sauce is spicy and vinegary. However, blue cheese and celery is additional, so you generally have to pay more than ten bucks for the fix.

Lucky Schmucky

A new made to order fast food type burger place opened on 1st Ave between 4th and 5th street called Lucky Burger. They serve made to order burgers, fries and shakes. I tried the burger - it’s 4 bucks and it’s ok. It’s one of those flat-ish burgers, dressed with iceburg lettuce, pickles and a tomato. They also feature a mustard based sauce called Lucky sauce. I think the ketchup has bbq sauce in it. It was better than a McDonald’s burger, but a McDonald’s customer would not go there. It’s like the Blue 9 Burger on 3rd Ave, but I’d rather go there. They have seats and Lucky was playing some kind of girls gone wild type video on their flat screen tv and the logo is predominantly orange, so I felt a gross Hooters vibe there. So who knows how long Lucky Burger will stay in business.

RedMan

Mica and I finally tried the RedMan cart in the Lower East Side (same street as Pianos) last night. I think his name is Andrew, but I lost his card in my room somewhere. He caters to the after hours crowd Thursday to Saturday nights from 11pm-4am, but it’s not the usual meat on a stick for this former Bostonian. He spices it up by grilling Korean bbq (bulgoki), layering the garlicky meat with romaine lettuce and kimchi on a sesame seed bun. He also makes a bbq mushroom version for the veggies. His twist on the average kraut dog uses spicy kimchi to complement the grilled hotdog. It’s a nice contrast --the kimchi is spicy cold and the dog is mild and warm from the grill. Two thoughtful touches are the complementary mints and the spicy ginger soda. He brews the soda himself, pressing the ginger and adding simple syrup. A great palate cleanser and perfect for the digestion if you’ve had one too many drinks.

Baked goods

I am not much of a muffin person. I find that muffins here are too big or too small, too sweet or too dense. I have found a place whose muffins that I like. Ciao for Now on 12th between A and B. They are pretty small, so it’s best to pick up something to go or go on off hours if you’re meeting a friend. Run by a married couple from one of the Carolinas, the place is sunny and inviting. The coffee is good and they make their own chai blend. Their muffins are on the small side, so take small bites as they are very tasty. They have the usual bran and blueberry, but they also offer fantasy muffins like passionfruit and mango something or other. I admit, I wish they were a buck, but they taste really good. If you’re too cheap to splurge on the muffin, there was a really good blueberry coffeecake and the guy gave me a huge hunk of it for $1.50. Same price as the muffin, but much bigger piece. They also have fun flavored biscuits, again smallish but packed with flavors like spinach and feta or bacon and cheddar. Also $1.50.

Sweet & Fried Notes

samoscot
Originally uploaded by i_eat_ny.

Hi there,
I was at the Union Square Farmers Market again on Friday.
Trelicious is the name of the nice farmer with the good donuts. He has plain and sugar/cinnamon apple cider donuts for 65 cents.
Samoscot Orchards also sells a nice apple cider donut made of regular or whole wheat flour. They are also very tasty and you can buy them for 35 cents each and 3 for a dollar. Again perfect for dunking into the hot apple cider.
Your bud,
Liza