Category Archives: Restaurants & Food Courts

Yawdie-Q

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IYKYK…but IYDK, Wikipedia says that Yardie (or Yaadi/Yawdie) is a term often used within the Caribbean expatriate and Jamaican diaspora to refer to people of Jamaican origin. The word is derived from the Jamaican patois for “home” or “yard.”

And now YK.

But I’ve got something way better for you to know: Yawdie-Q is a must do!


You’re looking at the authentic Jamaican Fried Chicken Slider served on a potato roll with sweet herb slaw and pickled vegetables, accompanied by a side of Plantain Sticks plus some bespoke house aioli for dipping (comped).


Is it even possible to make a slider that’s actually memorable? It was certainly the best slider I’ve ever had (no lie) and I strongly recommend that you stop by and taste for yourself! And while you’re there, order a refreshing Jerk Lemonade. Jerk Lemonade? Yes. It isn’t spicy, but it is the perfect drink to go with everything on the menu, so don’t miss it!

Now, the plantain sticks are not on the menu – YET. But I’ll bet if enough people come in asking for it, if we’re very lucky, Damien (who is a marketing guru as well as a talented Caribbean chef) will make it happen.

Crunchy outside…


…soft and sweet inside.

Yawdie-Q is located at 2123 Caton Ave in Brooklyn, inside the Flatbush Central Caribbean Marketplace, only a three block walk from the Parkside Ave stop on the Q train.

Maybe I’ll see you there – because I’m going back. Soon!

www.yawdieq.com
@yawdieq on Instagram
 
 

Shaxian Snacks

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Shaxian Snacks is a worldwide restaurant chain serving traditional street snacks from the Shaxian region of China’s Fujian Province that’s definitely worth a try if you’re unfamiliar with the cuisine. This outpost had been open for only five days when I ventured in; I found it packed and I took that as a sign that it might be a gem perfect for my Ethnic Eats in Elmhurst ethnojunket.

Peanuts figure into this cuisine and their presence was clearly manifested in the four dishes that I sampled.

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Shaxian Steamed Dumplings (zheng jiao) with a unique filling, artistically pleated and said to look like little mice. A distinctive peanut sauce is on the side – don’t think dilute Western peanut butter; this is the real deal.


A squeak, I mean a peek inside.


Wontons with Peanut Butter. Not as pretty but certainly tasty, these have an unusual filling made from condensed pork that’s completely unlike the first group. Slathered in peanut sauce.


Shaxian Peanut Butter Noodle. Egg Noodles (rice noodles are also available) with a modest topping of pork, onion, and pepper. The peanut sauce is on the bottom this time.


Shredded Pork & Pickled Mustard Greens with Noodles. Just for kicks, I tried another variant on egg noodles, this time with pickled mustard greens on top, to compare and contrast. Peanut sauce on the bottom of course.

I selected these four “Special Snacks” in order to decide which might be best in the context of the wide variety of flavors we enjoy on my Elmhurst food tour and a champion did emerge.

Want to know which? Only one way to find out: Join me on my Ethnic Eats in Elmhurst ethnojunket and savor the winner!
 
 

Crunchy…Frog?

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A couple of posts ago, I wrote about a recent visit to Queens in search of more good eats for my “Snacking in Flushing – The Best of the Best” ethnojunket. I always expect the unexpected but that generally applies to unusual finds in local ethnic markets. I must admit, however, that I was unprepared for this experience.

Huang Kung Fu is a relatively new stall in the Food Hall at Queens Crossing. The menu and signage featured tempting photos of crispy fried chicken and pork dishes. Totally works for me.

“Super Crispy Pork” grabbed my attention but something called “Chicken Soft Bones” piqued my curiosity. Soft bones? A colorful translation perhaps? An enigmatic metaphor? I don’t have to tell you what I ordered.

It didn’t take long for me to realize that I should have taken the name quite literally. Each little nugget consisted primarily of a piece of cartilage with a bit of meat attached. I guess some folks don’t mind gnawing on cartilage in every single bite; some even claim that “it’s good for you.” But I was ill-equipped for the challenge. It reminded me of the routine by Monty Python’s Flying Circus about Crunchy Frog. Those of you who are old enough to remember that classic brilliant television sketch will understand immediately. For those of you who have yet to suffer daily joint pain, here’s a link.

I blame myself. I was certainly warned. But the overall flavor was tasty and I do love a good fried meaty crunch so I will assuredly make a return visit, perhaps to sample that pork. Definitely. No bones about it.
 
 

Durian Pizza: It’s Ba-aack!!

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A few years ago, I wrote an article for Edible Queens Magazine about durian pizza at Flushing’s C Fruit Life on Roosevelt Ave; you can read it here.

Sadly, like all good things, it came to an end, leaving us fusion-dessert aficionados out in the cold with only Chinese-American durian ice cream to assuage our dispirited souls.

Happily, on a recent exploration of some new stalls in Flushing’s New York Food Court, I rediscovered durian pizza at D.T Restaurant.

Durian’s flavor is complex and delicious, not overly sweet, but definitely tropical, the texture so rich and creamy that I call durian the fruit that makes its own custard. Pizza in its many guises is a crossover phenomenon itself – neither entirely Italian nor American – so introducing a Southeast Asian element is fair play. If one can top pizza with pineapple, why not durian?

Do durian and pizza play well with each other? Most assuredly. I detected no daunting smell – as a matter of fact, the aroma is rather appealing – I experience only the inimitable ambrosial flavor. After all, it’s warm bread, delectable fruit and beautifully blistered melted cheese. What’s not to like?

Now, I understand that you might be hesitant about buying a whole one just so you can try a slice. No worries. I have a solution for you. Simply join me on my “Snacking in Flushing – The Best of the Best” ethnojunket and you can have as much or as little as you’d like along with a host of other delectable tasty treats.

Hope to see you soon!
 
 

Burmese Hut

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I don’t know precisely how many posts I’ve published on ethnojunkie.com; I stopped counting when I hit 1000. But I can tell you that the number of times I’ve suggested that you go somewhere and get something post-haste can probably be counted on the fingers of one hand.

This is one of those posts. The “somewhere” is Burmese Hut, a new stall in Elmhurst’s HK Food Court at 82-02 45th Ave (definitely not to be confused with its short-lived Burmese predecessor) and the “something” is their fantastic Laphet Thoke. Laphet is the Burmese word for pickled or fermented tea leaves and thoke means salad; in Myanmar, tea is not only drunk, but also consumed as food.

There’s no set ingredient list for laphet thoke, but there are four key elements: the tea leaves plus some other veggies like shredded cabbage and tomatoes; the add-ins like dried shrimp; the dressing, often garlic oil, lime juice and fish sauce; and the all-important “crunchies” – expect fried garlic and fried onion, fried broad beans and toasted soybeans plus peanuts and sesame seeds – all mixed together and garnished with green bird’s eye chilies and slices of fresh raw garlic. But basically the performance is entirely up to the chef.

And in this case, the chef is a virtuoso.

On last weekend’s Ethnic Eats in Elmhurst ethnojunket, my guests who had spent time in Southeast Asia were very familiar with the dish, having enjoyed it more than once. I like it so much that I spent years perfecting a recipe for it. And after all the experiences of their eating and my cooking, we concurred that this was absolutely the best, most outstanding version any of us had ever tasted.

Go there. Go there now. Order their spectacular Laphet Thoke. And tell them ethnojunkie sent you.
 
 

Khao Nom Nom Nom

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I always try to kick off my food tours with a crowd pleaser, something that will elicit an enthusiastic “yum” from my guests. Our Ethnic Eats in Elmhurst point of departure is Khao Nom, 42-06 77th St, known for their Thai desserts but also featuring a significant number of savory dishes. I’ve written about Khao Nom’s cuisine so many times because they’re just that good; here is a compilation of five posts from as far back as 2018!

Although choosing an appetizer seems like an unproblematic task, making a decision is daunting because each of the ten they offer is a gem. (You know how I know that, right?) Lately, we’ve been starting with this pair of winners:

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Kao Pod Tod. A deep fried fritter that features sweet corn, black pepper, garlic, and cilantro, combined with rice flour and served with Thai cucumber relish sauce.


Hoy Jor. Tofu skin in lieu of a spring roll wrapper filled with ground pork and crabmeat, fried and served with sweet and sour sauce.

To savor these and over a dozen other treats from Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia, Nepal, Bangladesh, Taiwan, Japan, Hong Kong, the Philippines, and elsewhere in Southeast Asia and parts of China, please check out my Ethnic Eats in Elmhurst ethnojunket and sign up to join in the yum – er, I mean fun!
 
 

Nai Brother Sauerkraut Fish

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Chinese Sauerkraut Fish seems to be a “thing” these days. I don’t know if it’s a surge in popularity or just better marketing, but I’ve been spotting it more frequently lately, if perhaps under alternate nomenclature.

Note that it bears no relation to the sauerkraut you get from the dirty-water-hot-dog cart stationed on every Manhattan street corner.

This dish, Signature Spicy Pickled Fish, came from Booth 21 in Flushing’s New World Mall Food Court at 136-20 Roosevelt Ave. The soup, faintly oily in a good way, arrives brimming with hefty chunks of fish fillet, tofu, and pickled mustard greens along with an array of fresh vegetables. It’s kicked up with hot red peppers and Sichuan peppercorns and manages to balance spicy and sour. The vegetable contingent includes thin slices of potato, barely cooked and crisp, mature bean sprouts, cabbage, celery, and sundry other greens. White rice on the side to offset the sting.

Nai Brother has partnered with YanYan Tea, also floating around Flushing, so there’s a wide selection of creative drinks available to cool your palate in case the soup turns out to be a bit spicier than you had anticipated.
 
 

Brobdingnagian Bargain Dining

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(See what I did there?)

So progress continues at Elmhurst’s revivified HK Food Court but incrementally at best. They move things around as in a protracted game of chess and, with a few exceptions in the far right corner, I can’t really determine who the vendors are – or perhaps there’s only one, because the crew seems to wander freely among all of the stations. Each has some signage, but I’m not convinced that it corresponds to the contents of the steam tables beneath. None of which has anything to do with the food, of course.

But I have stumbled upon two items worth considering.

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Casa Fried Chicken, when it’s staffed and when the chicken looks reasonably freshly fried, offers unreasonably inexpensive fare: wings are 4 for $2 and big honkin’ chicken parts are $1 each. The piece on this plate was about six inches wide and 2½ inches thick. “Is that a thigh?” I asked incredulously. She enclosed it in a wax paper bag and answered, “One dollar,” avoiding my question. At home, my autopsy revealed that it appeared to be a thigh somehow firmly affixed to a breast based on the color of the meat but not on the skeleton or any anatomy I was familiar with. It was agreeably seasoned though, and for the price it was a genuine bargain.

The Fried Rice Noodles are flavored modestly, well lubricated, and possess the satisfyingly chewy texture of an archetypical comfort food. And I’m addicted to the stuff. You’re looking at roughly a quarter of the large size which weighed in at over 2½ lbs: $5.75. I’ve fallen into the habit of bringing one of these home every time I visit because since they’re delicious but not overpowering, they’re easy to tinker with by adding other ingredients (meat, fish, veggies, etc.) and enhancing the seasoning appropriately thus creating something you didn’t dine on the day before while staying well within your budget. This meal cost about $2.50.


The remarkable feature of these noodz is that they are enormous! I’ve unfurled one in this photo; it measures about 7½ x 5 inches and that’s not the largest of the lot.

I see a fusion Chinese Lasagna in my future.
 
 

Hong Kong Food Court Update – Part 2

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As I indicated in my last post, some additional vendors have emerged at the new incarnation of Hong Kong Food Court (82-02 45th Ave in Elmhurst) and it’s my self-imposed duty to keep you informed about them!

I was encouraged to find a Burmese stall, Thar Gi, with a menu of about eight items including this Burmese Thick Noodle Chicken Salad.

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In addition to their standard menu, there’s a display case featuring a selection of dishes, mostly curries with various proteins and the same sauce, targeted for heating up at home. I asked if they could heat one up for me and this is their Beef Curry. They didn’t have rice. Go figure.

I’ve enjoyed a great deal of Burmese food over the years – even prepared some myself – and I’ve always been a stalwart fan. I was hoping for a little more personality from these two dishes. We’ll see if anything changes as they settle in.

And here’s one more from Lan Zhou Ramen, highlighted in my last post: Cumin Lamb Burger. Definitely tasty and on my Ethnic Eats in Elmhurst food tour!

 
 

Hong Kong Food Court Update

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It’s coming along slowly but surely – not as slick-looking as any of the food courts in Flushing, but it’s the cuisine that counts, right?

Some additional vendors have emerged at the new incarnation of Hong Kong Food Court (82-02 45th Ave in Elmhurst) since I last wrote about it and one of the second batch is an outpost of Lan Zhou Ramen. (If you’re not familiar with their other locations, you should know that they’re more than just ramen.)

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Their extensive menu included this admirable Cumin Lamb Noodle. The chef hand-pulled the noodles for my dish as I watched each step in the process; the noodz were as thick and chewy as I had hoped, the spice level was good, and the only thing I might have wished for was a bit more cumin presence – still, it was as satisfying as any I’ve enjoyed elsewhere.

And from the What-A-Long-Strange-Trip-It’s-Been Department: Their brightly lit signage, artistically inscribed with vivid red Chinese characters and identifying it as booth #23 looked familiar; certainly there are not 22 other stalls in HKFC’s current configuration. So when I got home, I checked the photo I had taken during their glory days back in 2019 and sure enough, it’s the selfsame sign.

Here’s hoping that’s a good sign!


Passing the wide assortment of dim sum on my way out of the food court, I couldn’t resist this Ham Sui Gok (咸水角), always one of my favorites. It’s crispy fried on the outside…

…with a chewy glutinous rice dough enveloping pork and perfectly sauced veggies on the inside; it’s sweet and savory at once and definitely filling.

Stay tuned for more new vendors – some I’m happy to report, are unique. And yes, of course, it’s a major stop on my Ethnic Eats in Elmhurst food tour!