Spice up your life!

Spice: to add zest or flavor. Mayahuel will add some excitement to your life in more ways than one. A major benefit to living in New York is the wide-variety of restaurants available. While the amount of choices can be overwhelming at times, Mayahuel stands out from the crowd like a man in a cowboy hat walking down 5th avenue. Venture to the East Village and and be careful not to miss Mayahuel which is nestled into what looks to be an old church. After entering the door, you immediately feel as though you walked into a quaint restaurant in a small Mexican village. The restaurant has two floors with the main being dominated by a large bar and the upstairs housing most of the seating. The whole place has an air of mystery to it while making you feel at home with the decor and abundance of religious relics. Do beware: Mary watches you in the restroom, but don't let that scare you or great food will be missed!

 To get the party started, we ordered some Tortillas with Guacamole. Anyone who knows me has either heard me rave about or experienced first-hand my love for the almighty Guac! The Guacamole at Mayahuel was legit although not the best I've ever had. The Tortillas also came with Salsa Verde and Roasted Tomato dipping sauce. The Salsa Verde finished along with the Guac, but the Roasted Tomato not so much.

Moving on to my main drug of choice: Gordita. While I had no clue what a true Gordita consisted of being my prior knowledge extended to Taco Bell, I sat with an anxiousness soon to discover my Gordita was banging! The main star of this dish was the stack of succulent ribs. They were juicy and sweet with the first bite having a hint of pine-apple; however, they quickly end up doing a spicy meringue in your mouth. If you do not like spicy, do not order this dish. Definitely a bit more than I am used too, but they tasted so good that I did not care. The supporting star: Corn Patties. While I assumed these would taste similar to cornbread, I was amazed after biting into one that there was cheese somehow infused inside...awesome! To make things better, the Corn Patties were topped with a bit of white rice and fresh salsa. The rice was cooked perfectly and the assortment of salsa on top was sweet which complemented the spiciness of the ribs well. Definitely a hit in my books! Another honorable mention from a previous visit to old Mayahuel: Quesadilla with melted cojita cheese and mango salsa along with the chorizo and and cheese smoked tomato filled croquetas. 

Keep it spicy and go to Mayahuel to experience the unique decor and friendly atmosphere with a date (hint hint: impress) or go with a group of friends (head to the corner booth). I promise the food will not disappoint and if it does they have a large selection of drink choices for you to wash your sorrows away!

Ay Tamale or Tamal!

Re: Tamal está cerca de mi corazón (Tamal you are close to my heart).You all obviously know the way to this girl's heart is through food!

With Latin food being one of my all-time favorites along with living in the land of A+ Mexican & Dominican food, I had high expectations for Calle Ocho. This restaurant is Nuevo Latino and located on Columbus Ave and 81st. Walking in you are greeted with bright colors, dim lighting and friendly servers. They have ample space for groups to wait or grab food/drink at the bar---looks good for group dining! For this particular trip, my fellow foodie and I opted to try the Tamal appetizer along with the warm bread/black-bean dip (complementary). Let me start with saying that the warm bread & black-bean dip=danger. It can definitely ruin your appetite, so word of advice is to not go too hard on the bread ;)

Now to the main attraction...the Tamal! This dish is a sweet corn tamal filled with goat cheese topped with pumpkin seed pesto and surrounded by a sea of shrimp enchilado. The combination of all of these flavors from the goat cheese (get up on the goat) to the pumpkin pesto mixed with a spicy shrimp enchilado makes for the perfect combo of sweet & spice. For those of you not trying to put the spice in your life, do not fear this dish is not that spicy. Definitely enough for two people along with another appetizer and leaves you wanting more!

Calle Ocho is a great place to go with a group of friends and experience new and exotic combinations of Nuevo Latino cuisine for a decent price. Definitely worthy a repeat visit! 

Hip in Harlem

Have you ever seen a skier in the middle of Times Square? Most of you are probably thinking "Duh blizzard #1 of 2010." Although it has happened, this is a RARE occurrence just as a trendy restaurant is in Harlem. Kids-this doesn't come around all the time!

     Needless to say, I was excited to go to Red Rooster in Harlem (125th /Lennox). For those of you scared to hit the hundreds, this is close to the train and a short ride from mid-town. Anyways, I was a bit taken-back by the ambiance. Scene: dim lighting, eclectic knick-knacks, large bar, visible kitchen (points for being able to see who is making your food) and the smell of comfort food. Red Rooster is trendy (including the prices) but yet has a homey feeling. I definitely felt like I was downtown and not across the street from Staples. The menu consists of comfort foods like mac n' cheese, grits & shrimp, fried chicken, and Helga's meatballs. Yes, I know the last one is throwing you off, but Chef Marcus Samuelsson grew up in Sweden but has never lost touch of his Ethiopian roots. This brings for a nice combination of foods and spices.

    Now for the important stuff--food! For an appetizer I split the Blue Corn Fish Tacos which were scrumptious but SMALL (Picture two bite-size tacos). So, I was not surprised at the small entree's. I get you are going for the 'trendy' down-town feel, but a girl's got to eat. The mac n' cheese was okay but did not have that typical 'cheesy' taste that one would expect. The greens in the dish were a nice touch though. However, the Sweet Potato Doughnuts with Cinnamon Sugar made up for the rest. Picture Dunkin Donut-sized minis but a light, doughy, warm ball of greatness sprinkled with cinnamon. The dessert came with two dipping choices: lemon sorbet and vanilla cream. The combo of the sweet-potato and cream was a winner!

   Red Rooster is a great spot for anyone living uptown who is looking for a nice, trendy scene with good food and a decent variety. Being the restaurant is extremely new, I feel like it will be better as the hype wears down. Go for the doughnuts and the Sunday brunch with live Gospel music sounds like a nice way to spend a lazy Sunday! If that all fails, go to meet Chef Samuelsson (Top Chef) who personally greets all guests.

A Mexi-midtown experience!

 Is it possible? Good, fairly priced Mexican in mid-town? To say the least, I was extremely skeptical upon entering Mi Nidito. Being a current resident of Harlem and having lived in Washington Heights, I am surrounded by an abundance of excellent, cheap Mexican food.

In my daily lunch stroll down 8th avenue, I am constantly handed a flyer for Mi Nidito so finally I caved and checked it out. Definitely had an authentic feeling that I did not expect for mid-town and was pleasantly surprised. No need for over-priced 'gourmet' Mexican food--give me the real deal. The appetizer that caught my eye and later caught my heart was the King Crab Nachos. Being a sucker for nachos and the fact crab was involved made this a done deal.

While expecting a huge plate of nachos, I was welcomed to a small plate of about six or so nachos (medium size proportion) that were topped with king Alaskan crab, guacamole (my fav) and melted cheese. Immediately after taking a bite I was hooked. It was like a spicy, seafood party in my mouth topped with the crunch of tortilla and guac. They were so good that I did not want to stop eating to take a picture :)

This is definitely a new go-to for lunch where I will be going and getting the King Crab enchilada. The prices are decent being that it is mid-town and the theater district. If you work in the area, it is worth going to for lunch or if you need a quick bite before/after a show this beats out the competition.