Pork

Roast Pork Sandwich at DiNic’s & A Walk Through Reading Terminal Market | Philadelphia, PA

DiNic's Roast Pork

While heading to Savor in DC this weekend, I found myself looking for a quick place for lunch on the way down. Hitting Philly around 4 hours into the trip, it’s usually an easy stop, with grabbing a cheesesteak from Tony Luke’s being my go to move and getting right back on the road. But I asked friends on The Facebook where they recommended and I was met with an almost universal response: the Roast Pork from DiNic’s (followed by beer at Tired Hands).

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Albany, NY: Anniversary Dinner at New World Bistro Bar [#FoodPorn]

What can I say? Another amazeballs meal from the grey matter of Chef Ric Orlando. I can’t say enough about how much I love this Chef and his menus. After going to the Hell Dinner at Brewery Ommegang I knew that I wanted to take Elise back to New World Bistro Bar for our anniversary.

NWBB is one of those kind of places that has sooo much good food on their menu it’s almost a shame to just order a main for each person. You’re better off getting a bunch of little plates. I’m slacking on a few posts so I’m going to make this quick. The menu for the night:

  • Tie-Dye Pie – Had to try this since I was a little disappointed with the heat (but not the flavor) of the version I had at Ommegang. The crust was much thinner at NWBB but this didn’t take away at all from the experience. The heat was noticeably increased and I did not mind this one bit. Much better this time around.
  • Yellowtail Ceviche with Sweet Potato – Elise is kinda obsessed with ceviche after having it at Ceviche in Florida. I’m OK with this as I find it pretty tasty as well. NWBB’s version was obviously delicious.
  • Wasabi Deviled Eggs – A) I love wasabi. What Asian doesn’t? B) I love deviled eggs. Put the two together and you know I’m game. These were good, and definitely try them if you’ve never had them, but I’ll stick to the ones from the Sriracha Cookbook. Wouldn’t mind seeing Sriracha ones show up on the menu next time!
  • Pulled Goat Sliders – Elise saw goat on the menu and wanted in. She totally surprised me by that but hey, when else were we going to have goat? I don’t even think there was any _sauce_ on the plate when we were done. Get these get these get these!
  • Pork Belly – Wow. This was the most tender I’ve ever seen meat in my life. Literally marshmallow consistency. And the crust! Such a crispy crunchy delicacy. It’s really tough to describe, but this was totally different than the pork belly and kimchi at the Hell Dinner. You gotta go experience it for yourself.
  • Mississippi Mud Pie – Can’t say I’ve ever had this dessert before, but if this is the standard hell yes I’ll try this again. It was basically half cooked brownie with a side of vanilla. As you know, ALL brownies should be half cooked, and the crust of the brownie is the grossest part.* So this dish was perfect for me.
  • Apple Rhubarb – Talk to SWMBO about this one.

Beer or the day for me was “NWBB Etherial Imperial Double IPA” brewed by Chatham Brewing. This was so good that it prompted me to drive down to Chatham Brewing the next morning and pick up a couple of growlers before they headed to TAP NY. More on that later.

I don’t think I have to say this again, but if you haven’t had something by Chef Ric Orlando just go to New World Bistro Bar or New World Home Cooking and have a life-altering dining experience. Now. Thank me later.

* The Perfect Brownie Pan is the bane of my existence. One of my personal hells would be an unlimited supply of brownie batter and only The Perfect Brownie Pan to bake it in.

Mind. BLOWN. [Pig Wings]

Pig Wings

Had these puppies when I was at the Lovin’ Cup in Rochester after my Southern Tier Brewery Tour. I read about them on the menu before going and anxiously awaited having them all day. The New York Times had an article about pig wings back in November I totally missed. It’s a shame because I would have immediately sought them out if I knew back then. They have a great chart that lets you see exactly where the pig wing comes from.

Now, why is this such a big deal? Because chicken is boring. All chicken is is a boring, neutral canvass that’s a vehicle to get the flavor of whatever sauce or spices you have on it into your mouth. Chicken adds nothing to any dish. Pork on the other hand explodes with flavor. Add that that a kickass wing sauce and you have a pinnacle of bar food excellence.

Now, the wing sauce at the Lovin’ Cup wasn’t even that good. You can see by the orange coloring it’s a pretty typical (possibly even pre-made from a jug) wing sauce. But the pig wing itself was so mind-blowing that it totally picked up the slack. I immediately tried to find some the next day, and while I was able to pick up some ham hocks, they were just not right. They’re too big and probably won’t cook right in the fryer. It’s like the difference between a drumstick and a chicken wing; they’re just not the same.

The quest for the the perfect pig wing will continue. I hear they have them at Bat Shea’s but I can’t find a menu online to verify this (or any online presence, for that matter). Once I have some of these bad boys slathered up in The Ruck’s wing sauce and blue cheese, I’ll be happy.