New York City: the city of dreams -- and really crazy food. As a NYC native, I know that just when you think you've seen it all, New York throws something new your way. The food is no exception. So if you live in NYC, or have some time over winter break, consider stepping out of your culinary comfort zone and trying some of these awesome dishes that are just part of what makes New York City so unique.
1. The crazy cream cheeses at Tompkins Square Bagels.
Looks like a dessert, but really, it's a bagel. That's the motto at this East Village bagel joint, Tompkins Square Bagels. Try out their birthday cake or berry berry cream cheese. More of a savory person? Try the olive pimento, chipotle avocado, or wasabi cream cheese.
2. Grapefruit Jalapeño Sorbet at Odd Fellows Ice Cream Co.
This Brooklyn ice creamery is known for crazy flavors like tobacco, smoked chili and huckleberry, and prosciutto melon. Unsure how I feel about tobacco-flavored ice cream, but it sure is creative. They even have cool sorbet flavors for you non-dairy eaters, as mentioned above, among others like horchata and passionfruit Basil.
3. Anything fried from The Chip Shop.
Fried mac and cheese. Fried pizza. They literally have fried pizza. I see you NYC pizza diehards rolling your eyes over there, but don't act like you don't at least want to try it. If you like fried anything (who doesn't?) then this place is a must. I've been to The Chip Shop a handful of times and have tried the battered shrimp and chips, the fried mac and cheese, the Granny's mac, fried pizza, fried Snickers bar, and the fried cheesecake. And they were all to die for. If you follow some guidelines, they'll even fry something you bring into them!
4. Kangaroo meat at The Australian.
Seemingly very authentically Australian, according to the Yelp reviews. And they have some pretty yummy-sounding Australian desserts I've never heard of, like Pavlova and Lamingtons. I think just being able to say you've eaten kangaroo meat sounds badass enough to give it a try. And speaking of meat...
5. Wild boar burger at Bareburger.
Have you ever seen a wild boar? This is what they look like. Yeah, you'd be eating that. They average 165 to 220 pounds in Europe. Bareburger also has duck burgers and duck bacon. Never exactly heard of duck bacon, but bacon is bacon, so it sounds good to me.
6. Balut at Maharlika.
Ah, this was so unassuming from the first photo -- this is balut, a fertilized duck embryo (omg). It is a popular Filipino street food and it comes complete with little duck feathers and bones. Yum.
7. This pig's head at The Cannibal.
The face of an animal isn't exactly my cup of tea, but if someone cut this up for me and took the head away, I would probably eat it. Everyone on Yelp is also raving about this particular dish, so I would say it's worth leaving your comfort zone for!
8. Soup dumplings at Joe's Shanghai.
These are actually heaven in a dumpling. They make gelatinous cubes of soup, wrap them in dumplings, then steam them so the soup melts inside. Joe's Shanghai has 4 out of 5 stars on Yelp from 3,478 reviews. Not bad odds at all. And the bonus: they're super cheap!
9. Cuy at El Pequeño Coffee Shop.
I will never be able to unsee this. This is a fried guinea pig. On the menu for this Queens restaurant, it's the unassuming cuy de Ecuador. Apparently, this is not an uncommon dish in South American countries such as Ecuador, Peru, and Bolivia as it served as a main source of meat before cattle was introduced. OK. I think the thought of guinea pigs as a pet is too ingrained in my mind to be able to stomach this, but if you can, more power to you.
10. Halo halo at Grill 21.
This interesting looking dessert is a traditional Filipino dessert with shaved ice, evaporated milk, boiled sweet beans, jello, and fruits. The purple ice cream is purple yam ice cream (sounds weird but it's delicious, take it from me!) and the jelly-ish looking yellow slice is flan.
11. Live octopus at Sik Gaek Chun Ha.
You can't tell, but that cut up octopus is still wriggling on the plate. You eat it live, which seems slimy and gross to me but people love it for the experience so, hey, whatever floats your boat. Maybe I'll become ambitious enough to try it one day.
Ever tried any of these dishes? What did you think? Let me know in the comments below!
