Meatballs! Meatballs!

One thing I love about living in NYC is the abundance (maybe even over abundance!) of restaurants. So when my friends mentioned The Meatball Shop (WARNING - When you mouse over the icon of the two guys on the right side it makes a farting noise - scared me the first time) I was skeptical. The only thing I knew of meatballs were those faraway days of rock hard meatless tasting meatballs in school cafeterias or really small ones in canned soups and what not. The prices were okay but then again I never thought of eating just meatballs as being a meal all in itself.

The place is always busy at the usual dinner time and I've tried twice to go but alas the waits around prime time eating time (6pm-8pm) had a 2 hour waiting time. Once we went there around 9pm and the waiting time was still 2 hours but granted we had four people and it was a beautiful Autumn evening. The restaurant inside is rather small so two people would be the best for the shortest wait time.

Third time's the charm! Finally got in on a Sunday at 3pm with no wait (not very surprising). The decor inside reminds me of those old garment factories I use to spend my childhood in. In fact I'm pretty sure all the chairs were salvaged when those factories closed down. It's a very nice comfy ambiance and there's a heavy curtain covering the door to come in which is great since it keeps the drafts (mostly) out!

Any ho! The most important part was the meatballs! My friend and I ordered the "Naked Balls" (I had to giggle at that when I read it on the menu) She ordered the spicy pork while I got the beef one. It's served with this ultra soft bread and choice of cheese and sauce. I personally liked the spicy meatballs because it had that kick in it and also the tomato sauce. The Parmesan sauce I ordered was overwhelming the taste of the slightly dry beef meatballs.
We also shared a side of spaghetti. Nothing special... just regular old spaghetti with tomato sauce and we didn't think it was worth ordering. I totally loved the Arugula and Apple salad. It was very refreshing and crisp and complemented my heavily cheesed up meatball meal. Surprisingly these meatballs were very filling! Don't let their size fool you. I ate 3 and was very full but then again I don't eat too much.

Verdict:
Food is good for the price but not for a 2 hour wait. Next time I'll just order the "Smash" which is 2 balls (hehe) and side salad. This time definitely make room for the dessert which sounded delicious (ice cream with homemade cookies) but I was way too full the first time!

Yelp Reviews for Meatball Shop

Until next time... happy eating!

Mexican + Japanese Fusion

Mexican Kaiten Sushi @ Taka Taka

Sorry guys for being MIA! During the end of last year I got my first full time job and its been exhausting! Some readers/friends have been prodding me to write more posts (you know who you are!) My first review was much better but I had to delete the whole post because there was a glitch in it! SIGH! So here's the first post of the new year!

A new year means new experiences and my sister and I decided to start it off with going to this Mexican Japanese fusion place called TAKA TAKA where their motto is "Mexican Sushi and Japanese Tacos". With us being a lover of both, it was the perfect place to try! The first thing we notice was the conveyor belt of sushi that passed though the kitchen to all the tables outside. We decided to order from the menu rather then the conveyor belt. We noticed the same dishes were rotating on it for the whole hour and a half we were there.

Tuna Sashimi Tostada
The first was a cold dish of thinly slice tuna that was perfect with the crunch of the Tostada and blend of Chipotle sauce, onions, olives and tomatoes. I usually have a lower tolerance for spicy and not a fan of tomatoes but this dish won me over! My sister said "It's s simple but whoever thought of putting tuna on a tostada is a genius!"

Don Cangrero (top left) and the Rib eye Teppanyaki Taco (bottom right)

Both were delicious but what really stood out to us was the Rib eye one because of the blend of sweet sesame sauce and the jalapenos. The meat was tender and full of flavor. I've had my share of flavorless, over/under cooked thin beef to appreciate this wonderful taco. The soft shell crab taco was a tad on the soft side because it also had beans in it. Nevertheless we enjoyed both!

As for the sushi we ordered a modified Philly roll of smoked salmon, avocado, cream cheese with the addition of the fried gyoza strips and tuna. At this point we were already stuffed with the tacos but these were also very good. The details of the crunch strips took these to a new level.

The people packed everything in this adorable to-go box! It was rather pricey being $70 for the both of us but it was definitely a wonderful and unusual food experience. Not an everyday place but you know whenever I feel the need for Mexican sushi and Japanese tacos... I know exactly where to go!

Until next time... how's everyone doing?!