Friday, July 31, 2009

*Everyday Chatter

The newest glass tower on 14th and 3rd is rising--here comes another box of nothing:


The backlash against the Williamsburg backlash is backlashing. [Curbed]

David Cronenberg to adapt Don DeLillo's "Cosmopolis" for the screen. [LM]

East 3rd Street men's shelter getting rowdy in the EV. [Gothamist]

A peek inside the old Charles theater on B. [EVG]

Someone doesn't like "slavery" massage parlor ads in the Voice. [BB]

Enjoy the cheap lunch special at Ola Polish Deli in Ridgewood. [BBK]
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3 comments:

  1. pinheadJuly 31, 2009 at 1:23 PM

    Damn you Elisha Otis and your people-lifting contraption!

    ReplyDelete
  2. AnonymousJuly 31, 2009 at 1:51 PM

    May Chan Ramen soon to open: http://newyork.grubstreet.com/2009/07/ramen_saves_the_day_a_first_gl.html

    Ugh. That's all I have to say.

    I've said before at EV Grieve that I think you guys have a fundamental misunderstanding of what ramen is all about -- ramen isn't hipsterfied bodega noodles, it's a 50-year old Japanese tradition. Like pizza, it should be relatively cheap but reflect effortful cooking and good ingredients, is eaten fast, and comes from another culture (in ramen's case, China). The prices are similar too - about $5-8 for one bowl, which should be the equivalent of at least two slices of pizza.

    Rai Rai Ken in the East Village is almost a perfect example of a "typical" ramen-ya. I also like Minca. Setagaya is a little upscale, while Ippudo is bizarre, the equivalent of Di Fara in a palace.

    May Chan is a trendster monstrosity. Without going into too much ramen minutiae, few if any serious ramen restaurants would serve "Japanese" food like robata. If you're going to serve anything other than ramen, it has to be what the Japanese consider "Chinese" dishes like dumplings and soy sauce eggs.

    Plus robatayaki is a very upscale, trendy food in Japan, while ramen is not. It's like having pizza and steak come out of the same kitchen.

    ReplyDelete
  3. AnonymousJuly 31, 2009 at 2:02 PM

    By the way, I don't want to imply that robatayaki is always expensive, or you'll never find ramen mixed with "Japanese" dishes in Japan. It's not like I've written a book on ramen or anything (which would be a worthy project!).

    But the pictures of May Chan make it pretty obvious this is trend hell. Now I'm working myself up again, but how did this: http://www.flickr.com/photos/9297521@N08/3026128006/

    turn into this: http://newyork.grubstreet.com/20090731_restaurant_560x375.jpg

    ?!?!

    ReplyDelete

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