Inspiration Outing #6: Paulie Gee's

This is the one year anniversary of this blog and it seems only fitting that the post should be about pizza. The motivation for starting this blog was to share some great pizza making on my brother's part.  (Check out this post.)  This weekend I had the fortunate opportunity to introduce one pizza-making Paulie to another.

On left is the Regina for all of the traditionalists out there.  On the right, Anis and Anefew for fennel lovers.

This is my favorite pizza in NY.  Brooklyn has no shortage of pizza places and these days no shortage of pizza places that make a neapolatan style pizza in a brick oven.  But none seem to to quite get the balance of crust and toppings as well as Paulie Gee's.  Even the better pizzerias may do a good crust and have some quality toppings but maybe they don't get enough char.  Or too much char.  Or the topping are heavily piled in the middle making the center of the pie soggy.  These are still good pizzas but they are not Paulie Gee's.  What I like most about the pizza at Paulie Gee's is the artful toppings.  They are both simple and surprising.  Take the popular "Hell Boy" pizza.It has most of the toppings you would expect on an Italian style pizza, mild fior di latte mozarella, soppressata piccante, tomato but with the addition of a spicy, hot honey.  Just enough to add an interesting complexity without overpowering the other ingredients.  We sampled six pies that night, all in unique flavor combinations but keeping with the tradition of simple, good quality ingredients.

The two Paulies in front of one beautiful brick oven.

Inspiration Outing #4: Guido's Burritos in Ocean City MD

Food obsessions run in my family.  Being meticulous about good ingredients and creative with flavor combinations are inclinations that live under our skin.  I have already featured a few family members on this blog and the list will probably keep growing.

Ocean City, Maryland was one of our family vacation spots growing up. My aunt and uncle owned a small hotel on the boardwalk (now a super-sized hotel with two pools and a restaurant, all due to some incredible business intuition, see Tidelands Caribbean Hotel) and we were always welcome for a visit.  My cousins kept up the tradition of family businesses on the boardwalk.  Guidos Burritos is owned by two of my cousins, Rocco Difillipo and Danny Robinson.  Let me share our delicious meal and the fabulous time we had.

Guido's is such a breath of fresh air on this strip.  I love the beach, the sun and open air, strolls on the boardwalk but not the fried food and candy that is sold everywhere.  Really the last thing that is appealing to me under the hot sun  I heavy, greasy fried food and sugary snacks.  I can't tell you how refreshing it is to come of the beach and go to a sit down restaurant with food that uses fresh ingredients and good drinks, the like of which are seen below.

Guido's serves local, craft beers as well as some pretty tasty sangria and margheritas.

Here's the menu breakdown:  Burritos and Not Burritos.  If you are choosing a burrito (which I recommend), your choices are take on themes of traditional flavor combinations and americana favorites.  For example the "Black and Blue Burrito" that features skirt steak and blue cheese.  I had a burrito that featured Maryland crabmeat and sweet corn seasoned with Old Bay.  Dare I admit that I dug my fork into everyone else's plate around the table?  That being said, another favorite was the "Blacken Shrimp Burrito"  that has a refreshing pairing of cilantro and pineapple.  

Shown are the appetizers we ordered.  The "Salsa Trio" consisted of a traditional red salsa, spicy mango salsa and a green tomatillo salsa.   Guacamole was akin to Rosa Mexicano in NY  (which is actually the only thing I would order there.)  

At the head of the table is Danny joining us for lunch.  He is like a proud papa talking about this place.  Owning your own business is something I imagine as an ultimate creation, and here we are happily celebrating it.

Inspiration Outing 2: Grand Sichuan NY

Not to be confused with The Grand Sichuan, which I am sure is also good.  I just haven't been to that one yet.

Grand Central Market was no doubt a beautiful place, but often inspiration can be found from stepping out of your comfort zone.  Maybe this night was about setting my senses ablaze.  Or at least the epidermis of my tongue.

In a sea of NY restaurants, this place is a great find.  It was introduced to me by some friends and I felt it was time to pass on the recommendation.  Don't come here for the hipster vibe or romantic ambiance.  The decor is an unassuming Chinese restaurant.

Ready with our rumbling stomachs and tall glasses of water, I asked my girl friend, Janice, how adventurous she felt.  Tolerance for spicy food was already a given.  Why?, she asks me.  Because the tripe and oxtail is fantastic!  And yes, it is served cold.  Did I mention it is fantastic?

If you have never eaten tripe before, I know the kind of reservations you are experiencing.  Stomach lining.  Enough said.  However, chances are you have all too often already eaten something that would sound just as gross if someone took the time to explain it to you.  Think hot dogs.

The first time (and admittedly the only other time) I had tripe was at an engagement dinner in a restaurant  in the Italian countryside.  It was Tripa alla Romana and this place was the place to have it. The dish was passed around the table along with freshly made pasta entree`s and mouth-watering charcuterie. Although everything else was delicious, the tripe left an unpleasant aftertaste that I couldn't get past. However, as a rule of thumb, I think each gastronomic adventure deserves more than one shot before being stricken from the list of what you would order off a menu.  I would even say more than two or three.  Did I get on this soap box and relay these thoughts to Janice at dinner, I wonder?  Maybe that was when her expression stiffened and she replied "I'll try some of yours."  Let me record this and set it free into the Internet universe:  she ate half. That's the spirit!

Some other things you should try at Grand Sichuan NY:



Shrimp Shumai

Clams in Black Bean Sauce

Green Beans and Duck