"Live from Bedford-Stuyvesant, the livest one"

A few Saturday nights ago a bunch of us went to this new fried chicken restaurant in the East Village called the Cardinal. There are so many things wrong with that sentence.  Saturday night. New. East Village. Those three words in one sentence is lethal and I'm still kicking myself for letting it happen. But the fried chicken was actually one of the best I've tasted and it overcame the fact that they were pretty much out of everything else on the menu, a three hour wait and an "accidental" two bottles of wine charge on the bill. While we were walking to the Beagle for drinks after dinner, one of my friends Wonita, who mind you is from the south (Alabama south), agreed in my observation of the fried chicken at the Cardinal but she said if you really want fried chicken you need to go to Peaches Hothouse in Brooklyn. Her recommendation was in the back of my mind until Friday when I finally got to check it out first hand.

When people think of Brooklyn now they usually think of Williamsburg or Carroll Gardens as food destinations in Brooklyn. Which isn't a bad assessment; those areas have some damn good restaurants. I've literally ate through those neighborhoods though. So I was happy to find out that Peaches Hothouse is in Bed-Stuy which is deep down in Brooklyn. Like real deep. Lucky I had a car but still took a good 40 minutes from the Upper East.

My friend and I got the last two seats at the bar and ordered some beers. I was shocked to see how many locals were coming in for takeout. (You know what they say; if there are a lot of Chinese people in a Chinese restaurant it must be good, well the same goes for soul food....if you get my drift.) Everyone was ordering the same damn thing, fried chicken "hot" with cornbread and the bacon creamed corn. I started panting and needing me some creamed corn. But I controlled myself and we ordered the fried green tomatoes and portobello mushroom to start. Recently I've been hooked on fried green tomatoes. Had them at Union Square Cafe a few weeks back and to be honest I think Peaches was better and about half the cost. We then split the fried chicken. We got two pieces regular and one piece hot. They are famous for their hot so needed to try it.

Wowers! It was damn good fried chicken. Breast, thigh and a wing was the perfect amount for two. The skin was flavorful but not overwhelming and the meat was juicy but not too juicy to ruin the skin. It was perfect. The hot was the equivalent to a bbq chip, which was just right. But the best part of the meal of that damn bacon creamed corn. It was almost like a soup, not a casserole like they serve at Hill Country, and it was one the tastiest things I've ever eaten. With belly full, I smiled the whole hour car ride home especially when driving past the East Village.

Crooklyn We Go Hard

I've gotten a lot of flack from my fan base in DC regarding my knocks on our lovely sleepy southern town. As I'm venturing down there for Thanksgiving I want to clear the air that DC is not NYC Jr. its just more like Brooklyn. And people that know me, know that's actually a huge compliment. Not as much restaurant-wise, but geographically they are very similar. I lived in DC for 18 years, through the summers in college and now living in New York I go home an average of four times a year and I honestly can say I probably have only been to 20 percent of the city. And I think even if I lived there permanently, it would be the same percentage. DC has very nice areas and nice up and coming areas, but truthfully the rest of the town you don't want to hang in. DC is actually a big town, but when you only venture to specific parts that's when its seems tiny.
Brooklyn is the same way. If you look at a subway map, Brooklyn is huge (not as humongous at Queens) but its still pretty freaking big. Again, very nice areas but also a lot of crap areas. I actually love Brooklyn and go there a few times a week to restaurants (new blog on that scene coming soon) and also to liquor stores (don't ask) and I feel like I'm as knowledgable of that borough as Brooklynites are. But again tell me the last time you've been to New Lots or Brownville because I have and its not nice. Trust me.
People that want to prove me wrong, let's meet down on Patterson Street, NE this weekend. Where? Exactly...

Pulque and Cactus Tacos

So this past Thursday night I ventured to Chinatown to check out this new Mexican spot. China, Mexico...it's all jumbled in this city. Not trying to toot my own horn but I know the map of Manhattan like the back of my hand. West Village; no problem; Financial District; easy. But I will say the deep bowls of Chinatown confuse the hell outta me. The mishmash area between Chinatown and City Hall is no mans land for me. You try to find Doyers Street! Yeah, I didn't think so....

So after turning off Mott Street and thru Pell Street you come across Doyers Street. I wouldn't go as far to say it's a "street", it's more like an alley way. I eventually find the place behind a closed down Vietnamese grocery store. The restaurant is called Pulqueria which derives its name from the popular Mexican drink, pulque. Pulque is made from the fermented sap of the maguey (agave) plant. Kind of looks like coconut water. In contrast, mezcal is made from cooked hearts of certain agave plants as tequila is made mostly from blue agave. Its alcohol content is between beer and tequila but it tastes a lot better than both. Needless to say this restaurant is the only place in the US which currently serves this alcohol.

Well I guess I'm not as cool as I thought because the place was packed. I'm surprised they even serve food because literally everyone in the place was skinny....like model skinny. Yes, please! I got a spot at the bar and ordered a pulque with chili spice and watermelon. At this point I didn't know the alcohol content so I thought ordering some tacos wouldn't hurt. One tilapia with garlic salsa and one cactus with green peppers. I guess the booze was kicking in with that cactus order.  I then got a tap on the shoulder and prayed it was a model but ended up being this photographer from The Wall Street Journal. They were reviewing pulque booze and its growing popularity in the US. (I had no idea WSJ was so hip.) He asked me if I could move over so he could take pictures of the drinks. He literally ordered one of everything to try to get the best pictures possible. Must be nice WSJ!!! For my inconvenience next drink was on WSJ tab he told me. Ok, I can handle that. I ordered the corn and pineapple variation with corn husk garnish. Very interesting combination and it worked perfect with the subtle flavors of the corn and the sweet tartness of the pineapple. And to be honest, drinking out of a glass with corn husks is pretty freaking cool. Now here's the kicker.....trying to get home!!! The upper east side never looked so far... "Hey, I'm Retired at 29"!

Beer Here!

For the first three years of my New York living I resided in the East Village. I don't even want to think how much I spent at the bodega across the street over that time span. It definitely was into the thousands. Probably would have been even more if it was closer. Crossing the street is kind of annoying...

I then moved uptown and decided to be more practical with my money. I joined Costco and went a few times a year (whenever I could get hold of a car) and bought bulk supplies. I rarely bought food, just beverages and toilet paper and paper towels. Then recently my friend Eric mentioned to me about a warehouse beer distributor way uptown called "Flair Beverages". I'm not talking uptown like 125th street, I'm talking uptown like 207th street! This past week I got a friends car and ventured up to the northern tip of the city. To be completely honest with you, it literally only took 15 minutes via the Harlem River Drive. (The FDR drives turns into Harlem River Drive after 125th street, if anyone cares.)

I thought the place was going to be some sketchy warehouse with bulletproof glass and workers who didn't speak English glaring at me. I was pleasantly surprised. I mean the workers only spoke Spanish but they were very helpful as much as they could. I think this place is where some restaurants might go to get there beverages. It was a Costco on steroids! And not just beer. They had any type of drink imaginable and for dirt cheap. To paint you a picture they had a whole section just for Four Loco. A cool feature they had was you can buy the case of anything or individually. You can also mix and match flavors (ie-seltzer waters).

A few side notes if you go. They only take cash (might be shady operation, but don't ask don't tell.) Also, they have hundreds of different types of beer. The more generic ones are very cheap but the more obscure or popular ones (ie-Session) are expensive and actually more expensive than Whole Foods. So watch out. But for non-alcololic drinks and BudLight kegs who needs Costco! "Hey, I'm Retired at 29!"

Baseball

The end of September/beginning of October starts the new season of baseball: Playoff baseball. But with playoff baseball also comes the end to the regular season and the "regular" teams (re: Mets). This is a great time to go to Met games as the ballpark is half empty (except Nate, myself and also Jesse Eisenberg and Kenny Albert). Tickets are also very cheap. Lower level seats start at 12 bucks, yes please! With my hometown team, the Washington Nationals, in town the second to last week of the season I went to a bunch of games.

To add a little more excitement to these games, Nate and I try to catch as many baseballs as possible. This is what poor people do for excitement so give me a break! It sounds really dorky but honestly it gets addictive. By the last game of the season Nate and I, gloves in hand, were sitting in the right field about an hour before first pitch. I wasn't expecting any good action but next thing I knew a ball was coming right at me. Literally, if I didn't move (which I did) it would have hit me square in the face. Well, I didn't trust my glove or my athletic ability so I ran out of the way, maybe even a little squeal came out, I'm not exact sure, it all happened so quickly. Seconds later everyone was clapping around us. Nate caught the freaking ball! I'll give him credit it was a great catch but why the hell do I have a glove if I'm not going to use it!?!! I guess my thoughts of becoming a professional baseball player is now completely gone. Doesn't matter really; "Hey, I'm Retired at 29!"

Danji

Been hearing a lot of good press (re: NYT) recently about this relatively new Korean joint, Danji, in midtown west (re: gross theater district area). Last week a friend and I decided to scope out the scene. We ventured to the restaurant around 8pm Thursday and it was packed. Albeit the place was miniature; is that because Korean people are tiny? Also, I'm not trying to be prejudiced but more than half the customers were Korean which I take to mean the place is damn good. Same goes for any type of food. While picking out a sushi place, if the place is filled with Japanese eaters it must be good! But the funny thing about Danj was none of the waitstaff were Korean, they were all white...

Anyway, we post up at the bar for a beer and wait about twenty minutes for a table. The turnover rate is very fast. They might as well have given us our check as we ordered. This was a very special restaurant experience for me because it was the first time I ever ordered tofu (my sister is probably smiling reading this) at a restaurant (the waiter recommendation but still very impressive by me). And it was damn good. It's fried in a tempura batter and served with sliced red pepper. Also, what's not good fried? NOTHING!

Danji is a tapas style restaurant which I usually don't like but somehow it works here. We also ordered whelk salad with buckwheat noodles, korean style beef sliders, potato and pepper pancake, and the short ribs. I thought I was really cool ordering whelk salad before I knew exactly what whelks were. Yeah, kind of gross. But I must say the beef sliders might be the best dish I've had in New York in a long time. Everything about the sliders were amazing, from the buttered potato bun to the spiced pickles to the lean beef. This is a great restaurant in a bad location. If you are going to see a broadway show then this is a perfect place. And if anyone wants to take me again for the sliders, I'm always around. "Hey, I'm Retired at 29!"

Fashion Week

Wikipedia definition of Fashion Week: A fashion week is a fashion industry event, lasting approximately one week, which allows fashion designers, brands or "houses" to display their latest collections in runway shows and buyers to take a look at the latest trends.
Retirement at 28 definition of Fashion Week: Models, parties, famous people, and free booze.

Thursday the 8th of September officially kicked off fashion week with "Fashion Night Out". This means stores stay open late and typically have DJs and models greeting shoppers at the door. They also usually have a bar set up in the store to celebrate the beginning of the party week. (It's actually a great idea to serve booze at stores. People will get drunk and buy expensive dumb shit they don't need. I was with Eric once and tried on a bark sports coat. Yes, you read it correctly, bark, like in tree bark. Eric tried on a jacket made of cork. Too bad I didn't have 3 grand to blow.)

This is the second year the shows have been at Lincoln Center. Before they were located at Bryant Park which was just becoming too small a venue for the event. I've been contemplating going over to check it out and not really sure why I haven't. Clearly I'm handsome enough! If there is any indication that I can't sweet talk my way into a show, tonight was a perfect ego boost I needed. Let me explain.

I was meeting Josh for drinks at Riverpark. Very cool restaurant with an outside terrace over looking the East River. Actually went there earlier this week for beers and apps and decided to take advantage of the nice outside drinking weather before it gets cold. We get there and its "closed" for a private party. Literally everyone was in a suit. Josh and I were definitely going to stand out if we decided to sneak in. And yes, we snuck in. Walked right past the receptionist and made a beeline for the free beers. It was only a matter of time until someone questioned us. In a sea full of suits, I'm wearing a bright yellow polo and flip flops and Josh looks like a scared little child. Of course eventually we got questioned and made up some BS excuse about how my dad worked at the law firm who was hosting the event. The guy actually believed us but now we felt a little awkward. After another beer and a few passed apps we headed out. But the moral of the story is, "act as if" and you can really enjoy yourself in this town. I think I would enjoy New York even more if I could get into those fashion tents. "Hey, I'm Retired at 29!"