Egyptian Love

On Saturday night we ventured out of our bubble of Brooklyn and into the larger food mecca of Queens. It's a treat everytime I go, finding yet another spot that tops what I had previously understood to be good cheap food. Sometimes troubling to get to, it is always well worth the trip. Egyptian was our choice of the evening which came highly recommended. Ali the charasmatic charmer of a chef, host, and dining guest is probably the most lovely aspect of the restaurant. Dramatically poised in the middle of the quaint restaurant he announces his specials and is quick to point at each table and ask them what they feel like eating. With a plethera of items to choose from, meats are definetly his speciality choosing from brains and spleen, to rabbit and pheasant. I was convinced to get the lamb shank when he initially did his "introduction to tonight's dishes", and when he did it for another table found out about three alternative dishes that I would have rather ordered, but its the charm. He probably just forgot, he told us it was a luring tactic to get us back the next time. Oh Ali. There is a certain "je ne sais quoi" about the whole place even though it may be tackily decorated and uses Western Beef as a main resource, but what it really does is leave the warm bubbly sensation of a great meal even if it wasn't the best of your life.

Holy Mole....Negro

Mole...when did the obsession begin. Ah yes, dining out for a mexican fare breakfast with mole, cheese enchiladas, and eggs. Mole is relatively complicated, and then again not that difficult at all. It is similar in my mind to Indian cusine. There's a lot of toasting, grinding, and blending of ingredients. That's the most complex part about it. I really had never thought about making mole until I did. Word of mouth about this expedition spread like wild-fire and it became understood that everyone is kinda crazy for mole. It earns respect where as if I said I was making pesto might not. To be honest I was a little afraid after reading the ingredient list, it had things like raisins, plaintains, cloves, basically things I really didn't expect to be a part of mole. Upon further thought I realized that this hodge-podge was what made it so complex. It turned out well, better than expected really. I was lacking a fine-mesh strainer in the kitchen where this production occured so it has a grainy texture, which some like. Point is, Thumbs Up.