Weekend in Review – NYC Part I

My wife and I took a short trip to New York City this weekend for reasons other than pleasure, but we were able to sneak in a few good meals while we were there (hey, we’ve got to eat sometime, right?). We arrived on a Friday afternoon for a short three-day visit, anxious to try some of the restaurants we’ve been hearing/reading about lately. Our first stop was Empanada Mamas in Hell’s Kitchen.

Empanada Mamas

The restaurant is located on 9th Avenue, between 51st and 52nd streets in Midtown Manhattan. The first thing you notice (after you claw your way through the crowds standing outside the restaurant at dinnertime) is that it’s very cozy (i.e. small), but the atmosphere is quite electric. Expect to hear good Latin music (Salsa, Merengue, Reggaeton) over the speakers while you dine, but it’s not loud enough to interrupt your conversations. Our wait was a bit over an hour, having arrived around 9pm on a Friday, but it was well worth it! One of the best things about Empanada Mamas is that it’s like going to a Tapas restaurant; the empanadas are small (3-4 inches long), which means that you end up ordering 3 or 4 per person and sample quite a few. Our favorites were the Brazil (seasoned ground beef), Reggaeton (roast pork and piggeon-pea rice), and the incomparable Viagra (seafood). The latter was so good that we ended up ordering delivery from Empanada Mamas on Saturday evening just to satisfy our craving (I’m not kidding when I say that I dreamed about this empanada).

The smell and flavor of the Viagra empanada brought me back to my days in Puerto Rico. One of my favorite places in the world is (literally) a hole in the wall called Antojitos del Mar (Cravings from the Sea) in San Juan. I usually drive straight there from the airport, get my seafood empanada fix, then continue on to my father or grandmother’s house whenever I visit the island. The Empanada Mama’s version is as good as I can ever remember Antojitos being, so if you’re ever in Midtown Manhattan, make sure you take a few moments and stop by.

Lobster Place – Chelsea Market

We had a bit of time to kill on Saturday, so we decided to walk around Chelsea, SoHo, and Greenwich Village. Walking around really helps to work up an appetite, and we just happened to be walking around Chelsea Market when a hunger-attack snuck up on me so I decided to grab something at The Lobster Place. The first thing that jumped out at us was that you could buy a whole lobster (1.25 pounds) for $10! Plus, for an additional dollar, they would even steam it for you (now that’s a bargain!). However, I was not in the mood to get too messy, so I looked over the menu and settled on the Tarragon Shrimp Roll (sweet shrimp, fresh tarragon, capers, cornichons, parsley, chives & mayo). The sandwich is made fresh when you order it and served on a buttered-and-toasted lobster roll with a side of cole slaw, house-made potato chips, and a lemon wedge.

The shrimp roll was packed with shrimp and it was hard to eat it without a few of them jumping overboard. The shrimp were perfectly cooked, but I would’ve liked a little less mayo in my mix. The tarragon was noticeable and really went well with the shrimp, but I didn’t taste the capers or cornichons, to be honest. The potato chips were delicious and a perfect compliment to the shrimp roll. The cole slaw, on the other hand, actually tasted fishy so I didn’t eat it. All in all, the sandwich is a solid choice, and a great value at $7.95.