Locanda Verde - Manhattan

The Out of Towners
A while back two of Dodo's friends visited NY for the first time.  One from Singapore, the other from Chi-town.  We took them to Locanda Verde for brunch.  It's pretty schwanks - chock full of bright-toothed model babes and well dressed enablers.  Cleary, with my broken mouth smile and day before yesterday's outfit, I wasn't enabling shit.  No worries, we weren't there to pose, we were there to stuff ourselves.  Besides, Locanda Verde is wasted on the slimmies - you gotta put down the iBaubles, roll up your sleeves and dive into their sumptuous high-post brunch.

Eataly - Manhattan

Pricey but Tasty!
I visited Eataly when it opened a few months back and immediately wanted to kill myself.  It was a buzzing mess of gawking tourists and elbowy locals, stretching wait times and my patience beyond reason.  I swam against the current out the exit, empty-stomached and pissed, no intention of ever returning.  I didn't tell this to my colleagues who booked a "haven't seen you in a while" lunch there.  Luckily, the place has settled down; you can get a table in a reasonable amount of time and savor some good food.  I regret not trying Cacio e Pepe while I was in Rome.  The Eataly version was al dente and the pecorino and ground black pepper speed-bagged my taste buds perfectly.  I could eat this every day.

Mexicue - Manhattan

More Manhattan Truck Love
If you ask me "Mac or PC?" I'll smile and answer "both."  It's not because I'm a smartass (though that helps) - I simply don't buy into the question.  On my travels I've learned that everyone thinks their country's food is the best.  Regardless the location, there's pressure to side with the locals.  With an open mind you can find good (and bad) in each country.  On my food continuum, the NYC lunch truck is closer in spirit to the Singapore hawker than the Parisian two hour wine-soaked lunch.  If you've tried the Mexicue truck you know what I mean - they serve-up quick yet excellent barbecued meats in taco and sandwich form.

Bian Dang - Manhattan

Trading Abe for Chops
Some crazy people were slinging chops from a van for only five bucks today.  I saw em driving down Atlantic Ave in Brooklyn on Saturday and jotted the name down - Bian Dang.  Pure luck - they parked a block from the job today so I donned the snorkel parka, waited in line and traded over a fiver.  In return, they gave me a filling two chop lunch that included rice, pork sauce and greens.     

Van Horn Sandwich Shop - Brooklyn

Love is Four Letter Word: P-O-R-K
I've been away from Brooklyn for three long months. Enough time for someone talented to plop down an excellent southern-style sandwich shop near my apartment.  They call themselves Van Horn and they must have sold their souls to the devil.  They made me a pulled pork sandwich for lunch that singlehandedly removed both my jetlag and the bonechill I'd acquired on the walk over.

40 Hands - Singapore

Outsourcing the Hobby
Puff List readers realize I don't know what I'm talking about and my photos are crap.  I'm no pro, this is a hobby - one that can be very time consuming.  At 40 Hands, I accidentally stumbled into an epiphany - I may be able to outsource some of the work.  I was there for brunch with Dodo and her friends MC and Pirate Pixels, two photo fanatics.  They whipped out their expensive cameras and were like food paparazzi.  In this post, I'm using their shots and you can definitely tell the difference - notice the beautiful depth of field in Pirate's egg cocotte.