Review: Hot Bird Food Truck

Snacks from the Hotbird food truck on Atlantic & Clinton in Clinton Hill.

“Really good bacon:”

West Coast Review: The Buckshot

Full disclosure: I love this place. I would live there if I could Decor that tends toward the hunting lodge kitsch—I’ve never seen more animal heads in one place at once—with a smattering of metal and skate punk memorabilia. Cheap beer, shuffle board, pool, and skee-ball, people. In addition to this nexus of happiness, The Buckshot has a kitchen that serves, along with delicious southern-style fare, chicken fried bacon. I moved out to the West Coast from New York without ever having had the opportunity to try this recent phenomenon. I spent hours on the internet looking for a place in San Francisco that served it, only to find complaints on Yelp that it was no where to be found. So yes, I may have spilled my beer on my companions at seeing it on their chalkboard menu.

The bacon is both chewy and crunchy and lightly breaded with a crust that tends to flake off. The bacon flavor and it’s saltiness gets lost a bit in the seasoning of the batter; a thicker cut of bacon could be in order. The eight piece serving comes in a parchment lined tin cup with a side of maple syrup, which as a dipping sauce is absolutely key. Though not as thrilling as my imagination had built it up to be, I have not yet been there without ordering it; a fantastic bar snack.

As if a serving of that between two people weren’t enough, I had to try the Miss Piggy’s Mac ‘N’Cheese. It’s made with three cheeses, (Bleu, Cheddar, and either Jack or Pepper Jack—whichever they have that day), bacon, herbs and garlic bread crumbs. The portions could easily feed three, the macaroni nothing fancy and comfortingly reminiscent of good ol’ Kraft. In this dish, the bacon and Bleu are king. It is incredibly rich and creamy with bacon chunks throughout, not just as a garnish. It is well cooked and in good sized chunks, that retain their crunch despite the cheesy dousing. It's a salty dish, and the rosemary and parsley nicely balance its throat coating quality without diminishing the bacon flavor that permeates every bite.

Review by Kajsa Sexton.

Review: Permanent Brunch

Selections from the bacon bar at Permanent Brunch on 1st Ave between 5th & 6th in the East Village:

Hungarian smoked kolozsvari:

Burger’s sugar cured bacon:

A Whole New Kind of Happy Hour

I love brunch. Especially after waking up with a hangover and craving something greasy and delicious to help you feel like a human being again. So there's nothing more disappointing than getting up so late that you miss brunch. Well someone has finally come to their senses with soon to open Permanent Brunch. According to Eater, the East Village restaurant’s menu will consist of all brunch items. But the best part is they will have an artisanal bacon bar! Now it can be happy hour every hour...

Thanks Karen!

Review: The Carriage House

Bar food at the Carriage House on 59th between 2nd & 3rd in Midtown East.

Potato skins with bacon and cheese:

Review: Flight 151

Bar food at Flight 151 on 8th and 18th in Chelsea.

Bacon & cheese potato skins:

Sign of a Good Bar

I’ve always felt that hooks (under the bar, on the wall, etc.) are the sign of a good bar. It shows detailed thought and consideration for the customer. But this here sign was the first thing I saw when walking into Jimmy’s No. 43 last night. Although their Bacon Week has past (damn it!), this is probably the best sign of a good bar that one could ever see. And they’ve got hooks everywhere too. 

Thanks to Patty for the picture (and being willing to take the blame if I stole the poster)!