Tuesday, September 8, 2009

Best Thing I Ever Ate ... on Labor Day Weekend.

Hey there! Hope you had a great Labor Day weekend! The top question I'm getting today from friends and the like is: "What did you do for the holiday?" and "How was your cookout?". Well, my answer is I actually worked this weekend and Labor Day I played video games and made chorizo and bean tacos instead of cooking out.

I can't tell you all the details as usual about work, because the show doesn't air until I think early next year, but it was an episode of Best Thing I Ever Ate. They asked me to participate again, so I sent them a list of places I enjoy eating at and the best things on the menu. One of my places is right here in NYC, so 2 weeks ago I taped the portion of the show where you see the people talking about the dish or menu item they consider the "best" and then they called to ask if I didn't mind visiting the place in NYC to film there as well. I said yes and even though it was on a Sunday, I didn't mind ... I knew it meant lot's of yummy food! Eating and talking about it isn't really work if you ask me. Plus, I don't go to this place often because it's addictive, so I was excited to revisit just a couple of weeks after talking about it to the camera for hours. So, Sunday I got up and put on some TV-worthy clothes and not my usual weekend sweats and t-shirt, then headed into the city to eat at A Salt and Battery. Here I am with Mat Arnfield, the chef.
I'd love to tell you what I ate, but I can't. I can say everything is great on the menu and I found the place back in 2001 when I first moved to NYC. I'd walk the neighborhood after work, window shop, get lost and just explore. This is one of the first places I ate at when I moved here, the staff was really nice and sold me my first bottle of HP Sauce. It's good stuff and I have great memories of my earlier days walking here after work for a bite. I actually thought I was showcasing a business that had not received any kind of love from a restaurant show on Food Network and when I mentioned that to the crew they all told me Bobby Flay actually taped an episode of Throwdown with the restaurant. If you caught that show, don't worry ... we tackled two completely different areas of the menu, but I am happy that Bobby and I have similar tastes ... he's a cool New Yorker that surely knows some good food. Makes me wonder about how I feel sometimes when I think the same places keep getting press or coverage, maybe it isn't an inside thing ... maybe it's just that they have great food! Yes, there are tourist traps, but this isn't one. A must try if you visit NYC and many people that are from the UK actually flock to this spot for authentic food. That whole area actually has some pretty good eating. I envy people that live there, simply for the eating options. I moved out of the area and seldom get back. Many New Yorkers share the same story, moving from a neighborhood is like moving to a different country and don't even start on moving to a new borough. Things are so close, but each area is pretty self sufficient, so people tend to never go back to old neighborhood haunts if living somewhere new. I try to break that, by visiting my old neighborhoods in Brooklyn, but I'm a rolling stone ... plenty of places to revisit. Anyway, outside of A Salt and Battery are some benches and between taping I met some viewers sitting there from New Jersey eating the same thing I was there for and we chatted a bit while I was taping and some people got on camera. What a brunch! My kind of people. I Can't wait to see it all on the show and hope you catch it too. I'll let you know when it airs.

7 comments:

Mary | Deep South Dish said...

A tease! Well, I'm sure whatever it is it'll be great. I love that show!!

Sunny Anderson said...

mary, i'd love to tell but then i think i'd get in trouble. gotta leave something for the show. and ita about the show, i love to see foodies talk about food and where they get it.

Mary | Deep South Dish said...

Me too. I see it and then oh, I wonder if I can make that! Well, we will just have to be patient and wait, but I know it'll be good.

t2ed said...

Let me know when you're ready to try smoked meatballs (on a Big Green Egg) and spaghetti.

My neighbors claimed I'm tormenting them it smells so good!

Sunny Anderson said...

mary, you will surely be able to make my thing on the show, maybe not as good as the place because they have a special recipe, but you will be able to get close. and it is oh sooooo good! hope you like it!

t2ed, i'm up for anything! but what is the green egg all about??? and where did you get this crazy dish? in your own kitchen? do tell ... and btw, chit'lins stink, but i love em!

t2ed said...

Sunny, the Big Green Egg is a ceramic smoker with vents on top and bottom to control heat. Everything it cooks it awesome. Except the pizza I just tried. Still a work in progress.

It's great with meat, so I figured I'd try plain old meatballs to zip up a pasta dish. They're so good I'm doubling batches a freezing.

Once you try an Egg, you'll never to back to smoking any other way. http://www.biggreenegg.com/

No, I don't work for them. But it would be a fun gig!

Sunny Anderson said...

t2ed, ahhhhh i'll be checkin the link as soon as i hit enter here!! i love a good gadget to play with ...thanks for the non-ad, never be afraid to share here, as long as it's from the belly and not the budget, if you get what i mean..