Real Cheap Eats NYC
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Posts by: Jared Cohee - Eating the World in NYC
- MAN
- $8.95
It is never a bad idea to order A-Wah’s house special, which (like all the others) comes in a very large, very hot clay pot. If you dine with a friend, you won’t need two of these—and the server will most likely tell you this. The dish is mainly rice, but it’s delicious rice with a crispy layer at the bottom of the pot. The meats could be more plentiful, but they are incredibly good. If you’re hungry, you can add more for $2.
A-Wah on Eating the World in NYC
5 Catherine St. at Bowery (map)
New York, NY 10038
(212) 925-8308
- BK
- $8.50
A family-style dish, this sizzling platter of stewed meats is served with a crepe that comes in handy for soaking it all up. An everyday food in Belarus, mochanka is unique addition to a national cuisine that often shares foods with its neighboring countries. This almost-stew is a mixture of fatty pork and, in this case, Spam—certainly not what the recipe calls for. Still, it’s undeniably enjoyable, even if your table is not downing vodka to cut through the grease.
Syabri on Eating the World in NYC
906 Kings Highway at E. 9th St. (map)
Brooklyn, NY 11223
(718) 645-2299
- BK
- $5.50
This sandwich is so unappealing to look at that I neglected to take a photo of the thing the first few times I ate it. The soggy mess simply can’t be picked up, so patrons throughout the restaurant dig in with knives and forks. Start hacking off bites and you’ll find some of the best roast beef of your life, along with a dipping sauce that saturates the bun to the point of ecstasy.
Brennan & Carr on Eating the World in NYC
3432 Nostrand Ave. at Ave U (map)
Brooklyn NY 11229
(718) 646-9559
- BK
- $6.00
- SPICY
Move up in line, order your bird, watch it get hacked and collect your prize. Peppa’s jerk chicken is best known for its lovely, crisp skin, but be sure to soak your entire order in their wonderful jerk sauce. You’ll find it on the counter—just don’t confuse it with the BBQ sauce.
Peppa’s Jerk Chicken on Eating the World in New York City
738 Flatbush Ave. at Clarkson Ave. (Map)
Brooklyn, NY 11226
(646) 683-6012
- QNS
- $1.25
- Photograph by Dave Cook
For a buck twenty five, there is no cheaper way to be full in all of New York City. These doughy, juicy wonders are stuffed into a small styrofoam square and waiting to be covered in vinegars and hot sauce. Unlike thin-skinned dumplings, the star of the show here is the thick dough, which does much more than just hold the small morsel of delicious pork inside.
Zhu Ji Guo Tie on Eating the World in NYC
40-52 Main St. at 41st Ave. (Map)
Entrance on 41st Ave.
Queens, NY 11354
(718) 353-6265
- BK
- $8.00
- SPICY
Festac Grill’s goat pepper soup is some serious stuff, almost as if a goat was hacked up and thrown in a pot. Unlike its more accessible counterparts in Clinton Hill, which are made almost exclusively with more familiar meats, it is heavy on the offal—as Nigerian foods tend to be. Dive right in!
Festac Grill on Eating the World in NYC
263 Hendrix St. at Liberty Ave. (Map)
Brooklyn, NY 11207
(718) 627-5151
- MAN
- $11.00
Editor’s Note: Since this dish was added to Real Cheap Eats, its price has risen past $10.00. It’s still a part of the guide as a part of our “grandfather” policy.
The sauce arachide is similar to other West African mafes (meats in peanut sauce), but New Ivoire’s has a more subtle approach, allowing other flavors to surface and creating a splendid soup for its beef. Served with a heaping plate of rice, the dish is definitely more than necessary for lunch. Available only on Mondays.
New Ivoire Restaurant on Eating the World in NYC
76 E. 119th St. at Park Ave. (Map)
New York, NY 10035
(212) 410-5982
- BNX
- $3.00
- SPICY
- STREET
El Atoradero is a tiny Pueblan grocery that seems to be expanding its territory—if not in size, than at least in the hearts of the local Mexican and Central American community. Unfortunately, its kitchen is only open on the weekends, starting in the morning and continuing through an early lunch. Walk in on a Saturday and you’ll be rewarded with the scent of a deep cauldron of carnitas simmering before you. Picaditas are similar to sopes, and I figure the difference is really just in size, but here the fresh corn tortilla is elongated and even larger than usual. El Atoradero’s salsas are excellent, but the tomatillo truly shines for freshness and variety. They make only a small amount of picaditas daily, so ask for a taste, and marvel at their complexity. Weekends only.
El Atoradero on Eating the World in NYC
800 E. 149th St. at Tinton Ave. (Map)
Bronx, NY 10455
(718) 292-7949
- BK
- $5.95
- SPICY
Brooklyn’s newest Malaysian restaurant has a soup that is off the charts. Banana Leaf’s asam laksa starts with an intense combination of sour and spicy flavors within a base of lemongrass broth. There are two types of noodles in the dish: smaller, almost glassy noodles, and round, thicker, homemade noodles. Add fish flakes, onions, pineapples and more, and you are in for a supreme treat.
Banana Leaf on Eating the World in NYC
5216 Eighth Ave. at 53rd St. (Map)
Brooklyn, NY 11220
(718) 851-3818
- BNX
- $3.50
- VEG
- (Photo by James Boo)
People flock to Tony & Tina’s not only for the pizza, but also for a great burek. This Albanian spot covers the usual meat and spinach varieties of this flaky pastry, but have you had a sweet burek before? Tony & Tina’s pumpkin burek has an unusual, spiraled shape and does not need the customary yogurt on the side for dipping. Most everyone else in the place is using it, though, so you might as well.
Tony & Tina’s on Eating the World in NYC
2483 Arthur Ave. at E. 189th St. (Map)
Bronx, NY 10458
(718) 733-8094
- BK
- $9.50
The creamy red pepper sauce that tops this lightly cooked fish combines with the other tastes on the plate very nicely. Nordic Delicacies’ homemade mashed potatoes are a good touch for all of its meals. It is unclear, after spending time in here, whether you are in Brooklyn or in a gift shop in the Oslo airport.
Nordic Delicacies on Eating the World in NYC
6909 Third Ave. at Ovington Ave. (Map)
Brooklyn, NY 11209
(718) 748-1874
- MAN
- $8.50
- VEG
Natto is a fermented soybean with a strong taste, but is ultimately not something most people would object to. On cold soba mixed with egg, soy, onions and crushed sesame seeds, this dish is an amazing taste experience, sour and sweet and salty at the same time.
Cocoron on Eating the World in NYC
61 Delancey St. at Allen St. (Map)
New York, NY 10002
(212) 925-5220
- QNS
- $8.00
Pljeskavica is an abnormally large Bosnian “burger” inside of two delicious pitas. Lather it down with kaymak (a type of cream) and ajvar (a spicy Serbian relish) before digging in. The meat is soft and juicy, laced with onion throughout. The restaurant is the living room of the Bosnian grandmother you wish you had.
Stari Most on Eating the World in NYC
28-51 42nd St. at 30th Ave. (Map)
Astoria, NY 11103
(718) 932-7683
- MAN
- $7.00
- Photograph by Robyn Lee
If you have ever spent an evening roaming the streets of Berlin hungry, this is the place to bring you back. A veal and pork bratwurst, cut up and served with fries and a homemade, tomato-based curry sauce, is the perfect snack food while drinking German beers.
Wechsler’s Currywurst Bratwurst on Eating the World in NYC
120 First Ave. at E. 7th St. (Map)
New York, NY 10003
(212) 667-4663
- BK
- $5.00
- (Photo by Robyn Lee)
Usually available on Sundays, cow foot soup is a good introduction to Atlantic Coast Panamanian cuisine (less Latin, more African), in which you do not actually have to eat the foot.
Kelso Dining on Eat the World NYC
648 Franklin Ave. at St. Mark’s Ave. (Map)
Brooklyn, NY 11238
(718) 857-4137
- QNS
- $6.00
- (Photo by Dave Cook)
Saoto, a bowl filled with shredded chicken, potatoes, sprouts, peppers, cilantro, onion and a hard-boiled egg, can be found at Warung Kario, possibly the only Indonesian-Surinamese restaurant in the city. The tastes are all very subtle, but when taken with the accompanying spicy sauce, this soup puts about as much flavor into your mouth as possible.
Warung Kario on Eating the World in NYC
128-12 Liberty Ave. at 129th St. (Map)
Jamaica, NY 11419
(718) 322-4774
- BK
- $1.25
- VEG
- SPICY
- (Photo by Robyn Lee)
These flatbread delicacies are delicious, combining a flavorful curry with sharp tamarind sauce and spice. Three doubles are most certainly enough for a filling lunch, making this an economic dream.
A & A Bake & Doubles on Eating the World in NYC
481 Nostrand Ave. at Fulton St. (Map)
Brooklyn, NY 11216
(718) 230-0753
- MAN
- $6.00
- STREET
- (Photo by Law & Food)
At night (and all night), a Venezuelan food truck in Inwood serves arepas, cachapas and patacones, a sandwich of marinated shredded beef, pork, chicken or carne asada, placed between two large fried plantain slices acting as bread.
Patacon Pisao on Eating the World in NYC
W. 202nd St. at Tenth Ave. (Map)
New York, NY 10034
(917) 379-5288
- BNX
- $7.00
El Nuevo Bohio is a Puerto Rican pork fantasy land where you can have any part cooked any way. Try the roasted pork plate, served with a plate of tostones (fried green plantain), as men with machetes hack away at whole pigs behind the counter.
El Nuevo Bohio on Eating the World in NYC
791 E. Tremont Ave. at Mapes Ave. (Map)
Bronx, NY 10460
(718) 294-3905
- MAN
- $6.00
- SPICY
The menu at Super Taste is pretty typical of a hand-pulled noodles joint in Chinatown, as is the food. Good, warming soups and quality homemade noodles. But one thing sets Super Taste apart from its competition, the amazing Mount Qi noodles: a bright red, almost glowing, bowl of hand-pulled noodles with some really incredible spicing. The sign on the wall reads a long list of awkwardly stated qualities, but they are all true. It’s like magic.
Super Taste on Eating the World in NYC
26 Eldridge St. at Canal St. (Map)
New York, NY 10002
(212) 219-9876
- QNS
- $8.00
- SPICY
The shining star of the restaurant is definitely bi-bim naeng-myun, a cold dish of spicy buckwheat noodles. The accompanying paste is mildly spicy, very chewy and very slippery, but what makes this version stand apart from others is that it relies heavily on sesame.
Chung Moo Rollrice & Dongas on Eating the World in NYC
39-04 Union St. at Roosevelt Ave. (Map)
Flushing, NY 11354
(718) 308-6582
