Llapingachos, an Ecuadorian speciality
We’re trying to wrap up Food Cart Month(s), so here’s a quick look at the Ecuadorian (yes, again) cart that’s parked outside the Gates Avenue Food Bazaar on Sundays and sometimes Saturdays. (Sometimes there’s a second unrelated Ecuadorian cart parked across the street, but it’s a bit chaotic and unappetizing so we’re focusing on this one here.) Continue reading
The last couple of weeks have been very busy, not to mention rainy as all heck, so we’ve extended Food Cart Month into June. On Memorial Day weekend we double-Ecuadorian-carted it, first stopping by the cart outside the Grover Cleveland Park fútbol fields, and then the one near Food Bazaar. This was our first visit to the Grover Cleveland cart. The Mexican lady who runs it sets up shop every weekend, when the fields are full of hungry athletic folks. Grilled chicken & pork skewers and our old friend salchipapas are the main offerings here. Continue reading
Fish tacos
Here’s a look at last night’s tacos from Tacos La Carcachita, home of the best cemitas in almost-Ridgewood. You may have noticed the Carcachita truck’s absence for the past week and a half (due to repairs) — and in its place, the loaner waffle-wich truck that advertises “private and corporate waffling” (haha). Continue reading
Exclusive look inside Crunchy Brunch!
Crunchy Brunch, a spacious two-story Midtown Manhattan–style lunch deli, is coming to 57-37 Myrtle Avenue. A woman we met at the space told us they hope to open next month, and according to the “coming soon” sign outside, they’ll serve sushi, sandwiches, wraps, and smoothies. Continue reading
Chicken empanada
Our next food cart stop might be the busiest cart in Ridgewood. El Palacio de las Empanadas Ecuatorianas greets you as you enter the Myrtle Avenue BID (on the Duane Reade side). As the day progresses and appetites swell, there’s often several people hanging around the cart, catching up on the day’s activities while they enjoy their chicken and chicken and cheese empanadas ($1.50 each). Continue reading
Chicken & rice atop a chess table in Benniger Playground
Food Cart Month continues! Today we checked out Bakhtar, the Afghan-owned halal cart in front of Rite Aid on Fresh Pond Road. The cart offers the same fare as its flagship Wyckoff Heights Hospital location: chicken over rice, pitas and gyros, falafel, biriyani, and, most uniquely, chapli and shami kebabs (flat minced-meat patties, the latter of which also contain chickpea or lentil flour). Continue reading
Roasted coconut
In case you missed it, awhile back we quietly tweeted that May is FOOD CART MONTH here at Ridgefood. We will attempt, weather and energy permitting, to visit every food cart in Ridgewood. There aren’t very many, so this isn’t really very impressive, but hey!
Previously we’ve told you about several borderland carts: Tacos La Carcachita, where the cemitas are big and meaty, and an eponymous Sundays-only Ecuadorian cart that serves salchipapas (french fries and hotdogs, basically) and whole fried fish to voleibol players in Evergreen Park. Continue reading
Don’t forget! The second Ridgewood Bar Crawl, brought to you by the Ridgewood Social (née Ridgewood Meetup) folks, takes place this Saturday night. New stops on the crawl include Eros Cafe and Polish German Club House, as well as Parlay (aka the former Hi-5, so it’s not NEW new). We seldom make it out to bars in the ‘wood, so the crawl is a good excuse to go totally wild. Just kidding (?).
RSVP here, or just show up! Scroll down for a map of the crawl route.
The crepe & wafflerie is adjacent to a bustling stop on the Q58 bus
Last week we attended the Taste of Ridgewood, the first-ever food fest benefiting the Ridgewood YMCA‘s Strong Kids Campaign. We ate, we drank, we chatted with local Ridgefolk. Here’s our photo recap:
Clockwise from top left: Vietnamese iced coffee over crushed ice, coconut tapioca pudding, and a summer roll from Bunker (we forgot peanut sauce – oops); vegetable samosa and cilantro dipping sauce from Nepalese Indian; and foufou & okra (foufou are like dumplings) and grilled fish & attieke (fermented cassava that resembles couscous) from Bed-Stuy’s Abidjan. Continue reading
Stuffed bass and fixins from Aneta Deli. Also pictured: potato pancakes ($1 each when they have ‘em).
A typical low-key sunny day for us involves a trip to Rosemary’s Playground and a food stop somewhere nearby. Aneta Deli, situated a block from the playground on Woodward and Palmetto, stands out among Ridgewood’s Polish steam-table joints for a few reasons.
The first thing you’ll notice as you approach the deli is the amazing window art, like the singing, dancing lipstick- and heels-wearing trio of ham, turkey, and cheese — it’s part of a zone we’ve dubbed “Whimsical Window Row” (see below for more photos of WWR). Inside, Aneta is a standard Polish deli, selling staples like jars of pickled beets and celery root, berry syrups, interesting pretzels and cookies and puffs, and frozen pierogies. Near the back of the long deli counter you’ll see the steam table where they keep the hot food. Go here. Continue reading