Pies -N- Thighs, Crif Dog Double Whammy
Special shops are in attendance for the holiday market at Columbus Circle.
When I read (once again via the awesome experts at Midtown Lunch) that Pies -N- Thighs had opened a kiosk blocks from my office for the holiday season, I pretty much sprinted there to try it. I’ve been reading about the place for a while now (and even had stumbled drunkenly past it one night in Brooklyn), but hadn’t yet sampled their wares.
When I found out that Crif Dogs was located in this holiday market as well, I was elated. As a New York foodie, Crif Dogs was one of my biggest gaps – I can’t believe I hadn’t tried it all these years.
There's seating at benches in the impromptu food court in the middle of the shops.
Plunging through the crowded, touristy market, I made my way to the effective food court of this outdoor mall. As you can see, there are a few narrow benches and tables for folks to sit at. I understood that the chicken biscuit I was about to order would take a few minutes to prepare, so after doing so I sidled up to the nearby Crif Dogs shack and ordered a Chihuahua Dog at the counter woman’s recommendation.
Bacon-wrapped and very tasty.
What you see before you is the Chihuahua Dog. It is (like many Crif Dogs) bacon wrapped, and served with freshly-scooped avocado. I watch the counterman work his knife expertly through the avocado and set it into the bun. Atop the dog is, of course, sour cream (naturally).
Fresh avocado on the left. Yum.
They took the dog from the fridge and dunked it into the fryer. The result was a crispy and delicious beefy dog. The avocado added a richness and faint sense that what I was eating might be considered healthy. The sour cream topping added a nice counterpoint. If I have any criticism of the dog, it was the bun. To quote the old commercial, it’s a very big bun. Meaty and doughy (as far as buns go). The dog was $5 and very enjoyable. I noshed it down before I made it out of the market.
Before I even got through the tinfoil, butter was seeping out.
I beat a hasty retreat back to the office to dig into the chicken biscuit before it got cold. As you can see, the unboxing was, well, a bit sloppy. Butter was oozing across the tinfoil and I now have a nice, oily spot on my pants as a result.
Buttery goodness. I think it must be 1,000 calories.
An oily spot that was totally worth it. Just look at that. That is a deep-fried piece of chicken stuck between two halves of a drenched-in-butter biscuit. It was like biting into some absurd fried meat cake. Delightful!
The biscuit had a firm texture (when it wasn’t soaked through in butter) and was extremely sweet. The chicken was well fried, crispy without any of the usual bark I generally like on my fried food. That said, the chicken wasn’t the star of the show: the biscuit was so dominant and decadent that the poultry served as a kind of condiment.
I think there was some kind of chutney or jam in the middle, but I just can’t swear to it. The sandwich, which is on the smallish side, is $6.
The Holiday Market at Columbus Circle – with these vendors and more – is open until Dec. 24.
Columbus Circle 57th & Central Park West New York, NY 10023Papaya King
The altogether iconic MOAP (Mother Of All Papayas)
I’ve been eating at various Papayas around the city for pretty much my entire life. Anyone who grew up in NYC knows they’re as ubiquitous as Ray’s pizza, except they are generally uniformly better. I’ve always liked the Papaya franchise, there’s something supremely New York-y about a hot dog, and they always do a pretty good job of it.
Watch 'em sizzle.
Any real New Yorker, though, would tell you that the “best in show” of the Papayas is the Papaya King on the Upper East Side – 86th and 3rd. The legend (and I believe it to be fact) is that they receive their own special mix for their hot dogs, and it’s generally agreed amongst foodies that there’s is tops amongst the chain.
I usually stop in when in that neighborhood, and thought it prudent to do so after their recent renovation.
A Home Run: mustard, kraut and onions.
It was $4.61 for a Home Run (a dog with mustard, kraut and onions) and a medium papaya drink (their signature, naturally). That’s much more than most of the papaya chain, and I think more than most people would ordinarily want to pay for a single dog even if it comes with the delicious beverage. A dog should be about a buck, two for two, you know, and then another two for the drink. Seems pricey.
It does have a very good, tight snap.
It’s with great disappointment that I report that the dog, while good, is not great. It does possess a very good snap, and the beef flavor is present, albeit muted. It’s greasy from sitting on the skillet surface.
But, speaking frankly, it’s not as good as the dog from Artie’s.
Papaya King
179 East 86th Street New York, NY, 10028 212.369.0648 www.papayaking.comMurray’s Sturgeon Shop Is Amazing
Epic. Delicious. Wonderful. Perfect.
I absolutely love Murray’s. It’s an Upper West Side institution and one of an altogether diminishing breed of New York City specialty shop. It trades in fish, particularly cured fish. I think their tuna fish, which you can see spread on a half of a bialy above, is the best in the city. It’s loaded (but not overloaded) with onions. It is rich and delicious and an absolutely wonderful thing to have for a Sunday brunch.
A delicious, flavorful treat, for sophisticated palettes.
Speaking of Sunday brunch, may I suggest sampling the pickled herring in cream sauce? It’s not for everyone, I think, I mean it took me a while to come around to it, but it’s creamy and delicious. The onions, however, steal the show.
I should take a moment and praise the expert and courteous staff of Murray’s who know their wares inside and out. They’ll hand cut Nova Scotia salmon, or delicious sable, along with other wonderful goods. If you go for the sable, get plain cream cheese, if you go for Nova, scallion cream cheese is called for. Also, they sell bialys (if you’re lucky they’re not sold out), so please do us all a favor and do the whole thing right and get them.
It’s hard for me to sing the praises of Murray’s enough. I love it, you can’t go wrong there.
Murray’s Sturgeon Shop
2429 Broadway
NY, NY 10024
212.724.2650
www.murrayssturgeon.com.com
Revisiting Tri Tip
I’d only tried Tri Tip once, and my criticism of it (inasmuch as I had one) was that their bun was awfully big. I understand it is designed to be, to sop up their dipping sauce. However, if you’re on a diet and are concerned about the devil white flour, it gives you pause. Here’s a reminder:
To quote the famous Wendy's commercial: it's a very big bun.
I noticed, though, that they had salads with generous portions of meat in them as well. I admit, with their thick creamy sauces the salads didn’t look precisely healthy, but they are an interesting alternative to the bread bomb.
Hence, the decision to return and try one of their salads out. I selected the “Caesar Pleaser,” which is what you’d expect: a caesar salad, with (of course) 8 ounces of sirloin tri tip.
Looks like a pretty big portion, no?
As you can see, it’s plenty of food. Let’s unbox.
Not bad...
That’s actually two substantial pieces of steak sitting on top of each other on the left. The caesar salad dressing is already on top the lettuce, along with shaved parmesan cheese. Having just returned from Italy, I can assure you it’s not the real bonafide stuff, but what do you expect? Either way, I was glad to see it. That’s a big honking bit of bread served with the dish as well. In the black container is the dipping sauce for the meat. Speaking of the meat, how about a closer look?
- Pretty sexy, no?
As you can see, it’s well marbled, and well prepared. A bit juicy, though truthfully I was glad to have the dipping sauce, which adds a salt.
ME LIKE EAT 