Was your New Year’s resolution to start eating better?  Well, now you can at a price that can’t be beat.  At least, on Tuesdays.  Word on the street is that Tierra Sana in the Forest Hills section of Queens will be starting Pay What You Want Tuesdays.  This friendly invitation to pay what you feel the food from their Health Cafe menu is worth, begins February 3rd.  This is for breakfast, lunch, or dinner, so now’s your chance to start eating vegetarian/vegan/organic/kosher or just generally healthful (and from reviews I’ve read, tasty) food at a tasty price.  Eat up, people in Queens and let me know how it is.

The creator of my dark chocolate is gone.  Well, not yet and even then, not completely, but still, I mourn the loss.  Scharffen Berger, the artisan king of grown up flavor, will be closing its factory in Berkeley, and parent company, Hershey, will continue the Scharffen Berger name at some new factory in Illinois.  I was skeptical when Hershey bought Scharffen Berger in 2005, and I’m still skeptical that they can continue the high quality, small batches of smooth, complex chocolate that Scharffen Berger perfected.

On another chocolate note, Chocolate & I week takes place at multiple sites in NYC February 9-15.  There will be cocktail and chocolate tasting menus, art, tours, and demonstrations, all for a variety of prices, including free.  If you want to gear up for Valentine’s Day, check out the list of participants and indulge in a bit of decadence.

I’ve just finished reading The Sharper Your Knife, The Less You Cry by Kathleen Flinn.  Despite the sadistic-sounding title, this was a painless read.  In fact, beyond painless; it was light, easy, and quite enjoyable.  I’m a sucker for books that include food, travel (Paris), and true stories (enrollment at Le Cordon Bleu cooking school).  Ms. Flinn guides us through what it’s really like to attend the world’s most famous cooking institute while trying to navigate through life in a foreign country with a language she barely knows.  It reminded me of the Italy portion of Eat, Pray, Love which was my favorite part of that book.  I especially appreciated that the author had no intention of becoming a chef, but went to Le Cordon Bleu simply because she loves food and re-prioritized her life accordingly.  Bonus: there are recipes included.

If you enjoy reading about food and people’s relationships to it, check out these titles as well:

Comfort Me With Apples by Ruth Reichl.  The second of her memoirs, she relates her years in the San Francisco bay area in a humorous and often painfully honest way.

Kitchen Confidential by Anthony Bourdain.  Please.  A classic.

My Life in France by Julia Child.  A love story in every way.  She was amazing!

A Taco Testimony: Meditations on Family, Food and Culture by Denise Chavez.  I hope you know an excellent Mexican restaurant you can visit after reading this.

Tender at the Bone by Ruth Reichl.  Her first foray into memoirs, it tells of her remarkable childhood and how food became a special part of her life.

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A hot tongue sandwich beckons.  Heed the call.

The first time I stepped into Eisenberg’s Sandwich Shop, I felt as if I were entering the Luncheonette That Time Forgot. Customers squeeze in at the lunch counter or the few tables available as if this were a narrow railroad dining car. The cooks wear white paper hats and assemble sandwiches with the speed and agility of someone who’s made a few thousand sandwiches previous to yours. I’d be surprised if the décor has changed much since it opened in 1929. When you visit, claim your spot, hang your coat with all the others on the wall and sit down to enjoy the plate of pickles that precedes every lunch at Eisenberg’s.

It’s hard to go wrong with the hot tongue sandwich ($9). The meat is succulent and tender and fulfilled the craving I didn’t even know I had. Also a winner is the hot pastrami on rye ($8.50). With a smear of mustard, this sandwich will take you back to your days as a youth on the Lower East Side. They also serve breakfast ($3.50-$9.50), as well as matzo ball soup ($4), beans and franks ($8.50), and a wide variety of sandwiches, including juicy meat loaf ($7.50, Tuesdays and Thursdays only). Don’t forget to order a lime rickey ($2) to wash down your meal and make your time travel complete.

Eisenberg’s is across the street from the Flatiron building and Madison Square Park is a stone’s throw away, so close your mealtime escape with a stroll through the neighborhood before heading back to the office or getting on that double-decker sightseeing bus.

The long view of Eisenberg’s and a close up of hot pastrami as a lime rickey looks on.

Beans and franks wait during lunch rush counter service.

Eisenberg’s Sandwich Shop

174 Fifth Avenue, between 22^nd and 23^rd Streets

Manhattan

212.675.5096

Hey, kids.  Just a reminder that there is one week left of the Times Square Taste Bud Stimulus Package.  Until February 28, participating restaurants in the Times Square area will be offering enticements ranging from a free glass of wine to discounts on your entire bill.  Treat yourself to a show and then check out the deals.  The Big Apple thanks you.

When I don’t want a book to end, I feel I must share it with people who might be interested. I’ve just finished reading Garlic and Sapphires: The Secret Life of a Critic in Disguise by Ruth Reichl. This is not a new book, but it’s new to me and the third of Ms. Reichl’s autobiographical books. I wish there were more to come. This one’s about her days and nights as the food critic for the New York Times.  This woman is funny, insightful, and has a sincere love of food in a way that makes me wish we were friends. What surprised me were the poignant moments that brought a tear to my eye.  In a book about reviewing restaurants?  Amazing.  She also has a wonderful turn of phrase that often impresses me.  The bonus is looking forward to testing the wonderful recipes sprinkled throughout.

If you’ve never read her writings, I’d start with her first one, Tender at the Bone, followed by Comfort Me with Apples.  Now if I could just track down a copy of her out of print cookbook, Mmmmm: A Feastiary that won’t cost me an arm and a leg.

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Craving homemade cookies? I mean, really fresh homemade delights, not just those bakery disks that have been sitting out in a glass case all day? Sure, you could slap together some flour and eggs on your own or, if you have more money than time ($24/dozen), you could try the Downtown Cookie Co.

Owner/founder/baker Dan Guerrera couldn’t find a New York City cookie that met his high standards, so he started making his own (six varieties), just as he was taught by his mother. Beware vegans and pencil-thin citizens: he uses honest to goodness ingredients, so there will be gluten, dairy, fat and nuts involved in these delicacies. And no preservatives, so you’ll be forced to eat these tender cookies within days of receiving them. Darn.

There is no storefront yet, so order online, and if you live in Manhattan, the cookies are messengered to you on the same day. If you’re outside the sacred island, FedEx will deliver to you. Happy winter!

I am not one to turn away from the opportunity to eat a grilled pork sandwich, or pretty much any pork item at all, so when I heard that the Vietnamese sandwich shop, Hanco’s, would be opening within walking distance of my apartment, I started walking.

Nowhere near as cozy as the previous establishment at that location (the Tea Lounge), this basic but functional shop is serving up delicious sandwiches (including chicken, tofu, and sardine varieties). The thin slices of well-seasoned pork are set off by the crisp, cool cucumber and carrots, all bedded down together in a fresh baguette. I will definitely be going back for more.

I will not, however, be ordering the Summer Roll again. Although I normally adore shrimp, lettuce, vermicelli, and chives wrapped in rice paper, I took one bite of this roll and left the rest. The shrimp had a funny fishy smell that no shrimp should have. Perhaps it was an oversight. This Hanco’s had been open less than two weeks when I visited. Regardless, I think I’ll stick to the sandwiches ($7) and Vietnamese coffee ($3.50 – $4) for now.

PS: They also offer bubble tea ($4-$4.75) if you’re needing your gummy tapioca ball fix.

PPS: Hanco’s is cash only and tax is already included in the menu prices.

hypnotized by pork

I should have guessed…

Hanco’s Bubble Tea & Vietnamese Sandwich Shop

350 7^th Ave at 10^th Street

Park Slope, Brooklyn 11215

718.499.8081

I devoured Ruth Reichl’s first three memoirs, and now I hear that a fourth book is set to be released on April 21, 2009.  Not Becoming My Mother: and Other Things She Taught Me Along the Way is about the life of Reichl’s mother.  I’m sure her mother makes for fascinating reading and I know that Ms. Reichl’s writing can withstand the absence of food anecdotes, but I hope it won’t have to.  Food is what led me to Reichl in the first place and it’s what will keep me coming back.  Regardless, I’ll be eagerly be reading her newest venture come April.

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I stopped in at Brooklyn’s old standby Rachel’s Taqueria for a quick bite to eat and discovered that there are some dollar-stretching deals on offer. Three days of the week you can take advantage of their buy-one-get-one-free enticements. Mondays: combos, Tuesdays: tacos, and Wednesdays: enchiladas. Unfortunately, I was not there on one of those days.

By the way, I thoroughly enjoyed Lupe’s crispy taco platter ($9) for lunch. The shredded beef I requested was so tender and flavorful that any carnivore should be pleased. Their burgers ($8.10) are surprisingly satisfying: fresh, juicy, and with a spicy kick, they make me want to try other items from their mesquite grill menu. Tengo hambre!

Rachel’s Taqueria

408 5^th Avenue, between 7^th/8^th Streets

Park Slope, Brooklyn 11215

718.788.1137